WEDNESDAY 5TH OCTOBER 2022

Buhari Accuses ASUU of Corruption as FG Registers Two NewVarsity-based Unions Move to liberalise academic sector, claims Ngige Labour minister is desperate, newly registered associations are dissidents, ASUU insists Speaker of House of Reps presents proposals to Buhari, says end of 7-month strike by academics imminent Deji Elumoye, Onyebuchi Ezigbo, Kingsley Nwezeh, Udora Orizu and Kuni Tyessi in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, accused the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)

of involvement in endemic corruption in the education sector, alleging that corruption in the sector

undermines federal government's investment in education.

Buhari said incessant strikes by

unions created the impression that government was underfunding education.

Speaking at the fourth National Continued on page 40

For Second Time in 45 Years, NNPCL Declares Profit, Rakes in N674bn After Tax Revenues... Page 5 Wednesday 5 October, 2022 Vol 27. No 10039. Price: N250

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Aisha Buhari: My Husband Suffered from PTSD for Many Years Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

L-R: Chairman, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, (NDIC), Board of Directors, Mrs. Ronke Sokefun; Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele; Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed; Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking and Currency, Senator Uba Sani, and Managing Director and CEO, NDIC, Mr. Bello Hassan, during the opening ceremony of the 2022 International Association of Deposit Insurers IADAI-Africa Technical Association Workshop in Abuja... yesterday PHOTO: KINGSLEY ADEBOYE

The First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari, yesterday, disclosed that President Continued on page 40

Emefiele: Rise in Disruptive Banking Technologies Disturbing Says deposit-taking fintechs must be capitalised with N25 billion Curtail potential threats from financial technology companies, others, Ahmed charges regulators Banking crisis may have contagion effects, NDIC warns W’Bank: Nigeria’s economic growth continues to suffer from underperforming oil sector Hails country’s apex bank’s interventions, lowers GDPprojection to 3.3% NNPCL: Oil theft, vandalism putting Nigeria in terrible situation, advocates capital punishment for offenders Justifies engagement of non-state actors in pipeline surveillance contract Ndubuisi Francis, James Emejo, Sunday Aborisade in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe in Lagos The Governor of the Central Bank

of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele yesterday stressed that the rapid evolution of financial Continued on page 40

Sanwo-Olu Surprises Lagos Civil Servants with Salary Increment...

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A SOUVENIR FOR THE GOLDEN GIRL...

World 100 metre hurdles champion, Tobi Amusan (left) receiving a souvenir from her State governor, Dapo Abiodun, when she visited the Governor in his office at Oke Mosan, Abeokuta… yesterday

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

NEWS

4TH NATIONAL SUMMIT ON DIMINISHING CORRUPTION IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR...

L-R: Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari; Chairman, ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye; President Muhammadu Buhari; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Chairman, NDLEA, Brigadier General ( retd ) Buba Maria and former INEC Chairman, Atahiru Jega, during the 4th National Summit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector held at the International Center of the PHOTO: GODWIN OMOIGUI Presidential Villa , Abuja...yesterday

For Second Time in 45 Years, NNPCL Declares Profit, Rakes in N674bn After Tax Revenues Federation to decide how funds will be deployed Kyari promises additional 400,000 bpd as major pipelines resume Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja For the second time in its 45-year history, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) , formerly a corporation, yesterday declared a Profit After Tax (PAT) financial position, announcing that it raked in N674 billion for the 2021 financial year.

The amount is 134.8 per cent or N387 billion higher than the N287 billion announced by the company in 2020.

Group Chief Executive Officer, NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari, who made the declaration in Abuja while making public excerpts of the group's audited financial statement for the year ended December 31,

2021, stated that the profit was driven by the company's activities in the upstream operations as well as in gas and power.

He also announced that the shareholders' fund position grew to N2.81 trillion, an increase of 144 per cent, in a speech he titled: “Sustaining Positive Momentum, Progressing to New Levels.”

As the company seeks to become a ‘dynamic global energy company’ of choice to its customers, partners, and its over 200 million shareholders comprising all Nigerians, the GCEO noted that there will be no going back on the new path that the NNPCL has set for itself.

“In 2019, we rolled out deliberate policies and initiatives aimed at

reducing costs and eliminating losses while adopting technology to entrench Transparency, Accountability, and Performance Excellence (TAPE) across the various functions that support our business operations.

“Since then, we began to see the transformational impact of these policies and initiatives on NNPC’s performance. We have recorded significant improvement in our financial performance over the past three years, turning up the curve, from losses to profits,” Kyari stated.

He recalled that in September 2021, President Muhammadu Buhari approved the publication of the 2020 NNPC Group Audited

Financial Statement (AFS) in which NNPC declared a profit after tax of 287 billion for the first time in its 44 years.

Despite the challenging operating environment, Kyari stated that the NNPCL believes that the company has the potential to sustainably deliver better value to its shareholders.

“Today I am happy to announce that the board of the NNPC Limited has approved 2021 audited financial statements, and NNPC has progressed to a new performance level, from N287 billion profit in 2020 to a N674 billion profit after tax in 2021, climbing higher by 134.8 per cent year-on-year profit growth,” he declared.

NMDPRA Resumes Consultations on PIA Regulations, Proposes $2m Penalty for Tampering with Oil Meters Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) yesterday continued its stakeholders’ consultations on various regulations in its areas of operation in the oil and gas sector.

At a three-day event which kicked off in Abuja, the Authority stated that it was in continuation of efforts to streamline its regulations which came as a fallout of the new Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

According to the NMDPRA, the latest set of regulations would deal with health and safety in the sector as well as accuracy of measurement devices to ensure that no party is cheated.

It came about two months after the agency concluded the new rules on gas pricing domestic demand and delivery regulation as well as the petroleum transportation and shipment regulation.

The two new regulations were the Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Safety Regulation and the Petroleum Measurement Regulation.

Under the proposed regulations, the NMDPRA stated that tampering with metering systems or its ancillary equipment without approval would now attract a sanction of $2 million per meter.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA, Mr. Farouk Ahmed, said the meeting underscored the importance of stakeholders’ feedback on the proposed new rules.

Represented by the Executive Director, Distribution Systems, Storage & Retailing Infrastructure, Mr. Ogbugo Ukoha, Ahmed noted that in the next three days, the proposals would be discussed in details which will be fed into the final document.

“As you know, the essence of these engagements is for us to receive your feedbacks and add value to the draft to make it richer,” he stressed.

The CEO explained that it was the Authority’s objective to be guided by the collaboration with the operators in the market, pointing out that the NMDPRA considers it very critical to the success of the new PIA. A review of the document showed that some of the objectives of the new regulations would be to oversee the safety and occupational health in the Nigerian midstream and downstream petroleum operations and provide for the safety standards to be observed during petroleum operations.

It also sets out the permits, authorisations and fees for such activities, outline the duties of licensees and permit holders and provide sanctions and penalties for failure to comply with the regulations.

On the safety regulation, part of the new proposed rules was that operators shall provide for its personnel sufficient and appropriate safety equipment and personal protective equipment of internationally approved standard and ensure that such equipment

is always maintained in good condition.

“They will also establish emergency medical procedures including an appropriately manned and well-equipped onsite clinic, standard first aid boxes and automated external defibrillators situated at strategic locations in the facility, and medical evacuation procedures.

“They are also to provide firefighting and first aid equipment at every facility or installation in accordance with best industry standards and ensure that all

personnel including contractors undergo occupational fitness tests and minimum industry training in a manner specified by the Authority,” the NMDPRA stated.

It would also ensure that all major accident hazards associated with the project/facility would be identified, recorded, analysed and reduced to as low as reasonably practicable while every safety, emergency and communication systems conform to acceptable standards and specifications.

Continues online

Kyari also announced that the group’s financial position recorded an increase in total assets from N15.86 trillion in 2020 to N16.27 trillion in 2021, while its total liabilities decreased by 8.3 per cent from N14.68 trillion in 2020 to N13.46 trillion in 2021.

“Our shareholders fund position grew to N2.81 trillion, representing 144 per cent YoY ,“ he said?

The NNPCL helmsman opined that the performance of the company would have been greater if the operations in the year under review were free from incessant vandalism, crude oil and products theft ,among others.

Kyari stressed that the NNPCL looked forward to achieving greater performance to support its growth aspirations and to create more value for its shareholders as it drives full commercial operations under NNPC Limited.

“Our core business is upstream and gas and power. So the key drivers of this performance is coming from the upstream and the gas and power and the details are available,” he said in response to a question on the units that made the most returns.

On how the profit will be shared, going forward, Kyari noted that the decision will be made by the shareholders and their representatives after a meeting.

“You make profit and the dividend is always governed by dividend policies of every company.

The shareholders in this company is the country, the 200 million Nigerians represented by the Ministry

Buhari to Present 2023 Budget to National Assembly on Friday Sunday Aborisade and Udora Orizu in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari would this Friday present and lay before the two chambers of the National Assembly, the proposed N19.76 trillion budget for the 2023 financial year.

THISDAY had reported that the federal government planned to spend N19.76 trillion in 2023, a 15.37 per cent increase from the amount earmarked in the 2022 budget as well as a projected deficit of N11.30 trillion.

The budget would be the last to be presented by Buhari as his tenure elapses on May 19, 2023.

The letter on budget presentation

by Buhari was personally written by him and read during plenary yesterday, by the Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan and Speaker of the House Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.

The letter read in part, "This is to inform the House that I will on 10:00 am on Friday, 7th October 2022, formally present the 2023 appropriation bill to a joint session of the National Assembly. Please accept, Mr. Speaker, the assurances of my highest regards. I look forward to addressing the joint session."

Shortly after reading the letter, Lawan said the president would appear personally to address the joint session of the parliamentarians

as against the earlier fears that there might be no space to accommodate the session due to the ongoing renovation.

At the House, Gbajabiamila said the decision to present the budget on Friday was as result of the meeting the leadership held last Friday, with minister of finance Zainab Ahmed, with a view for an early presentation.

He therefore urged his colleagues to be present on that day.

He said, "This was as result of our meeting last Friday with minister of finance, with a view for an early presentation of the budget. Even though Friday is not a legislative sitting day, we felt it’s ok to save us time."

of Petroleum incorporated and the Ministry of Finance incorporated in the case of the NNPC limited, but for the corporation, it is a different consideration.

“The federation now decides what to do with this. And currently as you might be aware, you know there's a huge difference between the obligations of the NNPC and that of the corporation, so we're sorting this out to be the decision of the shareholders whether to return part of it or all of it. So I cannot give you any number because that decision has not been made,” he posited.

The chief executive who lamented the incessant attacks on the NNPCL infrastructure, said that production had been ramped up to around 1.2 million barrels per day.

He noted that the NNPCL has a proven capacity to meet its production targets , explaining that production without any extraneous intervention had peaked at 2.4 9 million barrels per day a few years ago.

“That means we have capacity without doing anything extra to produce up to 2.49 million barrels per day,” he assured.

But with the coming of covid-19 and the issues around the acts of vandalism, the GCEO said there had been a gradual decline in production up to the point of 1.2 million barrels per day currently.

Kyari, who took questions on when the issue of sabotage of NNPCL pipelines is expected to stop, explained that the 700, 000 barrels per day losses weren’t necessarily stolen , but that most was production foregone due to vandalism of its assets.

“All our major trunk lines are shut down. That means you are not producing the oil you could have done . It doesn't mean that all the products are stolen. When the lines are running, you can lose substantial part of that volume,” he explained.

“We believe that at least when they (assets) are running you can lose up to 200,000 barrels to theft.

But in actual losses, today our plan is to produce at 1.8 million barrels per day. If you are doing 1.2 million barrels per day, it means technically you are losing the difference between 1.2 million barrels and 1.8 million barrels, which is around 600,000 barrels per day opportunity loss, not stolen,” he added.

According to him, the NNPCL is not saying that 600,000 barrels are lost daily but that due to shutdown if facilities, the lines cannot produce oil.

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NEWS

AIRTEL TOUCHING LIVES SEASON 7...

L-R: Director, Corporate Communications and CSR, Airtel Africa, Emeka Oparah; Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Airtel Nigeria, Surendran Chemmenkotil; Director: Human Resources and Administration, Airtel PHOTO: Abiodun Ajala Nigeria, Adebimpe Ayo- Elias and Producer of Airtel Touching Lives, Spero Patricios during the press conference to announce the commencement of Airtel Touching Lives Season 7 in Lagos... yesterday

Buhari: Trade Central to Poverty Eradication, National Productivity Says 10 million MSMEs to access credit at single digit Ndubuisi Francis and James Emejo in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday said trade has remained critical to the country’s economic growth, poverty eradication, building wealth as well as improving foreign reserves and national productivity.

Buhari, said this during the opening of the 17th Abuja International Trade Fair, with theme: “Creating an Export-Ready Market Through SME Digitisation,” that was organised by the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI).

This was just as Buhari yesterday approved the appointment of Aminu Umar-Sadiq as the new Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), operators of the nation’s Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF).

According to Buhari, trade was crucial for raising standards of living of Nigerians and improving productivity, adding that, “No economy can thrive without robust trade.”

He said the federal government was keen to help MSMEs achieve their full potential, adding that it has developed strategic policy interventions, enshrined laws and established institutions to create a supportive business environment for entrepreneurs and MSMEs.

Represented by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Niyi Adebayo, the president also said the government had developed a programme that would enhance access to credit for over 10 million MSMEs at single digit rate.

He also said the Ministry of Trade had commenced the process of adopting a centralised automated platform for the registration of trademarks, patents and designs with the aim to fully digitise existing records and automate the registration process to enable ownership and commercialisation of innovation.

Buhari noted that the MSME segment remained critical to the stimulation of economic development, pointing out that Nigeria is home to over 40 million MSMEs who together account for about 48 per cent of GDP. He said, “Many of us just see MSMEs as the Mama that fries akara or the friendly “mallam” that owns the kiosk on our street.

That is not the case; some of the fastest growing Fintech start-ups in Africa are, in fact, MSMEs. “This trade fair provides an opportunity to change the narrative of what MSMEs are and demonstrates how innovative they can be.

“Here present, I see enterprises with the capacity to produce in large quantities. I see enterprises that

employ large cross-sections of our youth population. I see enterprises with the capacity to export. I do not see small businesses here; I see future mighty businesses.”

Buhari also said that the federal government had also approved fiscal incentives for MSMEs which includes exemption from Company Income Tax (CIT)and Value Added Tax (VAT) for enterprises with annual turnover of less than N25 million.

He said the pioneer status incentive also grants tax holidays for start-ups across multiple sectors, adding that the federal government in 2016, approved the establishment

of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) to eliminate bureaucratic constraints to doing business in Nigeria and make the country a progressively easier place to start and grow a business.

Also, he noted that the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) had also established a One Stop Investment Center which comprises 27 government agencies.

He said the aim was to significantly reduce the time spent in processing regulatory approvals, provide investment facilitation services and help with company registration and expansion among

The Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola on Monday stated that "timely and efficient adjudication" of cases enhances stability in the Nigerian financial sector.

To this extent, the Acting CJN said time was of essence for a cross discussion of the legal and contextual issues including the challenges encountered by operators and regulators of the banking and financial services sector in relation to the judicial system, so as, "to identify possible solutions to the problems and thereby ensure stability of the Nigerian banking and financial economy."

Ariwoola, was speaking at a capacity building workshop for Justices and Judges of the Court of Appeal and Federal High Court

on Banking and Financial Services.

He noted that the theme of the workshop, "The Role of the Judiciary in Banking Sector Reforms and Economic Growth in Nigeria," signified the desire by relevant stakeholders to continuously improve the competence and capacity of judicial officers in the areas of substantive and procedural law, judicial ethics and skill as well as social context awareness of issues that are critical to the well-being of the country.

While stating that, "the banking sector is operated based on the assurances of trust and confidence," the CJN stressed that such trust and confidence, "can be easily eroded where there are delays and inefficiencies in speedily resolving disputes arising from the sector."

Justice Ariwoola, however maintained that the Judiciary has

to transform business processes, organisations, and corporate culture with new innovation processes, marketing models, and types of products/services.

He said this was fast becoming an increasingly central issue for companies and explained why the objective of the fair is to create an export ready market for SMEs. Abubakar, noted that aside from promoting businesses, the exhibition will also strengthen trade and investment opportunities in the country, thus, offering a neutral and open atmosphere for blue chip companies, trade groups/ associations, and government.

House Investigates Reoccurring National Grid Collapse Probes alleged killing of Ogun residents by Customs officers Udora Orizu in Abuja The House of Representatives has mandated its Committee on power to conduct investigation into the root causes of incessant national grid collapse in the country.

The Committee was mandated as well to look into Transmission Company of Nigeria’s (TCN) capacity to address the ugly trend, in order to forestall future occurrences and protect our already

fragile socio-economic environment.

The resolution of the lawmakers followed the adoption of a motion of urgent national importance sponsored by Hon. Sani Bala at plenary yesterday.

Moving the motion, Bala said the House was aware that national grid collapses occur when there are system disturbances along the transmission lines connecting a number of generating stations.

He expressed concerns that since

Speedy Trial Will Enhance Financial Sector Stability, Improve Investors' Confidence, Says CJN Alex Enumah in Abuja

other incentives and reforms.

Buhari added, “While the federal government is doing its part, we need to rethink our impression that MSMEs are small businesses and focus on how they can be energised as vehicles for economic growth.

“As always, the federal government remains committed to ensuring ease of doing business and creating an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.”

President of ACCI, Dr. Al Mujtaba Abubakar, said over the past decade, the emergence of increasingly powerful digital technologies and digital infrastructures have transformed and continue

proactively positioned itself to meet the challenges posed by the dynamics and innovations of the digital age by streamlining several rules of court so as to embrace and encourage quick methods of dispute resolution.

He said, "Not only are courts becoming more automated, but our rules of court have also evolved to include IT solutions and alternative dispute resolution mechanism, amongst other strategies that enhance more efficiency in the administration of justice."

Earlier, the Administrator of the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Justice Salisu Abdullahi, stated that the workshop organised by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Juris Law in collaboration with the NJI, was aimed at providing a platform for bankers, financial experts, regulators, and other

stakeholders in the banking and financial sector to discuss and agree on approaches that will best secure the successful implementation of recent reforms relating to the sector.

On his part, President/ Chairman of Council, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Mr. Ken Opara, stated that the effective and timely determination of disputes bordering on financial system stability was crucial to the banking sector because it reduces the number of public funds to be expended on such matters.

While he called on the Judiciary to encourage mediation and conciliation mechanisms for dispute resolutions, Opara tasked the Judiciary to create and embrace online payment platforms to ease the filing of court processes to eradicate delays associated with manual processes.

2013, when the privatisation exercise took place in the power sector, the country has witnessed over a hundred national grid collapses, a challenge which experts and operators said would linger for a long time if not addressed.

He further expressed concerns that this year alone, the national grid has collapsed seven times (more than the three times recorded last year), thereby, causing national power outages with enormous socio-economic implications.

The lawmaker said, "Equally concerned that the latest in the series of power failures has been adjudged among the worst the country has witnessed in recent times, which in turn indicates that there is no framework or spinning reserve meant to forestall such occurrences.

“Worried that it is incomprehensible that all the key power plants in the country, including Egbin, Utorogu, Chevron Oredo, Oben gas-fired power plants, Ughelli, and Chevron Escravos power plants could all shut down at once.

"Also worried that the issue of system collapse may not be unconnected with the TCN’s lack of wheeling capacity, inadequate transmission lines and spinning reserves as well as refusal to fasttrack construction of digital control centres instead of the company’ current analog system.

“Notes that available statistics from research show that if the power generated is adequately wheeled and transmitted for distribution to consumers, there will be a 30 per cent reduction in the cost of generating power thus leading to

a corresponding reduction in the prices of utilities in the electricity supply industry."

The Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Toby Okechukwu, in his contribution, said the essence of the investigation was to find out what the country can do to cure the issue of power generation.

While lamenting that efforts on the matter had been all motion without movement, he warned that unemployment problem cannot be solved if power issue was not resolved.

"Most countries have solved this problem. It's not a good thing a country of over 200 million can't generate up to 5000 megawatts.

This investigation should be taken seriously,” he added.

Thereafter the motion was put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Gbajabiamila who presided over the plenary session and it was passed.

Meanwhile at the plenary, Gbajabiamila set up an adhoc committee to investigate the alleged gruesome killing of some individuals by officers of the Nigeria Customs in Egbado South/Ipokia in Ogun state.

Last week, a member Hon. Kolawole Lawal had brought a notice to the House, notifying the lawmakers that there was a resolution on the floor in February 2022, for the constitution of an ad-hoc committee to investigate the alleged killings.

Announcing the 12-member Committee Gbajabiamila said it would be chaired by Hon. Muktar Ahmed.

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ACCESS BANK IN ANGOLA… L-R: Group Head, Strategic Investments, Access Bank Plc, Chuma Ajene; Executive Director, African Subsidiaries, Access Bank Plc, Seyi Kumapayi; Chairman – Finibanco Angola, Nuno Mota Pinto; and Chief Executive Officer, Banco Montepio, Pedro Leitao at the signing of agreement on the acquisition of Portugal’s Montepio Holdings shareholding in Finibanco Angola by Access Bank in Portugal…recently

Access Bank to Acquire 51% Majority Stake in Finibanco Angola S.A Kayode Tokede Access Holdings Plc yesterday announced on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) that its wholly owned subsidiary, Access Bank has entered into a

binding agreement with Montepio Holding SGPS S.A to acquire a 51 per cent majority shareholding in Finibanco Angola S.A Finibanco Angola S.A. is a profitable, well-capitalised full-service commercial bank with over 20

branches and around $300 million in total assets that has operated in Angola since 2008.

The company secretary, Access Holding, Mr. Sunday Ekwochi in a statement disclosed that the transaction would be effected via

the purchase of existing shares owned by Montepio-the holding company for Banco Montepio, one of Portugal’s well-established commercial banks.

According to him, the Angolan market as the sixth largest economy

in Africa and the seventh largest country overall, with a vast and diversified natural resource base and a growing population, represents a strong potential for the bank’s growth aspiration.

He explained further that, "The

Jega: Corruption Detrimental to Education Sector ICPC: Prospective govt appointees indicted for corrupt practices, drug abuse President confers integrity award on policeman for rejecting $200,000 robbery bribe Deji Elumoye and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja A former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, yesterday regretted that Nigeria was being perceived as one of the most corrupt countries in the world.

Jega said this in his keynote address, while speaking at the 4th National Summit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector with theme: "Corruption and the Education Sector" organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in conjunction with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF), Joint Admission and Matriculation (JAMB) with support from MacArthur Foundation, Buhari said corruption from the basic to tertiary levels of education greatly undermined government's investment in the sector.

Also, the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Prof. Bola Owasanoye, said the agency had escalated its anti-corruption drive in tertiary institutions and Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDA).

This was just as President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday conferred the prestigious 2022 public service Integrity award on a Chief Superintendent Daniel Amah for rejecting a $200,000 bribe from robbers.

Amah is the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Nasarawa Division in Kano State.

Jega said the effects of corruption in the education sector undermined national capacity to develop requisite national social capital for socioeconomic development, adding that no nation develops without adequate and appropriate investment in education.

He lamented that the education sector had suffered neglect, chronically underfunded and engulfed in crisis, compounded by the impact of corruption both from within the education sector itself, and from the wider public sector.

The professor of political science noted that there was an increasing evidence of how corrupt practices rooted in the wider public sector affects and compels corrupt practices in the tertiary education sector, especially universities, which he said statutorily enjoy some relative autonomy.

"There are examples of how reform policies, formulated with good intentions are often circumscribed by endemic corruption in the public sector, and in their application in the education sector, create their own dynamics of corrupt practices.

“This can be illustrated with examples of how three reform policies by the federal government compel many Vice Chancellors of federal universities to become somewhat ‘compulsorily’, even if in some cases reluctantly, involved in or with endemic corrupt practices in the wider public sector.

"The first reform policy of measure is the Procurement Act 2007, which requires that contracts of certain threshold should seek for approval either at the Ministerial Tenders Board (MTB) or at the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP). The second is the requirement by Members of the National Assembly that every Vice Chancellor must appear before them to defend their budgetary proposals before funds would be appropriated to their universities.

“The third, which is relatively more recent, is the requirement by the federal government that no university should recruit any staff, even to fill existing vacancies, without at least three layers of approvals by the federal bureaucracy, at the NUC, at the Office of the

Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, and at the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation," he said.

Jega noted that all three policies in spite of the good intentions, which may have underlined them, not only undermined the relative autonomy of the universities, but have also introduced extraneous relations and influences laden with corrupt practices.

In his remarks, Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, commended the leadership of JAMB for "achieving what no other agencies has achieved in recent past".

He noted that Nigeria must fight corruption to be liberated.

"Nigeria has a bad reputation of being a corrupt society. Nobody will change that except us. At a moment you see people condemning corruption and the next moment, they engage in it. We have to sincerely fight it otherwise this

nation is doom", he stated.

However, speaking on what went through his mind when he rejected the huge amount of money, especially as a member of staff of a service that had been maligned over the years, Amah said: “Well, we have to protect the interest of the force, and the interests of the country at large.

In all honesty, I take no personal credit. I believe there are very eminently qualified Nigerians out there that are doing great things for our country. To emerge from this stratum of Nigerians is indeed a great pleasure."

He dedicated the award to the Inspector General of Police, the ICPC and the president.

The decision to confer the award on Amah was based on the recommendation of the Chairman of the ICPC, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye last month.

The ICPC said: "On 24th April 2022, a matter was reported to him

that a suspect, one Mr. Ali Zaki convinced Bureau De Change Operators that he has $750,000 which he could sell to them at the rate of N430 to give him the equivalent N322,500,000.

"After a bank staff confirmed the availability of the money at the bank to the victims, the transaction took place. However, the suspect arranged with armed robbers to track and rob the victims while they were transporting the money.

"When the matter was reported to the Police Division in Kano State where SP Daniel Amah was the DPO, they recommended investigations. In the course of the investigation, they traced the principal suspect, Mr. Ali Zaki who offered $200,000 to the SP to kill the case, through a bank staff. The offer was rejected; the bank staff was promptly arrested which led to the arrest of the principal suspect.

The $200,000 was recovered and registered as exhibit.

transaction furthers the bank’s strategy to be Africa’s payment gateway to the world whilst working with other Africa-focused multilaterals to provide robust and efficient payment platforms and ecosystems to serve the continent.

"The prospective operation is expected to contribute strongly to the bank’s overall growth path and financial results over the long-term.

"The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals in Nigeria and Angola is expected to close in the first half of 2023 following fulfillment of customary conditions precedents.

“It will be consummated at 1.0x tangible book value less pre-agreed adjustments to be determined by a customary completion audit.

"Upon completion of the Transaction, the Bank is expected to increase its shareholding in Finibanco S.A and has reached certain conditional agreements in this regard."

Commenting on the transaction, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation, Dr. Herbert Wigwe in a statement said, “At Access, our vision remains clear as ever and our determination to harness accretive opportunities within and outside Nigeria is our core strategic focus.

"Angola represents an opportunity for our shareholders to participate in what we believe will engender stronger value upside as Africa fully emerges.

"We remain committed to making these disciplined and well-structured investments towards creating a strong, holistic platform that will be competitive, diversified, and compelling for years to come.”

Buhari Appoints Umar-Sadiq as NSIA MD Meanwhile, Buhari has approved the appointment of Aminu UmarSadiq as the new Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

Also, approved was the appointment of two new executive directors, Mr. Kolawole Owodunni, and Mrs. Bisi Makoju The appointment of Umar-Sadiq followed the expiration of the tenure of Mr. Uche Orji, whose tenure expired on September 30, 2022, after serving two terms of five years each.

Orji was appointed on October 2, 2012.

Appointed alongside Aminu Umar-Sadiq, as Executive Directors were Mr. Kolawole Owodunni, and Mrs. Bisi Makoju, Executive

Director, all of the NSIA. Section 16(3) of the NSIA Establishment Act 2011 specifies that the Executive Nomination Committee (ENC) be constituted to begin the process of recruitment and selection process for the replacement of Mr. Orji, the MD, and the Executive Directors.

A statement released by Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, Special Adviser, Media and Communicat ions to the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed said the new chief executive officer of NSIA is currently an Executive Director and Head of Infrastructure of the company.

He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Engineering Sciences from the University of

Oxford (Saint John’s College), Oxford, United Kingdom (UK), and is an Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellow (ATLF) as well as Mandela Washington Fellowship (MWF).

Umar-Sadiq commenced his professional career in Mergers and Acquisitions M&A) focused on infrastructure and energy at Morgan Stanley Investment Bank.

He also proceeded to infrastructure-focused private equity at Denham Capital Management, all in the United Kingdom.

He has worked on several projects including Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, an import substitution programme for the delivery of one million high-quality, lower cost to farmers at lower cost metric tons of fertiliser.

He was also a part of the

Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund, an investment fund focused on the actualisation of five strategic nationwide projects in the transportation and power sectors, and has a vast experience in investment and infrastructure industry.

Mrs. Bisi Makoju is a financial expert with wide experience in financial risk management, while Mr. Kolawole Owodunni is a professional of 18 years standing in the financial services sector, with emphasis in investment management, risk management and treasury.

They new all expected to help steer and transform the investment and infrastructure industry and propel the sector to a high pedestal, the statement said.

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MIDWEEKPOLITICS

Acting Group Politics Editor DEJI ELUMOYE Email: deji.elumoye@thisdaylive.com

08033025611 SMS ONLY

Fayemi’s Scorecard: Between Facts, Reality and Faith-keeping Victor Ogunje, in this analysis of the second term tenure of Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti state which ends on October 16, 2022, says the regime failed to live up to the expectations of people in the state known as fountain of knowledge

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n October 16, 2018 when the Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, was sworn in for a second term tenure, the expectations were high and disillusionment was palpable due to the parlous state of the economy and mistrust between the populace and government .

The mood was saddening then in the sense that virtually all the sectors of the economy seemed neglected and disappointed due to dashed hopes and serious alienation they suffered in the hands of governments; local government, state and federal levels.

Before Fayemi’s enigmatic and wondrous return, the civil servants and pensioners were groaning under the pangs of irregular payment of salaries, pensions and gratuities.

During the maiden interface the governor held with the civil servants, it was revealed that a cummulative debt of N57 billion had been accumulated under this context.

At that point, reality dawned on the governor that leading Ekiti will not be bed of roses.

This rests on the premise that the civil service is the engine room of the state’s economy and whatever affects that segment will trickle down to all strata of the state and that was exactly how pitiful and forlorn the situation was then.

Most disturbing was the youth restiveness that was gradually taking the centrestage due to alarming rate of unemployment in Ekiti state.

Statistics revealed that as of 2017, Ekiti had one of the highest graduate unemployment rate in the country and this reflected in pervasive incidence of internet crime, kidnapping and ritual killings that crept into Ekiti and started spreading in alarming fashion.

Several groups; including artisans, farmers, traders and the private sectors, also felt a dose of uneasiness and excruciating pains in the system.

Under the immediate past government of Ayodele Fayose, banks like Guarantee Trust Bank and Access bank were closed down on the order of government for allegedly failing to remit expected taxes to the state. The banks, however, justified their actions citing cases of security threats and government’s suspected laxity to tame the raging monster.

However, as stroppy as the situation seems to be, Governor Fayemi was optimistic that all will be well. During his interface with the civil servants, the governor gleefully agreed to defray the N57 billion owed the workers and pensioners within a spate of 12 months.

This impressive talk ignited wild applause and triggered high expectations within the civil service fold.

At that parley, the triumvirate of the Chairmen of Nigerian Labour Congress, Kolapo Olatunde; Trade Union Congress, Sola Adigun and Joint Negotiating Committee, Kayode Fatomiluyi, told Fayemi in clear terms that the only way for him to warm himself into the hearts of the civil servants is to defray this huge debt and rescue their colleagues from squalor and sufferings.

But reality later dawned on the people that Fayemi could only pay two months out of the seven months salary and pension arrears owed the local government staff and pensioners and two out of the four months indebtedness to the core civil servants. These the government hinged on the Covid 19 pandemic and dwindling allocations to the states.

This actually triggered disquiet within the ranks of retirees and workers. Their discordant tunes was largely and suspectedly responsible for the pattern of voting that dogged the outcome of the June 18, 2022 governorship poll, where the candidate of the weak Social Democratic Party, Segun Oni garnered an aggregate of 82,122 votes, to rank second ahead of the much stronger People’s Democratic Party.

As of today, the workers and pensioners have not readily forgiven Fayemi over their hanging benefits, particularly non payment of salary deductions to their cooperatives for loan opportunities.

Fayemi

Expressing their lividness and disenchantment over the hanging pension and gratuity, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Mr Olomi Akinola once threatened to sue the state government and secure a mandamus order to compel Fayemi to pay through any means.

Akinola said over 250 of his members had died within a spate of five years due to poor health conditions and lack of financial capacities to seek appropriate medication. The highly crestfallen pensioners’ leader added that as of December 31, 2021, the state government was

owing them a staggering sum of N37.8 billion gratuity arrears, which, he said, further creates a lugubrious situation for members.

Akinola said: “We are not particularly happy with this government for not paying our gratuities. The last we received was in 2012 and many of us had died due to financial crisis. For how long are we going to endure this? If this is the way this government wants to continue, then we may have no choice than to sue them to fight for our fundamental rights”.

But as gloomy and bad the situation is, Governor Fayemi has a lot of good stories to tell to justify his actions. He didn’t waver in his insistence that his government has delivered on its campaign mantra to restore the values of

As of 2018 when I came on board, I had the intention of paying all these arrears. But budget support fund, Paris club, excess crude and other funds we were getting from the Federal Government stopped and we were only collecting monthly allocation. That was what actually stopped us from fulfilling this promise

Ekiti people and reclaim the land for progress and development.

Fayemi said Ekiti was still in the dungeon with a lot of challenges and that he had worked hard to reclaim the land for progress and development.

He believes that four years down the line, he has discharged that duty to the best of his ability.

The Governor, who enumerated his achievements, explained that his administration had performed well in the areas of education, human capital development, health, social security, social amenities and infrastructural development across the State.

Knowing the venom and bad blood that exists in the civil service, the governor had at every opportunity defended his failure to defray the N57 billion salaries, gratuities and pensions arrears of workers and retirees as promised in 2018, hinging this on current economic downturn being experienced by the state.

Speaking sectorally during a thank you tour across the state, Fayemi stated that his government has constructed a total of 139 kilometres of roads in the last four years, while also undertaking some palliatives on the dilapidated federal roads to make them accessible for motorists.

Basking in euphoria that his government is “Finishing well”, the governor added that the current government had rehabilitated 14 general and state hospitals and had also initiated operation -one -primary -health centre- per- ward, in line with the design of National healthcare policy.

He said the parlous states of the federal roads in Ekiti was due to increased traffic from adjoining states, especially upsurge of haulage businesses and cross border trucks, which, he said, piled pressures on some of the highways to cave in.

Fayemi stated; “As of 2018 when I came on board, I had the intention of paying all these arrears. But budget support fund, Paris club, excess crude and other funds we were getting from the Federal Government stopped and we were only collecting monthly allocation. That was what actually stopped us from fulfilling this promise.

“We were still able to pay a part of it. We paid two out of the salary arrears. If our predecessor, who collected all these support funds could not pay, then we should ask questions. It is not our intention not to pay all these arrears. But we are glad that we have a government that is coming after us. If there are areas where we have not fulfilled our promises, the next government will start from there”.

Cataloguing the achievements of the present administration, Fayemi said: “Ekiti International Agro-Allied Cargo Airport is a dream comes true, not only for this administration, but also for Ekiti-kete and for the generation yet unborn.

Though projected to be an Agro-Based Cargo airport, this does not foreclose commercial passenger operation.

“The Airport boast is CA5-9 4E category with capacity for Aircraft Boeing 747-400 and a runway length of 3.2km”.

Fayemi added that within the period under review, his government had completed projects which include dual-lane new Ado-Iyin road; construction of Ekiti State Governor’s Lodge, Asokoro, Abuja; reconstruction of Agbado-Ode-Isinbode road; construction of Aramoko-Erijiyan-Ikogosi road; construction of Oye-Ayede-Iye -Otun road and and; construction of Ilupeju-Ire-Igbemo-road.

They include: Harding Memorial College, Oke-Isa, Ado-Ekiti. New SUBEB Headquarters, Secretariat Complex, Ado-Ekiti, EKZ Model School, Ijan-Road, Ado-Ekiti, Model School, Isan-Ekiti. Ekiti State Agro-Cargo International Airport, Ado-Ijan Way, Ado-Ekiti. Ikole Township Roads ((Bolorunduro Street—0.67km, Ave. width 5.7m; Olokonla Dualisation—1.6km, Ave. width 11.75m; Dualised road section—1.1km, Ave. width 12m”.

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

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T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 5, 2022

POLITICS

2023 and Fight for the Soul of Edo PDP Adibe Emenyonu x-rays the political tussle in Edo PDP between Governor Godwin Obaseki and the National Vice Chairman of the party, Chief Dan Orbih and the concern that both factions may lose out to any of the opposing political parties.

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he Supreme Court last Friday ended the leadership tussle in the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) between Governor Godwin Obaseki and the National Vice Chairman (South-south) of the party, Dan Orbhi.

The suit had sought the court order to authenticate the ad hoc delegate elections conducted by the Orbhi’s faction and to invalidate another one conducted by the Obaseki’s faction The apex court in a unanimous judgment read by Justice Emmanuel Akomaye Agim said the appeal marked SC/CV/979/2022, filed by one Hon Monday Iyere Osagie of the Orbhi faction, lacked merit because it is not justiciable.

The judge held that the issue of leadership by political parties is an internal affair and as such, the courts have no jurisdiction.

He asked political parties to always adhere strictly to their guidelines, rules and regulations in order to promote genuine democracy.

Both Obaseki and Orbhi have been at each other’s throats over who controls the party structure in the state.

The governor formerly of the All Progressives Congress (APC) defected to the PDP, stood for the last governorship election on the party’s platform and won.

He later opted to control the machinery of the party but met stiff resistance from Orbhi, an ally of Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.

By the verdict, the long-drawn battle between Obaseki and Orbhi over who leads the PDP in the state will come to an end. But it also depends on which of the factions the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will now recognise their candidate produced by the factions in the primary conducted in May, 2022.

Both factions had held different primaries that produced candidates for different elec-

Obaseki

Orbih

tive positions. In every state of the federation, governors are usually the leader of the party. But this has pitched Orbhi against Obaseki as to who controls the party in Edo State.

A critical look at the Obaseki triumph shows the victory is a temporary one because whichever sides of the coin one looks at, it is the party that will suffer at the end.

According to a public affairs analyst, Efe Igbinosa: “Contrary to what the two factions of PDP in Edo would want you to believe, there was no definitive ruling in favour of any of the factions. Rather, the case was dismissed because the Supreme Court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the matter. it is simply an internal party affairs and the issue was placed squarely on the table of the party at the national level.

“This was the ruling Governor Obaseki’s faction wanted and the reason they are the loudest in their celebration, because they believe the National Working Committee will work in their favour.

“But this is where it actually gets interesting because INEC, had earlier published the list of Dan Orbih’s faction relying on a Federal High Court Order siting in Abuja. If NWC decides to forward the names of Obaseki’s faction to INEC following the dismissal of the case INEC had earlier relied upon to publish the names of Dan Orbih’s faction, INEC is most likely going to ignore the list from the NWC because according to sources in INEC, they did not monitor the primary election conducted by the NWC, which Obaseki’s faction is relying heavily upon.”

Earlier in a statement dated 5th April and signed by INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Festus Okoye, the Com-

mission affirmed that all the political parties’ candidates for the 1,491 constituencies for which elections will be conducted, must emerge from democratic, transparent, and valid primaries, in line with Sections 29 and 84 of the Electoral Act 2022.

The statement read in part: “Where a political party fails to comply with the provisions of the Act in the conduct of its primaries, its candidate shall not be included in the election for the particular position in issue.”

Upon this premise, Orbih’s faction may lay down prostrate if the PDP NWC affirm the Obaseki’s group as the authentic candidates since the courts (Appeal and Supreme Court) have said the issue of candidates rest squarely on political parties to determine and not INEC. On the other hand, one of the relevant sections of the law that may hinder INEC from accepting the list of Obaseki’s faction is the required law that ‘the electoral body shall monitor the primaries of each political party that provides the required legal notice in line with Sections 82 (1) and (5) of the Electoral Act. Failure of a political party to notify the Commission of any convention or congress convened for the purpose of nominating candidates for any of the elective offices specified in the Act shall render the convention or congress invalid”.

Because of the sections of the Electoral Act quoted above, Obaseki’s faction might be rejected by INEC because their election was never monitored by INEC and if for any reason, INEC decided to accept the list, it would be challenged in court and both INEC and Obaseki’s faction would lose the case because they have violated an important aspect of the Electoral Act and you cannot place something on nothing.

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

As Ugochinyere Eyes the Green Chamber...

Udora Orizu writes that the spokesman of Coalition of United Political Parties and PDP’s House of Representatives Candidate for Ideato North, South federal constituency, Ikenga Ugochinyere, has started mobilising for support towards victory at the February, 2023 poll.

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he spokesperson of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, is the House of Representative candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Ideato North and Ideato South Federal Constituency in Imo State.

This mandate has placed Ugochinyere in the position to lead his party in the forthcoming battle with the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and other political parties in the 2023 house of representatives poll.

If he wins, it will be his first time as a legislato.

However Ikenga is not new to the political sphere and has carved a niche for himself within the political circle, despite his young age.

The 40 year-old lawyer turned politician has become a force to reckon with. The activist is known by many for his confidence, fearless stance especially with how he speaks the truth to power at different fora.

Ikenga has never shied away from speaking on what he considered ills and shortcomings of the federal government. As a vocal critic of Buhari’s administration, any national issue that concerns the well being of the youth, he’s always in the fore front calling out the government.

When he started off many years ago as an activist against maladministration in governance, little did he know that within a short period of time, he would become a household name in the political sphere of the country.

He began brushes with the law right from 2015 when his outspoken voice as President of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) was noted and considered too strong to be ignored by the federal authorities. Despite his travails in the hands of security agencies, Ugochinyere as the people’s spokesman never abandoned his cause of speaking openly what he considered as ills of the government.

to unseat the President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressive Congress (APC) government.

After PDP’s loss in 2019, Ugochinyere continued his duty as the opposition coalition spokesman. His statements regarding national issues didn’t go unnoticed. Reappearing on October 6, 2021 after over a year break, he called a press briefing at the CUPP headquarters in Abuja.

Addressing journalists, he spoke on worsening insecurity, the economy, the forthcoming election and other pressing issues.

As the nation gears up for 2023 general elections, Ugochinyere decided to contest for the House of Representatives seat to bring the dividends of democracy to his people in Ideato Federal Constituency.

Ugochinyere

He becomes more courageous after each release. He later became Special Adviser on Students and Youth Matters to then Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, in 2016, shortly after his tenure at NYCN. But on October, 2017, he resigned his appointment when the Independent National Electoral Commission registered his Action Peoples Party (APP) as one of the political parties eligible to operate in the Nigeria.

Few months later, in July 2018, he emerged as the spokesman of CUPP, a coalition created as a result of deliberations between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and over 40 other political parties who signed a memorandum of understanding in which they pledged to work together

Getting Clearance Certificate from PDP On May 13, 2022, he received clearance certificate to vie for the National Assembly seat in Imo State. The House of Representatives aspirant was presented the clearance certificate by party’s National Organizing Secretary, thus confirming earlier statement by Senator Samuel Anyanwu, National Secretary of the party that Ugochinyere was not disqualified, contrary to media speculations that the CUPP spokesperson was eased out of the race.

The Party issued the Certificate to Ugochinyere after examination of the controversial circumstances of reports of his disqualification despite the existence of Panel reports by both the Screening Committee and Screening Appeal Committee that he was duly cleared to contest the election.

The party’s National Working Committee (NWC) had resolved that going by records in the party secretariat that Ugochinyere was cleared and that reports of his purported disqualification were mere fabrications and rumours from adversaries who are scared of his impending

victory and not from any national officer of the Party or indeed the Party.

While reacting to the presentation of the Certificate of Qualification, Ugochinyere hailed the PDP leadership for presenting him with the certificate which clears the pathway for him to contest the primaries.

He also thanked the party at both the State and Local Government levels and also the Nigerian public for their support and confidence which they reposed in him pledging that he would ensure he does not disappoint the people.

Emerging as Candidate for Ideato Federal Constituency Days later on May 26, Ugochinyere was declared winner of the party’s primary election by the Chairman of the PDP electoral Panel. He was declared winner with a landslide 71 votes that saw him flooring seven other challengers with 91.5 percent margin.

In a thank you speech, Ugochinyere thanked the delegates for their confidence in him and declared that as the candidate of the Party, he would stop at nothing to return the Federal Constituency to the Peoples Democratic Party after over 10yrs inability to win.

He also extended hand of fellowship to his opponents to rally round him and the party as the victory was for all of Ideato nation and not just him. He enjoined them to close ranks as they work towards taking the Constituency to the Party.

The Independent National Electoral Commission also monitored exercise and declared it as peaceful, free, fair and in line with the Electoral Act and the INEC Guidelines.

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

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T H I S D AY ˾ OCTOBER 5, 2022

FEATURES

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

Nia Black Amuzie: A Burning Desire to Effect Change in Africa Nia Black Amuzie is a Media Personality/Commentator with a focus on African/Black cultural, social, and political issues. She was awarded the Global Diaspora Champion Award by the American Caribbean Chamber of Commerce for her work in advocating for diaspora affairs in the United States and also for her extensive work in improving education in Africa under her nonprofit, Glow Up Africa.

Amuzie is a graduate of the prestigious King's College London where she did her Masters in Global Health and Social Justice, tackling global epidemics around the world while focusing on international actors like the UN, IMF, and WHO. She's worked on several mental health projects both in the UK and in Africa and currently serves as the Moderator of the Virtual Monthly Series with the Ambassador of the African Union to the U.S as the featured monthly guest. While in Houston, she has worked as the Executive Director of MANNA Houston, a nonprofit that provides financial assistance to families in need and feeds 10,000 families across the Greater Houston Area.

In this interview with Mary Nnah, she talks about her burning desire to continue to influence Africans to lead a life that is enriching and successful

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hare with us your growing up and how it has influenced your career path.

I was born in Nigeria and moved to the U.S. when I was 15. I grew up in Chicago, Illinois. Went to High School in Chicago and lived with my three older sisters and my father. My mother at the time was based in Nigeria. Just like every Nigerian family that migrates, we moved to find better opportunities.

I am thankful for the opportunity to move to America, honestly. I always say, “America raised me,” because it is in America that I discovered my gift, my passion, and most importantly my voice. Watching Black Americans treated as second-class citizens broke me to the core. I went to a school on the Southside of Chicago where students didn’t have access to good educational infrastructure. The buildings were damaged, and we didn’t have enough textbooks. There was a huge disparity between what students in black neighborhoods had access to and what students in white neighborhoods had access to.

That sparked a fire in me, and I spoke against the inequality on different platforms while in High School in Chicago. When I visited Nigeria in 2009, I saw the state of Nigeria and I broke down. I thought if I can fight for my black brothers and sisters in America, what about my people? We don’t have good electricity, our roads are bad, and the healthcare and educational system is broken, I thought I needed to be a voice within the diaspora whether through media or outreach and that’s what I have been doing.

What does Black stand for in your name?

Everyone always asks me about that! Growing up in Nigeria, people called my father, “Eddy Black”. His name is Edwin, but Eddy for short.

My Dad has very beautiful deep dark skin, and so people started calling him “Eddy Black”. He became a household name in my Village, Akpulu in Ideato North, Imo State, and he was known as a humanitarian, one of the first people to put electricity in my village. His name carries weight in my village. I decided to take on the “Black” to honor him and continue his legacy.

More importantly, I took on the name to embody Black Excellence. I want my actions as a black woman in the world to bring positivity to the Black Diaspora and for the world to view us with the respect we command.

Your interest lies in African culture, social and political issues being in the Diaspora, what informed this?

My desire is to effect change in Africa! I always say this, the greatest immigrants are the ones that learn and equip themselves in a foreign land and take their skills and all they’ve learned back home to develop their nation and continent.

That is why we migrate. To be exposed and to learn new things. For the sake of cultural, political, and economic exchange. And with this mentality, I am challenging every African in the Diaspora to do the same. Imagine how powerful we will become if every Nigerian in the diaspora takes their innovative skill back home.

It’s over. The rest of the world can make room.

How well would you say Diasporas fare in contributing and being an impact on the GDP of Nigeria?

Very well! According to an article, it stated

become the richest and most powerful people in their industries, despite their experiences, is astounding. Every single one of them I interviewed had a strong mentality. To them it was a thing of, either I win, or I die trying, but I will win.

Bluntly, this speaks to why Nigerians are some of the most successful immigrants across the world. We fight, and we win.

What do you consider a high point of your career?

Mine is simple, a high point of my career is always when I have an immense impact on people. It could be through a speech I gave or through them watching my program or just by me existing in my black excellence. The highest point will be when I can have an impact on a wider audience and a bigger population. I am thankful for everything I have achieved!

God has been good, I got a chance to host the Mayor of Houston’s annual Africa Day event which brings in 13 African Ambassadors, I have spoken on TED Talks in Ghana, preparing to speak on TED Talks a second time in Houston, and I am the recipient of the Global Diaspora Champion Award, I mean it’s endless. I am thankful!

Amuzie that Nigeria’s Diaspora remittances inflow rose to $14.2 billion in 2021, which is from $12.9 billion in 2020. A remarkable 10% increase! The reality is that the Diaspora is connected to Nigeria. Our family is in Nigeria, and most of us were born in Nigeria, and we outsource our businesses to Nigeria. This empowers us to pour into the Nigerian economy.

We can do more, and we will do more if the Nigerian government provides a fluid avenue for this to happen. Programmes and opportunities that bridge the gap between the diaspora and Nigeria should be put in place so we can reap the benefit of having successful Nigerians in different parts of the world. Ghana and its Tourism sector are a great example. I would love to be involved in bridging this gap in any way possible.

As a TV host and media personality and commentator, how are you able to hone your skills?

Through practice! I practice in front of the mirror, I use google pronunciation to help me annunciate better and I watch those who have come before me, or people doing what I am doing. I watch how they speak, the depth of their voice, and

the way they ask questions. Oprah and Michelle Obama are my greatest inspirations.

Share with us some of your activities through your non-profit. How have you been impacting African communities?

Yes, my non-profit is called Glow Up Africa and we focus on empowering youths and rebuilding educational infrastructure. We built a water supply in a school in Owerri that fell apart, then we continued to focus on empowerment, speaking to students in secondary schools and primary schools in Ideato North and providing them with school supplies. During the Pandemic, we hosted an empowerment session for university school students in partnership with another non-profit called “No Back Pack Day”. Now post-pandemic, we are strategizing and working on continuing the water projects in more schools in eastern Nigeria.

You have hosted successful Nigerians in the diaspora, what stands out for you in these interviews?

This is a very good question! Honestly, what stood out for me, or I should say, a common theme I noticed in interviewing successful Nigerians across the Diaspora is that these individuals have a champion spirit and a tenacious spirit.

Living in a different country as a Diasporan is hard! The things we do to climb the ladder: the insults, the challenges, and the struggles are next to none. It’s quite easy to give up and break down.

To see these successful people overcome and

My desire is to effect change in Africa... And with this mentality, I am challenging every African in the Diaspora to do the same. Imagine how powerful we will become if every Nigerian in the diaspora takes their innovative skill back home. It’s over. The rest of the world can make room

Share with us some of the challenges in the course of work and how you were able to surmount them.

Well, my biggest challenge has been trying to do more work with my non-profit in Nigeria.

As a person living in the diaspora, it’s hard to find people that will run with you and successfully implement your work on the ground in Nigeria. I’ll be honest, this is what many people in the diaspora complain about. We want to do more, we want to invest in Nigeria, but who do we trust? The level of corruption is at an all-time high. I tried building a water supply in a secondary school in Owerri and the Principal was asking for 1 million naira before the project will continue. You are asking me to give you 1 million naira before I can help the students in your school? Students who cried to me told me they don’t have water. The project had to be stopped and then the engineer stole all the equipment and the generator, let’s not even go into that. Regardless, we move. I started to focus more on empowerment and speaking to students in different schools, but in 2023, the goal is to help build more educational infrastructures.

A lot of young women struggle with building their careers due to stereotypes, how would you advise them?

Yes, I will tell them to keep building and be consistent. Listen, there will always be roadblocks and challenges when building something. These challenges come in different forms. It shouldn’t stop us from continuing to build. If we are consistent, surely, there will be a breakthrough.

And if we are consistent, we will be inspired in different ways to achieve our desired goal.

New ideas will come, new inspiration will come and that will lead us in the right direction. Also, don’t let that fire in your burnout. There is a reason why you chose the path you are walking on. Good things don’t come easy, if they did, then people won’t have a story of greatness.

It is through challenges that we are molded to become the best we can be. If you fail, fail forward, and if you fall, fall forward.

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T H I S D AY ˾ OCTOBER 5, 2022

FEATURES

Results for Olam Agri's Wheat Production Initiative Marcel Okeke writes that one year on, Olam Agri’s N300m wheat production initiative in Nigeria yielding good results

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n 2021, when Olam Agri and its subsidiary, Crown Flour Mill Limited (CFM), launched a N300 million 10-year initiative— ‘Seeds for the Future’—to empower farmers at community levels to increase wheat production in Nigeria—little did they know that they were ‘seeing tomorrow.’

Barely few months after the multistakeholder project was launched, the diplomatic face-off between Russia and Ukraine snowballed into a full-blown war that soon began to disrupt global supply chains, especially for wheat that are majorly exported from the two warring countries.

This reality, since the first quarter of 2022, the war has not only affected the wheat value-chain globally but has fully justified Olam Agri’s investment and collaboration with stakeholders to commence sustainable improvement of wheat production locally in Nigeria.

The ‘Seeds for the Future’ initiative which was launched in October 2021 with Olam Agri (and CFM) as sole financier is focused on empowering wheat farmers (mainly, women) in the wheat farming belts of Northern Nigeria, by facilitating the adoption of innovation and improved agronomic practices and in so doing increasing economic opportunities for the rural women. Apart from Olam Agri and the small-holder women farmers, other core stakeholders in the project which underlines Olam Agri’s commitment to supporting the country’s efforts at achieving self-sufficiency in food production are Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), Ethiopia-based International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria and various state governments of the wheat belts, among others.

The one-year anniversary of this worthy initiative was held on Thursday, September 8, 2022, marked with a well-attended ‘First Year Report Presentation’ via Zoom under the auspices of the Olam Agri Green Land Webinar Series – Season 3.

The stakeholders’ community engagement once again convened key players from across

Okeke the value chain including Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria, various state governments of the wheat farming belt, among others.

Speaking on the occasion, the Country Head of Olam Agri Nigeria - Mr. Ashish Pande reaffirmed the company’s commitment to supporting efforts aimed at Nigeria’s pursuit of self-sufficiency in wheat production. He pointed out that recent developments in the global wheat value-chain (leading to scarcity of many wheat-based products) have amply validated the ‘Seeds for the Future’ project. Looking back at the first one full year of the ten-year initiative, Mr. Pande said it was a worthwhile project that still holds a lot of promise.

The Country Head recalled his remarks during the launch of the project a year ago when he said, “to ensure the long-term viability of the wheat sector in Nigeria, it is critical to identify and support the development of high-yielding local wheat varieties.

This project will further stimulate

the federal government’s drive towards the attainment of economic growth, the country’s agricultural research capabilities, employment generation, community development and the economic empowerment of women in Nigeria.” Pande observed that the necessary foundational steps towards attaining the project’s objectives are being taken.

In his ‘First Year Report’ presentation, Dr. Kachalla Kyari Mala, Director of Research at the Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), said the “community-based seed enterprise” had taken off on a good note and recorded some milestones. Dr. Mala gave details of some of the activities that were planned and completed under the project as of June 2022; namely, the signing of the research agreements; definition of practices to be tested; on-station field assessment; importing of germplasm; defining of product profile; analyzing of results, among others. The project’s 19-page report shows that, in all, thousands of the target women farmers have already been directly and/or indirectly reached via the programs and activities of the project. He said: “in conclusion, the first year of the project achieved all set milestones timely and effectively, opening the door for a second year that should gather even more inputs from local communities and identify the next round of innovations, while at the same time promoting for adoption of those already identified.”

Senior Scientist, Durum Wheat Breeder of the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Dr. Filippo M Bassi, in his own presentation, also acknowledged the successful take-off of the ‘Seeds for the Future’ initiative. He however pointed out a few measures and steps to be taken to sustain the performance of the project. According to him, attention should be focused on mechanization, improved irrigation, and planting of high-yielding seed varieties, among others. He equally called for the buy-in of more stakeholders, especially from the public sector, to further improve the operating environment for the farmers.

Representatives of other key stakeholders

at the Virtual event equally spoke glowingly about the ‘Seeds for the Future’ initiative, and strongly advocated the involvement of more private and public sector interests.

These included the Executive Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje (represented by Hafiz Muhammad); Dr. Zakari Turaki of LCRI; Chairman of Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria, Salim Muhammad; Chairman, House Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions, House of Representatives of Nigeria, Munir Babba Dan Agundi, among others. They all stressed on the need for the adoption of mechanization by the farmers and continued improvement of relevant agronomic practices.

These tie-in with Olam Agri’s Country Head position, when he said: “With the size of Nigeria’s population, wheat is critical to achieving food security as many of the popular food staples are made from Wheat.

Therefore, we have consistently pursued the implementation of aggressive wheat development programs through valuable knowledge acquisition that has the potential to bring Nigeria closer to achieving selfsufficiency in wheat production.” Certainly, wheat-based foods have become staples in most households in Nigeria due to their high nutritional value and ease of accessibility.

No wonder, wheat importation into Nigeria has continued to skyrocket; rising from N730.9 billion in 2020 to N1.30 trillion in 2021, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This translates to a jump of over 77.20 per cent from 2020 to 2021 in importation costs.

From all these, Olam Agri’s investment in scaling the local production of wheat is not only most timely but also a worthy cause. And sooner than expected the ‘Seeds for the Future’ initiative will lead to selfsufficiency in local wheat production as well as fast-track food security in Nigeria. Kudos to Olam Agri and it’s technical partners!

-Dr Marcel Okeke is the Lead Consultant/ CEO, Mascot Consult & Communications Limited

Promoting Winning Mindset to Upscale Revenue Across Africa Precious Ugwuzor

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esearch-driven data from various organisations have indicated that the private sector has remained the core driver of both emerging and developed economies across the globe. This is made evident as the International Finance Corporation (IFC) revealed in a 2021 report that the private sector has been responsible for the generation of 90 percent of jobs while it also funds 60 percent of all investments in developing countries.

This data further reveals that the private sector plays a pivotal role in providing more than 80 percent of government revenues.

As such, these statistical findings corroborate the research data of the World Bank which states that Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), which are a critical part of the private sector, represent about 90 percent of businesses globally. This is because SMEs provide more than 50 percent of global employment while they contribute up to 40 percent of the national income of developing economies.

Contextualizing the contributions of the private sector to the Nigerian economy, findings, according to a publication on The Cable, reveal that the private sector accounts for 90% of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This reaffirms the fact that the private sector functions as the core engine room of business growth across the globe. Hence, business development experts posit that the private sector has continually proven to be a critical force in driving economic growth and development, mainly through the provision of goods and services that are of public benefit. This is, therefore, made evident as an SME survey from

Adekunle Adebiyi, the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) for Itex Integrated Services

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) reiterates the fact that SMEs, operating within the domains of the Nigerian economy, account for 96 percent of businesses and also 84 percent of employment respectively.

However, while diverse research works uphold the fact that the private sector drives economic growth on a global scale, it is integral to note that there are core elements that foster the growth of the private sector.

One of such elements that enable the rapid upscaling of the private sector revolves around the ability to develop a winning mindset.

This is considered to be a critical component within the global busi-

ness terrain as it contributes to the economic viability of businesses irrespective of either their size or their global reach.

It is against this backdrop that business experts opine that entrepreneurs, including sales executives, need to develop a winning mindset in order to achieve profitable growth levels irrespective of the difficulties involved in either achieving or sustaining it. This is owing to the fact that research conducted

by McKinsey & Company noted that about a quarter of companies across the globe do not achieve desirable growth levels because business leaders, including sales executives, tend to limit their quest to explore diverse growth opportunities. As such, it is on this premise that business experts opine that corporate executives should develop the capacity to focus on critical issues that would potentially increase the profitability of their business operations which will also help them develop viable coping strategies that would enable them to navigate through potential economic challenges that may stifle their overall business growth.

Consequently, it is on this premise Adekunle Adebiyi, the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) for Itex Integrated Services, delivered a resounding presentation on the topic entitled “The Mindset that Wins” at the Africa Revenue Summit (AFRES) for 2022.

The event, which was themed “Value Up,” focused on educating African entrepreneurs on the need to embrace an innovative mindset in order to contribute to the economic development of the African continent. This is, therefore, owing to the fact that the process of building sustainable systems that thrive on a positive mindset affords African-based entrepreneurs with the opportunity to scale up their value propositions which further increases the prospects of generating more

revenue. It is on this foregoing that he stated, “Having the right mindset plays an essential role in delivering value to customers. This is because possessing the right mindset is central to achieving revenue leadership which invariably helps organisations to maintain a healthy profit margin.”

Hence, it is founded on this assumption that global business experts opine that there is a dire need for sales executives to comprehend the buying journeys of both existing and potential customers. This is regarded to be a necessary component in upscaling the profitability of businesses because it contributes to the sales growth of organisations. It is on this basis that business growth specialists further claim that there are certain attitudinal attributes business leaders, particularly sales specialists, should adopt in order to grow the profitability margins of their organisations. These attitudinal qualities, which were further emphasized by Adebiyi in his presentation, revolve around developing service excellence, self-leadership, emotional intelligence, the ability to take ownership, a strong-value communication system, and transactional agility.

Having explored the possibilities of how embracing an innovative mindset could positively change the economic outlook of African-based businesses, it is essential to note that the private sector has owned its space as an inextricable stakeholder in driving global economic growth and development.

It is predicated on this positive trajectory that critical players within the private sector, particularly across the African continent, are admonished to create cutting-edge business solutions that would create a long-standing impact on the lives of people and communities within emerging economies across the African continent.

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WEDNESDAY, ͽ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

INSPIREDLIFE

THE TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS OF BUSINESS WUNDERKINDS KIN NDS

with LANRE ALFRED D

JULIUS RONE:

A Trailblazer’s Odyssey to National Reckoning Julius Rone, Group Managing Director of Nigerian energy conglomerate UTM Offshore and the head honcho of the much talked about UTMFLNG Limited, is now revered at home and recognised abroad for his protean productivity and impeccable business foresight, spotting goldmines where many see landmines.

Blessed with vigorous optimism, a boots-on-the-ground approach to his endeavours, and an unflinching belief in destiny, it did not come as any surprise that barely a decade after he ventured into the oil and gas business, he is leading older, more established players in the industry by the hand. It was a stormy ride to the top, though.

But by dint of hard work, Rone personifies the new generation of entrepreneurs who are establishing themselves as young leaders of the private-sector business community in Nigeria MANNING UP

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t is often said that to succeed in the oil sector, you must have the heart of Hercules, the fearlessness of Achilles, the grace of Terpsichore, the memory of Macaulay, and the hide of a rhinoceros. Julius Dediare Rone conveniently exudes all of that, thus his ascension to the top of the oil industry’s greasy pole.

When triumph is your story, there is no right or wrong way to tell it. There is no shame in the intensity or duration of the narrative. Sadness, regret, confusion, yearning and all the experiences of grief become part of the narrative of love for the one who triumphed. To relate Julius Rone’s triumph story is to embark on a timeless journey of sorrow and strife; mercilessness and startling compassion, vigour, hope and accomplishment.

Triumph could be cruel. It is characteristically rigged to try and taunt and tear a man apart in its bid to tame perceived lust for its perks in its victim, the man. His story may resonate quite familiarly with so many among us. Yet knowledge of the story is mandatory; it is essential to understand the forces that clawed and pawed him into the human element he has become.

Many of us have been on similar journeys and shared identical travails, thus our capacity to grasp the essence of this inspiring back-story.

It was never easy being Julius Rone. It is not easy still to recount how he emerged through his daunting crucible to become a product of his dreams. Reading his story could be cathartic; it could cause you to believe again in the romance and pliant realities of heartfelt dreams. It is said that when you tell your dreams to yourself and reinforce them with a will that toils like a steel forge, the universe makes them come true.

Studying Rone’s trajectory to business excellence, which has endeared him to seats of power, influence and wealth from around the world, one would posit that he knew what he wanted early in life when he headed to Ile-Ife to study Business Administration for his first degree. The fact remains that he embarked on that cerebral exploration to fulfil his yearning for a degree. He surely had no inkling he would today be operating at a corporate pedestal where he takes on projects that have national and transnational impacts that positively affect hundreds of millions of people.

Did it occur to Rone that his shoulders would be adjudged formidable enough to bear the burden of eradicating energy poverty in the world’s most populous black nation? Perhaps. Not only has Nigeria reposed such huge confidence in his ability to bail her out of the energy quagmire that has been deviling her for decades; sectoral players in the oil and gas ecosystem now find him one of the most bankable business minds they are willing to partner.

This is the story of Julius Rone.

So far, he has shown himself as strong and able. Rone has continued to inspire confidence,

taking up nation-building roles and huge multibillion-dollar investments that leave his contemporaries’ mouths agape. Yet the journey has just started. Rone has vast experience across the water, logistics, maritime, construction and energy sectors. Since the establishment of UTM Offshore in 2012, Rone’s dedication has enabled the firm to expand dredging, marine, offshore support and construction services across Nigeria and the West African region.

As a result, UTM Offshore is counted among West Africa’s regional energy giants, with the firm embarking on a series of partnerships with regional and international governments and companies, including Japan’s JGC, Samsung Heavy Industries and US-based KBR, to fast-track the development of oil and gas resources.

UNCONTAINABLE FIRE WITHIN

Rone, in the estimation of many friends and associates, is unarguably cut out for greater roles in the affairs of the country’s industrial sector, but rather than get high on the wings of the lofty hopes about him, he chooses to begin his humble ascent the corridors of acclaim and entrepreneurial power by espousing the morals, personal and professional ethics.

The native of Warri, Delta state, through the turbulence of entrepreneurship’s turbulent tides and windstorms, rides the storms like an indefatigable mariner, bolstered by a tenacious spirit and mulish resolve to excel and arrive with his dreams intact on pliant coasts. Today, that unyielding spirit of Rone has paid off.

It has seen him through the teething and oft tumultuous stages of the cut-throat world of global commerce till he emerged unhurt and stronger in spirit and resolve, like a champ.

That Rone has attained a specialist status in capacity and infrastructure investment in the petroleum industry has been further buttressed by his latest stride, which is the first of its kind in Nigeria.

Under his astute leadership, UTM Offshore is building Nigeria’s first and Africa’s first indigenous floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility – floating production storage and offloading unit that conducts liquefied natural gas operations for developing offshore natural gas resources – thereby spearheading the expansion of Nigeria’s gas market in line with the government’s Decade of Gas Initiative, an initiative that aims to make energy poverty history through the maximisation of gas.

This is well-positioned to shape discussions around the role the continent’s 620 trillion cubic feet of natural gas resources play in lifting the over 600 million people out of energy poverty and providing access to clean cooking to some 900 million people across the continent whilst driving industrialisation

and economic growth. With UTM Offshore planning to take a final investment decision on the $5 billion FLNG project in the second quarter of 2023, Rone is poised to redefine infrastructure investment and ensure a sustainable future for Nigerians and other Africans through expanding access to cleaner, safer and reliable energy.

RENOWNED AND HONOURED

Effortlessly, Rone, the Group Managing Director of Nigerian energy conglomerate UTM Offshore, fondly called the ‘Gas King’, personifies the kernel of Vince Lombardi’s famous quote: “Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all-the-time thing. You don’t win once in a while; you don’t do things right once in a while; you do them right all of the time. Winning is a habit.” Thus for being a true man of valour and peerless feats, President Muhammadu Buhari approved the conferment of the OFR (Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic) on Rone, come October 11 in Abuja. For Rone, winning is ingrained in his DNA. All his business ventures have been cutting large swaths through the labyrinths of otherwise unprofitable and volatile industries.

Rone will be mounting the African Energy Chamber (AEC) podium as a keynote speaker at this year’s African Energy Week (AEW) conference and exhibition, taking place from October 18 to 21 in Cape Town. Representing one of Nigeria’s engineering heavyweights pushing for the rapid development of energy infrastructure, the participation of Rone as a keynote speaker at Africa’s premier event for the oil and gas sector is crucial for shaping discussions around Africa’s energy future.

Rone wears his entrepreneurial strength and savvy like a badge of honour on his chest, burnishing it with sweat, as true virtuous men do. Rone presents a rare contradiction to the notion that titans are only appreciated in death. He is a titan. He is very much alive and has become a legend in the hearts and minds of men.

“I am so proud of what Julius is doing with gas. We just need more success in Africa, but we need to nurture it, empower it, reward it, and celebrate it. African entrepreneurs like Julius will help create an African gas revolution that will help transform our continent and the economies of many countries… a great opportunity to share his story about building from bottom up and open conversations about opportunities with service providers,” NJ Ayuk, the Executive Chairman of the AEC stated.

He added, “With abundant gas reserves, amazing technologies like FLNG, and an entrepreneurial spirit, Nigeria and Africa will move towards becoming energy selfreliant. Julius’s gas investments will open the

door to a previously unimaginable opportunity that will help invigorate a sluggish post covid economic recovery, speed up job creation, spur new investment, and help us defeat the twin evils of energy poverty and climate change.”

EXCELLENCE FOUNDED ON ETHICS AND GRIT

Interestingly, becoming an entrepreneur is not mere lip service; it takes consistent effort and focus on growing from being an entrepreneur interested in a particular business to becoming a respected and renowned empire builder. Nigeria is blessed with many such men who started from scratch, kept their nose to the grindstone and turned seemingly insignificant ideas into behemoth industries. Julius is one of the risk-taking individuals that would be sent to Mars and still treat it as a stepping stone to Saturn – the quality of constant invention and self-improvement that has earned him worldwide acclaim and prosperity.

Stylish and suave, Julius might be young but has packed so many achievements into his youthful life that would take many a generation to achieve.

And he has grown too. Of course, he has so much to be thankful for. God Has been good to Rone, and immeasurable adoration to Almighty God for bringing Julius thus far and has helped him glide through life without breaking a limb.

From a humble parentage, Rone has worked his way, with guts and grace, through the wilderness of life to become one of Nigeria’s leading businesspeople and wealthiest young men. An alumnus of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and the University of Calabar (Cross River State) – where he earned his advanced and postgraduate diplomas in Business Administration, respectively – Rone is a seasoned technocrat with vast experience spanning over a decade in the public sector.

Energetic and enthusiastic; uncompromising, yet realistic; impossibility has no space in his lexicography. With just tenacity of purpose and a terrier devotion to his dreams, Julius has bestridden, successfully, the gap between creativity and commerce. As far as business ideas and innovations are concerned, he turns nothing down except the collar of his shirt.

His life story is not as smooth as a bowling ball gliding on a varnished lane. It is the story of a young man who flailed and floundered against the maelstrom and headwind of a tempestuous home-grown economy but whose resilience and steadfastness kept him on the straight and narrow path to fame and fortune. Rone emerged as a worthy recipient of such honour because his deeds and recurring success established him as a man who challenged resolve with steely grit.

He exploited the arduous planes of ambition and toil till he encountered grandeur at the crossroads, where wild contemplation and hard work morph into triumph.

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 5, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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& RE A S O

Wednesday October 5, 2022 Vol 27. No 10039

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opinion@thisdaylive.com

www.thisdaylive.com

ITU AND THE FUTURE OF THE INTERNET SONNY ARAGBAAKPORE writes that caution and reason prevailed at the ITU’s election

See page 27

THE FORSAKEN POPULATION

Who will save Nigeria’s rural population? asks JOSEF OMOROTIONMWAN

See page 27

EDITORIAL

INCESSANT BUILDING COLLAPSE IN NIGERIA…1

See page 28

1

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Whoever wins should form a government of national unity.

What I mean is go beyond the confines of your political party to select talents that will send an all-inclusive message to everyone

VHOHFW WDOHQWV WKDW ZLOO VHQG DQ DOO LQFOXVLYH message to everyone. , DP QRW QDLYH DQG NQRZ WKDW LQ SROLWLFV LW FDQ EH VHHQ DV ¶PRQNH\ GH\ ZRUN EDERRQ ZDQ FKRS· %XW LW QHHGV WR EH GRQH $ IULHQG RI PLQH D FKXUFK PHPEHU ZURWH WKLV RQ 7ZLWWHU PDQ\ \HDUV DJR +H VDLG KH ZRXOG GHÀQH D WHFKQRFUDW EDVHG RQ KLV H[SHULHQFH ´:KHQ , ZDV DQ XQGHUJUDGXDWH DW WKH 2EDIHPL $ZRORZR 8QLYHUVLW\ ,OH ,IH P\ URRPPDWH DQG , ZHUH FRRNLQJ RQH GD\ DQG D IULHQG RI RXUV FDPH LQ DQG ZH VKDUHG RXU PHDO ZLWK KLP %XW VXUSULVLQJO\ WKLV IULHQG RI RXUV DOZD\V VKRZHG XS DQ\WLPH ZH ZHUH FRRNLQJ +H NQHZ ZKHQ ZH ZHUH PDNLQJ WKH IRRG DQG KH ZLOO FRPH LQ DQG VLW ,W EHFDPH REYLRXV WR XV WKDW KLV YLVLWV ZHUH QRW DFFLGHQWDO VR P\ URRPPDWH GHVFULEHG RXU IULHQG DV ¶D WHFKQRFUDW· ,W LV GL΀FXOW WR IDXOW him. ,Q RWKHU ZRUGV WKH SROLWLFLDQV KDYH FDPSDLJQHG DQG ODERXUHG DQG WKHQ VRPHERG\ FRPHV LQ DIWHU WKH YLFWRU\ , XQGHUVWDQG KRZ LW LV LQ SROLWLFV ZKHUH SHRSOH ZKR KDYH LQYHVWHG WKHLU WLPH DQG UHVRXUFHV EHOLHYH WKDW WKH\ VKRXOG EH UHZDUGHG $QG WKH\ VKRXOG %XW WKHUH VKRXOG DOVR EH D VWURQJ FRQVLGHUDWLRQ WR VRXUFH IRU WKH EHVW SRVVLEOH KDQGV IRU SURFHVV RI QDWLRQ EXLOGLQJ :KRHYHU ZLQV PXVW DOVR UHVWRUH JUHDWHU FRQÀGHQFH EHWZHHQ WKRVH ZKR DUH governed and the political leadership by JLYLQJ VSHFLÀF WLPHIUDPHV LQ ZKLFK FHUWDLQ WKLQJV ZLOO EH GRQH $FKLHYLQJ JRDOV QR PDWWHU KRZ VPDOO KHOSV WR EXLOG FRQÀGHQFH EHWZHHQ WKH FLWL]HQVKLS DQG OHDGHUVKLS 7KH QH[W SUHVLGHQW PXVW EULQJ LQ WKH \RXWKV LQWR JRYHUQDQFH LQ YLVLEOH SRVLWLRQV 8QGHUVWDQGLQJ WKH ZD\ SROLWLFV ZRUNV RXU \RXQJ SHRSOH GRQ·W KDYH WKH ÀQDQFLDO PLJKW WR PDNH FRQWULEXWLRQV WKDW PLJKW HDUQ WKHP VHDWV DW WKH WDEOH 7KLV PXVW EH FRQVFLRXVO\ GRQH WR UHVWRUH FRQÀGHQFH LQ SHRSOH /DVWO\ WKH OHJLVODWLYH DUP LV SUREDEO\ WKH most important arm of government in a GHPRFUDWLF LQVWLWXWLRQ :H QHHG WKHP WR GULYH WKH FRQVWLWXWLRQDO UHIRUPV ZLWKRXW ZKLFK WKH H[HFXWLYH DUP LV KDPVWUXQJ 2YHUDOO OHW PH DOVR VWDWH WKDW , KDYH QHYHU asked for the content of any speaker before an HYHQW QRU LQWHUIHUHG ZLWK DQ\RQH·V WKRXJKWV :KHQ SHRSOH FRPH WR VSHDN RQ ¶3ODWIRUP 1LJHULD· WKH\ VSHDN IUHHO\ DQG DFFRUGLQJ WR WKHLU FRQYLFWLRQV %XW , PXVW WKDQN DOO WKH YROXQWHHUV RYHU WKH SDVW \HDUV 6RPH RI WKHP PD\ QR ORQJHU EH ZLWK XV L H 7KH &RYHQDQW 1DWLRQ ,W KDV EHHQ \HDUV RI VDFULÀFH DQG ODERXU , UHPHPEHU D \RXQJ VWDͿ VOHHSLQJ LQ WKH R΀FH FRQWLQXRXVO\ IRU VHYHQ GD\V WR PHHW XS ZLWK WKH GHPDQGV LQ WKH HDUO\ GD\V RI 7KH 3ODWIRUP :H ZLOO QHYHU IRUJHW WKHLU HͿRUWV LQ WKH GD\V RI VPDOO beginning.

Oyemade is the Senior Pastor of ‘Covenant Nation’ whose church organises the annual ‘platform Nigeria’ speaking series.

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SONNY ARAGBA-AKPORE writes that caution and reason prevailed at the ITU’s election

ITU AND THE FUTURE OF THE INTERNET Palpable fears on the future of the internet dominated the global gathering of the plenipotentiary conference of International Telecommunications Union (ITU) last week as opposition to open internet was rife.

The fears were that the UN’s ITU election may spell the end of an open internet.

Russia, China and Saudi Arabia believed more in national control, to determine standards. They therefore resisted the control of the internet being centralized.

And if Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Uganda and 21 other opposition countries had their way, the future of the internet would have become precarious and unpredictable.

Russia, China and Russia have persistently canvased democratisation of the administration’s of the internet whereby each of 193 member nations of the ITU could make and enforce rules for the internet. And instead of allowing a central body, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers(ICANN) that coordinates Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) to manage the internet through a seamless interoperability and unique domain name system which enables handshakes of Internet Protocol (IP), Russia, China and Saudi Arabia think individual countries should make and enforce individual rules for operations.

This campaign for a decentralized administration for the internet has been on since 2012 but it was put to rest last week at the Plenipotentiary conference in, %XFKDUHVW 5RPDQLD 7KH HOHFWLRQV WR ÀOO ITU’s executive positions put an end to this agitation for decentralization of the internet.

ICANN has been centrally positioned to manage and assign domain names to member countries’ registrars in the assignment of unique addresses to individuals and corporate bodies while IANA has managed the names and numbers unique to individuals and corporations.

The position of the Secretary General as the Chief Executive of ITU was therefore crucial if the status quo was to be maintained.

Russia and the United States of America ÀHOGHG FDQGLGDWHV WKXV UHNLQGOLQJ WKH &ROG War. Rashid Ismailov (Russia) and Doreen Bogdan-Martin(USA) were backed by their countries in this election.

Despite a penchant for ideological slant, caution and reason prevailed when the votes were counted after the election.

Of the 193 Member States, 172 voted in a secret ballot and the results that were announced, saw Ms Doreen Bogdan-Martin of the United States of America scoring 139 votes against Rashid Ismailov (Russia)’s 25 .

Bogdan-Martin was named the next Secretary-General of the ITU and became WKH ÀUVW ZRPDQ WKDW ZLOO RFFXS\ WKLV position in ITU’s 157 years of existence. She will succeed Chinese engineer, Zhao Houlin who will be serving his two-term out by December 31, 2022. %RJGDQ 0DUWLQ DVVXPHV R΀FH RQ January 1,2023. She spoke after the election saying “Whether it’s today’s children or our children’s children, we need to provide them with a strong and stable foundation for growth,” adding: “The world is facing VLJQLÀFDQW FKDOOHQJHV ² HVFDODWLQJ FRQÁLFWV a climate crisis, food security, gender inequalities, and 2.7 billion people with no access to the Internet. I believe we, the ITU and our members, have an opportunity to make a transformational contribution.

Continuous innovation can and will be a key enabler to facilitate resolution of many of these issues.”

Ms Bogdan-Martin has held leadership positions in international telecommunications policy for over two decades. Throughout her career, she has brokered innovative and visionary partnerships with the private sector, civil society, and other United Nations agencies to accelerate digital inclusion and connectivity.

The Secretary-General-elect has pledged “to continue driving this institution to be innovative and increasingly relevant for our Member States, better positioning all of us to embrace the digital environment and make progress on achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals and connecting the unconnected.”

Russia, China and Saudi Arabia believed in more national control, to determine standards; that was why this event was OLNHQHG WR D JHRSROLWLFDO IRRWEDOO ² DQG D turning point for internet governance fueled by the two candidates that ran for the top position in the election as Secretary General.

Bogdan-Martin is an ITU veteran with years of experience working with global telecoms regulators. She also believes that current internet governance models need not change and bodies like the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) should be left to work on standards and technologies pertaining to the ‘net, and the ITU should do its thing regarding international cooperation.

But Russia will not have any of that having nominated Rashid Ismailov for the job. Ismailov was a former deputy minister at Russia’s Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communication, having also worked for Huawei.

In 2019, Huawei, China Mobile, China Unicom, and China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), did something strange. They submitted a proposal to the ITU for a standard called New IP (New Internet Protocol, the standard that helps glue our modern communications together). The entities behind New IP reasoned that it is needed because existing protocols don’t include VX΀FLHQW TXDOLW\ RI VHUYLFH JXDUDQWHHV VR netizens will struggle to handle latencysensitive future applications, and also because current standards lack intrinsic security, they claimed.

Aragba-Akpore is a member of THISDAY Editorial Board

Who will save Nigeria’s rural population? asks JOSEF OMOROTIONMWAN

THE FORSAKEN POPULATION death of the local government.

Until recently, when the local government had some semblance of life, they provided a lifeline of sorts to the rural areas. There was the annual grading of the earth roads that connected the villages within the local government area. This encouraged open interaction between the villages.

Some more serious local governments, like the Owan East, during the chairmanship of Hon. Pally Iriase undertook bold projects like the tarring of roads in their domain.

Others sank boreholes and provided water to their rural population. Yet, some others provided market stalls to their people.

They had a peer review mechanism that encouraged open competition among the local governments. This is all gone. %XW ZKHUH GLG WKH ERWWRP IDOO RͿ LQ DOO this?

Quite recently, the state government found that they could totally annex local governments and add their funds to their loot. It worked!

7KH 6WDWH $UP\ RI 2FFXSDWLRQ ÀUVW UDQ the local governments with hand-picked FDUH WDNHU FRPPLWWHHV LQ XWWHU GHÀDQFH of the provisions of Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees only the existence of “Democratically Elected Local Governments”.

Not done yet, they moved to the next level and began to organize sham elections, Far into the 21st Century, many in this area live which produced errand boys as local and die without seeing a water tap, and some government chairmen and counsellors.

When allocation comes at the end of of them may see a motor car once every four years when the politicians come to ask for their the month, the slave masters send to the FRXQFLO EDUHO\ HQRXJK WR SD\ WKHLU VWDͿ votes.

In the beginning, there was a good life salaries and sit on the rest.

And so, the local governments died! The everywhere - even in the second GRA. It was thought that if we provided cottage estates in rural areas also died! As the rural earth the most remote area; provide a road to places, roads that linked the villages have not put water so that the rural people can drink seen any graders all these years, they now and bathe when they return from the farm, form part of thick forests that separate the and provide light so that they can operate their villages.

This narrative, which is prevalent portable radios to know what is happening in the city, the rural people will live happily throughout the country is, however, forever. The rural people are very easy to without prejudice against some state governments that do not withhold local satisfy.

Instead, Nigeria has also become like the government funds. They are few and far weather, which everybody complains of but apart.

Who will save our local governments? nobody is able to do anything about.

As life becomes more and more unbearable, Who will save rural Nigeria, the forsaken WKH\ WHQG WR PRYH WR WKH ÀUVW *5$ LQ VHDUFK RI population? Who will save Nigeria? We the good life. But they do not get there. They KDYH QR TXLFN À[ KHUH 3DVW HͿRUWV WR VHHN settle at the fringe, thus they only succeed in autonomy for local governments have expanding the second GRA. They have left been self-defeating. To the extent that Oghada, Ekudo, Amaho, Igbanke, Ugboko, state assemblymen, local government chairmen and their counsellors have been and so on, en route to Benin City.

7KH\ VRRQ ÀQG WKDW WKH\ KDYH OHIW WKH YLOODJH inextricably tied to the apron strings of state governors, the majority of votes but cannot get to town.

In Sociology, that’s the theory of the Marginal required for the necessary constitutional Man. The people are to be found in areas that amendment here would remain elusive.

Again, our politicians are at war with have become known as Upper; Upper-Siluko, Upper-Sokponba, Upper-Lawani, Upper- themselves. Is it not a curious paradox that Mission, Upper-Upper… By whatever name the politicians who openly condemned FDOOHG WKH\ VXͿHUHG WKH VDPH IDWH DV WKRVH LQ WKH vote-buying are the same ones engaged in second GRA, they are still in the Government it? It’s a rumble in the jungle!

However, all hope is not lost. In times like Rejected Area - only to be remembered at the these, we must remember our universities. approach of elections.

This is where government sharpens its Like or hate them, that’s where the eggappetite for complaints and that’s about the heads are. In the 1960’s, America was in only thing that the government does well. a more precarious situation than Nigeria It complains about rural-urban migration. is today. They quickly assembled the best Meanwhile, the marginal man soon discovers brains in their universities; impanelled that things are not any easier in his new place them into task forces; and they soon came than where he is coming from. He has to out with miracles that saved America. We move on in search of greener pastures. The can do the same.

This we recommend! government complains of brain drain.

Local government: Going, going, gone!

Omorotionmwan Things were not always this bad. The death of writes from Canada the rural areas was a direct consequence of the In the face of continued maladministration, Nigeria may have found itself in an awkward dichotomy in every state - a tale of two GRAs. 7KH ÀUVW *5$ LV *RYHUQPHQW 5HVHUYDWLRQ Area. In the Inner City, where the oppressors or the big men, as they are usually called, live.

Here, the streets are adequately manicured and there is uninterrupted water and electricity.

There are still relics of the defunct water board SOXV WKH IDFW WKDW WKHVH LQÁXHQWLDO SHRSOH DUH abundantly able to provide their own water systems and security.

The second GRA is the Government Rejected Area. This GRA is made up of The Forgotten Population. They are all over the rural areas where there is no water, no light and no roads.

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EDITORIAL

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

INCESSANT BUILDING COLLAPSE IN NIGERIA…1 Regulating agencies should be alive to their responsibility

I

n other climes, buildings don’t just collapse every other day. From the architectural design stage to civil and structural engineering, actual construction and completion of a project, HͿRUWV DUH PDGH WR HQVXUH WKDW ODLG GRZQ regulations are strictly adhered to. And there are no shortcuts aimed at minimising costs. In Nigeria, failure of the regulating agencies to properly perform WKHLU VXSHUYLVRU\ UROHV KDV JLYHQ ZD\ WR D VLWXDWLRQ ZKHUH TXDFNV KDYH WDNHQ RYHU ZLWK GLUH FRQVHTXHQFHV This year, several buildings of various heights have FROODSVHG DURXQG WKH FRXQWU\ ZLWK WKH KLJKHVW QXPEHU recorded in Lagos State. Going by recent statistics from the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), EHWZHHQ -DQXDU\ DQG -XO\ WKHUH ZHUH QR IHZHU than 24 cases of total building collapse. Most of these collapses, complete or partial, occurred in KLJK ULVH EXLOGLQJV ZLWK dozens of lives lost in the process.

Too much blood is being spilled needlessly in Nigeria’s building industry for all sorts of reasons that even professionals in the sector recognise as avoidable.

The recent collapse of a nine-storey building in Victoria ,VODQG KDG FRPSHOOHG /DJRV VWDNHKROGHUV LQ WKH FRQVWUXFWLRQ LQGXVWU\ WR PHHW WR SURͿHU VROXWLRQV WR WKLV LQFHVVDQW PHQDFH 7KH PHHWLQJ ZDV RUJDQLVHG E\ WKH /DJRV %XLOGLQJ DQG &RQWURO $JHQF\ ZLWK DUFKLWHFWV EXLOGHUV VXUYH\RUV WRZQ SODQQHUV HQJLQHHUV DPRQJ others in attendance. But this is a national problem that UHTXLUHV D PRUH KROLVWLF DSSURDFK IRU WKH DXWKRULWLHV WR GHDO ZLWK 7KHUH DUH SURFHGXUHV WR IROORZ ZKHQ FRQVWUXFWLQJ D EXLOGLQJ DQ\ZKHUH HYHQ RQ ZDWHU %XW LQ 1LJHULD these conventions/regulations are hardly adhered WR EHFDXVH RI SRRU HQIRUFHPHQW RI ODZV 0HDQZKLOH FDVHV RI EXLOGLQJ FROODSVH FXW DFURVV R΀FHV UHVLGHQWLDO areas, churches, and business premises. Generally, building collapse in Nigeria could be attributed to VHYHUDO IDFWRUV XVH RI TXDFNV DQG XQTXDOLÀHG EXLOGHUV

SURSHUW\ RZQHUV DGRSW D RQH VL]H ÀWV LW DOO DSSURDFK sometimes by use of an architect to design and build).

7KHUH LV DOVR WKH IDLOXUH WR FRPSO\ ZLWK SROLFLHV RI regulating bodies in building, the use of substandard materials, undue and notorious sharp practices to PD[LPLVH SURÀWV DV ZHOO DV XQGXH FRPSURPLVH E\ ERGLHV VDGGOHG WR HQVXUH FRPSOLDQFH ZLWK VWDQGDUGV The incessant collapse of buildings in the country GHÀQLWHO\ UHÁHFWV EDGO\ RQ SURIHVVLRQDOV LQ WKH LQGXVWU\ ZKR DUH VWUXJJOLQJ WR ZUHVW FRQVWUXFWLRQ MREV IURP WKH IHZ IRUHLJQ FRPSDQLHV RSHUDWLQJ LQ 1LJHULD %XW WKH\ FDQQRW FRPSHWH LI WKHLU EXLOGLQJ VLWHV EHFRPH NLOOLQJ ÀHOGV 7KHUH DUH LQGLFDWLRQV WKDW EXLOGLQJ FROODSVH are also often caused by attitudinal problems. It is therefore important that there be a register of every professional in the industry WR FKHFN WKHLU DFWLYLWLHV and documentation. Given WKH YROXPH RI ZRUN LQ the construction industry, it may also be necessary to engage external but WUXVW ZRUWK\ FHUWLÀHUV WR FDUU\ RXW FRQVWUXFWLRQ VLWH monitoring. ([SHUWV LQ WKH FRQVWUXFWLRQ LQGXVWU\ KDYH SURͿHUHG many solutions and recommendations to stem this ugly trend, according to those gathered at the Lagos Building and Control Agency meeting. They all UHFRJQLVHG WKH SUREOHP DV ODFN RI LPSOHPHQWDWLRQ of regulations, particularly that of stage/phase LQVSHFWLRQ &RQIURQWLQJ DOO WKH IDXOWV WKURZQ XS E\ years of investigation of various incidences of building collapse across the nation has also been highlighted. )RU LQVWDQFH LW LV REVHUYHG WKDW WKH UHJXODWLRQV ZKLFK compel every developer to submit the name of the VWUXFWXUDO HQJLQHHULQJ ÀUP VXSHUYLVLQJ WKHLU ZRUN LV often ignored. Testing is another issue that should be DGGUHVVHG LQ WKH LQGXVWU\ EHFDXVH RI WKH LQÁX[ DQG XVH RI VXEVWDQGDUG EXLOGLQJ PDWHULDOV E\ GHYHORSHUV ZKR ZDQW WR FXW FRUQHUV LQ WKH H[HFXWLRQ RI WKHLU SURMHFWV This should include the design of the building’s IRXQGDWLRQ WR PDWFK WKH ORDG LW ZRXOG FDUU\ To be concluded tomorrow.

There is the failure to comply with policies of regulating bodies in building, the use of substandard materials, and notorious sharp practices to maximise profits T H I S D AY EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITORS WALE OLALEYE, OBINNA CHIMA MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE

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

Letters to the Editor Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-300 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (750- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive. com along with photograph, email address and phone numbers of the writer.

LETTERS

A SLAUGTER SLAB FOR TEACHERS 2QH ZRXOG WKLQN WKDW DOO WKRVH ZKR DUH HGXFDWHG LQ 1LJHULD KDYH KDG WLPH WR UHÁHFW RQ WKH VWDWH RI WKH FRXQWU\ DQG WKLQN RI VROXWLRQV %XW WKDW KDV QRW DOZD\V EHHQ WKH FDVH 7KH VREHUing experience in Nigeria has been that many intellectuals have IRXQG WKHLU ZD\ LQWR WKH FRUULGRUV RI SRZHU VRLOHG WKHLU KDQGV and proceeded to further complicate Nigeria`s delicate situation LQVWHDG RI FRQWULEXWLQJ WR ÀQGLQJ VROXWLRQV 7R UHÁHFW ÀUVWKDQG RQ WKH GHSWK RI 1LJHULDCV ERWWRPOHVV GLIÀFXOWLHV KDYH EHHQ WHDFKHUV WKRVH KXPEOH SRRUO\ UHPXQHUDWHG EXW LQYDOXDEOH PHQ DQG ZRPHQ ZKR KDYH EHHQ VDGGOHG ZLWK the precious responsibility of teaching generation after generation of Nigerians, forming and shaping Nigeria`s youngest and hoping to stop the cancer eating up the Giant of Africa from the source. :KHUHYHU SHRSOH DUH IRXQG WHDFKHUV ZKR ZRUN LQ VFKRROV DUH DOVR WR EH IRXQG $V HGXFDWLRQ LQ 1LJHULD KDV NQRZQ DEDQGRQPHQW IRU PDQ\ \HDUV WHDFKHUV KDYH ERUQH XQEOLQNLQJ ZLWQHVV :KHQ EURNHQ FKDLUV DQG GHVNV KDYH EHHQ WDNHQ RQH DIWHU WKH other out of classrooms leaving haunting spaces behind, teachHUV KDYH EHHQ WKHUH WR WDNH FRXQW :KHQ ZLQGRZV DQG GRRUV have been torn of classrooms by age and poor maintenance, teachers have been there to see it all. When school buildings

KDYH IDOOHQ LQWR GLVUHSDLU WHDFKHUV KDYH EHHQ DW KDQG WR WDNH WKHLU VWXGHQWV RXW WR WKH VKDGHV RI WUHHV ZKHUH ZLWK WKH GHÀDQFH that only education can forge, they have insisted that learning must continue.

(YHQ ZKHQ WKH\ JR IRU PRQWKV ZLWKRXW WKHLU VDODULHV EHDULQJ WKH EUXQW RI KXQJHU DQG KDUGVKLS WR FRQWLQXH WKHLU ZRUNV LW KDV EHHQ ZLWK WKH UHVLOLHQFH DQG GLJQLW\ WKDW RQO\ HGXFDWLRQ can forge.

6LQFH WKH GHDGO\ WHUURULVW JURXS %RNR +DUDP PXVWHUHG LWV feet and marched against Nigeria`s northeast in 2009, that reJLRQ KDV EHFRPH D ZDU ]RQH 7DNLQJ XS D JUXGJH DJDLQVW ZHVWHUQ HGXFDWLRQ WKH JURXS LPPHGLDWHO\ VKRZHG WKDW LWV YHQRP ZDV GHDGOLHVW ZKHQ LWV IDQJV ZHUH VXQN LQWR WHDFKHUV VWXGHQWV and schools.

Indeed, for many years, its business of death and destruction ZDV HVSHFLDOO\ EULVN DQG EUXVTXH ZKHQ LW LQYROYHG WHDFKHUV· VWXGHQWV DQG VFKRROV %HFDXVH LW ZDV VWULNLQJ ZLWK GHDGO\ IHrocity at the heart of families, the education of many children ZDV VRRQ GLVUXSWHG %XW LW UHPDLQHG LQVDWLDEOH (YHQ ZKHQ PDQ\ VFKRROV ZHUH EXUQW WR WKH JURXQG WR SUHvent any normalcy from immediately returning, the criminals ZHUH QRW GRQH 7KXV ZKHQ LQ KXQGUHGV RI JLUOV ZKR ZHUH

WDNLQJ WKHLU ÀQDO H[DPLQDWLRQV ZHUH DEGXFWHG IURP D 6HFRQGDU\ 6FKRRO LQ &KLERN %RUQR 6WDWH WKH PHVVDJH UDQJ RXW FOHDUO\ WKDW WKH WHUURULVW VHFW ZDV PRUH WKDQ HYHU GHWHUPLQHG WR VHH WR WKH GHPLVH RI ZHVWHUQ HGXFDWLRQ 7HDFKHUV KDYH QRW EHHQ VSDUHG LQ WKHVH DWWDFNV 0DQ\ RI WKHP KDYH EHHQ NLOOHG 7KH QXPEHU LV VLPSO\ QXPELQJ $FFRUGLQJ WR the Registrar/ Chief Executive of Teachers’ Registration Council RI 1LJHULD 75&1 3URIHVVRU -RVLDK $MLER\H DWWDFNV RQ VFKRROV E\ LQVXUJHQWV LQ WKH 1RUWK HDVW RI WKH FRXQWU\ EHWZHHQ DQG 2022 claimed about 2,295 teachers. According to him, in that WLPH DERXW RWKHU WHDFKHUV ZHUH GLVSODFHG ZKLOH RYHU VFKRROV ZHUH GHVWUR\HG 6RPH VFKRROV ZHUH DOVR IRUFHG WR FORVH ZLWK DERXW FKLOGUHQ ORVLQJ DFFHVV WR HGXFDWLRQ ,W LV FOHDU WKDW JRLQJ IRUZDUG WKH SURWHFWLRQ RI WHDFKHUV PXVW WDNH SUHHPLQHQFH LQ 1LJHULD 7KH\ DUH QDWLRQDO WUHDVXUHV DQG XQOLNH PDQ\ RWKHU SURIHVVLRQDOV WHDFKHUV DUH QR WUHDVXUH KXQWers. What they contribute to development of the country can QHYHU EH SURSHUO\ TXDQWLÀHG 7KH\ GHVHUYH WR EH SURWHFWHG E\ all means.

Kene Obiezu, @kenobiezu

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BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET

A S

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REPO

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

08056356325

S E P T E M B E R

S & P INDEX

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S & P INDEX

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OPR

11.25%

CALL

10.25%

INDEX LEVEL

613.31%

1/4 TO DATE

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N416.86/ 1 US DOLLAR*

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11.50%

1-MONTH

9.56%

1-DAY

0.16%

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10.52%

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0.44%

Banks’ Cost-to-income Spike as Inflationary Pressure Mounts

Kayode Toekde Following record inflation rate in Nigeria, deposit money banks (DMBs) in the country have consistently recorded hikes in cost-of-income ratio threatening earnings and profitability for 2022 full year results.

Cost-income is a ratio between the costs involved in running a business and the income the business produce.

The ratio is important for determining the profitability of a bank and it gives a clear view of

how efficiently the bank is being run- the lower the ratio, the more profitable the bank.

An investigation by THISDAY revealed that banks in the half year ended June 30, 2022 reported an increase in Cost-to-income, attributable to increased operating expenses and slow income.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) had reported 18.6 per cent inflation rate in June 2022 from 15.63 per cent reported in December 2021.

The hike in inflation rate is due to increased food costs, supply

chain disruptions, depreciation of the naira, insecurity, and deteriorating infrastructure.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had projected that the present inflationary pressure will continue until 2023, leading to further concerns over a consequent global economic recession.

Extract from the banks results revealed that most listed Tier-1 banks suffer increasing cost-to-income ratio in the period under review, while most listed Tier-11 banks reported a decline in cost-to-income ratio.

Take for instance, FBN Holdings Plc leads Tier-1 bank with highest cost-to-income ratio in the period under review, while Wema Bank Plc, according to half year ended June 2022 recorded the highest cost-to-income ratio among the 10 investigated banks listed on the bourse.

As FBN Holdings reported 68 per cent cost-to-income ratio in H1 2022 from 67.90 per cent in H1 2021, Wema bank announced 81.11 per cent cost-to-income ratio in H1 2022 from 83.80 per cent in H1 2021.

Wema bank had reported operating expense that grew by 26 per cent to N26.3billion in H1 2022 from N20.8 billion in H1 2021, reflecting high inflation environment and currency devaluation.

The bank also reported N32.5billion operating income in H1 2022 from N25.1billion reported in H1 2021.

For instance, Wema Bank’s operating expenses showed changes in key components of its expense line such as AMCON levy that rose by 23 per cent y-o-y to N3.2 billion

due to the growth in asset base and contingents, while NDIC premium rose 10 per cent to N2billionn impacted by growth in deposits “Growth in repairs and maintenance (30 per cent) and others (37 per cent) primarily reflects the impact of the inflationary environment. The 19per cent increase in personnel expenses was as a result of capacity expansions and company-wide salary review during the period,” Continued on page 30

Despite Challenges, UBA Leads Banking Sector in CAR, Liquidity Ratio Kayode Tokede

D

espite heighten macro economic challenges, United Bank for Africa (UBA) leads Tier-1 and Tier-2 banks in Liquidity Ratio (LR) and Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) to maintain its soundness and resilient financial system, data collected by THISDAY has shown.

Specifically, UBA in its half year (H1) ended June 30, 2022 reported 63.70 per cent LR from 47.60 per cent reported in 2021 financial year, while its CAR increased to 25.10 per

cent in H1 2022 from 24.90 per cent in 2021 Financial Year.

LR is used to measure a company’s capacity to pay off its short-term financial obligations with its current assets, while CAR is used to measure how much capital a bank has available, which is reported as a percentage of a bank’s risk-weighted credit exposures.

The CAR and the LR in the banking sector remained above prudential limits at 14.1 and 42.6 per cent, respectively in June 2022, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Speaking with THISDAY on

UBA’s CAR/ LR emerging as highest in the banking sector, the Vice President, Highcap Securities, Mr. David Adnori said that the statutory required LR for bank is 30 per cent, maintaining that for UBA to have a LR above Zenith, Access Holdings, among other Tier-1 banks is an interesting development in the banking sector.

He added that UBA’s CAR around 25.10 per cent showed its resilient for future expansion and increases its capacity to take on risk.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) required all banks to maintain LR of 30 per, while other banking groups

with international authorisation and those that have been categorise as being Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs) to maintain a minimum CAR of 15 per cent, while a minimum CAR of 10 per cent will be applicable to all other banks.

The Basel III standard is a voluntary global regulatory framework that addresses bank capital adequacy, stress testing, and market liquidity risk.

According to the CBN, the goal of the guidelines was to specify the minimum Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) standards for reporting

companies in the banking system.

Other Tier-1 banks that had LR that outperformed the SIBs requirements were: Zenith bank that reported a decline in LR to 60.50 per cent in H1 2022 from 71.20 per cent in 2021 FY, while Access Holdings announced 53.60 per cent LR in H1 2022 from 50.70 per cent in 2021.

In addition, GTCO’s LR closed at 38.85 per cent in H1 2022 from 38.26 per cent and well above the regulatory minimum requirement of 30 per cent as Fidelity Bank reported 47 per cent LR in H1 2022 from 40.40 per cent in 2021 FY. “Despite the pressure from

intense competition and need to cover for regulatory debits, the Group maintained average liquidity ratio of 39.44per cent during the Period under review, ”GTCO explained in a presentation to investors/analysts.

In terms of minimum CAR, the trend of individual CAR of banks listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited has been a mixed bag in the period under review.

Other considered banks with CAR above the regulatory requirement are: Zenith Bank, Continued on page 30

M A R K E T D ATA A S AT T U E S D AY, O C T O B E R 4 , 2 0 2 2 BILLS

BONDS DESCRIPTION Price ^14.20 14MAR-2024 13.53 23MAR-2025 ^12.50 22JAN-2026 ^16.2884 17MAR-2027 ^13.98 23FEB-2028

Yield

102.68

12.12

99.60

13.72

96.84

13.70

110.60

13.07

100.82

13.07

Change Updated Time (%) -0.01 September 30, 2022 0.47 September 30, 2022 0.50 September 30, 2022 0.00 September 30, 2022 0.52 September 30, 2022

MATURITY NTB 13-Oct22 NTB 10Nov-22 NTB 26-Jan23 NTB 9-Feb23 NTB 9-Mar23

Discount

CPS

5.69

5.70

5.91

5.95

6.51

6.65

6.62

6.78

Change Updated Time (%) 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022

7.05

30, 0.00 September 2022

6.84

Yield

MATURITY NENL CP I 24-OCT-22 FSDH CP VII 27-OCT-22 SIBP CP III 27-OCT-22 DLMG CP IV 11-NOV-22 FDHP CP III 17-MAR-23

Discount Yield 17.25 17.45 11.11 11.20 10.26 10.34 13.61 13.82 12.64 13.42

Change Updated Time (%) 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022 30, 0.00 September 2022

OTC F X F U T U R E S CONTRACT Current TENOR Contract Rate Updated Time ($/₦) (MONTH) NGUS OCT 26 449.69 September 30, 1 2022 2022 September 30, NGUS NOV 30 2 451.43 2022 2022 NGUS DEC 28 453.18 September 30, 3 2022 2022 NGUS JAN 25 454.92 September 30, 4 2023 2022 NGUS FEB 22 456.67 September 30, 5 2023 2022

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022

30

BUSINESSWORLD

FINANCE

FirstBank’s Commitment to ServiceYields Stronger Ratings,Accolades In its over 125 years of existence in Nigeria, FirstBank has shown its commitment to not just building value for its customers and shareholders but also ensuring that its immediate community grows. This is evident in its tagline of ‘woven into the fabrics of society,’ Nume Ekeghe writes about the outcome of the bank’s activities

H

aving gone through a turbulent period last year, FBN Holdings Plc seems to be back on track as the holding company alongside its commercial banking arm, First Bank of Nigeria, has in recent times been on the receiving end of positive ratings and accolades.

The Banker’s Top 100 African Bank Rankings published by the Financial Times last week put First Bank at the top of the list of best banks in Nigeria. Top African Ratings, which is acclaimed to be the largest and most important edition for the African continent, ranked First Bank number one in Nigeria on overall performance with it 2021 end-of-year audited financials.

It was also ranked number one on profitability, efficiency and return on risk as its growth was ranked second in the country, testifying to the impressive performance of the financial entity.

This was also corroborated by the recent upward review of the bank and holding company’s ratings by an international rating agency.

Last month, Fitch Ratings upgraded the ratings of FBNH signifying its confidence in the financial conglomerate. According to Fitch in the rating statement, the upgrade of the Long-Term IDRs follows that of the VRs, reflecting that corporate governance irregularities publicly raised by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in April 2021, including two longstanding related-party exposures, have largely been addressed.

UPGRADE IN RATINGS

In May last year, the rating agency had affirmed FBNH ratings at B-’ with a Negative Outlook, following the boardroom crisis that saw the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) replacing of FBNH and FBN’s boards. The identification of corporate governance failings and the imposition of corrective measures are tolerable at the rating level had impacted the ratings of the bank.

According to Fitch Ratings, the financial conglomerate’s rating has been upgraded to ‘B’ with a stable outlook signifying that irregularities that gave way to the negative ratings no longer

FBN CEO, Adesola Kazeem Adeduntan hold water, as it said “risks to capitalisation have receded, helped by strong internal capital generation since the irregularities were raised.”

Stating that corporate governance issues have been addressed, Fitch said “according to management, the two related-party exposures highlighted by the CBN, which included equity and credit exposures to two companies of whom FBNH’s previous chairman was also chairman, have largely been disposed of and repaid.

“Fitch understands from management that FBNH and FBN have not been subject to penalties in relation to irregularities raised by the CBN in April 2021 and no further irregularities have been raised.”

The rating agency also noted that First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) the commercial arm of FBNH, impaired loans ratio has declined significantly to 5.6 per cent as at the end of

the first half of 2022 from a peak of 25 per cent at the end of the 2018 financial year as a result of sizeable write-offs, successful restructurings and recoveries.

Pointing out “the flattering effect of strong loan growth” the rating note said, “Stage 2 loans remain significant at 15 per cent of gross loans at H1 2022, but Fitch expects these to decline as oil and gas exposures return to performing status. Specific loan loss allowance coverage of impaired loans at 49 per cent at end of H1 2022 is acceptable in view of its collateral levels.”

On the profitability, it said “FBNH delivers healthy profitability, as indicated by an operating return on risk-weighted assets (RWAs) averaging 2.6 per cent over the past four years from four per cent in 2021, underpinned by large recoveries on a previously written-off loan. Earnings benefit from a low cost of funding and strong noninterest income but are constrained by a high cost-to-income ratio of 74 per cent in 2021 and significant loan impairment charges (LICs) in recent years.”

Asides this it said on funding, “FBN’s customer deposit base, which is 76 per cent of total funding at end- 1H22) comprises a high share of retail deposits (64 per cent at end-2021) and current and savings accounts (81 per cent at end-1H22), supporting funding stability and a low cost of funding. Depositor concentration is fairly low. Liquidity coverage is comfortable in local and foreign currencies.

BUILDING STRONGER CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The rating note also pointed out the improved capitalisation of the holding company saying its “FCC ratio of 19.1 per cent as at end-H1, 2022 has been on an upward trend in recent years, as a result of strong internal capital generation, which has been influenced by a modest dividend payout ratio.

“Impaired loans net of specific loan loss

allowances has declined as a share of FCC in recent years to a moderate 12 per cent at end-H1 2022. Pre-impairment operating profit is sizeable (an annualised 5.1 per cent of average gross loans in 1H22), providing a reasonable buffer to absorb LICs without affecting capital.

“FBNH’s and FBN’s ESG Relevance Score for corporate governance has been changed to ‘3’ from ‘4’, reflecting our view that corporate governance irregularities publicly raised by the CBN have been addressed without penalty and therefore the factor is no longer relevant to their ratings.

“Fitch has also upgraded the issuers’ National Long-Term Ratings to ‘A(nga)’ from ‘BBB(nga)’, reflecting their improved creditworthiness relative to that of other issuers in Nigeria.”

BUILDING ACTS OF KINDNESS

Besides the improved rating by Fitch, Euromoney Market Leaders had ranked First Bank as market leader in Corporate and Social Responsibility (CSR) as well as Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).

This is in testament to the dedication of the bank towards acts of kindness in the places where it operates. The bank goes beyond providing service to its customers by weaving itself into the fabric of the society through its several activities. In celebrating the fifth edition of its Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability (CR&S) week, the financial conglomerate had committed to impacting the lives of individuals in its host communities across seven countries, including Nigeria, United Kingdom, Ghana, DRC, Guinea, Sierra Lone, Senegal and Gambia.

The FirstBank CR&S, named SPARK, an acronym for Start Performing Acts of Random Kindness is a dedicated week designed to offer opportunities for employees to give their time & resources to define causes in line with the Bank’s CR&S strategic approach. The CR&S Week gives employees in the bank opportunities to give their time & resources to defined causes.

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

DESPITE CHALLENGES, UBA LEADS BANKING SECTOR IN CAR, LIQUIDITY RATIO GTCO, Access Holdings, FirstBank (Nigeria), Fidelity Bank, Union Bank of Nigeria, FCMB group, Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Sterling bank and Wema bank.

The distribution of qualifying capital between Tier 1 and Tier 11 capital by the Nigerian banking industry has been outperforming the BCBS recommendation in terms of minimum CAR. Coming close to UBA was Access

Holdings with 22.40 per cent CAR in H1 2022 from 24.50 per cent, while GTCO grew its CAR to 22.02 per cent in H1 2022 from 23.83 per cent reported in 2021FY. According to GTCO in a presentation, “The Group continued to maintain strong capital positions with Full IFRS 9 impact CAR of 22.02 per cent; 702 basis points above the regulatory minimum of 15 per cent. Tier 1 capital remained

a very significant component of the Group’s CAR closing at 21.9 per cent representing 99.6 per cent of the Group’s Full IFRS 9 impact CAR of 22.02 per cent.

“The robust capital position is a plus to the Group as it provides the needed headroom required for future expansion and increases its capacity to take on risk. The Group’s Capital has been sensitized for Basel III compliance

and found robust enough to meet the requirements for additional capital provision for conservation and counter-cyclical buffers.”

Zenith Bank’s CAR closed flat at 21 per cent, while Firstbank (Nigeria) reported drop in CAR to 16 per cent as of June 30, 20212 from 17.40 per cent in 2021FY. Union Bank of Nigeria and Stanbic IBTC led the other banking category with CAR between 19.80

per cent and 19.70 per cent while Fidelity bank closed H1 2022 with CAR of about 16 per cent.

Regulating banks based on their systemic importance to the financial system and applying higher minimum CAR reduce the possibility of insolvency in the financial system.

To achieve the required capital adequacy, the CBN demanded increasing the qualifying capital,

strengthening the bank’s balance sheet, or shrinking the risk assets on the bank’s books.

The minimum paid-up share capital to be maintained for a national level banking license in Nigeria is N25 billion or any such amount that may be prescribed by the CBN, while for Regional Banking License, it is N10 billion and International Commercial Banking License is N50 billion.

five years.”

Also, Zenith Bank Plc reported 58 per cent cost-to-income in H1 2022 from 56per cent, while Ecobank announced 56 per cent in H1 2022, a decline from 58.70 per cent reported in H1 2021.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) reported 49.06 per cent in H1 2022 from 48.98 per cent in H1 2021.

According to the GTCO, “OPEX grew by 11.3per cent from N89.3billion in H1-2021 to N99.5billion in H1 2022 due to the impact of rising inflation and exchange rate movement at both the official & parallel market which precipitated an increase in the general

prices of goods and services.

“The Group made cost savings from Interest saved on FCY borrowings due to continuous utilization of the Group’s dollar liquidity to repay maturing FCY borrowings.

“Overall, the Group was able to keep its Cost to Income Ratio (CIR) at 49.1per cent from 49per cent in H1-2021, though, higher than the guided 35per cent ratio owing to Inflation induced growth in variable and fixed costs element.

“The Group remains committed to effectively managing its cost despite inflationary and revenue pressures in order to remain within the FY 2022 guidance.”

BANKS’ COST-TO-INCOME SPIKE AS INFLATIONARY PRESSURE MOUNTS the bank said in a presentation to investors/analysts.

Commenting, the vice president, Highcap securities Limited, Mr. David Adnori said the hike in cost-to-income ratio reported

by Tier-1 banks is a reflection of double-dight inflation rate, stressing that commercial banks operating in Nigeria and in Africa do not operate in isolation.

He expressed that the growth in cost-to-income reported by banks would defiantly have impact on profit and dividend payout to shareholders of these banks.

According to him, “The world is currently facing high inflation rate and Nigeria, Africa at large are

not exempted from this experience, with countries on the continent witnessing record high inflation rate. The surge in inflation rate is following the rally in crude oil prices, amidst the face-off between Russia/Ukraine.

“Reacting to the surging inflation rate, regulators of several countries where Nigerian banks operate have also raised their interest rates to curb the rising cost of goods and services.

However, this is yet to yield any positives as inflation rate continues to remain high. With cost impacted, Nigerian banks might suffer slow profitability this year and it might impact on dividend payout.”

Other Tier-1 banks with high

cost-to-income ratio were: Access Holdings Plc with 65per cent cost-toincome ratio in H1 2022 from 60.10 per cent in H1 2021, while United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) reported 63.20 per cent cost-to-income ratio in H1 2022 from 62.30 per cent in H1 2021.

The group managing director, Access Holdings, Dr. Herbert Wigwe in a statement said, “our operating expenses were up 35 per cent year on year to N206.7 billion at the half year 2022 compared to N189.8 billion for the corresponding period last year.

“The OPEX growth was mainly driven by the high inflationary environment, very significant

regulatory costs, exchange rate movements, and the overall increase in cost of running the life franchise following the entry into four new markets in Africa which were South Africa, Botswana, Cameroon and Guinea.”

Speaking about macroeconomic environment, he said, “The uncertainty in the domestic and global economies over the last few months remains unabated with significantly increased inflationary pressures and volatility across key markets in which we operate. The Central Bank of Nigeria raised the benchmark monetary policy rate to 14per cent, up from 11.5per cent in Q1 2022, the first time in over

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022

31

BUSINESSWORLD

DEVELOPMENT

Teacher Professional Development: Exploring Edo’s Unique Model Edo state leads the way in an era where innovative teaching is in short supply, writes Gilbert Ekwugbe

A cross section of teachers at the EdoBEST Induction Training

W

hen teachers gather at any forum centred on their profession in Nigeria there is a tradition. Periodically, some chant, “teachers are great,” while others respond with, “no controversy.”

Over the years, these phrases have served as a reminder of the critical role teachers’ play in society.

They also create a sense of fulfilment and camaraderie.

However, in the past few years, the greatness of teachers has been called to question as both local and international stakeholders identify cracks in the ability of the teaching corp to deliver on its mandate.

Five months ago, UNICEF Nigeria affirmed that there are 10.5 million out-of-school children in Nigeria.

The multilateral institution also indicated that of those in school, 70% are not learning because of a number of factors, including low-quality teachers. “To attain the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in 2030,” UNICEF noted that “Nigeria has to invest in the training of teachers.”

In Edo state, however, the story is quite different. For almost half a decade, the state government has, as a deliberate policy, invested in upskilling and providing teachers in state-owned schools with modern tools relevant to their jobs. This it has done to enable them “educate a 21 Century relevant workforce,” according to Governor Godwin Obaseki.

Using a combination of strategies including Teacher Professional Development (TPD) training, daily quality assurance and mentorship programmes and provision of technical support, teachers in Edo state hone their skills throughout the academic calendar year and deliver lessons that resonate with their pupils.

A NEW TPD MODEL

As schools opened their doors for the 2022/23 academic session on 12, September, 32,000 more junior secondary school students were incorporated into the EdoBEST programme (a revolutionary reform programme introduced by Governor Godwin Obasek).

This was possible because 1,446 more teachers and school leaders had completed the EdoBEST Induction Training.

Drawn from the 18 local government areas, this group of educators joined over 16,000 others who have been part of the same capacity building exercise in the last four years.

It is generally agreed, among teachers who have undergone the training and stakeholders who know about its modules, that the EdoBEST Induction Training is the single distinguishing factor that has given impetus to education in Edo state in the past four years.

The 10-day hands-on training serves at least three distinct purposes: It introduces teachers to technology that catalyses their work, opens their eyes to proven techniques relevant to modern classroom and pupil management, and exposes them to new methods of school management and administration.

When teachers complete the modules they are immediately able to implement the full breadth of the EdoBEST reform programme in their schools because they are empowered, not just with skills, but also with

This group delved deep into the field of e-quality assurance and how their processes can be better handled using specialised internet-based applications.

Together with their colleagues across the state, Quality Assurance Officers in Edo state’s basic education system have two major responsibilities: Ensure that teachers and headteachers adhere to the laid down rules and procedures of the EdoBEST programme and mentor teachers by continuously supporting them to achieve their career and professional development goals.

Every day, Quality Assurance Officers within Edo SUBEB visit schools in towns, villages, and hard-to-reach areas to ensure that pupils are being given the right education and teachers are doing their jobs seamlessly.

“As a Quality Assurance Officer, it is my responsibility to go into the school unannounced to monitor the system.

My objective is to ensure that no one deviates from the established standards. This is to ensure that quality education is being delivered to pupils irrespective of where their schools are located,” says Gladys Oseyi, a Quality Assurance Officer with Edo SUBEB. Interestingly, this method has delivered impressive results. Teachers have been empowered through the process as it serves as a medium for daily data collection and continuous school improvement.

“We have come to see the quality assurance officers as collaborators on our road to success,” Catherine Orole Principal, Niger College noted. “They come in, discuss with us, share new insights with us and generally ask us how things are going with a view of helping us” A part of Edo’s strategy of prioritising teachers’ professional development as a means to improve learning outcomes is the use of technology.

A teacher teaching in a school in Edo statet gadgets and equipment to implement changes.

“The training was simply phenomenal,” Deborah Oshoke, a first-time teacher transitioning from being a regular teacher to one who uses digital gadgets for teaching, said at the recently concluded training in Benin City. “One of the major things I learnt here is the use of technology. I now know how to use the teacher-tablet and teaching-guidelines to teach,” she said.

Midway into the training, Osawese Benjamin, principal of Obe Junior Secondary School in Orhionmwon local government area said, “I was excited about coming for the training programme, as some of the primary school teachers in Obe had told us about it. Since this programme started, we have experienced a lot of things. We have been taught several techniques to keep children in line without the use of corporal punishment. We also know how to manage our teachers better.”

Examined in detail, the modules of the EdoBEST Induction Training present a kaleidoscope of concentric circles.

From the minute details involved in introducing teachers and headteachers to the main activities and procedures that define EdoBEST on a daily basis to more complex issues like headteacher-community relations, child protection and motivation, all issues

relevant to running a successful school system are covered.

Teachers are taught how to mark attendance electronically, how to enter examination scores into the centralised EdoBEST database, how to register new pupils into the database, how to motivate children using modern proven techniques, how to identify and help slower learners, how to identify and assist children facing problems at home, how to impart lessons without coercion, how to deliver impactful lessons using technology, how to get pupils attention and motivate them, among other critical subjects.

The 10-day training is however a tip of the iceberg as the EdoBEST teacher development programme runs deeper.

BLENDING QUALITY ASSURANCE WITH MENTORSHIP

On August 23, over 80 quality assurance officers from Edo SUBEB’s ecosystem gathered at the John Odigie-Oyegun Public Service Academy for a professional development exercise put together by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Edo SUBEB and the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA).

DRIVING EDUCATION THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

As an Ed-Tech solution designed to address the gap in teaching, the EdoBEST programme leverages technology. With the world going digital, teachers and school leaders are trained in digital skills to ensure they are conversant with the technology employed by the programme for optimal basic education service delivery.

Each teacher is supported on a daily basis through technology. Tools relevant to data gathering and information dissemination are at the disposal of every teacher and headteacher.

Through these gadgets teachers receive mentorship, instructional materials and guides and advisory to help them do their jobs better.

“The teacher-tablets that have been given to our teachers have generally made their jobs easier,’’ Comrade Bernard Ajobiewe, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Teachers, Edo State Chapter said in an interview recently.

The method adopted by Edo state has largely worked as it has bred a more fit-for-purpose teacher workforce, the impact of which has been felt within and outside the school system. The biggest beneficiary is the hundreds of pupils who receive more impactful lessons now than in the past. The Nigerian federation stands to benefit from adopting an integrated approach to teacher professional development given the state of the country’s education indices.

32

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

PERSPECTIVE

Seven Quick Wins for National Prosperity Post 62nd Independence Anniversary value chain will drive energy and food security in Nigeria. It could spur the development of the agro-allied industries that could ensure an integrated manufacturing ecosystem. This strategic approach to leadership would also lead to the conservation of foreign exchange and create a compelling case to attract more foreign direct investment that will enhance economic growth. In doing so, the country diversifies its revenue stream and builds vibrant industries, especially agriculture and manufacturing, that will drive sustainable, inclusive economic growth.

Dr. Alim Abubakre

N

igeria is the 6th most populous country in the world. It is richly endowed with several mineral resources, including oil, Nigeria has a great potential that, if utilized, can propel it to great heights of success. However, 62 years after independence, the country, like a vehicle on a hilly road, is struggling to climb. Indeed, one would argue that its large population and resources are at present a weakness and not a strength as they should be.

Significant challenges impeding its progress include high unemployment, poor infrastructure, insecurity, poor governance and a high level of immigration.

So, with the myriad challenges, can Nigeria spring up and reverse the negative and worrying trajectory?

Without a doubt, a positive change is possible. But first, there must be a paradigm shift. Indeed, the Nigerian government, decision-makers in the third sector and business leaders are fully aware of the challenges the county is facing six decades after gaining its independence from Britain. The million-dollar question is how can these challenges be addressed for sustainable success for all? Leveraging my experience of engaging with over 4000 executives globally and helping hundreds of organizations to win, I suggest these seven areas that could fast-track Nigeria’s goal of sustainable development, comparative advantage and the competitiveness of her businesses in the global space.

HARNESSING DIASPORAS, INCREASING EXODUS OF TALENT

Migration movements worldwide have positively influenced economic and demographic transformations over the years. In the past few years, owing to globalization and in search of greener pastures, there has been massive emigration of Nigerians to Europe, North America and Asia. Unlike in the past, today’s migration is characterized by the transfer of skills, technologies and resources that, if utilized well and an enabling environment created, can help in nation building.

Being a country endowed with huge potential, Nigeria can achieve prosperity by harnessing diasporans and attracting investments from compatriots outside the country’s shores. Specifically, diasporans could be a source of talent and technology transfer. Technology advancement could be achieved if the country develops special schemes that encourage more Nigerians to return home, at least during their leave. This suggestion is

BUILDING A NATIONAL BRAND

practicable as some doctors overseas are already doing this for Nigeria, and South Korean and Chinese Engineers do it for their nations. Thus, this will make their emigration from Nigeria a brain gain, just like the Jewish diasporans.

On the other hand, through better intra-agency collaboration, deliberate government policy and judicious use of big and deep data, the country should make it easier for some of its citizens who have migrated to other countries to invest at home.

Furthermore, given the country’s present revenue challenge and the diasporans’ remittances are the country’s largest source of foreign exchange, it is critical for government and the private sector to invest more in a better relationship with the “hen that lays the golden egg”. Better relations initiatives could include conferment of more Nigerian national honours when they excel overseas and offering the opportunity to participate in the electoral process through suffrage.

Also, since diasporans are plenipotentiaries overseas, they could also be a source of global soft power. They could help obtain the outcomes that Nigerians want in world politics if they are actively courted and treated as strategic assets.

With better connections with their home country and incentives for investment, it becomes easier to foster development and nation-building.

VERTICAL INTEGRATION OF AGRICULTURE AND PETROLEUM

Nigeria is one of the world’s largest producers of oil and gas yet the largest importer of refined petroleum and fertilizers in Africa. The largest producer of cassava but the continent’s largest

Dr. Abubakre importer of starch. One of the continent’s biggest tomato producers but the largest importer of tomato paste. Nigeria is in a no-win situation with her almost sole reliance on oil for its foreign exchange export earnings. For example, with over-reliance on oil, the price volatility makes it difficult for leaders to plan. Also, when the price is low government revenue dwindles and when the price is high, government expenditure increases due to subsidies. One way to avoid such scenarios is by diversifying and building other industries. More precisely, vertical integration of agricultural and petroleum industries could reduce her foreign exchange import bill and create fiscal stability. Vertical integration should entail the Nigerian government and business leaders building more refineries to leverage petrochemicals’ developmental benefits, especially for the country. According to IEA, petrochemicals are the largest source of demand for crude oil and will account for 50% of crude oil demand by 2050. By-products of petrochemicals include asphalt for paving roads, aromatics for the manufacture of perfumes, Propylene and sulphur used in the petrochemical, pharmaceuticals and naphtha for producing polymer. Other uses of petrochemicals are for manufacturing digital devices, medical equipment, fertilizers, detergents and tyres. Petrochemicals are so vital that they could be a source of developing the renewable energy value chain. For example, petrochemicals could be used to manufacture components of solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, thermal insulation and electric vehicles, which is greener, sustainable and will create jobs. The symbiosis between the petrochemical and agricultural

Arguably, Nigeria can create a meaningful economic impact and promote sustainable growth over the coming years if it builds a vibrant and trusted national brand globally. But first, it must set its standards high and strive to build trust in Nigerian products and services, especially in agricultural products, fashion, arts and entertainment. Nigeria can borrow a leaf from Japan, whose Made in Japan goods and services are considered among the top 5 trusted brands globally. However, this country’s export was not always regarded as high quality; given Japan’s poor response to Fukushima, many of its manufactured cars were once considered low quality. Like the Japanese, the Nigerian government should invest in sensitization programmes that encourage manufacturers to enshrine transparency, authenticity, continuous improvement, innovation and flexibility while producing and exporting their goods and services.

With an excellent national brand, the government and other business leaders can go ahead to market their products and improve Nigeria’s balance of payment.

Indeed, national brands have other benefits, including high customer trust, reduced marketing expenses, visibility, loyalty and strong, soft power. With such benefits and the associated high revenues, achieving prosperity will be a matter of time.

HARNESSING NIGERIA’S YOUTHFUL POPULATION

With one of the largest youthful populations in the world, Nigeria has a tremendous economic asset that, if utilized well, can contribute to the country’s economic growth. Approximately 70% of the country’s population is young, most of whom are under 30.

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62 Years of Tremendous Growth in Nigeria’s Pension Sector Ebere Nwoji writes that Nigeria’s pensions sub-sector has recorded milestone achievement since the country’s independence 62 years ago

T

he pension sector is no doubt one of the fastest growing sectors of the Nigerian economy since the introduction of the funded Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).

Indeed, with the quantum of assets accumulated by the sector, Nigeria has no doubt recorded significant success in the reformation of its pension subsector.

The industry now sits on huge pension assets of N14. 2trillion.

Aside the above quantum of assets accumulated by the sector, a good sign that the country has achieved improvement in its pension sub-sector is the growing interest and awareness among Nigerians in pension matters.

Indeed, every Nigerian worker, irrespective of his level, is now aware that pension benefit is a package waiting for him at retirement. Many on daily basis look at quantum of benefit in their Retirement Savings Accounts.

Of all the achievements since inception, the biggest came in the past two years when it implemented the window transfer mechanism and the release of the guidelines on the use of pension assets for mortgage.

Also the Micro Pension plan gave hope for informal sector operators.

Having this at the back of their minds, every Nigerian worker is interested in pension matter and is eager to contribute his ideas on such matter anytime anywhere.

MEANING OF PENSION

Pension by its definition and meaning as spelt by the Cambridge English Dictionary is an amount of money paid regularly by government or a private company to a person who does not work any more because he is too old or has become ill.

The dictionary.com defines it as a fixed amount other than wages paid at regular intervals to a person or the person’s surviving dependents in consideration of past services, age, merit, poverty , injury or loss sustained.

By whichever way the word pension is looked at, it is an entitlement belonging to a retired worker who had used his youthful strength to work for a particular organisation until he grows old and weak that he can no longer work as he used to do and so goes for retirement.

At the retirement period, he sits back to receive periodically, usually monthly, a certain amount; though may not be as high as what he was receiving during

This was one of the gory experiences of pensioners simply because the pension fund managers then preferred to divert the provided money to their own account while the real owners die in poverty and penury.

THE NEW ERA

his service years, for his continued up keep in life.

A good pension scheme serves as an incentive to new employees and helps to hold back experienced staff. It is, therefore, the responsibility of a good employer to articulate and design a good pension plan that will motivate staff.

62 years after independence, Nigeria has recorded huge success in the transformation of its pension system which had in the past recorded ugly history.

Improvement in this regard was so tremendous that the rest of African countries now look at Nigeria as role model in the reformation of their pension system

ERA OF DEFINED BENEFIT SCHEME

Before the advent of the current Contributory Pension Scheme established by the Pension Reform Act of 2004, amended in 2014, Nigeria was operating the Defined Benefit scheme currently tagged old scheme. It came into effect in April 1974, but was backed up by an enabling law in 1979.

The scheme, which was unfunded in nature, was apparently characterised by problems of different magnitude and complexities, such as lack

of accountability, transparency, mismanagement of funds and corruption.

Consequence of this was that Nigerian pensioners were denied payment of their benefits and other legitimate entitlements on retirement.

The result was that many retirees died out of shock, heart attack, stress on regular calls for verification of pensioners and other serious life threatening hardships to which they were subjected simply to be eligible to be paid their gratuity and pension. Many of them after the sufferings never received the said pensions until they died.

Some time ago in Nigeria, precisely in 2010, media reports went wide about a particular pensioner who was ill and his children continued to struggle for payment of his monthly pension arrears to enable them take him to hospital for treatment, but the paymasters insisted that unless he was brought out from the hospital to the point of verification, he would not be paid.

The children later succumbed and carried the sick pensioner to the verification venue only for him to give up the ghost on the way and the children vehemently brought the body to the pay masters before his entitlement was paid.

This ugly situation, continued until in 1999, when the former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was confronted with the challenge of rampage by retired military officers who happened to be his school mates in military school and protest letters from some prominent university professors. He was then compelled to form a committee, which he sent to different parts of the world to study the pension system in advanced countries.

The committee later came up with suggestions and advice for Nigeria to adopt the on going contributory Pension Scheme practiced in Chile.

The Pension Reform Act was in June, 2004, signed into law thereby establishing the regime of Contributory Pension Scheme in Nigeria.

The scheme was meant to accommodate workers who had three years to go for retirement before the enactment of the contributory pension scheme.

While those who had from four years up to retire were accommodated.

The former were retained under the Defined Benefit scheme and the two currently exist side by side until the last pensioner under the old scheme dies.

Also military personnel were exempted from the CPS. With this arrangement, sufferings and old age poverty associated with retirement in Nigeria became a history.

Pensioners under the contributory pension scheme and those under the Defined Benefit scheme now receive human treatment with respect from managers of the scheme.

At the verification exercise conducted by the Pension Transitional Arrangement Committee (PTAD) for about 21,000 pensioners residing in Lagos who are under the Defined Benefit Scheme recently, the pensioners confessed that there has been a great change in the way their cases were handled.

One of the pensioners, Mrs M. Shonowo who retired as commercial Manager Ministry of Communications, in her assessment of the Lagos verification exercise has this to say: “The arrangement now is superb. Before, we were under sun and rain.

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33

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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

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

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

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

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

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

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 30Sept-2022, unless otherwise stated.

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

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

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

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AIICO Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 7.55% Anchoria Equity Fund 137.28 138.80 -1.41% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.18 1.18 2.84% info@anchoriaam.com ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 20.99 21.63 3.50% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 505.41 520.65 12.02% ARM Ethical Fund 42.26 43.54 8.49% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.09 1.09 0.56% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.06 1.06 4.58% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.21% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com; Tel 08069294653 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 86.97 86.97 -9.85% AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Naira 1,094.12 1,094.12 9.41% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.10 2.10 2.99% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.26 2.31 5.54% CAPITALTRUST INVESTMENTS AND ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED halalfif@capitaltrustnigeria.com Web: www.capitaltrustnigeria.com; Tel: 08061458806 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Capitaltrust Halal Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.02 1.02 6.33% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 11.76% Paramount Equity Fund 18.09 18.41 8.18% Women's Investment Fund 143.98 145.68 1.42% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 9.87% Cordros Milestone Fund 129.54 130.42 4.18% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 111.43 111.43 4.98% CORONATION ASSETS MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com, Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-asset-management-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 9.41% Emerging Africa Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 8.59% Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund 1.02 1.02 1.26% Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund 103.57 103.57 2.29% FBNQUEST ASSETS MANAGEMENT LIMITED invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Bond Fund 1511.41 1511.41 11.48% FBN Balanced Fund 192.92 194.21 10.08% FBN Halal Fund 124.13 124.13 11.47% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.41% FBN Dollar Fund (Retail) 126.46 126.46 6.26% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 156.56 158.67 4.30% FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy USD Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn

Coral Balanced Fund Coral Income Fund Coral Money Market Fund

4,024.30 3,632.68 100.00

4,078.25 3,632.68 100.00

4.36% 6.33% 11.52%

FSDH Dollar Fund 1.12 1.12 4.07% GUARANTY TRUST FUND MANAGERS LIMITED 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 N/A N/A N/A Vantage Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) N/A N/A N/A Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End N/A N/A N/A Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End N/A N/A N/A 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 1.62 1.65 14.01% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,173.87 1,173.87 6.88% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: www.meristemwealth.com/funds/; Tel: +2348028496012 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 11.71 11.80 8.06% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 10.55% NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) N/A N/A N/A Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) N/A N/A N/A PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM EuroBond Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 123.97 126.50 0.05% 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 1.07 1.07 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 N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Equity Fund 0.95 0.97 6.93% United Capital Balanced Fund 1.34 1.36 2.98% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.16 1.17 11.84% United Capital Sukuk Fund 1.08 1.08 10.30% United Capital Fixed Income Fund 1.92 1.92 8.54% United Capital Eurobond Fund 123.64 123.64 5.78% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.96% QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Balanced Strategy Fund 13.48 13.60 2.21% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 15.48 15.62 5.87% Zenith Income Fund 23.16 23.16 5.51% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.30% VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD funds@vetiva.com Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund 3.74 3.84 -6.62% Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund 5.80 5.90 -0.78% Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund 17.71 17.91 0.15% Vetiva Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 9.98% Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund 17.63 17.83 -11.71% Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund 138.04 140.04 -12.42%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

119.29 52.14

5.27% 2.50%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

14.08 122.91 97.65 16.40 17.10

14.18 126.01 99.78 16.50 17.20

0.63% -3.31% -2.12% -3.43% 11.79%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.59

0.00%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

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

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.

34

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 5, 2022

EDUCATION World Teachers’ Day: Equipping Teachers with ICT Skills to Transform Education As Nigeria joins other countries to mark the 28th anniversary of World Teachers’ Day with the theme ‘The Transformation of Education Begins with Teachers’, Uchechukwu Nnaike and Funmi Ogundare examine teachers’ preparedness to lead the transformation. Hewlett Packard also held a virtual inaugural #NextGen educators forum to discuss strategies and opportunities to equip teachers with the necessary skills that will move education forward in Africa

Buhari

T

Adamu

eachers’ swift response to the closure of schools worldwide in 2020, following the outbreak of COVID-19, and their continued efforts to ensure that students recover lost grounds through various media and methods have been commended and informed the theme of this year’s World Teachers’ Day. Due to the unprecedented pandemic and schools closure, most teachers and learners were ill-prepared for the swift transition to online learning. Teachers were quick to adapt and improvised to ensure that learning continued. However, learners in remote areas and those from poor backgrounds were initially denied access, but the introduction of education through radio and other offline sources helped to some extent.

As agents of education recovery and transformation post-COVID, most Nigerian teachers lack the skills and competence to drive recovery and transformation.

Though some states are making efforts to introduce e-learning, complemented with teacher training and re-training, there is no national policy to integrate e-learning into schools’ curricula for implementation across the country.

To ensure that teachers take up their responsibilities, Education International called for a new deal for teachers and support personnel as a prerequisite to any meaningful transformation in education.

As part of the new deal, it said governments must: Increase investment in quality public education systems; guarantee labour rights and decent working conditions; invest in quality teacher training and professional development; trust and respect teachers and their pedagogical expertise; and involve teacher unions in policy through social dialogue.

An educator, Mrs Yinka AwoboPearse, said Nigeria’s education system needs reform and regretted that teacher education is not tracking development in education and the latest information on child development.

“The curriculum used in education departments and colleges are dated and not based on real life,” said Awobo-Pearse, adding that transformation requires deep knowledge and understanding. “A well-trained teacher is central to the delivery of the curriculum. Teacher quality remains one of the highest drivers of learning outcomes in the classroom.”

Also, a team of scholars advised that to enable quick learning recovery, school systems must implement strategies that make instruction more effective, relevant and relational and ensure teachers can support the recovery process in the classrooms.

The scholars said ensuring

education transformation requires countries to adopt new policies and financing for strengthened licensing and accreditation schemes and modernise pre-service teacher education curriculum to include supervised field teaching, induction and mentoring.

“Teachers will also need to have better opportunities for personalized continuous professional development on targeted instruction, tutoring, and digital and other 21st century skills. Effective and effcient compensatory systems, improved working conditions in schools, and teacher engagement through social dialogue in policy development can help enhance the profession and enable teachers to better serve their role in transforming education.”

The panellists at the HP event, including Chief Executive Officer at Junior Achievement Africa (Nigeria), Simi Nwogugu, former Superintendent General for Western Cape Education Department, Specialist Advisor (South Africa), Brian Schreuder, Chief Executive Officer at Teach For Nigeria, Folawe Omikunle and Brad Pulford, HP Africa Managing Director, emphasised the importance of ensuring that teachers are equipped with the soft skills they

Teachers will also need to have digital and other 21st century skills. Effective and effcient compensatory systems, improved working conditions in schools, and teacher engagement through social dialogue in policy development can help enhance the profession and enable teachers to better serve their role in transforming education

need in the 21st century, having a support system for them that would ensure that they are well motivated so that the youths can be encouraged to go into the teaching profession, ensuring an e-learning strategy, as well as having school leaders who have a mindset for change, among others.

In his remarks, Schreuder stressed the need to equip teachers with digital training that would enable them to succeed in the 21st century, adding that their schools must also be equipped with internet connectivity to allow students to do research.

He also emphasised teaching pupils foundational literacy and numeracy, saying that teachers have to be aware of the different learning styles of each learner and ensure that there is a short touch on that style through their teaching from time to time so that they do not lose them.

Nwogugu said teachers must be curious and equip themselves with the digital tools needed to teach learners.

She expressed delight about young Africans being entrepreneurial and solution-driven, but that government need to provide the enabling environment for them to thrive.

Omikunle said the sector must attract the best, highly motivated and equipped teachers to teach learners.

“We need to provide the necessary support system so as to produce mentally balanced teachers. We need to also improve the perception of people about the teaching profession so that they will not go into it as a last resort,” Omikunle explained. “More and more organisations need to show that they care for teachers. Teacher remuneration is also very important. We need to raise the bar that will allow young people to be attracted into the profession.”

US University, NGO to Train 100 Nigerian Teachers Vanderbilt University in the US is collaborating with two nongovernmental organisations, Boys Champions and Hope for African Children, to train 100 teachers in Nigeria.

The training would include best classroom practices and management skills to better support students, especially those with learning and physical disabilities.

The founder of Boys Champions

and Hope for African Children, Noel Ifeanyi Alumona, who disclosed this to journalists, said two professors from Vanderbilt University would anchor the programme at the new training centre in Enugu after an international conference tagged, ‘Shaping the Future’, organised by the group on November 25.

According to him, the training is free for teachers in Nigeria, advising interested teachers to log

on to http://www.boyschampions. org/teachers to register.

He explained that the training would improve special education and better support children with disabilities to access education in the country.

Meanwhile, Noel met with Dalai Lama in India recently and shared with him the vision behind the founding of Boys Champions.

He related the horrific story of watching his mother killed by

hoodlums when he was only nine years old to the Nobel Laureate.

Rather than seek vengeance against the perpetrators, Noel said he toed the peace path and founded the NGO to educate young boys and men to shun violence against women and girls for a better society.

The heroic work of Boys Champions caught the eyes of the world as Noel won the 2022 AFS Award for Young Global Citizens by the

United States Institute of Peace and became the first African to win the coveted prize since its inception in 1914.

“As someone who works to end violence against women and girls in Nigeria by teaching young boys proper behaviours and respect for women, I have been inspired by meeting His Holiness and other change-makers from different countries across the world,” he said.

35

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 5, 2022

EDUCATION

Teachers Warned against Sterling Bank Partner Africa EDUCare to Inflicting Psychological Transform Higher Education Punishment on Students Funmi Ogundare According to the Chief that a strategic alliance with (MIST), which will focus on Science, Technology, Executive Officer ( CEO) and Sterling Bank would, in the Oluchi Chibuzor

Experts in the Montessori child development perspective have warned teachers against inflicting psychological punishment on children in their formative stage.

They said psychological punishment on children happens when teachers use words instead of physical punishment to make them learn or as a disciplinary measure.

Speaking at a training programme for public and private school teachers on ‘Child Development: A Montessori Perspective’, the Director, Montessori Study Centre, Noyenum Emafo, called on teachers to embrace numerous opportunities they provide for those interested in acquiring relevant certification in early child development.

She noted that having seen the need to train teachers to be able to impart knowledge

in those formative years, the study centre decided to invite educators from underserved communities.

According to the trainer from the Association Montessori Internationale, Cheryl Ferreira, there are four development stages in children’s lives: six, six to 12, 12 to 18 and 18 to 24.

She noted that the first stage was important for children, marking the point where they absorb social habits.

“At this age for young children, it is not about enforcing. It is about being a model. It is about showing how we want our children to live the kind of life that we want our children to live,” Ferreira pointed out.

“So, because teachers are not allowed to spank kids, there is a tendency for them to use words to inflict psychological punishment on the children, and this has an impact on their learning development.”

Sterling Bank Plc has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Africa EDUCare, innovative education and healthcare solutions company, aimed at transforming higher education in Nigeria.

The MoU was conceived to deploy Unify, the bank’s education management solution, to enable Africa EDUCare to achieve its dream of floating the Maranatha Institute of Science and Technology

Engineering, Agribusiness, and Medicine (STEAM) curriculum.

Speaking at the signing ceremony held recently in Lagos, the Divisional Head for Business Growth and Transaction Banking at Sterling Bank, Mr Obinna Ukachukwu, stressed that education would remain a critical sector of the bank’s HEART (health, education, agriculture, renewable energy, and transportation) strategy.

President of Africa EDUCare, Prof James Makinde, the partnership presents great development prospects for Nigeria, and his organisation proposes to revolutionise education and revitalise the national economy for global impact through tertiary and vocational education (TVE) that transfers skills that are immediately usable in the marketplace.

Makinde, former vicechancellor of Babcock University, expressed optimism

nearest future, transform the education sector and assist in transforming this vision into reality.

Present at the signing ceremony were Adatugo Oyebanji, General Manager, Café One (UNIFY), Olufunso Olunaike, Chief Technical Officer, Café One (UNIFY), Prof. Kamar T. Adeleke, President/CEO of Tristate Healthcare System and Executive Vice President, Healthcare for Africa EDUCare.

Del-York Academy Produces 3,000 Creative Interns in Nigeria Uchechukwu Nnaike

In its drive to pursue the development of Africa’s creative industry on several fronts, DelYork Creative Academy said it has, over the past 12 years, been redefining and broadening the creative space in Africa.

Since its establishment in 2010, it said more than 3,000 interns have undergone DelYork’s high-quality, innovative training and have been coached with the relevant skills to be pacesetters in the fast-evolving and expanding creative industry.

With a diverse cadre of national and international instructors, state-of-the-art equipment and well-appointed learning suites operated within an intensive, hands-on structure, Del-York Creative Academy said it is now recognised as the foremost institution in Africa dedicated to providing film and media, on-campus and

virtual, training programmes that give participants valuable, real-world experience.

“In strategic collaborations and partnerships with worldrenowned international partners that include the New York Film Academy and the University of Southern California, Del-York Creative Academy’s alumni are acknowledged innovators in Nigeria’s Nollywood and across Africa’s movie and media industries,” it disclosed in a statement.

The academy announced its plans to build capacity and create economic wealth in the film industry.

To play a significant role in Africa’s development and to champion the cause for those who have a passion for developing their talents in diverse creative spheres, Del-York Creative Academy recently collaborated with the Lagos government to establish the Lagos Film City.

Officials of Christ Divine Favour Group of Schools and some guests at the inauguration of water project providede for residents of Ilaje Road and Oshinatu Street of Bariga, Lagos...recently

Christ Divine Favour School Supports Host Community, Awards Scholarship Chris Asika

As part of its corporate social responsibility, the Christ Divine Favour Group of Schools has launched a water project for residents of Ilaje Road and Oshinatu Street in Bariga, Lagos.

The project, which will provide clean water for the residents, was inaugurated

by Justice Deji Balogun, a judge of the Lagos High Court and Pastor of Redeemed Christian Church of God, Victory House Parish, Isale Akoka. He urged the

beneficiaries to make good use of the free water project.

“We went round the area and discovered that they have water problem, people have to buy water and have to go long journey to get water so we decided to do this to ameliorate the water problem in the area as our own CSR.” “People look up to government for water and other social amenities, but some individuals just like CDF Schools who are capable should come to the aid of the people when needed,”

said Balogun.

Balogun also offered a full scholarship opportunity to three students once the new school resumes.

In his remarks, the school’s proprietor, Mr Albert Sunday Ndem, said: “The message is to give the people of the community a sense of belonging and adjust miscreants. If you give good people good things about tomorrow, it can be able to reduce miscreants in the community.”

He described education as the key to opening all

doors but regretted that the country does not appoint education leaders based on merit.

Responding, the council development area (CDA) leaders, including Adeshola Kasim (youth leader) Hon. Atiba Stephen (former councilor), Yomi Odutusin (CDA Secretary) and Hon. Oluwo Adegboyega commended the CDF Schools.

CDF Schools, a primary and secondary institution have five branches in Yaba, with an addition of the sixth branch in Bariga

tive evaluation process by a selected panel of judges.

Miss Purity Chukwudubem Chetach, 9, of Star of Hope Montessori Schools, Alapere-Ketu, Lagos, and Heritage Abiodun Abegunrin, 13, of Juli Standard College, Oke- ola, Oyo state, emerging second and third positions, respectively.

They outshined several entrants across Lagos, Ondo, Kwara, Oyo and Anambra and smiled home with a cash prize of N100,000.00, N50,000.00 and N30,000.00 for the first, second and third positions,

respectively, among other gift items.

Speaking at the presentation of the prizes, the Managing Director, Advans La Fayette MFB Limited, Gaëtan Debuchy, noted that the competition is in line with the company’s objective to help children develop effective writing skills.

He applauded the support and endorsement by the Lagos State Ministry of Education, school administrators and other government representatives for ensuring the competition’s success.

Speaking on the evaluation process, the Chairman, Panel of Judges for the essay competition and Chief Examiner WAEC and NECO, Lagos, Samuel Ayo Akinseye, noted that the impartial grading assessment process that midwifed the shortlisted winners were solely based on the sheer academic brilliance of the children poured out on the pages of paper.

The ceremony had in attendance government dignitaries, school owners and proprietors, and other stakeholders in the educational sector.

Group Distributes 1,000 Uniforms to Male Winners Emerge at Advans Essay Contest Students in Oyo Adedayo Akinwale A group, the Charles Alade Initiative, has embarked on distributing 1000 uniforms as part of an effort to assist less privileged male students in public and special needs schools in Oyo. The founder, Mr Charles Alade, said the initiative tagged ‘Project 1,000’ was to tackle the unintended perception of neglect of male children’s needs.

Alade, also an on-air personality (OAP) in Ibadan, said the project selected 10 schools across the 10 zones in the state.

“Project 1000 aims at striking this down by developing a strong and functional self-concept that will, in turn, be an asset to nation building by clothing a

thousand students in Oyo State, Nigeria. This is Project 1000,” he explained.

Alade further stated that the initiative was a social intervention in education to reduce the cost of education while also providing support for the less privileged in the state.

“Wearing a good uniform is a badge of pride and is an important part of being a student.

If these project operations are successful, changes can include improved learning by reducing distraction, sharpening focus on schoolwork and making the classroom a more serious environment,” he said. “It will also promote a sense of teamwork and increase school spirit among students.”

Funmi Ogundare

Winners have emerged at the inaugural Advans essay competition for pupils between ages 8 and 13, aimed at helping children develop effective writing skills and boost the education sector in the country.

The competition tagged ‘My Favourite Teacher ’s, organised by Advans La Fayette Microfinance Bank Limited, held recently in Lagos, saw Dabira Omidiji, 11, of Good Fortune Model International College, Ibadan, Oyo State, emerging the winner after an objec-

36

T H I S D AY ˾ ͳ˜ 2022

CITYSTRINGS

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Reinforcing Citizens' Participation in Community Development Adibe Emenyonu writes that the philanthropic gesture of Sir. Charles and Lady Gloria Osezua in building a town hall-cum-community development centre for their people in Uhiele, Ekpoma, headquarters of Esan West local Government Area of Edo State has reinforced the need for citizen's participation in community development

The Old Town Hall of Uhiele

The New Town Hall/Development Center, Uhiele

T

he purpose of having a town hall in a community setting is to enable people of the area have a place to meet and discuss issues of common interest.

Apart from being a proper channel of information dissemination, it affords the people the opportunity to get first hand information.

Basically, town halls serve various purposes: it allow community leaders to share information to the people. It also serve as an income generating station giving the fact that members of the community oftentimes hire the place for ceremonies.

From time immemorial, the people of Uhielie in Esan West Local Government of Edo State could boast of a community town hall situated at Ukpoke, one of the eight clans that make up the area. As a matter of fact, the oldest man (Odionwele), Pa Andrew Osewele Ekpenwele who will celebrate his 100 years on mother earth next year, said he was born to meet the community town hall.

In other words, the town hall predates even the oldest persons in the community. Not one of them can remember when it was built. Naturally, over the years, the same town hall that has remained a pride of the people not only became too old and dilapidated, but too small and unbefitting due largely to to the growing population and expansion.

This prompted the entire community made up of eight clans namely; Ikhirolo, Idimigun, Ukpoke, the epicenter of activities, Ebhodiza, Akahia, Idumegan, Ehalen and Ebhoakhuala to shop for means to build a new one.

At first came the idea of giving it a face lift for use before holding a new one. However, after calculating the cost of repairs, they agreed to build a new one but funding was an issue.

Messages was sent to all well meaning indigenes of the community to make contributions in order to raise the required funds.

But relief came when a son of the soil, Sir. Charles Osezua came to the rescue and opted to foot the bill of building a new a befitting town hall for his people with his amiable wife, Lady Gloria Osezua.

This signpost the truism that citizens' participation in community development should a recurring one.

Sir Osezua takes and treats giving as a culture.

As papal medalist, he cherishes giving, whether to individuals, groups or community, as much as possible.

The road to the new masterpiece did not come without a struggle. But the beauty of it is that when it did, it materialized in record time, grand style and in scale never imagined.

The town hall is not the only Philanthropic gesture of Osezua. Several years back, he had singlehandedly adopted the construction of a block of classroom at the Uhiele Grammar School.

Parishioners of the Catholic Church can't finish recounting his exploit.

For instance, to empower his people, he sited Owel Industry which gave gainful employment to scores. It's also a known fact in the community that no one goes to him in tears and return same way.

However, getting him to talk about his philanthropy is as difficult as forcing a camel

Sir Charles and Lady Gloria Osezua though the eye of a needle. He's guided by Christ's teaching that your left hand must not know what your left is giving.

In-as-much, some gestures cannot be hidden. In recent time, two of them are conspicuous. On February 2, this year, he handed over a building to Nativity of St. Mary Catholic Church Nursery and Primary School, Uhiele, few days before he performed the groundbreaking ceremony of Uhiele Community and Development Centre to replace the old one.

Today, this edifice is standing and would be inaugurated on Thursday, October 6. The centre which encompasses a multi-purpose hall, offices for two community-based non-governmental agencies, Uhiele Development Forum (UDF) and Ukpoke Area Development Foundation (UADF), a boardroom and an office complex for the community vigilante group, would be formally commissioned.

On that day as expected, Uhiele community will be agog as preparations for the commissioning and handing over ceremony of the multimillion ultra-modern community and development centre peak because of the wild frenzy in expectation of the grand event and eminent personalities it promises to attract.

Speaking on the feat, Sir Osezua recalled that the development of the modern community centre followed series of concerns by Uhiele sons and daughters on the pitiable state of the former Uhiele Town Hall, and the call for intervention.

The sponsor said he had a meeting with the Odionwele of Ukpoke, who

also doubles as the Odionwele of Uhiele, in January this year to discuss the possibility of not only rebuilding the hall, but also elevating it into a modern centre with a multipurpose hall, offices and board room.

According to him, during the meeting, in accepting our proposal, the Odionwele prayerfully said, “My son, if you can do this, it will be to my honour, you would have removed a reproach from us all".

He quoted the eldest man (Odionwele), Pa Andrew Osewele Ekpenwele as saying: "Ukpoke is the headquarters of Uhiele where the elders and people meet on important occasions; rebuilding it will indeed restore our heritage and God will bless you more abundantly!”

In recognition of the historical significance of the project and the site as a heritage site, it was resolved that the Odionwele convene a meeting of all the elders to obtain the concurrent approval of the Edionwele of the other seven clans.

“This necessitated the meeting of Saturday, February 12, 2022; at the historic heritage site in Ukpoke,” he stated; where the elders of Uhiele did not only unanimously endorse the desire of the Odionwele for the construction of a befitting Uhiele Community Town Hall and Development Center, but broke kola and prayed. Immediately, the ground breaking was executed in the presence of hundreds of sons and daughters of Uhiele, including elders, chiefs and dignitaries.

Reacting, Evang. Andrew Ehimen described the project as laudable. He said: “Words are not enough to convey the gratitude in many hearts. The decision is priceless and invaluable.

The generation yet unborn shall hear it and be thankful to God for a son of Uhiele.”

Another significant thing about February 12, 2022, he noted is the fact that it was the day the administrative-cum- classroom block and convenience at the Church of Nativity of St. Mary Catholic Church Nursery and Primary School bankrolled by the Osezuas were inaugurated.

That project aimed at promoting scholarship

in the community was commissioned by the Catholic Bishop of Uromi Diocese, Most Rev. Donatus Ogun, and assisted by the parish priest of the church.

"If there is one thing to be said about Engr.

Osezua, it is the fact that charity work comes to him effortlessly. He is at home with philanthropy as much as he cherishes his faith as a Catholic, his attachment to the development of Uhiele is legendary," Ehimen stated.

In the words of Emmanuel Oriarewo, an engineer by profession, “I grew up to know him (Osezua) as a lover of God and one dedicated to the growth and unity of Uhiele community.

"He has never said no to any invitation or cry from our community. When I was in JSS 3 (1996), he built an administrative block with a well-furnished library and laboratory for us at Uhiele Grammar School. Thanks to that singular act, my dream of becoming a scientist (an engineer) was born.

“It did not end there, his love for our community moved him to site OWEL industry in our very own soil. Thanks to that very thought, I gained my first working experience in that industry where I worked directly under an indigenous and foreign engineer in erecting a groundnut oil refinery, that further strengthened my passion for engineering.

“You never sent a representative to our community church (Catholic church) whenever invited or cried to. Thanks to your generosity.”

Charles Osezua in an entrepreneur and a social engineer, who promoted and founded a number of businesses and NGOs including; the Owel-Linkso Group – a multidisciplinary service provider to the oil and gas, power and construction industries in Nigeria; Gaslink Nigeria Limited – Nigeria’s foremost gas utility company; Gas Train Limited – a gas development company, building gas infrastructure for gas utilization/ monetization in the Niger Delta Region.

At different times, he was appointed Special Assistant to the Head of State on oil and gas matters, Technical Adviser to the Chairman, NNPC Board, and a Member of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Board of the Nigerian LNG. A onetime past President of the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA), and a member of the Global Gas Policy Council of the International Gas Union (IGU), he chairs a number of Boards including the Governing Council of the Pan Atlantic University; Educational Co-operation Society (ECS) – the founder of the Lagos Business School (LBS); the Institute for Work and Family Integration (IWFI); Cordros Capital Limited, Vallourec Oil & Gas Nigeria, to mention but a few.

He has received a number of national and international honors including the title: Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), from the Federal Government of Nigeria for his professional excellence and contributions to the development of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

He was also honored with the European title of the Right Honorable Cavalier of the Order of St. Gregory the Great, by the Pope. He is married with children and many grandchildren.

37

WEDNESDAY, ͽ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

ʬ

ʬ

ʬ

7 R S 7 U D G H V E \ 9 R OX P H

7 R S * D LQ H U V P ric e

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

M ULT IVER SE

4.05

9.8%

GT C O

71.2

-0.8%

R T B R ISC OE

0.37

8.8%

Z EN IT H B A N K

14.4

-3.5%

N GXGR OUP

21.50

7.5%

UB A

10.7

-3.6%

A IIC O

0.55

5.8%

N GXGR OUP

8.4

7.5%

A F R IP R UD

5.20

4.0%

CHA M S

6.8

0.0%

UB N

6.40

3.2%

FB NH

6.6

-2.5%

WA P IC

0.36

2.9%

T R A N SC OR P

5.9

-5.5%

UN IT YB N K

0.44

2.3%

A C C ESSC OR P

5.2

-5.6%

NP FM CRFB K

1.55

2.0%

ST ER LN B A N K

5.1

0.0%

EUN ISELL

2.91

0.0%

OA N D O

4.5

-2.1%

T ic k er

P ric e C hg %

7 R S 7 U D G H V E \ 9 D OX H

7 R S / R V H U V P ric e

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

Value

P ric e C hg %

IN T B R EW

4.50

-9.1%

GT C O

1263.7

-0.8%

R ED ST A R EX

2.12

-7.8%

Z EN IT H B A N K

283.9

-3.5%

SOVR EN IN S

0.25

-7.4%

M TNN

196.7

0.0%

-7.1%

N GXGR OUP

173.9

7.5%

73.2

-3.6%

T ic k er

J A P A ULGOLD

0.26

C H IP LC

0.53

-7.0%

UB A

UC A P

10.40

-6.7%

FB NH

64.1

-2.5%

40.7

-5.6% -6.7%

UP D C

0.97

-5.8%

A C C ESSC OR P

A C C ESSC OR P

7.60

-5.6%

UC A P

26.9

-5.5%

B UA F OOD S

24.1

0.0%

-4.9%

OA N D O

21.0

-2.1%

T R A N SC OR P F ID ELIT YB K

Afrinvest West Africa Limited

Vo lum e

1.04 3.50

Investment Research

Brokerage

Asset Management

Adedoyin Allen | aallen@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com Abiodun Keripe | AKeripe@afrinvest.com

Taiwo Ogundipe | togundipe@afrinvest.com

Christopher Omoh | comoh@afrinvest.com

Damilare Asimiyu | dasimiyu@afrinvest.com

38

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Afreximbank, NGF, AfSNET Commit to Smooth Implementation of AfCFTA Dike Onwuamaeze The second African SubSovereign Governments Network (AfSNET) conference has affirmed the need for subsovereign governments in Africa to institute local mechanisms that would enhance the smooth implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The AfSNET, which was convened last month in Abuja, Nigeria by the Nigerian Governors Forum and the African Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank) under the theme “African Sub-Sovereign Governments Network-Championing Africa’s Development,” also observed that enunciating policies on quick wins and areas where

sub-sovereign governments have competitive advantage could help to build the early momentum required to optimise gains and opportunities under AfCFTA. The AfSNET also committed itself to mobilise exhibitors and delegates to participate in the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023), to be hosted by Cote d’Ivoire, and scheduled to take place from November 21-27, 2023.

The conference also called for the development of the technical capacities of the operators of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), to boost their competitiveness and their integration into the intra-African trade value chain.

The communiqué of the

AfSNET conference said that the removal of tariff and nontariff trade barriers, including difficulties in securing visas and travelling within the continent, would be critical to fostering the movement of goods and services across the continent.

The communiqué said: “AfSNET will provide a platform that ensures broad participation of various stakeholders in subsovereign governments, including the private sector, MSMEs, women and youth in AfCFTA and increasing grass-root interconnections and involvement through the provision of access to trade and investment information, sharing ideas, knowledge and skills with the ultimate objective of deepening regional economic integration.”

Magnificent Multiservices Lists N20bn Commercial Paper on FMDQ Kayode Tokede Magnificent Multiservices Limited has registered N20billion Series 1 Commercial Paper (CP) Programme on the FMDQ Securities Exchange platform with N5billion accessed already for their proposed City and Estate developments through Raedial Homes.

To commemorate the successful debut on FMDQ Exchange, a director in Magnificent Multiservices Limited, Claris Agenmonmen in a statement said, “We are extremely pleased, as this will be another step for us to expand and find solutions to some of the real estate problems Nigerians face daily. The success of this issue and subsequent listings are significant indicators of increasing investor confidence in our company’s reputation, brand, and performance.

“Magnificent Multiservices Limited started as a Real Estate Firm doing great work in real estate investment over the years with investment spread across Edo, Rivers, Lagos and Abuja.

With the 20billion commercial paper, we intend to go into full development of Smart Cities and Smart Homes through Raedial Homes which is our development subsidiary.”

Speaking on the projects, the Chief Executive Officer, Magnificent Multiservices Limited, Uwadiale Agenmonmen also said in a statement, “the company provides clients with a competitive and expansive platform of offerings in leasing, sales, investment sales, tenant and landlord advisory services, corporate and business consulting, and development.

“Clients also have the benefit of working with professionals in general construction, property

and asset management, multifamily management, debt and equity capital placement, and data analytics.

“Our milestone debut market entry will emphasize the necessary collaboration between private entities and debt capital markets, as it enables us to pursue our multi-pronged growth strategy of optimizing our operations and assets, expanding our footprint, and revolutionizing the real estate sector.

“The CP will be used to support our enterprise on many fronts, but largely in solving the building collapsing issues that seem to be currently plaguing Nigeria. Experience has taught us that each time a building collapses in Nigeria, built environment professionals in other parts of the world tend to doubt the competence of professionals in the Nigerian Building Industry.

FCMB Celebrates Happy Customers, Peerless Service, Talents By ensuring the right blend of technology and people, First City Monument Bank Limited (FCMB) is creating a feeling of happiness and satisfaction for its customers across all service touchpoints as the world celebrates 2022 Customer Service Week themed, Celebrate Service.

Between January and August 2022, about 95% of customers that reached out to the Bank got prompt attention, with most of their issues instantly resolved, accounting for a favourable Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 55%.

Managing Director of the Bank, Mrs Yemisi Edun, said, “deftly combining tech with the human touch has helped us gain trust

through excellent service experience and extraordinary customer journeys. Our customers provide positive feedback and are happy with every interaction. So, we celebrate our customers and people who serve and support them during this year’s Customer Service Week from 3rd to 7th October” Senior Vice President and Divisional Head, Corporate Services & Service Management, FCMB, Ms Felicia Obozuwa, said, “We have lined up fun-filled activities to celebrate and reward customers and employees during this year’s Customer Service Week.

For customers, we will introduce a transaction-free day on the

wave-making FCMB Mobile App, give movie tickets and airtime and run a scavenger hunt on the FCMB Flexx zone, where winners will receive exciting gifts.”

She added that this year’s Customer Service Week would be a week-long celebration of talent, creativity, and camaraderie across the Bank. A hybrid (physical and virtual) party for employees of the Bank will hold on October 7, and the highlight will be the much anticipated “FCMB’s Got Talent” competition, which provides a robust platform for employees to showcase their talents, and creativity and smile home with exciting gifts.

AIICO Insurance Provides Cover for Air Peace’s Domestic Travelers Ebere Nwoji AIICO Insurance has unveiled insurance package that will cater for Air Peace Airline’s domestic travellers’ unpleasant experiences.

The cover is for domestic travelers of Air Peace Airline.

The airline, said the insurance cover is being provided by AIICO Insurance Plc and is for the personal benefits of the air passengers that the offer entitles the passengers compensation for inconveniences suffered due to flight cancellations, delays, baggage loss or damage, medical expenses consequent on accident or permanent disability, for as little as N1, 000 premium per

trip, per flight.

According to Air Peace, Passengers have a choice to opt out of the insurance package.

Speaking on the policy, Head, Strategic Marketing & Communications Department of AIICO, Mr Segun Olalandu, said there was a free cover for one accompanying infant (below age 2yrs) named in the travel manifest, per flight.

He said the product was launched recently and Air Peace passengers have begun to enjoy a more relaxing air travel experience with the assurance that inconveniences suffered because of unforeseen flight cancellation, delays, missing

or delayed baggage shall be compensated.

The Chief Operating Officer of Air Peace, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Olajide, said the product no doubt meets the needs of the passengers, “We have listened to our customers and seriously wanted to address the issues around their experiences concerning lost or damaged luggage and, more recently, the pain point of missed flights. These concerns are now fully addressed with an insurance product from AIICO, a tier-one Insurance Company in Nigeria. We believe this solution will make these challenges a thing of the past.”

L-R: Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Ola Williams and CEO, Modion Communications/Convener, Insurance Meets Tech, Odion Aleobua, during the Fireside Chat at the first edition of the Insurance Meets Tech (IMT 2022), an era-defining discourse for leaders in the insurance and tech sector in Lagos...recently

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

JUNE 2022 Money Supply (M3)

48,865,823.53

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

167,956.2

Money Supply (M2)

48,797,867.32

-- Quasi Money

28,405,330.1

-- Narrow Money (M1)

20,392,537.22

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,722,785.91

---- Demand Deposits

17,669,751.32

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

6,242,394.29

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

42,623,429.24

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

57,267,178.05

---- Credit to Government (Net)

17,996,690.06

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

0.00

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

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

39,270,488

--Other Assets Net

5,566,430

Reserve Money (Base Money

11,320,304

--Currency in Circulation

3,259,269.15

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

11,320,303.72 384,377.56

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

June 2022

Inter-Bank Call Rate

11.10

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

13.00

Treasury Bill Rate

2.45

Savings Deposit Rate

1.38

1 Month Deposit Rate

3.48

3 Months Deposit Rate

4.55

6 Months Deposit Rate

4.97

12 Months Deposit Rate

5.30

Prime Lending rate

12.29

Maximum Lending Rate

27.61

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT 27 SEPTEMBER 2022

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $89.50 a barrel on Monday, compared with $92.67 the previous Friday, 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), Basrah Medium (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

39

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

Shareholders Approve Fidelity Bank’s N3.03bn Private Placement Kayode Tokede Fidelity Bank Plc, has secured the approval of its shareholders to issue N3.03billion unsecured ordinary shares of 50kobo by way of private placement.

This was approved at the Bank’s Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) held in Lagos.

Addressing shareholders at the event which had the representatives of various regulators in attendance including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Exchange Group NGX), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Chairman, Fidelity Bank, Mustafa Chike-Obi, said the EGM

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

was called to ensure the Bank complies with Section 124 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020 (CAMA) and Regulation 13 of the Companies Regulations 2021 which require companies with unissued shares at the time of commencement of CAMA 2020 to issue such shares by December 31, 2022.

S E C U R I T I E S MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

“After considering the options, the Board resolved that the Company’s outstanding 3,037,414,308 unissued Ordinary Shares of 50Kobo each should be disposed of by way of Private Placement to strategic investors to enable the Bank generate additional capital for continued growth in line with its objectives,”

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

explained Chike-Obi. “Fidelity Bank is growing in leaps and bounds and we need to expand our capital base to take advantage of emerging opportunities. We will also use the additional capital to enhance our technology infrastructure to enable us serve more customers”, explained Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe,

O F

Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of the Bank.

It would be recalled that the Bank recently paid an interim dividend of 10 kobo per 50 kobo ordinary share, the first interim dividend payment in the Bank’s 34 year history, on the back of its remarkable H1 2022 results.

0 4 / 1 0 / 2 0 2 2 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

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WEDNESDAY, ͽ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

FORTY EMEFIELE: RISE IN DISRUPTIVE BANKING TECHNOLOGIES DISTURBING technology (fintech) companies has continued to alter the financial landscape globally.

He said developments have continued to disrupt traditional ways of offering financial services in the banking landscape, describing the disruptions as, “very disturbing.”

However, in an apparent response to the concern raised by Emefiele, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, has challenged the financial sector regulators including the CBN and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) to sharpen their regulatory tool kits to enable them respond to any potential financial crisis arising from the activities of fintechs, among others.

Both the minister and the apex bank boss spoke at the opening of the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) Africa Regional Committee (ARC) Technical Assistance Workshop with the theme: “Normality in Turbulent Periods: The Stabilising Role of Deposit Insurance’’, which was organised by the IADI-ARC and hosted by the NDIC in Abuja.

This was just as the World Bank yesterday stated that Nigeria’s growth prospect was being stifled by its underperforming oil sector which it noted was also creating fiscal imbalances for the country.

Nevertheless, the Washingtonbased multilateral institution also praised the direct interventions being carried out by the CBN in the agriculture and manufacturing

sectors, stating that it provided some support to private investment which boosted economic activities.

But the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Mele Kyari, yesterday said Nigeria is currently in a state of calamity over oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other criminal activities in the Niger Delta region.

Speaking further, Emefiele stressed the need for the banking industry regulator as well as supervisors to guard their loins to, “ensure that we are able to put in place strong regulatory framework and practices that should help nip in the bud, the unfortunate incident that may happen as we try to allow the growth of fintechs in Nigeria”.

Emefiele also said, several financial products were being provided by fintechs, including digital payments, international remittances, mobile money, peerto-peer (P2P) lending platforms, among others.

He said the CBN had released a series of fintech-based policies and guidelines including the regulatory sandboxes, open banking and cybersecurity, among others, in its determination to ensure a robust regulatory landscape without stifling innovation.

The central bank governor, however, insisted that fintechs who want to be deposit-taking institutions, “should come forward and become a bank – bring N25 billion and be a bank.”

He said the CBN remained proud to be associated with the workshop because of its firm belief that it would provide a platform for brilliant ideas and experience-sharing, especially of the four-dimensional shocks shaping the current global economies and that of Nigeria with obvious linkages to the safety and soundness of the banking systems as well as the role of deposit insurance.

Emefiele maintained that early detection of problems in banks, timely intervention, contingency planning, crisis preparedness and management were not a particular country or agency’s affair, but requires strong and effective collaboration among the major stakeholders within a nation’s financial services industry and the government.

He added: “Our deposit insurance system (DIS), as a component of financial safety-net arrangement, is the risk-minimiser model and has been very effective in the discharge of its mandate. The CBN and NDIC represent key components of Nigeria's financial safety-net arrangement.

“That partly explains why we have been able to successfully resolve the series of financial crises that confronted us with satisfying results.

“It is instructive to mention that the CBN and NDIC have been able to deal with the emerging crisis in the nation’s banking system. The 2009 banking crisis, 2004 banking consolidation exercise and their

subsequent resolutions, provided a reference point of the benefit for effective collaboration between the central bank and deposit insurer.”

Emefiele, also challenged the IADI-ARC to increase its advocacy by reaching out to many countries in Africa to join the league of countries with DIS, adding that this would go a long way in strengthening the regional and continental financial systems for the benefit of all.

He said this became necessary as cross-border activities had resulted in the interconnectedness of financial systems and made it crucial for the systems to be on the same page, by putting in place mechanisms for safeguards against any contingencies.

In her presentation, Ahmed maintained that the challenges posed by disruptive technologies could not be swept under the carpet, urging regulators to install early warning signals that would help to take immediate measures in case of any crisis.

According to the minister, “We are living in very turbulent times; we are facing right now about three different types of crisis - the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, the Russia/Ukraine war, and also hyperinflation across the globe.

“And crisis is beginning to become normal; and what this means is that we should also be prepared to address the crisis. We also have disruptive technologies; This is a reality today and cannot

AISHA BUHARI: MY HUSBAND SUFFERED FROM PTSD FOR MANY YEARS Muhammadu Buhari, unknown to many people, suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for many years, following his involvement in Nigeria's civil war without rehabilitation, his overthrow as military head of state, and subsequent detention for 40 months without being charged with any offence.

Aisha said Buhari's loss of three consecutive elections further complicated the situation she was confronted with at 19, when she married him and, therefore, became the unintended physiotherapist for his recovery.

Speaking as special guest of honour at the ground-breaking ceremony for the Armed Forces Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Centre (AFPTSDC) initiated by the Mrs Lucky Irabor-led Defence and Police Officers' Wives Association (DEPOWA), the first lady said she suffered the consequences of PSTD at an early stage in her marriage to the president. She chided politicians, who lost primary elections recently and had become almost inconsolable, with some making themselves unreachable by switching off their phones.

The first lady stated, "I want to thank DEPOWA for this foresighted vision of establishing a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Centre for our soldiers.

Indeed, PTSD is a mental health condition triggered by terrifying events.

“It is a reality that soldiers and military families have to live with, despite its negative consequences.

Being a soldier's wife or a retired soldier's wife and a wellness expert, I understand the challenges associated with PTSD and its impact on military families and the nation.

"My husband served the Nigerian Army for 27 years before he was overthrown in a coup d’état.

He fought civil war for 30 months without rehabilitation; he ruled Nigeria for 20 months and was detained for 40 months without disclosing the nature of his offence.

"One year after he came out from detention, we were married, I clocked 19 years in his house as his wife, legitimately. I suffered the consequences of PTSD, because having gone through all these, and at the age of 19, to handle somebody, who was a former Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of Nigeria's Armed Forces, to tell him that he is wrong is the first mistake you will make.

“So, at the age of 19, I had to figure out how to tell somebody of his calibre that he was wrong or right and that was the beginning of my offence in his house, and contesting elections in 2003 and

failed, 2007, failed and 2011, the same thing – all without rehabilitation – I became a physiotherapist.

"Finally, the whole nation rose against the misuse of power and bad governance. He only succeeded when it became a movement and here we are today. He ruled Nigeria before and he is ruling Nigeria now and this is the last time and final.

"Failing election for three times was a big blow to every contestant but those that have contested for just yesterday, a simple primary election, they are still living in a traumatic condition, I tried to console them, I tried to talk to them, some of them have switched off their phones up till today, just because of a primary election.

“You can imagine myself at 19 years, handling somebody that went to war, suffered coup d’état, then lost several elections, and, finally, getting to the Villa in the 2015. Also, for a woman to tell them that this is wrong or right in Nigeria and Africa is a problem."

She commended the sacrifices made by members of the armed forces and their contributions to nation building, saying, "In that case, I want to use this opportunity to appreciate members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria for their sacrifices and contributions to nation building.

"The fallen Heroes remain evergreen in our minds and many with us are wounded physically and mentally. I want to appreciate their wives and families; I want to let them know that the whole nation is with them."

Aisha stated that the PTSD centre was important to members of the armed forces and beyond, stressing that soldiers are the primary victims.

She said, "This centre is timely, as PTSD is a problem that really deserved solution of this nature, and providing facilities for treatment and rehabilitation of patients is key. Therefore, fund raising is not the solution, the solution is the federal government that sent them to war front to take responsibility in taking care of the mental health of returnees from war front. PTSD cuts across all ages."

The president’s wife, then, halted the scheduled fund raising for the project and pledged that the presidency and the armed forces would take it over.

She stated, "I thank DEPOWA for this initiative and the military establishment for supporting them. I call on them to ensure that this centre provides quality and sustained care for soldiers that suffer from PTSD. "It is the responsibility of the whole armed forces to extract from

their budget and build this centre.

Mrs Irabor, it is no longer your project; it is my project and the project of Mr. President, we are going to work round the clock to make sure that it is completed and commissioned before we leave office."

President of DEPOWA, Mrs Vickie Irabor, said the centre was born out of compassion for families of soldiers and research conducted by the association.

According to her, "We have identified the extraordinary challenges being faced by officers and soldiers on the frontlines in securing our nation by fighting terrorism, banditry, and other societal ills.

Some of these challenges range from physical injuries, mental health issues, and sometimes, sadly, paying the supreme price in the defence of our dear nation Nigeria.

"While we have hospitals to take care of physical injuries, we have realised that there is a huge gap in mental health responses globally, including Nigeria, especially, in the treatment, management, and rehabilitation of PTSD, faced by families in the armed forces."

She stressed, "In response to these issues, DEPOWA, under my leadership, decided to pursue

the implementation of a novel, first-of-its-kind, Legacy-based Armed Forces PTSD Centre. When completed, the centre will help evaluate, counsel, and provide adequate support to personnel and, by extension, their families before reintegration from conflict zones.

“It will also help to enhance national, regional, and global stability, as well as help, boost military capability to continue to deal with all forms of insecurity. I believe that establishing this facility will be a step in ensuring the stability of military families post-conflict engagements and encouragement to officers and soldiers that help is available should they need it after assignments. The facility will also serve as a repository for future research on mental health challenges in the Armed Forces of Nigeria."

The event was attended by former President of Malawi, Dr Joyce Banda; Vice President of Liberia, Dr Jewel Howard-Taylor; Member, UK House of Lords, Baroness Sandy Verma; Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum; Minister of Defence, Maj-Gen Bashir Magashi (rtd); Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Lucky Irabor; and the service chiefs.

be swept under the carpet.”

She added that, “fintech has come to stay and we have to deal with it.”

Ahmed said the theme of the workshop was particularly pertinent, in the light of recent socio-economic challenges that have continued to undermine the safety and stability of the financial system across the globe, accentuated by the lingering effects of COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian-Ukraine war, global supply disruptions and climate change challenges.

She added that these had posed myriads of challenges and risks to the safety and stability of the global financial system, pointing out that the banking sector remained pivotal in supporting the real economy through the provision of innovative products and services to all relevant stakeholders.

The minister, however, noted that the fiduciary nature of banking business, coupled with increased social-economic challenges across the globe, had increased the risk of banks’ failure, with significant implications for depositors’ losses and erosion of public confidence in the banking system.

She said the negative impact of the challenges on economic growth and financial sector stability in most economies of the world, raised a number of questions concerning the role of DIS in contributing to financial system stability.

According to her, this equally demonstrated the important role played by the deposit insurance system, as a component of financial safety-net arrangements in most jurisdictions across the globe, given that, depositor protection is a critical element necessary for maintaining and restoring financial stability.

She also pointed out that the Nigerian economy, like others, felt the brunt of the global economic distortion, having to go into recession twice in the space of five years.

Ahmed, however, noted that given the resilience of the nation’s financial system, Nigeria came out of the recession within months.

She said, “We also make bold to say that despite these economic challenges, no depositors’ fund was lost given the effectiveness of our agencies, most especially the CBN and the NDIC.” On his part, the Managing Director/chief Executive, NDIC, Mr. Bello Hassan, said presently, economies globally are stressed, and some still recovering from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and the spill-over effects of the Russia-Ukraine war.

He said, “As we are all aware, the fabric of global financial stability is constantly being threatened by one form of crisis or the other.

The potential threats at present, include the Russia-Ukraine war, cyber threats posing increasing risks to financial institutions, slow growth, increasing inflation and tighter global financial conditions

which may all exacerbate preexisting vulnerabilities.”

He said growing financial interconnectedness had also shown that banking crises can have contagion effects, adding that a system-wide approach to crisis management, involving collaborative efforts of the financial safety-net participants and regional deposit insurance systems remained highly imperative.

Hassan, noted that both the 2007 –2009 global financial crisis and the COVID19 pandemic had exposed the increasing relevance of deposit insurance in stabilising turbulent banking systems and as a buffer for financial system stability.

He said the crises further led to the review of some of the design features of explicit deposit insurance systems in many countries to accommodate emerging developments in the domestic and global financial system.

Also, in her remarks, the Chairman of NDIC, Mrs. Ronke Sokefun, noted that in a world where financial systems were inextricably linked, robust cooperation was required to ensure financial system stability, and by extension growth and stability of the global economy.

She said it was against the backdrop that the NDIC needed to keep working through forums like the IADI and other collaborating agencies to share experiences, strengthen our supervisory tools, monitor the effectiveness of insured institutions’ Contingency Planning and Crisis Management Framework as well as ensure our readiness for timely, and prompt intervention to engender financial system stability.

She added that it was noteworthy that the NDIC has for a long time since its establishment in 1988, collaborated with other international standard-setters and deposit insurers.

Sokefun said, “For instance, the NDIC has collaborated in capacity development with the IADI itself, the ARC members, the Financial Stability Institute, the US FDIC, the Islamic Financial Services Board and several other international agencies.

Also, the Corporation has Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to share information on capacity development with deposit insurance agencies of Ghana, Poland, South Korea, Taiwan and Uganda.

“It is in the spirit of such collaboration that this workshop was organised so as to serve as a forum to dissect pertinent issues, share experiences, compare notes and elevate our understanding of the role of deposit insurers in early detection and timely intervention; contingency planning and crisis management; crisis simulation to strengthen operational resilience; and contingency planning framework for a safer, and more resilient financial system, that is supportive of sustainable economic growth in Continued on page 44

BUHARI ACCUSES ASUU OF CORRUPTION AS FG REGISTERS TWO NEW VARSITY-BASED UNIONS Summit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector, Buhari said corruption from the basic to tertiary levels of education greatly marred government's investment in the sector.

The president made the remarks on a day the federal government formally registered two new university-based unions – Congress of Nigerian University Academics (CONUA) and National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA).

With the granting of registration to the two unions, Nigerian universities now have three academic unions, namely ASUU, CONUA, and NAMDA. Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, claimed the move would help liberalise the academic sub-sector and allow more freedom for university workers.

But President of ASUU, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, described the newly registered associations as an inconsequential collection of dissidents, whose inordinate ambitions fed the labour minister’s hubris.

Osodeke said Ngige was only being desperate over what was known to him alone.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila,

yesterday, met with Buhari as part of efforts to resolve the on-going strike by ASUU. The theme of the summit on public sector corruption was, "Corruption and the Education Sector." It was organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), in conjunction with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) and Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), with support from MacArthur Foundation.

Speaking at the conference, Buhari said contrary widespread belief, the academic unions were no less complicit in the systemic corruption in the education sector.

He said the effect of corruption in the education sector undermined national capacity to develop requisite social capital for socioeconomic development, acknowledging, however, that no nation develops without adequate and appropriate investment in education.

The president called on stakeholders to demand accountability in the administration of academic institutions. He said unions should interrogate the bloated personnel and recurrent expenditure of their institutions.

Buhari said, "Incessant strikes, especially by unions in the tertiary education, often imply that government is grossly underfunding education. But I must say that corruption in the education system, from basic level to the tertiary level, has been undermining our investment in the sector and those who go on prolonged strikes on flimsy reasons are no less complicit.

"Government and stakeholders in the educational sector are concerned about the manifestation of various forms of corruption in the education sector. I am aware that students in our universities, for example, use different terminologies to describe different forms of corruption they experience on our campuses.

“There is sorting or cash for marks/grades, sex for marks, sex for grade alterations, examination malpractice, and so on."

He added, "Sexual harassment has assumed an alarming proportion. Other forms of corruption include pay-roll padding or ghost workers, lecturers taking up full time appointments in more than one academic institution, including private institutions, lecturers writing seminar papers, projects and dissertations for students for a fee, and admission racketeering,

to mention only the most glaring corrupt practices.

"I am happy to note that ICPC is investigating and prosecuting sexual harassment as abuse of power in our educational institutions. I approve and encourage them to continue to do so."

Buhari affirmed that government would continue to fund education within realistically available revenue.

He urged stakeholders, including the media, to advocate transparency in the internally generated revenues by educational institutions and how such funds were expended.

The president alleged, "Corruption in the expenditure of internally generated revenue of tertiary institutions is a matter that has strangely not received the attention of stakeholders in tertiary education, including unions.

"I call on stakeholders to demand accountability in the administration of academic institutions and for unions to interrogate the bloated personnel and recurrent expenditure of their institutions. Let me also implore the unions to work with government to put faces and identities to names on the payroll.”

He further stated, "I believe that Continued on page 43

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NEWS

PEACE MISSION TO RIVERS...

L-R: Emmanuel Anyanwu; Rivers State PDP Chairman, Desmond Akawor; Hajiya Zainab Maina; Kabiru Tanimu Turaki; former governor of Kogi State, Ibrahim Idris; Acting PDP BOT Chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara; Rivers State governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike; Dame Dr. Esther Uduehi; Chief Shuaib Oyedokun and Rivers Elders Forum chairman, Chief Ferdinand Alabraba after the BOT delegation’s meeting with Wike in Port Harcourt … yesterday

PDP NWC Members in Shouting Match over Leadership Crisis BoT to continue truce meeting with Wike in Abuja Housing allowance passed through due process, not bribe, party insists Atiku salutes UN for supporting Nigeria’s democracy Kicks off campaign Oct 10 in Uyo Chuks Okocha inAbujaand Blessing Ibunge inPortHarcourt Members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Working Committee (NWC), yesterday, had a chaotic meeting in Abuja over the post-presidential primary election crisis rocking the party.

THISDAY observed that while the meeting progressed at the NWC hall of the party’s national secretariat, members got into a loud quarrel, with some banging angrily on the tables.

The development caused security officials attached to the NWC to rush in to save the situation.

In their on-going effort to resolve the crisis in the main opposition party, members of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) said they had agreed to continue further discussions with the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, in Abuja, as they could not conclude their peace meeting at Government House, Port Harcourt.

The party said the housing allowance it paid its national officers was not a bribe.

The PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, commended the United Nations for its interest and sustained commitment to the growth of the democratic processes in Nigeria.

That was as Director General of the Atiku Abubakar/Ifeanyi Okowa Presidential Campaign, and Sokoto

State governor, Aminu Tambuwal, disclosed that PDP would flag off its presidential campaign on October 10 in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.

Tuesday's NWC meeting was the first to be presided over by the national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, since he returned to Nigeria from his medical check up last Friday.

An eyewitness told THISDAY that part of the issues on the agenda of the meeting was the money paid to NWC members as housing allowance The NWC had been sharply divided between members, who received the housing allowance and those who did not collect.

PDP BoT to Continue Peace Meeting with Wike in Abuja

Members of the PDP BoT, yesterday, agreed to continue their peace meeting with the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, in Abuja.

The meeting was part of efforts to resolve the post-presidential primary crisis plaguing the party, which has Wike at the centre, following his call for the resignation of the national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu. Led by former Senate President Adolphus Wabara, the BoT members said their meeting with Wike was progressive and expressed the hope that soon, the party's internal crisis would be sorted out peacefully.

The meeting with Wike in Port

Harcourt had lasted four hours. It had in attendance, from the BoT side, Dr. Ibrahim Idris, Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo, Chief Shuaib Oyedokun, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki (SAN), Dr. Esther Uduehi, and Hajiya Zainab Maina.

On Wike’s side were the Rivers State PDP chairman, Ambassador Desmond Akawor; Rivers Elders’ Forum chairman, Chief Ferdinand Alabraba; former Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Chibudom Nwuche; Senator Adawari Pepple; Elder Emmanuel Anyanwu; Senator Olaka Nwogu; Dr. Sam Sam Jaja; and Chief of Staff, Government House, Emeka Woke.

Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt after the meeting, Wabara said the meeting afforded them the opportunity to properly understand Wike’s concerns and become better informed about the crisis.

Wabara stated that they were taking what they had gathered from Wike back to the larger BoT house in Abuja for proper decision to be taken on the issues.

According to the former senate president, "We've been rubbing minds with His Excellency, the performing Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Project. I think the meeting took about four hours.

"We have not concluded. It’s always easy to destroy but to make up, to make peace, takes some time.

But I think we are better informed, we have gotten some information.

Every coin has two sides. We have been briefed by His Excellency. We will go back to Abuja to re-digest all that we gathered from His Excellency.

We had very frank talks.

“I’m acting chairman of the Board of Trustees of this party. I do not have the exclusiveness to stand here and tell you what the Board of Trustees will come up with. We have come here, we are going back, we will convene a meeting of the Board of Trustees, brief them and that is when Nigerians will hear where the Board of Trustees stands.

“Since it is an advisory body, conscience of the party, we will be there to tell the party the truth

Chinedu Eze Ethiopia has announced that it has stopped issuing visas on arrival to Nigerian travelers with immediate

effect.

The East African nation did not explain what prompted that decision. This comes barely two months the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Abacha, Bashir missing on INEC’s final governorship list in Kano A Federal High Court sitting in Umuahia, yesterday, cleared the way for the All Progressives Congress (APC) to field a candidate for Abia Central Senatorial District as it dismissed the suit filed by Hon. Sam Onuigbo, challenging the candidacy of Hon Emeka Atuma.

Onuigbo, who represents Ikwuano/Umuahia federal constituency in the National Assembly had gone to court claiming that he won the Abia Central primary election conducted on May 28/29 and his name was not submitted

to INEC by APC. But Justice Evelyn Anyadike, in her judgment, held that Onuigbo failed to tender any "valid result" to prove that he actually won the senatorial primary for Abia Central.

The court also faulted Onuigbo's claim that the primary was inconclusive on May 28 and was rescheduled for May 29 during which he emerged victorious.

However, in resolving the issue of whether the plaintiff had actually won the primary, the court held that since the exercise, as admitted

by Onuigbo, was inconclusive on May 28,there could not have been a winner.

Justice Anyadike, therefore, held

policy of our great party that we will all go home. His Excellency is here and campaigning for the party.

I will go to Abia State, where I come from and campaign, you know there is no ballot box for me in Abuja.

“Every one of us here are from one zone or the other. Our governor here is a PDP governor. Even if he doesn't come out to campaign, he has campaigned already with all the projects he has done in Rivers State and Nigeria as we speak."

Wike, who also addressed journalists, said what was important to all was to ensure that the unity of the party was not endangered.

He reiterated that he and his allies were not leaving the party, but were more interested in addressing the internal issues.

The governor stated, "What's important is that the house is united for the war that is coming in front.

So, for me, the issues of whether they achieved peace or not today is immaterial. What is material is Continues online

Ethiopia ScrapsVisa-on-Arrival for Nigerian Travellers

2023: Court Clears Way for APC's Abia Central Senate Candidate Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano and Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

and nothing but the truth about our findings.”

Wabara said since it was the first meeting of the BoT intervening in the crisis, they were optimistic of attending to the issues as a family, and with the cooperation of Wike and the other aggrieved governors, PDP would win the 2023 general election across the country.

The former senate president added, "But one good thing is that this family remains one. You know, we are still under the umbrella called PDP and by the special grace of God, we will end up very victorious and we will end up in the villa in May 2023 with his cooperation and support of other governors – four of them. I think we will make progress, no doubt about it."

Wabara described Wike as an important asset to the PDP and pointed out that the governor’s infrastructure development in Rivers State was already campaigning for the party.

According to him, "Presidential campaign has started and it is the

that "it is unpardonable and fatal to his case" for the plaintiff (Onuigbo) to have failed to produce a genuine result sheet as evidence that he won the primary.

The judge further held that it was equally fatal for the plaintiff to have failed to produce evidence to show that the inconclusive senatorial primary was rescheduled and conducted on May 29, 2022.

According to Justice Anyadike, the plaintiff didn't have any locus to challenge the national leadership of APC for not submitting his name to INEC since he did not tender any valid result of the rescheduled primary, which he claimed he won.

The court, consequently, rejected a

result tendered by the plaintiff dated May 28, 2022 on the ground that the senatorial primary was inconclusive on that very day hence there was no winner, which necessitated a rescheduling of the exercise.

"His (plaintiff) claims have crumbled like a pack of cards and his case failed for lack of evidence and is hereby dismissed," the Judge said in the verdict.

In its defence of the case, the party had held that its Abia Central senatorial candidate for 2023, Hon Atuma, was validly nominated having won in the rescheduled primary conducted by the party on June 7, 2022 at Chidiebere Park field, Umuahia.

changed its visa policy for certain categories of Nigerian travellers to the Emirates.

Ethiopia has also made it compulsory for Nigerians going into its country to produce their yellow fever vaccination cards at any of its borders.

This was contained in an email Ethiopian Airlines sent to its Nigerian travel partners, thus confirming the stoppage of the visa-on-arrival policy for the country’s citizens, but was silent on why the government changed its policy for Nigerians.

The airline in the email signed by its management advised its travel partners to inform their clients about the change in the policy.

The airline said henceforth, passengers are to obtain their visa at Ethiopian embassies in Abuja before travelling to the East African country unlike in the past when travellers were issued a visa on arrival.

The email read in part: “Please, be informed that effective immediately, no more visas on arrival for Nigerian citizens.”

The airline however said that

the new policy did not affect passengers transiting overnight in Addis Ababa.

It also emphasised that passengers having layover in Addis-Ababa to travel the next morning to Zanzibar, Seychelles, Lusaka, Lilongwe, Harare, Cape Town and other cities were not affected by the ban and do not need transit visa for their trips.

Ethiopia also made it compulsory for Nigerian citizens and 42 other countries, majorly from African countries to present their yellow fever vaccination cards at any of its borders.

Some of the other countries are Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central Africa Republic, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Mauritania and Niger.

Others are Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, South Sudan, Uganda, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador, French Guyana, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.

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NEWS

MAKING LAGOS WORKERS HAPPY...

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu (middle) with Lagos Civil Servants during a working visit to the State Secretariat, Alausa,. With them: Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri Okunola (right).... yesterday

Sanwo-Olu Surprises Lagos Civil Servants with Salary Increment Govt to increase staff bus fleet, hands over 100 official vehicles to directors Segun James Concerned about rising cost of living and galloping inflation in the country, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State yesterday surprised public servants with an announcement that a pay rise was coming for the workers.

The move, the governor said, was to cushion the effects of inflation, high prices of commodities and rising cost of living being experienced across the globe.

Sanwo-Olu personally broke the news to the civil servants, who gathered yesterday to receive the governor when he paid a surprise visit to the Secretariat in Alausa - the

seat of the government.

His cabinet members joined the reception, which was led by Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola.

The governor announced also, a 25 per cent salary increment for employees in the core establishment agencies.

Sanwo-Olu directed the Head of Service, Ministry of Establishment, Training and Pensions and the State Treasury Office (STO) to work out the modalities for upward review and statutory approvals, after which the implementation of the new pay would kick off.

The announcement elicited spontaneous jubilation from work-

ers, as the news went round the Government Secretariat. The enthusiastic staff said the new salaries would boost productivity and scale up service delivery to residents.

Sanwo-Olu said the workers deserved encouraging welfare and benefits, given their unprecedented support and commitment to the core mandates of the state government. The governor added that the gesture would further motivate the state’s workforce and enhance its services to the people.

He said: “I have looked around, I know there is pressure and high level of inflation in the country. There is high cost of

living everywhere. Last month at the cabinet meeting, I instructed the Office of Head of Service and Ministry of Establishment, Training and Pensions to start work on how we will increase the salaries of the entire workforce.

“I just don’t want to talk about it because we are Lagos; we reflect this decision in the lives of our people. I know the pressure of inflation is on you; we will not wait for the federal government before we take this decision. This is Lagos. We are going to review the salaries and ensure we take care of our public servants.

“When we do the pay rise, not only will we expect more from

Nnamdi Kanu Challenges FG to Prove Legality of His Extradition Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mr. Nnamdi Kanu has challenged the federal government to show any evidence to prove that his extradition from Kenya in June 2021 was lawful and followed due process.

He threw the challenge yesterday at a Federal High Court in Umuahia, during the proceedings on the suit he filed to enforce his fundamental human rights, which he claimed were violated by extraordinary rendition.

Kanu, who is standing trial on alleged treasonable offences, said he would withdraw his suit if the federal government could tender any document showing that it acted within the law when he was arrested in Kenya, detained for eight days and bundled to Nigeria.

Aloy Ejimakor, who was at the head of legal team of five lawyers representing the detained IPOB leader, told the court that Kanu would discontinue his search for justice if the Nigeria government could produce any document showing that it had acted lawfully.

The suit, which was sui generis (of a special class), was hinged on Article 12(14) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples

Rights(already domesticated in Nigeria) as well as Chapter IV of the Nigeria Constitution.

Ejimakor argued that the infamous, unlawful expulsion or extradition of Kanu was a clear violation of his fundamental rights under the said laws the federal government should not only release him but also pay him adequate compensation.

He also asked the court to take judicial notice of the decision of the UN on Kanu's issue since the world body has declared his arrest, extradition and detention unlawful. It also called on Nigeria

government to release the IPOB leader, tender apology and pay him compensation.

In the originating application for the enforcement of the fundamental rights of Kanu dated February 24, 2022, and filed on March 2, 2022, the counsel had sought a declaration that it was illegal for the agents of the Nigerian government to have arrested and detained the Biafra separatist leader in Kenya.

In his submissions, Simon Enoch, counsel for the two respondents (federal government and the Attorney General, Abubakar Malami), said that the suit was an abuse

of the court process since it was already determined by an Abia State High Court presided over

by Justice Benson Anya.

But Ejimakor reminded the court that the suit referenced by the defence counsel was different as it dwelt on the event of September 14, 2017, when Nigerian troops invaded Kanu's home in Umuahia with the attendant destruction of lives and properties.

After both parties adopted their written addresses and applications, the presiding judge, Justice Evelyn Anyadike fixed October 27, 2022 for judgement on the matter.

you, our citizens must also see the benefits of this important decision in the service delivery. We are a Government that is proactive, we don’t want the staff unions to hold us to ransom. We are responding to the yearnings of our people; I know you have not asked for it, but I am happy to tell you that a pay increase is on the way.”

Sanwo-Olu also announced plan to raise the fleet of staff buses deployed to carry workers from their homes to work and back. At the inception of his administration, the governor raised the fleet from 10 buses to 35.

The additional buses, he said, would be deployed on new routes to assist those not captured in existing routes.

The governor also said the first fleet of 100 vehicles would be given to employees on the Director cadre in the public service, while also approving discounts for workers interested in acquiring apartments in the Government-owned mass housing schemes. This, he said, would be followed by development of staff housing stocks only for government workers.

He said: “Lagos has been the best in terms of payment of pension benefits to our retired workers.

Our government is committed to clearing the entire backlog; we are already close to clearing the 2021 liabilities. We are committed to ensuring that all our workers get

paid their pensions upon retirement from service and this is the legacy we want to leave behind.

“I am one of you and I am part of you. It is really a homecoming for me. The support and the encouragement I have received from all of you has been unprecedented. On behalf of Lagosians, I thank all of you for the great service you are rendering, which has made the Lagos public service the best in the country. It is only when the public service is energised and properly motivated that the citizens can feel the best of governance.”

Muri-Okunola, on behalf of the civil servants, hailed the governor for prioritising the workers’ welfare and benefits.

The Head of Service said SanwoOlu had fulfilled more than 80 per cent of his promises to the State’s workers, stressing that the welfare package of the state government was second to none.

He added that 3,000 workers in the public service had benefited from the governor’s retroactive approval for capacity building for staff, while the culture of prompt payment of salaries had been sustained.

Muri-Okunola said: “The governor has ensured that the officers implementing his administration’s THEMES Agenda have adequate work tools and enabling environment for the actualisation of the programmes.

UNN’s Professor, Agbakoba Wins Prestigious Georg Forster Research Award Nigerian academic, Prof. Joseph Chemeka Achike Agbakoba has been announced as recipient of the 2022 Georg Forster Research Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany.

Agbakoba, of the department of Philosophy at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), was a pioneer researcher and teacher in the field of development philosophy and ethics for Africa.

According to a statement, the professor has to his credit over 60 publications in reputable national and international journals and publishing

houses, and was the first African philosopher to receive this award.

He is one of Africa’s foremost advocates of the place of philosophy in discourses of development.

Georg Forster Research Awards are given each year to not more than six scholars and scientists in any discipline from 137 countries of the developing world (comprising Africa, Asia, Latin America and Oceania).

It is in recognition of outstanding lifetime work in research and teaching.

“It is heartwarming to be recognised for one’s humble contribu-

tions. Coming from the Humboldt Foundation makes it a special treat.

I dedicate this award to all teachers and researchers in Nigeria currently seeking to make our universities more globally competitive,” Agbakoba, said in obvious reference to a sevenmonth long dispute between lecturers and government over funding arrangements for Nigeria’s public universities.

Agbakoba’s latest book, ‘Development and Modernity in Africa: An Intercultural Philosophical Perspective,’ was published in 2019 in Köln, Germany, by Rüdiger Köppe Verlag.

The book is widely acclaimed for its groundbreaking insights into why African cultures reacted the way they did to the slave trades and to European colonisation.

In the book, the author applies the tools of philosophy to diagnose the causes of Africa’s underdevelopment, counter-development and disadvantages in the race to modernity. He called time on academic African philosophy’s decades-long preoccupation with what he calls ‘identitarian’ concerns.

In its place, he advocates for a shift to ‘developmentarian’ concerns and

transcolonial constructivism.

“Agbakoba’s argument is hinged on the view that African philosophy must engage the question of modernity and development without jettisoning the best of its indigenous values and in the process construct a viable hybrid world.

“His other books include Philosophical Issues in Development, published by Fourth Dimension Publishers, Enugu in 2003, and Theories of Mind: A Case for Interactionism, which was published

by University of Nigeria Press, Nsukka,” the statement added.

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NEWS

NATIONAL DIALOGUE WITH STAKEHOLDERS...

L-R: Minister of State Science, Technology and Innovation, Chief Henry Ikechukwu; Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Senator, Olorunimbe Mamora and Permanent Secretary in the PHOTO: ENOCK REUBEN Ministry, Mrs. Monilola Udoh, during the national dialogue with government and stakeholders in Science and Technology and Innovation (STI) centers in Abuja...yesterday

Again, Obi Woos Nigerians in Diaspora, Targets Remittances to Boost FDI Unveils economic agenda Emameh Gabriel in Abuja The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi has unveiled part of his economic blueprint to Nigerians in the diaspora, assuring them that his policies would focus on boosting diaspora remittances in the country.

Obi declared that his mission was to retool governance and secure a robust united Nigeria.

This was just as he assured that if elected, his government would encourage adequate diaspora participation in order to encourage remittances, which he said had become the new normal that would be considered Nigeria’s new Official Development Assistance (ODA).

Speaking on the theme: ‘Nigeria Diaspora and Capacity Building,’ in Michigan United States on Monday, Obi noted that, “the journey to rescue Nigeria, could not have gained momentum without the proactive role of our youths," whom he said were resilience.

He noted that Nigeria was not bereft of the required human capital necessary for good leadership nor was she bereft of good governance ideas and plans, but, “our country

is bedeviled by the impunity of those few who have perfected the dubious act of state capture.

“It is their conduct, plus the resulting combination of institutional weaknesses and lack of political will that manifest as poor policy and projects implementation and poor governance performance outcomes.”

The Labour Party standard bearer said turning Nigeria around required sacrifice; but above all an adaptive, transformative and purposeful leadership imbued with competence, capacity, credibility and commitment He said he was committed, “to retooling governance and bringing about a secure and united Nigeria and will pursue a production-centered growth for food security and export; effective legal and institutional reforms (rule of law, corruption and government effectiveness);the leapfrogging of Nigeria from oil dependency to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).”

According to Obi, his government would prioritise key areas which he listed to include, “security with properly manned, equipped and technologically driven system;

power, through public private partnership; subsidy removal; inflation reduction; debt; human capital development; gender parity and the fight against corruption.”

Obi also highlighted the role of Nigerians in the Diasporas in the development of their homeland, assuring that his government would encourage adequate diaspora participation because he considered diaspora remittances as the new normal.

He said: "In 2021 Nigeria’s foreign direct investment (FDI) was a paltry $4.8 billion compared to Diaspora remittances. Diaspora remittances are our alternative FDI and ODA. “The Nigeria Diaspora represents a broad segment of Nigeria’s human development capital. With that population, the Diaspora family has the capacity to catapult any nation to greatness. Regrettably, Nigeria

is yet to harness fully the huge benefits of the Diaspora potential.”

Obi noted that beyond the vital role of Nigerians living outside the country remitting monies back home, “they are increasingly involved in advancing technology and skill transfer, strengthening democracy, opening up global supply chains, trade and foreign direct investment, education and research as well as healthcare delivery.”

The LP candidate therefore urged Nigerian in the Diaspora never to despair or be weary in contributing their quota towards national capacity-building, pointing why they must not lose hope in Nigeria.

“It will take only one visionary leadership and disruptive thinker for Nigeria to be put back on the right trajectory. I know that with a robust diaspora support we can take back Nigeria,” he added.

Ekiti to Vaccinate 320,000 Children against Measles Victor Ogunje in Ado-Ekiti Determined to combat infant mortality rate due to measles infection, the Ekiti State Primary Health Care (PHC) Agency is to vaccinate about 320,000 eligible children under the Integrated Measles Campaign beginning from October 20th to 26, 2022.

The agency said the beneficiaries range between ages nine to 59 months, while those between the ages of 18-year and above would be vaccinated against COVID-19 infection.

Speaking at a media parley to

herald the commencement of the planned campaign in Ado Ekiti yesterday, the PHC's Deputy State Immunisation Officer, Mrs. Omolabake Ogundola, urged parents, guardians and school owners to allow health workers in the state to vaccinate eligible children.

She noted that the government was strategising on how every eligible child in the state would be vaccinated irrespective of their locations, which she said warranted the long time allotted to the exercise.

She gave an assurance that all local governments in the state would be covered by health

personnel, soliciting the assistance of the residents for the agency to record more success in the exercise.

“The state government will be carrying out Integrated Measles Campaign in October. What this means is that, we will be combining measles vaccination with other routine vaccinations such as COVID-19 and others,” she said.

On the Covid-19 vaccination, she said the state government has paid its counterpart funding and met other requirements for the exercise to commence.

The Senior Health Officer noted

that the State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi had approved all logistics that would positively enhanced the smooth activities of the agency and the best preservation and use of vaccines.

Similarly, the Executive Secretary, of the agency, Dr. Gilbert Seluwa, said the state was spending heavily despite paucity of funds in order to ensure that people of the state get best healthcare services.

The Executive Secretary, said that the state’s health sector has significant manpower and workforce to be successful in the exercise.

B U H A R I AC C U S E S AS U U O F C O R R U P T I O N AS F G R E G I ST E R S T W O N E W VA R S I T Y - B AS E D U N I O N S the role of government in education is to guarantee access and establish minimum benchmarks for quality education. Due to declining resources, government cannot bear the cost of funding education alone. I task our academics to attract endowments, research and other grants to universities, polytechnics and colleges of education similar to what obtains in other countries."

FG Registers Two New University-based Unions

Meanwhile, the federal government formally registered two new university based unions – CONUA and NAMDA. The government said with the registration granted the two unions, they were now entitled to all rights and privileges ascribed to unions and would be given access to those rights by the government and university authorities.

While conveying the approval to the leadership of the two unions at a meeting in Abuja yesterday, Ngige said the move would help liberalise the academic sub-sector and make for more freedom for university workers.

The minister stated, "In view of the above, I Senator Chris Nwabueze Ngige, in the exercise of

the power conferred on me as the Minister of Labour & Employment, do hereby approve the registration of CONUA and NAMDA. "The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment in the discharge of her mandate in the management of employment relationships and the administration of trade unions to ensure harmonious industrial relations system in the nation has decided to approve the registration of two more trade unions in the Nigerian university academic subsector. The university sub-sector is a major development plank of any nation's socio-economic growth."

Ngige said NAMDA included those medical doctors doing preclinical teaching of basic medical courses and honorary consultants teaching clinical students in the universities.

He told the new unions, "In view of this registration, you are entitled to all rights and privileges accruable to union of similar status which include right to receive check off dues of members. You can now go back to your institutions and open the doors of your classrooms to teach the students."

While explaining the government decision, Ngige said that in the last eight months, the classrooms in the

country's public universities had been shut and students kept at home by the strike action embarked upon by ASUU. He lamented that the ugly situation had persisted despite series of engagements to resolve the trade dispute by the federal government through the Ministry of Education.

The minister alleged, "However, all efforts at conciliation failed resulting in the transmission of the trade dispute to the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) for adjudication in line with the statutory trade dispute resolution processes.

“At the NICN, an Interlocutory Injunction Order was obtained asking the Union to get back to work while the substantive suit is being heard; an order ASUU leadership and members refused to obey.

“Interestingly, a lot of university teachers in the public universities had indicated their willingness to get back to work while negotiations continue."

While justifying the decision, Ngige narrated that the experience in some of the institutions was helpless. He noted that some medical doctors teaching in various medical schools/colleges of medicine had

carried on with teaching in the universities of Maiduguri, Bauchi, and Sokoto, and had graduated new doctors in the midst of the ASUU strike.

He argued that some of those lecturers had since been applying to have their own academic associations registered as trade unions to organise their members, because they did not share in the models, objectives, modus operandi, mission and vision of ASUU. Ngige said there were differences among the key segments of the universities, especially those who did not believe in recurring strikes as solution to every welfare problem.

He said some lecturers had also accused the ASUU executive of non-rendition of account of incomes and expenditure for years.

Ngige stated, "The Ministry of Labour and Employment set up a committee to look into the merit of their application. The committee saw merit in the application and recommended approval for the registration of the Association by the Registrar of Trade Unions (RTU) since 2020. But for the advent of COVID-19 pandemic and the recurring ASUU Strike, this would have been done.”

National Coordinator of CONUA,

Niyi Sumonu, assured the minister that they would work to ensure that the country was not truamatised again by strike. He said CONUA members were never on strike, adding that they would appreciate if the federal government would prevail on the school authorities to reopen the institutions for normal academic activities.

Similarly, President of NAMDA, Dase Lancy Oriue, said the registration gave medical and dental academics in the universities and other tertiary institutions, where training of medical students and postgraduate doctors took place, a legal voice in the determination of the training requirements, management of the training system, and the welfare of its members.

Oriue explained that medicine and dentistry were very sensitive professions, which required a wellprogrammed, uninterrupted, and hands-on training

ASUU: Ngige is Desperate, Socalled Faction are Dissidents

ASUU described the newly registered unions as unimportant, saying it has no faction. ASUU president, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, who spoke exclusively

to THISDAY, said Ngige was only being desperate over what he alone knew.

Emphasising that Nigerians needed to ask the minister certain questions, Osodeke said the newly registered unions were just dissidents whose extravagant ambitions were being advanced

by Ngige.

Osodeke accused the minister of sabotaging the efforts of the National Assembly to deal with the root cause of the strike.

He said, "We don’t have factions of ASUU. The minister is desperate, but they are inconsequential. Our union is intact and we will continue.

When the National Assembly is trying to intercede on an issue and the Ministry of Labour is jumping from court, to the issue of salaries, registering other unions. I think Nigerians should ask him what is his interest?

"We don’t have factions. Call them. Go to any of our branches, we do not have factions. What there are, the new group at OAU are dissidents and he (Ngige) encouraged them. But we don’t have factions.

If we have factions, can we be on strike for eight months?"

Continues online

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BIG BROTHER NAIJA PRIZE PRESENTATION CEREMONY...

L-R: Head of Business Development, Pocket by PiggyVest, Ayo Akinsola: Executive Head of Content and West Africa Channels, MultiChoice Nigeria, Dr. Busola Tejumola: Winner, Big Brother Naija, Season 7, PHOTO: SUNDAY ADIGUN Ijeoma Otabor (AKA Phyna): and General Manager, Sales Operations, Innoson Motors, Obum Osigwe at the Big Brother Naija Prize Presentation ceremony held, in Lagos..... yesterday.

Shettima: Task Before APC is Onerous, We Must Come Together Pledges to serve nation with fear of God, equity, fairness and justice Party appoints Masari's wife Katsina women campaign coordinator Francis Sardauna in Katsina and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja The All Progressives Congress (APC) Vice-Presidential candidate, Senator Kashim Shettima, yesterday,

confessed that the task before the party was onerous and that indeed, it would take all Nigerians coming together to salvage the country.

He, however, promised that with his principal, Asiwaju Bola

Ahmed Tinubu, who would create platforms to engage multitudes of Nigeria youths that were jobless at the moment if elected president next year, they would serve Nigeria with the fear of God, equity, fairness

and justice.

This is as the leadership of the party, has appointed the Katsina State First Lady, Dr. Zakiyya Aminu Bello Masari, as the coordinator of the Tinubu/Shettima Women

Yabatech Denies HND Certificate Presented By Lagos APC Lawmaker Wale Igbintade The Deputy Registrar, Yaba College of Technology, Mr. Olufunmi Dada, yesterday, told a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos that, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate representing Surulere Constituency II in the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mrs. Mosunmola Sangodara, did not graduate from the school as an HND holder.

Dada stated this yesterday before Justice Nicholas Oweibo while testifying as a witness.

Led in evidence by Dr. Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, the witness tendered the school convocation

graduation list for the period between the 1992- 1997 session, where the name of the defendant was not featured.

Besides, Dada alleged that the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) exemption letter was non-existent in the NYSC list within that period.

During cross-examination by the defendant's counsel, Adebisi Oridare, on why the convocation list of 1995/1996 was missing, the witness stated that two sessions were merged, namely the 1994/1995 and 1995/1996 sessions.

Counsel to the 3rd defendant, Mr. S.O. Ibrahim, stated that the

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was after the justice of the case, adding that the convocation list of the 1995/1996 session ought to have come under a separate heading.

Justice Oweibo admitted the documents in evidence and marked them as Exhibit p6 to p10 respectively.

The judge also directed the West African Examination Council (WAEC) to file a witness statement on oath as earlier ordered in the subpoena served on them.

Further proceeding was adjourned till today (Wednesday).

Shittu, the plaintiff in the suit,

prayed the court to disqualify Sangodara and declare him as the APC candidate for next year’s election.

The plaintiff, in his statement of claim, sought among others, “A declaration that the information contained in the Affidavit in Support of Personal Particulars (Form EC9) deposed to by the 2nd Defendant and submitted to the 1st Defendant in support of the 2nd Defendant’s nomination to contest the membership of the Lagos State House of Assembly to represent Surulere Constituency 2 in the forthcoming 2023 House of Assembly Election is false.”

Presidential Campaign Team for the state.

Shettima, who spoke in Abuja, when he met with senate correspondents, maintained that the task before the APC was an onerous one, which needed all Nigerians to coalesce into a single course to see to the realisation of the full potentials of the country.

He said, “The task ahead of us is an onerous one. A task of nation building. A task for us to coalesce into a single course and see to the realisation of the full potentials of our nation – a very young nation.

The average age of the Nigerian population is 19.

“May God give us the wisdom with good health to come up with robust platforms of engaging multitudes of our youths, who are jobless and who are hungry.

We owe it to God and humanity.

"The Nigerian nation, has been kind to us. This is payback time.

I want to make my pledge and commitment to you that by God’s grace, we will serve this nation with the fear of God in equity, justice and inclusivity.”

Meanwhile, in a statement yesterday by the Media Assistant to the Katsina Governor's wife, Hawwa Ibrahim Jikamshi, her appointment was contained in the list of the Tinubu/Shettima Women Presidential Campaign Team issued recently.

According to the statement, "In her acceptance speech, Her Excellency Dr (Hajiya) Zakiyya Aminu Bello Masari, appreciated the honour and assured commitment to work hard towards mobilising women in Katsina State to support and ensure the success of Tinubu/Shettima presidential ambition come 2023.

"Dr (Hajiya) Zakiyya Aminu Masari, who noted the various efforts made by the APC-led administration at all levels to improve the lives of women, assured of the consolidation and sustenance of such efforts if Tinubu/Shettima succeed in the presidential election.

"While praying for more peace and prosperity to Katsina State and Nigeria as a whole, the Governor's wife called for more support to the APC for more dividends of democracy."

government revenue in Nigeria, the government deficit will stay elevated throughout the forecasting horizon mainly due to persistent problems in the oil industry, since the non-oil sector has not been able to make up for the loss.

“The deficit is predicted to remain stable in non-resource-rich countries, at 5.5 per cent in 2022. It will widen in mineral and metal resource-rich countries by 0.8 percentage point this year and narrow to 3.9 per cent of GDP in 2024 as the consolidation process becomes effective,” it added

Bassey Akpan (PDP Akwa Ibom North East), that capital punishment should be put in place for offenders.

He said the crime on oil theft in Nigeria had been on for many years and specifically about 22 years ago, but the dimension and rate it assumed in recent time was unprecedented.

Kyari said, "As earlier stated as a result of the oil theft, Nigeria losses about 600, 000 barrels per day which is not healthy for the nation's economy and in particular, the legal operators in the field which had led to close down of some of their operational facilities.

"But in rising up to the highly disturbing challenge, NNPCL, has in recent time in collaboration with relevant security agencies clamped down on the economic saboteurs.

"In the course of the clamp down within the last six weeks, 395 illegal refineries have been deactivated, 274 reservoirs destroyed, 1,561 metal tanks destroyed, 49 trucks seized and the most striking of all, is the four kilometeres illegal oil connection line from Forcados Terminal into the sea which had been in operation undetected for 9 solid years," he said.

EMEFIELE: RISE IN DISRUPTIVE BANKING TECHNOLOGIES DISTURBING each jurisdiction.”

W’Bank: Nigeria’s Economic Growth Continues to Suffer from Underperforming Oil Sector

Meanwhile, the World Bank has stressed that Nigeria’s growth prospect was being stifled by its underperforming oil sector.

The bank also praised the direct interventions being carried out by the CBN in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

But the Brentwood institution in its latest Africa’s Pulse released yesterday, downgraded Nigeria’s growth prospects to 3.3 per cent a decline from 0.5 percentage points lower than the April 2022 Africa pulse forecast.

On Nigeria’s growth predictions, it stated: “Economic growth in Nigeria continues to suffer from an underperforming oil sector. Oil output was down by 11.8 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2022 against 26 per cent in the first quarter.

“After dropping for the fifth consecutive quarter (from 1.4 million barrels per day in the first quarter to 1.2 million in the second quarter),

oil production slowed further in August to a 50-year low of 1.13 million barrels per day, behind Angola (1.17 million).

“It continues to lag the production levels of last year at 1.6 million barrels per day. Despite elevated oil prices, the country’s net official oil earnings have not increased.

Several headwinds, such as increasing petroleum product subsidies deducted directly from the gross oil earnings, limited investment in oil infrastructure, and theft on the pipelines, prevent the economy from realising gains from rising oil prices,” it added.

It projected that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in Nigeria was expected to slow from 3.6 per cent in 2021, to 3.3 per cent in 2022.

On the stance of Nigeria’s monetary authority, it noted that the interventions by the central bank supported economic growth and boosted the value-chain of the agriculture sector.

It added: “Direct central bank lending to the agriculture and manufacturing sectors provided some support to private investment.”

On Nigeria’s debt, the World Bank noted that the assistance extended by multilateral institutions to International Development Association’s eligible countries in the form of the Debt Service Suspension Initiative was dwarfed and as result, the number of countries in or at high risk of distress continues to rise as the risk of a financial crisis mounts.

It stated: “Across the sub-regions, debt edged up in Western and Central Africa (AFW), while it contracted slightly in Africa Eastern and Southern. Excluding Nigeria, oil-exporting countries are expected to reduce government debt significantly.

“Due to its heavy reliance on imported petroleum products and constrained oil production, Nigeria did not benefit from favorable terms of trade induced by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The downward revision partly reflects headwinds from rising food and fuel prices and a contractionary monetary policy.

It further added: “Nigeria, the largest African oil producer, is set to emerge from the current account deficit of - 0.4 per cent of GDP in

2021 to a surplus of 1.1 per cent in 2022, and edge up to 1.2 per cent in 2023.

“The current account balance is expected to improve in 2022 and 2023 relative to 2021 due to higher oil prices, which offset lower oil output. Higher import prices of food and refined petroleum products weigh on the current account surplus.

“A mega-refinery project that is expected to be completed in 2023 will boost external earnings by drastically reducing imports of fuel and at the same time contribute to the regional supply of petroleum products.”

The report noted that the fiscal deficit for the region was projected to decline slightly from five per cent of GDP in 2021, to 4.8 per cent in 2022 and was set to shrink next year to 4.5 per cent and further to 3.2 per cent in 2024.

It noted that the surplus in oil-rich countries at 1.2 per cent of GDP, excluding Nigeria at -5.9 per cent and South Sudan at -3 per cent, the countries were projected to register fiscal surpluses this year.

“Although revenue from the oil sector constitutes half of the

NNPCL: Oil Theft, Vandalism Putting Nigeria in Terrible Situation

In the meantime, Kyari has said Nigeria was in a state of calamity over oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other criminal activities in the Niger Delta region.

He explained that the situation had led to serious low production in the oil and gas industry.

Kyari stated this when he appeared before the Senate's joint committees on Petroleum (Downstream), Petroleum (Upstream) and Gas. He concurred with the recommendation made by Senator Albert

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NASENI EMPOWERS ARTISANS…

L-R: Senator Mas’ud El-Jibril Doguwa, Representing Rt. Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, Majority Leader, House of Representatives; the Executive Vice Chairman/ Chief Executive of National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Prof. Mohammed Sani Haruna, and the Secretary to Kano State Government, Alhaji Usman Alhaji during the retraining of 100 artisans and empowerment by NASENI in Kano… yesterday

Police Service Commission Approves Dismissal of Seven Police Officers Reduces ranks of 10 others, exonerates four

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

The Police Service Commission (PSC) yesterday approved the dismissal of seven senior police officers over gross misconduct.

The commission also approved the reduction in rank of 10 other officers. The decisions

were taken at the ongoing 15th Plenary Meeting of the commission which is expected to end on Thursday.

The dismissed officers include one Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), a Superintendent of Police (SP) and five Assistant Superintendents of Police (ASP).

The SP was also retired in public interest.

The commission’s plenary meeting presided over by Justice Clara Bata Ogunbiyi,(rtd) considered all the pending disciplinary matters before the commission totaling 47 and also treated some appeals from dismissed police officers.

The commission reduced the ranks of one CSP to SP, three

SP to (DSP), and two DSP to Assistant Superintendents of Police (ASP).

The commission further reduced the ranks of four ASP to inspectors.

A statement issued by the commission in Abuja said 10 senior police officers, including an assistant commissioner, a chief superintendent, a superintendent and two deputy superintendents

were given the punishment of severe reprimand.

Five assistant superintendents were also awarded the punishment of severe reprimand.

It said 13 officers received the punishment of reprimand while two are to receive letters of warning just as four officers were exonerated.

The acting chairman said the commission would henceforth

give the desired attention to pending disciplinary matters so that personnel found guilty were punished immediately while those found not guilty are cleared to continue with their career progression.

Justice Ogunbiyi called on police officers to ensure they operated within established rules and avoid taking laws into their hands.

Goddy Egene

curriculum for African students with a global perspective.

Speaking to leadership deficit on the continent and Nigeria, Ezekwesili said: “The existing multilateral order is broken and must be urgently fixed so that our world can make critical decisions and take the right actions on issues that affect us all. Africa must be at the centre of the conversations on global governance, economic growth, poverty and inequality, climate change, disruptive

technologies and related issues of human and social development.

“The world will do better with Africa actively at the table of the redesign of today’s global architecture for a future that provides equal opportunity for everyone anywhere to excel.”

According to her, to be ready for this, Africa needs disruptive leaders who are constantly invested in finding better solutions to problems of their communities, countries and the world.

“The SPPG is where we are raising the ethical, competent and capable disruptive leaders for an Africa that seats at the global table of decision. And we are doing so, one leader at a time in significant numbers,” Ezekwesili said.

The SPPG is an unconventional school of the research-anchored #FixPolitics initiative that is designed to transform the quality of political and public leadership in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

I’m Still in Labour Party, Says Kano Guber Candidate Ezekwesili Harps on Need to Tackle Leadership Deficit in Africa Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano

The Kano State Governorship candidate of the Labour Party(LP), Bashir I Bashir yesterday denied rumours of his purported plan to dump the party. In a statement by the LP candidate that was made available to THISDAY in Kano said: “The information is baseless and false without any iota of credibility” “Our attention has been drawn to the widespread rumour going round that I’m defecting to APC, with two serial known transactional lightweight politicians. “ “This statement is necessitated by the number of calls, text messages and visitations I received this morning on the growing speculations and rumors being shared across social media platforms in the state to the effect that I will be pitching a tent with APC. “

“I am a card carrying member of our great party the LP and the Gubernatorial Candidate of the Party in Kano State. I believe in the ideals and Leadership standards of OBI and Datti and will continue to support them with all we have got.”

“This information is false, baseless and without any iota of credibility. One doesn’t leave certainty for uncertainty.

Labour Party, and ObiDatti are synonymous with all that is needed to salvage our Country from political mercenaries and failed leadership under the contraption called APC and its Siamese twin the PDP. “ The statement further said: “Campaigns of calumny, mudslinging and mischief are the stock-in-trade of the people spreading these rumors.

They are people who have an uncommon ability not to be embarrassed by any scandal. “

The School of Politics, Policy and Governance (SPPG) yesterday said it would reduce the leadership deficit in the areas of policy analysis, development and good governance on the continent.

Convener/Chair of FixPolitics and Founder SPPG, Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili, who made the commitment in a statement yesterday, said the deficit would be reduced with a well-tailored

Lawmakers Call for Rehabilitation of Federal Roads in South-south, North-central Udora Orizu in Abuja

Members of the House of Representatives at the plenary, yesterday urged the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to embark on the reconstruction of some federal roads in the South-south and North-central part of the country.

The lawmakers specifically urged the ministry in

collaboration with the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to rehabilitate the roads to prevent hardship and multiple auto crash.

They also urged the Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba to deploy more Police officers to the affected roads to protect citizens from being attacked.

The resolutions of the

lawmakers were sequel to the adoption of two separate motions on the “Need to Reconstruct Warri-Sapele-Benin Road and Sapele-Amukpe to Agbor road in Delta State and Ojapata, Ankpa, Ibana-Okpo failed portion of Itobe, Anyigba, Otukpa Federal Highway,” sponsored by Hon. Ben Igbakpa, Hon. Oberuakpefe Afe and Hon. Abdullahi Halims

respectively.

Igbakpa had while moving the motion for the rehabilitation of South-south road noted that the importance of road infrastructure in socio-economic development cannot be overemphasized, hence the need to reconstruct the parlous Warri- Sapele-Benin Road and Sapele-Amukpe to Agbor Road.

Hoodlums suspected to be members of the Park Management System (PMS), yesterday attacked members and supporters of the All Progressives Congress during Tinubu/Shettima solidarity rally held in the ancient city of Ibadan.

It was gathered that an unidentified young man in his

was shot by the hoodlums led by the Chairman, Oyo state PMS, Alhaji Mukaila Lamidi, (aka Auxiliary), during the coordinated attack.

It was learnt that Auxiliary was spotted in a light green SUV along with 10 other vehicles at the area where violence erupted, at Labiran junction in the heart

Hundreds of APC supporters who were caught in the web of violence were said to have scampered for safety at the sound of the gunshot at Beere area of Ibadan.

The rally took off at Oke-Ado, Ibadan APC secretariat and proceeded to Molete, Beere, Agodi Gate, Mokola, Dugbe

, with scores of Tinubu/Shettima T-shirt wearing supporters.

The victim of the gunshot, who was said to be in critical condition, was rushed to a nearby hospital for medical attention.

Others were also said to have been severely wounded with machete cuts inflicted on them by the attackers.

NOSDRA Confirms Fire Explosions Attack Oyo APC Members, Supporters at Eroton’s Oil Field in Rivers Hoodlums mid-twenties yet to be identified of the city. and berthed at the party office Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

Sunday Okobi and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) yesterday confirmed the fire explosions that took place at an oil field operated by Eroton Exploration and Production Limited in Akuku Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The agency confirmed that the fire incident happened at two oil wells operated by Eroton Exploration and Production Limited (EEPL).

The Director-General of NOSDRA, Mr. Idris Musa, said that the twin incidents occurred at Akaso Wells 14 and 4T Wellheads, Rivers on Monday.

Musa explained that following the notification of the incident to the Agency, the company, officials of the spills agency, oil firm’s Emergency Response Team (ERT) were immediately mobilised to the site.

“The company has mobilised a vendor, which is expected to arrive the incident location today, October 4, 2022 to extinguish the raging fire from the Wells; the Agency will supervise the activity accordingly.

“An illegal boat was observed at the location, which was suspected to be engaged in oil theft. The boat has been completely burnt but the fire on the boat has been extinguished.

“The two wells are however, still on fire until the vendor arrives to extinguish it,” Musa said

NASENI Boss Warns against Using Risky Techniques for Modern Automobiles The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive (EVC/CE) of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Prof. Mohammed Sani Haruna, yesterday warned against the use of risky techniques for modern automobiles.

According to him, trial and error method of repair or

maintenance is risky, expensive, and not compatible with modern vehicles and the automobiles of tomorrow.

Haruna, who stated these at the opening of NASENI’s workshop on skill acquisition and youth empowerment on autotronics and sensory system in Kano, said the agency is retraining automobile

artisans nationwide because of advances in technology.

He said modern vehicles have computerized Engine Management Systems (EMS) and Nigerian artisans ought to be part of global trends.

The NASENI EVC said the programme, which was the first-phase of North-west regional

skill development, will lead to the training of 100 artisans.

He said: “The ingenuity and creativity of Nigerians is not in doubt when it comes to ability and capacity to observe operation, structure, and buildup of automobiles especially through backward integration technique.

46

WEDNESDAY, ͽ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

BACK PAGE CONTINUATION ADEGBITE, THE LEADERSHIP QUESTION faith of another person doesn’t arise at all in a constitutionally multi- religious country.

In matters of religious differences, what is required is not tolerance. Instead there should be mutual understanding and respect.

Come to think of it, inter-faith dialogue at the global level now emphasises our common humanity regardless of different faiths . Or as the Sultan put it : “love one another, if you love God.” Besides, the Sultan made some symbolic gestures relevant to his important statement.

As he was about leaving the hall after his speech he invited Dr. Josephine Dere Awosika, former federal permanent secretary and now chairman of Access Bank, to represent him as the acting chairman of the occasion. The Sultan had earlier specially acknowledged the presence of the lady, a well-known technocrat.

According to the foremost traditional ruler and religious leader, calling Awosika to the podium to replace him was to demonstrate gender inclusivity at the occasion. The Sultan and Awosika met as members of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in 2006. At the time, the Sultan was a military officer while Mrs. Awosika was a senior civil servant at the federal level.

Today, Awosika is a friend to the family of the family of the Sultan.

With the foregoing introduction to the event from the traditional ruler and the president of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, the tenor of the discussion turned more secular and policy-focussed as speakers passionately looked at dimensions of development.

Interestingly, former minister of Communications and Technology, Dr. Omobola Johnson expressed optimism that Nigeria could still take the lead in telecommunication in Africa given the right policies and diligent implementation. This was followed by the critical analysis of Nigeria’s development journey and the role of leadership by eminent

investor and banker, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede.

Corporate lawyer Asue Ighodalo examined the factor of quality and the capacity in transformational leadership while entrepreneur and administrator Oyindamola Lami Adeyemi harped with nostalgia on the place of values as she advocated “leading with less and building for development.”

Noteworthy was the vigour that the speakers brought to bear on the important theme of the role of leadership in development. It is significant that virtually all those who spoke at the occasion are second-generation members of the elite from their respective eminent families. Yet they spoke of transformation with so much fervour and a sense of urgency. They were

in unison in calling for a developmental leap for Nigeria to have a secure future. If the mood in the hall that day was actually representative of the nation’s elite, it would be wrong to accuse the middle and upper classes of complacency in the face of a multi-dimensional crisis.

By the way, another word for transformation is revolution. However, given their respective ideological make-ups, the speakers were surely not calling for the emergence of revolutionary leaders. The implication of their various analyses is that Nigeria direly needs committed reformers.

Another instructive approach employed by the speakers was the fact that looking back into history a lot of lessons could be learnt from the nation’s development efforts.

For example, in his presentation entitled “The Governance Paradox: The Criticality and Insufficiency of Good Governance for Nigeria’s Transformational Development,” Aig-Imoukhuede made a sweeping survey of history since the colonial days and concluded that “leadership is of existential importance.”

He identified some periods when the critical role of leadership in the public sector relatively advanced the development process.

He distinguished between “transactional’’ and “transformational” leadership. For him, the traits of the transformational leaders should include brilliance, character and empathy.

In a similar approach , Ighodalo identified leadership models from other lands – South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, China’s Deng Xiaoping, Rwanda’ s Paul Kagame, Britain’s Margaret Thatcher and Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew. According to Ighodalo, some of these leaders took “tough decisions” and summoned the capacity to implement policies “effectively.”

Still on the optimistic note, Ighodalo said “it is not impossible to be incorruptible in

Nigeria,” while pointing to corruption in both the public and private sectors.

All told, there is a problematic with the liberal concept of leadership which was dominant in the discussions. This is more so if you are talking of the leadership of a nation.

Leadership is sometimes presented like a cap put on the head of a nation. No, leaders at all levels do not emerge in a systemic vacuum. Because of the organic relationship between the leader and the society at any period in history, it is unimaginable that “good leadership” could be grafted on a society as it is often being suggested. Every system throws up its leaders at different period of a nation’s history. Leaders produced in a fascist state would be different from those produced in liberal democratic ones.

A revolutionary leader would lead a nation towards a revolution. If leaders are to lead the nation in a particular direction, the nature of the system would determine the direction in the first place.

In reflecting on the problems of leadership, the systemic limitation should also be considered. For instance, in Nigeria today there is hardly any elite consensus about what actually constitutes development. The question would, therefore, be this: transformation to which end? When a governor embarks on “projects” at the state capital which include the secretariat building, a conference centres, presidential lodge and other monuments, he would be hailed as “transforming” the state in developmental terms. But that is no development for the citizens in rural areas and urban slums who lack potable water and still practise open defaecation.

Yet, save a revolution leaders of all hues would be mostly drawn from this class of the elite whose conception of development is contradictory to the interest of the poor majority.

examples to illustrate the predicament of CBN before it gained independence through the promulgation of Acts 24 and 25 of 1991.

Sometimes in 1989, the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) submitted an application for banking licence which CBN rejected for being inconsistent with NSPMC’s mandate. The CBN was queried for rejecting the application by the Federal Ministry of Finance. There were other instances of divergent positions between the CBN and Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) over exchange rate and interest rate policies with FMF’s position prevailing. Even though the CBN Act 24 and BOFIA 1991 had given CBN autonomy, subsequent implementation revealed certain inadequacies. For example, under BOFIA 1991 CBN had the power to approve the issuance of banking licence but withdrawal of licence was subject to the approval of the Head of State (President). It was not until 1998/99 under General Abdusalami Abubakar’s regime that BOFIA was amended to confer the power to withdraw banking licence on the Board of CBN. In the same vein, CBN Act 2007, strengthened the independence of CBN by addressing security of tenure of the Governor and the bank’s ability to conduct monetary policy in pursuance of financial system’s stability.

The foregoing narrative highlights the fact that previous amendments to CBN enabling legislations had sought to enhance its autonomy and capacity to discharge its mandate rather than to weaken it as contemplated in the current proposed amendments. Without the autonomy which CBN had enjoyed over the years, the major reform initiatives it had carried out such as adoption of universal banking (2000) bank consolidation (2004) and 2009 regulatory intervention could not have been possible.

Perhaps, a short commentary on the concept of independence would assist our lawmakers to soft pedal on their proposed undesirable amendments. For this purpose, I associate myself with the conceptualization

by Marc Quintyn and Michael Taylor in their article titled: “Should Financial Sector Regulators be Independent?” They took the position that “making central banks independent frees them from political pressure and thus removes the inflationary bias that could otherwise unsettle monetary policy” They then identified four dimensions

of independence namely: regulatory, supervisory, institutional and budgetary.

While Regulatory Independence: relates to ability to set prudential rules and issue regulations to guide conduct of banking business Supervisory Independence: entails close monitoring of operations of financial institutions and enforcing sanctions (including revoking licences).

The CBN currently exercises its regulatory and supervisory independence under the provisions of BOFIA, 2020 Institutional Independence: entails security of tenure of executive management, governance structure composed of experts, freedom to conduct monetary policy as well as open and transparent decision-making process while Budgetary Independence: involves insulation from political pressure, freedom to staff the agency and prompt response to imminent financial sector crisis but subject to clear accountability framework.

The CBN Act 2007 has provisions to ensure institutional and budgetary independence which should not be tampered with. It should be emphasised that budgetary independence is critical to any central bank’s ability to exercise the three other dimensions of its independence. Neither its lender of last resort role nor its financial system stability mandate can be effectively executed without budgetary independence. Regrettably, the proposed amendments by the Senate will effectively erode CBN independence. It is therefore, recommended that the Senate should let the four dimensions of independence enunciated in this contribution guide its deliberations.

The lawmakers are urged to appreciate that the four dimensions of central banks’ independence are internationally accepted, and Nigeria should not be an exception.

To further assist the legislature in its deliberations, the lessons of inadequate independence in some countries are hereby brought to its attention. The 1994 banking crisis in Venezuela provides a classic example.

This was succinctly documented in a book titled “COLLAPSE- the Venezuela Banking Crisis of 1994” by Ruth de Krivoy (former president, Central Bank of Venezuela) published in 2000. In her words “I told Velasquez (i.e Venezuela President) of my regret that all of the Central Bank’s attempts since 1992 to inform the government about the banking systems problem had gone essentially unheeded...But we were

powerless to correct the banks’ structural problems” She further stated that “the instability of the financial system led to sustained capital outflows and constant strong attacks on the currency.”

One of the numerous recommendations she made relates to law- making which she presented as follows: “Legislature must keep pace with changes in the financial industry. Legislators must stay abreast of changes in the market, and update laws as often as needed to allow banks to remain safe, sound and competitive” She cited Denmark whose prudential supervision law passed in 1975 had been amended more than twenty times to keep pace with developments, as a good example. Also, in their review of the East Asian crisis of 1997-98 Quintyn and Taylor noted that lack of independence worsens financial crisis. They cited the case of Indonesia where “when the crisis hit, the central bank procedures for dispensing liquidity support to troubled banks were overridden” by the political authority. Various studies have concluded that central bank independence is “essential to counter the natural preference of politicians for expansionary economic policies that promise short-term electoral gains at the risk of worsening inflation in the long run.”

On the basis of the foregoing, the irresistible conclusion is that the autonomy currently enjoyed by the CBN should not be whittled down. The benefits of CBN autonomy to the economy and the financial system are very enormous. What should be of concern to the legislature is accountability of the bank. Therefore, the legislature is enjoined to deploy its enormous oversight powers to ensure that the CBN is accountable in the exercise of its autonomy. Independence without accountability is a recipe for disaster.

Where there is misconduct or dereliction of duty, it is the officials involved that should be sanctioned. The bank should not be the villain. It is the officials conducting the affairs of an institution that should be held accountable for their actions or inaction.

The power to make or amend laws should not be used as a weapon of weakening institutions. r0HVOMFZF 0'3 JT B GPSNFS $#/ %JSFDUPS PG #BOLJOH 4VQFSWJTJPO BOE GPSNFS .BOBHJOH %JSFDUPS $&0 PG UIF /JHFSJB %FQPTJU *OTVSBODF $PSQPSBUJPO /%*$

Dr. Adegbite

CLIPPING THE WINGS OF CBN from the political authority or industry players thereby preserving institutional independence. Since the enactment of CBN Act 24 1991, the bank had endeavoured to preserve its autonomy by resisting political pressure. For instance, when CBN assumed control of five distressed state-owned banks in 1993, the governors of the owner-states presented a joint protest letter to (military) President Ibrahim Babaginda and sought a reversal of CBN action. The then Governor, late Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed (of blessed memory) wrote on the protest letter: “This is banking, not politics” and CBN stood its ground.

Similarly, when CBN introduced stricter provisioning for credit facilities to governments in 2001, state governors protested to President Obasanjo. The guideline stipulated that, “credits to all tiers of Government and their Agencies shall with effect from the end of July 2001 attract 50% provision on performing credits and 100% for classified credits”. While the governors saw the policy as a hindrance to fulfilling their electoral promises, CBN stuck to its position. The divergence of positions between central banks and political authorities occurs from time to time. One can also recall that the immediate past president of the United States of America (Donald Trump) had disagreed with the interest rate policy of the Federal Reserve board (popularly referred to as FED) and wanted it to do his bidding but the Board refused to do so. In response, Trump publicly criticised Jerome Powel, the FED chairman appointed by him. It was, therefore, not a surprise that the incumbent president (Joe Biden) re-appointed Powel as FED chairman. A professional central bank will resist political pressure while pursuing its mandate.

The proposed amendment of the CBN Act is not in the long-term interest of the Nigerian economy. If it is successfully passed, the CBN will be taken back to its status in 1990 (that is 32 years ago). As a career staff of CBN spanning 30 years (1974-2004) I lived through the evolution of CBN from bondage to freedom. Before the promulgation of CBN Act 24, 1991 and Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 25 1991, the CBN was under the supervisory purview of the Federal Ministry of Finance. There were instances when CBN’s professional positions were overruled. I will cite a few

47

WEDNESDAY, ͽ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

WEDNESDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor: Duro Ikhazuagbe Email: duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Mikel: Choosing Chelsea over Man Utd was 'Best Decision' of My Life

Former Super Eagles Captain, John Mikel Obi, 35, has revealed that his decision to snub Manchester United for Chelsea in a controversial transfer in 2006 remains the "best decision" of his football career which he called time on last week.

The midfielderwas the subject of a bitter dispute between the Red Devils and the Blues in 2005, before signing for the latter the

following year.

His decision to move to London, having initially signed for the Manchester side from Norwegian club Lyn Oslo, ultimately proved rewarding.

Mikel became one of the club's most decorated players, winning the Champions League, Europa League, two Premier Leagues, two League Cups and four FA Cups in an 11-year spell which

ended when he left Stamford Bridge in 2017.

"I don't regret any decision I made because I enjoyed everything I achieved at Chelsea - it's the best decision I have ever made in my life," Mikel told BBC Sport Africa yesterday.

"I signed a pre-contract for

Manchester United when I was 17. If you are a kid and you see Sir Alex Ferguson right in front of you with the contract, of course you will be tempted."

Having made plenty of previous running, Chelsea were shocked when he signed for their rivals.

His agent John Shittu immediately

travelled to Oslo to take the player to London, while Lyn swiftly declared him missing.

The news was all over Norwegian TV, with erroneous reports Mikel had been kidnapped.

"I acted as a young kid and as soon as Chelsea heard the news, they came and got me out of

Norway," recalled the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations winner with the Super Eagles.

"That's when people started saying that I was kidnapped. It wasn't a great moment for me then. I just wanted to play football because I was so young,” recalled Mikel who played.

UCL: Zaidu on Target as FC Porto Beat Leverkusen for First Win

Zaidu Sanusi... was on target as FC Porto defeated Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 for their first win in the UEFA Champions League last night Duro Ikhazuagbe withagencyreport Nigerian international, Zaidu Sanusi, was the only Super Eagles star who got on the scorers’ sheet last night as FC Porto handed out a 2-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in a UEFA Champions League Group Stage clash.

Zaidu who started the game from the bench in the 63rd minute headed home a cross by Teremi in the 69th minute for Porto to finally go in front.

The Super Eagles defender came on for Wedell and proved Coach Sergio Conceicao’s judgment right, getting the opener for Porto.

Wenderson Galeno who also came from the bench for Joao Mario same time as Zaidu netted Porto’s second goal for this home win that has now revived their hopes as they have climbed to second place in the standings with three points from as many matches halfway through the group stage of the competition.

Elsewhere, despite the absence of their goal scoring talisman, Victor Osimhen, Napoli came from behind to demolish Ajax 6-1 in the Champions League and continued their sensational start to the season.

Mohammed Kudus gave the Dutch side an early lead but Giacomo Raspadori headed in an equaliser, Giovanni di Lorenzo put Napoli ahead and Piotr Zielinski made it 3-1 just before the break.

Raspadori curled in his second

and then set up Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to score.

Ajax's Dusan Tadic was sent off before Giovanni Simeone netted a sixth.

Napoli, who had a squad rebuild in the summer as youngsters replaced several veterans, are unbeaten in all competitions this season.

Luciano Spalletti's side top Serie A and Champions League Group A, where they have scored 13 goals in three wins and sit three points above Liverpool - who beat Rangers 2-0last night.

RESULTS Ajax Liverpool C’Brugge FC Porto B’Munich Inter Marseille E’Frankfurt

1-6 Napoli 2-0 Rangers 2-0 Atletico 2-0 Leverkusen 5-0 V’ Plzen 1-0 Barcelona 4-1 Sporting 0-0 Tottenham

TODAY@8pm *Salzburg Chelsea *RB Leipzig R’Madrid Man City Sevilla Benfica Juventus

v D’Zagreb (5.45pm) v AC Milan v Celtic (5.45pm) v Shakhtar v Copenhagen v Dortmund v PSG v M’Haifa

John Mikel Obi...describes Chelsea move best career decision

Tobi Amusan...rewarded with House, cash by Ogun State

Gov Abiodun Hosts Tobi Amusan, Rewards Her with N5m, House James Sowole in Abeokuta

The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, yesterday hosted World, Commonwealth and African 100m Hurdles Champion, Oluwatobiloba Amusan and named her as the Ogun State Sport Ambassador.

According to the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Kunle Somorin, Abiodun equally announced a cash reward of N5million and a house gift in Ijebu-Ode. The Ogun State governor had on April 26, 2021 adopted the star athlete as part of Sports Minister, Sunday Dare’s Adopt-an-Athlete Initiative ahead of the postponed Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Speaking further at the event which held at his Oke Mosan

Office, Gov. Abiodun described Tobi Amusan as a role model to the girl-child and a practical example of a truism “that what a man can do, a woman can even do better.”

He said, "So, you will be our Sports Ambassador; I am happy that you said you are not from any other state. You are from Ogun and not from Lagos and you want to come back home. We also want to ensure that you come back home.

"We want to assure you that as you come back home, you have a home here in the state. So, in view of that, we are also going to be presenting to you a home in Ijebu-Ode. "On top of that, we will be giving you a small token, we

will be donating to you a sum of five million Naira,” observed the Ogun Governor.

Abiodun who noted that his administration was on cause to give the Ijebu-Ode Stadium the necessary facelift it needs, said that the call by the star athlete to use the stadium to train whenever she is in the country would further prompt his administration to fast track the rehabilitation of the stadium.

"We are in the process of rehabilitating a few of our sport facilities. I have spoken to the Minister of Sports (Chief Sunday Dare) and a few other people. But now that we have one of our own who is saying that she wants to train in that stadium, that puts us under a lot of pressure to ensure we prioritise the Ijebu-Ode stadium because we want you to come and be training in that stadium," the

governor added.

He noted that the story of the World, Commonwealth and African Champion would further educate those who still look at the combination of sports and education as a waste of time.

In her remarks, Tobi Amusan, while acknowledging the support of Governor Abiodun towards her success, called on the Federal Government to do more for athletes.

“All thanks to my governor for supporting me and I feel like the Federal Government can do the same when it comes to supporting athletes financially.”

Her coach, Abiola Onakoya, also noted that the world champion is already giving back to the society through an athletics development programme named Tobi Abiola Athletics Development in Ogun State.

President of Nigeria Para-Swimming Federation, Hon. Amobi Chikwendu, has warned his athletes not to spike their system with performance enhancing drugs in order to excel.

Hon. Chikwendu further warned that doing so will ultimately lead to ban and disgrace from the sport.

Chikwendu gave the warning while addressing athletes and officials at the end of the two-day Para-Swimming trials held at the National Stadium Surulere, Lagos.

He warned that the federation will not tolerate any act of doping hence his warning that any athlete caught with banned substances, even before the sanctions from the World Anti-doping Agency

(WADA), will be in trouble with the federation.

Chikwendu described doping as an ill-wind that blows no one any good as it has destroyed the lives of many athletes and their promising careers.

He therefore charged the coaches to be vigilant by monitoring the progress of their athletes from time to time and should report any negative development discovered.

Chikwendu who is also the immediate past President of the Nigeria Para-Athletics Federation, warned the country’s athletes never to embark on self medication nor the use of local herbs, but rather, should consult their doctors whenever they feel unwell.

Nigeria Top Group B, Beat Tough Lagos Tennis Cup Opener Sierra Leone by 11 Runs Para-Swimming President for Defending Champion Oparaoji ICC U19 W’CUP QUALIFIERS Kicks Against Dope Defending men's champion, Uche Oparaoji, will face a stern test against top seed, Henry Atseye, in the opening round of the 2022 Lagos Tennis Cup. Both Abuja-based players will clash on Centre Court in an early afternoon match at 1pm today.

Atseye, ranked No.1 in Nigeria, did not feature in the tournament last year as Oparaoji, now ranked No.6, romped to the title.

In the other men's games, Abuja-based Peter Lawal will tackle Owerri-based Chima Michael in the first game on Court One, while CBN Open champion Nonso Madueke will square up against Lagos-based Phillip Abayomi on Court 2.

Popular teen sensation and home

boy, Wilson Igbinovia, will open his account against experienced Thomas Otu on Court 3.

On the women's side, defending champion Marylove Edwards will open her title defence against Adunoye Rachel in the opening game on Centre Court, while last year's runner-up and second seed, Aanu Aiyegbusi, will take on Bunmi Are. 16-year-old Oiza Yakubu serves off against lucky qualifier, Omotayo Blessing, who replaced third seed Oyinlomo Quadre following a very late withdrawal.

Rounding off the women's day is a clash between Enugu-based Stella Udokwelu and Lagos-based Toyin Asogba in the second game on Court 3.

Hosts Nigeria defeated Sierra Leone by 11 runs to top Group B in a nerve-wrecking game at the ongoing ICC U-19 World Cup Africa Division Two Qualifiers in Abuja yesterday.

Nigeria won the toss and elect to bat. The match determines the team with a 100 percent record in the Group B, after two wins in two matches for both sides.

Usual suspects Paul Pam and Selim Saliu opened the batting order for Nigeria, putting up an excellent partnership to score a 100 for the team before Pam was sent to the stands in the 27th over.

Pam dismissal was the twick Sierra Leone needed to dismiss the hosts successfully in the next 20 overs, limiting Nigeria to 184

runs, all out in 47.4 overs.

The second innings meant Nigeria needed to defend the score against a strong-willed Sierra Leonean side with captain John Bangura steering the ship.

Bangura who played 87 runs, not out in 118 balls, raced the run score for Sierra Leone before Prosper Useni halted their pace, claiming 6 wickets in the process.

The visitors scored 173 all out in 41.5 overs. The loss means they set up a clash against Kenya, who are winners of Group A on Thursday while Nigeria will face the runners up in Group A, Malawi.

Prosper Useni emerged Player of the Match with bowling statistics of 6 wickets, 26 runs in 6.5 overs.

TR

Wednesday, October 5, 2022

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MISSILE Etiebet to Akpabio We should eschew selfishness and play some liberal politics rather than “na me alone” vertical politics for peace and togetherness. “The Abak-5 still calls on him (Akpabio) to step down from his Court -ordered candidature for DIG Ekpoudom (rtd.) to avoid a disgraceful defeat. I state this for the understanding of all.” --- Former Petroleum Minister Don Etiebet asking former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Godswill Akpabio to step down for former Deputy Inspector of Police Udom Ekpoudom as the candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Akwa Ibom North- West Senatorial election in 2023.

KAYODEKOMOLAFE Adegbite, the Leadership Question THE HORIZON

kayode.komolafe@thisdaylive.com

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or a few hours last Wednesday in Lagos some Nigerians of diverse backgrounds and perspectives gathered to reflect on the perennial leadership question.

The occasion was the first edition of the Memorial Series on Leadership organised in honour of Dr. Lateef Adegbite, a senior lawyer and the Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs.

Among other leadership positions held by Adegbite, who died 10 years ago, were the chieftaincy title of Seriki of Egbaland, commissioner in the old western state in the 1970s, pro-chancellor of the University of Maiduguri and the president of the Nigerian Olympic Committee from 1978 to 1985. A Commander of the Order of Niger (CON), Adegbite was also appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 as the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Public Awareness on Security and Responsibilities.

Expectedly, speakers at the forum with the theme “Transformational Development in Nigeria: The Leadership Imperative” employed the force of example provided by the remarkable life of Adegbite to explore the leadership question. Some of the virtues of Adegbite that came to the fore in the discussion were a keen sense of public purpose, character, discipline, hard work, cosmopolitan outlook, patriotism team spirit,

Dr. Lateef Adegbite respect for diversity and the ability to inspire others. Indeed, in the Nigerian desert of poor leadership the oases represented by the example of Adegbite abound. Yet not a few would be quick to say that the real problem of Nigeria is the lack of leadership to drive the development process. On this note, Chinua Achebe’ s book, The Trouble with Nigeria, is often quoted: “The trouble with

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Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership… There is nothing basically wrong with the Nigerian character... The Nigerian problem is the unwillingness or inability of its leaders to rise to the responsibility, to the challenge of personal example which are the hallmarks of true leadership.” The famous book was first published in 1983, the year Nigeria held the last general elections of the Second Republic.

Now, the relevance of this discussion is obvious five months to the 2023 general elections which some pundits have posited would be “different” After all, the textbook definition of election is the choice of leadership.

The tone for the robust dialogue was set by the chairman of the occasion, the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Muhammadu Sa’adu Abubakar II. He said that for a nation to be “great,” the factor of leadership should not be missing. The Sultan said the occasion was extremely important for him to attend because of the personality of Adegbite. The traditional ruler had to share his day between being in Lagos in the morning to honour the memory of Adegbite and rushing for another important engagement in Abuja in the afternoon.

Drawing on the concept of leadership in Islam, the Sultan put the matter in the simplest terms like this : “for a group of people to

embark on a journey successfully, there must be a leader to give direction.” He identified “the respect for diversity” as a virtue that a leader should posses in the Nigerian context.

And here the Sultan made an important point which is often misunderstood in the discussion of national integration. According to him, people should “understand” rather than “tolerate” one another in a landscape of socio-cultural diversity. The Sultan said : “Understand me; don’t tolerate me… For instance, I am the Sultan, nothing can be done about that…” This point should be amplified by all those committed to the task of national reorientation and integration because the Sultan is quite right in his proposition.

For clarity, here is a dictionary definition of the word “tolerate”: “allow the existence, occurrence, or practice of (something that one dislikes or disagrees with) without interference: B SFHJNF VOXJMMJOH UP UPMFSBUF EJTTFOU r BDDFQU or endure (someone or something unpleasant or disliked) with forbearance: how was it that she could tolerate such noise?”

So, if there is knowledge, which all great religions preach, there should be no basis for the adherent of one religion to “dislike” the religion of his fellow citizen or find another faith “unpleasant” in the first place.

Therefore, the question of tolerating the Continued on page 46

GANIYUOGUNLEYE Clipping the Wings of CBN GUEST COLUMNIST

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t the Senate’s plenary on 27th September 2022, a Bill to amend the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act, 2007 was deliberated upon. As reported in the media, the Bill focused on three issues namely, 1) Appointment of an outsider as the chairman of CBN Board of Directors, 2) Fixing the remuneration of board members and 3) Approval of annual budget to be submitted to the National Assembly (NASS) for consideration. In summary, the proposed amendments seek to erode the bank’s operational independence contrary to the existing Section 1(3) of CBN Act 2007 which states “——the Bank shall be an independent body in the discharge of its functions.” This is not the first time that a desire to erode CBN’s autonomy will be initiated by the Senate. In 2012 a similar move was made on which I had commented.

With the re- opening of the issue a decade later, one is obliged to weigh in.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele The proposal is of public interest; therefore, its rationale should be disclosed to the

citizenry to which legislators are accountable.

At that day’s plenary, the Bill passed the second reading and was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions for further legislative input. The committee is expected to report back in four weeks. Without prejudice to the legislature’s power to make or amend existing laws, one will expect that the exercise of such powers should seek to promote a sound financial system as well as socio-economic well-being of the citizenry.

Unfortunately, the proposed amendments to CBN Act 2007, with regard to the three issues noted above seem not to appreciate the sensitive and unique role of a central bank in the economy.

Ordinarily, amendments to an existing law should seek to strengthen an institution’s capacity to execute its mandate rather than weaken the institution. If the proposed amendments which would introduce a part-time chairman and remove the board’s

power to approve the bank’s annual budget, are passed, the combined effect would erode the independence of the CBN as well as politicise its operations. Given the Nigerian setting, political heavyweights will lobby to be appointed chairman of the CBN board.

For example, if a narrow-minded politically exposed person is appointed as chairman, the possibility of using the position to gain political capital cannot be ruled out. Similarly, if a person with a mercantile disposition is appointed chairman, the tendency to use the position for pecuniary benefits cannot be discounted.

The executive duality (i.e Chairman/ chief executive officer) nomenclature in the governance structure of central banks is not peculiar to the CBN. It is the feature of most central banks all over the world.

The overriding objective is to insulate central banks from undue external pressure either Continued on page 46

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