MONDAY 13TH DECEMBER

NNPC Posts N141.96bn Trading Surplus, N89.2bn Operating Revenue Loss in June Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Peter Uzoho in Lagos The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has revealed that it recorded a total trading surplus of N141.96 billion in June 2021, compared to a deficit of N37.46 billion in May this year.

The information was contained in a statement on the June 2021 figures of the NNPC Monthly Financial and Operations Report (MFOR), signed by the company’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Garba Muhammad, a copy of which was obtained yesterday.

The statement said NNPC’s

trading surplus or trading deficit was derived after deduction of the expenditure profile from the revenue for the period under review.

However, during the month under review, the NNPC Group said its operating revenue, as compared to May 2021, decreased by 9.07 per cent or N89.27 billion

to stand at N894.64billion. It added that the expenditure for the month decreased by 29.32 per cent or N299.44 billion, to stand at N721.93billion.

“Thus, in the period under review, expenditure as a proportion of revenue was 0.81 per cent, compared to the figure in May, which stood at

1.04 per cent.”

The report further disclosed that the increase in trading surplus was due mainly to the increased sales of crude oil and gas by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), an upstream subsidiary of the NNPC, and the increased gas sales and depreciation postings

by the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC).

“The positive outlook was further bolstered by the performance of Duke Oil and the Nigerian Gas Marketing Company (NGMC), which also added to the improved bottom Continued on page 8

APC Sets Feb 19 as Tentative Date for National Convention...Page 5 Monday 13 December, 2021 Vol 26. No 9744. Price: N250

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Ayu: There’ll Be No APC

by April 2023 Chuks Okocha in Abuja, George Okoh in Makurdi and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt L-R: CMS T&M PRO, Yusuf Issa Lanre; GM/Secretary Adegbola Mukaila; Treepz Co-founder/VP Products & Ops, Afolabi Oluseyi; CMS T&M Director, Alh. Ayinla Jimoh; Treepz Co-founder & President, Johnny Enagwolor; CMS T&M Managing Director, Andrew Akhigbe; Treepz CEO & Co-Founder, Onyeka Akumah; CMS T&M V.C., Alh. Lasisi Gbolagade; Treepz Co-founder & VP, Customer Engagement, John Shaibu; CMS T&M Director, Akarume Samson and Accountant, Oshisanya Lateef, during the partnership announcement between Treepz and CMS T&M in Lagos... recently

With a voice of undisputed charisma, and exuding confidence born of success in previous political assignments, Continued on page 8

Buhari Never Promised Tinubu Running Mate, His Boys Fire Back at Akande Insist what president promised was partnership Obinna Chima The last may not have been heard of some of the revelations in the newly published autobiography by a former governor of Osun State and erstwhile protem national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, who claimed in his book, “My Participations”, that President Muhammadu Buhari, reneged in his promise to make a former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, his running mate ahead of the 2015 elections.

But many of Buhari’s close allies and foot soldiers, who were privy to some of the negotiations and horse-trading L-R (Front roll): President of Cote D’ Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara; President of Sierra Leone, Julius Bio; Chairman ECOWAS Authority and President of Ghana, Nana Addo Akufo-Addo; that preceded the 2015 elections, President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari; President of Senegal, Macky Sall; Others are President of Togo, Faure Gnassingbe; President of Guinea Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló; dismissed the account by Akande President of the Gambia, Adama Barrow; President of Niger, Mohammed Bazoum; President of Cabo Verde, Jose Maria Neves and Vice President, Benin Republic, Mariam Chabi SUNDAY AGHAEZE Continued on page 8 Talata, during the opening ceremony of the 60th ordinary session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS held at Abuja…yesterday

AT THE 60TH ECOWAS SUMMIT IN ABUJA...

Soun of Ogbomoso Dies at 95, Buried According to Islamic Rites...Page 65

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NEWS

Group News Editor: Goddy Egene Email: Goddy.egene@thisdaylive.com, 08033506821, 08097777322, 08074010580

AT THE EIGHTH-DAY FIDAU PRAYER FOR JUSTICE BOLARINWA BABALAKIN...

R-L: Chairman, THISDAY/ARISE News Group, Prince Nduka Obaigbena; Chairman, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, Dr. Wale Babalakin and Chairman, Board of Trustees of TETFUND, Alhaji Kashim Ibrahim-Iman, at the eighth-day fidau prayer for retired Supreme Court Justice, late Justice Bolarinwa Babalakin, held in Gbongan, Osun State… yesterday

APC Sets Feb 19 as Tentative Date for National Convention Zones chairmanship to north, secretary to south Like PDP, northern and southern regions to swap offices 11 chairmanship aspirants to brainstorm on way forward Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja There are indications that the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has tentatively settled for Saturday, February 19, 2022, as the date for its national convention.

A competent party source hinted at this development at the weekend, saying although the date has not been communicated to other party members and stakeholders, it was however agreed to at the highest level of the party to hold the national convention on February 19, 2022.

The party leadership, THISDAY gathered last night, has also resolved, albeit with the consent of President Muhammadu Buhari, to zone the national chairmanship of the party to the north, while the national secretary has been moved to the south.

Also, in what seemed like borrowing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) template, the APC leadership has also agreed to swap positions of the sacked Adams Oshiomholeled National Working Committee of the party between the North and the South.

This, notwithstanding, the party leadership has remained silent on the presidential ticket, because according to sources, it was not yet a prerogative of the party.

In the same breath, some eleven national chairmanship aspirants of the APC have agreed to meet this Thursday, December 16, to brainstorm on how to move the APC forward ahead of the national convention.

However, on the choice of February 19 as the party’s best bet for the convention, THISDAY source hinted that since the primary election for the Ekiti State governorship election might likely be held around January 22, the party did not want the aftermath of the exercise to drag into the convention activities.

In other words, depending on the possible controversy that might trail the Ekiti governorship primary, especially, if there was a need for a rerun, the February 19 remained tentative as it could go a week before or after, technically.

Besides, since the original four-year-term of the sacked Oshiomhole NWC was meant to end in February, the date therefore fits the party’s calendar for the national convention to elect new NWC members.

Consequently, the president was said to have approved the zoning of the chairmanship to the north, while the national secretary of the party has been zoned to the south.

But the party leadership has deliberately avoided the presidential arrangement within the party or whether or not the party zoning arrangement would inform the zoning of the presidential ticket of the party.

In a related development, the chairman of the Annual Public Lecture Summit of the APC Press Corps, Mr. Babatunde Ayeni, has said the event slated for 16th December, 2021, would be chaired by the Chairman, Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) and Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni.

Ayeni, in a statement issued yesterday said, the annual public lecture with the theme: "Towards Ensuring Enduring Democracy", was a platform designed by the APC Press Corps to contribute to the intellectual development of the nation's democracy.

Ayeni noted that a chieftain of the party and the Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr. Osita Okechukwu, would deliver a keynote address titled: "APC Beyond 2023: The Tasks Ahead – The Role of Stakeholders."

According to him, "The summit aims at providing workable templates for good

governance and serves as a medium for deepening democratic norms and institutions by engaging key players in politics, public administration, academia, and economy."

Ayeni noted that reports and recommendations from the lecture would be made available to the party and

interested members of the public, adding also that the summit was designed to avail all the national chairmanship aspirants the opportunity to share their views, present their plans and programmes on how to move the party forward.

The eleven chairmanship aspirants includeed former Deputy National Chairman

of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Mr. Saliu Mustapha; former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Tanko Almakura; former governor of Borno State, Senator Alimodu Sheriff; the lawmaker representing Niger East in the Senate, Senator Mohammed Musa;former governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari

and former governor of Bauchi State, Isa Yuguda.

Others are the Minister of Special Duties and InterGovernmental Affairs, Senator George Akume; former Borno State governor, Senator Kashim Shettima; former governor of Gombe State, Senator Danjuma Goje, Mr. Sunny Moniedafe, and Mohammed Etsu.

Electoral Bill: PANDEF Expresses Concern over President's Delayed Assent CSOs write Buhari, urge him to sign proposed legislation as birthday gift Deji Elumoye, Alex Enumah, Udora Orizu in Abuja The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has expressed concern over the delay by President Muhammadu Buhari in assenting to the 2021 Electoral Act Amendment Bill transmitted to him by the National Assembly last month.

This is just as civil society organisations (CSOs) have written formally to the president urging him to assent to the Electoral Biil as his birthday gift on December 17, when he will be a year older.

Also, representative of the Center for Socio-Legal Studies (CSLS) and expert in Electoral Law and Justice, Dr. Akin Oluwadayisi, have said Buhari signing the bill into law, would not only make history but would have succeeded in enthroning himself as the "father of true internal democracy."

The deadline for the president to sign the bill into law or risk an override by the National Assembly expires this week.

The National Publicity Secretary of PANDEF, Ken Robinson, told THISDAY yesterday that PANDEEF as a responsible organisation stands for anything that would improve

the nation's electoral process.

According to him: "We want free, fair and credible elections in the country, 2023 and beyond.

Where the votes of citizens would truly decide who gets elected at any level in the electoral process.

"Anyone, who for whatever reason, solicits the President not to sign the Bill is doing a great disservice to Nigeria.

"PANDEF, therefore, calls on President Muhammadu Buhari to jettison partisan considerations and assent to the bill without further delay, to strengthen the nation's democracy".

On their part, CSOs under the aegis of the Civil Society Partners on Electoral Reform (CiSPER) and other concerned groups have written to President Buhari, urging him to invite representatives of youths, women, People Living with Disabilities and CSOs as well to the signing ceremony of Electoral Bill on his birthday.

The CSOs in the letter entitled "Electoral Bill: Invite Representatives of Youths, Women, PLWD and CSOs to the Signing Ceremony," dated 11th December, 2021, expressed optimism that Buhari would sign the Electoral Amendment bill into law as he celebrates on his

birthday.

The organisations stated that they were encouraged by Buhari's statement at the virtual summit on democracy organised

by President Joe Biden of the United States that he would ensure elections are conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner.

They also said the invitation to grace the electoral bill signing ceremony would go a long way in assuring Nigerians and the International community of his commitment to inclusive participation in our democratic process.

According to the CSOs, a new Electoral Act would help to put in place necessary legal framework to build back better democratic institutions and sustainable democratic values.

The letter read in part, "As the clock ticks, we are increasingly assured that you will side with the people and act in the overriding public interest to give your assent to the electoral bill as a legacy for deepening electoral reforms and strengthening our democracy.

“It may interest you to know, Mr. President, that the Biden administration is already facing some criticism for its guest list

for the virtual summit, and Nigeria is fingered as one of the ‘nations with spotty records on democracy, the rule of law and human rights,’ as reported the CNN and other global media.

“We are glad that you used the occasion to state unequivocally that democratic rule in the West African sub-region “is currently being threatened by undemocratic takeover of government by the military.”

The CSLS’ position was contained in a press statement dated December 12, 2021 and made available to journalists.

"The current Electoral Amendment Bill before the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for assent demands immediate and urgent assent in the interest of the electorates and entrenchment of parties’ internal democracy.

"In the first place, Section 14(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) declares that sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government itself derives all its powers and authority. And it is through the direct participation in political parties’ primaries that the participation by the people in their governments shall be ensured.

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ON TOUR OF THE NATIONAL ARTS THEATRE PROJECT...

L-R: GMD/CEO of Access Bank Plc and Chairman, Body of Bank CEOs, Herbert Wigwe; Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele; Lagos State Governor, Babajide SanwoOlu; Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed; CBN Deputy Governor in charge of Financial System Stability, Aishah Ahmad; and GMD of GT Holding Plc, Segun Agbaje at the inspection of restoration and renovation work on the Lagos Creative and Entertainment Centre (National Theatre) in Lagos ...yesterday

On Tour of Construction at National Theatre, Emefiele, Sanwo-Olu, Mohammed Commend Pace of Work

James Emejo in Abuja

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, yesterday expressed excitement over the pace of renovation work being carried out at the Lagos Creative and Entertainment Centre (LC&EC), popularly known as the National Arts Theatre in Iganmu, Lagos.

Emefiele, during an inspection tour by the project's Steering Committee, alongside Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Minister of Information and Culture, Mr. Lai Mohammed, expressed confidence that the work would be completed in record time.

The CBN governor, while exchanging views during the tour of the facility, further pointed out major milestones had been achieved since the commencement of the renovation work early in 2021.

The Bankers’ Committee had committed over N40 billion investment to the project which is expected to deliver far-reaching benefits to the Nigerian economy and support the initiatives of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to grow the creative industry and provide jobs to Nigeria’s youth population.

Following the award of the contracts in March 2021, the contractors and other specialists had followed a rigorous project plan of identifying and saving items of significant historical value and art, stripping away and decommissioning, carrying out integrity assessments, creating new services routes, and remodelling some of the interior spaces including nearly 300 units of conveniences.

Other members of the steering committee included the CBN Deputy Governor in charge of Financial System Stability (FSS), Mrs. Aishah Ahmad; the Group Managing Director of Access Bank and Chairman of the Body of Bank CEOs, Herbert Wigwe; and the Managing Director of GT Holding Company, Segun Agbaje.

They all attested to the fact that the entire heating, ventilation, air conditioning system, power, water supply and sewage systems were currently being replaced while fire safety standards are being significantly upgraded.

Earlier this month, Emefiele

was upbeat that the ongoing resuscitation of National Arts Theater will be completed by 2023.

He had also expressed confidence that beginning 2023, the annual Arise Fashion exhibition will be held within the main bowl of the National Arts Theatre in Lagos.

He said the repositioning of the theatre was costing the bankers committee almost $100 million to "resuscitate and revamp the National Arts theatre."

Speaking at the recently concluded Arise Fashion Show in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the CBN Governor had said the creative industry remained an important and large industry in Nigeria with revenue projection of about $4.5 billion annually.

He added that the federal government was doing everything possible to support the creative sector, adding that the monetary policy on its part is committed to supporting the growth of the industry.

Emefiele said, "It is not just about resuscitating it, but by the side of the National Arts Theater, what we do intend to do is to develop four creative hubs around the theater.

"Like you know, the National Art Center can sit in a particular gathering of at least 7,500 people.

"And we do hope that from

2023 and onwards we will begin to see these fashion shows being held around the premises of the National Arts theatre."

He said apart from the four creative industrial hubs being built around the National Theatre, the facility would also support young and talented IT developers developing software to increase and earn revenue for themselves and also to support the revenue base of the country.

He said this was why the emphasis had been on first building infrastructure to support the growth of the creative industry of the country.

He added that the CBN also partners the DMBs to set up the creative industry financing fund last year.

He explained, "That fund is meant to make it possible for a young and talented youth used in the creative industry, to be able to raise finance, to grow their business or to establish their business.

"Like we know, accessing finance has been a big problem for most people who want to go into good business.

"And with the support of the central bank by establishing the creative industry financing Initiative, we've been able to unlock the potentials of our youth to support the development of the creative sector in Nigeria."

He said so far about $5 billion had been disbursed to support creative industry initiatives both in fashion, films, television and in music in the country.

He added, "We hope that more and more of a youth can access this facility because this facility is a long-term loan with about two years moratorium and with interest rates at nine not more than nine per cent.

"What you will find ordinarily before now, when you want to set up a business like this, people will tell you that it is not a high-yield business that can be supported with loans of about 30 per cent or more.

"But with what we came about through the creative industry, finance fund, young people are able to access this credit to set up their business in fashion, in IT, in films and in music at no more than nine per cent."

He further urged the youths to seize the opportunity to access the fund as it is available to make life good for them.

He said, "We realise that by demography the youths are the majority in population in Nigeria. And we think that given this opportunity, it should be possible for us to grow the Nigerian economy where foreign currency will be end.

"And for the good not just of creative industry participants, but

also for government to support the growth of the Nigerian economy.

"So I thank Arise media for this event today. And I look forward to next year, we'll meet you again in Lagos or any part of Nigeria for this show.

"So, we're going to be welcoming all of you not in Dubai. Better to be in Nigeria, come next year and by the special grace of the Almighty, I will be there with you."

Nevertheless, the nearly 3000 Square Meter roof terrace of the project, which had been major source of leakages, is currently undergoing repair, while the floors, walls, panels, and ceilings have been stripped back as part of a plan to ensure that all underlying structures are able to support new finishes.

In the 4000-seater main bowl, the new stage infrastructure will deliver future-fit performing arts spaces, for dance, theatre, music, and multimedia, with adjustable acoustics and advanced technical systems, adaptable to the requirements of audiences, artists, and sponsors.

The team also observed that the banquet halls and exhibition spaces as well as the two 500-seater cinemas had been stripped out, with new walls, floor and ceiling finishes being installed.

Earlier, February, Emefiele

had led members of the Bankers’ Committee to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the federal government for the handover of the National Arts Theatre.

Emefiele, at the MOU signing had noted that revamping the National Arts Theatre would unlock the creative talents of hundreds of thousands of Nigerian youths in the fields of music, movie production, fashion, and information technology.

The theatre, a national monument and most iconic symbol of arts and culture, is being restored and its facilities currently being upgraded to match the best standards of theatre and performance in the world.

The edifice, according to the Bankers’ Committee, will be at the heart of a larger development of hubs that will form an ecosystem of the creative sector - film, fashion, information technology and music, alongside other critical amenities.

The ultimate objective is to unleash opportunities for the youth, competence and capacity building and enhancement of the prospects for revenue generation.

The commitment made by the Bankers' Committee at the end of 2019 was reinforced by the handover of the facility and the adjoining 44-hectare parcel of land.

FG Orders Evacuation of Trucks, Trailers from Problematic Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Highway Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The federal government has constituted a Presidential InterAgency Committee (PIAC) to hasten the evacuation of trucks and trailers along the right of way on the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano highway to ease vehicular movement, reduce insecurity and curb incessant damage.

Stating that the directive must be executed before the end of the year, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola said the ministry would provide a temporary park at Tafa, along Kaduna road, where the vehicles could park.

Fashola was represented by the Director of Highway Construction and Rehabilitation,

Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, who is also the Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Folorunsho Esan, during an inspection of the road.

A statement by the Director of Press and Publicity in the ministry, Boade Akinola, quoted Fashola as saying that the park would accommodate about 500 trucks when fully operational, thereby helping to address the problems of road access and insecurity in the area.

The minister stated that the committee was set up after the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari, so that the contractors can take full possession to enable hitch-free work on the road.

He added that the purpose

of the inspection was to assess areas where the trucks could be relocated to away from the right of way.

“We want road users to have free passage without bottlenecks.

So we are here to inspect facilities that are available where trucks can now be moved to,” he explained.

In addition, the minister said that the Tafa axis of the road was more problematic, but added that there was provision where the trucks would be moved to.

“One of the very pronounced bottlenecks is in Tafa and fortunately enough, we have an empty land acquired by Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) although they have not been able to do anything on it.

“But we are thinking of moving the trucks from Tafa to that plot of land after some ground improvements on the land for trailers to be able to stay without sinking,” he said.

On the collaboration with other stakeholders, a representative of the Petroleum Tankers Association (PTA), Mr. Abdullahi Haruna, said tanker drivers were ready to move immediately alternative parking space was provided.

“We, the petrol tanker drivers are ready to work with the committee to evacuate trucks from the road,” he said.

Haruna said that there was the need to make the park conducive for the users through the provision of basic facilities like borehole, toilets and canteens.

He said: “What we are appealing for is that the palliative or temporary work should be done well. If it is good, there would be no need of planning for a permanent park, we will use this one.”

Reiterating the need for cooperation, District Head of Jere, Yusuf Suleiman, said he was happy about the development and assured the committee that he would mobilise and make sure that the trucks leave the shoulders of the highway when the park is ready.

“We will give the ministry and concerned stakeholders necessary support that would lead to the permanent evacuation of trucks and trailers from the road,” he assured committee.

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Buhari: West African Leaders Must Collaborate to Overcome Challenges Only 2% of sub-region’s population fully vaccinated against COVID-19, says Akufo-Addo Deji Elumoye in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari has called for renewed collaboration among West African leaders to overcome the myriads of common challenges facing the sub-region, particularly, including insecurity.

Buhari made the call yesterday at State House, Abuja, in his welcome address at the 60th Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

That was as the president of Ghana and Chairman of ECOWAS, Nana Akufo-Addo, disclosed that only two per cent of the entire population of the sub-region had been fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 pandemic. Akufo-Addo noted that the West African sub-region had in recent times managed to stay afloat amid countless crises, which included the negative socioeconomic effect of the coronavirus and insecurity, which had claimed many lives and left millions displaced.

The Nigerian leader charged West African leaders to deliberately work together in the task of finding solutions to the challenges.

Buhari said, "Our sub-region continues to face socioeconomic, political, security, and environmental realities linked to coronavirus pandemic. Our democracy is being challenged in Mali and Guinea.

Furthermore, threats are looming around environmental degradation and climate change on our farming systems. We are facing a network of criminals, including terrorism.

“All of these challenges require our collective action to work in concert with each other to pragmatically address and provide our people better prospects in life.

Today's realities remind us of the need to continue to forge stronger solidarity in order to address the new challenges, including the current third wave of the pandemic and its Omicron variant.

“I am glad that the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States and the West Africa Health Organisation are continuing to work with our respective national disease control centres to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on our people and

sub-region.”

Buhari thanked the ECOWAS chairman for providing the needed leadership to member states, as they tried to mitigate the effects of the pandemic.

In his opening remarks, Akufo-Addo stressed the need for the sub-region to take local production of COVID-19 vaccines more seriously.

The Ghanaian president stated, “As of 8th December, our region has recorded 674,556 cases of infections with some 10,000 deaths.

This scourge has impacted our humanitarian, social and economic sectors, and it continues to rage with the emergence of a new variant and the risk of a new wave in our region.

“The new variant, Omicron, has already been found in three member states, and has led to unfortunate imposition of travel bans by some countries, which are unjustified and unacceptable.

Meanwhile, the availability of vaccines continues to remain a problem. Despite our efforts, we have only six per cent of our population receiving one dose, with two per cent of the population fully vaccinated.

“Whilst we remain grateful for the support from friends of the community, we must continue to pursue national and regional efforts to fight COVID-19 and move rapidly into the domestic production of vaccines for the protection of our citizens and for the growth and development of our economy."

The ECOWAS chairman also called for continued mobilisation of troops for peace keeping in areas where peace was fragile. He noted that necessary steps were being taken to restore democratic governance in Mali and Guinea, where there were undemocratic change of power Akufo-Addo restated ECOWAS’ resolve to promote good governance in West Africa, through the sustenance of democratic institutions.

He stated, “We continue to be faced with security trials in the forms of deadly terrorist and kidnapping attacks, particularly in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Nigeria, causing numerous casualties amongst civilians and

security forces, resulting in a significant number of displaced persons.

“Recent events in Burkina Faso are matters of the greatest concern. Increased coordination,

however, on the part of coastal nations, have recently led to an improved maritime security situation in the Gulf of Guinea.

“Let me on behalf of the authority, condemn in the strongest

terms, these attacks that continue to plague our region. Significant efforts are being made at both national and regional levels to fight terrorism and extremism.

“We must step up our efforts

to deal with these tasks, which will be imposed upon us and we must act in such a way that no one will doubt our resolve to protect our peoples and the peace and stability of our countries.”

BUHARI NEVER PROMISED TINUBU RUNNING MATE, HIS BOYS FIRE BACK AT AKANDE as being twisted and far from the truth, because according to them, "Buhari truly and only promised Tinubu a workable partnership, which included conceding the vice presidential slot to the South-west as a bloc, not to exactly make him his running mate."

A lot of the Buhari boys, yesterday, called THISDAY with respect to its lead story last Friday, titled: ‘Akande: Buhari Promised to Pick Tinubu as Running Mate in 2015, Then Reneged,’ which was an extract from Akande’s autobiography, saying they were dismayed over the report and strongly disagreed with the author's account of events.

According to them, all that Buhari said was that he was going to partner and work with Tinubu, in the context of a partnership between the South-west and North-west, reiterating that the president never promised Tinubu vice president or running mate, contrary to claims by Akande in the book.

This, the sources, who often glibly referred to themselves as Buhari's boys, added was because they recognised “the role Tinubu played in helping them and the role of the South-west for voting en bloc during the convention that produced Buhari, which was pivotal and he presented the vice presidential slot in the partnership.

“And, in all of this, what Akande did not disclose was that Buhari sent a delegation of Farouk Ahmed, Hadi Sirika and Sarki Abba, to meet Tinubu and explained to him that the Muslim-Muslim ticket would not work, but that they would be partners to work together.”

The Buhari boys, have however, concluded that the former Osun governor appeared to have taken up the task of “a political bull, trying to force Buhari’s hands to support Tinubu

in 2023. But that, we will not accept, even though no one is opposed to his aspiration.”

They maintained that Chief Akande's account was deliberately slanted, to not only make Tinubu look good and weep up sentiment for him, but also send the president on a guilt trip and compel him to side with the former Lagos governor, who has shown keen interest, albeit clandestinely, in the 2023 presidential election.

In the THISDAY lead report of Friday, which detailed how Akande, in his autobiography, published by Gaskia Media Limited, disclosed that Buhari, apparently under pressure from certain interests and forces, dropped Tinubu from running with him on the party’s ticket, concluded that the then candidate of APC reneged on the agreement they had even after the merger had been sealed.

In the book, launched in Lagos, Akande, who also took a swipe at some Yoruba leaders including former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, Chief Olu Falae and Sir Olaniwun Ajayi, claimed that despite the pledge to make Tinubu his running mate, Buhari later faltered, saying he only wanted the former Lagos governor to “partner withhim.”

His account stated thus: “In April 2014, I was in Abuja when Buhari called me and asked me to persuade Bola to run with him.

Governor Masari was the one who came to call me. When I followed him into Buhari's private lobby, Bola Tinubu was already seated there.

“So, when Buhari tabled the matter, I cautioned them that this must not get out beyond the four of us. ‘How could he be talking of a running mate when he had not secured the ticket? I thought such information, if leaked to the general public, might affect the

conduct of the party's congress at the presidential primaries, if not its choice of candidate. I thanked Buhari for thinking so highly of our friend.

“Bola later told me that Buhari's emissaries had been coming to him, but he tried to dodge the gesture and not to show interest. We agreed that we would reopen the matter, when Buhari had secured the ticket,” he explained.

He, however, expressed surprise that, when Buhari became the party’s candidate, things changed, with former APC chair, Odigie Oyegun, who was supported by Tinubu to become chairman of the party, asking for names from the geopolitical zones from where Buhari would pick his running mate.

“He said it was from this list that Buhari would choose a running mate. I objected. I turned to Buhari. ‘General, where are you choosing your running mate from?’ He answered, 'The South-west.' ‘Oh! I didn’t know,' Oyegun said. He apologised. I didn’t know why Oyegun made that proposition and at whose behest. As the chairman of the party, maybe some people pushed him to do that.

“Then, I called Buhari aside. ‘Is our arrangement still standing?'

I referred him to our discussion in April. He said yes!”

Akande further said some members of the party eventually agreed that a committee should be set up to search for Buhari’s running mate, a move himself and former governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiohmhole, opposed.

“Adams Oshiohmhole, then Governor of Edo State, stood up and said we were being dishonest. He said he was a serving governor and many of those in the Elders Committee had been governors.

“Did we set up a committee to give us our running mates?’

He asked. 'It is not fair!' He

further said what we were pushing was a dangerous act and that we should allow Buhari to choose his running mate. So, we left,” he narrated Akande stated that he later came to know later that some people constituted themselves into a group, called the Northern Interest Group, and they prevailed on Buhari not to allow a Muslim-Muslim ticket, and that it was the following day after the Elders' Committee meeting, which was deadlocked, that Buhari phoned Tinubu to give him three names from which he would pick a running mate.

“We were all in Abuja and Tinubu rushed to me with this information. He wanted to know whether the understanding we reached with Buhari had changed. I called Buhari and he told me he now needed three names from us.

I was angry with him.

“General, this was not what we agreed upon,’ I said in annoyance. ‘You are changing our agreement?' He knew I was getting angry. He said he was under pressure from some governors from the north, including those who were Muslims. I told him the slot belonged to the South-West and among the Yoruba, religion is not a factor in leadership.

“Oshiomhole was surprised about the narration. ‘If indeed you promised to make Asiwaju your running mate, it would not be fair to renege,' he said.

Buhari now said he never meant it that way. What he meant originally was that Tinubu should partner with him.”

The former Osun governor explained that he didn't know what that meant because before they discussed the issue of Tinubu as the partner or vicepresident’s ticket, a merger had been accomplished and they had already partnered.

Mark, who advised him to go for the PDP national chairmanship.

He stated, "I am telling you this story, because it shows that at any one time we are united in Benue, definitely, Nigeria will not ignore us. This is not the first time we have attained victory by our collective effort.

In 2019, when they said there was federal might, we said the allied forces of Benue were ready for the federal might, and we defeated that federal might."

Ayu emphasised the need for party unity and respect for popular decisions, stressing, "I urge us to continue to work together. Don’t be afraid of

federal might. The allied forces of Benue are still as united as ever. And today, we are even stronger.

"I believe whoever emerges as a candidate for any elective position, once the list is forwarded to Abuja, I don’t want Governor Ortom or his candidates to come to lobby.

This is because the decision of Benue people will be respected at all times."

He bemoaned the deplorable security situation in the country, especially, the daily killings, but said Nigerians should not lose hope, as PDP was coming to rescue and rebuild the country.

"Do not lose hope, Nigerians,”

Ayu stated, adding, “Do not lose hope in Nigeria just because a small group of people have come to destroy her. Let us join hands and get rid of them, and reclaim and rebuild our country."

He charged party faithful to intensify work at the ward levels so as to commence the rescue mission from bottom up, adding that the immediate task of the party is to ensure victory in Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.

Ayu said the party would work vigorously to regain leadership of the National Assembly, enlist more women and youths, as well as halt defection from PDP to other political parties.

He said, "For the presidency, we will be fair to all aspirants.

There will be no favoured aspirant. We will provide a level playing ground for everyone.

“The next president will be a product of the PDP. We will come up with a strong manifesto indicating what programme will be given to our candidate to prosecute, unlike the APC that had no programme in 2015.

"We urge Nigerians not to lose hope, because a small collection of people have come together to divide us. We are a productive people, who are respected across the world. Do not allow the current leadership to destroy the tenacity of this nation.

AYU: THERE’LL BE NO APC BY APRIL 2023 National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, yesterday, sent a strong message to the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its government, saying

by March or April 2023 there may not a party called APC in the country.

Ayu spoke at the weekend at Government House, Makurdi, when he addressed party stakeholders. He described the ruling APC as "a contraption" with neither programme nor ideological position, predicting its collapse by the next general election year.

In a related development, Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike urged the PDP chairman to bring his enormous political knowledge and experience to bear on his new assignment. Wike said the ultimate challenge for Ayu was the rebuilding of the main opposition party and its restoration to winning ways.

Wike made the assertions yesterday at an interdenominational thanksgiving church service and reception organised for the PDP national chairman by the Benue State government in conjunction with the Christian Association

of Nigeria (CAN), Benue State Chapter.

Ayu reiterated that PDP would win at least 25 of the states in the 2023 governorship polls.

The former senate president assured the stakeholders, who included aspirants to various elective positions, that the party would not impose candidates on the people ahead of the 2023 general election.

A statement from Ayu’s media office said, "By March/April 2023, there will be no APC in Nigeria. APC is a contraption, a contraption to win power, but they have no programme or any ideological position on what to do with power.

"Therefore, we will be coming back in every state and at the federal level to take over power, with a coherent programme of action, and with which we will implement workable policies, as we were doing before."

The new PDP chairman was full of praises for the Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, saying he is following in the footsteps of the late Moses Adasu. He dismissed reports of competition between himself and former Senate President David Mark.

Ayu disclosed that it was actually

NNPC POSTS N141.96BN TRADING SURPLUS, N89.2BN OPERATING REVENUE LOSS IN JUNE line.”

To ensure continuous supply and effective distribution of petrol across the country, the national oil company pointed out that a total of 1.63 billion litres of petrol, translating to 54.50 million per day, were supplied in June 2021.

The report indicated that during the month, 47 pipeline points were vandalised, representing a 26.56 per cent decrease from the 64 points

recorded in May 2021.

It stated that the Port Harcourt area accounted for 43 per cent of the vandalism cases, while Mosimi and Kaduna areas accounted for 51 per cent and six per cent, respectively.

In the gas sector, it indicated that a total of 223.77 billion cubic feet (bcf) of natural gas was produced in the month of June 2021, translating to an average daily production of 7,459.88 million standard

cubic feet per day (mmscfd).

The report said, “For the period of June 2020 to June 2021, a total of 2,890.11 bcf of gas was produced, representing an average daily production of 7,321.36 mmscfd, during the period.

“Period-to-date, production from Joint Ventures (JVs), Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) and NPDC contributed 59.84 per cent, 20.26 per cent and 19.90 per cent, respectively

to the total national gas production.”

It explained that the 71st edition of the MFOR highlighted the company’s activities for the period of June 2020 to June 2021.

“In line with its commitment to transparency and accountability, NNPC has continued to sustain effective communication with stakeholders through this report via publications on its website, independent online news portals and in national dailies.”

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NEWS

US ORGANISES CANCER TREATMENT AND CARE WORKSHOP...

L-R: Professor Cindy O’Bryant of the University of Colorado; Chairperson, Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Ramatu Masu’d Alabelewe; Professor Donald Harvey of Emory University and Director, Programs and Grant, ACT Foundation, Ndifreke Okwuegbunam, at the closing ceremony and presentation of certificates to participants of a Cancer Treatment and Care Workshop organized for pharmacy oncologists in Lagos...recently

FG Calls on Western Allies to Declare Bandits, Boko Haram, IPOB as Terrorists Says move will cut funding for violent groups Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The federal government yesterday said that it was continuing to put pressure on its western allies to “proscribe” bandits, Boko Haram and the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as terrorists.

The government said that doing so would severely reduce the funding for the groups, noting that it was doing all within its powers to ensure that a stop is put to the killings throughout

the country.

Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Mr Garba Shehu, made the assertion yesterday in reaction to an editorial by Daily Trust newspaper titled: “Life Has Lost Its Value Under Buhari’s Nigeria.”

While the federal government had earlier designated both Boko Haram and IPOB as terrorist organisations, last month, it finally got a Federal High Court in Abuja

South African President, Ramaphosa Tests Positive for COVID-19, Mildly Ill South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, is receiving treatment for mild COVID-19 symptoms after testing positive for the disease yesterday, his office said.

Ramaphosa started feeling unwell and a test confirmed COVID-19, online platform, AP News quoted a statement from the presidency to have announced.

Presently, he is self-isolating in Cape Town and was being monitored by the South African Military Health Service, the statement added.

He has delegated all responsibilities to Deputy President David Mabuza for the next week.

Ramaphosa, 69, is fully vaccinated. The statement didn’t say whether he had been infected with the omicron coronavirus variant.

Last week, Ramaphosa visited four West African countries and was in Nigeria earlier this month.

He and all members of his delegation were tested for COVID-19 in each of the countries during the trip. Some in the delegation tested positive in Nigeria and returned directly to South Africa. Throughout the rest of the trip, Ramaphosa and his delegation tested negative.

Ramaphosa returned from Senegal on December 8

Ramaphosa said his own infection serves as a caution to all people in South Africa to be vaccinated and remain vigilant against exposure, the statement said. Vaccination remains the best protection against severe illness and hospitalization, it said.

People in South Africa who have had contact with Ramaphosa on Sunday are advised to watch for symptoms or to have themselves tested, it said.

South Africa is currently battling a rapid resurgence driven by the omicron variant, health officials say.

The country recorded more than 18,000 new confirmed cases Sunday night. More than 70 per cent of the cases are estimated to be from omicron, according to genetic sequencing surveys.

After a period of low transmission of about 200 new cases per day in early November, South Africa COVID-19 cases began rising dramatically. On Nov. 25, scientists in southern Africa confirmed the omicron variant, which has more than 50 mutations. Omicron appears to be highly transmissible and has quickly become dominant in the country.

So far, the majority of cases have been relatively mild and the percentage of severe cases needing oxygen have been low, doctors said.

presided over by Justice Taiwo Taiwo to add bandits to the list.

The presidential spokesman stated that aside proscribing the three groups, its friends in the West should partner Nigeria in areas of trade and investment to deplete the reservoir of unemployed Nigerians where the various violent groups recruit their members from.

According to the presidency, the economic instability that the Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked has further proven an effective recruitment tool for bandits and terrorists across the nation in particular and the African continent as a whole.

“Even as the West continues to extricate itself from Africa

militarily, we are lobbying our Western allies aggressively for partnership, investment and support in other areas, such as proscribing Boko Haram, bandits and IPOB as terrorist groups.

This would severely dent their funding "(We are asking) them for investment in trade and infrastructure, to help lessen economic instability; and to help with technical assistance, advanced weaponry, intelligence and ordinance,” the presidency stressed.

Shehu explained that although this will likely be small comfort to the families and loved ones of those already lost, ridding the country of avoidable deaths is

a battle the federal government is fighting without let up.

Stating that the growing instability and violence in the north of Nigeria and elsewhere were unacceptable, the federal government pointed out that no one, not least the presidency underestimates the seriousness of the situation.

“Every day, the president holds the victims and their families in his thoughts and prayers.

Above all, he wishes to reassure them – and all Nigerians – that tackling the scourge of banditry and terrorism remains this government’s first priority,” the government added.

However, Shehu argued that in respect of violence and terrorism,

Nigeria is not unique, arguing that violence and terror have risen steadily across the entire African continent over the last decade.

He maintained that the “Economist magazine” in a recent publication wrote about “The Next Afghanistan,” warning the global community of the horrifying security in its neighbourhood, citing specifically the states of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

Noting that the presidency understood the frustrations of the newspaper and Nigeria’s northern communities about the ongoing challenges of security, Shehu noted that the Buhari administration is no less worried by the situation.

US Fulbright Experts in Oncology Share New Clinical Approaches to Patient Care The United States Embassy has revealed that over the past two weeks it had helped connect oncology specialists from the US and Nigeria to help strengthen the capacity of cancer treatment and care in Nigeria.According to a statement, visiting Fulbright specialists in the field of oncology pharmacy, Prof. Cindy O’Bryant of the University of Colorado and Prof. Donald Harvey of Emory University conducted trainings and shared best practices with their Nigerian counterparts in both Abuja and

Lagos.

Also, Dr. O’Bryant and Dr. Harvey briefed stakeholders at the Ministry of Health, National Hospital Trauma Center, and the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital on new clinical approaches to help improve treatment outcomes and the survival rate of cancer patients.

They also discussed early detection and prevention, enhanced delivery of care, and strengthening institutional support for patient-centered care models.

In Lagos, the two Fulbright Specialists conducted a workshop in pharmaceutical best practices for 34 pharmacy oncologists from across Nigeria.

“The training focused on managing different cancers, selecting and administering medicines, using Biosafety Cabinets and other workplace safety protocols, and safely administering chemotherapy at the Marcelle Ruth Cancer Centre and NSIA-LUTH Cancer Centre.

“The visit is being sponsored

by the U.S. Embassy’s Public Affairs Section and Project Pink Blue, a local cancer awareness non-profit organisation, through the auspices of the US Department of State’s Fulbright Specialist Program.

“The Fulbright Specialist Program is a short-term complement to the more widely known US Fulbright Scholar Program which sends US faculty and professionals overseas to consult, research, and promote dialogue as subject matter experts,” it stated.

US Tornadoes: Buhari Commiserates with Biden, Americans

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari has commiserated with United States President, Joe Biden over the destructive tornadoes that affected six states in the country at the weekend.

The president, in a statement

yesterday by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, extended the sympathies of Nigeria to the government and people of the United States following devastating tornadoes ripping across six states, leaving destruction and death on their trail.

Reacting to the catastrophe

shown around the globe since Friday, President Buhari said, “the destruction of whole towns, flattening of houses, schools, hospitals, businesses and other social infrastructure on a scale never seen before is deeply saddening.”

According to him: “our deepest

sympathies go to all those affected, as well as the government and the American people."

The president urged fellow Nigerians to join the rest of the world in praying for the deceased and the quick recovery of other victims and their families at this difficult time.

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COMMENT

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

INVESTMENT STRATEGY AND PORTFOLIO REBALANCING Sola Oni urges investors to leverage their investment advisers and portfolio managers to rebalance portfolio

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he emergence of Omicron variant of the killer Covid-19 is causing disquiet in the global landscape. Barely few minutes of the news break of Omicron’s three cases in Nigeria, Canada swiftly placed the country on the ban list while every country is undergoing minor panic on the arrival of Omicron. Investopedia has identified government’s hold on the free trade market, flow of funds between countries, speculation and expectation as well as demand and supply as major factors that will drive the market as we prep into 2022. These will be reinforced by digital transformation, changes in consumer behaviour, digital offerings and climate change.

Analysts have identified financial institutions, air transport, telecommunication, food beverages and construction as some of the fastest growing sectors. Investment in the securities market is a game of risk and return trade off and investor should understand his investment goal and risk tolerance. This is where investment advisers, called securities dealers become relevant. In Nigeria, keeping money in savings account in expectation of three percent interest while inflation hovered at double digit is negative returns. But there are quoted companies on the NGX that have generated above 12 percent yield, year-to-date in price appreciation alone. Some investors live comfortably on dividend annually while others live on a combination of dividend and capital gains. It is all about the power of market information and sound investment advice on how to maximize returns and minimize risks.

Investment in asset classes is an art and science. While some investors adopt buy – and- hold strategy, others trade their securities frequently. There is passive and active investment strategy. The goal of passive investing is to build wealth gradually by buying a security to own it for a long time. This class of investors do not take advantage of short-term price fluctuation to profit from their investment.

They believe that the market generates returns over time.

This is known as relative returns. Passive investors maintain a well-diversified portfolio through index funds which tracks a target benchmark. But this class of investors face what is called total market risk. This is when the entire market experiences losses. Managers of passive investment are prohibited from realignment of securities even when it becomes clear that some stock will decline in prices. Passive strategy lacks flexibility.

On the other hand, active investment strategy is about

ACTIVE INVESTMENT STRATEGY IS ABOUT FREQUENT BUYING AND SELLING OF SECURITIES TO MAXIMIZE PROFIT AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY. THE GOAL IS TO OUTPERFORM THE BENCHMARK SUCH AS THE NGX ALL-SHARE INDEX OR STANDARD & POOR’S 500 INDEX

frequent buying and selling of securities to maximize profit at every opportunity. The goal is to outperform the benchmark such as the NGX All-Share Index or Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. The strategy entails strive for superior returns by taking greater risk, including payment of huge transaction fees. To maximize returns and minimize risks, portfolio managers follow the market trends, shifts in the economy and changes in the political space. The managers also do in-depth research and market forecasting to keep abreast of frequent changes in the operating environment.

Compared with passive investment strategy, active strategy is vulnerable to greater risk. The strategy is believed to be too expensive as it involves payment to research analysts, portfolio managers and other transaction fees due to frequency of trading. By this passive investment strategy is said to outperform active one. But a combination of both passive and active investment strategies is desirable.

Regardless of the investment strategy, every investor should review his portfolio and rebalance it periodically.

Portfolio rebalancing is simply “divesting in underperforming assets and investing in the ones that have potentials to grow”. An average portfolio comprises equity and fixed income securities. The weight of equity, relative to that of fixed income reflects the risk tolerance of an investor. A risk taker’s portfolio shall have higher weight in equity compared with fixed income securities whereas, it is the other way round for a risk averter.

The simplest form of portfolio rebalancing is Calendar rebalancing. It is about analyzing the investment holdings within the portfolio at predetermined time and adjusting to the original allocation at a desired interval. Portfolio rebalancing has three components: Review of ideal asset allocation, determination of the portfolio’s current allocation and purchase and sale of securities to rebalance the portfolio. As the year is rolling to an end, investors should leverage their investment advisers and portfolio managers to rebalance portfolio. The time is now. There are many blue-chip companies whose shares are undervalued relative to the intrinsic values on the NGX. Portfolio rebalancing is the way to generate alpha returns, irrespective of the factors that will drive the global financial market in 2022. Happy new year in advance.

Oni, an integrated Communications Strategist, Chartered Stockbroker and Commodities Broker, is the Chief Executive Officer, Sofunix Investment and Communications

TAKING BETS ON THE FUTURE Beyond the troubles of today, take a bet on the future of the country, writes Feyi Fawehinmi

W

hen Adam Smith was asked whether Britain’s loss of its colonies in America in the 18th century marked the end of Britain as a power, he replied with his now famous quote - ‘There is a great deal of ruin in a nation’. What he meant was that it takes a lot - certainly more than a single event - to destroy a nation.

Human ingenuity, cultural dynamism, accumulated knowledge and the mere presence of humans means that countries can always give themselves a second chance even after seemingly catastrophic events. And Smith was right - whatever one might think of the propriety of the enterprise, Britain did go on to build an even bigger empire spanning the globe after the loss of its American colonies.

This is not an unusual story. That countries can pick themselves off the floor after a terrible disaster is not as uncommon as one might think. I can never stop thinking about the fact that Japan had two mighty atomic bombs dropped on two of its largest cities within three days of each other in August 1945 and yet, less than 20 years later, it was hosting the Olympics in 1964.

In the depths of despair, humans are often forced to dream up new ideas that help to seed a new future. Consider some of the companies that came out of America’s Great Depression - 7-Eleven, Revlon, Publix and of course Disney. All still going strong today.

Some companies which were born well before the depression came up with ideas that helped them weather the storm of the crisis. It was during the depression that Marvin Bower met James McKinsey and persuaded him to start what we now know as ‘management

consulting’ as exemplified by McKinsey. In search of new ways to reach hard pressed consumers and convince them to buy its products, Procter & Gamble started sponsoring so many radio programmes that a whole new genre - soap operas - was born.

Nigeria has gone through economic despair in the last six years. There is a certain level of economic suffering that is permanent in Nigeria, certainly in my more than four decades alive. But the last few years have been particularly bad with frightening levels of unemployment, back to back to economic recessions, crushing inflation and a currency that loses every fight it gets into with the dollar. Add leadership that cannot inspire even cheap hope in anyone and it will take the most starry eyed optimist to make the case for believing in Nigeria at this point in time.

Nevertheless, allow me to be that guy for a brief moment. From a personal point of view, I have never made more investments in Nigeria than I have in the last couple of years. Some of it is pure coincidence while some of it is just the fear of missing out on what I see a number of my friends and acquaintances doing. But a lot of it is also because I believe that something is happening, right now, in-spite of the conditions of the country and its leadership, that might be described as the seeds of the future being sown. It is difficult to see (maybe because it doesn’t exist and the light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train?) but I imagine it felt the same in the depths of despair in the countries described earlier.

A phrase I increasingly hear from a number of my friends who are very invested in Nigeria is ‘people dey build’. That is, they

are daily seeing new companies and ideas being launched to solve various problems in the Nigerian economy. I am seeing them too. There is for sure an enthusiasm, and the accompanying possibilities, for people to turn their ideas into real businesses. Nigeria is a poor country so by definition capital will always be scarce. But you only need to speak to someone who has been around for 10 years or more to know that, while raising money remains difficult, it is undoubtedly a lot easier in today’s Nigeria than the one of a few years ago. People, Nigerians and non-Nigerians, are taking bets on the future by putting their money where their mouth is. You only need to scan the tech news for a couple of days to see the evidence of this.

And it’s not just tech startups. The last time I put money in Nigerian stocks, I got burnt so badly I swore never to touch them again. Over a decade ago, there were a number of primary offers and private placements that Nigerians rushed into. Many turned out to be scams or just bad investments and such offers simply dried up over the years. I did not even think it was possible for an investment to go down to zero but that is exactly what happened to my ‘investments’ in Nigerian stocks and primary offers.

There are however many things I have sworn never to do only to end up eating my words.

I vowed never to wear Crocs but I now find myself a witness bearer of their comfort. Recently I put my money into the new MTN offer and convinced my wife to do the same. MTN is no startup. Given how Nigeria’s demographics skew very young, it might not be an exaggeration to say that it is older than the majority of Nigerians alive in the country today. But after several near death experiences at the hands of Nigerian regulators, the company is alive and dominant as

Nigeria’s number one telecommunications outfit.

It has found a second wind with a new mobile money license that will surely turn many more millions of Nigerians into active participants in the country’s economy and connect them with the dozens of startups building things for them.

Because I find myself cautiously optimistic about Nigeria’s economic future - that the seeds for a better tomorrow are being planted today, I am also cautiously optimistic on MTN’s future and the role it will play in the economy once the current despair is some way behind us. People dey build. And the shovels they will need to do all that building will come from companies like MTN. I also like how the offer has been structured to reward holding the shares for the long term. God knows Nigeria can do with more people taking a long term view of the country and its prospects. The present is depressing enough and if we cannot dare to dream that tomorrow might be better, then we might as well pack it in as our job here is done.

If like me you have you been burnt in the past and swore never again, I urge you to take a bet on the future of the country - beyond the troubles and bleakness of today - in whatever way you can. It is hard to make the case for a country with half of it practically at war, with inflation running its own race and poverty untrammelled and leadership that cannot bring itself to inspire the country with new ideas. But if you can look away from all that for a moment to see what is happening today that might be useful tomorrow, then you might be confident enough to take that bet on the country.

After all, there is indeed a great deal of ruin in a nation.

Fawehinmi is an accountant and Investment Banker based in the United Kingdom

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EDITORIAL THE OJODU TRUCK ACCIDENT Law enforcement officers are causing mounting anxiety on the roads. It shouldn’t be so

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mid the agonising death of Sylvester Oromoni, the 12-year-old student of Dowen College allegedly in the hands of bullies, the lives of two other innocent students were brutally cut short in Lagos last Tuesday.

The students were returning home from school when an articulated truck, driven recklessly, lost control and rammed into them. Two died on the spot with 14 others sustaining varying degrees of injuries. While we commiserate with the parents and management of Ojodu Grammar School, the circumstances of the accident are all too familiar: poor vehicle maintenance, irresponsible driving, and pathetic regulation.

Road traffic accidents over the years have become a major public health issue. And most of them are caused by truck drivers who kill, maim and abuse the rights of other road users. Besides being high on alcohol or other TRUCK DRIVERS, OTHER drugs, many of these truck drivers have MOTORISTS AND regards for road MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC scant regulations as they SHOULD BE REGULARLY always act as though EDUCATED ON THE above the law. Poor IMPORTANCE OF ROAD vehicle maintenance perhaps contributed DISCIPLINE largely to the Ojudu crash as the brake of the truck reportedly failed, and in the process endangered the lives of many innocent road users. A similar accident occurred on the Ojuelegba Bridge, Lagos in 2015 which killed three members of the same family and other relations.

However, many of these accidents can also be traced to the antics of largely compromised regulators. There are reports suggesting that the truck driver who killed in Lagos was being pursued by some of these agents of state who most often use their position to extort on the road. Indeed, only a fortnight ago the House of Representatives asked

Letters to the Editor

the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba Alkali, to immediately remove all illegal checkpoints across the country following the fatal auto accident that reportedly claimed the lives of over 20 persons at Ihiala, Anambra State. A trailer carrying a container load of goods reportedly ran over them. The House mandated the IGP to direct the Commissioner of Police in Anambra State to review the location of the police checkpoint in Ihiala with a view to forestalling further occurrence of such disaster especially during the festive season. Earlier on 4th November, an accident involving three vehicles had claimed the lives of three children and six adults according to the FRSC. The driver upon sighting the Police checkpoint, reportedly stepped on his brake which failed, resulting in the fatal accident.

E 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

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

IT’S TIME TO TAKE ACCOUNT

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ven though LASTMA officials have denied any involvement in the Ojodu accident, few believe them. We agree on the need to check the illegality and nuisance caused by wornout heavy-duty trailers and smoking trucks which are responsible for many of the road accidents. But there are better ways of apprehending erring drivers than chasing them on dangerous and busy roads like those in Lagos. From the police to vehicle inspection officers, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, and even officials of the Federal Roads Safety Corps, that seems to be the preferred method.

We have stated repeatedly in this space, even as we do so again, that the authorities must do something about the wanton loss of innocent lives being caused by these mad drivers. For years, many Nigerians have been at the mercy of drivers whose daredevilry on the road have claimed the lives of numerous innocent citizens. The FRSC should be alive to its primary responsibility as the lead agency in Nigeria on road safety administration and management, making the inner as well as the highways safe for motorists and other road users. Truck drivers, other motorists and members of the public should be regularly educated on the importance of road discipline.

s Nigeria`s annus horibilis crunches to an uneventful end, the country is gradually shifting into a celebratory gear at that time of the year when families convene with their loved ones to bring another year to a close and exchange best wishes for the upcoming year.

For many Nigerians, their gratitude that another painful year is crawling to an end is palpable.

The end of the year is usually a time for wining, dining, visitations and generally a lot of celebration. Of course, Christmas which is celebrated by Christians comes with a mood that is infectious.

Unfortunately, this time which drags the year to an end also sees a spike in criminal activities.

It is a strong reason Nigerians must watch their backs as it appears that criminals in the country are going into overdrive. Already, phones, bags, cash, vehicles and jewelry have been snatched. There have been rapes and even homicides.

While security personnel rally to take charge of the situation, Nigerians must show the vigilance which is necessary to close the space available to rampaging criminals.

In Abuja, Nigeria`s porous capital city, and Lagos, Africa`s capital of thuggery and the world`second worst city to live in, security personnel must especially look out for the merchants of death and chaos.

There is no doubt that it has been a really difficult year for Nigerians. The year has been scarred by economic difficulties and marked by insecurity. Many people who had jobs they were doing to keep body and soul together have since slid into unemployment

and consequent penury.

Many families have watched in horror as their income has dried out, exposing children to hunger and want.

Against the backdrop of this grim situation, government at all levels have continued to huff and puff with public officers preferring the unsightly pyrotechnics of politics and propaganda to the painstaking business of government.

It explains the compassion Nigerians nurse for those hardened by the backbreaking conditions on their streets. It explains why many Nigerians feel that tiny twinge of sympathy for those who must collect from others before they can even harbour hope.

But there can be no excuses. There can be no excuses that it is innocent Nigerians that are caught between the Scylla and Charybdis of bad governance and insecurity. There can be no excuse that Nigerians do not feel safe in a country they call their own.

There can be no excuse that as another winding year weaves its way to an unceremonious end, many Nigerian communities, devastated by the savage hyenas of Boko Haram and ISWAP, cannot truly feel the spectacular and spontaneous joys of Christmas.

There can be no justification for the many pangs of nostalgia which will overcome many innocent children this month at another lost Christmas.

It is time to take account. It is time for some introspection that will enable Nigerians see where the wheels so spectacularly went off for Nigeria. While that exercise is on, Nigerians deserve utmost protection while serious arrangements are made to midwife a country where no one has to rob Peter to pay Paul.

Kene Obiezu, Abuja

DOWEN AND OUTSOURCED PARENTING

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n every society, children are the greatest asset that any community can possess; potentially, they are the greatest investment for a society’s sustainable development and future.

However, children are usually prone to many behavioural influences during their youthful phase of life which can either make or mar their future— youthful exuberance. If children are not well-managed in this phase of life, it always leads to a number of unspeakable things, one of which is cultism. Lately, cultism has been making the headlines in the papers. Last month, November 25, a Divisional Police Officer Ignatius Alimeke and three students were reportedly injured following clashes involving rival cult groups operating in two public secondary schools in Ogun State.

Similarly, some few days ago, Sylvester Oromoni, a 12-year-old student of Dowen College in Lekki, Lagos died after he was allegedly tortured and given a harmful substance by some senior students in the school, over his alleged refusal to join a cult group.

One of the causes of this raging problem of kids and cultism can be attributed to the individual family or household. The family has totally failed in its duty to inculcate morals and social values in its offsprings; which is partly due to economic difficulties and institutional breakdowns. Perhaps, most parents today do not spend enough time with their wards, rather they have outsourced parenting in order to escape their parental responsibilities so that they may have sufficient time to transact their businesses which will in turn generate income for the family upkeep.

Adisa Fatai Folorunso, Abeokuta

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

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Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG

POLITICS

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

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

FG, UK in Revenge Ban Over COVID-19 Red List Udora Orizu writes that in retaliation for including Nigeria on their COVID-19 Red List, the Federal Government is planning to add the United Kingdom and a couple of others to Nigeria’s COVID-19 Red List countries

Lawan

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ver the weekend, it was revealed that the Nigerian government in retaliation is planning to add the United Kingdom, Argentina, Canada, and Saudi Arabia to red list countries.

News that the UK has placed Nigeria and some other African countries on travel ban over the Omicron variant was trailed by global outrage with some national and international stakeholders describing it as racist and discriminatory. The UK had imposed travel restrictions on Nigeria, claiming that 21 cases of Omicron recorded in England were linked to travellers from Nigeria.

Towards the end of November, scientists had stumbled across what’s known worldwide currently as the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus. Since its emergence in December 2019, COVID-19 pandemic has done serious damage to humanity. It however, seems the pandemic is here to stay with the discovery of its variants, from Delta to the recent Omicron. The latest discovery of the Omicron variant has thrown more challenges to the society, as threat of travel restrictions and associated inconveniences continue.

Barely days after the news of the variant broke, Nigeria joined the growing number of countries that have recorded cases of the Omicron variant also known as B.1.1.529 lineage, confirming the discovery of three additional Omicron variant cases. The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Ifedayo Adetifa who disclosed this noted that the new cases were detected in persons with recent travel history to South Africa in November. Adetifa also said that through the NCDC, the Nigerian government has been notified by the government of the United Kingdom (UK) of seven cases of Omicron variant detected in travellers from Nigeria.

With the discovery of the variant, travel bans have been placed on countries especially African countries including Nigeria, by top Western countries. The latest and by far of more concern to Nigeria is the one imposed on travellers from Nigeria by the United Kingdom. The UK had said travellers from Nigeria would not be permitted to enter the United Kingdom beginning from last Monday, December 6. This is coming a few days after Canada extended its travel ban to travellers who recently visited Nigeria.

Nigeria became the 11th country to go on the UK’s Red List for international travel. All nations currently on that list are African. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has however said that blanket travel bans would not stop the spread of the variant, and could potentially

Ekweremadu

Gbajabiamila

discourage countries from reporting and sharing important data on Coronavirus.

Outrage, Criticisms Trail Ban as Lawmakers Wade in The news of addition of Nigeria to the Red List by UK in particular, was deeply frowned at by many Nigerians who described it as travel apartheid. The Federal Government had condemned the decision of the UK, with the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, describing it as discriminatory, unfair, punitive, indefensible, and unjust.

Wading into the growing outrage, the Archbishop of Canterbury, The Most Rev. Justin Welby last Tuesday condemned the United Kingdom’s (UK) inclusion of Nigeria in its COVID-19 Red List without justification, saying it was a “travel apartheid” and calls for it to be scrapped.

In series of tweets on his Twitter handle @JustinWelby, the Archbishop of Canterbury urged the UK government to abolish what he described as the “morally wrong and selfdefeating” Red Llist.

At plenary last Tuesday, lawmakers in both chambers of the National Assembly also expressed their displeasure with UK’s decision. The Senate on its part insisted that the travel ban was discriminatory and an attack on diplomatic relations between the two nations and accordingly, called on the British authorities to consider removing Nigeria from the Red List.

Furthermore, the Senate advised the UK government to be sensitive to the diplomatic relationship between both countries when taking decision that affect Nigerian citizens.

It urged the Federal Government to engage British authorities to reverse Nigeria’s inclusion on the Red List.

The Upper Chamber also charged the administration to remain firm in the enforcement of necessary protocols in the containment of every COVID-19

variant in Nigeria.

It further advised developing countries which it listed to include Britain, Canada, United States of America, the European Union, among others, to take urgent and bold steps to ensure vaccine equity in the interest of the entire human race.

The resolutions were reached by the Senate sequel to the consideration of a motion on the, “Need for Government of the United Kingdom to remove Nigeria from COVID-19 Red List,” sponsored by the former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu (Enugu West).

Ekweremadu emphasized that, “targeting African countries, especially in the COVID-19 travel ban, amounts to profiling and discrimination as well as an attack on our cordial diplomatic relationship with the UK.” In his contribution, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, said the decision to include Nigeria on the UK COVID-19 Red List posed a strain on the diplomatic relationship between both countries, just as he bemoaned the poor treatment of Nigeria by the UK government.

He, therefore, called on the British Parliament to intervene with a view to having Nigeria removed from the country’s COVID-19 Red List.

Meanwhile, members of the House of Representatives were sharply divided, during their debate on the issue. While some members were of the views that the decision of the UK government against Nigerians was harsh and racist, others believed it was a wake-up call on the government and those in authority to fix the country, especially the health and education sector.

Moving his motion, the Minority Leader of the House, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu said though the ban was for Nigerians bound for the UK, it does not exempt over 8,000 Nigerian travelers that had bought air tickets to

Members of the House of Representatives were sharply divided, during their debate on the issue. While some members were of the views that the decision of the UK government against Nigerians was harsh and racist, others believed it was a wake-up call on the government and those in authority to fix the country, especially the health and education sector

Mohammed

visit Nigeria during the yuletide period, saying the restriction would affect their re-entry into the UK after holidays.

Elumelu noted that rather than seek to work with its Commonwealth ally on ways to combat and curtail the spread of this new variant, the UK government decided to outright ban Nigerian travelers from entering their country.

According to him, this was in sharp contrast to that of the United States government whose response was for travelers to produce evidence of negative test result at the point of departure as well as a day two test result after arrival in their country, a response that have received wide commendation across board, The lawmaker further expressed worry that the UK government chose to announce the ban without discussing the data in its possession with the Nigerian government, but instead gave a one hour notice to the Nigeria authorities before its inclusion on the Red List, contrary to known international convention.

Elumelu said the Omicron variant has now been found in over 40 countries around the world including many from the European Union, but only Nigeria and a few African countries were banned by the UK government.

The Minority Leader stressed that if the Nigerian government does not urgently engage the authorities of UK, the decision could have a significant impact on businesses and travelers intending to carry out lawful transactions in the UK as opportunities and investments already made would be lost, hence the need for a quick interface.

Contributing, Hon. Aminu Suleiman said there was a need for the country to do internal assessment.

He said Nigeria has already admitted to having an Omicron variant, saying there was no need castigating another sovereign country for taking such a decision as it has the right to do so.

On his part, Hon. Nicholas Ossai said the issue canvassed by the Minority Leader was germane, adding that there was need to meet with the British government and resolve the issue diplomatically.

Also, Hon. Henry Nwawuba stated that the ban on Nigerian travelers was akin to putting the cart before the horse.

He called for a diplomatic solution to the issue.

Another lawmaker, Hon. Dachung Bagos called for fairness in the way countries treat Nigerians and for Nigeria to react in like manner to the way countries treat her as relationships are suppose to complimentary.

In his submission, Hon. Onofiok Luke wondered why different countries have

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

MONDAY DISCOURSE

Aftermath of Zamfara State APC Congress With the recognition of Alhaji Tukur Danfulani-led executive by the national headquarters of the All Progressives Congress, Onuminya Innocent, writes that invariably the Oarty has affirmed Governor Bello Matawalle as its leader in Zamfara State

T

he Zamfara State congresses of All Progressive Congress (APC) has come and gone, they were done at wards, local government and state level to entrench structures preparatory to the 2023 national and future elections.

At hte Trade Fair Complex, venue of the state congress delegates came out enmasse across the 147 wards and 14 local governments to vote for the candidate of their choice In the end, the consensus method of choosing candidates was adopted. It was fascinating to see party members, loyalists and stakeholders affirm Alhaji Tukur Danfulani and 35 other executives to pilot the affairs of the party for the next three years.

In a congratulatory message, Governor Bello Matawalle, the leader of the party, said the consensus approach provided an excellent opportunity to demonstrate sportsmanship by the party stakeholders.

He added “The past might be gloomy and cloudy but the future remains bright.

“Now is the time to continue the work of uniting the party members, burying our differences and planting evergreen seeds that would in turn produce a bigger and better future for our great party.”

“I encourage all of us to be visionary, steadfast, humble, peaceful while organizing and oiling the machineries of the party to beat in 2023,” he stated.

Matawalle further said, “As we prepare for 2023 and future elections the indomitable spirit of our great party must be rekindled and our aspirations should reflect the unity and progress we are known to pursue, ours is to do our best in democratic and politically sensible manner. In doing so, we must not throw away the courage to stand upright and defend our interest” .

One day to the congress the Governor issued a statement calling for peaceful coexistence among the party members.

He enjoined all the party members in the state to ensure peaceful and smooth conduct of the congress that would further strengthen the party.

Matawelle while addressing the stakeholders in Gusau said the elective state congress was meant to give the party a stronger foundation for consolidation of its successes in the state and across the country The Governor urged members to be transparent and conduct themselves in a manner that would build harmony,

Danfulani

Matawalle

peace and equity among members and also make the party to maintain its position as the largest party in the country.

He implored the members to abide by the guidelines for the conduct of the congress and also ensure that all avenues for consensus were exhausted for the emergence of the state executive officials.

He equally urged those saddled with the responsibility of conducting the elections to ensure that only registered members were allowed to participate in the process .

After the congress, the Governor assured the new Exco of his support to enable them achieve their set goals Earlier the chairman of electoral committee of the party sent by the national headquarters, brahim Kabir Masari described the exercise as one of the best, peaceful and credible.

He urged the new executives to close ranks, support the party unity for the success of the party in future elections.

The new executives and the delegates reaffirmed that Matawalle is the leader of the party in the state.

They expressed optimism that the party is stronger because of the leadership of the Governor who had been fair to all and always willing to lead by example.

They further explained that Matawalle has given power to the people by not imposing candidates on them.

“It is the first time APC in the state is having a transparent congress unlike before where people stay in Gusau and write the name of the party executives they added.

In his acceptance the new state chairman Alhaji Tukur Danfulani thanked the delegates for the confidence reposed on him stressing that him and other.executive members will be loyal to Governor Matawalle.

He promised to put the interest of the party above personal interests saying he will promote Internal democracy to ensure every members are carry along. “ I believe APC in Zamfara State will get stronger and will be in very good shape in a few months, we ‘ll mobilize ourselves, our people to win 2023 general election.

Despite the intrigue that trailed the exercise as a result of parallel congress organised by Senator Kabiru Marafa faction, pundits said that the faction has lost grip on the party’s structure because it was not recognized by the national headquarters of the party.

A delegate Sani Maigadi from Galadima ward of Talata Mafara the local government of the former Governor Abdulraziz Yari com-

mended Governor Bello Matawalle for ensuring a transparent and rancour free exercise “This congress is one of the best in the history of the party in the state,” The woman leader of Galadima ward, Hajia Hussaini explained that Matawalle has returned power to the people .

She further added that APC has emerged a formidable party since the emergence of Governor Bello Matawalle as the party’s leader in the state.

She stated that despite security challenges in the state, the party was able to organise free and fair congresses.

“Initially, we thought because of security challenges the congress will not go the way it went, we appreciate the machinery put in place by the Governor that made the congress a huge success.”

THISDAY recalls that crisis embroiled the APC Zamfara State when Governor Muhammad Bello Matawalle defected from PDP to APC on June 11, 2021.

At the event the chairman of extra ordinary caretaker committee of the party and the Governor of Yobe State Mai Mala Buni announced that Governor Matawalle is the leader of the party in the state.

The announcement did not go down well with the Yari and Marafa groups, they explained that instead of hurriedly handing over the party’s structures to the Governor who just came to the party , the national leaders of the party should allow the party stakeholders in the state to deliberate on the matter.

Since then the battle line has been drawn among the trio in contest for who’s faction controls the party’s structures. Some stakeholders in thr party have decided to pitch their tent among the three major leaders of the party in the state.

Majority of former national, state assembly members, state executive members and party chieftains pitch their tent with Yari and Marafa while former Governor Ahmad Yarima, Mamuda Shinkafi, some member of G-8 led by the former Deputy Governor during Yari Ibrahim Wakala, Sani Jaji , belong to the Governor ’s camp.

The party’s bigwigs in the state that attended the Matawelle faction congress include the three senators from the state, six out of the seven House of Representatives members, 23 house of assembly members, state executives council members and special advisers among others

FG, UK in Revenge Ban Over COVID-19 Red List taken to treating Nigeria badly recently?

He therefore called for the fixing of Nigeria’s infrastructure so that the mass exodus of Nigerians abroad can cease. He also called for the immediate inward look so that Nigeria can indeed be developed.

On his part, the Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Toby Okechukwu called for the development of proper protocol to deal with pandemics. He bemoaned the economic loss that will be suffered by those who have already made travel plans only to get banned without refund.

Okechukwu advised on the need for proper research so Nigeria can produce indigenous vaccines for these infectious diseases and their variants.

FG Retaliates In a leaked voice note obtained by THISDAY over the weekend, the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, stated that the decision to ban these countries in retaliation would be made by the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC)

on COVID-19 latest by Tuesday.

“Also, there is a case of Saudi Arabia, which put Nigeria on the banned list – no visa, no travel, et cetra. So also Canada. So, today, there was a meeting, I participated in a Zoom meeting, COVID-19 task force, just for your information also. We have given our input in aviation, it is not acceptable by us and we recommend that those countries – Canada, the UK, Saudi Arabia, and Argentina be also put on Red List, as they did similarly to us.

“If they don’t allow our citizens to go into their countries who are their airlines coming to pick from our country? So, I am very sure that in the next few days, between now and Monday, or perhaps Tuesday, at maximum, all those countries will be put on the Red List from the PSC (Presidential Steering Committee) from the task force of COVID-19.

Once they are put on the Red List, which means they are banned, of

course, their airlines will be banned.

I’m so sorry, we are going through a difficult moment, but we have to do it in the interest of our country,” Sirika explained.

Will UK Remove Nigeria from the Red List?

As criticisms trail the British authorities decision, the UK High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, has defended the travel ban on Nigeria, insisting that the move was based on science and not discriminatory.

The envoy in an interview on a national television, last Thursday said the British Government was aware of the reactions and condemnation from across the world following the move but maintained that the development will not push them to reverse the ban.

According to her, “I think I can say comfortably, it is not [discrimina-

tory]. When the UK was the epicentre of the Alpha variant, we took some very tough measures ourselves to essentially cut ourselves off and we banned all but essential travels from the UK. So, that was a very tough decision for us. The UK has been Red-listed in earlier stages of these variants; I think when the Delta variant took off, we were Red-listed by Austria and by France and Turkey. We have not just Red-listed, in the first, African countries.

So, Pakistan was Red-listed, Turkey was Red-listed by the UK when we had our previous Red-list. So, it is based on an individual deep-diving assessment of each country. The reactions have been loud and clear but I don’t want to suggest to anybody that that would change the basis of the decision because that health basis has to be the basis on which the decision has to be made.”

With the reaction of the UK High Commissioner, it’s clear that the country will not remove Nigeria from the Red list anytime soon.

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

FEATURES

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

Uniting against Culture of Girl-child Enslavement Recently, some Ogoni women in Rivers State met under Lokiaka Community Development Centre to call for an end to the culture of enslavement of the girl-child in Ogoniland. Blessing Ibunge writes

Chief Donald Kpegemona Gberesuu, paramount ruler of K-Dere in Gokana Local Government Area

I

n November 2020, when the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike signed the bill on Violence Against Persons (Prohibitions) (VAPP) into Law, there was joy in the state as persons who felt dehumanised by their culture and tradition found a new hope to live again.

Just like Rivers, in 2015, the National Assembly passed the violence Against persons prohibition Bill into Law. The VAPP Act is to eliminate violence in private and public life; prohibit all forms of violence, including physical, sexual, psychological, domestic, harmful traditional practices; discrimination against persons and to provide maximum protection and effective remedies for victims and punishment of offenders.

Though the VAPP is now made law, it seems many are still far from the knowledge of the law as a tool to defend their rights. The law was made not just for women but for persons whom injustice were meted on them by the enforcement of harsh cultural practices.

Also, as a way to create a larger awareness on this law was the 16 Days of Activism in commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls.

During this period, voices campaigned for the rights of the female child in the society. There was clamour for equal treatment on both male and female children in the family. Many who were bold to speak up, lamented the consequences of their traditions on them as women, both as a child and married woman.

Still on the women and girls rights, the State Deputy Governor, Dr. Ipalibo Banigo had recently, called on all well-meaning citizens, especially the male folks to join the campaign to end violence against women and girls.

Dr. Banigo noted that violence against women and girls increase in the society, adding that sometimes women are also culpable when it comes to violence against fellow women.

The deputy governor stated that the leadership of Governor Wike takes the security and wellbeing of women as top priority with a zero tolerance for violence against women.

However, as women are publicly sharing their experiences, women from the Ogoni extraction in Rivers State, Niger Delta region have decried what they described as harsh and inhumane traditional practices against them by the male folks of their communities.

Some of the women who spoke with THISDAY at a conference targeted at increasing Women Access to Justice, an Overview of Existing Obnoxious Customs and Laws, as organised by Lokiaka Community Development Centre, in Wiiyaakara, Khana LGA, lamented the harmful practices in their various communities in Ogoniland.

The practices according to the women, are mainly against them (female) but in favour of the males in their communities, who also intimidate them using the tradition.

Numene Nwikpo, a female native of Wiiyaakara in Khana Local Government Area, said the most painful challenge they are facing in their com-

Cross section of Ogoni women during a sensitisation programme on women justice held in Wiiyaakara, Khana LGA munity, is women not allowed to air their opinion in the midst of men, especially on issues that affects the generality of the community.

Nwikpo explained "In our community widows are still forced to carry their hair uncombed for years as part of respect for her late husband and depending on the year the community gives her freedom to shave it out.

"In Ogoni as a whole, community people are beginning to fight it and it is not strong again except the family insists. To shave the widow's hair, it will undergo some rituals".

She called on the state government to come to their aid and save them from the unfavourable tradition, adding that "Lokiaka is always sensitising us but the community should be enlightened on the consequences involved in such harmful act".

On her part, Mrs Charity Nwiido, from Luawe community, regretted that in this century, young girls whose husbands died early, are not allowed to willingly remarry.

She decried her culture where the first daughter is ordered not to marry but stay back and reproduce children for her father's house.

Nwiido lamented "In my Luawe community, when a young girl marries and unfortunately loses her husband to death, the inlaws will not allow her to remarry.

If her husband was handy, the inlaws will take everything from her and sometimes force her to be reproducing children through any of the late husband's brothers.

"If you are the first daughter in some homes now they will not allow you to marry. And if you insist, either the woman will birth children and her children dies or she will die.

"Another challenge is that if you are single, and you struggled without support from any members of your family and when you are ready to marry, if same brothers that refused to support you are not there, you will not be given out for marriage.

"In this part of the world, there is problem amongst women. They betray one another and problem arises everyday. I thank Lokiaka for bringing us together but if such sensitisation should be taken to remote villages, it will enlighten our women on their rights according to the law."

Mrs Martha Egbe, a native of Eleme, said in her community "a woman that lost her husband does not benefit from the sharing of family farms. If they are

sharing money they will not remember her and her children and these actions are very harsh on women.

"If a woman marries once, has a divorce and returns back to her father's house, she will not benefit from the family inheritance, which is also unjust".

She advised that "Both women and men should be treated fairly. Even though they don't want to apportion her equal as man, she should be regarded and be allowed to have some landed benefits from her family".

For the Executive Director of Lokiaka and a native of Ogoni, Martha Agbani, "Ogoni women have a lot of obnoxious cultural practices that are affecting their existence and on that note we thought it wise to bring in experts, those who understands what laws are to talk to these women, advise them, and consciencetise them on how they can actually address or seek for redress on most of these violations they face from their homes and society.

"We are here today as Ogoni people to look inwardly at issues that affect us: what are those gender violence that Ogoni women face and so we have over 200 women representatives in the hall from all the Ogoni kingdom who have come to participate in this event.

"We believe that after this section, women will know all the laws they have been violating all these while around them and know how to seek redress and have a new lease of life and more of their human dignity being restored.

"Ogoni women have mentioned the harmful traditional practices they have been having: issues around divorce, bigamy, issues that had to do with the widowhood practices where they loose their husbands and they are not allowed to remarry, where they loose their husbands and they are asked to pass through a very hard condition just to keep the memory of their husbands alive.

"Women are denied their rights because they are now widows. They cover the pains because they have the fear that if they say it, the custom will speak against them."

Agbani assured that the group will compile the customary laws, especially the obnoxious ones and use it as advocacy to engage the traditional rulers.

A legal practitioner in the state, Stephanie Ekpebulu, while sensitising the Ogoni women on the extant laws, noted that if the vulnerable women can make use of

Ignorance of the law has made some persons sit by and watch their rights being trampled upon. But with what they have learnt today, I believe that they are now aware of these laws

the laws, it will reduce and possibly eliminate those harmful laws against them.

Ekpebulu, who is with Working for Family Stability Initiative (WOFASI) said they are in collaboration with Lokiaka to equip the Ogoni women with the right knowledge so that they can stand up for themselves when their rights are about to be trampled upon.

She stressed "We read out the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) law to them. The law was just passed in Rivers State on November 11, 2020. We just hope they are going to speak up against these obnoxious practices because since 2003, this harmful dehumanisation practices have been abolished in the law.

"Ignorance of the law has made some persons sit by and watch their rights being trampled upon. But with what they have learnt today, I believe that they are now aware of these laws.

We have also suggested to the convener, Agbani, that she should look for a way to ensure that these traditional rulers too are aware that these practices have been abolished so that when these things are about to metted out on the women, they can speak for them".

Meanwhile, a traditional ruler in Ogoniland who spoke with THISDAY on the culture of the area, said some of their traditions would be reviewed soon.

The Monarch, who is the traditional ruler of Kegbara Dere (K-Dere) in Gokana LGA, Chief Donald Kpegemona Gberesuu explained that the issue of not allowing the first daughter to remarry was for replacement in the situation where there is no male child to sustain the family.

Gberesuu explained "The issue of the first daughter not being married is not a general thing. It is only applied on families where there are no male children and for purpose of keeping the family lineage. But if she so wishes to marry, then she can just have a child or she will marry another woman as a replacement so that someone will be there in order to take care of the property of the family.

"Some of these cultures will be reviewed and I am of the opinion that this culture ought to be reviewed. We look at one or two things to add to it so that the women, girl child will also have the equal right that the male child has.

"This barbing of hair is almost part of our culture here but the idea asking a married woman not to touch her hair is just for a period of months.

It is an indication to show that this woman is actually mourning. To keep the hair as a way to show respect to the late husband. But it is not barbaric. The idea is asking her to mourn her husband.

"The idea of remarrying is not our culture.

This is because if a woman married and begets children and then within that period someone comes to marry her, what will now happen to those children? So it's based on that, they said she is the keeper of the home. If the husband is late, she should be able to raise these children so that they will not go astray and join cultism and other social vices in our society", the monarch explained.

23

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

FEATURES

Seeking Protection of Wild Life in Nigeria In its quest to sustain the ecological balance and prevent extinction of some endangered animals and plants, Chiemelie Ezeobi reports that the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency has intensified its advocacy to protect the wild life population and reserved areas

Dr. Fasawe and team, who took back the rescued creature to its natural habitat

G

iven the several pictures of different communities capturing and killing wildlife without recourse to their extinction, the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) has begun to intensify advocacy in that regard.

While calling for collective support against unlawful trade of wildlife, hunting and possession of wildlife parts, the agency said it will sustain the ecological balance and prevent extinction of some special animals and plants.

Awareness Campaign Recently, a sea turtle was recovered from an illegal, poacher who was arrested by the officials of the Kick against Indiscipline (KAI), Eti-Osa Zone.

Expressing concern over the ignorance of the general public to the benefits of wildlife, LASEPA General Manager, Dr. Dolapo Fasawe, said this is contributing highly to the rate of unchecked illicit trade of the endangered species "by few selfish people against the general interest of all.

"Our awareness advocacy recently paid off, as the officials of the Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI) Eti-Osa Zone professionally arrested one Muhammad, who confessed to hunting of sea animals at the ocean and selling to awaiting customers. The sea animal was recovered and later released back home into the ocean at Oniru beach in the presence of our natural resource protection team".

Laws Covering Wildlife Preservation, Conservation Fasawe isn't walking amiss. Her advocacy is couched in the laws of the land. According to her, the laws covering the preservation and conservation of wildlife in Nigeria are largely enshrined in two sets of Acts, namely: The Nigerian Endangered Species Act (Control of International Trade and Traffic) Act, Decree 11 of the 1985 Constitution and Section 20 of the National Parks Service Act. She added that these extant laws in principle regulate the hunting, raring and trade of animals, as well as set up the various game reserves we currently have in Nigeria including the Yankari, and Borgu Game Reserves, Okomu and Old oyo National Parks etc.

Maintaining Balance For Lagos, the commercial nerve centre of the nation, the need to maintain balance is imperative. According to her, "Lagos State is a largely urban setting with the fastest growing population in Africa. The per capita needs such as housing, industrialisation, recreational centres and other amenities pose danger to existence of some special animals and plants with limited availability of land for conservation activities.

"LASEPA is striving to maintain balance

The rescued sea turtle by diligently monitor the effects of these undesirable activities on the environment and also protects our native wildlife population by insisting on a comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as a mandatory requirement before the commencement of any projects, in a bid to savage our comfort zone.

"As a port city, Lagos is vulnerable to illicit trade of these treasured species and the agency has embarked on aggressive advocacy, improved surveillance and monitoring activities.

“It is worthy to note that peculiarities of wildlife conservation and management require all three levels of government to clearly map and detail policies to prevent trafficking of these precious species through various airports and seaports across the state.

"Therefore, there is need to create several layers of policies and checks to protect our precious biodiversity and

also ensure that people act responsibly by totally avoiding poaching, unhealthy gaming and habitation destruction (bush burning, deforestation)."

Commitment from LASEPA Reiterating the role of the agency in this regard, Dr. Fasawe said: “To achieve the Lagos of our dreams, LASEPA remains committed to ensuring fair and responsible use of the environment in the state, by harmoniously working in relationship with other relevant MDAs such as the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, Ministry of Agriculture, LASPARK and Ministry of Health to build a holistic framework by which we can adequately protect the precious flora and fauna in Lagos.

To do all these, she said the agency has improved its baseline data collection, identification of endangered animal species and protected areas, botanical

Therefore, there is need to create several layers of policies and checks to protect our precious biodiversity and also ensure that people act responsibly by totally avoiding poaching, unhealthy gaming and habitation destruction

tagging of special trees/plants in addition to strengthening the policies at state and local levels.

Endangered Species For clarity, the agency listed the Green Turtle, African Savanna Elephant, Western Gorilla, White Bellied Pangolin, Black Rhino and Grey Parrots as endangered species facing varying threats as a result of unlawful sales, habitat destruction, fashion trend, domestication amongst others.

Tree plant such as sandbox tree, pine tree, anta root, cabbage tree, African mahogany and stool wood are categorised as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of nature (IUCN) due to over exploitation and medicinal relevance.

Clamour for Self-regulation, Discipline Stressing that unlike in the past, the population is more aware of the dangers inherent in extinction of conservation wildlife and destruction of protected reserved ecological areas. Therefore, she posited that they are advised to report incidents of poaching or illegal trade to the appropriate authorities for action.

Categorically, Fasawe reiterated that LASEPA campaigns against open market sale of special animals and plants, while clamouring for self-regulation and discipline against use of force, adding that the existing laws allow for a fine of N5million or one year jail term for the illicit trade of endangered animals in Nigeria.

24

MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021 •T H I S D AY

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021

25

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET

A S

A T

REPO

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

08056356325

D E C E M B E R

S & P INDEX

1 0 , 2 0 2 1

S & P INDEX

EXCHANGE RATE

OBB

9.00%

CALL

4%

INDEX LEVEL

564.02%

1/4 TO DATE

5.82%

N413.03/ 1 US DOLLAR*

OVERNIGHT

10.75%

1-MONTH

6%

1-DAY

–0.17%

YEAR TO DATE

– 15.85%

*AS AT LAST FRIDAY

3-MONTH

10%

MONTH-TO-DATE

0.19%

Amid Growth in GDP, Dangote Cement, MTN Nigeria, 46 Others Record N8.9trn Revenue Banking sector revenue hits N3.96trn Six petroleum marketing coys records N776.6bn revenue

Kayode Tokede Dangote Cement Plc and 47 leading companies on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) recorded combined revenue of N8.9trillion in the first nine months of 2021 amid growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP), THISDAY checks has revealed.

The 48 companies’ total revenue is 17.3 per cent higher when compared to N7.6 trillion recorded in nine months of 2020.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 4.03 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in real terms in the third quarter of 2021, showing a sustained positive growth over the last four quarters

since the recession witnessed in 2020.

The bureau added that output contracted by -6.10 per cent and -3.62per cent in second quarter and third quarter of 2020 under the coronavirus pandemic Meanwhile, analysts believe the growth in revenue by these 48 companies indicate that Nigerian companies have overcome the adverse impact of the coronavirus.

Analysis of the companies reports in nine months showed that Dangote Cement Plc gained 34.2 per cent increase in revenue to N1.02 trillion in nine months of 2021 from N761 billion recorded in nine months of 2020, while MTN Nigeria Plc’s revenue reached N1.21trillion in nine months of 2021, about 24

per cent increase when compared to N975.76billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

BUA Cement Plc recorded 19.3 per cent increase in revenue to N186.91billion in nine months of 2021 from N156.55 in nine months of 2020, while Lafarge Africa Plc grew revenue by nearly 22 per cent to N219.2billion in nine months of 2021 from N179.8billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

THISDAY finding revealed the growth in revenue of the two cement manufacturers reflected in the construction sector that contributed 9.26 per cent to nominal GDP in the third quarter of 2021, higher than the 7.23 per cent it contributed a year earlier and higher than the 8.74

per cent contributed in the second quarter of 2021.

Financial results of 14 banks and 10 insurance companies show that the combined revenue grew by nearly six per cent to N4.14 trillion from N3.9 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of nine months of 2020.

Although the likes of Guaranty Trust Holdings Plc (GTCO), FBN Holdings Plc and Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc recorded decline in revenue, the combined banking sector recorded about 5.4 per cent increase in top line performance to N3.96 trillion in nine months of 2021 from N3.75trillion recorded in prior nine months of 2020.

GTCO in the period reported

GTCO 3.5 per cent decline in revenue to N318.51billion in nine months of 2021 from N329.96billion reported in nine months of 2020, while FBN Holdings Plc’s revenue closed nine months of 2021 at N427.03billion, a decline of 2.8 per cent from N439.33billion reported in nine months of 2020.

In addition, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc revenue, among the 14 banks dropped significantly by 20 per cent to N146.6billion in nine months of 2021 from N183..29billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

The 10 insurance firms, AXA Mansard Insurance Plc, NEM Insurance Plc, AIICO Insurance Plc, among seven others recorded 19 per cent increase in revenue to

close at N191.74billion in nine months of 2021 from N160.47billion in nine months of 2020.

The growth in revenue by these financial services companies gives a significant increase to finance and insurance sector’s contribution to the overall nominal GDP at 2.70 per cent in third quarter of 2021, higher than the 2.46per cent it represented a year previous.

Further analysis showed that a total of six petroleum-marketing companies recorded 34 per cent growth in revenue to N776.6billion in nine months of 2021, about 34 per cent from N579.6billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

Continued on page 26

80 Weeks After COVID-19 Hit Nigeria’s Economy, NBS Data Suggests Impressive Recovery Ugo Aliogo Twenty months after the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit the Nigerian economy, the Q3 2021 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) suggested a very impressive recovery trend.

Analysis of the NBS data showed that real GDP grew by 4.0% yearon-year (YoY), compared to -3.6% in Q3 2020. The nominal GDP for Q3 2021 was also up 15.4% (YoY), compared to 3.9% in Q3 2020. On a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, the real GDP grew by 11.1% (compared

to -0.3% in Q2 2021), whilst nominal GDP also grew by 15.7% QoQ, better than the -2.2% recorded in Q2 2021.

Commenting on the report, analysts Verraki Partners said, the numbers are reflective of higher economic activity and sustained recovery.

Further analysis of the data showed

that the oil sector which now accounts for 7.5% of the GDP declined by 10.7% YoY (12.1% growth QoQ) in Q3 2021.

The performance of the Nigerian oil and gas sector has remained sub-optimal, recording consistent decline (11.0% on the average) in the last six quarters.

According to the data, average crude

oil production in Q3 2021 was 1.57 million barrels per day (mbpd), 6.0% below the average production in Q3 2020 and 0.27mbpd below 2021 budget assumption.

On the flip side, average Brent crude oil price increased 76.0% from 43$pb in Q3 2020 to 76$pb in Q3 2021, partly

responsible for the $6billion year-todate growth in the foreign reserves to $41.4billion.

“The non-oil sector accounts for 92.5% of the GDP and has shown impressive resilience (3.7% average Continued on page 26

M A R K E T D ATA A S AT F R I D AY, D E C E M B E R 1 0 , 2 0 2 1 FGN BONDS DESCRIPTION 9.091 FGNSB 11-DEC-2021 13.402 FGNSB 12-DEC-2021 7.144 FGNSB 15-JAN-2022 13.125 FGNSB 16-JAN-2022 16.39 27-JAN2022

Price

Yield

BILLS Change (%)

MATURITY

OTC FX F U T U R E S

Discount Yield Change (%)

100.01

4.14

0.00

NTB 13-Jan-22

3.69

3.71 0.00

100.05

4.12

0.00

NTB 27-Jan-22

3.85

3.87 0.00

100.33

3.71

0.00

NTB 10-Feb-22

4.00

4.03 0.00

100.94

3.70

0.00

NTB 24-Feb-22

2.45

101.64

3.56

0.00

NTB 10-Mar-22

2.98

CONTRACT TENOR (MONTH) 1

Contract

Current Rate ($/₦)

NGUS DEC 29 2021 421.18

2

NGUS JAN 26 2022 422.61

3

NGUS FEB 23 2022 424.04

2.46 0.00

4

NGUS MAR 30 2022 425.46

3.00 0.00

5

NGUS APR 27 2022 426.89

C Ps MATURITY

Discount Yield

MREP CP XXXVII 14-DEC-21 MTNN CP IV 17DEC-21 FDHC CP I 17DEC-21 PARP CP II 30DEC-21 CMBL CP XVI 7-JAN-22

Change (%)

13.80

13.82 0.00

7.45

7.46

0.00

7.45

7.46

0.00

5.68

5.70

0.00

7.71

7.75

0.00

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MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

80 WEEKS AFTER COVID-19 HIT NIGERIA’S ECONOMY, NBS DATA SUGGESTS IMPRESSIVE RECOVERY

growth) in the last four quarters, offering greatest sustainable growth potential. The sector grew by 5.4% YoY in real terms (6.7% in Q2 2021) and driven by activities in the trade, ICT, manufacturing, finance and insurance, among others. Despite value chain dislocations that came with the pandemic, a few non-oil economic sub-sectors performed relatively well and are forecast to sustain a growth trend in the mid to long-term.

“The top six non-oil economic sectors that have shown the best resilience in the last four quarters

account for approximately 60% of Nigeria’s GDP. Amongst these sectors were Agriculture, Construction, ICT Services, Real Estate, Food, Beverage and Tobacco and Cement. These sectors collectively have the capacity to deliver superior economic diversification outcomes for the country and should ideally form the core of mid-to-long-term economic policy, Verraki Partners said.

Further analysis showed that the agriculture sector grew by 7.9% YoY in nominal terms in Q3 2021 (compared to 13.5% recorded in Q3 2020).

The analysts believe major policy interventions are necessary to revive the Nigerian agricultural sector and avert possible food crisis.

The report showed that the construction sector grew by 47.7% YoY in nominal terms, with a 7% average real growth in the last four quarters.

Estimated at about N16 trillion, the sector has recorded a 6.9% average real growth in the last four quarters.

Also, the ICT Sector recorded 6.1% YoY real growth in Q3 2021; and 11.2% in nominal terms. Valued

at N13.3trillion (14.0% of the GDP), the sector has shown impressive resilience in the last four quarters with an average real growth of 5.1%.

Similarly, the Real Estate sector expanded by 10% YoY in Q3 2021, and has sustained a positive quarterly YoY growth trend since Q1 2021, save for Q4 2020 when it declined by 0.8%.

Food, Beverage and Tobacco sub-sector accounts for 37% of the total manufacturing sector output in Nigeria, and 5% of the country’s GDP. The sector expanded by 5.0%

YoY and 14.6% QoQ respectively in Q3 2021, with 4.3% average growth every quarter since Q1 2020. Driven largely by the country’s favorable demographics and the consumption behaviors of Nigerians, the sector holds great potential for the country’s manufacturing sector and employment creation.

According to the analysts, the cement is another sector the country must pay a close attention to. The sector accounts for 18.0% of manufacturing output in Nigeria and 2.0% of the country’s GDP. It grew by 4.1%

YoY in Q3 2021 and has sustained a positive (3.1% average) quarterly growth in 2021.The impressive performance in Q2 and Q3 2021 is connected to the reopening of economic activities in Nigeria and other west African markets.

“So, what does the 4% Q3 2021 real GDP growth mean to an average Nigerian or business?

Whilst the index gives a sense of the direction of economic output, it fails to communicate economic progress, standard of living and inclusiveness, “they said.

Poor Dividend: Shareholders Demand Cut In CRR to 15% From 27.5% Kayode Tokede Shareholders under the aegis of Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN) have called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to reduce its Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) to 15 per cent or pay three per cent interest on restricted banks deposits with the apex bank.

Speaking on behalf of shareholders, the National Coordinator Emeritus, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Sunny Nwosu at a press briefing in Lagos noted that recent increase of CRR by five per cent to 27.5 per cent as against 22.5 per cent have not yielded the desired economic results after the first phase of Covid-19.

He noted that the association is worried about the state of commercial banks and safety of local portfolio investors’ investments following the repeated fleecing of the banking industry by CBN. Nwosu said the continuous debit of banks under CRR by CBN is putting the banking sector under serious threat and a compelling impotency toward sustainable intervention in the real sector.

According to him: “The 27.5 per cent CRR impact on active 4.9 million retail shareholders have

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

resulted into dismal dividends, banks’ net interest income and the general economy.

“ISAN specifically submit that the only way out of the CRR logjam foisted on banks and to avert policy incapacitation of national economy is for CBN to pay interest on banks mandatory deposits.

“After serious evaluation of the CRR and current AMCON scam, ISAN insist that the CBN should pay interest to banks on restricted deposits to enhance banks obligation to the real sector. In the alternative the apex bank should reduced the CRR to 15 percent to enable banks declare meaningful dividends that will encourage domestic investments.

“We urge CBN to seriously have a rethink on CRR and among other things to enhance the performance of the financial sector of the economy.

The challenge character of Nigerian economy makes it imperative for CBN to pay interest on restricted deposits.

“Banks restricted deposits with CBN are idle funds. We argue that if these funds are with banks, certainly it will enhance their earnings, loans to real sector and returns for shareholders. If CBN can pay at least three per cent interest on the mandatory CRR deposits, it will go a long way in driving the real sector and the payment of robust dividends to shareholders,” ISAN argued.

He however suggested to the CBN to revalue CRR effects on the economy within the earlier failed desire of the monetary ratio.

He added that the CBN’ s debiting of banks frequently, so far, has no known impact in curbing speculation against the Naira and the noticeable shortages of foreign exchange.

He explained further that: “Given the dire need to stimulate the economy after the international and national adversities created by Covid-19 pandemic, the industry’s restricted cash reserves exceeded N9.5 trillion in 2020 and translated to an effective CRR of 37 percent.

“As Nigeria garner reputation as the country with the highest

reserve requirement in sub-Saharan Africa, we consider the sterile new CRR policy unproductive and an elitist tool to keep most Nigerians, particularly retail investors down.

“The cumulative restricted deposits of banks so far as at 2020, if invested in treasury securities at five percent, would have N482 billion added to the Industry’s profit before taxation. The industry’s return on average equity (ROE) would have increased by between 11percent and 31.6 percent as at December 2020.

“That as portfolio investors’, most senior citizens who took to portfolio investment are compelled to endure the effects of poor monetary policy instrument.

That CBN, he added, has been

highly interventionist compared with its peers like South Africa and Kenya that toed global trend of giving banks more room to lend.

“Sticking with a CRR that compels lenders to park, the additional five percent CRR increase amounts to N1.2 trillion warehoused by government. That banks interim reports in 2021 shows poor revenues following higher borrowing costs as CRR hike further complicates banks currency flow already hit by fallout from Covid-19 and the oil price shocks. That current banking industry squeeze has also created further national economic challenges in the face of dwindling earns of Nigerians and declining remittances, ”he said.

Economists: Nigeria Economy to Expand by 2.37% in 2022 Kayode Tokede A group of Economists at Vetiva Research have stated that they expected the Nigerian economy to expand by 2.37 per cent in 2022, The Lagos-based research firm in its 2022 macroeconomic outlook for the domestic economy predicated non-oil sector facing foreign exchange volatility and higher energy prices.

The Economists in their report said: “the non-oil sector may have to grapple with foreign exchange volatility and higher energy prices…”, while in the oil sector, “…higher production quota provides a tailwind for

recovery…”

On the fiscal sector, Vetiva predicated further expansion in fiscal deficit despite plans to remove subsidy.

According to the report: “Following the signing of the Petroleum Industry Act, subsidies ought to be expunged from the budget. However, we expect social resistance and election concerns to halt plans to remove subsidy. At best, we may see slight pump price increases as full removal may not be implemented until 2023.”

On the direction of inflation, the report says the decision to remove subsidy would be a deciding factor in 2022.

According to the report, “a glance through data shows that the removal of fuel subsidies had a greater impact on consumer prices than any other factor on a month-on-month basis.”

They see subsidy retention supporting a deceleration in inflation to 12.5 per cent y/y. However, they noted that subsidy removal could lift inflation towards 16 per cent y/y.

On monetary policy, they penned down a 100bps rate hike in 2022 as a result of broad-based monetary policy normalization.

“The current stance suggests the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) could remain accommodative. However, in extreme cases, external pressures could cause the bank to hike rates

to attract portfolio investment, ”they said.

Presenting its outlook for exchange rates on a scenario basis, the analysts sees room for further depreciation in the Naira towards N430 against the dollar in the Investors & Exporters window and N595 against the dollar in the parallel market.

They expressed cautious optimism over the possible floatation of the Naira in 2022 due to possible delay in Dangote refinery completion.

However, they expect the CBN to monitor FX savings from the project before altering its policy regime.

Commenting on the report titled, “A shot at dawn,” Vetiva’s

Economists, Ibukun Omoyeni and Angela Onotu, identified global macro themes to watch out for in 2022, including the fourth wave of COVID-19, withdrawal of policy support, and shift in monetary policy stance.

On Sub Saharan Africa, they identified the challenges, which plagued the region in 2021.

“On health, the Economists noted, “vaccination rate remains abysmally low in SSA economies as barely three per cent of the population has been fully vaccinated, compared to 60per cent in advanced economies and 35 per cent in other emerging and developing economies, ”they added.

AMID GROWTH IN GDP, DANGOTE CEMENT, MTN NIGERIA, 46 OTHERS RECORD N8.9TRN REVENUE Also, three Pharmaceutical companies grew their revenue by 27 per cent to N56.3billion in months under review as against N36.5billion recorded in prior nine months.

In the consumer goods sector, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Cadbury Plc and Nigerian Breweries Plc considered in this report recorded growth in revenue.

Nestle Nigeria gained 23 per cent increase in revenue to N261.59billion, while Cadbury Nigeria and Nigerian Breweries Plc gained 16.5 per cent and 32.15 per cent growth in revenue to N30.05billion and N309.28billion respectively.

Meanwhile, analysts have attributed the revenue growth recorded by listed companies in the months under review to ease

on lockdown and opening of economy globally, stressing that steady increase in global oil price was another contributing factor.

On the impact of stimulus, analysts expressed that it has started reflecting in the companies’ performance and hoped it would be sustained barring unforeseen circumstances in domestic and global economy.

Speaking with THISDAY, an Economist & Private Sector Advocate, Dr Muda Yusuf noted that the growth in companies revenue is a reflection of ease on movement and steady increase in global oil prices.

He maintained that growth recorded by companies’ revenue is based on the rapid demand, stressing that the 2020 lockdown

impacted on revenue growth and economy at large.

He said, “Of course the economy had it challenges in 2020 due to the lockdown and we have the opening this year which significant played a key role in revenue generated by Dangote Cement, among others.”

He highlighted that companies growth in revenue in nine months of 2021 was faced with depreciation of Naira, high cost of electricity, and ease of doing business challenges.

He was optimistic that the growth would be sustained adding that this will eventually translates into growth in GDP in 2021.

An economist and senior Lecturer, Lagos Business School, Dr Adi Bongo noted that high demand in an economy drives revenue

and translates into growth in GDP. He maintained that growth recorded in the cement sector, among other to be sustained throughout 2022 as companies are aiming to meet 202 deficit in production.

Reacting, analysts and Chief Operating Officer at InvestData Consulting Limited, Mr Ambrose Omordion said: “Revenue generated by companies in nine months of 2021 showed recovery of business activities in the economy as well as rise in global crude oil prices” In his reaction, Analyst and Head, Investment Research & Business Development, Pac holdings, Mr. Wole Samuel said: “The performance of nine months results is mixed, “while some have

impressive results especially the Cement companies and Telecoms companies, while Banking and Insurance have mixed results.

“The likely factors responsible for some of the companies’ low performance may be the combination of falling of naira value and rising of over head cost due to the fact that they operated in full operations with the attendance of full staff unlike the previous year when most of the staff were at home.”

On banks, performance, he said: “Tier – 2 are relatively better in terms of profit especially by Fidelity Bank and Sterling Bank. It shows that Tier- 2 is catching up with the challenge and hope to meet expectations.”

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021

27

BUSINESSWORLD

STATUS REPORT

MTN Nigeria: Expanding Investors’ Wealth Via Public Offer

Kayode Tokede

N

igeria’s largest telecommunication network and the most capitalised company on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) – MTN Nigeria Communications Plc – recently announced its Initial Public Offering (IPO) to Nigerians, with over 500 million shares to be sold to retail investors for N169 each.

In 2019, MTN Nigeria reached an agreement with the federal government that they were going to list the company on the stock exchange and let Nigerians have more equity.

MTN Nigeria is the largest mobile network operator in Nigeria. It has consistently grown its customer base from 59.9million subscribers at the end of 2014 to 76.5million mobile subscribers at the end of 2020, representing 37.50 per cent of the total mobile subscribers in the country.

MTN Nigeria has a free float of 21.17 per cent, above the 20 per cent free-float requirement of companies listed on the Premium Board of the NGX Limited where the company is currently listed. The sale of 575,000,000 shares by the Group would increase the free-float of the company to 24 per cent.

MTN Group, which controls 78.83 per cent of the issued and fully-paid shares of MTN Nigeria through its two subsidiaries; MTN International (Mauritius) Limited and Mobile Telephone Network N.I.C.B.V plans to divest out of 575,000,000 of its holdings, representing 3.58 per cent of its holdings in the Nigerian sub-subsidiary.

This is the first series of a larger equity shelf program where up to 2,814,830,718 shares of MTN Nigeria would be offered for sale to the investing public. This equity shelf program would see MTN Group over the next three years possibly reduce its holding in the Nigerian subsidiary to 65per cent from the current 78.83 per cent.

MTN Group Limited has in recent times been scaling back its holdings in its subsidiaries in some of its strongholds, including in Ghana, Rwanda, and Zambia among others.

The Group Limited cited its intention to introduce a wider base of retails shareholders into the ownership of MTN Nigeria while also achieving an increase in the company’s free float on NGX as the key reason for the divestment. This claim can be supported by the fact that in recent times, MTN Nigeria has been increasing the localization of its management, appointing Nigerians into key managerial roles. The Group also cited how the offer aims to improve liquidity in the shares of MTN Nigeria.

The company has actually lived up to its reputation with consistently profitable books year after year.

MAINTAINING STRONG FUNDAMENTALS From the topline performance, MTN Nigeria reported 23.6 per cent increase in revenue to N1.21trillion in nine months of 2021 from N975.76billion reported in nine months of 2020 given the amount of challenges businesses face.

The breakdown of revenue revealed that it generated N722billion from Voice, an increase of 23.7 per cent from N653.02billion reported in nine months of 2020, while revenue from Data grew by 51.5 per cent to N366billion from N241.6billion in nine months of 2020.

Fintech also grew by 55.2 per cent to N50.24billion from N32.4billion recorded in nine months of 2021 while revenue from Digital services closed nine months of 2021 at N12.08billion from N7.74billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

In addition, “other service revenue” grew by 38 per cent to N53.87billion in nine months of 2021 from N39.06billion recorded in nine months of 2020.

Even in 2020, where the pandemic took a major hit on business financials, MTN held its own and still went past the trillion naira mark with a declared revenue of N1.3 trillion.

The growth in revenue means the telecommunication about N144 billion away from hitting last year’s figure. It is instructive to note that MTN has reported a quarterly average revenue of N340 billion this year, and if the fourth quarter hits the same figure, then MTN would already have broken its 2020 record revenue of N1.3trillion.

All of these increases in revenues are happening in spite of the negative growth in subscriber figures due to challenges from the SIM card registration, the National Identification Number (NIN) linkage and other policy challenges.

From the company’s recent profit & loss figures, it reported 19.5 per cent increase in cost of sales to N200.47billion in nine months of 2021 from N179.2billion in prior nine months while operating expenses grew by 24.3 per cent to N371.28billion in nine months of 2021 from N298.75 billion reported in nine months of 2020.

Despite growth in expenses, the telecommunication company gained 32 per cent increase in profit before tax to N321.35billion in nine months of 2021 from N211.59billion reported in nine months of 2020.

With 50 per cent tax expenses in nine months of 2021, the company’s profit after tax hits N220.3billion in nine months of 2021 from N144.24billion reported in nine months of 2020.

LISTING BY INTRODUCTION The company started with the listing by introduction in 2019 and this brought in more institutional investors into the company. The current move is to bring in more retail investors, and gradually reduce the stakes of the MTN group in MTN Nigeria.

“This is the first step in a series of offers over the near to medium-term for MTN Group to sell-down a total of up to 14per cent shareholding in MTN Nigeria.

“This should result in greater ownership

by Nigerian institutional and retail shareholders, and increased liquidity of the share on the Nigerian Exchange Limited.” said Group President and Chief Executive Officer Ralph Mupita.

MTN is about the most capitalised company currently on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), and it is not just about big names and titles.

In fact, the CEO, Karl Toriola had said during the investor call that they expect their subscriber base to turn positive for the first time in about six quarters after surmounting all of those challenges. This bodes well for greater revenue growth for MTN. Nigeria is still far from attaining the financial inclusion goal as many persons still do not have access to banking services, and the mobile money will reach more people than the conventional banks have been able to reach. Given its large subscriber base, MTN really only needs to keep putting out products and services that the people need.

With all these numbers and facts out there, it is really not a question of whether or not to buy the stock. Courtesy of the listing by introduction done in 2019, MTN shares are already available in the stock exchange and can be bought at the market price, using any of the available stock brokerage platforms.

Now, the fix is this. If the MTN shares are already available in the market, investors want to know why they should buy the ones being offered on the IPO now. What is in the offer for Nigerians?

GROWTH PROSPECT As of September 2021, MTN Nigeria had 33.2million active data users generating a total revenue of N488.221billion (annualized), up by over four folds over the last 7 years as data revenue maintained an accelerated growth trajectory. This brought data revenue share of total revenue to 30.36 per cent in 2021 from a meagre 11.27 per cent in 2014.

With 101.72million data users in Nigeria in 2021, MTN Nigeria remains the market leader with a 32.64 per cent share of the data market.

With MTN Nigeria continuing its push for the expansion of its 4G network coverage, and the expression of its readiness to launch the 5G network in the country, we expect data revenue to continue its accelerated growth trajectory, further increasing its contribution to the total revenue. Except for any extenuating black swan event, we expect MTN Nigeria to continue to maintain its current market leadership position in data services.

BONUS SHARES Following the successful completion of its book building process tagged ‘The Institutional Offer’ the company to only qualifying institutional investors, the company

launches its public offer to retail investors ‘The Retail Offer’ as MTN Group Limited through its wholly-owned subsidiary, MTN International (Mauritius) Limited sells 575,000,000 units of shares.

The minimum application for shares to subscribe to is 20 ordinary shares, and multiples of 20 ordinary shares thereafter. In a bid to encourage participation in the offer while ensuring price stability post-allotment, MTN International (Mauritius) Limited is offering an incentive in the form of 1 bonus ordinary share for every 20 shares purchased, with the bonus capped at a maximum of 250 bonus shares per investor. An investor would however have to continuously hold the shares allotted for a minimum period of 12 months (post-allotment) to qualify for the bonus shares.

This offer is an offer for sale, hence the proceeds of the offer would be remitted to the selling shareholder (MTN International (Mauritius) Limited) net of offer cost which has been placed at N1,812,572,097.00kobo.

MTN Nigeria would not receive any portion of the net proceeds from the offer, and neither would the offer increase the issued and fully paid shares of MTN Nigeria. Hence current shareholding would remain undiluted.

The Group plans to allot a minimum of 10 per cent of the offer shares to qualified investors for the book-building, with up to 90 per cent of offer shares offered to retail investors. In the event of an oversubscription of the offer, the Group has a greenshoe option in place to offer additional shares not exceeding 15 per cent of the offered shares. This represents a total offered shares of up to 661,250,000 in the event of an oversubscription of 15 per cent and above.

Over the past one week, MTN market shares have closed lower than the offer price a couple of times. However, this is a normal market trend as there is a high supply of the stocks currently.

Moreover, Nigerians who buy from the IPO will be getting 21 share units at the cost of 20 shares, and this in itself, takes care of any perceived price reduction that one might see in the market.

MAXIMUM POSSIBLE PARTICIPATION As explained by the CEO, Mr Karl Toriola, MTN aims to facilitate the maximum possible participation by Nigerian investors by using the power of technology and giving out the retail offer through a digital platform, the first in Nigeria.

“The offer includes an incentive in the form of one free share for every 20 shares purchased, subject to a maximum of 250 free shares per investor. The incentive is open to retail investors who buy and hold the shares allotted to them for at least 12 months, post the allotment date” he said.

While there are risks to investments, MTN Nigeria has had its most challenges in the form of regulations and policies from the government and the concerned bodies. By fulfilling its part of the agreement and bringing more Nigerian ownership into the business, one can expect the Nigerian government will begin to view MTN as a Nigerian rather than a foreign company.

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eNaira: Gaining Acceptability, Propelling Digital Transactions Emmanuel Okezie

I

t is no longer in doubt, that the recently introduced eNaira by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Digital Currency (CBDC), is fast gaining acceptability among Nigerians; including those in diaspora as well as the international community.

With less than two months into the public launch of the eNaira on October 25, 2021, availabe statistics, and international attention it has thus far garnered are indicative of its acceptance in the spheres of the ever-changing digital global economy.

In about eight weeks of rollout, the eNaira application has witnessed over 600,000 downloads.

And within about two weeks of its entry into the digital currency market, a conservative estimate of N46.3 million worth of transactions were reported to have been executed using the currency platform.

The foregoing shows that the public had long been eagerly awaiting the alternative currency that addresses the gaps associated with the existing payment systems in the country.

It is not only an assertion of the relevance of digital currency such as the eNaira in the global digital economy but also a timely accomplishment that positions Nigeria favourably as a global player in international trades and transactions.

The rate of acceptance of the eNaira by Nigerians validate the assurances by the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, that the apex bank is the custodian of eNaira Speed Wallet and is continuously committed to its digital upgrades and preservation from hackers.

It is pertinent to reiterate that though the registration for eNaira Speed Wallet Account is simple, it has inbuilt security steps that guarantees protection of the account holders.

The following insights about the registration procedures and the security measures of the eNaira

by Jamila Yusuf, Principal Manager and Business Lead for the eNaira Project and Abduljelil Yusuf, Assistant Manager and member of the eNaira Project Team of the Central Bank of Nigeria are helpful to prospects.

According to the duo, the eNaira is a CBN backed digital currency issued by the apex bank with all the modern fintech security measures in place to guarantee safety.

“It is a legal tender, it is same Naira, more possibilities. So, it is actually the same Naira that we have but in a digital form”, they assured.

Abduljelil further offers the following registration procedures/ steps: “To sign up to eNaira Speed Wallet, for those with IOS Phones, you go to the Apple Store but for those with Android phones, you go to the Play

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele Store and type in eNaira Speed Wallet. You’ll see two icons pop out. The first is green and white background and it clearly states that it is for individuals. Then, the second one clearly states that it’s for Merchants. Upon downloading, you click on the open button and after you open the app on your phone, at the bottom right, you will see a green sign-up button.

“If you then click on it, it will take you to a sign on page. To make your registration smooth, there are key things you must have namely: an access phone number, email address, BVN and active account number and may be an internet mobile banking app for you

to exchange your eNaira. So, once you have these four items, you’re good to go. In case you don’t have your BVN, you can go to your bank to capture you with your current active phone number.

“You then click on the green button below the sign up page and the next thing you will see is ‘Register with your bank’. When you click on that, it will take you to the page where you’ll register your phone number and email address. Upon doing that, you click continue. Next, you need to go back to the email you had inputted to retrieve six-digit one- time password/OPT sent to you. As soon as you get that, you move back to the

app to enter the six-digit password. Click on the continue icon that will take you to another page where you’ll register your details. Those details include your BVN, Account number and date of birth and then click continue which will take you to a page where you select your bank where you have internet banking or mobile banking apps.”

On her part, Jamila explained that in case one does not see his/her bank there, there is no need to panic because the process of integrating all the banks on the platform is on-going. She assured that almost all the banks in the financial sector have already been integrated.

“Just scroll down you’ll see all the list of the banks in the banking industry. Please, note that the email that you receive from eNaira.gov.ng for your six-digit password/OTP is a no-reply mail, she noted.

In a case where one has more than two banks, one only need to choose the one he/she intends to link with the eNaira Speed Wallet account. But where one desires to link more than one bank, one needs to create separate eNaira Speed Wallet account for each of the banks”, she explained.

Again, Abduljelil said: “After inputting your details, you will be required to create a minimum of four character password which you need to reconfirm by ticking the green button on the page and then proceed with the click of continue which will prompt verification of your details. Once verified successfully, you’ll receive notification that you have successfully opened eNaira wallet. However, before you can proceed, you need to go back to your mailbox for email sent to you asking you to activate eNaira Speed Wallet. On opening the mail, click on the green button requesting you to activate and after this, you’ll receive another congratulatory mail indicating that you’ve been on boarded into the eNaira Speed Wallet. This simply implies that you’ve completed the registration process.”

They concluded that with the registration completed, one is ready to fund the eNaira Speed Wallet account by moving money from one’s bank account to the wallet or vice versa, adding that one can also effect person to person transactions with those with eNaira Speed Wallet account anywhere in the world. The same procedure of registration with minor differences also applies to the eNaira Merchant Wallet Account, which is the current account form of the eNaira digital currency.

Given the excitement the eNaira has generated, it is hoped that baring any pitfalls, the CBN’s sign-on targets would be met earlier than projected. t &NNBOVFM 0LF[JF 8PSLT 8JUI 015*.6.

5*.&4

Learn Africa Plc Records ‘Digitalising Customs Processes, Infrastructural Devt N2.39B Turnover, Introduces Key to Improving FG’s Revenue From Maritime Sector’ L e a r n A f r i c a e R e a d e r Oluchi Chibuzor “Achieving Effective Digitalization of will be: why then are there so many and licensed Customs agents to make Funmi Ogundare Learn Africa Plc (formerly Longman Nigeria Plc), has recorded a turnover of N2.39 billion for the year ended 31 March 2021, a decrease of 16 per cent from $2.87 billion posted in 2020.

The company also posted a profit before tax of N282.08 million and an operating profit of N161.08 million after accruing N121 million as taxes.

As part of efforts to expand its product portfolio, the organisation, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, has developed an App for the deployment of its e-contents wand made remarkable progress on the complete digitisation of its content, conversion of key titles into videos, and animation of nursery titles.

Chairman, Board of Directors of Learn Africa Plc, Chief Emeke Iwerebon, in a statement explained that during the period under review, business organisations in Nigeria had to cope with the recurring challenges of insecurity, paucity of foreign exchange, deplorable road networks, epileptic power supply and multiplicity of taxes and levies.

He noted that all these were further compounded by COVID-19

global pandemic that strained healthcare facilities, disrupted school activities, and paralysed the entire national economy.

Iwerebon added that the lockdown and other measures instituted by the federal government to contain the virus caused a steep fall in demand for goods and services.

“These measures had a disproportional negative impact on the education sector, as the federal government ordered the closure of all schools across the country to minimise the spread of the virus.

“Although, the COVID-19 restrictions were partially lifted during the latter part of 2020, the educational ecosystem, as we knew it, had been irreparably disrupted, leaving many businesses in palpable fear of a resurgence of the pandemic.

“Apart from the effects of the pandemic on our operations, you may recall that we promised in my last report, to drastically scale down on credit transactions. That promise was kept. We will continue to sustain this new and obviously healthier cash policy in all our future trading cycles.”

Stakeholders in the maritime industry have emphasised the need for the nation’s customs processes to be fully digitalized along with key massive infrastructural development that would ease movement of goods and services out of the port environment.

This, according to them, if adopted, would lead to minimal human contact in the clearing process and cut down the multiple checks of cargoes by customs and other security agencies which breeds corruption within the maritime industry.

This was disclosed at a Town Hall Meeting on the future of Nigeria’s maritime industry with the theme:

Nigeria’s Maritime Industry, “held in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Chairman, Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN), Dr. Vicky Haastrup, said automation improves cargo handling operation and trade flow at the port for port capacity and efficiency.

Delivering her keynote speech titled, “Impact of Automation in Cargo Handling Operation At Our Ports,” said consignees and their agents do not need to be at the port physically with regards to their transactions with terminal operators.

“The question that may readily come to your minds at this point

people visiting the ports daily in connection with their consignments?

Why is the cost of doing business at the port still high? Well, my answer to this question is: Customs processes.

“Despite the tremendous improvements recorded in cargo handling operations and the provision of marine services by NPA, consignees and their agents still face numerous man-made hurdles at the port because cargo clearing processes have remained manual. Customs’ cargo clearing systems in Nigeria, using the words of a former CEO of Nigerian Shippers’ Council Mr. Hassan Bello, have remained archaic,” she said.

She maintained that, “While it has now become possible for importers

their declarations, obtain the PreArrival Assessment Report (PAAR) and pay import duties online, the resort to manual processes from the point of cargo examination creates a huge dent on the drive for port efficiency.”

She remarked that from the point of 100 per cent physical examination of cargoes, the discretionary powers of Customs officers kick in.

President of the League of Maritime Editors and Publishers, Mr. Kingsley Anaroke, said digitalization and new developments in the field of artificial intelligence, blockchain, internet of things (ioT) and automation are becoming increasingly relevant for maritime transportation.

Alakija Drums Govt Support for Young Aspiring Entrepreneurs in Nigeria Foremost Nigerian businesswoman and philanthropist, Apostle Folorunso Alakija has expressed the belief that Nigeria, its economy and people can be transformed through entrepreneurship, while calling on the Country’s State and federal governments to take a more systematic approach to job creation for youths, by supporting their entrepreneurial dreams.

Alakija stated this during the 8th annual African Young Entrepreneurs (A.Y.E) Convention tagged ‘’Un-

employment Summit’’, organized

by African Young Entrepreneurs in collaboration with Ondo State Entrepreneurship Agency (ONDEA) held in Akure, Ondo State.

“If we want our country to take its rightful place in the committee of Nations, we need to involve our youths in decision making, policy creation, strategy development, legislation, corporate governance, and entrepreneurship, ”she said.

In her keynote address, she com-

mended the Ondo State Government, under the leadership of Governor, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (S.A.N.) for the foresight in providing a platform to assist youths in achieving their entrepreneurial dream. Apostle Alakija, who is also the grand matron of A.Y.E. noted that entrepreneurship remains an excellent panacea for youth unemployment and other associated vices. She urged the government and other relevant stakeholders to rise to the occasion by coming up with

favorable policies, interventions and creating an enabling environment for entrepreneurs to thrive.

Also speaking, Special Adviser to the Ondo State Governor on Entrepreneurship Development, Mr. Summy Smart Francis, noted that the summit was organized as part of its commitment to empowering young entrepreneurs by creating platforms that would facilitate trade and promote business ideas among the youths in Nigeria.

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UNVEILING NEW LOGO…

L-R: Company Secretary, Industrial and Medical Gases (IMG) Nigeria PLC, Aderonke Segun-Alabi, Finance Director, Adeshina Alayaki, Managing Director, Ayodeji Oseni, Chairman, Abiodun Alabi, Non-Executive Director. Adebayo Adeleke and Managing Director, TY Holdings, Aminu Ado at Unveiling of new Name and Logo for IMG in Lagos… weekend

Micro Pension Scheme: PFAs Register 72,846 Contributors in 3 Years, Plan Introduction of Incentives Ebere Nwoji Three years into the launch of the micro pension plan (MPP), pension fund operators said they have registered barely 72,846 contributors just as they have resorted to introduction of value addition incentives to encourage more participation in the MPP. The micro Pension plan was officially launched by the president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration on March 29,2019.Since its launch, contrary to the desires and aspirations of the pension sector regulator, the National Pension Commission (PenCom), the micro pension plan has witnessed slow growth.

This is in contrast to the speedy growth witnessed by the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), which had within 17 years of its regime registered over 10 million contributors

and built up N13 trillion assets.

Speaking at the Annual media Parley organised by the umbrella body of pension fund administrators, the Pension Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), Head, Micro Pension Department, PenCom, Mr Dowda Ahmed, said current number of contributors into the micro pension scheme which was approximately 73,000 contributors fall short of the commission’s expectation.

According to him, the commission, had expected more than what it has recorded, adding that the commission had engaged some stakeholders to ensure that the MPP had an enabling environment to thrive He described the Micro Pension Plan as a long-term voluntary financial plan for the provision of pension coverage to the self employed and persons working

BOC Gas Rebrands as IMG, Unveils New Logo, Assures Better Value Sunday Ehigiator Following acquisition of 60 per cent stakes of BOC Gases by TY Holdings, the company has announced the rebranding of its name from the former, to Industrial and Medical Gas Nigeria PLC (IMG), unveiled new company logo, while also assuring its shareholders of better value for their money.

The company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Ayodeji Oseni announced this, over the weekend, at the company’s head office in Lagos State.

According to Oseni, besides, the frontline manufacturer of industrial and medical gases in Nigeria, the company has developed a blueprint to strengthen its global competitiveness on a sustainable basis, irrespective of the nature of the operating environment.

He assured shareholders that the rebranding was a dawn of a new era, as, “the company is more positioned to expand its operations, introduce more innovative products and enhance shareholder value. We are all very excited about the bold and ambitious commitments that have been made by our new investor, the TY Holdings.

“These commitments will lead to additional plant procurement with accompanying facilities, strategic development of manpower, growth and development and business expansion within Nigeria and West Africa to name but a few.

“We shall leverage on our team of seasoned staff with rich industry experience, modern equipment and quality products and services for optimal performance and generate

shareholder value on a sustainable basis, grow our businesses and evolve new products and business opportunities,” Oseni said.

In his welcome address, the Chairman, Mr Abiodun Alabi, explained that the rebranding was necessitated by the Board’s determination to strengthen the company’s operations, following its acquisition of 60 percent stake by TY Holdings “In August this year, The Linde Group sold its controlling ownership of 60 per cent to TY Holdings, a group of companies which has several business interests in various sectors of the Nigerian economy.

“The TY Holding Group is known for astuteness, great vision, and passion to excel in any field that it has presence. The shared vision is to significantly strengthen the number one position of our company in Nigeria and deepen our activities in West Africa.

“Today, as we unveil the new name and logo of our dear company, the collective challenge to all stakeholders is to join hands to endure the success of our new journey.

“The bane of our industry at present is lack of government regulations and standards to ensure that players provide safe and quality products.

I call on the Federal Government to address these challenges without further delay.”

There was likewise an outpour of goodwill messages from shareholders. a prominent shareholder, Sunny Nwosu who congratulated the Board and Management on the historic event and described the rebranding as a great expectation of increased dividend for the shareholders.

under organisations with less than three employees who are mainly in the informal sector.

According to him, the commission had expected more than what it has recorded.

“Yes we are not making so much as expected, a lot of work has been going on to that effect. Our targeted media campaign is coming up, our major challenge is lack of awareness about the products itself and there is need for operators and commission to do more to create awareness.

Stakeholders have been engaged to make sure we have enabling environmental for success, next year, there will be a lot of activities to ensure we drive the Micro Pension plan, “Ahmed assured.

Also speaking, the Managing Director/CEO, Access Pension Fund Custodian, Idu Okwuosa, said that a committee had been set up by the Commission to commence massive campaign next year?

Okwuosa, said the association was working on how to introduce

incentives into the micro pension plan as value addition to contributors.

She said the operators had reached out to some financial service providers, especially insurers to work out measures for adoption of products such as health insurance, term life assurance, loss of job policy amongst others as incentives for their micro pension contributors to improve on the lives and fortune of micro pension subscribers.

According to her, PenOp and the National Pension Commission

(PenCom) desire a better lifestyle for micro pension contributors and are working to see that aside the benefits of retirement and contingency savings, contributors maximise other robust incentives.

On recapitalisation exercise, the Head Surveillance, PenCom, Mr Ehimeme Ohioma disclosed that about 10 PFAs have met the recapitalisation requirement of increasing their minimum capital base to N5 billion in April 2021 as required by the Commission.

FG Reiterates Commitment to Eradicate Malnutrition, Unveils Five-year Action Plan James Emejo in Abuja The Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Agba has said the federal government remained committed to the eradication of malnutrition in the country.

The minister pointed out that although malnutrition is a global challenge, Nigeria currently ranks among the top countries still grappling with the scourge.

Citing the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS 2018), he said the country had about 2.5 million children under the age of five years with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM).

Agba, at a media briefing on the 2021 Nigeria Nutrition Week celebration themed, “Food Systems

Transformation for Healthy Diets and Nutrition”, also launched the National Multi-Sectoral Plan of Action for Food and Nutrition (NMPFAN) 2021 - 2025, The plan was approved by the FEC September 8, 2021 to further achieve the country’s nutrition objectives.

He stressed that”Health is only wealth when our food becomes our medicine and our medicine is our food” adding that undernutrition had irreversible consequences on physical and cognitive development.

He pointed out that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a global negative effect on the economy adding that the health of Nigerians has also had its fair share.

The minister said the challenges

posed by the pandemic had been further accentuated by the impact of climate change and other vices plaguing the country.

This, he said, had resulted in lower incomes and higher prices of food items thereby putting food out of the reach of many Nigerians and thereby undermining the government’s efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 on achieving zero hunger.

Nonetheless, Agba said, in spite of these challenges, the federal government had not relented on its efforts to build, protect the economy and fund the healthcare sector.

He said this year’s theme was carefully selected to further drive home the importance the ministry attaches to nutrition as a prereq-

uisite for national development.

He said the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had at its meeting of November 10, 2021 approved the National Development Plan, (NDP) 2021-2025.

According to him, the plan is a blueprint designed to guide the implementation of government policies and programmes and deliver on the aspirations of the current administration.

He said some of the specific objectives of the plan are to improve GDP growth to 5.0 per cent on average during the plan period, generate 25 million jobs and lift 34 million Nigerians out of poverty.

He also said that NDP had robust participation and input by renowned nutrition experts in the country.

AfCFTA: CILT to Equip Logistic and Transport Operators for Full Participation Gilbert Ekugbe The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) has announced plans to equip operators in the logistics and transport space for full participation in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

Indeed, the institute stated that Nigerian should not only be viewed as the largest market to be exploited by its trade partners bust must also evolve to be the logistics hub on the continent.

The National president CILT, Nigeria, Mfon Ekong Usoro, explained that plans are also ongoing to work with all partners in the industry to drive up the logistics efficiency index for the country.

Usoro at the 2021 CILT fellows and corporate members’ forum in Lagos themed “Optimising opportunities in AfCFTA through logistics and transportation services” said:

“Consequently, starting from 2020, CILT Nigeria will publish a Logistics and Transport Advisory and Forecast on a quarterly basis. Not being a government organization, the CILT Quarterly Advisory will offer independent, objective and constructive assessment of the state of play of the Logistics and Transport industry together with practical and implementable solutions. We will not stop there, CILT with its array of experts including professors and entrepreneurs in every field of logistics and transport will work with government and other stakeholders to put into effect our recommendations.”

According to her, the institute is the leading International Professional body for all sectors of the transport and logistics industry established to promote knowledge of the science and art of logistics and transport to provide a source of authoritative views for communica-

tion to government and industry with over 33,000 members working in over 100 countries.

She noted that the immediate goal of the current council of CILT Nigeria is to transform logistics and transport in Nigeria to align with global and continental trends with a focus on technology, growing domestic capacity and strengthening the regulatory deficit that is a sine qua non for the growth and competitiveness of the industry.

“To this end, we are intensifying efforts to deepen and broaden relationship with Government and key private sector operators for all the modes including educational institutions who partner with us for trainings. We have concluded negotiation of a Memorandum of Agreement with yet another top notch university which will be signed very shortly,” she added.

“We are fully equipped and

well skilled to be of value to your Ministry and the country. We extend similar offers to the Federal Government Ministries and Agencies responsible for aviation, road and pipeline modes of transport.

Though others seem to try to work their way into relevance, we are pleased that the fact shows that it is a Fellow of the CILT that chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee for the finalisation of the National Transport Policy for Nigeria. CILT joins the throngs of Nigerians to urge the Government to issue that Transport Policy document this December,” she said.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transportation, Mrs. Ajani, Magdalene Nwanwuche, stated that operators in the logistic and transport sector must work together to ensure that Nigeria boast of an effective and efficient inter modal transport system using land, rail water and air.

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NGX Set for Launch of Derivatives in Capital Market All ducks now appear to be in a row for the launch of Exchange Traded Derivatives (ETDs) in the Nigerian capital market.

This comes on the back of the official launch of NG Clearing as Central Counterparty (CCP) Clearing House in Nigeria on Thursday, 9 December 2021.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Mr. Temi Popoola, CFA, stated, “I am excited to witness the official launch of NG Clearing and must congratulate its Board and Management for this historic milestone. As a multi-asset

Exchange, NGX recognises the importance of a well-developed Derivatives market, and we have worked hard to put the right regulatory and technology framework in place to support the launch of a standardized Exchange Traded Derivatives (ETDs) market. Our efforts will be further supported

by NG Clearing, the best in class CCP and Clearing House. These are indeed exciting times for the Nigerian capital market and I am excited about the prospect of deepening Africa’s position in the global financial market with the imminent launch of ETDs.”

“The activities of NGX in establishing a vibrant Derivatives market have also focused heavily on capacity building. Being the first line of contact for investors in the capital market, NGX has reiterated that it is imperative that participants who engage in the derivatives business have adequate knowledge of these instruments. As such, The Exchange has organised workshops, webinar and conferences the most recent of which was the 2021 Market Data Workshop with the theme, “How Market Data Powers Investment Strategies Using Derivatives Products, ”he added.

“Taking a cue from NGX, perhaps it would be important to establish the right foundation in explaining what Derivatives are and some of the key elements that are required to successfully trade this asset class. Derivatives are financial instruments most popularly used to reduce or hedge risks, and are also believed to cover downside risks when large exposure exists in a portfolio long on stocks.

Among the different commonly used financial instruments, index derivatives have raised a great deal of attention in researchers around the world.

“Index derivatives exist for all asset classes, and over time their use has grown exponentially for a variety of purposes. The ability to leverage by investing a small amount to gain exposure to a much larger investment is the key benefit of index derivatives. While index futures have a symmetric impact on portfolio returns, index options can have an asymmetric impact.

That said, both are valuable, cost efficient tools for a number of reasons for a portfolio manager, “he said.

Reports from NGX have shown that upon the introduction of ETDs

in the market, index futures will be rolled out in the first year, while other products will follow as the market evolves in line with market readiness and demand.

It would be recalled that NGX recently received approval for seven derivatives contracts from the SEC including the Access Bank Plc Stock Futures, Dangote Cement Plc Stock Futures, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc Stock Futures, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc Stock Futures, Zenith Bank Plc Stock Futures, NGX 30 Index Futures and NGX Pension Index Futures.

CITN Commends Kaduna on Tax Policy, Pledges Support for Improvement Omolabake Fasogbon The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) has hailed Kaduna state government for its several tax reforms and policies in line with tax laws.

President of the institute, Adesina Adedayo while addressing the media in Lagos recently, hailed the effort of the state in harnessing resources at its disposal to drive effective tax administration as well as maximizing tax benefits in the interest of the governed.

He explained that in line with the institute’s recommendations to state governments, and their agencies, the state has been able to advance best practices in revenue administration, which in return has engendered voluntary compliance by taxpayers.

He said, “The institute commends the actions of the state governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai which were in tandem with our position on optimal ways of maximizing fiscal

opportunities in generating non-oil revenue in our fast dwindling oil economy.

“The revenue policy and laws of the state vis-a-vis their systematic cum professional implementation have engendered voluntary tax compliance from taxpayers, thereby creating a model for other state governments to emulate”.

He however charged state to improve the capacity of its tax administrators to enhance competency and service delivery.

He expressed readiness of the Institute to work with the state in the area of capacity building.

He said, “A combination of abundant expertise in the institute and the solid tax administration structure of the Kaduna state government will definitely yield a partnership that works in excellence. The CITN Tax Academy is a blossoming centre of tax excellence available for states and their MDAs to exploit for capacity building in revenue generation and management”

FG, Others Commends International Breweries’ Giant Strides at 50

Oluchi Chibuzor

Notable dignitaries, government, industry giants and stakeholders including Senior Special Assistant to the President on Political Matters, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, who represented the Vice President of Nigeria have commended beverage brewers, International Breweries Plc (IBPLC) on its impact on the Nigerian economy during the company’s 50th Anniversary celebration.

In his welcome address, Managing Director, International Breweries Plc, Hugo Rocha, describing the organisation as ‘a company that dreams big,’ adding that: “Through our transformation dreams, we have been building great brands that have become preferred beers and building our volume through massive investments and expansion of our capacities in our brewing plants. All of these have enabled us to achieve double digit growth over the past three years to become the 2nd largest brewer in Nigeria from a 3rd position.”

“Yes, we are part of a global company, but we are in the same way a very local enterprise. We don’t produce products in other countries to come sell in Nigeria. We produce 100% of our products in the country.

We use mostly local ingredients: we have procured over N77 billion worth of local rice, sorghum, maize, sugar and others in the past three years, thus supporting the agricultural value chain, including our focus on backward integration to support government’s vision in this area.”

Chairman, Board of Directors, International Breweries Plc, His Royal Majesty, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe affirmed the board’s commitment to continuously entrench

the values of strong ethics, with corporate governance as a top priority to build a sustainable organisation that will continue to serve shareholders year-on-year.

Legal & Corporate Affairs Director, International Breweries Plc, Temitope Oguntokun reiterated the company’s commitment to delivering more social and economic impact for all its stakeholders in the coming years.

She stated that “International Breweries is building a company that will improve the society and the environment. In the past 50 years, several millions of naira have been invested in our various social investment initiatives. Across our communities where we have our plants and operations, we have supported the communities with infrastructures such as hospitals, school renovations, provision of potable drinking water, road rehabilitation, responsible drinking programmes and other countless interventions.”

Relaying the goodwill message from the Governor, Ogun State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mrs Kikelomo Longe commended IBPLC, saying, “The inspiring narrative of the company offers powerful lessons in focus, determination, resilience, the indomitable Nigerian spirit, and innovativeness not only for other businesses to emulate but for individuals to imbibe.”

The Lagos State Governor, represented by Commissioner for Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives, Honourable Lola Akande commended International Breweries’ resolute approach for protecting its brand integrity over the years and supporting the government through its impactful social investment initiatives.

R-L: Chike Ogeah, Managing Director, Mac-Folly Hospitality, Ltd, SIFAX Group subsidiary that manages Lagos Marriott Hotel; Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile Yussuf, Commissioner of Tourism, Lagos State; Wunmi Eniola-Jegede, Executive Director, Business Development and Strategic Planning, SIFAX Group and Bashir Bello, Chief Financial Officer, MacFolly Hospitality during the unveiling of its new Asian restaurant- ‘Wakame’ to the public

Advertisers Identify Transparent Evaluation, Global Best Practices as Prerequisites for Awards Raheem Akingbolu The Advertisers Association of Nigeria, (ADVAN) has reacted to the unbridled manner at which stakeholders in the marketing communications industry and called for adherence to global best practices and transparency in the Nigeria’s award and recognition system.

The Executive Secretary of ADVAN, Mrs. Ediri Ose-Ediale, who gave the advice during the recently held 2021 annual award of the sectoral body argued that dishing out awards indiscriminately to brands and marketing practitioners, can only ridicule the sector and turn the country’s business community to a laughing stock.

To this end, Ose-Ediale argued that the industry would be rated higher in global rating if evaluation

and selection process are transparent and meet global best practice and standard that can be accepted anywhere in the world.

She said, “Simply being listed as nominees for an award should be able to improve brand awareness and promote nominees’ businesses to new customers. In the same way, winning an award should be able to open doors to new business and new contacts. In an ideal situation, employees of an awarding company feel better when the company they work on attract recognition. Also staff morale and motivation often improve when a company wins a business award.

“A business award win, short-listing or nomination can act as a 3rd party endorsement for businesses. A win can give a seal of approval to the activities of the company and is a sign of

quality for potential customers, so can form part of the organisation’s sales pitch. It can also help with relationships with suppliers. It’s a great way of differentiating a winning company from competitors and this will send out positive signals to customers,” Speaking on the need to base judgment on laid down best practice parameters, the Executive Director listed; length of service, excellence in performance, leadership qualities, personal accomplishments, team accomplishments and milestones crossed, as some of the qualities to consider white conceptualising awards.

While calling on laurel awarding institutions in Nigeria to follow the exceptional route created by ADVAN, she pointed out that the organisation’s award has become the most celebrated event in the

nation’s marketing communications industry because those awarded are only presented after a transparent exercise based on laid down best practice parameters.

“The Judging Panel comprises the most respected members of the marketing communications profession. An ADVAN award is not just given, it is earned”, she said.

The theme for this year’s ADVAN Awards for Marketing Excellence West Africa is “Future Fit Marketing” and the event will be held at Muson Center, Onikan Lagos.

The keynote speaker for the 2021 awards ceremony is Adia Sowho, Chief Marketing Officer MTN Nigeria while Tokologo Phetla -Creator ‘Christopher’ Artificial Intelligence Software will serve as Special Contributor.

‘UK Civil Aviation Authority Never Blacklisted Med-View Airline’ Chinedu Eze The management of Med-View Airline has debunked reports that its operation was blacklisted by the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority (UKCAA), insisting that it was not true.

The airline explained that

its four weekly frequencies to Gatwick London International Airport remained, but it only suspended operations on the route.

The management explained that as at the time it commenced the route in November 2015, it was operating its Boeing 767300ER aircraft until European

Union Aviation Safety Inspector (EASA) observed some safety issues, which lead the management to settle for a B777-200 aircraft leased from Euro Atlantic Airlines.

After a few period of operation, the aircraft developed technical issues and failed to meet Med-View Airline operational

standards, which intimated the “suspension of our operation to London.”

Last week EASA had erroneously included Med-View Airline among the carriers that were blacklisted by it despite the fact that the Nigerian carrier ceased operations to Europe over two years ago.

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T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021

HOMES&DESIGN Bank of the North Skyscraper’s Transformation into Skyline University Tower

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HOMES&DESIGN

Skyline University’s Tower: The Northern Star in the Sky The former headquarters building of the defunct Bank of the North, located in Kano, was built as an enduring with all the trimmings of elegance. When financial trade stopped in the building, crack investors discerned it would be counterproductive to let the lovely building go to waste. Skyline University, the first privately-owned citadel of learning, moved in and kept the building’s respect alive like a northern star constantly shining in the sky. Bennett Oghifo writes

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he former Bank of the North building, now Skyline University Tower, is a sheer masterpiece, from design to rendition.

The 23-floor tower jots into the sky, with breathtaking, panoramic vista, leaving many with fixated gaze on the sky-sensation in Kano.

The tower built in the middle of the 1980s remains the tallest building in northern Nigeria. It is located on Zaria Road, serving as a lingering landmark, effervescent stature, and

enduring as a masterpiece. It also serves as a beacon for travellers approaching Kano City from southern Nigeria.

According to existing documentation, the iconic building, standing where the famed Kano groundnut pyramids once stood, was designed by Architects, Ella & Waziri Associates that transformed to M. T. Waziri & Associates.

The tower’s new occupant, Skyline University, is an affiliate of Skyline University College of the

University City of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, established in 1990. The Kano version became operational in July 2018.

Also, the Bank of the North came highly placed. It was a Nigerian commercial bank established in 1959 and was a partnership between some Lebanese businessmen and the Northern Region Development Corporation but was later administered by the northern states. The bank reportedly started with a share

capital of £12,500 and opened its first branches in Kano and Kaduna.

When it was independently run, the bank was known for providing advances to agriculture-related endeavours. With a recapitalisation exercise in 2005, it merged with a few other banks to form Unity Bank of Nigeria.

Reports have it that in the 1970s and 1980s, the bank was one of the top three indigenous banks in the country, and in the early 1990s, it was one of the top10 banks in lending.

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HOMES&DESIGN

Less Is More

– Minimalism and the healing powers of clutter-free space

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hite Space is an integral part of design, and for good reason.

Aesthetic benefits are certainly an advantage, but there are a lot of other tangible and intangible positive effects of leaving a bit of negative space between design elements and objects and allowing them – and you – to breathe.

Minimalistic design encourages the use of white space and is in design terms, the practice of the ‘less is more’ principle. While many may associate minimalism with the absence of colour or adornment (resulting in the design of spaces that are stark and austere), at the heart of minimalism is the desire to create a backdrop that allows for significant pieces to stand out.

Minimalistic design supports the wellness goal by removing the unnecessary to create beautiful spaces that encourage a life of intent and well-being and focus on the few things that really spark joy and add value.

“Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it.” — Joshua Becker. In other words, design of a life of less; and more. Less of what we do not love and more of what you do. A home designed with minimalism in mind will contribute to increasing happiness by placing value on simplicity and quality over clutter.

It is no secret that that the practice of de-cluttering our living space is therapeutic in many ways. The act of eliminating in itself, is therapeutic but in addition to that, the way we feel when we walk into a space that has intentionally been kept clutter-free and minimalist can be quite uplifting and there are proven links between a happy mind and a happy body.

Benefits of de-cluttering your physical space include less stress and anxiety, more inner peace and self-confidence, and improved health habits such as better sleep, clarity of thought and calmness. A clutter-free space also contributes to well-being, by promoting subconsciously the feeling of a stronger level of self-care in space users. Minimalism can also help tackle deeper emotional issues that hoarding clutter could potentially

be covering up. Research has also shown that removing clutter can reduce confusion and disorientation among older adults with dementia.

Many Nigerian homes and offices are cluttered and filled with unnecessary pieces that can lead to an atmosphere of disorganization, imbalance and turmoil. This can be a real barrier to a functional and

productive space. Clutter is a known source of anxiety which can impair the well-being of the people who inhabit and use these spaces.

As we swing into the festive season, this is the perfect time to take a look at our physical spaces, spend some time eliminating things we do not need and focusing on the things we love. In the famous

words of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

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BUSINESSSPECIAL

Editor: Obinna Chima obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08024557078

Making Banks Safer Basel III regulations are expected to allow greater financial sector stability as well as allow investors to focus more on institutional risks, writes Obinna Chima

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here is a general consensus that a resilient banking sector is a necessary condition for achieving sustained economic growth.

This is because financial instability, contracting credit and falling confidence are seriously damaging for any economy.

Clearly, a stable financial system is capable of efficiently allocating resources, assessing and managing financial risks, maintaining employment levels close to the economy’s natural rate, and eliminating relative price movements of real or financial assets that will affect monetary stability or employment levels.

“If a country’s banking system is in bad shape at the outset of a recession, the downturn will likely be worse,” Ben Bernanke, former Chair of the Federal Reserve of the United States, wrote in his memoir.

According to a World Bank report, during a period of stability, the system absorbs shocks primarily via self-corrective mechanisms, preventing adverse events from having a disruptive effect on the real economy or on other financial systems.

Financial stability is paramount for economic growth, as most transactions in the real economy are made through the financial system.

It is therefore essential that Basel III, the strengthened framework of international standards for bank capital adequacy and liquidity developed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) is implemented fully and in a timely manner.

According to a report by the Bank of Canada, Basel III is a fundamental component of the G-20’s financial reform agenda.

It raises the bar relative to the prudential framework that was in effect before the global financial crisis in several important ways.

“In particular, by placing common equity at the core of the capital requirements and imposing standards to ensure that the other types of capital instruments allowed are truly loss absorbing, Basel III greatly enhances the quality of capital.

“It also introduces many innovative safeguards that were not previously part of supervisors’ tool kits,” it added.

Basel III was introduced in response to the 2008/2009 global financial crisis, given that the global financial crisis resulted in unprecedented losses and severely hurt the global financial system.

Prior to the regulation, there had been Basel II and Basel II frameworks.

While Basel I was designed to enhance understanding of key supervisory issues and improve the quality of banking supervision across countries,

Basel II accord primarily focused on financial soundness as well as to enhance banks’ risk measurement and management capabilities In Nigeria, the central bank in September 2021, issued a circular to all banks on Basel III implementation.

In the circular, the central bank had stated that the regulation was to address banks’ capital adequacy, stress testing, market liquidity risk as well as improve the regulatory framework for the banking industry.

The implementation of the regulation last year was deferred due to the outbreak of the pandemic.

“Finally, all banks are to note that capital add-on will be introduced in a phased manner as part of the overall supervisory process of Pillar II assessment to enhance better risk management practices and better align their capital with their risk profiles,” the CBN had stated in the circular.

The upcoming regulation is expected to see banks beef up their capital. In recent time, we have seen some of the commercial bank issue Eurobond to strengthen their financial position.

ANALYSTS’ EXPECTATIONS

To analysts at Renaissance Capital Limited (RenCap), an international research and financial advisory company, with Basel III policy, some of Nigeria’s tier-2 and tier-3 banks might opt for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in order to strengthen their capital positions.

The Director, Frontier/ Sub-Saharan Africa Banks and Fintech, Renaissance Capital, Mr. Adesoji Solanke explained: “There’s room for M&A and we think it would be between tier-two and tier-three banks, because now they’re even much smaller in the grand scheme of things.”

Also, analysts at Afrinvest (West) Africa Limited noted that the adoption of Basel 111 would also strengthen Nigerian banks’ stressed capital level, improve capital quality (as risk levels are reduced with the exposure restriction) and maintain a strong liquidity position.

According to the firm, after successfully implementing Basel II, the phased implementation of Basel III commenced last month after the delay that was occasioned by the pandemic.

The phased implementation requires a parallel run of Basel II and III for six months with a possible three-month extension and a transition to full implementation if banks

perform satisfactorily.

However, it noted that the development would not be appreciated by banks with low capital requirement.

It added: “As highlighted by the CBN, adoption of Base III requires Nigerian banks to strengthen their current capital adequacy, liquidity, and leverage positions.

“Accordingly, banks are required to hold a capital conservation buffer of 1.0 per cent in addition to the minimum Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of 15.0 per cent (international) and 10.0 per cent (national) with an additional one per cent of common equity capital for higher loss absorbency for Domestic Systemically Important Banks (DSIBs), in the form of common equity capital.”

According to Afrinvest, for liquidity measure, banks are to maintain liquidity coverage ratio (LCR- a stock of high-quality liquid assets (HQLA) that is at least equal to total net cash outflows) of at least 100.0 per cent on an on-going basis.

Similarly, it observed that liquidity monitoring tools were introduced and includes contractual maturity mismatch, concentration of funding, available unencumbered assets, LCR by significant currency and market-related monitoring tools.

Beyond the Basel III, one of the global rating agencies, Standard and Poor’s (S&P), predicted that private sector credit in Nigeria would range between 15 and 18 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) before 2023.

Private sector credit to GDP in Nigeria stood at 13 per cent as of the third quarter of 2020.

Also, the rating agency estimated that banking sector loan growth would average around 20 per cent through 2023, while the sector’s non-performing loan (NPL) ratio was expected to increase to seven per cent in 2021, compared with a reported 5.7 per cent in June 2021, as regulatory forbearance measures have ended for most loans.

“We forecast real loan growth to average nine per annum over the next 12-24 months, reflecting a moderate economic recovery and higher oil prices. The growth is much higher in nominal terms because of the potential naira depreciation,” it added.

In addition, it stated that banks have continued to focus on loan recoveries despite the weak

operating environment and close monitoring of their restructured loans.

Due to macroeconomic shocks, it predicted that the banking sector was exposed to short credit cycles and high credit risks because of the country’s reliance on oil and its sensitivity to currency depreciation and high inflation.

“Overall, earnings growth is likely to slow down because of higher impairments in 2021-2022 and the AMCON levy (to fund bank clean-ups in 2010),” it added.

To the Group Chief Financial Officer, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, Mr. Ayo Adepoju, considering the present condition in the banking industry, there is need for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to review its current Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) which is pegged at 27.5 per cent.

Adepoju explained: “The cash reserve requirement policy of the central bank is very massive, in terms of its impact on liquidity in the market.

“So, you see more of the liquidity sitting with the central bank, earning zero per cent. And when you have an industry average of cash reserve requirements over 40 per cent, that is the highest in any part of the globe as most of the markets have cash reserve either at five per cent or 10 per cent, 12 per cent or 13 per cent.

“Never would you see cash reserve going to 40 per cent threshold. I understand the perspective of the central bank trying to manage excess liquidity in the market, but at the same time, it is important to ensure that the banking industry has sufficient liquidity to power through growth in the market,” he added.

Commenting further on Basel III regulation, Deloitte, a professional services firm, noted that it may not be a panacea, and may not alone restore stability to the financial system and prevent future financial crisis.

However, it pointed out that the implications of the new regulation include systemic, operational and tactical.

In addition, because of the regulation, due to better controlled leverage and liquidity, banks would be stronger, more resilient and safer.

The returns as given by returns on equity (ROE) and other measures would be lower, but the cost of borrowing may also drop. With lower returns coupled with the loss of confidence in the banking sector, investors have to accept a new paradigm and tradeoff of returns for safety.

Lower return may impact ability to raise fresh capital required under Basel III.

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BUSINESS SPECIAL

PERSPECTIVE

Understanding FMBN’s Rent-to-Own Housing Product John Terhemen Ikyaave

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enry Edet Bassey is a senior staff of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA).

He lives in Abuja and has been a consistent contributor to the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme since 2013.

The federal government established the NHF scheme in 1992 to mobilise funds for the provision of affordable residential houses for Nigerians. The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) administers and manages the fund as a source of long-term finance to power the Bank’s affordable suite of housing products.

Contributors to the NHF scheme can apply for FMBN housing loans after six months of consecutive contributions of 2.5 per cent of their monthly income.

In 2021, a happy and fulfilled Bassey received the keys to a three-bedroom flat at the ABSI Estate, an FMBN funded estate located in Kuje, an area council in the Federal Capital Territory, about 40 km southwest of Abuja. Although the property has a market valuation of about N9million, Mr. Bassey, as a contributor to the NHF scheme, did not need to pay any upfront fees, down payment, or mortgage perfection fees to take ownership of the building.

He is to pay and own the property in monthly rental payments at a seven per cent interest rate per annum until he retires from service or hits the 60-year age. He also can liquidate the facility anytime he has the financial capacity to do so.

For Bassey and his family, participation in the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme has made their transition to homeownership possible.

“It is a good experience; I may say it is fantastic. This is because it provided an unusual opportunity for a Civil Servant like me to own a house at terms that are so convenient. I want to use this medium to thank this government for this unique and wonderful opportunity given me and my fellow Nigerians,” exclaimed an elated Bassey.

“The process was pretty straightforward for me. FMBN asked me to provide letters from my organization which I did, and they also prepared a Memorandum of Understanding between my organization and FMBN, which we executed. I feel great.

I am a lot more organized now that I live in my own home, and I thank the FMBN for making this possible for me and other Nigerians. I encourage other Nigerians to always be patient in following up things with the FMBN. Patience is a very key point.”

Like Bassey, an increasing number of Nigerians are benefitting from the FMBN Rent-to-Own Housing Product, one of the latest additions to the Bank’s portfolio of affordable housing windows. The innovative, affordable housing product provides an easy and convenient payment plan towards homeownership for contributors to the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme.

Another good example is Mohammed Tawakalitu, a grade level 10 civil servant with the FCT Secondary Education Board in Abuja. He is a proud owner of a threebedroom flat at Anthem Estate, an FMBN funded housing community located in Gwagwalada, an Abuja suburb, under the FMBN rent-to-own window. He started his homeownership journey by registering and consistently contributing to the National Housing Fund (NHF) scheme.

“Although I have been contributing to the NHF scheme for over nine years, I only applied for the FMBN rent-to-own product in 2019. The terms sounded too good to be true, so I was pleasantly surprised that my application went through successfully, and I am now a proud owner of a three-bedroom flat. I feel so good, and I thank the FMBN for introducing this product. The monthly payment terms are flexible and convenient. The worries and troubles of staying in a rented apartment are history now. I advise other Nigerians looking to own their homes to register and contribute to the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme to take advantage of

Dangiwa

this product,” Mohammed explained.

RENT-TO-OWN: KEY TO HOUSING AFFORDABILITY One of Nigeria’s greatest long-term development challenges has been providing citizens with access to decent housing.

Access to affordable housing can have a significant impact on a person’s well-being.

A safe, secure home can improve health, hygiene, and educational opportunities by ensuring access to clean water, safe toilets, electricity, and a respite from heat and disease-spreading insects.

At the core of this challenge is affordability. Experts agree that housing affordability is a function of three things: household income, the price of the house, and the terms of the finance.

Despite rapid urbanisation and increased demand for affordable housing and housing finance, interventions by the government are limited and inadequate. Due to low incomes, most low and middle-income households have minimal resources to spend on housing. Thus, they are forced to spend years living in poor or unfinished houses or renting with little hope of saving enough money to build or buy their own home.

Recent research finds that food expenditures alone account for 50–60 percent of total monthly spending for many households, which leaves very little housing or other necessities such as fuel, transportation, education, or health care.

Housing affordability is a function of three things: household income, the price of the house, and the terms of the finance.

Affordable housing typically means market-quality formal housing that can be consumed by households that cannot afford the typical market price. In developed countries, housing is considered “affordable” if families spend no more than 30 percent of income on rent or mortgage service plus other housing costs.

In Nigeria, there are challenges at several levels. From low incomes to housing supply deficits and sub-optimal government interventions, a weak housing finance system, the capacity to afford decent

accommodation is a preserve of the top few.

And this is why the FMBN Rent to Own housing window is so significant. It is a timely and necessary intervention to tackle the housing affordability challenge in Nigeria. The housing window enables eligible contributors to the NHF to move into FMBN homes located nationwide as tenants without having to cough out any upfront payments that only a few can afford. It also allows beneficiaries the convenience to pay for and own the properties through monthly or yearly rent payments that could be spread over periods of up to 30-years.

Like other FMBN housing products, the rent-to-own housing window is available to Nigerians who contribute to the National Housing Fund scheme at a single-digit interest rate of 7% on the property price per annum.

FMBN: COMMITMENT TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING DELIVERY The combination of affordable terms, including rental payments, zero equity payments, single-digit interest rates, and the 30-year payment plan, depending on an applicant’s age and the number of years in service, makes the FMBN rentto-own housing window a great enhancer of housing affordability.

Indeed, the FMBN Management Team developed the rent-to-own housing product as a strategic response to the inability of low-income contributors to the National Housing Fund (NHF) scheme to meet the 10 to 30 percent equity down payment requirement for accessing the NHF Mortgage loan. This included a 10 per cent down payment for loans of up to N5 million; 20 per cent down payment for loans above N5 million to N10 million; and 30 per cent for loans above N10 million to N15 million.

“We developed the rent-to-own housing product based on the situation we found on the ground when we assumed office in 2017.

The results of our operations showed that most contributors to the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme and beneficiaries of

the NHF mortgage loan could not pay the equity requirement. Even after we reviewed the down payment requirement, which ranged from 10 to 30 per cent when we came on board to a maximum of ten percent, several beneficiaries still could not pay up,” remarked Arc. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, the FMBN MD/CEO. The rent-to-own product eliminates the need for a down payment. Beneficiaries can move into an FMBN funded home and pay in monthly installments to own their property, thus marking a remarkable improvement in affordability.

“We knew, therefore, that if we are going to make an impact, we would need to be innovative, and the rent to own seemed a perfect fit given the reality of the low earning capacity of the average Nigerian worker.

“With this product, contributors to the National Housing Scheme can benefit from the strength of their subscription and the fact that they work and earn an income which empowers them to pay gradually over a long time to own their homes,” Dangiwa, a firm believer in revamping FMBN’s products to suit the income levels of low to medium-income earners said.

The rent-to-own product is an excellent addition to FMBN’s efforts to make access to homeownership easier for Nigerians. It should encourage more low- and mediumincome earners in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy to register and contribute to the National Housing Fund Scheme so they too can have a path to becoming landlords.

FMBN: Financing Construction of Affordable Housing Stock It is also significant that the FMBN has ready and existing housing stock to drive off-take. The Bank is also collaborating with reputable property developers and financing the construction of additional affordable housing units nationwide to boost housing stock availability further to ensure the sustainability of the rent-to-own housing window. Research shows that the houses that the FMBN is financing are specifically designed to fit the income profile of low- and medium-income Nigerians.

They comprise one, two-to-three-bedroom apartments and bungalows with prices that range from N4 million to N15 million.

FMBN’s two-pronged approach to housing delivery touches two key sides to the housing equation: demand and supply. First, by lowering the housing affordability bar using the rent-to-own product, FMBN enhances effective housing demand by Nigerians. Second, by financing the construction of fit-for-income decent and quality housing stock for off-take, FMBN is also promoting sustainable housing supply for those most in need and financially disadvantaged.

This trend reflects the commitment to performance and a renewed drive to create impact in line with the Bank’s mandate by the current Management Team.

Over the past four years, the FMBN has leveraged the National Housing Fund (NHF) and empowered 5,774 Nigerians with long-term housing loans to own their dream homes. The Bank provided home renovation loans to 75,455 beneficiaries and financed 12,114 affordable housing units nationwide.

Powering this positive shift in the narrative of the FMBN is a refreshing spirit of reform. The apex Mortgage Bank, under the leadership of Dangiwa has revamped legacy mortgage products and developed innovative new ones in a bid to ensure that low- and medium-income earners have a good chance to own their homes at a price they can afford.

Given the importance of housing to life, the worrying housing deficit, and the reality that most Nigerians lack the earning power to save and build homes, FMBN’s introduction of the rent-to-own product is a timely social housing intervention.

It should be sustained and scaled as an institutional path to homeownership for low and medium-income Nigerians. t *LZBBWF JT B IPVTJOH QPMJDZ BOBMZTU CBTFE JO "CVKB

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

CITYSTRINGS

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

Boosting Trade in Katsina through Road Projects The Katsina State Governor, Aminu Bello Masari, has embarked on various road projects not just to better the lives of the citizens but to boost the economic activities of the agrarian state- both farm produce and livestock for which the state is widely known, writes Francis Sardauna.

The rehabilitated Tama-Bindawa-Charanchi road

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t is a well-known fact that the challenges of good road network and functional infrastructure has remained one of the biggest predicaments besetting Nigerians both at the cities and in the villages, with villages and other rural areas being the worst hit.

Available statistics paint what could mildly be described as a gloomy picture of the situation as far as road construction, especially in rural and semi-urban areas, is concerned.

Pundits argued that having a good road network linking major towns and villages, along with other critical infrastructures like light, water and sound healthcare delivery systems in towns and villages, will undoubtedly reduce to the barest minimum, the rising incidence of rural-urban migration.

Katsina State, like most other states of the federation, especially those of the North western region of Nigeria, is mostly agrarian with large livestock that needs good markets, roads, electricity and potable water for meaningful development to thrive.

As should be expected, having an effective and well-connected network of roads that links the various communities was seen as the needed impetus to boost trade in farm produce and even the livestock for which the state is widely known.

Perhaps, the realisation of this, and consciousness of the fact that effective land transportation, in which good roads are a driving factor, contributes in no small measure to boosting the economy was what informed the Katsina State government’s investment in the road infrastructures.

The government is not only focusing on new infrastructure but also on the rehabilitation of existing assets and the completion of longstanding projects that have failed to gain traction under previous governments. It can hardly be disputed and bears repeating that Katsina’s infrastructure deficit has been one of the biggest factors holding back growth and development.

But the pragmatic government of Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, under its philosophy of people-oriented policies and programmes, has constructed numerous road networks to ease the movement of people and goods in all nooks and crannies of Katsina State.

A closer look at such roads infrastructure shows that the incumbent administration has expended the whooping sum of N7.106 billion on the completion of 13 road projects it inherited from the previous Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration of Ibrahim Shehu Shema.

The inherited projects, which cut across the three senatorial zones of the state, are Dandume-Kadisau-Daudawa road, Marabar Sayaya-Sayaya-Mazoji road, Eka-Kadandani-Kuraye-Yargamji road and Dankaba-Abdallawa-Jifatu road.

Other roads which were abandoned but received facelift by the Masari-led government include, Tsanni-Tsauri road, Batagarawa-Tashar Bala-Lambar Rim-Tsegoro road, Unguwar Lalle-Unguwar Waziri road, Funtua BCGA Dry Port dual carriageway, Funtua township roads, Nagogo-Yahaya Madaki road and Sandamu-Baure-Babban Mutum road.

The compassionate administration of Governor Masari has also awarded and completed new road projects to ease the transportation difficulties hitherto been experienced in the state. The new road projects are; Gora-Makauraci-Mallamawa-Gamzago road, 40 kilometers; Marabar-Sayaya-SayayaMazoji-Tashar Icce road, 24 kilometers; Dayi-Tuga-Gangule-Gundawa-Wawar-Kasa road, 28 kilometers.

Other new road projects include, FagoKatsayal-Jirdede-Kwasarawa-Koza road, 38 kilometers; Kwanar-Sabke-Dan'auni-Ruwan Kaya-Dutsi road, 22 kilometers; RandaDogoro-Gallu-Sonkaya-Kwanargwanti road, 30 kilometers; Dutsinma-TsaskiyaBabbanduhu-Kukarsamu road, 50 kilometers; Yandaki-Gafia-Abdallawa-Dankaba road, 31 kilometers; Tudunbala-Kandarawa road, 3.5 kilometers and Gurjiya-Karkarku road, 11.2 kilometers.

Likewise, the administration of Governor Aminu Bello Masari has undertaken road infrastructural development in other parts of the state which include the asphalting of Sandamu-Rogogo-Baure-Babban Mutum road, 75 kilometers. The government also surface dressing the Kankara-ZangoDansabau road, 24 kilometers; Marabar Musawa-Gingin-Tabanni road, 19 kilometers; Kafur-Gaurai-Bugawa-Sabon Layi-Kagara-

Mahuta road, 28 kilometers; KankiaDangamau-Kusada road, 16.6 kilometers and Rimaye-Sukuntuni-Karaduwa road, 20.8 kilometers.

The rehabilitation of Tudun IyaMaska-Dandume road (37 kilometers), Dandume-Sabuwa road (40 kilometers), Batsari-Jibia road (40 kilometers), Dannakola-Rijiyar Tsamiya-Fago road (27 kilometers), Katsina-Kaita-Dankama road, Dankama-Duma-Brumbrum road as well as Zango-Rogogo road, is ongoing and the roads are at advanced stages of completion.

To facilitate economic growth, commerce and trading activities in Katsina, the state capital, the Masari administration aside the township roads and drainages constructed to avert flooding in the ancient city, has commenced the construction of N5.8 billion interchange (underpass) projects at Kofar Kaura and Kofar Kwaya.

The two first-of-its kind projects which are awarded to Traicta Construction Company, are expected to be completed within 12 months. The Kofar Kaura underpass is awarded at the cost of N2,906,277,281.25 while that of Kofar Kwaya is at the cost of N2,808,076,031.25.

Speaking during the groundbreaking of the projects, Governor Masari, said 70 per cent of the N5.8 billion has been paid to the contractor handling the project. He said: "The contractor of these two particular projects would have no excuse because already we had paid in advance 70 per cent of the total cost".

He added that, "And we had made adequate provision that if the contractor can perform magic and finish these projects in one day, he will have his remaining money ready for him.

"My appeal to the contractor and the consultant is about quality of work, especially draining water from the roads because this is very important for the roads to last longer and be beneficial to the people of Katsina

As should be expected, having an effective and well-connected network of roads that links the various communities was seen as the needed impetus to boost trade in farm produce and even the livestock, for which the state is widely known

state".

He expressed his administration's determination and commitment to provide all the needed and indeed, conducive environment for business to thrive in all nook and cranny of the state.

According to him, "Since a good road network is one of such conditions necessary to boost economic activities, the government will not rest on its oars to provide roads linking all our towns and villages” Governor Masari has said.

The governor explained that the state government had spent over N5 billion for the provision of drainage to tackle erosion within the Katsina metropolitan area.

Also speaking at the event, the State Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transports, Tasi'u Musa Dandagoro, explained that the two interchange projects would gulf N5.8 billion.

He said: "When we came in 2015, we met quite a number of uncompleted projects inherited from the previous administration of Ibrahim Shehu Shema, in the road sector alone, the administration inherited 13 number road projects where we spent a total of N7.106 billion for the completion of the inherited projects in the state".

On his part, the Project Engineer of TRIACTA Nigeria. Mr. Sadeq, assured the governor and people of the state that his company will execute quality jobs on the first Katsina city interchanges and complete the projects on or even before the timeframe of 12 months.

Meanwhile, the Katsina State road projects which are part of the overall rural and urban development efforts of the Masari's government have continued to play a significant role in opening the state and boosting economic sustainability and intra state transportation as residents now have an array of choices to make as far as roads are concerned.

A famous American actress, Lily Tomlin once said “The road to success is always under construction”. Indeed, Tomlin’s supposition aptly captures the finished and in some cases, ongoing road construction efforts by the Katsina state government.

Findings by THISDAY revealed that scores of communities, most of which were hitherto impassable with vehicles, now have good road networks linking them with their neighbours and by implication, the outside world. Increasingly, more rural roads are being constructed through the rural development efforts just as urban roads are being upgraded.

Therefore, the development by the Masari administration has highly impacted positively on villages and communities across the three senatorial zones of Katsina, Daura and Funtua in the state.

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

CRIME&SECURITY

Intensifying Efforts to Tackle Prevalence of Female Genital Mutilation Kemi Olaitan reports that despite measures and gains recorded to tackle Female Genital Mutilation, the practice is still prevalent in some states of the federation

F

emale Genital Mutilation (FGM) or circumcision is an old traditional practice whereby invasive and painful surgical procedure is performed without anesthetic on the girl-child before puberty.

Despite civilisation, it's still being practiced in parts of Nigeria, making it one of the 27 countries in Africa where FGM is still being celebrated. To circumcise, the prepuce of the girl-child is removed and the clitoris may be partially or completely removed.

For most communities where this is practiced, beliefs, attitudes, and misconceptions are some of the reasons why. According to their erroneous belief, uncircumcised women are either promiscuous, unclean and unmarriageable, amongst other unproven factors.

Survey A survey, funded by the United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence against Women (UN Trust Fund), on the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), in Oyo, Osun and Ekiti States, has revealed that in spite of the gains that have been made in the reduction of the practice, its prevalence in the three states is still significant.

The report of the survey, which was carried out under ‘The StopCut Project’, of the HACEY Health Initiative, a development organisation focused on improving the health and productivity of vulnerable and underserved populations in Africa, said the result has indicated the need for intensified efforts towards the abandonment of the practice.

The StopCut Project Lead, Miss Oluwatomi Olunuga, presented the report at Ibadan Business School, to commemorate this year’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, which also featured launch of various publications and a video documentary on FGM. The event brought together high-level representatives from United Nations agencies, the European Union, government ministries, non-governmental organisations, media houses, and other key stakeholders to engage participants towards amplifying the End FGM messages, advocacy, and campaign activities carried out by stakeholders as well as increase awareness on the prevalence of FGM. Findings According to the report, “the prevalence of this practice reflects the number of people who were circumcised at the time of this raid. It also reflects the extent of FGN and calls for interventions to be implemented

End Female Genital Mutilation

to reduce the practice’s continuation.

Our study revealed that over 50 per cent of women of child-bearing age in the three project states – Osun (76.8 per cent), Oyo (51.8 per cent) and Ekiti (52.6 per cent), have been mutilated.

“The findings from Oyo and Ekiti States reveal a 3.3 per cent and 10 per cent reduction in the prevalence of the practice, compared to the 20162017MICS study. However, there was a nine per cent increase in prevalence of FGM in Osun State in comparison.

While gains have been made in the reduction of the practice of FGM, the prevalence in the three states remains significant, indicating the need for intensified efforts towards the abandonment of this practice.”

The StopCut Project also delved

Photo credit: Google

into the prevalence of FGM among girls that are below 14 years, revealing that more than a third of women in the study areas had a mutilated child, which represents an increase of more than 10 per cent in recent FGM practice “when compared to the 2016-2017MICS study.”

The study further showed that 37.7 per cent of girls of age zero to 14 years in Osun, 43.4 per cent in Ekiti, 31 per cent in Oyo have been mutilated, revealing that majority of the girls less than 15 years were circumcised between zero and five months of age, Ekiti has 86.1 per cent, Osun has 82.2 per cent, and Oyo has 93.9 per cent while for those circumcised between six months and five years, Osun has 17.8 per cent, Ekiti has 13.9 per cent, and Oyo has 6.1 per cent.

While gains have been made in the reduction of the practice of FGM, the prevalence in the three states remains significant, indicating the need for intensified efforts towards the abandonment of this practice

Unveiling Perpetrators The study also sought to know the perpetrators of the FGM and the findings revealed that traditional circumcisers known as ‘Oloola’ in Yorubaland, healthcare practitioners and traditional birth attendants have been responsible for the practice till date.

“The study asked women with mutilated female children who performed the procedure; findings corroborated recent trends with the major perpetrators of FGM in the study, being traditional circumcisers, followed by healthcare practitioners. In Ekiti State, 31.5 per cent of the recent practice was conducted by health practitioners, while 37.6 per cent was performed by traditional circumcisers, and 23 per cent by traditional birth attendants.

It read in part, “Also, in Osun State, 60.6 per cent of recent cutting was performed by traditional circumcisers, while 32.5 per cent were performed by health practitioners, and 4.4 per cent by traditional birth attendants. Oyo State also showed that 67 per cent was performed by traditional circumcisers, 11.9 per cent by healthcare practitioners, and 19.7 per cent by traditional birth attendants."

NNS Delta Releases Impounded Oil Vessel to Owner in Delta Sylvester Idowu in Warri

In line with the directive of the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awaal Gambo, the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta recently handed over the impounded MT RF ALICE vessel to the owner, ABC Maritime.

MT RF ALICE was impounded by naval operatives about three months ago on Koko River over alleged infractions but the naval headquarters ordered her release after investigations and cautioned the operators.

The vessel was handed over to ABC Maritime in Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of the state.

The Executive Officer (EO) of the NNS Delta, Navy Captain Levi Deyin released the vessel on behalf of the Commander, NNS Delta, Commodore Abdulhamid Baba-Inna.

Deyin said the vessel was seized on September 7, 2021 on the Koko river by the naval personnel and that her release was sequel to approval from the naval headquarters after the case had been concluded.

"Based on court order and directives from the naval headquarters, MT RF ALICE that

The Vessel, MT RF ALICE released to the owner by NNS Delta, recently

was arrested and detained is being released to the owner."

He however warned the company to desist from all forms of illegalities

in the maritime domain.

Mr Abel Glamar, representative of the company received the vessel on behalf of the organisation.

Recall that NNS Delta had on November 17, 2021, also released MT Madam Esther to her owner, Snow White Energy Ltd at the Warri Naval Base.

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MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ DECEMBER 13, 2021

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

SEC Pledges Collaboration With Stakeholders to Reduce Housing Deficit Kayode Tokede The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has pledged to collaborate with relevant stakeholders on real estate investments in a bid to bring about a reduction in the housing deficit in the country.

Director General of the SEC, Mr. Lamido Yuguda made the pledge during a meeting with the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers in Abuja on Wednesday.

Yuguda stated that the SEC values the service that NIESV provides to the capital market and the nation, adding that there is a large room for greater collaboration between the Commission and the Institution.

According to him, “There is a renewed focus on Real Estate Investment Trust now, we are getting to see how the sector contributes more to our GDP

by facilitating the trading of assets in the real estate sector. I think there is a huge room for collaboration, you have a very big role in the real estate sector “Nigeria’s population is growing fast and we need everyone in Nigeria to have a roof over their heads. We do not want people to end their careers living in rented accommodation, people need to own their own houses because there is a lot of security and social value in owning your own house.

“You are very important as you operate in an area that is very important to our economy.

You have a crucial role to play in the capital market especially as we focus on the Real Estate Investment Trust sector. You also have a huge role to play in the larger housing sector as at the moment we have not been able to harness the full potentials in that sector”.

The SEC DG disclosed that the Commission values the services that the association provides to the nation and the capital market adding that there is room for collaboration between the Commission and NIESV so that the housing sector can contribute more to GDP as well as grow the economy.

Earlier in his remarks, Chairman Association of Capital Market Valuers Mr Chudi Ubosi stated that determining the values of assets of organizations in the capital market is the bedrock for decisions and a helpful tool in a range of work situations.

Ubosi said that valuation is useful in mergers, acquisitions and divestment because it helps to price an organization and to estimate and value synergies as well as assess potentials of different strategic options among others.

From L-R: Innocent Idibia (2Baba), UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and international award winning musician; Ms. Millicent Mutuli, UNHCR Regional Bureau Director, West and Central Africa and Olapeju Ibekwe, CEO, Sterling One Foundation at the Africa Private Sector Forum on Forced Displacement held at Kigali, Rwanda recently

MARKET INDICATORS

NBCC to Groom Nigeria’s Next Generation Business Leaders Dike Onwuamaeze ËØÎ Oluchi Chibuzor The President of the Nigeria British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), Mrs. Bisi Adeyemi, has stated that the chamber would utilize its resources to groom and empower younger Nigerians to emerge as the next generation of business and enterprise leaders.

Adeyemi made this commitment recently during her inauguration ceremony as the 17th President of NBCC, where she said that the chamber would deploy the “NBCC Next Generation Leaders Programme” and the “Programming Academy and Incubator for Young Women” to achieve the objective of grooming the younger generation for leadership role in business.

She said: “We have an army of successful young men and women all over the world leading successful enterprise and creating value. We have our own fair share

here in Nigeria: young men and women attracting investment and making a difference. We have to do our bit to equip them with the skills required to thrive and stay the course,” Adeyemi said.

She added that one of the tools the chamber would use to empower youths and female entrepreneurs would be ICT, which she noted has emerged as one of the fastest growing sectors of the Nigerian economy. “At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sector contributed 15 per cent of the country’s GDP, second only to agriculture. However, as with many sectors, the female gender is grossly underrepresented.

Minding and bridging that gap is very close to my heart, hence the initiative to set up a Programming Academy and Incubator for young women,” she said. Adeyemi also urged Nigerians “to register to vote and vote in the 2023 elections as we can only achieve the change we

desire by participating actively in the process of electing those who will lead us.”

The Chairman of Citibank Nigeria, Dr. Yemi Cardoso, who was the Chairman of the Day during the inauguration ceremony, also harped on the need for businesses to embrace corporate governance.

Cardoso said: “Corporate governance determines how the objectives of businesses “are set and achieved. How it is monitored and accessed.

Strong and effective corporate governance help to cultivate a conscious culture of integrity that leads to high performance and sustainable business.”

The Senior Partner of TLCom Capital, Dr. Omobola Johnson, who was the guest speaker during the inauguration ceremony, urged the Nigerian public and private sectors to embrace digital technology as a tool for spreading prosperity and promoting corporate governance.

Prima Corporation Retains ‘A-’ Rating DataPro, the technology-driven credit rating agency has assigned Prime Corporation Limited a long-term rating of “A-” with a positive outlook for the year 2021/2022.

A statement signed by DataPro’s Client Services Manager, Mr. Kehinde Rasheed, at the weekend, explained that the “A-” indicates low risk. “It shows very good financial strength, operating performance, and business profile when compared to the standard established by DataPro. “This company, in our opinion, has a strong ability to meet its

ongoing obligations.

The statement said further that the DataPro Rating Committee approved the rating after assessment of the company’s financial performance, asset quality, liquidity, profitability, corporate governance and risk management, risk factors, and future outlook of its current healthy profile in the medium to long-term period.

“The rating of Prima Corporation Limited is supported by its strong business profile, good business support

from its associate companies, and good liquidity profile. Prima Corporation had a short-term rating of “A1” with good credit quality and satisfactory capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, “the statement added.

DataPro, however, noted that the rating carries a maximum shelf life of 12 months, in line with international best practice, clarifying that the rating is not an offer to trade in securities not a substitute for the user’s judgment. “It is meant for reference purposes,” the statement said.

Surveyors’ Institute initiates Fresh Partnership with Vitapur The Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) is seeking partnership with Vitapur Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Vitafoam Nigeria Plc to address the challenges of construction industry in Nigeria.

Against the background of recent challenges of using inferior products, especially in the building industry, coupled with the need to manage climate change, experts in the industry are considering options to hedge

against the risks associated with the construction sector.

Addressing participants during facilities tour of Vitapur in Lagos recently, the Chairman, NIQS, Lagos State Chapter, Mr Ayodele Alao explained that his members were willing to collaborate with the management of Vitapur to ensure that the public have clear knowledge and benefits of the company’s products.

Alao, who commended Vitapur for its innovative products,

presented the calendar of NIQS’ activities for 2022 to Vitapur saying there are many areas where both parties can collaborate for mutual benefits. “ Vitapur’s products are the future of sustainable construction in Nigeria. The end users of the company’s products need professional advice to appreciate the benefits of the innovative products. Our Institute runs many programmes. Vitapur can partner with our members, ”said Ajao.

MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

JANUARY 2021 Money Supply (M3)

38,779,455.43

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

1,039,129.55

Money Supply (M2)

37,740,325.88

-- Quasi Money

21,779,302.69

-- Narrow Money (M1)

15,961,023.19

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,364,871.13

---- Demand Deposits

13,596,152.06

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,414,275.50

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

31,365,179.93

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

42,916,586.63

---- Credit to Government (Net)

12,304,773.44

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

0.00

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

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

30,611,813.19

--Other Assets Net

3,892,112.74

Reserve Money (Base Money

13,264,585.14

--Currency in Circulation

2,831,167.19

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

10,433,417.96 317,234.17

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

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

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7

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

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T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ ͯͱ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

Stock Market Drop by 0.68% to Slow Down YTD Performance Kayode Tokede The stock market of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) last week closed southward amid sustained weak sentiment, especially on the cement giant shares, Dangote Cement Plc. Amid sustained profit taking activity on the local bourse, the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) fell week-on-week (W-o-W) by 284.94 basis points or 0.68 per cent to close at 41,882.97 basis points.

Similarly, market capitalisation declined N149 billion W-o-W to close at N21.854 trillion.

The decline of last week dragged the stock market performance of NGX to -3.2 per cent and +4 per cent in its Month-Till-Date and Year-Till-Date performance respectively.

However,, the stock market appeared to be recovering from the bearish turn as most subindices tracked closed strongly in green.

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R

DEALS

The NGX Banking, NGX Insurance, NGX Consumer Goods and NGX Oil & Gas indices gained 5.55 per cent, 1.24 per cent, 0.11 per cent and 1.27 per cent to close at 402.71 points, 190.86 points, 546.96 points and 352.67 points respectively. However, the NGX Industrial index fell by 5.42 per cent to close at 2,073.32 points.

The market breadth for the week was negative as 35 equities appreciated in price, 27 equities depreciated in price, while 94

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

equities remained unchanged.

Meyer Plc led the gainers table by 50.00 per cent to close at 33 kobo, per share. Consolidated Hallmark Insurance followed with a gain of 25.00 per cent to close at 55 kobo, while Academy Press went up by 20.51 per cent to close to 47 kobo, per share.

On the other side, Unity Bank led the decliners table by 15.69 per cent to close at 43 kobo, per share. Dangote Cement followed with a loss

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

of 10.00 per cent to close at N252.00, while Linkage Assurance declined by 8.93 per cent to close at 51 kobo, per share.

Overall, a total turnover of 2.630 billion shares worth N26.900 billion in 20,848 deals were traded last week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, in contrast to a total of 1.278 billion shares valued at N17.340 billion that exchanged hands previous week in 21,052 deals.

The Financial Services Industry

O F

(measured by volume) led the activity chart with 2.234 billion shares valued at N21.449 billion traded in 11,482 deals; contributing 84.95 per cent and 79.73 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The Services Industry followed with 157.089 million shares worth N695.798 million in 465 deals, while the Consumer Goods Industry traded a turnover of 71.016 million shares worth N1.708 billion in 3,019 deals.

1 0 / 1 2 / 2 0 2 1 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

60

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021

Monday, December 13, 2021 ŽŵĞƐƟĐ ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ dŚĞ ĞĂƌƐ ŽŵŝŶĂƚĞ͙ ^/ ĚŽǁŶ Ϭ͘ϳй ǁͬǁ

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX

Despite gaining on 3 trading sessions last week, the local bourse lost as the benchmark index fell 0.7% w/

Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

Ticker

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40

1,859.46

0.83%

955.00

0.0%

33.6%

74.50

0.0%

10.3%

26.50

3.9%

7.3%

w to 41,882.97 points. Accordingly, YTD return moderated to 4.0% (previously; 4.7%) while market ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ േ148.7bn w/w to േ21.9tn. ĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ŝŵƉƌŽǀĞĚ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂŶĚ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƌŽƐĞ ϭϬϱ͘ϳй ĂŶĚ ϱϱ͘ϭй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ƚŽ

1 Airtel Africa PLC 2 BUA Cement Plc 3 Guaranty Trust Holding Co PLC 4 Zenith Bank PLC 5 Dangote Cement PLC 6 MTN Nigeria Communications PLC 7 Nestle Nigeria PLC

444.9m units and േ3.4bn. The top traded stocks by

8 Lafarge Africa PLC 9 Access Bank PLC

volume were & E, (1.2bn units), ^d Z>E E<

10 United Bank for Africa PLC 11 FBN Holdings Plc

(261.0m units), and GTCO (97.2m units) while & E, (േ13.3bn), E/d, (േ1.2bn), and ^ W> d (േ845.3m)

12 Nigerian Brew eries PLC 13 Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC 14 International Brew eries PLC

led by value.

15 Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC 16 SEPLAT Energy PLC

Performance of sectors within our coverage was bullish as 5 indices gained while the /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ

21 Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC 22 FCMB Group Plc

ĂŶŬŝŶŐ index rose 5.5% w/w due to buying interest in GTCO (+10.0%), ZENITH (+8.5%), and UBA (+1.9%).

Trailing, the &Z/-/ d and Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ indices advanced Ϯ͘Ϯй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϯй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ďĂƌŐĂŝŶ

HONYFLOUR (+2.9%), and PZ (+0.8%) pushed the /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ and ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ indices higher by

;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ ƐƚƌĞŶŐƚŚĞŶĞĚ ƚŽ ϭ͘Ϯdž ĨƌŽŵ 0.3x recorded in the previous week as 31 stocks gained while 25 stocks lost. The top outperformers for the week were D z Z (+50.0%), Dz (+20.5%), and ZKz > y (+13.2%) while hE/dz E<

ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ƚŽ ďĞ Ă ŵŝdž ŽĨ ƉƌŽĮƚ-taking and bargain ŚƵŶƟŶŐ ĂĐƟǀŝƟĞƐ͘

3.5%

14.7%

5.2%

0.8x

5.3%

17.1%

-3.7%

-3.7%

19.1%

11.2%

35.8x

6.7x

-18.1%

-18.1%

24.8%

3.9%

4.0x

1.0x

11.3%

24.9% 28.9%

1.9% 2.8%

2.8%

20.9%

2.8%

3.5x

0.7x

11.8%

2.9%

2.9%

40.4%

16.7%

12.5x

4.8x

6.4%

8.0%

174.50

0.0%

4.8%

2.7%

2.7%

179.2%

14.1%

12.6x

19.1x

5.9%

7.9%

1,395.00

0.0%

3.5%

-7.3%

-7.3%

106.8%

15.6%

27.1x

31.8x

4.3%

3.7%

24.85

1.8%

3.7%

18.1%

18.1%

11.6%

8.4%

9.3x

1.0x

4.0%

10.8%

9.15

-0.5%

2.9%

8.3%

8.3%

17.0%

1.4%

2.6x

0.4x

9.3%

39.0%

8.05

1.9%

2.4%

-6.9%

-6.9%

2.0x

0.4x

6.8%

49.4%

11.90

2.6%

3.9%

66.4%

66.4%

0.6x

3.8%

14.2%

8.4%

0.8%

7.0x

47.00

0.0%

1.6%

-16.1%

-16.1%

5.3%

1.9%

43.3x

2.3x

2.3%

2.3%

36.50

-1.4%

1.8%

-3.3%

-3.3%

15.4%

2.0%

8.4x

1.3x

11.2%

11.9%

-10.3%

-3.9% 4.4x

0.7x

5.8%

22.9%

4.95

-1.0%

1.2%

-16.8%

-16.8%

28.30

0.0%

1.1%

8.8%

8.8%

650.10

3.2%

1.6%

61.6%

61.6%

3.4%

1.9%

15.0x

0.5x

6.3%

6.7%

10.3%

0.9x

-11.5%

142.00

0.0%

1.2%

56.0%

56.0%

38.8%

25.2%

9.7x

3.4x

5.3%

2.54

4.5%

0.7%

0.8%

0.8%

12.0%

1.1%

2.2x

0.3x

8.7%

9.05

4.0%

1.0%

50.8%

50.8%

14.8%

0.9%

2.5x

0.3x

15.95

0.0%

0.5%

-9.4%

-9.4%

3.00

3.4%

0.5%

-9.9%

-9.9%

1.47

-1.3%

0.3%

-27.9%

-27.9%

10.1%

0.9%

14.00

0.0%

0.3%

-3.4%

-3.4%

21.3%

0.98

2.1%

0.4%

8.9%

8.9%

87.80

0.0%

0.3%

23.7%

23.7%

13.20

0.0%

0.2%

-5.0%

-5.0%

6.00

0.0%

0.2%

13.2%

13.2%

1.6x

9.3%

3.2x

0.3x

3.4%

6.9%

13.2x

2.6x

2.9%

7.6%

11.1%

2.3%

5.2x

0.5x

1.0%

19.2%

2.1x

1.1%

-1.3%

-0.8%

5.0%

1.2x

-1.1%

9.90

2.1%

0.4%

110.2%

110.2%

2.2x

7.1%

39.00

6.8%

0.4%

105.3%

105.3%

8.1%

3.8%

13.9x

1.1x

1.2%

7.2%

7.10

-5.3%

0.2%

21.4%

21.4%

24.7%

7.5%

3.5x

0.8x

7.2%

28.6%

7.2%

1.1%

377.8x

0.7x 1.9%

20.3%

0.68

-2.9%

0.2%

40.4%

41.7%

216.80

0.0%

0.3%

66.8%

66.8%

24.80

0.0%

0.2%

40.7%

40.7%

20.7%

2.5%

4.3x

0.8x

1.8%

23.1%

0.80

0.0%

0.1%

15.9%

15.9%

13.7%

0.8%

3.8x

0.5x

5.0%

26.5%

0.0%

0.0%

7.1%

0.8%

5.5x

0.6x

5.2%

0.0%

0.2%

33.2%

14.5%

2.6%

2.1x

0.3x

4.7x

0.6x

33.2%

0.3%

4.9x

62.50

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

-41.3%

-9.2%

52.95

0.0%

0.1%

-4.4%

-4.4%

14.8%

10.1%

5.38

0.0%

0.0%

49.4%

49.4%

18.3% 47.1%

2.3x

-20.3% 2.0%

21.4%

0.9x

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V o l u m e

M EYER

0.33

10.0%

C ILEA SIN G

146.4

-1.5%

SOVR EN IN S

0.24

9.1%

A C C ESS

55.8

-0.5%

T ic k er

Vo lum e

P ric e C hg %

2.6%

UP D C R EIT

4.40

8.6%

FB NH

35.3

GUIN N ESS

39.00

6.8%

FCM B

35.3

3.4%

C H A M P ION

2.71

6.3%

UN IT YB N K

30.0

-6.5%

J A P A ULGOLD

0.39

5.4%

UN IVIN SUR E

22.5

0.0%

F ID ELIT YB K

2.54

4.5%

Z EN IT H B A N K

13.3

3.9%

M A N SA R D

2.29

4.1%

UB A

13.2

1.9%

ET I

9.05

4.0%

N GXGR OUP

8.5

3.7%

26.50

3.9%

J A IZ B A N K

8.3

-6.0%

T o p 10 L o s e r s T ic k er

31.3%

4.2%

P ric e C hg %

GT C O

44.5% 40.1%

P ric e

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V a lu e

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

Value

UN IT YB N K

0.43

-6.5%

C ILEA SIN G

673.5

-1.5%

J A IZ B A N K

0.63

-6.0%

A C C ESS

511.0

-0.5%

C UST OD IA N

7.10

-5.3%

FB NH

415.1

2.6%

C OUR T VILLE

0.37

-5.1%

Z EN IT H B A N K

331.2

3.9%

CHA M S

0.20

-4.8%

N EST LE

318.1

0.0%

C OR N ER ST

0.50

-3.8%

N GXGR OUP

142.5

3.7%

A IIC O

0.68

-2.9%

SEP LA T

128.9

3.2%

M A YB A KER

4.10

-2.4%

FCM B

105.5

3.4%

C ILEA SIN G

4.60

-1.5%

UB A

105.5

1.9%

36.50

-1.4%

GT C O

74.5

3.9%

ST A N B IC

ĨƌŝŶǀĞƐƚ tĞƐƚ ĨƌŝĐĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ

15.0%

12.1%

T o p 10 G a i n e r s

(-15.7%), E' D (-10.0%), and >/E< ^^hZ (8.9%) led the laggards. This week, we expect market

85.9%

12.1%

2.8%

4.93

T ic k er

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ

26.7%

5.9%

38 Notore Chemical Industries Ltd 39 Beta Glass PLC 40 Transcorp Hotels Plc

ϭ͘Ϯй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϭй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘

Divindend Earnings Yield Yield

6.6%

32 AIICO Insurance PLC 33 TotalEnergies Marketing Nigeri

Similarly, gains in NEM (+7.6%), MANSARD (+6.5%),

5.0x

P/BV

3.9%

29 United Capital PLC 30 Guinness Nigeria PLC 31 Custodian and Allied Insurance

36 Union Bank of Nigeria PLC 37 Oando PLC

P/E

0.0%

26 Presco PLC 27 Unilever Nigeria PLC 28 PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

34 Julius Berger Nigeria PLC 35 Wema Bank PLC

ROA

25.50

23 Sterling Bank PLC 24 NASCON Allied Industries PLC 25 Transnational Corp of Nigeria

ŚƵŶƟŶŐ ŝŶ DdEE ;нϰ͘ϱйͿ ĂŶĚ K E K ;нϳ͘ϮйͿ͘

ROE

0.0%

19 Fidelity Bank PLC 20 Ecobank Transnational Inc

DANGCEM (-10.0%). Leading the gainers, the

Price Change Index to Date

252.00

17 11 PLC 18 Okomu Oil Palm PLC

index declined 5.4% w/w on the back of sell-Žī ŝŶ

Price Previous Current Change Price YTD Weighting Change

Current Price

P ric e C hg %

ƌŽŬĞƌĂŐĞ

ƐƐĞƚ DĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ

/ŶǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ZĞƐĞĂƌĐŚ

Adedoyin Allen | aallen@afrinvest.com

Rombert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com

Abiodun Keripe |akeripe@afrinvest.com

Taiwo Ogundipe | togundipe@afrinvest.com

Christopher Omoh | comoh@afrinvest.com

Damilare Asimiyu | dasimiyu@afrinvest.com

61

MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021• T H I S DAY

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 09Dec-2021, unless otherwise stated.

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

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

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

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS

MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS

AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 161.13 162.54 -0.46% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 9.14% Nigeria International Debt Fund 318.63 318.63 -17.24% Afrinvest Dollar Fund 102.98 104.03 -6.88% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.11% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.49 3.32 -2.20% info@anchoriaam.com ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market 100.00 100.00 8.69% info@anchoriaam.com Anchoria Equity Fund 135.41 137.15 1.81% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.15 1.15 -13.65% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 19.97 20.57 10.10% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 447.48 460.97 11.77% ARM Ethical Fund 39.23 40.41 16.38% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.08 1.08 -1.72% ARM Fixed Income Fund 0.99 1.00 -5.44% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.66% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 107.75 107.75 5.94% AVA GAM Fixed Income Naira Fund 1,060.73 1,060.73 6.07% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com ; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.04 2.04 -3.31% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.18 2.23 0.43% mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com ; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.04 1.04 5.29% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Paramount Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Women's Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 8.80% Cordros Milestone Fund 131.03 131.85 11.80% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 110.18 110.18 5.66% CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.04% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.24 1.26 3.25% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.42 1.42 -10.57% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 7.75% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 8.64% EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund 1,171.95 1,196.22 2.00% assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-assetmanagement-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 7.93% Emerging Africa Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 3.66% Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund 1.10 Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund 104.36 FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price FBN Bond Fund 1,382.42 FBN Balanced Fund 171.78 FBN Halal Fund 115.04 FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 FBN Dollar Fund (Retail) FBN Smart Beta Equity Fund FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Money Market Fund Legacy Debt Fund Legacy Equity Fund Legacy USD Bond Fund

122.05 146.52 Bid Price 1.00 4.00 1.70 1.20

1.10 9.23% 104.36 4.32% invest@fbnquest.com Offer Price 1,382.42 173.01 115.04 100.00

Yield / T-Rtn 11.33% 3.15% 9.27% 9.13%

122.05 3.99% 148.49 11.10% fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Offer Price 1.00 4.00 1.74 1.20

Yield / T-Rtn 7.36% 3.31% 11.66% 5.92%

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 N/A N/A N/A Coral Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Coral Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.89% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.81 2.87 -1.75% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 155.63 155.91 0.08% Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End 1.26 1.30 -0.11% Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End 1.07 1.07 4.27% 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 1.47 1.49 7.64% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,154.70 1,154.70 8.20% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 11.31 11.39 8.16% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 10.18% NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) 101.43 101.44 7.56% Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) 100.00 100.00 8.92% 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 127.67 130.10 6.81% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.08 1.08 10.04% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 3,350.35 3,382.23 4.26% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 235.19 235.19 4.60% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.24 1.26 5.93% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 311.97 311.97 5.87% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 231.56 235.02 6.10% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.66% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 10,831.97 10,988.01 3.23% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.29 1.29 5.06% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 116.67 116.67 5.03% Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund 105.89 105.89 UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.33 1.35 3.69% United Capital Bond Fund 1.95 1.95 6.39% United Capital Equity Fund 0.91 0.93 13.72% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 9.07% United Capital Eurobond Fund 121.95 121.95 6.51% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.06 1.08 4.44% United capital Sukuk Fund 1.07 1.07 7.10% 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 12.93 13.04 8.93% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 14.41 14.50 17.83% Zenith Income Fund 24.80 24.80 3.33% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 6.94%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

124.98 54.25

10.62% 7.34%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

13.30 125.96 99.68 17.26 20.76

13.40 129.10 101.87 17.36 20.86

3.44% 4.76% 0.47% -3.33% 13.94%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

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

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Money Market Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

3.89 5.41 17.18 1.00 20.61 157.46

3.99 5.51 17.38 1.00 20.81 159.46

3.82% -4.77% 6.21% 7.72% 0.43% -15.17%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.28

13.11%

INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

62

MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY

FOREIGN DESK

COMPILED BY BAYO AKINLOYE

Israeli PM to Pay First Visit to UAE Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will travel to the United Arab Emirates on Sunday and meet the Gulf state’s de facto ruler in the highest-level visit since the countries formalized relations last year.

The trip comes amid heightened regional tension as world powers’ try to renew a nuclear deal with Iran. Israel and some

Gulf Arabs share concerns over Iranian activities in the region.

“I will be going out today to the United Arab Emirates, in the first visit ever by an Israeli prime minister,” Bennett told a meeting of his Cabinet on Sunday.

There was no immediate confirmation

from Abu Dhabi.

The UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco moved toward normal ties with Israel under a US-sponsored initiative dubbed the “Abraham Accords” regarding the biblical patriarch revered

by Jews, Christians, and Muslims.

Bennett’s trip Sunday would be the

first by an Israeli premier to any of those four countries. Trips planned by his predecessor and Abraham Accords signatory Benjamin Netanyahu were cancelled, with Israel citing COVID-19 travel curbs and difficulties in arranging a flight over Jordanian territory.

On Monday, the Israeli prime minister’s office said Bennett would meet Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan.

The two leaders will discuss deepening ties, emphasising economic issues that will contribute to prosperity, welfare and strengthening stability between the countries, the Israeli statement added.

Spanish Island Volcano Eruption Hits Local Record of 85 Days A volcanic eruption in Spain’s Canary Islands shows no sign of ending after 85 days, becoming the island of La Palma’s longest eruption on record Sunday.

The eruption has surged and ebbed since it first began spewing lava on September 19. It has since destroyed almost 3,000 local buildings and forced several thousand people to abandon their homes.

On Sunday, after several days of low-level activity, the Cumbre Vieja volcano suddenly sprang to life again, producing loud explosions and blowing a vast cloud of ash high into the sky.

Scientists say volcanic eruptions are

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2021

63

FOREIGN DESK unpredictable. Spanish experts had initially said the La Palma eruption could last up to three months.

Mariano Hernández, the island’s senior government official, described the volcano as “stable” in recent days.

“The fact is that all the key indicators have been low,” he told Spanish public broadcaster RTVE. “But the scientists won’t say exactly when it might come to an end.”

He said experts continue to measure the number and magnitude of earthquakes and local sulfur dioxide levels in the area.

Authorities recorded 24 earthquakes from Saturday to Sunday, but local people felt none.

New Caledonia Rejects Independence from France in Third Referendum Residents of the Pacific territory of New Caledonia voted overwhelmingly on Sunday to remain part of France in a third referendum that pro-independence groups boycotted, reports say.

Police reinforcements have been sent to the territory known as “the pebble,” which is of strategic importance to France and is part of a wider tussle for influence in the Pacific between Western countries and China.

Local television channel NC la 1ere reported that, with 90.23 per cent of ballots counted, 96.32 per cent of voters had voted “No” to independence, which will raise fears of unrest and questions about the legitimacy of the legitimacy the process.

The archipelago of about 185,000 voters, 2,000 kilometres east of Australia, was granted three independence referendums under a 1988 deal to ease tensions on the islands.

Turnout on Sunday was only 41.60 per cent by 5 pm local time (0600 GMT).

Having rejected a breakaway from France in 2018 and then again last year, the inhabitants were asked one last time: “Do you want New Caledonia to accede to full sovereignty and become independent?”

Mali Leader Promises Election Timetable by January 31 The head of Mali’s military-dominated government on Sunday promised west Africa’s regional bloc he would provide it with an election timetable by January 2022, AFP reports.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) suspended Mali following military coups in August 2020 and May 2021, sanctioning officials deemed responsible for delaying elections and threatening further measures.

West African leaders on Sunday were due to hold a summit in Nigeria’s capital Abuja to discuss how to respond to Mali’s failure to hold elections by February 2022 before a return to civilian rule.

The head of Mali’s transitional government, Colonel Assimi Goita, justified postponing the election and holding a national consultation he said would be “indispensable” for peace and stability.

“Mali... commits to providing you with a detailed timetable by January 31, 2022, at the latest that could be discussed during an ECOWAS mission,” Goita wrote to the heady of the bloc of West African states head, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, in a letter obtained by AFP. “The return to constitutional order is and will remain my number one priority,” Goita said.

G-7 Issues Strong Warnings on Iran and Russia The G-7 on Sunday said time was running out for Iran to agree on a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and warned Russia about the consequences of invading Ukraine.

Foreign ministers from the world’s richest nations have held a two-day meeting in Liverpool, northwest England, seeking to present a strong, united front against global threats.

On Iran, G-7 host Britain said resumed talks in Vienna were the Islamic Republic’s “last chance to come to the negotiating table with a serious resolution.”

UN Condemns Forced Expulsions of Libya Asylum Seekers The United Nations’ Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is condemning the forced expulsion of asylum seekers and migrants by Libyan authorities, warning of the risks many face when returned to the homes they fled to escape persecution.

Two large groups of Sudanese are among those forcibly deported from Libya over the past month. United Nations monitors say most have been summarily expelled from the Ganfouda and al-Kufra detention centres. Both centres are controlled by the Interior Ministry’s Department for Combatting illegal Migration.

The monitors said the Sudanese had been transported across the Sahara Desert to the Libya-Sudan border and dumped there.

The UN Human Rights Office said Libya’s expulsion of the Sudanese asylum seekers and migrants without due process and procedural guarantees violated international human rights and refugee law.

UN spokesman Rupert Colville says 18 Sudanese expelled Monday were reportedly arrested, detained, and arbitrarily expelled. He said no hearing was held to assess their need

“There is still time for Iran to come and agree this deal,” Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told a news conference as talks wrapped up.

Negotiations restarted on Thursday to try to revive the 2015 deal between Iran and world powers, which the United States withdrew from under Donald Trump in 2018.

Iran claims it only wants to develop a civilian capability, but Western powers say its stockpile of enriched uranium goes well beyond that and could be used to develop a nuclear weapon.

for protection from persecution, chancery for his country in Abuja. torture, and other abuse in their Quattara, who was also in Abuja home country. He says they were to attend the 60th Ordinary Summit not granted legal assistance. of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of South Africa Pays Tribute West African States (ECOWAS) on Sunday, inaugurated the chancery to Last Apartheid Leader De in Nigeria.

Klerk Located in the Embassy District South Africa on Sunday paid an of Abuja (Diplomatic Drive, Central official tribute to FW de Klerk, the Area), the chancellery is a threefinal president of white rule, who storey building. freed Nelson Mandela from prison and According to Côte d’Ivoire’s steered the country from apartheid to Ambassador to Nigeria, Kalilou democracy.

Traore, the building comprises eight De Klerk died on November 11, ambassador’s offices, 15 agents’ aged 85, following a battle with cancer. offices, three large meeting rooms, Four days of national mourning were and a presidential suite. declared in his honour.

Speaking on behalf of Quattara He served as president from 1989 at the ceremony, Ivorien Minister to 1994 and is remembered most for Mrs. Kandia Camara said the leading South Africa’s transition from chancery represented the expression white-minority rule to the first multiand symbol of the quality of racial elections in 1994. exceptional relations of friendship On Sunday morning, President Cyril and cooperation between Nigeria Ramaphosa attended Cape Town’s and Côte D’Ivoire.

Protestant Groote Kerk — one of South “It is also the fruit of the vision of Africa’s oldest churches — to deliver President Alassane Ouattara, who a eulogy in De Klerk’s honour. takes a special interest in Ivorian diplomacy,” said Camara. “This President Quattara Opens new building will undoubtedly New Chancery in Abuja contribute to the promotion of the Michael Olugbode in Abuja brand image of our country and President Alassane Ouattara of increase its visibility in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire has inaugurated a new ECOWAS.”

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NEWSXTRA

AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP...

L-R: Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal; Executive Secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Prof. Suleiman Elias Bogoro; Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, during the 25th Anniversary of HLF and Award presentation ceremony held in Lagos…recently

WHO: 95% of 241m Global Malaria Cases Found in Africa Says $10.3bn needed to fight scourge by 2030

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja At least 95 per cent of all the 241 million malaria cases recorded in 2020 and 96 per cent of deaths during the year under review were from sub-Saharan Africa, a new report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), has revealed.

The new data released by the United Nations (UN) agency, disclosed that the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted malaria services, leading to a marked increase in cases and deaths.

According to the “World Malaria Report, 2021,” aside the estimated 241 million malaria cases, there were 627,000 malaria deaths worldwide in 2020, representing about 14 million more cases in 2020 compared to 2019, and 69,000 more deaths.

The WHO document noted that two-thirds of the additional deaths, that is 47,000, were linked to disruptions in the provision of malaria prevention, diagnosis and treatment during the pandemic.

However, it explained that the situation could have been far worse as it had earlier projected that with severe service disruptions, malaria deaths in sub-Saharan Africa could potentially double in 2020.

“Sub-Saharan Africa continues to carry the heaviest malaria burden, accounting for about 95 per cent of all malaria cases and 96 per cent of all deaths in 2020.

About 80 per cent of deaths in the region are among children

under five years of age,” it stated.

It pointed out that the pandemic struck at a point when global progress against malaria had already plateaued, stressing that by around 2017, there were signs that the gains made since 2000, including a 27 per cent reduction in global malaria cases and a nearly 51 per cent reduction in the malaria mortality rate were stalling.

The WHO document added that for the 11 countries that carry the highest burden of malaria worldwide, cases increased from 150 million in 2015 to 163 million cases in 2020, and malaria deaths increased from 390,000 to 444,600 over that same period.

“To get back on track, WHO and its partners recognise the need to ensure better and more equitable access to all health services, including malaria prevention, diagnosis and treatment, by strengthening primary health care and stepping up both domestic and international investments,” the document added.

But it noted that despite the challenges imposed by Covid-19, about three-quarters (72 per cent) of insecticide-treated mosquito nets had been distributed in malaria-endemic countries as planned by the end of 2020.

It stated that 13 countries in Africa’s Sahel sub-region reached 11.8 million more children with preventive antimalarial medicines during the high-transmission rainy season in 2020 compared

to 2019.

“While African countries rallied to the challenge and averted the worst predictions of fallout from Covid-19, the pandemic’s knock-on effect still translates to thousands of lives lost to malaria,” WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said.

“African governments and their partners need to intensify their efforts so that we do not lose even more ground to this preventable disease,” the WHO official stated.

According to the report, progress towards the 2020 milestones of WHO’s global malaria strategy was substantially

off track.

It noted that in 2020, the global malaria case incidence rate was 59 cases per 1,000 people at risk against a target of 35, putting it off track by 40 per cent.

“The global mortality rate was 15.3 deaths per 100,000 people at risk against a target of 8.9, putting it off track by 42 per

cent,” the organisation stated.

It further stated that reaching the 2030 goals of the WHO malaria strategy, including a 90 per cent reduction in global malaria incidence and mortality rates by 2030, would require new approaches, new tools and the better implementation of existing ones.

N19.3bn Bail-out Controversy: Kogi Slams N35bn Damages Suit against EFCC Alex Enumah in Abuja The Kogi State Government has instituted a N35 billion damages suit against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), over allegations that it fixed N19.3 billion bail-out funds received from the Federal Government.

Also, a Kogi State High Court has restrained the EFCC from issuing further official or unofficial publications over the issue of the said N19.3 billion in a Sterling Bank Account with No. 0073572696 or any other account purportedly belonging to Kogi State Government.

Justice J. J. Majebi, made the order in a ruling on an ex parte application brought by kogi State, seeking to temporarily restrain the defendants from further publication of the

alleged defamatory materials, pending the hearing and determination of the main suit.

The judge in the ruling further restrained EFCC from inviting or investigating officials of the state in respect of the bail-out fund.

While plaintiffs in the suit are; Kogi State Government, Accountant-General of Kogi State, Momoh Jibrin; and Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Asiwaju Asiru, defendants include the EFCC, Sterling Bank and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as 1st to 3rd respectively.

The claimants in a 62 paragraph affidavit and 6 paragraph further affidavit in support of the motion exparte with number HCL/536m/2021 accused the EFCC of mischief,

adding that they will suffer irreparable damages if the court does not intervene.

Delivering ruling, Justice Majebi agreed with the applicants that, "there is urgent need to restrain the defendants by this application to preserve the status quo and to prevent the 1st defendant from fostering upon the court a situation of complete helplessness pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice".

The judge subsequently fixed December 17 for hearing of the main suit.

In the main suit marked: HCL/128/2021, plaintiffs are asking the court to declare that the publication by the EFCC containing, amongst others, false and unfounded allegations of N19.3 billion being returned was defamatory of the character

of the Kogi State Government.

Part of the reliefs sought include, "an order of court compelling the 1st Defendant to, within 48 hours of the order of this Court, publish in three national dailies, a retraction of her frivolous allegations and also tender unreserved apology to the Claimant for the defamatory publication written against the Claimant."

Plaintiffs also sought a declaration that the publication of the EFCC was "misconceived, wrongful, illegal, null and void and that the conduct of the 2nd defendant (Sterling Bank) was also wrong, illegal, null and void in opening a fixed deposit account number 0073572696 and naming it Kogi bailout account without an application, request, authority or consent of the government.

Alleged N13.8bn Fraud: Court Halts EFCC's Planned Trial of Former Chief of Army Staff, Two Others Alex Enumah in Abuja Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has temporarily stopped the planned trial of a former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Kenneth Minimah and two senior Army officers over allegations bordering on diversion of public funds to the tune of N13.8 billion.

Justice Ekwo, in a ruling on an ex-parte application by Minimah and the two other applicants, also ordered parties to maintain

status quo ante bellum, pending the hearing and determination of the plaintiffs' pending motion for interlocutory injunctions.

The other two were Major General A. O. Adebayo (ex-Chief of Accounts and Budget, Nigerian Army) and Brigadier General R. I. Odi (ex-Director, Finance and Accounts, Nigerian Army.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had filed charges against the applicants for allegedly misappropriating the sum of N13, 798,619,309 from funds provided

by the federal government for the purchase of military hardware.

It should be noted that while Minimah served as the COAS between January 2014 and July 2015, and has since retired, Adebayo and Odi are still in service.

According to court document sighted at the weekend, the EFCC was acting upon a report of misappropriation brought to it by the Committee on the Audit of Defence Equipment Procurement in the Nigerian Armed Forces (CADEF) chaired

by Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Jon Ode (rtd).

It added that in the course of the investigation, it found that about N13,789,619,309.00 was misappropriated by Minimah, Adetayo and Odi. The EFCC then filed a charge against the three before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The anti-graft agency in addition wrote the Army authorities, requesting their release for prosecution.

But, on learning about the

EFCC's request for their release, Mimimah, Adetayo and Odi filed a suit before the Federal High Court, Abuja, querying among others, their planned trial before a civil court.

In the suit filed by their lawyer, Mahmud Magaji, they are contending among others, that under the Armed Forces Act, the EFCC lacked the powers to initiate criminal proceedings against them, let alone prosecute them.

They argued that the most the EFCC could do, under the Act, was to report its findings to

their commanding officer, who could only charge them before a court-martial and no other court.

Listed as defendants in the suit, were the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and the EFCC. Shortly after the filing of the suit, Justice Ekwo heard an ex-parte motion moved by Magaji and ordered parties to maintain status antebellum (allow things to remain as they currently are) pending the hearing and determination of a motion on notice.

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AS OYEBANJI JOINS THE FRAY...

L-R: Speaker, Ekiti State House of Assembly, Hon. Funminiyi Afuye; immediate past Secretary to the State Government, Biodun Oyebanji; Chief of Staff to Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Omoleye, and Senator Bunmi Adetunmbi shortly after Oyebanji picked the APC governorship nomination form at the APC National Secretariat, Abuja...recently

Soun of Ogbomoso Dies at 95, Buried According to Islamic Rites Buhari, Makinde, Fayemi, Akeredolu, Lalong, others mourn Deji Elumoye in Abuja, Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan, Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti, Fidelis David in Akure and Seriki Adinoyi in Jos A first class monarch from Oyo State, the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, died yesterday at the age of 95 and was immediately buried according to Islamic rites.

The monarch, who died around 2am, was buried in obedience to Islamic injunctions at about 4:30pm inside a vault within the palace.

He reigned for 48 years.

The burial prayer was conducted by the Chief Imam of Ogbomoso, Tholiat Oluwasina Ayilara.

The Gbagun Ruling House of Ogbomoso, announced the passing of the monarch, in a press statement by Dr. Aderemi Oyewumi, which stated that the first class traditional ruler joined his ancestors in the early hours of yesterday.

The statement read: "With total submission to the will of Almighty God and on behalf of Gbagun Ruling House, we announce the death of our Father, His Royal Majesty, Oba Dr. Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, CON, CFR, Soun of Ogbomosoland, who passed away in the early hours of Sunday, 12th December 2021, marking the end of 48 years of a glorious reign.

"Kabiyesi is survived by wives, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren".

Meanwhile, eminent Nigerians have continued to send in their condolence messages as well as visit the palace since the news of the death of the monarch became public knowledge.

Those who have so far sympathised with the monarchy, the government and people of Ogbomoso in Oyo State, included President Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Seyi Makinde of the State, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State.

Some of those who had visited the palace to commiserate with the family of the late monarch were former a former governor of the state, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala, who hails from the town; Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Rauf Olaniyan; another former governor of Oyo, Chief Rasheed Ladoja; Chief of Staff to the Oyo State Governor, Segun Ogunwuyi; Senator Fatai Buhari, and Senator Hamzat Adeseun..

President Buhari, in a release by his Media Adviser, Femi

Adesina, commiserated with the government and people of Oyo State and especially, the indigenes of Ogbomosoland on the demise of the frontline traditional ruler, whose reign of 48 years reinforced the town as a land of peace, accommodating and a bastion of history and tradition.

President Buhari also joined the Oyo State Council of Obas in mourning the First Class Traditional ruler, whom he said would forever be remembered for his counsel and commitment to the unity and harmony within their ranks.

He urged sons and daughters of Ogbomosoland to be consoled with the fact that Oba Oyewumi accentuated his reign with the development and progress of the community through enduring peace and extension of hands of fellowship to peoples of other lands.

Makinde: It’s a Huge Loss Governor Seyi Makinde, yesterday, described the death of the Soun of Ogbomosoland, as a huge loss to the Ogbomoso Kingdom, Oyo State and humanity in general.

The statement read: “With total submission to the will of Almighty God and on behalf of Gbagun Ruling House, we announce the death of our Father, His Royal Majesty, Oba Dr. Oladunni Oyewumi Ajagungbade III, CON, CFR, Soun of Ogbomosoland, who passed away in the early hours of Sunday, 12th December, 2021, marking the end of 48 years of a glorious reign.

“Kabiyesi is survived by wives, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.”

Makinde further described him as a quintessential monarch, a man of peace and a passionate supporter of development, adding that the monarch made lasting impact on his domain, while also leaving indelible marks on Oyo State and humanity.

Alao-Akala: It’s a Personal Loss to Me Former Oyo State Governor, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala, has described the death of the monarch as a personal loss to him.

“The sudden demise of my father and traditional ruler of my hometown, (The land of the Valiants), His Imperial Majesty, Oba Jimoh Oladuni Oyewumi Ajagungbade III is a personal loss to me.

‘Kabiyesi, was an all round figure in my life. He was a father, mentor and teacher who did not hesitate to spare the rod, when need be to whip me back into line as and when necessary.

‘As the Bobagunwa of Ogbomosoland, a honourary titled Chief to Kabiyesi, Oba Jimoh Oladunni Oyewumi Ajagungbade 111, I became a member of the inner recces of the palace and I saw first hand a just and fair King who led Ogbomosoland with the fear of God. “Kabiyesi never ruled over Ogbomosoland, he led us into global fame and recognition.

Baba, brought Ogbomosoland into International reckoning and brought about a huge deal of development.”

It’s End of a Glorious Rule, Says Oyo Speaker Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin, has expressed his condolences to the people of Ogbomosoland on the demise of Oba Oyewumi and described his death as marking the end of a glorious 48 years rule.

While further describing him as one of the most successful Obas not only in Oyo State but across the South West, he said, "The death of Soun signals the end of a glorious era in Ogbomosoland and indeed Yorubaland.

“Ogbomosoland has lost a quintessential, Oba, who distinguished himself as a true heir to the throne of his ancestors.

It is so sad that we lost Oba Ajagungbade at the auspicious age of 95, when his abundant elderly, native and ancestral experience is required by all and sundry."

Fayemi: Late Soun’ll Be Sorely Missed Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has also mourned the passage of the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Jimoh Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, and expressed sadness overhis passing, describing it as a great loss.

Dr. Fayemi, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Yinka Oyebode, described the late Oba as a progressive traditional ruler, who worked tirelessly for the development and peace of his kingdom during his lifetime.

According to him, the late Oba Oyewumi brought grace, candour, reverence and dignity to the ancient throne he occupied for 48 years and made his town a centre of attraction in culture and tradition.

He also hailed the peace building efforts of the late Oba Oyewumi and his contributions to the unity of Nigeria at critical periods of its development.

Akeredolu: A Great Iroko Tree Has Fallen Ondo State Governor, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, has expressed his condolences over the transition of the Soun of Ogbomoso land, Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, saying a great Iroko tree had fallen.

In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Richard Olabode, Akeredolu, condoled with the Queen, Olori Olaronke Oyewumi, and the entire family, as well as the people of Ogbomoso over the demise of the highly revered traditional ruler.

“A great Iroko tree has fallen – Ajanaku sun bi oke. Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, was the most decorated Soun. He was a

man, who loomed larger than life; a very revered monarch, he was.

“Having been close to the family for a period spanning several decades, the First Lady, Betty, and I, mourn this respected monarch, who has transited to the world beyond, to be with his forefathers.

“We will surely miss his wise counsel. He was a father to all.

His reign signposteddevelopment and enduring peace in the land of Ogbomoso. He was a King that history will forever be kind to.

He played his part well.”

Lalong: His Demise, a Huge Loss to Plateau Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, has commiserated with the family of Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III, the Soun of Ogbomosoland, saying his demise was a huge loss to the state.

Lalong, in a statement described the loss of the First Class traditional ruler as a great loss not only to the Government and people of Oyo State and Ogbomosoland, but also to the government and people of Plateau.

No TIN Requirement to Operate Bank Account in Finance Bill 2021, Says Presidency There are no provisions in the Finance Bill 2021 now before the National Assembly forcing Nigerians to have a Tax Identification number in order to operate a bank account, a presidency source clarified yesterday.

News reports erroneously citing the bill had claimed that there is a provision in the bill that, “banks will be required to request for TIN before opening bank accounts for individuals while existing account holders must provide their TIN to continue operating their accounts.”

But the Presidency source who was involved in the drafting of the bill said the news reports was "totally inaccurate, the bill has no such provisions for individuals."

However the source listed the main changes proposed under the bill which would be further defended this week at both the Senate and the House of Representatives to include capital gains tax at the rate of five per cent to be applicable on disposal of shares in a Nigerian company worth N500 million or more in

any 12 consecutive months except where the proceed was reinvested in the shares of any Nigerian company within the same year of assessment.

It also stated that partial reinvestment would attract tax proportionately. Transfer of shares under the regulated Security Lending Transaction is exempted.

Also, the proposed legislation states that lottery and gaming business to be specifically taxable under CITA including betting, game of chance, promotional competition, gambling, wagering, video poker, roulette, craps, bingo, slot or gaming machines and the likes.

In addition, it states that companies engaged in petroleum operations including Midstream and Downstream operations would not be eligible for exemption on profits in respect of goods exported from Nigeria.

"Downstream companies were previously eligible under the old Upstream and Downstream classification.

"FIRS to be empowered to

assess CIT on the turnover of a foreign digital company involved in transmitting, emitting, or receiving signals, sounds, messages, images or data of any kind including e-commerce, app stores, and online adverts.

"Capital allowance claimable on an asset is limited to the portion used for generating taxable profits.

Assets partially used to generate taxable income will be eligible for pro-rata capital allowance except where the proportion of non-taxable income does not exceed 20 per cent of the total income of the company.

"Any capital allowance or unabsorbed allowances brought forward by a small or medium company, other than a company under pioneer status, to be treated as having been claimed and consumed in each such year of assessment.

"The reduction of minimum tax rate from 0.5% to 0.25% of turnover (less franked investment income) is to be applicable to any two accounting periods between 1 Jan 2019 and 31 December 2021,

as may be chosen by the taxpayer."

Itt further stated.

According to the proposed legislation, disputed tax assessment are be in abeyance until determination while undisputed tax assessment is to be paid within 30 days after service of the notice of assessment on the company except otherwise extended by the FIRS. "Reference to provisional tax has been deleted in recognition of the well-established self-assessment tax regime. Withholding tax on interest earned from a unit trust to be treated as final tax. Only WHT on dividend is currently treated as final tax for local companies.

"The deployment of technology to automate tax administration including assessment and information gathering by FIRS to now include third party technology (previously only proprietary technology may be deployed).

"A penalty of N50,000 to be applicable where a company fails to grant access to FIRS in addition to N25,000 for each day the failure continues," it added.

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NDLEA Arrests Nigerians, Ghanaian with Drugs Michael Olugbode in Abuja Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in its latest clampdown on drug traffickers has arrested a Ghanaian and two Nigeriens at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, for allegedly trafficking a total of 9.953 kilogrammes of cocaine and methamphetamine.

A statement issued yesterday by the spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi, said one of the suspects, Uzoh Ndubuisi, was arrested at about 5.30p.m. last Wednesday during an inward screening of Ethiopian Airlines passengers at the arrival hall of the airport.

He said Uzoh, who arrived from Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was controlled and arrested with cocaine covered with cloths, which has a gross weight of 6.7 kilogrammes.

Babafemi said during his interrogation by narcotic officers, Uzoh said he was given the consignment by his enabler based in Brazil with a promise to be paid N3 million upon successful delivery to someone in Nigeria.

In another clampdown, a 53-year-old suspected traveller, Udeh Charley, was arrested at the Enugu airport for ingesting 72 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.253 kilogrammes.

He was arrested on December 3 during an outward screening of Ethiopian Airlines passengers

going to Rome, Italy, via Addis Ababa.

In custody, he claimed he would have been paid €4000 on successful delivery of the drugs in Italy where he has been living for over 20 years.

He attributed his decision to engage in the ignominious trade on downward turn of his business as a result of COVID-19 pandemic.

In a related development, another suspected trafficker, John Kadja, 25, whose father is from Kumasi, Ashanti region of Ghana and mother from Nsukka, Enugu State, was arrested on December 3 with two kilogrammes of methamphetamine during an outward clearance of Qatar Airways from Abuja to Doha at the departure screening

area of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

A search of his bag showed that the drug was concealed in a false bottom of his checked in luggage. He said he was travelling to Doha to work as a labourer.

In Ondo State, 43-year-old Onuoha Friday was arrested last Friday on the LagosBenin expressway with one

million capsules of Tramadol, while in two major arrests in Anambra State, a total of 238.973 kilogrammes of assorted illicit drugs were recovered.

Babafemi said NDLEA operatives on December 3 intercepted a truck at the Onitsha head bridge heading to Delta State, and upon search, various quantities of Codeine,

Tramadol, Diazepam, and Rohypnol were recovered from the vehicle, and its driver, Obinna Obinwa, arrested.

Similarly, last Wednesday, the agency’s patrol team on the Onitsha head bridge intercepted another truck going to Delta State with different quantities of assorted illicit drugs while the driver, Lucky James, was also arrested.

WELL-DESERVED AWARD…

L-R: Chairman, Guild of Photojournalists Nigeria, Mr. Abiodun Ajala; Divisional Director, Marketing Edge, Anietie Udoh; General Manager, Strategy and Business Development, Marketing Edge, Mrs. Mojisola Matesun receiving the personality award of commitment and motivation on behalf of the Publisher/CEO of Marketing Edge from Representative of Group Chairman, Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc, Pastor Gbenga Ogunko during the 2021 annual conference and exhibition of Guild of Photojournalists Nigeria in Lagos…recently

Ngige: In-fighting Cost Obi: Ethnic, Religious Debates Promote Inefficiency, Failure in Nigeria APC Anambra Election David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige has attributed the dismal performance of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the recently concluded Anambra state governorship election to distrust and in-fighting amongst key stakeholders of the party.

He said all efforts to reconcile aggrieved stakeholders of the party in state and to get them sheath their sword regarding the flawed primary election failed due to the attitude of those who benefited from the questionable process.

The revelation was made at an expanded Combined Emergency Caucus and State Executive Committee (SEC) meeting of the APC in Anambra State held at the minister's residence in Abuja, at the weekend.

Ngige insisted that no

governorship primary election held on June 26, a development he argued hurt many people in the party.

“Many people were injured, including me who left Abuja to come home and cast my vote at my ward but I couldn’t.

“The aspirants spent all their money, yet they could not vote or be voted for. The local government and ward chairmen brought out their people under the sun from morning till night, yet they couldn’t vote for the candidate of their choice.

“Our problems started that day and snowballed into the main election. Of course, a house divided against itself cannot win a war.”

He, however, urged all members of the party to put everything that happened in the past behind them, so that they could join hands and move the party forward.

Pensioners Demand Pay Rise

Urge FG, states to comply with pension law

Nigerian retirees under the umbrella of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) have charged the federal and state governments to urgently implement provisions of the constitution in respect of the mandatory five yearly increase in pensions.

The NUP also urged the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission to be more proactive in undertaking the review of salaries and pensions and to advise the government to adhere to the relevant provisions of the constitution in this regard.

Addressing members at the

20th edition of the Pensioners Day celebration in Abuja at the weekend, the National President of NUP, Godwin Abumisi, bemoaned the failure of most of the state governments to regularly pay retirees their pensions.

He also said it was disappointing and painful to note that while the federal government had released the enabling circular consequential adjustments of pensions effective from April, 2019, most state governments were yet to give effect to the circular as released by the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission.

Former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has said religion and ethnicity are the chief promoters of inefficiency and failure in Nigeria.

Obi who spoke to journalists in his home town, Agulu, Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State, said those who predicate leadership

positions on ethnicity and religion, rather than competence and capacity, only promote inefficiency and failure in the country.

Obi who spoke after meeting envoys from British High Commission, led by Head of the Political Desk, Aneesah Islam, said, "The continued recruitment of people for leadership positions, on any

basis other than competence, will only continue to produce a crop of incompetent leaders who are not capable of developing the nation.

"I support zoning of some political offices to ensure fairness and equity, because each zone has competent people capable of developing the nation."

He stated that Nigeria has continued to go from bad to

worse due to the failure of leadership in the country.

"Insecurity and criminality have worsened under this administration. Nigeria is more divided today than it has ever been. Mediocrity is now celebrated above meritocracy.

The standard of living is worsening every day, with soaring inflation and poverty rate.

N'Delta Group Decries Osinbajo's Failed Promise to Ijaw-born Author Sylvester Idowu inWarri A Niger Delta group, Coalition Against Bad Governance (CABG) has appealed to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to fulfill his promise to a 32-year-old Ijaw youth writer and author, Prince Meshack Bebenimibo, over his publication of his numerous unpublished books.

The group expressed surprise that the Vice President (VP) was

yet to attend to the needs of the young and promising author, five years after when the promise was made during a visit to Gbaramatu kingdom to douse the raging tension resulting from the activities of militant groups in the region.

CABG, at a rally to encourage the author over the weekend, promised to be with Bebenimibo at this point to ensure he fulfills his dream of becoming a great

author coming from the region.

“We will be with you at this hour so your spirit won't be dampened. We will assist you to make your dreams come through," it said.

The group, in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Raphael Ikika; Secretary, Akren Selekowei and Public Relations Officer, Bisin Richard, pleaded with the VP and other well-meaning Nigerians to come to the aide of the writer.

An overwhelmed Bebenimibo, who was surprised about the organisation of the rally for his support in his quest to become a famous author, thanked CABG for their concerns and promised not to disappoint the confidence reposed in him.

He assured the group that the VP would come to his aide as promised attributing the delay to the busy schedule of Osinbajo in the recent times.

FUOYE Invents Mail Dispatch Mobile Robot Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti The Federal University, Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), has invented a mail dispatch mobile robot that would perform skeletal works, and ease as well as smoothen administrative tasks for better productivity in the institution.

The new invention would be officially

launched on December 15 as part of the programmes lined up for the institution convocation slated for December 18.

The dispatch mobile mail robot, according to the university Vice Chancellor, Prof Abayomi Fasina, was invented by a lecturer of the Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Dr. Oluwaseun Martins.

According to a statement issued yesterday, which was co-signed by FUOYE's Public Relations Officer (PRO), Foluso Ogunmodede, and Special Adviser on Media Matters to the VC, Wole Balogun, Fasina said the mail dispatch mobile robot is a product of PhD programme of Dr. Martin.

Fasina said the invention we supervised by an Associate

Professor, Adefemi Adekunle, and the late Prof. Temitope Adejuyigbe.

Describing the functionality and operation of the robot, Martins said: "This mail dispatch mobile robot provides smart mail delivery within a particular environment.

Its users are assigned to a particular environment where the robot is designed to operate.

I Won’t Go Back to PDP, Umahi Vows Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi has restated his position on the rumour making round the media that he is was begging to return to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), noting that “nothing can take him back to Egypt, called PDP.” Umahi made the remark

during 2021 Special Thanksgiving Service of Government House Chapel in Abakaliki yesterday.

The governor, who described PDP as “Egypt”, repeated that he won’t return to the party.

“With all these enormous achievements I have made under the All Progressive

Congress (APC), what will make me to go back to Egypt, called PDP? For that, I pray that God will never forgive the person who initiated the fake news that I have plans to go back to PDP,” he stated.

On the thanksgiving service, the Governor said that it was good to give thanks to God

as state and country at large.

“It is good to be grateful to God for His blessings to us as state and the country at large.

As state, we have come first in several ways and we give Him the praises. Learn how to give good gift to God and it’s by thanksgiving that we can be blessed,” Umahi said.

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NEWS XTRA

Panic in Ekiti Community as Gunmen Kidnap Trader, Machete Farmer Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti

Panic gripped the people of Iyemero Ekiti, in Ikole Local government area of Ekiti State, as gun wielding kidnappers invaded the community and abducted a popular trader, Mrs. Nusirat Saliu.

In the process of invasion, which was accompanied with sporadic gunshots, a man known to be a farmer sustained machete wounds in the head during the dastardly operation.

The kidnappers grabbed Saliu and forcefully dragged her into the nearby forest that led to Kwara and Kogi borders.

An eyewitness told newsmen on Sunday that the abduction happened around 8p.m. on Saturday.

He said the abductors who brandished AK 47 rifles, had had a pleasurable time at a section of the town and pretended to be buyers, who came on friendly visit before they struck and took Saliu to an unknown destination.

"They were at a section of the town pretending to be buyers and used the opportunity to study the

woman's movements in and out of her shop. They waited till nightfall and suddenly, we heard gunshots that lasted for about five minutes, with this,

we knew something was wrong.

"They followed the woman into her shop, grabbed and dragged her into the forest as they shot indiscriminately.

"As they were doing this, a farmer who was at the shop then and made efforts to struggle with them was shot. But when they realised the pellets couldn't

penetrate the man, they drew out a sharp cutlass and inflicted a deep cut on his head. He is presently at the hospital." The source said the police, local

hunters, Amotekun Corps and vigillantee group have combed the sprawling forest that bordered two neighbouring states without success.

A SHOW OF APPRECIATION…

Incoming Group Managing Director (GMD), FBH Holdings Plc, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo; his wife, Mrs. Uche Okonkwo; wife of the outgoing GMD, Dr. Uganze Eke, and outgoing GMD, Mr. UK Eke, during the send-forth organised for Eke in Lagos…recently

Warri Monarch Enjoins SERAP Urges Lawan, Gbajabiamila to Probe Women,Youths to Participate Missing N10bn N'Assembly Funds More in Governance Udora Orizu in Abuja

Deborah Anuoluwapo and Hamid Ayodeji The Olu of Warri, Tsola Emiko, Atuwase III has urged the Nigerian youths and women to participate more in the process of governance as it would enhance the economic growth of the nation.

The monarch said this on Thursday at the inaugural symposium organised by the Carrington Youth Fellowship Initiative (CYFI) in Lagos.

The Atuwase III explained: “If governance gets it right to reach this right equilibrium, society can only be right for it.

“Allow me at this point to make an analogy. Father, Son, Holy Spirit; men, youths, women.

While each has its own strength and signature operating arenas, imagine the powerful equilibrium that results when all three work together in tandem; when all three encourage and support each other trusting enough to set down and step back and allow the other to rise and demonstrate its own capacity.

“Human existence largely dominated by men has achieved quite a lot, especially considering

we’ve used less than a third of the capacity of our brains.

Imagine what we could achieve in every aspect of life, if we lifted the restrictions in each of the limitations and operated at the full capacity of our brain.

“Women and youths are the remaining two-third that we must fully utilise for us to get there. I dare say if governance gets it right to reach this right equilibrium, society can only be right for it.”

Also speaking at the event, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the Commissioner for Lagos State Ministry of Establishment, Training and Pensions, Mr. Ajibola Ponnle said: "The Walter Carrington Foundation has been and continues to play a critical role towards the socio economic growth and sustainability of the society.

"The youth section of the nation's economy remains a critical factor and must be given the necessary attention with enabling environments and opportunities for them to express themselves and attain their full potentials for the benefit of the society.

Gunmen Abduct Two Monarchs in Imo

The Traditional Ruler of Amagu Ihube, Acho Ndukwe, and that of Ihitte Ihube, Paul Ogbu, in Okigwe Local Government Area in Imo state have been kidnapped by gunmen. The palaces of the two monarchs were set ablaze by the gunmen during the attack yesterday.

Also, a youth leader in the Umulolo Okigwe area of the state was reportedly abducted by the gunmen while the country home of Fabian Nwosu, a community leader, was vandalised during the attack.

According to a resident, “It was

something else in the early hours of Sunday. They came in Hilux vehicles and kidnapped the two monarchs and burnt their palaces and vehicles.”

“They also kidnapped the youth leader of Umuololo- Okigwe. They also went to the house of Fabian Nwosu, on meeting his presence, they vandalised his house. Eze Ndukwe is an influential king.

He is the chairman of the Council of Traditional rulers in Okigwe LGA. He is also the chairman and CEO of Genesis Hotel, Okigwe.

Nobody can comprehend this attack."

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, to promptly probe and refer to appropriate anti-corruption agencies fresh allegations that N10 billion public money budgeted for the

National Assembly is missing, misappropriated or diverted.

In the letter dated December 11, 2021, and signed by SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said the grim allegations that N10,051,283,568.82 of public money is missing are documented in the 2019 audited report by the Auditor-General of the Federation (AuGF).

SERAP said addressing the allegations would improve public confidence and trust in the ability of the National Assembly to exercise its constitutional and oversight responsibilities, and to adhere to the highest standards of integrity in the management of public funds.

SERAP also said little can be achieved by the National

Assembly in the fight against corruption if the leadership and members do not first confront the spectre of alleged corruption and mismanagement within their ranks.

It, therefore, urged the duo to identify the lawmakers and staff members suspected to be involved, and hand them over to appropriate anti-corruption agencies to face prosecution.

Port Harcourt Disco Prosecutes Former Staff, One other for Alleged Murder Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED) Plc has commence the prosecution of its former staff and one other at the Rivers State High Court Port Harcourt, for embarking on unauthorised operation on the company's facilities and

alleged murder of one Mr. Eugene Damini.

The victim was said to have met his untimely death at the Mopol 19 Junction in Port Harcourt, on October 3, 2021.

In a statement yesterday by Head, Corporate Communications of PHED, Mr. John Anonyai, the suspects, "Mr. Uche Nwale, Mr. Chike

Ugo and Mr. Choko Thankgod, who were staff of PHED had conspired to illegally provide services of relocating an electric pole at the premises of Mama Tin Bakery, opposite Mopol 19 Barracks, GRA, Phase 4, in Port Harcourt, where the incident occurred while they were illegally tampering and meddling with PHED

distribution network and facilities.”

The matter is before Justice S. H. Aprioku of the State High Court.

THISDAY gathered that the former PHED staff had been engaged by the owner of Mama Tin Bakery to relocate a pole for her on PHED’s 11KV line for alleged N100,000.00 fee.

‘Access to Market Intelligence, Trade Information Critical to Intra-Africa Trade’ The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Compass Global Limited, Mrs. Tokunbo Chiedu, has said that access to market intelligence, finance, trade information, and market requirements are vital to deepen intra-Africa trade among small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Chiedu, who stated this in

a statement in Lagos, said that this was important to foster new business opportunities, through business linkages and engagements.

According to her, these factors were critical as the region approaches the the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement

(AfCFTA).

The CEO said that the company's Female Leaders and Entrepreneurs Conference (FLEC), which held in Ghana in November, addressed issues of trade and AfCFTA, corporate governance, and access to finance and financial planning.

She said that the event

showcased success stories of innovative African brands, while focusing on lessons learnt, thought leadership, and building resilience in the post pandemic era.

Chiedu noted that the company had tagged FLEC 2022, ‘The year of resilience’, saying that it would provide more support to empower SMEs across all sectors.

Clamour for Youth Inclusiveness in Politics Intensifies in Abia Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia Some chieftains of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia State are championing the clamour for youth inclusiveness in the politics of Abia State ahead of the 2023 general election.

Those leading the clamour

are a member of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Ginger Onwusibe and the PDP Candidate for the Bende Federal Constituency in the 2019 National Assembly election, Hon. Chima Anyaso.

Both politicians have "joined forces" to fight for youth inclusiveness, empowerment and expansion of the political space to

accommodate the young generation of leaders.

Onwusibe, who represented Isiala Ngwa North State Constituency, owned a youth dominated political structure, the Otawike Movement, which he aligned with the Ofuji Movement sponsored by Anyaso to pursue a common interest of improving the lot of Abia youths.

Speaking at a reception he held for Onwusibe, who was conferred with a chieftaincy title of Ezienyinamba by the Igbere Clan Council of Traditional Rulers, Hon Anyaso said that both Otawike and Ofuji have formed "the largest political movement in Abia State to ensure that our youths, our women are carried along.

T H I S D AY • MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2021

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NEWS XTRA

Dogara Appeals to ASUU to Reconsider Dialogue over Strike Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi A former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has appealed to the federal government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to find alternative means resolving their differences without resorting to strike action.

Dogara also decried the spate of approvals and licensing of private universities across the country, lamenting that the prospective university students could not afford the exorbitant fees being charged by the private universities.

The member representing Bogoro/ Dass/ Tafawa Balewa Federal Constituency made the appeal last weekend while speaking at the Achievers University, Owo, Ondo State, during its 11th Convocation and 14th Foundation Anniversary.

He said: "This 11th Convocation of Achievers University, Owo, is a ripe occasion to appeal to the government and to find other means of resolving disputes other than strikes. Our public universities are seriously affected by incessant strikes and threats of it.

"Are there no other ways of resolving disputes between the workers and the government?"

The immediate past speaker also lamented over the proliferation of universities in the country and decried the high cost of private universities.

"The National Universities Commission must be quick

to have a recess, a break for a period of time to allow the very large number of private universities already licensed to mature. I am reliably informed that there are 202 Universities in Nigeria, out of which the

federal government owns 49; the 36 state governments own 54 while 99 universities, including Achievers University, are promoted by private initiatives,” he stated.

Dogara, who is also the Chancellor of Achievers University, said: "Many of the newly established private universities are still struggling to find their feet; not because there are no prospective

university students JAMB’s pool, but we would be shying away from the reality if we fail to realise that very many of the applicants could not afford the fees charged by private universities.

FOR BETTER EDUCATION…

L-R: Principal, State High School, G.R,A, Ikeja, Mrs. Adeola George; former Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS)Mr. Babatunde Fowler; Senior Pastorin-Charge, Redeemed Christian Church of God, Rose of Sharon Parish, Pastor. Emeka Obiagwu; Director, Science and Technology, Lagos State Ministry of Education, Mr. Ogunfuyi Hassan, and former Head of Service, Lagos State, Mrs. Olabowale Ademola, at the inauguration of the newly renovated and science laboratory at the State High School, G.R.A, Ikeja, Lagos…recently.

ETOP UKUTT

2023 Elections: Transport Murder: Police Investigation Absolves Me, Monarch Claims September 17, 2021, written no contest between him and informed him that he might Amazons Plan Nigerian Wale Igbintade to the Inspector General of the deceased, adding that he be charged to court, following The Baale of Badore, Mr. Waliu Police, Zone 2 Zonal Command, has been officially installed as a complaint by the widow of Female President Moye has declared that the Onikan, Lagos, and signed Baale of Badore by the Eti-Osa the deceased.

Mary Nnah

As the 2023 Nigerian presidential election draws nearer, top women in the nation's transport and finance sectors, as well as eminent female politicians have resolved to produce the first female president in the country.

These amazons hatched this plan at the 2021 MMS Woman of Fortune Hall of Fame (WoFHoF) Induction Ceremony in Lagos.

While the move for a female Nigerian president was first mooted by the Chairperson of the event and Executive Vice Chairperson of ENL Consortium, Princess Vicky Haastrup, a former Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs.

Josephine Anenih and a former Managing Director of National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Mrs. Chinwe Ezenwa, had been privately discussing the idea few minutes earlier, at the ceremony.

The Chairperson of MMS WoFHoF Initiative BoT, Mrs. Margaret Orakwusi; Founder of Women in Logistics and Transport (WiLAT), Hajia Aisha Ali-Ibrahim; retired Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs, ACG Charles Edike; President of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Nigeria, Mrs. Mfon Usoro; Founder of MMS WoFHoF Initiative, Mr. Kingsley Anaroke called for the attainment of a female president of the nation.

report of police investigation into the murder of one Rasaki Jikoji, the traditional ruler of Badore, in Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State, has absolved him of any wrongdoing.

Moye, in a petition dated

by his lawyer, Mr. Bolanle Olugbani, maintained that the police gave him a clean bill of health and exonerated him of any involvement in the murder of Jikoji.

He stated that there was

Local government and the Lagos State Government before the demise of Jikoji The petitioner stated that he was surprised when the police officer from the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba

In his petition tagged “Petition Against Extreme Prejudice and Bias, Improper Police Investigation, Wrongful Police Action Against The Baale and People Of Badore, Eti-Osa Local Government Of Lagos State.”

Ayade: Debt Review, Project Devt Commission Report Not for Witch-hunt for witch-hunt.

The report outlined Cross report is intended to guide us in Bassey Inyang in Calabar The Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, has stated that the implementation of the report of the Debt Review and Project Development Commission which he set up last year would not be used as an instrument

Speaking at the Conference Hall of the Governor's Office in Calabar while receiving the report, the governor maintained that the contents of the report would help guide the next governor on the tenor of his administration.

River State debt profile, projects and their completion among other items spanning two decades.

According to Ayade, "In the tradition and history of Cross River State, we are brothers and we are our brother’s keeper. This

making decisions going forward and not intended to witch hunt anybody or any group of persons.

"So whatever we find in the report, we will try to implement the recommendations to the extent that it can bring value to the state.

Nigerians Urged to Support Buhari for Completion Ekiti 2022: I am Buoyed by of Ajaokuta Steel Company People’s Support, Says Oni

Chinedu Eze Former Governor of Ekiti State, Segun Oni, who has indicated interest to contest in the June 2022 gubernatorial election on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), yesterday said he was standing on the support of the people ‘who are urging him to govern them again’.

Oni, who became the governor of the state in 2007 but was ousted by the Appeal Court in 2010, said his vision is to put the state on the path of financial autonomy.

The former governor, who made this know on The Sunday Morning Show programme of Arise News TV, said he was motivated and encouraged to contest the election because of

the enormous support from the people of the state.

He stated that he had people oriented programmes, which he started but were abandoned by his successors, who started their own programmes, arguing that those programmes started by his successors, Ayo Fayose, who led the state from 2014 to 2018 and Dr. Kayode Fayemi, the current governor, are not people-oriented, so they did not empower the people as individuals.

Oni said during his tenure, he introduced education technology to create digital environment and made laptops available for senior secondary students with the aim to expose them to IT knowledge and skills, and make them competitive globally.

Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja Piqued by the current state of Ajaokuta Steel Company, a community leader in Kogi State, Pa Haruna Ahmed Osike, has appealed to Nigerians to support President Muhammadu Buhari to complete and operationalise the ailing Steel Industry.

Osike, who described the blast furnace technology used in the establishment of Ajaokuta steel

plant as the best worldwide, said the Ajaokuta Steel Company is not obsolete as being speculated.

The elder statesman made this appeal while speaking in Okene, the headquarters of Kogi Central senatorial district yesterday, saying those claiming that the blast furnace technology used in building the integrated Ajaokuta iron and steel plant is obsolete are ignorant of technology utilised

by the builders of the industry.

According to him, "It is unfortunate that some people who are fond of describing the Ajaokuta steel plant as obsolete are novice to the technology.

"The blast furnace-basic oxygen process was the technology adopted for the establishment of Ajaokuta Steel Plant which is still the best in world, as over 70 per cent of world steel production

till date is through the Blast Furnace Process Technology.

"It is on record that Ukraine in 2018 completed its third blast furnace. So also India in August 2013, and added another blast furnace at its Rourkela Plant, and on December 1, 2014, the same India added another blast furnace at its over seven decade-old plant in Burnpur using blast furnace technology.

EFCC: Governor Withdrew N60bn in Cash from His State The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has said that a Northern Governor personally withdrew cash of N60 billion from his state treasury.

The Chairman of EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, disclosed this in a story published on the agency’s magazine, EFCC Alert.

Although Bawa refused to give out his name, he explained that the governor is from the North Central part of the country.

He said: “I can tell you for free that the new Department of Intelligence that we have created is working wonders.“They

have come up with a lot of intelligence. In one of them, a governor in a North-Central state within the last six years (one individual) has withdrawn over N60 billion in cash. ”We are looking at all of that, and I assure you that at the end of all of our investigations,

Nigerians are going to be briefed of what we are doing behind the scene on cybercrime, politically exposed persons as well as engaging government agencies to ensure that we have better processes and procedures on how to do government business.”

MONDAY, ͹ͻ˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

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MONDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor: Duro Ikhazuagbe Email: duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

NFF Sacks Gernot Rohr, Appoints Eguavoen Interim Boss

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja After months of speculations, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), last night formally announced the termination of the contract of its German Coach, Gernot Rohr.

General Secretary of the NFF, Dr Mohammed Sanusi said: “The relationship between the Nigeria Football Federation and Mr Rohr has come to an end. We thank him for his services to the Super Eagles and Nigeria.

“We also want to thank the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports for their collaboration and guidance all through,” observed the scribe of the Nigerian federation in a statement.

In Rohr’s place, Technical Director of the federation, Augustine Eguavoen was appointed to take over the Super Eagles on an interim basis.

This announcement has finally put paid to speculations over whether the German would return from his base in France to lead Eagles to the AFCON starting on January 9 in Cameroon.

Rohr was in charge of the three-time African champions for 64 months and became Nigeria’s longest-serving gaffer.

Director of Communication of the NFF, Ademola Olajire said in the official statement from the Sunday Dankaro Football House last night that the appointment of Eguavoen on an interim basis followed the virtual meeting of the NFF Executive Committee on Sunday.

“It was decided that Eguavoen will work with Salisu Yusuf (Chief Coach); Paul Aigbogun (Assistant Coach); Joseph Yobo (Assistant

Coach); Dr Terry Eguaoje (Assistant Coach) and Aloysius Agu (Goalkeeper Trainer).

“Former Nigeria captains Augustine ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu and Garba

Lawal have been appointed to provide technical and ambassadorial support for the

Ndidi Tipped to Replace Casemiro at Real Madrid Duro Ikhazuagbe

Gernot Rohr...officially sacked from Eagles job

S C OT T I S H P R E M I E R S H I P rough patches with 11 yellow cards flashed to players from both teams. Hearts’ Josh Gordon however got sent off with barely 10 minutes to end the game after a second caution card.

For Rangers’ manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst, the victory was a continuation of winning start on the job.

The result temporarily stretched Rangers' lead to seven points, while Hearts stay third.

Celtic who defeated Motherwell 1-0 later in the evening however narrowed the gap back to four .

The defeat is the first Robbie Neilson's side have suffered at Tynecastle this season. On another day, their unbeaten home run may still be intact, but the Hearts boss will rue a lack of ruthless finishing from his players and an inspired Allan McGregor in the Rangers goal.

Rangers had failed to win on their last three visits to Tynecastle, heightening the challenge for Van Bronckhorst's men, which the Dutchman was keen to highlight before the match.

And his side were almost chasing the game early in a frantic start after a simple ball forward caught the away defence out, resulting in Liam Boyce forcing McGregor to acrobatically tip a lobbed attempt over.

Rangers' backline looked ropey, but the same could not be said for their electric attack.

Atseye, Quadre Win Rainoil Tennis Open Femi Solaja Nigeria’s master of Clay, Henry Atseye and Women’s number one player, Oyinlomo Quadre were at the weekend crowned winners of this year’s Rainoil Tennis Open Championship.

Held at the Clay Court of the Lagos Country Club in Ikeja, Atseye proved why he is the Master of Clay in Nigeria as he defeated men’s singles defending champion and number one seed, Joseph Imeh by two straight sets of 7/6(7/4), 6/2 to emerge the winner.

In his reaction after the hard fought battle, Atseye appreciated Rainoil for supporting tennis in the country, pointing out that the Rainoil Tennis Open offers Nigerian players the opportunity to get exposed to clay.

27 years ago.

He will now take charge of the Super Eagles as preparations begin for the 33rd Africa Cup of Nations taking place in Cameroon between 9th January – 6th February 2022, and until the appointment of a substantive Head Coach.

Augustine Eguavoen...appointed on interim basis to lead Eagles to AFCON in Cameroon

Aribo Scores Sixth League Goal as Rangers Extend Lead Nigerian international, Joe Aribo scored his sixth Scottish Premier League goal in 17 matches yesterday as Rangers defeated Hearts 2-0 to extend their lead to four points.

After Alfredo Morelos got the curtain raiser in the ninth minute, the Super Eagles midfielder consolidated Rangers lead with the second goal in the 13th minute.

Although Hearts made spirited attempts to reduce the tally, they could not find the back of the net. Instead, the game delved into

crew,” stressed Olajire last night.

Eguavoen, a former Nigeria captain, was coach of the squad when Eagles finished in third place at the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt in 2006. He was on-field captain when the Super Eagles lifted the Africa Cup for the first time on away ground, in Tunisia

Also, defending women champion of the annual Rainoil tennis Open championship, Oyinlomo Quadre retained her title after beating no 1 seed, Marylove Edwards in two straight sets.

Quadre who came into the tournament as second seed after about seven months lay-off due to injury proved too hard a nut for her opponent to crack as she dominated all the sets to end the ambition of Marylove Edwards whom she was meeting for the first time in her career and ended the game at 6-4, 6-1.

Speaking at the end of the energy sapping encounter, Quadre noted that she's happy retaining the title despite seven months of lay-off.

"I'm really happy winning this tournament after coming back from

injury. It was not an easy game because there was a lot of tension but I played my best game and won against an equally good opponent", she said.

In her own remarks, Marylove admitted playing against a very good player; saying that she tried her best but her best was not enough to dethrone her. " It was a very good game and both of us put in our best but the better player won.

In the men's doubles event, Mathew Abamu and Michael Chima defeated Henry Atseye and Nnoso Madueke to emerge winners, while the women's doubles won by Omolayo Bamidele and Oyinlomo Quadre The Group Managing Director of Rainoil, Dr. Gabriel Ogbechie, in his remarks said that tennis is

a sports he is so passionate about, noting that if it is invested in, it will help young Nigerians make a very decent living He urged the players to be more dedicated and committed in order to improve on their games. He thanked Lagos Country Club Ikeja for being a good host.

"Rainoil is proud to be associated with tennis. I'm passionate about the game and this is our own effort in developing tennis in the country.”

Winners in the men and women's singles went home with N600, 000 and 500,000 respectively, while their runnersup got N300,000 and N250,000 respectively. Winners of the men and women's doubles went home with N600,000 and N500,000 respectively.

Nigeria and Leicester City midfield enforcer, Wilfred Ndidi has been tipped to replace Casemiro at Real Madrid .

Spain’s El Nacionalreported at the weekend that Ndidi remains Real Madrid’s favourites to replace the Brazilian who is contracted to Real until June 2025 but has been strongly speculated to be on his way to Chelsea.

Ndidi is similarly on contract with ‘The Foxes’ until June 2024.

The Nigeria star, 24, joined Leicester City for €17 Million four years ago and has since established himself in the Premier League after close to 200 appearances.

Casemiro on the other hand has scored 30 goals and registered 27 assists in 307 appearances for Real Madrid.

The Spanish club it was reported also are ready to allow

Casemiro go to Chelsea with an offer in the region of €60 Million.

Meanwhile, Ndidi was in action yesterday as Leicester City returned to winning ways in the Premier League following a 4-0 drubbing of against struggling Newcastle United at the King Power Stadium .

Ndidi, who was one of Leicester City’s top performers in the game featured for 90 minutes.

It was the midfielder’s 12th league appearance of the campaign.

His international teammate Kelechi Iheanacho failed to make the matchday squad. Ademola Lookman was also not included in the squad for the game by manager Brendan Rodgers.

Belgium midfielder Youri Tielemans scored twice for the Foxes, while Patson Daka and James Maddison got the other goals.

Wilfred Ndidi...tipped to replace Casemiro at Madrid

71

MONDAY, ͹ͻ˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

SPORTS

Verstappen Overtakes Hamilton to Claim First Formula 1 Title

Red Bull's Max Verstappen yesterday won his first Formula 1 world title in dramatic circumstances at the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

His rival Lewis Hamilton had appeared in control of the race and on course for the title himself, despite controversy on the first lap, until a late safety car.

The race was restarted with one lap to go with Verstappen on fresh tyres and Hamilton on old ones and the Dutchman swept by to win the race.

It was in many ways a fitting end to one of the greatest and most contentious seasons in Formula 1 history - and the arguments over right and wrong

will rage for some time to come.

However At the end of the race, while Verstappen screamed with delight and Red Bull celebrated, Briton Hamilton sat in his Mercedes for several minutes, disbelieving at the way events had turned against him in the final minutes.

The race had appeared to surrender to Hamilton after he was controversially allowed to keep the lead he had earned with a better start than Verstappen, despite going off track to retain his position when the Dutchman tried to pass him at the end of the first back straight.

Red Bull and Verstappen were

exasperated and disbelieving about it, but Hamilton was imperious from then on, through a pit stop and a virtual safety car, until Nicholas Latifi crashed his Williams with five laps to go.

Mercedes felt they could not afford to pit Hamilton because to do so would have been surrendering the lead if Verstappen did not do the same - and he may well not have done because his tyres were relatively fresh after a second stop.

But when Hamilton did not stop for fresh tyres, Verstappen did and that was the decisive call.

There was more controversy as race director Michael Masi initially said lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen would not be allowed to un-lap themselves, as is normal practice.

Red Bull complained and Masi changed his mind, which put Verstappen right behind Hamilton for the one remaining lap of racing.

Verstappen passed Hamilton into Turn Five and held off his attempts to re-pass down the two straights that followed and completed the lap before erupting with joy.

Yet whatever anyone's view of the various incidents in the race, few would begrudge Verstappen the title after a season in which he and Hamilton have gone toe-to-toe throughout in one of the most remarkable F1 seasons there has ever been.

Hamilton, meanwhile, will have to console himself with Mercedes' victory in the constructors' championship for an unprecedented eighth consecutive year.

Barcelona’s Poor Run Continues with Draw against Osasuna

Max Verstappen...wins first Formula1 title in dramatic fashion

PHOTO: REUTERS

CAF Rejects Al Ahly’s Request to Adjust AFCON 2021 Calendar Following the overlapping of the FIFA Club World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations finals in January, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has turned down the request of Egypt’s Al Ahly to move up the January 9 date set for the continental premier football tournament.

Ahly are the current African Champions League winner and also have a considerable number of players in the Egyptian squad.

There are players of other national teams that will also be affected. They are: Ali Maaloul (Tunisia), Aliou Dieng (Mali) and Badr Benoun (Morocco).

Al Ahly are set to participate in the 2021 Club World Cup, their second under Pitso Mosimane, from 3 February 2022 to the 12th, in the United Arab Emirates.

If Egypt, Mali and Morocco reach the knockout stages of AFCON, Al Ahly will have to compete in the Club World Cup without these key players.

The African champions have, therefore, demanded the Egyptian FA to play the role in helping them resolve this issue.

In their statement, Al Ahly revealed that they sent a letter to the EFA in which they emphasized on the role they played in always helping the national team throughout history.

They also claimed that they need full support of Egypt’s football governing body as they will not only be representing Egypt but also the whole African

continent.

According to Egyptian publication Ahram, CAF rejected the appeal and announced that the kick-off date for the Africa

Cup of Nations remains 9 January.

Egypt will feature in Group D along with Nigeria, Sudan and Guinea Bissau.

Egypt’s Al Ahly ‘s proposal for an adjustment to the AFCON 2021 calendar has been rejected

by CAF PHOTO: BACKPAGEPIX

Barcelona's patchy run of form continued as they conceded a late equaliser at Osasuna in La Liga.

The result sees Xavi's side stay eighth in the table, 15 points behind leaders Real Madrid, who had late fixture with Atletico last night.

Teenagers Nicolas Gonzalez and Abdessamad Ezzalzouli, both 19, scored for the visitors.

But the hosts twice fought back, with David Garcia and Ezequiel Avila ensuring they claimed a deserved point from the contest.

Barcelona had come into the fixture looking to make amends for consecutive defeats by Real Betis and Bayern Munich.

Midfielder Gonzalez, gave them a perfect start, racing on to Gavi's superb pass and prodding past home goalkeeper Sergio Herrera to register his first goal for the club.

However, Garcia headed in an equaliser two minutes later after some non-existent marking from a set-piece and Barca, who

LA LIGA are still suffering from a lengthy injury list, struggled to provide forward support to the isolated Luuk de Jong for most of the first period.

They did improve after the break and Ousmane Dembele's driving run was rewarded as Ezzalzouli converted his cross from close range.

The Moroccan winger's goal marked the first time that two players under the age of 20 have scored for Barca in a single La Liga season this century.

And with the clock ticking down it appeared to have put them on course for a muchneeded victory until Avila drove in from the edge of the penalty area.

With Real playing city rivals Atletico in a late fixture, Barca could find themselves 18 points adrift of Carlo Ancelotti's side by the end of Sunday.

“I’m in Killer Mood, Masevex Warns Olanrewaju GOTV BOXING NIGHT 24 National light heavyweight boxing title contender, Adewale “Masevex” Masebinu, has sent a stern warning to his fellow contender and opponent in their 24 December title bout, Segun “Success” Olanrewaju, that he is in a ‘killer mood.’

The bout, slated to hold at GOtv Boxing Night 24 at the Molade-Okoya Indoor Sports Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, will see Masevex attempt to avenge his defeat by Olanrewanju in a non-title fight at GOtv Boxing Night 16 where he was stopped in the fourth round.

Speaking from his Ado-Ekiti base yesterday, Masevex blamed his defeat on ill-health, saying what happened in the previous fight will have no bearing on their forthcoming encounter.

“I’ve never been this motivated for a fight. This time, I will be fighting for pride and title and I can say that I’m in a mood to kill.

Olanrewaju calls himself Success, but he will end up being a failure at the end of the bout. I lost the other fight because I was ill. I’m as fit as a horse now and he will feel the full impact of my fitness,” he boasted.

The six-bout show, which will see live musical performance by Zanku Records act, Jamopyper, will also stage the World Boxing Federation (WBF) International title welterweight title bout between the reigning champion, Nigeria's Rilwan "Baby Face" Babatunde, and crack Ghanaian boxer, Justice “Qwick Action” Addy. Similarly on the bill is the national cruiserweight title bout between Abiodun “Infiniti” Afinni and his conqueror at the last edition of the show, Michael “Emirate” Godwin.

Three non-title bouts, with two in the welterweight division and one in bantamweight, complete the bout card.

In the welterweight division, Semiu “Jagaban” Olapade will fight Taiwo “Gentle Boy” Olowu, while Willian “Kaki” Amosu squares up with Segun “War” Adeyemi. The bantamweight category will see Saheed “Eagle” Azeez and Aminu “Lucky Boy” Akintayo make their professional bow.

The best boxer at the event will win a cash prize of N1million attached to the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy

Monday December 13, 2021

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UT H

& RE A SO

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Price: N250

MISSILE

Akpanudoedehe to Iyorchia Ayu, PDP “Going by the utterances and direction of the new PDP leadership, any hope of a re-focused opposition party expected to atone for misdeeds in the country when it was in government for 16 years and as a failed opposition party following PDP’s sack in 2015 have now been quickly dashed. The PDP’s sole intent is power grabbing by any means…” – Senator John Akpanudoedehe, berating the new PDP Chairman and his party, for their past misdeeds.

MAHMUDJEGA Bandit Bello Turji, King of Gobir VIEW FROM THE GALLERY

L

istening last week to the anguished cries of leaders of the Gobir Community Development Association [GCDA] over the fate that has befallen their land, I could not help but wonder how an area that was pre-colonial Hausaland’s most powerful, most militaristic kingdom is now at the mercy of an itinerant bandit.

This area that existed for 800 years as the mighty city-state of Gobir was incorporated into the Sokoto Caliphatewiththe death of Sarkin Gobir Yunfa and thefall of its capital city, Alkalawa in 1808.The British seized sovereignty over the area in 1903 and incorporated it into Nigeria, while the French seized its northern fringes and built it into Niger Republic. Within Nigeria, the old Gobir Kingdom is now split between Sokoto and Zamfara states.

Within the two states, it was divided into several LGAs and traditional domains which rule over its people.

Or at least, they used to. Within this year abandit king has risen to become the de facto ruler of this great old region.

GCDA’s chairman Ibrahim Alhassan says bandit Bello Turji has seized sovereign authority from Federal, state and local governments, Sokoto Sultanate, Shinkafi Emirate in Zamfara State and all the district and village heads under them.

GCDA chairman’s open letter to President Buhari last week said Sabon Birni, Goronyo and Isa LGAs in Sokoto State and Shinkafi LGA in Zamfara State are now under Turji’s firm control. He kidnaps and rapes at will. He blocks roads, sacks markets, seizes food and any material he fancies, and kills anyone who resists. He sacks village heads and appoints his own village heads. He levies taxes on communities.If any village fails to pay the levies, Bello Turji visits it with instant and merciless attack, kills anyone he can find, including women and children.

Among the villages that Turji sacked were Gajit, Lajinge, Tarah, Unguwar Lalle, Kurawa, Gangara and Garin Idi. A month earlier, Bello Turji sacked Garki village, five kilometers from Sabon Birni, and killed 80 people in one night. On Tuesday last week, this bandit carried out one of his most heinous acts yet.

His goons stopped a bus that left Sabon Birni for Gusau, set it ablaze and burnt 23 people alive. His men stood guard around the bus while people were roasted.

Under Bello Turji’s rule, GCDA said “there is no farming, no traveling and no markets” in the region. Its chairman added that “The biggest problem we are facing today is that you are in your house and terrorists come and abuse you in front of your family. And all the communities that I told you about are taxed, and they have paid. But even

Turji

though they have paid, they have not found peace.”

When Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal received a fact-finding team of Federal security and intelligence chiefs led by National Security Adviser Major General Babagana Monguno in Sokoto last Friday, he confirmed that part of his constitutional mandate to rule over Sokoto State has been ceded to Bello Turji. Tambuwal said “parts of this state are in the appalling grip of bandits and kidnappers, marauding and scaring the populace in recent times.”He said attacks and kidnappings now take place “in broad daylight in some parts of Isa, Sabon Birni, Tangaza, Illela and several other local government areas.”

GCDA apparently spoke only about its own area of concern, Gobir, but other non-Gobir areas are under the bandits’ boots as well.

The brutal rule of Bello Turji suddenly calls for a reevaluation of the history

of old Gobir Kingdom. It recasts 17th Century Gobir kings in a new, favourable light. As primary school pupils in the old North Western State, we reached our conclusions regarding the nature of old Gobir kings from the letter that Sheikh Usman Danfodio wrote to Sarkin Gobir Bawa Jan Gwarzo in 1788. Shehu complained of “oppression” and high taxes levied on peasants. Sarki Bawa suddenly looks like a very benevolent king with the benefit of hindsight. Gobir peasants might be saying these days that if this is what Nigeria has to offer, bring back Bawa Jan Gwarzo, Nafata and Yunfa.

Even though parts of Sokoto State have suffered from bandit attacks for some years now, Governor Aminu Tambuwal told the Federal delegation on Friday that “this situation is exacerbated by the influx of bandits and criminals displaced by the defective maneuvers of security personnel deployed under Operation

The biggest problem we are facing today is that you are in your house and terrorists come and abuse you in front of your family. And all the communities that I told you about are taxed, and they have paid. But even though they have paid, they have not found peace

Hadarin Daji in neighboring Zamfara State.”Operation Hadarin Daji, he said, “was carried out without any blocking force around Sokoto State.”

Or for that matter, any other neighbouring state because as wecan all see, the center of gravity of bandit terrorism in Nigeria has been shifting under military/security pressure from Zamfara to western Katsina to Birnin Gwari area of Kaduna State to southern Kaduna State to Abuja-Kaduna highway to Shiroro/Rafi areas of Niger State, to Zuru region of Kebbi State and up into northern Sokoto State and western Zamfara State and back. Chase them from this region, and they promptly slip into the neighbouring one, since the forests are contiguous.

Nor was Bello Turji the first bandit kingpin to seize a slice of Nigeria and run it as his fief. Until a few years ago, the top notch bandit in Zamfara State was Buharin Daji, i.e. Buhari of the Forest. His name implied that President Buhari’s rule ends in the urban areas whereas he ruled over the countryside.

Buharin Daji was killed in a gang fight by his top lieutenant Dogo Gide, the man who appeared on a video clip and claimed “credit” for the kidnap of over 100 Federal Government Girls College, Birnin Yauri students and teachers. Local communities in the region also identify Ado Aleiro and Dankarami, along with Bello Turji, as the bandit kings that reign in their areas.

Ideally, bandits and terrorists in the entire region should be simultaneously wiped out in a concerted military and security operation to prevent them from seeping into other areas. Apparently, the military and security forces lack the manpower to do this. For now, top priority should be to end the reign of Bello Turji in northern Sokoto and western Zamfara states. I suspect that three army battalions advancing from the west, east and south can do it. The area isn’t all that big. It is open Sahelian with sparse tree cover and sparse vegetation, especially during the dry season. There should be enough blocking action to prevent him and his gangs from seeping out into another region. They might head north into Niger Republic. I hope they do, because the rough-and-ready Nigerien gendarmes are up to the task.

The last major battle in this region took place 185 years ago. At that Battle of Gawakuke in 1836, Caliph Muhammadu Bello assembled and personally led an allied force that, in one day, crushed a large rebel army using horses, spears, swords, bows and arrows. We expect to see very soon a Nigerian Army General, at the head of a force of tanks, APCs, machine guns, helicopters and Super Tucanos speaking to Bello Turji in the language he understands.

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