TUESDAY 12TH NOVEMBER 2019

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Despite Allowing Adelabu’s Appeal, A’Court Retains Makinde as Oyo’s Gov Abiodun defeats Akinlade in Ogun Idowu Sowunmi in Lagos and Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan Despite finding the appeal of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last governorship

election in Oyo State, Dr. Adebayo Adelabu, meritorious, the Court of Appeal, said yesterday that it could neither order a retrial nor rerun, because the matter was statute barred.

But the appellate court was straighter in the matter of Ogun State, refusing the appeal of the candidate of Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Hon. Adekunle Akinlade, against the election

of the APC’s Governor Dapo Abiodun.

The higher court sitting in Ibadan, in a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Abubakar Yahaya, held that but for the time limitation

placed by law, it would have remitted Adelabu's petition questioning the declaration of Makinde as winner of the March 9 governorship election in Oyo State to the lower tribunal for a retrial.

It, however, said it was unfortunate that the time limit of 180 days for the tribunal had been exhausted, stating that the judgment of the lower tribunal Continued on page 8

Risk Perception about Africa Exaggerated, Says AfDB President, Adesina... Page 6 Tuesday 12 November, 2019 Vol 24. No 8982. Price: N250

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Nigeria Losses 162,000 Children to Pneumonia Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

SIXTY HEARTY CHEERS...

L-R: Managing Director, Actis Nigeria, Mr. Zahi El Khatib; Chairman, Mouka Limited, Mr. Raymond Murphy; Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Janah Moukarim; Head of Marketing, Ms. Tolu Olanipekun; and Chief Commercial Officer, Mr. Oladimeji Osingunwa, during the company’s 60th anniversary in Lagos…recently

A leading child rights organisation, Save the Children, has revealed that pneumonia claimed the lives of 162,000 children below the age of five in Nigeria in 2018.

According to the organisation, Nigeria ranked second behind India, which with 227,000 pneumonia infant mortality rate, tops the global chart.

It identified pneumonia, Continued on page 8

Unending Insurgency Raises Need for Military to Double Troops Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The unending insurgency in the North-east and rising internal security challenges, necessitating increasing military engagements in domestic security, have once again raised the need for the country to enlarge the size of its troops, security experts have told THISDAY. Although as part of the efforts to encourage professionalism and boost the morale of her officers and men, the military last weekend promoted over 300 senior officers across the three services, the Nigerian Army, Navy and Air Force, experts say much more would have

to be done to enhance the efficiency of the defence forces.

THISDAY gathered that beyond the difficulties encountered by the military in the theatre of North-east operations, an area equivalent to three other countries in land mass, the military is also engaged in widespread internal operations believed to be stretching its capacity.

The Senate Committee Chairman on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, had recently raised the alarm over the gap in the manpower requirements of the military.

Ndume had said the Nigerian Army, for instance, had 154,000 soldiers and 6,000 officers when it needed a

minimum of 400,000.

He said the gap showed that Nigeria was not sufficiently committed to ending the war against insurgency.

“Let me say here that you can’t fight a war of this magnitude and this vast land with only 150,000 soldiers,” he said, adding: "Right now, the population of the Nigerian Army is 150,000 with 4,000 recently released, a total of 154,000 soldiers. Also, you can’t fight this war with less than 400,000 soldiers.’’

Given Ndume's figures, Nigeria needs to double its troops count in the next few years, say an analyst.

Continued on page 8

MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT COMING...

Former senator for Bayelsa East, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce (left), and popular television presenter, Mr. Steve Harvey, during the Africa Investment Forum in Johannesburg...yesterday

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NEWS

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

Buhari, Lawan, Others Mourn as David-West Dies at 83

Deji Elumoye, Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja and Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

President Muhammadu Buhari, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday paid tributes to a former minister of Petroleum and Energy, Prof. Tam David-West, who died earlier in the day at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan at 83.

THISDAY learnt that he was admitted to the hospital 12 days ago.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the hospital, Mr. Toye Akinrinlola, who confirmed the death to THISDAY, said the former minister died at 11.05 a.m. “He was brought here over

a week ago and admitted to a private suit. He died at 11.05 am,� Akinrinlola said.

In his condolence message, Buhari expressed deep sorrow at the passage of his ally and friend, a man he usually called “the indomitable Tam David-West.�

According to a statement by one of the presidential spokesmen, Mr. Femi Adesina, the late David-West was a consultant virologist of national and international standing.

He served as Commissioner of Education in the old Rivers State, Minister of Petroleum and Energy under the Muhammadu Buhari military regime, and Minister of Mines, Power and Steel under Gen. Ibrahim Babangida regime. “He had an indomitable spirit, stood resolutely by whatever he believed in, and was in a class of his own,� the president said of the academic,

INEC Restricts Military Participation in Bayelsa, Kogi Gov Elections to Patrol Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday said that the military would not be involved at the polling boot security, except on the invitation of the lead security agency, the Nigeria Police.

Consequently, said the commission, the military would only patrol as a standby force in case of trouble beyond the control of the internal security forces.

The commission clarified that the Nigeria Navy and the Nigeria Air Force have been selected for a special duty of airlifting sensitive electoral materials and protection of the INEC staff in Bayelsa State, but ruled out their presence of the Nigeria army completely within the polling areas.

INEC said that the Nigeria Police shall be in charge of all security issues during the two elections on November 16.

The position of INEC was disclosed to THISDAY by the INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Mr. Festus Okoye.

When asked whether the military would be involved during the two governorship elections in Kogi and Bayelsa States, he said no, emphatically.

Later he sent a written position of the commission titled: "The Army and Bayelsa and Kogi Governorship Elections� to THISDAY. The document says: "The Nigerian Police is the Lead Agency coordinating election security operations.

"The Nigerian Police Force and other security agencies have presented their deployment template to the Inter Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security Co-Chaired by the Chairman of INEC and the National Security Adviser and it has been adopted and approved.

"A rainbow coalition of unarmed security personnel will be deployed in the inner cordon of the polling

units. Armed Mobile Police Officers will patrol the outer cordon of the polling units while a combined team of armed security personnel will protect critical national assets, the Registration Area Centers, INEC offices at the Local Governments and INEC State Offices.

"In accordance with section 29(3) of the Electoral Act, 2010(as amended), the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) has requested the assistance of the Nigerian Navy to assist with gunboat’s to protect electoral officials and personnel on the high seas especially in the riverine areas of Bayelsa State.

"The Nigerian Air Force will also assist in airlifting electoral materials for the commission to far distances and difficult topography.

"However, it is within the remit of the lead agency on election security to request for further assistance of other security agencies based on its assessment of the security situation in each state of the federation.

"Let me point out that election security operations must be separated from existing deployment of the Nigerian military for internal security operations in some states of the federation.

It is a matter of common knowledge that in some states, the Nigerian military are permanently deployed for internal security operations.

"The commission has absolutely nothing to do with the internal security duties and operations of the Nigerian Armed Forces.

"The main political forces in the two states have a duty, a responsibility and obligation to create a serene ambience that enables duly registered and willing voters to cast their votes with dignity and civility. Heightened tension, threats of breakdown of law and order, unwholesome electoral practices and negative narratives will cast a dark shadow on the elections and disengage the voters from the electoral process."

author of many books and social critic.

He commiserated with the David-West family, the people of Buguma, Kalabari Kingdom of Rivers State, the academia, and all those who loved “the forthright Tam David-West.� “President Buhari prays that God will rest the soul of the committed nationalist, urging all those who believe in the ideals he espoused to approximate same, for the betterment of Nigeria and humanity in general," he added.

Lawan said David-West contributed immensely to the development of Nigeria as a teacher and political office holder.

"Professor David-West was a vocal social critic who lived what he preached and never compromised his principles all through his lifetime.

Lawan said Prof. David-West would be missed for his deep and frank analysis of social challenges.

"Aside from pointing directions from the ivory tower, when the calls came for him to serve at the highest level of government, he discharged his duties diligently and conscientiously," the Senate president said.

Lawan condoled with his family, the government and people of Rivers State and prayed that God will give them the fortitude to bear the great loss.

Omo-Agege described the death of the former minister as a big loss to the nation.

He said with his demise, Nigeria would miss his wealth of experience especially in this period of the nation's political history.

Omo-Agege, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Yomi Odunuga, stressed that with his transition to the great beyond, David-West would forever be remembered as a great patriot and intellectual of formidable standing at home and abroad.

He noted that he was one of those who truly left an indelible footprint on the sands of time. “While we mourn, we must appreciate the noble essence of his time on earth as an idealist who consistently nursed an optimistic outlook about Nigeria's capacity for genuine transformation,� he said.

Also, Wike commiserated with the family of David-West over his passing.

In a statement issued in Port Harcourt, Wike said the death of late Professor David-West is a huge loss to the people of the state.

"Prof. David-West was an accomplished academician who served the country well in various capacities," he said.

He prayed that God would grant his soul eternal rest and the family the fortitude to bear the loss.

The APC, through its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu,

in a statement yesterday lamented that Nigeria had lost a progressive voice and social critic who spoke truth to power.

He said the late David-West always held leaders to account on issues of good governance.

"We recall his strong advocacy for oil sector reforms, particularly the passage of a mutuallybeneficial Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), fixing moribund refineries and ending the fuel subsidy racket that was a drain-pipe on the country's resources before the advent of President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

"While the death of the late patriot is painful and a sad loss, we take solace in the fact that he lived an accomplished and impactful life. In death, we remember and celebrate a man who served the country diligently and championed the cause of the poor and underprivileged," APC said.

SEEKING INVESTMENT FOR AFRICA‌ L-R: Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi; President Paul Kagame of Rwanda; President, African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina; and General Manager, Toronto Raptors, Mr. Masai Ujiri, at the opening of the African Investment Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa‌yesterday

Minimum Wage: Labour Meets Next Week on Consequential Adjustment in States Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Following the delay in the commencement of negotiations on the consequential adjustment of the minimum wage at the state levels nationwide, organised labour will meet with state chapters of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Councils (JPSNC) latest by next week, to discuss the next line of action, THISDAY has gathered.

JPSNC had met with its state chapters in Abuja where they urged governors of the 36 states of the federation to immediately commence the payment of N30,000 new minimum wage with effect from April 18.

The Chairman of JPSNC, Simon Anchaver, who had addressed journalists at the end of the consultative meeting, said the union resolved that all states should immediately commence the payment of N30,000 to all the affected workers while the grey areas of the consequential adjustment

were being sorted out.

He added that the national headquarters of the JPSNC would be sending officers to supervise the negotiations at the state level.

But the General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Musa Lawal, told THISDAY yesterday that none of the states had started the negotiations as at last week.

He, however, said labour would wait till next week before summoning its state branches to decide on what to do to compel states to commence negotiations.

Lawal said: "After the completion of negotiations at the federal level, the TUC wrote the state governors requesting them to commence talks with our state branches.

But they have not responded except that they said that they don't have the capacity and that they don't have the money.

"We all know that if they consider workers as important, they can actually pay because

almost all the state governors are spending huge amount on elephant projects that do not have any meaning to the lives of the people. If the human capital does not mean anything to them I wonder what is important.

"Be that as it may between now and next week, we will review the situation of things and we will meet and take appropriate action to ensure worker's life is made better."

The General Secretary of the JPSNC, Lawal Alade Lawal, had also said the labour resolved that states should use the template agreed upon by federal civil servants as a baseline on which to negotiate.

"We are hopeful that by December 31, all negotiations should be wrapped up.

In areas where we have difficulties, we have decided to move in as a group to shut down the space towards ensuring that implementation is done.

"The agreement we had with the federal government is the

minimum for the states. Some will go beyond it but no one will go below it," he said.

Lawal explained that in states where there is low salary level, they have to discuss in order to secure something even higher than what is obtainable at the federal level.

Lawal said: "It depends on peculiarity of the states.

If you say 23.2 per cent increase for a level 7 officer in the federal civil service, it boils down to about N15,000.

But if you apply the same percentage for workers on the same level in some state civil service, it translates to about N4,000. In that case, you have to be able to negotiate a higher percentage to be able to get something close to N15,000.

"That is where the negotiation comes in. There are different peculiarities in states and that is why we don’t want to give a blanket statement on what to do. With the discussion we have with the state officers, they know what to do," he had said.

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Risk Perception about Africa Exaggerated, Says AfDB President, Adesina Nume Ekeghe The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has dismissed the notion of Africa being a risky environment for investors.

According to him, data has shown that Africa has a lesser default rate compared to more

developed continents.

The AfDB boss spoke yesterday at the ongoing Africa Investment Forum in South Africa.

The session was covered live by Arise News, the sister broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspapers.

Adesina predicted an average growth rate of about three per

Buhari Promises Sustained Funding of Trans-Saharan Highways Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari has promised not to starve the Tran-Saharan highway project of funds as he committed his administration to striving to ensure the completion of the road construction, which would not only bolster economic activities, but enhance regional and cultural integration in Africa.

Buhari, who gave the assurance yesterday at the 70th session of the Trans-Saharan Road Liaison Committee (TRLC), in Abuja, said when he took over the mantle of leadership in 2015, his administration decided to introduce changes geared towards sustainable and quality infrastructural development to drive economic development and job creation. “Our commitment is to increase Nigeria’s road infrastructure in order to ease the cost and time of doing business and improve our economic competitiveness as envisaged under our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP). In view of this, our administration shares the aspiration of the Trans-Saharan Road Liaison Committee aimed at encouraging membercountries' development of the sections of trans-Saharan roads within their respective territories,� Buhari stated.

The president, who was represented by the Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Dingyadi, described the LagosAlgiers highway as a pride to the African continent, adding that Nigeria has supported and would continue to fund its completion. “The Nigerian government has currently upgraded the section of the trans-Saharan road within its borders. Special funding consideration has been committed to the reconstruction works of the sections of the tranSaharan roads from Lagos to Ibadan and Kaduna to Kano.

"Other sections of the route from Ibadan to Ilorin, Ilorin to Jeba, Jeba to Mokwa and Mokwa to Kaduna have either been dualised or rehabilitated to ensure more efficient flow of traffic, especially for heavy goods vehicles that transverse this route, which sustains the economic activities that support millions of Nigerians and our neighbours across our borders.

"It would continue to receive the desired attention so that it facilitates not only economic activities but also regional and continental integration,� he said.

In his address, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, said 80 per cent of the 9, 895 kilometres Trans-Saharan Highway, which

transverses six African countries, had been asphalted.

The countries are Nigeria, Mali, Chad, Algeria, Tunisia and Niger.

Fashola said no effort would be spared to complete the remaining 20 per cent of the highway, which is earth road.

The road, he stated, serves 37 regions in Africa, connects 74 urban centres and 60 million people across six countries who are members of the TRLC. According to Fashola, the road would encourage the integration of the region as well as open up limitless opportunities to the countries. “It is very useful for every African to be aware of the existence of a trans-African highway plan which seeks to connect the whole of Africa right from Cape Town up to Tunisia, either by driving through the East African border, or the West African border or through the centre of Africa. There is a coastto-coast connectivity from the West to the East of Africa to the North-east of Africa to the North-west of Africa, and the South-west of Africa to East Africa.

"A total of nine highways at different stages of connection are meant to achieve this connectivity and it is important for Nigerians to understand that three of these highways pass through the territory of Nigeria out of those nine. “The first is the Lagos-Dakar Highway, which passes through Seme border, and there to Dakar, Senegal. The second is the Lagos-Mumbasa, which links us through Yaounde in Cameroon. The third and the one about which we are gathered today is the LagosAlgiers-Highway, which is the object of this meeting. “That road covers over 9,000km and 80 per cent of that road is now asphalted. It is important to contextualise that in what we all read about as the trans-Saharan trade road.

This was the road of camels and horses. So how much Africa has progressed now is that with the partnership of all of the men sitting here and all of the experts, 80 per cent of the roads used to be travelled by the camels and horses are now motorable and I think that is progress," Fashola added.

He urged Nigerians to understand that they are part of a large urban network of opportunities, saying: "If you appreciate that the roads of horses and camels are now the road of vehicles and trucks, you can imagine the opportunities that lie ahead as we converge here.�

cent for the continent, adding that about 20 countries on the continent could even achieve an average of five per cent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate. “And guess what, six of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world are in Africa,� he stressed.

Adesina added that foreign direct investment in Africa increased in 2018 by 11 per cent, compared to four per cent in Asia and a decline of 13 per cent globally. “So, Africa is doing well on investments, but it still needs to do a lot more and Africa is ready to absorb a lot more of those investment. “The risk perceptions of the continent while high are often exaggerated and they do not match what the data show on risk and return performance on investment,� he stated.

He compared Africa’s default rate with other continents, saying, “consider for a moment, the Moody’s Investment Services on project loans and finance between 1983 and 2016; it shows that Africa has one of the lowest project default rates in the world, much lower than

Latin America, Asia, Eastern Europe, North America and the Oceania. “Yet investments are tilted to regions with much higher default rates. So, it is not about real risks, it is all about perceived risks. “Last year, when we all gathered here at the inaugural Africa Investment Forum, we secured investment for deals valued at $38.7 billion in less than 72 hours. A lot of progress is being made on this investment with a highly dedicated team working around the clock to accelerate financial closure of transactions.�

Adesina added: “Let me cite a few examples: The Africa infrastructure investment fund for investment in agriculture was presented here last year; it sought $500 million and $500 million equity has been closed - promise made, promise kept. “The Africa Guarantee Fund for investments sought $175 million to support small and medium size businesses and enterprises and the equity transaction has been finically closed - promise made, promise kept. “Here in South Africa, the

beef agro processing project, we sought $350 million and that has also been financially closed.

The Alitheia identity fund, a private equity fund specifically for women businesses put up right here for $72 million has been financially closed - promise made, promise kept,� he added.

In his address, the President of South Africa, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa, debunked the allegation that his country is prone to xenophobic attacks on foreigners and urged foreign investors to take advantage of the huge investment opportunities in the continent.

Ramaphosa said the forum provided a unique opportunity for deal making. “Last year, there were quite a number of investors who came from 55 countries, the forum was instrumental in mobilising funding for initiatives as diverse and exponentially impactful as the Accra skytrain, the Kigali innovation city, the first road/rail/bridge project linking Kinshasa and Roseville and the $320 million Africa infrastructure investment fund. “This is an indication of the breath of investment opportunities that do exist

in our continent in areas such as mining, oil and gas, infrastructure, agricultural production, manufacturing, renewable energy and a range of other profitable sectors. “Much of the economic progress over the last few years have been made possible by developments in the area we call the political sphere. “This has been a good year for the consolidation of democracy across our continent.

National, presidential and parliamentary elections have been held in a number of countries notably in Botswana, Malawi, Mauritania, Namibia, Nigeria, Mozambique and right here in South Africa. “Global investor surveys consistently highlight political stability and security as important considerations for committing capital. Every election that passes peacefully and that reflects the will of the people is another major step towards the attainment of an Africa that is at peace with itself,� he explained.

He also faulted the notion that Africa was unstable and a risky place to invest and to do business.

PRAYING FOR NIGERIA...

L-R: First Lady, Mrs. Aisha Buhari (left), and Chief of Sta to the President, Malam Abba Kyari, during a special prayer for the nation organised by the First Lady and Chief Imam of Presidential Villa in Abuja‌yesterday

Twitter Pledges Support for Nigerian Tech Entrepreneurs Okonjo-Iweala: Technology can boost job creation James Emejo in Abuja The Co-founder and Chief Executive of Twitter Inc., Mr. Jack Dorsey, yesterday said the company was willing to partner young Nigerian entrepreneurs and engineers towards empowering them to take advantage of its service platform to create jobs not only for themselves but for the teeming population.

Dorsey, at an interactive forum in Abuja, stated that he believed Nigeria and Africa in general remained a future reference point for technology products and innovation.

Also at the forum, a former Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said Twitter could serve as a platform for young people to create jobs for themselves and others.

Dorsey and his team are in the country on the invitation of Okonjo-Iweala who chairs

the Board of Trustees, African University of Science and Technology (AUST) to enable him to interact with some of the country's young and promising brains in technology in order to encourage them to excel.

Dorsey told the gathering at the interactive forum held at the university that one of the objectives of the team's visit was to also look for opportunities to make Twitter a lot better.

He said the team required "insights of what is working and what is not working" to be able to improve on its service.

He added that Twitter had in the past 13 years created a global service to give people voices and also using it to spur entrepreneurship among young people.

"We look to other inspiration on how to serve better," he stated.

He also promised to look into allegations by some Nigerian Twitter account subscribers that they had been unduly suspended

from the service without proper reasons.

The young tech entrepreneurs at the forum tasked the team to strengthen the platform against identity theft as current witnessed in some other social media platforms, expand business opportunities as well as incorporate voice call option on twitter.

Technology Can Boost Job Creation, Says Okonjo-Iweala Meanwhile, Okonjo-Iweala has stated that Twitter could serve as a platform for young people to create jobs for themselves and for others.

She added that this could create a huge impact in the economy, stressing that "that is why we wanted him (Dorsey) to come to Nigeria so that he can do things for our youths and help us help ourselves."

She urged the Twitter CEO

to encourage and inspire the youths to create jobs for the economy, stressing that AUST is focused on creating young engineers for Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

She also charged the youth not to "wait for people to create jobs for you but create jobs for yourselves and others and you've got a platform to do it."

Also speaking at the forum, Chairman, Governing Council, AUST, Prof. Oye Ibidapo-Obe, commended the former minister for convincing Dorsey to visit the country, describing it as a big feat.

He said: "What is important to us even to this government is youth unemployment. The rate is so much that if we don't do something quickly, we are going to get into trouble and the best platform is technology.

"As a matter of fact, the human potential is here. We believe strongly that this university will be the centre of focus in technology in Africa."

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Without Manufacturing Plants, Foreign Firms Scramble for Nigeria’s Tyre Market MAN, LCCI, NECA blame policy inconsistencies Chris Uba Foreign tyre manufacturers are frantically scrambling to garner the huge chunks of the share of Nigeria’s tyre market without deeming it expedient to establish manufacturing plants in the country, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.

However, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN); Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), have blamed the absence of local manufacturing plants on federal government’s policy, which had slashed the duty paid on imported tyres at the detriment of local manufacturers.

At the just-concluded 33rd Lagos International Trade Fair (LITF), about five tyre manufacturing multinationals battled with DN Tyre and Rubber Plc (formerly known as Dunlop Nigeria Plc), for the control of the Nigerian market, with mouth-watering offers.

They included Michelin, Bridgestone, Maxxis, Pirelli, and Goodyear as well as imports from Asia and Eastern Europe,

but interestingly, none of the companies has factory in Nigeria.

Bridgestone, for instance, has major manufacturing plants in many countries around the world.

As of April 1, 2011, it had 47 tyre plants, 29 tyre-related plants, 19 raw materials plants, 89 diversified product plants, four technical centers, and 11 proving grounds globally.

From 2020, a plant will be constructed in Cameroon and 2023 in Kenya.

Similarly, Maxxis also a global company, with operations in Taiwan, China, Thailand, Vietnam, USA, Canada, Great Britain, Germany, Holland, Japan, Dubai, India and Indonesia , has opened many new factories and distribution facilities and serves consumers in approximately 180 countries, excluding Nigeria.

Michelin, which has manufacturing plants around the world, operated a tyre manufacturing plant in Port Harcourt, which it shut down in 2007, saying that the move was not linked to the increasing wave of violence in the oil-rich Niger Delta but a strategic decision related to problems with cost competitiveness at the plant

even as the closure put 1,300 staff out of work.

The same can be said of Pirelli & C. S.p.A. an Italian multinational company based in Milan, Italy, which has presence in Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Latin America, North America and exUSSR, operating commercially in over 160 countries.

It has 19 manufacturing sites in 13 countries but none in Nigeria, and a network of around 14,600 distributors and retailers.

The Goodyear Tyre & Rubber Company, an American multinational tire manufacturing company based in Akron, Ohio, USA does not have a plant in Nigeria and it is not planning to do so anytime in the near future.

The same applies to Continental AG, a German automotive manufacturing company specialising in tyres and other parts for the automotive and transportation industries.

The company, which does not have or plan to build a factory in Nigeria, is the world's fourthlargest tyre manufacturer.

THISDAY gathered that these companies are more interested in marketing their products in

Nigeria, rather than establishing plants in the country. Speaking on the issue, the Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Muda Yusuf, blamed the policy inconsistencies that have persisted in the country for years for the absence of any tyre manufacturing plant in the country.

He told THISDAY that the government has not really encouraged the manufacturing sector in the country, saying the issue prevented tyre manufacturing companies from setting up factories in the country. “Dunlop was making efforts to expand its operations; they borrowed money ,acquired new machines, only for the government to reduce duties on tyre thereby killing the effort of the company,� he said adding that the company also has backward integration- rubber plantation in the South-South. “They (Michelin) were doing well in the country before the government came up with a policy slashing the duty on tyre, thereby opening up the floodgate for influx of tyres into the country. Weak infrastructure,

including poor power, bad roads is part of the problems. It is about policy inconsistency that's the problem,� he said.

Chairman of the Automotive Sector of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Dr. DVC Obi, also told THISDAY that the foreign tyre manufacturers are not to blame. “It is wrong policy by the Nigerian government, which fostered harsh business environment for manufacturing businesses in the country. “You have companies producing tyres and employing people in the country, and you lowered tariff for tyre encouraging influx from different parts of the world,� he said, noting that the two companies had to close shops.

According to Obi, with this situation, others are not likely to come because there has been no improvement on the business environment.

The Director-General of Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Timothy Olawale, frowned upon the state of the economy that has made the country to become a “dumping ground for all types

of finished and semi-finished products, at the detriment of our local manufacturing companies, which is militating against the growth of the real sector and development of the nation.�

He added that the collapse of the tyre industry was as a result of direct consequence of the policy somersault of the federal government in 2006 by significantly reducing import tariff that was meant to protect local tyre manufacturing industry from the huge infrastructure deficiency, especially electric power, reconsideration of local tyre manufacturing strategy.

On how to attract investors into the tyre manufacturing, LCCI Director General said government should first encourage Dunlop and Michelin to return because they already have structures on ground. “Government should give them incentives - tax holiday for five years, duty free on the importation of machines and other equipment among others, raise duties on imported tyres to encourage local manufacturers.

The Central Bank of Nigeria should extend funds to encourage local production of tyres."

be are placing more emphasis on procurement of armament to the exclusion of the need for more men that would handle the equipment.

A security analyst, Mr. James Manchap, however, allayed Ndume’s fears, stressing that the manpower need of the military globally is now bridged by deployment of technology.

"Size of the military is still important but most nations

are now heavily dependent on technology,� he explained, adding: "There is heavy reliance on new war strategies, composite air power, cyber warfare, deployment of drones which is also part of it.�

He said the enhanced numbers of military personnel "is still important considering the sheer size and population of Nigeria and the multiple security threats it faces."

in his reaction, said: "In totality, the appeal was allowed. But My Lord said that because of effluxion of time - that since the time for trial has lapsed at the tribunal, they cannot order for retrial of the case.

"But generally or totally, the appeal was allowed. It showed that the judgment of the tribunal occasioned miscarriage of justice against the appellants."

However, when asked if Adelabu and APC would proceed to the Supreme Court to challenge the Court of Appeal judgment, he said: "The next step depends on my clients.

They will brief us accordingly and it depends on instructions."

The state chapter of the APC, however, said Adelabu and the party would approach the Supreme Court for final settlement of the litigation.

In a statement by its Assistant Publicity Secretary, Prince Ayobami Adejumo, the party

lauded the appellate court's judges for their pronouncement.

Meanwhile, the appellate court dismissed the appeal filed against Abiodun and the APC by Akinlade and the APM and upheld the judgment of the Ogun State Governorship Petitions Tribunal that dismissed the petition of the APM governorship candidate.

Reading the lead judgment, Justice Muhammed Ambi-Usi Danjuma declared that the 10 grounds filed by the Akinlade and his party challenging the victory of Abiodun had no merits and that the two appellants were overruled because of lack of merit.

The judgment read, “The respective objections raised by the two respondents are

overruled and the emotions have no remit, answers to them are sustained and the two motions are dismissed.�

In its reaction, the state chapter of the APC expressed joy at the victory of the governor, describing it as a reaffirmation of his divine mandate.

Addressing reporters at the party secretariat in Abeokuta, shortly after the appeal judgment, the Publicity Secretary of the APC Caretaker Committee, Mr. Tunde Oladunjoye, said the victory verdict was a true reflection of the overwhelming wishes of Ogun people as freely expressed in the March 9, 2019 governorship election.

Oladunjoye, therefore, urged politicians and non-politicians who genuinely desire the peace and progress of the state to join hands with Abiodun to develop the state.

vaccines and easily treated with low-cost antibiotics, such as Amoxicillin DT. He, however, lamented that millions of children are at risk of not celebrating their fifth birthday as more than 40 per cent of one-year-olds in Nigeria are unvaccinated and three in four children suffering from pneumonia symptoms do not get access to medical treatment.

He urged the federal government, the United Nations, multilateral agencies, companies and nongovernmental organisations to join forces to fight pneumonia and protect these children.

"This is a forgotten global health epidemic that demands a greater international response.

Millions of children are dying for want of vaccines, affordable antibiotics, and routine oxygen treatment. The pneumonia crisis is a symptom of neglect and indefensible inequalities in access to health care,� he added.

On her part, Save the Children Country Director, Deirdre Keogh, said the organisation was collaborating with the Every Breath Counts (EBC) Coalition, and had supported the federal government in the development of the National Integrated Pneumonia Control

Strategy, stressing that it is an important step in addressing pneumonia.

Also, Save the Children UK Ambassador, Florence Otedola, Also Known as DJ Cuppy, said Nigeria spent just $10 per person on health care in 2015, which she said was far below the $86 minimum level recommended by the World Health Organisation. “We can all do our part in making sure the children of Nigeria do not die from pneumonia. lnvite us to come together and invest in providing treatment to every last child who deserves to survive this preventable disease."

UNENDING INSURGENCY RAISES NEED FOR MILITARY TO DOUBLE TROOPS Top military sources, who justified Ndume’s alarm, told THISDAY at the weekend that there was a 20 per cent shortfall in the manpower requirements of the military.

Responding to a question on the military's capacity to confront a foreign adversary, a source said the military was presently focused on internal security threats.

"What is established is that

there is a 20 per cent shortfall in the manpower requirements of the military. But the military is focused on internal threats. What we have is internal threats and we are addressing it."

A global military ranking institution, Global Fire Power (GFP), citing United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Fact book, has ranked Nigeria 43rd in its 2019 global military ranking.

The ranking is based on population of the country, manpower/personnel strength, financial strength and military arsenal.

Nigeria is credited with 181,000 total military personnel; 172,400,000 available manpower while those fit for service stood at 40,710,000 even as citizens reaching military age stood at 3,456,000.

According to the report, out

of the total military personnel, 124,000 are active while 57,000 are reserved.

Defence spokesman, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, declined to discuss the issue when contacted by THISDAY. But defence sources told THISDAY that efforts to get the appropriate authority to respond to the demand of the military in this regard have been unsuccessful as the powers that

DESPITE ALLOWING ADELABU’S APPEAL, A’COURT RETAINS MAKINDE AS OYO’S GOV that dismissed Adelabu's petition against Makinde's election as the governor was perverse, therefore, set aside the judgment that upheld the election of Makinde as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

It also ordered that the status quo before the tribunal's judgment should remain, which is the return and declaration of Makinde as winner of the governorship poll in Oyo State.

Justice Yahaya, the lead judge of the four-man panel, disagreed with the tribunal on issues bordering on documents tendered by the APC. He held that the documents tendered by the appellants ought to have guided the tribunal through proper investigation, stressing that the pieces of evidence were also not adequately evaluated.

The lead judge noted that the tribunal had committed

a miscarriage of justice by its failure to analyse the tendered documents and its failure to evaluate the pieces of evidence presented by the APC. Reacting to the judgment, Makinde said the mandate of the people given to him remained intact following the ruling of the Court of Appeal.

Makinde, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, added that the mandate cannot be taken through the backdoor.

He said: “There is no ambiguity as to the state of things in our pacesetter state as far as the election of March 9, 2019, is concerned. Our party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), won the election.

The victory was reaffirmed by a ruling of the Election Petitions Tribunal, sitting in Ibadan, the state capital. “On Monday, the Court of Appeal refused to grant any

of the three key reliefs sought by the APC candidate. “With the above being the reality of the outcome of the Appeal Court ruling, the election of Seyi Makinde as the Governor of Oyo State has just been reaffirmed."

Makinde urged the people to remain calm and be law abiding.

Also, the lead counsel to Makinde, Prof. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), said the declaration of Makinde as governor had not been affected in any way.

"We have not seen the details of the judgment. We were all in court and you (journalists) saw that the details were not read to us. As far as we are concerned, there is no cause for alarm. There is no implication on the return and declaration of Seyi Makinde as the governor of Oyo State," he said.

But counsel to Adelabu and APC, Mr. Adeboye Shobanjo,

Abiodun Floors Amosun's ProtĂŠgĂŠ

NIGERIA LOSSES 162,000 CHILDREN TO PNEUMONIA caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi, and which leaves children fighting for breath with their lungs filled with pus and fluid, as the leading killer of children in Nigeria, causing 19 per cent of under-five deaths.

The Chief Executive of Save the Children, UK, Kevin Watkins, while addressing a press conference yesterday in Abuja to commemorate this year's World Pneumonia Day 2019, called on the federal government to urgently commit new resources to tackling the deadly disease.

He stated: "Globally, 802,000 children under the age of five died from pneumonia in 2018,

more than from any other disease.

By comparison, 437,000 children under five died due to diarrhoea and 272,000 to malaria.

"Just five countries were responsible for more than half of child pneumonia deaths: Nigeria 162,000; India 227,000; Pakistan 58,000; the Democratic Republic of Congo, 40,000 and Ethiopia 37,000."

Watkins said a new analysis showed that pneumonia claimed 2,000 children under the age of five last year, or one child every three minutes.

He explained that children with immune systems weakened by other infections or by

malnutrition and those living in areas with high level of air pollution and unsafe water, were at far greater risk.

Watkins added that recent analysis found out that Nigerian children born in the poorest households were nearly three times more likely to die from diseases like pneumonia before their fifth birthday, compared to those born to the rich.

He noted that the picture is starkest in Zamfara, where children are five times as likely to die before the age of five, compared to children from Kwara.

Watkins said most pneumonia deaths could be prevented with

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COMMENT

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

ART X: BLAZING THE TRAIL

Tony Ademiluyi appreciatesTokini Peterside for promoting arts in Nigeria

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he concept of leisure by most black people is tragically consumerist. Most times it consists of indulging heavily in things that may later cause severe health challenges in the future. Binge drinking, smoking anything in sight, raunchy bouts of sex and a host of other vices are what is termed as fun. There is scant regard for the enjoyment of the finer things of life most of which are either free or very cheap. The apologists of the concept of the Renaissance man clearly didn’t have the average African or Black man in mind when defining the concept.

The arts are endangered species in Nigeria and Africa at large. Most artists have the image of starving bards whose reward for their creative output seems to be in Paradise when they finally transit from this planet – something similar to the fate of teachers. There is very little appreciation for their craft as their output isn’t viewed as something essential for the dayto- day living of the inhabitants of the world’s second largest continent. They are seen as rather weird fellows who lock themselves up for days producing what hardly contributes to national development and impoverishing them further as the elite with the purchasing power simply don’t place a high premium on their existence.

It is highly gratifying that Tokini Peterside, the beautiful daughter of Atedo Peterside, founding CEO of Stanbic IBTC Bank took up the gauntlet to rebrand the image of African arts through the establishment of her world renowned arts fair, ART X. The London School of Economics and Political Science First Class Graduate lawyer turned public relations consultant has more than a passing interest in the Nigerian arts and promotion.

The fair launched in 2016 has attracted well over 30,000 visitors to Nigeria where the best of African arts is proudly showcased. Many hitherto broke artists have been given a sturdy platform to not only display their great works but to earn a decent income from their labour of love.

This year’s edition was held between November 1 – 3 at the Federal Palace Hotel and it was a resounding success as it brought together the stakeholders from diverse sectors under one roof.

What a great way to surreptitiously rebrand the battered image of Nigeria and to tell the whole world that the nefarious activities of the internet fraudsters and drug pushers wouldn’t blight the noble activities of the creative minds that abound in great number in the country?

The corporate social responsibility focus of most brands in

THE GLOBE IS FINALLY BEGINNING TO TAKE NOTICE AND IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT WE CREATE THE PLATFORM FOR INDIGENT BUT TALENTED ARTISTS TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SELL THEIR WORKS ABROAD

Nigeria seems to be focused on entertainment. From the sponsorship of the controversial Big Brother to various musical shows seems to tell the public that the only way Nigerian youths can succeed legitimately is through the microphone.

This explains why just about everyone who can speak and dance suddenly wants to become a musician. The quality of songs has tragically dropped as a result of this get rich quick syndrome through music that has seen the churning out of incomprehensible gibberish in the name of music. Most of these so-called hit songs don’t last beyond a few months before they fade away into oblivion.

It is heart-warming that the fair was able to attract the sponsorship of Access Bank, 7UP, Stanbic IBTC Pensions, Chapel Hill Denham, Kia Motors, Anap Jets, Tiger Beer, Leadway Assurance, Sage Innovation Centre, Tangerine, Ford Foundation, Veuve Clicquot rallied round this Amazon to give succour to our artists.

We recall a plea made by Africa’s first Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka to the owner of Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jnr for the home grown brand to do more for the arts. We are glad that the plea of the world famous writer is beginning to bear fruits in our lifetime. We hope that other brands take a cue from the aforementioned ones to devote a miniscule share of their resources to taking our art works global.

African arts is beginning to blossom on the international scene. A recently discovered painting by late Ben Enwonwu ‘Tutu’ sold for about $1.4 million in London this year.

Njideka Akunyili Crosby, daughter of late former NAFDAC DG, Professor Dora Akunyili had one of her art works ‘Bush babies’ sold for $3.4 million in 2017. The globe is finally beginning to take notice and it is essential that we create the platform for indigent but talented artists to be able to have the opportunity to sell their works abroad. Many other African artists are doing very well abroad. Not all artists can be resident abroad due to the current realities of harsh immigration control but the platform can be created for artists to take advantage of globalization to sell their art works to a buying audience abroad. Also, some of our wealthy Nigerians are beginning to appreciate the arts as collectors.

This fair has been able to bridge the gap for the artists to greatly tap into that market.

We hope this fair which is in its fourth season continues so that our local artists can be encouraged to profitably sell their works.

Ademiluyi wrote from Lagos and is the editor of www. africanbard.com

DON’T KILLYOURSELF, PLEASE LAUGH In the midst of the confusion called Nigeria, laughter is the best medicine, writes Charles Dickson

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n 2017, Issa Shivji delivered the Harold Wolpe Memorial Lecture at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. Issa, who taught at the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) for decades, reflected on the idea of revolutionary intellectuals. He remembered a lecture given by Ali Mazrui 50 years previously, where Mazrui defined an intellectual as someone who is fascinated by ideas. ‘Even a clown is fascinated by ideas’, yelled out one of the students.

That’s true.

In the early years of the Soviet Republic, Anatoly V. Lunacharsky – the Bolshevik Soviet People’s Commissar of Education – wrote an essay called ‘We Will Laugh’ (1920). The people had overthrown the Tsar and his empire, ‘a gigantic enemy’. This great victory had to be celebrated, but – Lunacharsky warned – ‘we are entangled by the miasmas of the old culture that poison all our air, when that enemy still triumphs all around us, waiting for the moment to inflict a new blow, in this time, without dropping our swords from one hand, we take in our other a weapon that is already sharp: laughter’. Lunacharsky made two important points here: one, that the tentacles of the old culture pushed past the revolutionary current and continued to try and suffocate human progress, and two, that the people had to respond with their new-found power but also with joy, the energy that gives people confidence.

One of Lunacharsky’s great insights is that it is in the domain of culture that revolutionary movements flounder, for it is

the rigidities of old cultural hierarchies that resist revolutionary change; it is important for revolutionaries to sharpen their understanding of these rigidities and learn to overcome them, to laugh our way to a new world.

As I reflected on clowns being intelligent, the battle of the governed and those that govern, those that are laughing and those crying, the clash of cultures, ethno-tribal and faith based wars that simply saturate our spaces in Nigeria, couldn’t help notice the young lad sitting on the barber’s rolling chair as he sang...

This life I can’t kill myself I can’t kill myself o I can’t kill myself Allow me to flex o This life I can’t kill myself I can’t kill myself o I can’t kill myself Allow me to flex o So here I was at the barbershop and eavesdropping as the young lads chattered away. It was their time, their season, the age...the song playing in the background was a true reflection. As the young man and his friends sang along, I realized that they really couldn’t kill themselves. Davido popular pop musician was going to be in the city of Jos, December 1st and here the dudes were planning, how they were going to deck out to the groove.

Which of the babes was accompanying whom. Logistics were being straightened out. And I simply shook my big head. This

is the future, these are the lads that don’t just care, and they are not exactly perturbed that a bill is taken to Mr. Buhari in London to sign. For them everything was laughter!

We cannot come and kill ourselves because people that should be responsible to us would steal us dry and then when dragged to court they suddenly are on wheel chair or sick beyond Nigerian hospitals and treatment. The lads who are representation of a youth that is a time bomb can’t kill themselves any more than they have been killed.

Our young generations are largely clowns, fascinated by ideas’; I am sure that these young lads like many in their season do not care that 200 alleged corrupt public officials have about N40b of their wealth, health and wellbeing stashed in accounts being investigated.

They are not fascinated by their government’s 11:59 closure of land borders and the implications; there is no robust debate on pros and cons on the way forward. While this clownish generation of social media and netizens had proudly produced some notable hope, it is scary that the revolutionary spirit of change for the better isn’t there.

A crass sense of entitlement, without accountability from ‘them’ or those that lead them; Yes, government should do this, and do that, but what are they, what are we doing to hold government accountable to what they should be doing, in fact a good starting point may be to identify who ‘them’ is, or else we all may continue to laugh; laugh at the fact that nothing is working, nothing wants to work, despite the best efforts of

government, we all should just laugh.

Laugh at the fact, we are a people that pay for darkness, we laugh as we birth children of poverty, children of injustice, and crime, we refuse to make substantial investment to grow new ideas in education and health. We laugh at the Devil in Anambra State Government House, we are clowns because witches and wizards are responsible for our power problems; we are treated with comic relief as we go spiritual with Boko Haram.

Budgets are being presented across federating states with sweet sounding clichĂŠs but a year from now, there will be no fascinating idea as by-products because nobody wants to kill himself or herself for this beautiful contraption called Nigeria.

We do not have an agreeable concept, philosophy, ideology that defines patriotism, so no one is willing to die for a nation that kills her own citizens through bad and un-motorable roads, deadbeat hospitals, heavy-handed security agents, un-thought government policies. Till our leaders show beyond reasonable doubt that they are willing to die for Nigeria, the ideas that clowns will have will continue to evoke only laughter, and please before you die for Nigeria, ask who has died for Nigeria, and where is that person now.

As long as Ali Mazrui’s definition of an intellectual is someone who is fascinated by ideas, the current crop of clowns will remain fascinated by the lack of ideas. For how long—only time will tell.

Dr. Dickson is a Development & Media Practitioner|

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EDITORIAL THE FIGHT OVER MARRIAGE REGISTRIES The power of the federal government is excessive

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n a new development to the disagreement between the federal government and some local government areas over who has the right to conduct marriages in the country, the former has published the marriage registries and places it has licensed to conduct statutory marriages across the country. This vexatious issue illustrates the excessive presence of the federal government in our lives. It also nudges at the heart of millions of Nigerians who are outraged by the present arrangement and have been calling for a restructuring of our federation.

The aim of setting up of such marriage registries, according to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Georgina Ehuriah, was to ensure uniformity in the conduct of statutory marriages. The ministry, she added, is presently considering some recommendations like extending the validity period for licences issued to places of worship for the celebration of marriages, as well as downward review of the fees payable THE HUNGER FOR by couples for REVENUE AT ALL LEVELS conduct of statutory OF GOVERNMENT SHOULD marriages in federal NOT MAKE THE FEDERAL marriage registries.

GOVERNMENT DESCEND “Machinery has also TO PICKING PEANUTS AT been put in place for the amendment THE ROADSIDE WHICH of the Marriage Act THE IDEA OF MARRIAGE to adequately meet REGISTRY REPRESENTS the needs of the 21st century,” said Ehuriah to rationalise the controversial decision.

This is an unnecessary controversy. Marriage registration ought to be a local government responsibility. Data for marriage, like that for birth and death, should derive from local governments nationwide. If there is an existing law conferring on the federal government concurrent powers on marriage registration, the National Assembly should quickly amend such to stop this laughable confrontation.

The hunger for revenue at all levels of government should not make the federal government descend

Letters to the Editor

to picking peanuts at the roadside which the idea of marriage registry represents.

There is no denying the fact that Nigeria practices a weird form of federalism that is not only antithetical to growth and development, but also suffocating.

It is federalism with highly unitary tendencies, where almost all powers are concentrated at the centre as the federating units. The states and local governments are reduced to mere appendages. For the nation of its size and population, a local government in Yenagoa or Gusau looks up to Abuja for police protection.

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

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

he federal government collects a disproportionate amount of the revenue accruing to the nation and uses a revenue formula allocation system designed more to encourage laziness instead of productivity, equity, fairness and justice. The system also allows for little or no accountability with waste and needless duplication at practically all levels. The federal government is recruiting teachers for primary schools that are under the control of local governments. And now it must register people who marry!

The overbearing power at the centre is also what makes the contest for the Nigerian presidency – perhaps the most powerful in the world - a ‘do or die’ affair. The power wielder uses his position to dispense favours or ill-will to whomever he pleases, the type that has helped create many war zones across the nation today. Yet, the federal system inherited at independence was one which allowed the federating units to retain their autonomy to raise and retain revenues, promote development, and conduct their affairs as they saw fit, while engaging in healthy competition with one another.

It is unfortunate that after 20 years of democracy, the country is yet to wean itself of the large doses of unitarism injected into the system by its military rulers. That is why the federal government will be fighting with local government over registration of marriage, ordinarily a local affair. That perhaps explains why restructuring the polity is an issue we cannot afford to be complacent about any longer.

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.

WORLD DIABETES DAY: HOW I LEARNT ABOUT DIABETES

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never paid much attention to diabetes and its related ailments until I became seriously ill in 2015. Each time I went to the hospital for treatment, one of the tests the doctors recommended for me was blood-sugar test, and each time the nurses drew my blood and told me that my blood-sugar level was normal, I wondered, with irritation, the essence of the test in the first place. However, years later, I realised that while my blood sugar was—and is still normal, there are millions of people in the world suffering from bloodsugar diseases, including diabetes.

In the same 2015, when I was doing my youth service in Osun State, there was this indignant elderly man who lived three blocks from my compound. One of his legs was amputated. He had diabetes and was at the risk of losing the other leg, which was already swollen. Prior to that, I did not know that diabetes could cause someone to lose a leg. Because I understand that diabetes could be a genetic condition, each time I saw the man, I wondered how many of his children and generations would suffer the same fate. Worse still, with lack of money and efficient medical care, I wondered how many unfortunate people like him lacked proper treatment or management of the condition.

I have a friend whose mother has incipient diabetes, but kept it secret from her family. Since his mother and his father go to the same hospital for treatment, one day, a doctor from the hospital asked his father how he was helping his mother to manage her diabetes, and his father was surprised to hear this.

I was surprised when my friend told me this. I wondered why

her mother chose not to inform her family about her diabetes condition. Was she ashamed of her illness? Was she ignorant of the deadliness of her illness? Did she not care about her health?

Did she not want her family to contribute to her treatment and care?

My knowledge of diabetes became richer in 2017, when I was a graduate student at the University of Ibadan. During my studentship, I stumbled on The Nation’s November 24, 2017 news article titled ‘I’ve been living with diabetes for over 30 years – Obasanjo’. From the article, I learnt that former President Olusegun Obasanjo has been living with diabetes for 30 years out of his over 80 years on earth. He revealed this on the morning of 2017 World Diabetes Day when he led hundreds of people on a road walk for diabetes awareness in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

The significance of this public awareness, championed by a national figure and a former president, cannot be overemphasised.

This public declaration by Obasanjo, about his health, when other public figures and politicians would hardly do so, provided more information on diabetes. Another interesting part of that day was when, the former chairman of Diabetes Association of Nigeria (DAN), Professor Sunny Chieneye, in a lecture titled ‘Women and Diabetic: Our Right to Healthy Living’, called for concerted efforts to check the menace of diabetes.

While I was at Ibadan, I had a postgraduate anatomy neighbour, Cynthia Ibe, who was researching type-2 diabetes. It was then I knew there are two types of diabetes— type 1 and

2. She enlightened me more on the causes, management and treatment of diabetes. Our conversation became more interesting and intellectual to the point she told me about the little albino rats she was using for her experiments, the photographs from her results, the reagents and herb extracts she was using for her work, and the hope her research could bring to people suffering from diabetes.

Diabetes—a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower-limb amputation—prevalence has been rising more rapidly in middle- and low-income countries. World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that diabetes was the seventh leading cause of death in 2016. According to International Diabetes Federation (IDF), it is estimated that 415 million people are living with diabetes in the world, which is estimated to be 1 in 11 of the world’s adult population. The figure is expected to rise to 642 million people living with diabetes worldwide by 2040. About five million Nigerians live with diabetes, and an estimated two-thirds of diabetics in Nigeria remain undiagnosed.

Sadly, this number is going to increase by 2040.

The theme for the diabetes awareness month and World Diabetes Day 2018 and 2019 is ‘Family and Diabetes’. “A two-year time frame has been chosen to best facilitate planning, development, promotion and participation,” IDF said. Despite the majority of people surveyed having a family member with diabetes, an alarming four-in-five parents would have trouble recognising the warning signs. One-in-three would not spot them at all.

Kingsley Alumona, Ibadan

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POLITICS

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

Only PDP Can Ruin Its Chance in Bayelsa

Nseobong Okon-Ekong writes that though it appears that Peoples Democratic Party is in disarray in Bayelsa State, no one needs a soothsayer to discern that it will close ranks in the decisive moment to retain power in the November 16 governorship election

Dickson

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he first of the off-season elections, following the last national elections holds in Bayelsa and Kogi states on Saturday, November 16, as voters decide who will govern the states in the next four years.

While all eyes are on two states, Bayelsa recommends itself for special attention, because of its peculiarity. Bayelsa is the home state of Nigeria’s immediate past president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. The state is one of the leading producers of Nigeria’s oil and gas wealth. Over 70 percent of Bayelsa is made up of water. With just eight local governments, Bayelsa has a unique distinction.

Bayelsa has become a force to reckon with in national affairs and politics mostly because of the achievements recorded particularly in the last eight years in social and economic development under a clear-headed leadership.

In a national environment blighted by abysmally poor leadership, Bayelsa has pointed the way to how the great possibilities in the country can still be actualized.

The November election is one whose outcome will determine whether the state will march decisively forward and continue to epitomize our collective hopes and aspirations or suffer a regression.

By all serious accounts however Bayelsa has in the last eight years turned the page and is set to consolidate its achievements, confirming the winning streak of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as a dominant entity since inception of the 4th Republic in the state and as a party rooted in the people and their communities. Such an outcome will thus revalidate the popular view that all politics is local, a reflection of the strong bond between the party and the good people of Bayelsa State.

Governor Seriake Dickson has stamped a series of high profile development projects that has transformed the landscape of Bayelsa. In terms of individual transformation, a teeming number of Bayelsans bear testimony to the positive impact Dickson has made in their lives.

To be sure, there is much talk about the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

Indeed even as past evidence suggests that some trouble makers may be banking on a game plan that is not entirely ingenious. True, the APC has made some undeniable inroads into Bayelsa, winning a senatorial and House of Representatives seat in the lat national elections, but the governorship election is a different kettle of fish, if truth be told.

As things stand, to the unwary, it may appear as if PDP is in disarray because of the apparent break in communication between the party (in the state) and the likes of former President Jonathan and eminent party members like Time

Diri Alaibe, but when the chips are down, no one needs a soothsayer to discern that Jonathan can’t turn his back on the party that gave home global recognition. Alaibe too has said he is going no where else. In that sense, last minute reconciliation is possible, as the door is still open.

The people of the state will resist and reject any plans to subvert their democratic will or turn back the hands of the clock. This happened in 2015 and it may be again this time.

Mapping out the unassailable position of the PDP in this crucial election is important. For those who are conversant with the politics of the state especially since Governor Seriake Dickson came on board, the PDP candidate, Senator Douye Diri is primed to win in November.

Without doubt, PDP remains the party to beat in Bayelsa State.

It has an unmatched organizational structure and has an enduring legacy of the best representing the people’s hopes and aspirations.

Without the requisite structure, there is no party per se because political parties rest on structures to build membership and followership, which in turn constitute the strategic blocks from which the votes are derived on election- day. Unlike the APC, PDP is better organized, with solid structures across the length and breadth of Bayelsa State and this will make a huge difference when the chips are down in November.

Then there is the formidable factor of Governor Henry Seriake Dickson. His skills in political organisation and mobilisation consistently deliver results. Drawing on his formidable antecedents, he has been pivotal in organizing the party to become the winning machine we

The people of the state will resist and reject any plans to subvert their democratic will or turn back the hands of the clock. This happened in 2015 and it may be again this time

have today. From being an activist for many years to his foray into politics, he has paid his dues as a leading pan-Ijaw crusader and one of the most visionary leaders who have restored the state as a place of hope, pride and refuge for the ijaw people.

Over the years, the governor has built a remarkable network with strong bonds across board which he can draw upon at times like this.

The basic issues here are his values which in an environment populated by political buccaneers and carpet baggers many see as refreshingly noble and his conviction politics that has endeared the people to him. He is a leader who has led by example and has provided phenomenal leadership that has transformed the state . It will be difficult for the opposition to successfully undermine this trust. This is particularly because the antecedents of the main drivers of the opposition APC in the state are well known. Many of them were once in power in the state but left the people thoroughly disappointed. Though the governor is not the candidate, his leadership in the campaign remains a winning factor because of his personality as a grassroots mobiliser.

Looking at the profile of the PDP candidate as opposed to the APC candidate. The rich public service and track record of Senator Douye Diri will, no doubt, stand him out in the perceptive estimation of the people in this election as against his opponent in APC. With respect to Chief David Lyon, running surveillance over oil rigs is no qualification to aspire to run the affairs of men. Unlike Senator Douye Diri, the APC candidate does not have the essential intellectual and other necessary capacities to be governor, who will be relating with diverse publics, not only on policy but in articulating the various interests of Bayelsa State locally and abroad.

There is the widely-held insinuation that the APC candidate’s emergence is a “set-up” to mastermind a hidden agenda. No one knew Lyon in the scheme of things in Bayelsa, even in the APC. He got his nomination form the last day, apparently as a reluctant candidate, who was forced into the race to check mate Heineken Lokpobori, the favoured APC governorship candidate in Bayelsa who was poised to win. There is no way Lyon could have been made a candidate. Of course, the people are already aware of the implications and would vote for the credible candidate presented by the PDP. Again, more than a passing look should be taken at the issues being canvassed by the candidates in the course of the campaign based on the platform of the two major political parties in the state. The respective performances of

both Senator Douye Diri and the candidate on the other side are clear pointers to where the people’s allegiance will lie. As many have attested, Douye Diri’s campaign messages are resonating more among Bayelsans because they are driven with the passion of consolidating the unmistakable achievements and remarkable success recorded by Dickson’s administration.

While there are fears that APC is likely to stop free education in the state and close down the model boarding schools which its candidate and party leader believe are “money guzzling” , Senator Douye Diri believes his administration will build on the Restoration Government’s free education policy as a major area of investment because he was part and parcel of the idea and continued investment in education(totally free) remains a deliberate policy to build the necessary human capital for Bayelsa State as basic asset for development. Similarly, Diri will continue with such legacy projects of the Dickson era as investing more on health, ensuring that the Health Insurance Scheme is reinforced, more hospitals built and equipped, more roads and other public infrastructure built and the state opened up more and more to facilitate trade and commerce. The situation won’t be different in a myriad other sectors: the completion and promotion of the large scale agric projects in rice and fish production started by the Dickson administration which Diri has vowed to build upon to promote jobs and advance his mantra of economic prosperity.

He has made it abundantly clear that he will make security of lives and property a priority, further making the polity stable and reduce crime and criminality in the state. The Agge Deep Seaport is still also a priority because of its strategic importance to the state economy.

A renewed Restoration Government in Bayelsa State under Senator Douye Diri envisages a great economic boom and prosperity when the Bayelsa International Airport at Amassoma is working to full capacity and the Agge port is also built and developed to full capacity.

He stands today as the heir and legatee of the resolute determination and hopes of the Ijaw people for a firm place in the Nigerian sun.

Come the November gubernatorial election, Bayelsans will reiterate that commitment.

Bayelsans can look back and connect with lost opportunities in the past because those in government then were only interested in the allure of power which by such understanding was to throw money around and enjoy the best. Dickson has amply demonstrated that governance is serious business.

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

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T H I S D AY TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019

BAYELSA/KOGI DECIDE 2019

Military Appeals for Violence-Free Poll in Bayelsa Emmanuel Addeh The Nigerian Army has urged the people of Bayelsa State to shun violence and see the coming election in the state as a sport where one team must emerge winner.

Speaking in Nembe, Bayelsa, during a novelty football match between 16 Brigade of the Nigerian Army and Nembe Football team at the 20,000 Nembe City Stadium, Brig.-Gen Valentine Okoro, commander of the Brigade said that like good sportsmen, politics must be played without bitterness.

He added that with adequate attention paid to sports, many of the vices in the society could be minimised, stressing that it should be used as a tool for the prevention of crime and enhancement of integration among the people.

The march was organised as part of activities of Operation Crocodile Smile 4 in the Niger Delta, which kicked off on November 8.

During the event which was

attended by the leadership of the military in the state, a former military administrator of Ebonyi and Delta States, Navy Commander Walter Feghabo (rtd) and traditional chiefs, Brig.-Gen Okoro also urged Bayelsans to embrace peace during the November 16 governorship poll.

“We expect that in the coming election, the people should also imbibe the same spirit of sportsmanship. In every contest, there is a winner and a loser, so, no one should feel bitter about it,” he said.

While calling for cooperation during the military exercise, Okoro stressed that operation crocodile smile 4 was designed to rid the state of traces of all criminality.

“The essence of operation crocodile smile 4 is to curb violence and promote peace and security in the community.

“Security is everybody’s business, so the entire Nembe community are also some of the stakeholders we work with” he added.

Suspected Hoodlums Burn SDP Secretariat in Kogi Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja With the reported fire incident at the Kogi State secretariat of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), fresh signs of palpable fear and tension has signaled the impending governorship election in the state on Saturday, November 16.

It was gathered that hoodlums suspected to be political thugs of a leading political party in the state were said to have invaded the state secretariat of the SDP and set it on fire.

According to eye witness account, the incident happened in the early hours of Sunday

when the thugs vandalized the secretariat in Lokoja The Kogi State SDP secretariat is located close to the All Progressives Congress (APC) state secretariat opposite the Lokoja Local Government secretariat along Murtala Way, Lokoja.

In an earlier attack, it was learnt that the windows and doors of the SDP secretariat were shattered while banners, posters and other campaign materials in the secretariat were also destroyed Sources hinted that the hoodlums who set the SDP Secretariat ablaze his their faces behind a mask and were dressed in black

The State Chairman of Social Democratic Party, Mouktar Atima pointed accusing fingers on the ruling party who he alleged of “releasing their boys to unleash terror on our party .”

Atima explained that the development was a confirmation of the several threats received recently by the party’s governorship candidate, Natasha Akpoti.

He said no amount of harassment and destruction will deter the party and it’s governorship candidate from contesting and winning the Saturday election saying they remain undaunted even as he appealed to party supporters not to be discouraged

over the recent development.

However, the spokesman for the APC governorship campaign council, Kingsley Fanwo dispelled the allegation that the hoodlums that burnt the SDP secretariat were sponsored by the ruling party.

According to him, the party and its candidate are currently busy campaigning round the state and “have no time for irrelevant issues.”

But the state police commissioner, Hakeem Busari said the police was already aware of the destruction and stressed that investigation has commenced to bring the culprits to book.

APC, PDP, 21 Other Political Parties Sign Peace Accord for Kogi Guber Election Ibrahim Oyewale As the Kogi Gubernatorial Election in Kogi State draws closer, the All Progressive Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and 21 other political parties have jointly signed an accord to keep the peace during conduct of the election in the state The peace move was initiated by the National Peace Committee and involved all political parties taking part in the November 16 election. He stressed that this has become imperative for a violence free election in Kogi State .

The National Peace Committee called on the political actors in Kogi State to work assiduously and ensure peaceful conduct of the November 16 governorship election.

Reverend Father Atta Barkindo who is the Director, The Kukah Center represented the founder of NPC, General Abdulsalami Abubakar and Reverend Mathew Kukah respectively disclosed this in

Lokoja while speaking at a dialogue with stakeholders on peaceful conduct of Kogi governorship election.

Barkindo noted that the NPC was not in Kogi State to support any political party, stressing that the National Peace Committee is aimed at ensuring peaceful conduct of governorship election on November 16.

The Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, His Royal Majesty, Dr. Ado Ibrahim stated the success of the coming governorship election in Kogi State as the responsibility of all and not only INEC and security agents.

The monarch therefore urged all the critical stakeholders to work in partnership with INEC and security agents to ensure peaceful election.

The Obaro of Kabba who was represented by a former Permanent Secretary, Mr Oshagbemi also supported the line of thinking of the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland saying a peaceful conduct of the governorship in election is very sacrosanct for unity in Kogi State.

Bello Pledges to Consolidate His Achievements Ibrahim Oyewale The All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate in the November 16 governorship election in Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has pledged to consolidate on the achievements of his administration if voted back to power.

Bello who gave this assurance when his campaign train berthed in the ancient city of Isanlu the headquarters of Yagba East Local Government Area, also promised to ensure that the Kabba - Ayetoro Gbede Islanlu - Egbe - Ilorin road is completed to ease the plight of motorists plying the road.

Bello said Senator Smart Adeyemi during the last administration facilitated the rehabilitation of the road but it was abandoned, urging the people of Kogi west to return him (Adeyemi) to the senate to enable him push for the completion of the road.

While assuring that he would not fail the people of the state, but transform the state for the betterment of all, the governor noted that the completion of Ajaokuta Steel complex would go a long way in creating jobs for the people of the state, commending the effort of President Muhammadu Buhari in that direction.

ANOTHER FEATHER TO HIS CAP

Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State (middle) flanked by Dr (Mrs) Victoria Samuel and Prof. Kehinde Olusegun (right) at the governor’s investiture in Lagos as a fellow of the Certified Institute of Cooperatives and Social Enterprise Management (CICOSEMA)

APC ‘ll Clean Up PDP’s 8-Year Mess in Bayelsa, Says Lyon Emmanuel Addeh Governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa, David Lyon, has boasted that if elected, his party would clean up the ‘eight-year mess’ created by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

Lyon, who spoke during a campaign tour of his hometown in Olugbobiri, Olodiama clan ,Ekowe and Oporoma in Southern Ijaw Local Government area of the state, said his administration will ensure the provision of social amenities, promising to pay the Peremabiri Rice farm adequate attention to create employment.

He declared that when he becomes governor, his

administration would embark on community-based consultations where the traditional rulers, youths and the women would make their contribution towards developing their areas.

Lyon urged the traditional rulers as custodians of tradition to always exercise their authority in ensuring peace and security, pointing out that in the absence of peace, development cannot take place.

He also promised to look into the issue of the Polytechnic in Ekowe to support the Niger Delta University (NDU) in the development of manpower, stressing that the present administration has failed the people of Bayelsa State.

In Ologbobiri, Lyon commended his people for the show

of support and turn out, urging them to replicate same during the November 16 governorship election.

Addressing traditional rulers shortly before he was conferred with a chieftaincy title alongside his running mate, Senator Degi Eremienyo and the APC party chairman, Amos Jonathan, Lyon expressed joy and appreciation for the warm hospitality accorded him and the entourage.

“It is indeed a home coming.

Today, I have come to officially inform and present myself to you my royal fathers for your blessings in the forthcoming governorship elections on the 16th of this month” he said.

He added that he had discussions with an oil company

to provide electricity to their host communities in the area, stressing that the clearing of the area would commence after the raining season.

The APC candidate also promised to complete the on-going school projects in Krokrosei town.

Earlier, King Joshua Igbugburu (X), the Ibenanawei of Bomo Clan and Chancellor of the Federal University Lafia, Nassarawa State, stated that a leader who fails to recognise and respect tradition institutions was bound to fail.

The royal father appealed to the visitors to help construct roads connecting the towns in southern Ijaw to ease the pains and suffering of travelling to the various communities.

Ex-PDP Guber Aspirants Back Diri Emmanuel Addeh Former governorship aspirants under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 3 primaries in Bayelsa have explained why they are backing Senator Douye Diri and his running mate, Mr Lawrence Ewhrujakpor for the November 16 governorship election.

Speaking in Yenagoa, Spokesman of the collective, Mr Keniebi Okoko, noted that the decision

of the party remains supreme, since the emergence of Diri passed through the constitutional processes of the party.

The endorsement came, amid a well-attended rally yesterday organised by Okoko, political leader of the Gbarain-Yenagoa area, where Diri was received by the people who promised to support him for the poll.

But at the Yenagoa campaign, Okoko, flanked by other aspirants, including Nimibofa

Ayawei, Chairman, Bayelsa Board of Internal Revenue; Fred Agbedi, a House of Reps member; Kemela Okara, Secretary to the Bayelsa government; Talford Ongolo, Chief of Staff , Government House; Reuben Okoya, a businessman, among others, the PDP chieftain said their support for Diri was total.

Okoko, who came third during the contest comprising over 20 aspirants, noted that having emerged, the right thing to do

was to, as strong and loyal party men, campaign for the chosen standard bearer of the party.

He reiterated that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has no place in Bayelsa , maintaining that the PDP remains the choice party for the people of the state.

According to the PDP stalwart, who spoke in Yenagoa, during the party campaigns, Diri has the right qualifications to govern the state, compared to other contenders.

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FEATURES

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 08038901925

Dr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi: Placing Premium on Human Capital

Chiemelie Ezeobi, who recently visited the Nestoil Tower in the heart of Lagos, writes that the premium placed on his workforce by the Founder and Executive Chairman of the group, Dr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi, has become pivotal to the growth and productivity of the organisation

Nestoil Founder and Executive Chairman, Dr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi

Jo Osojie

Chukwueloka O. Umeh

Tunji Olanipekun

Lynda Madu

Nnaji Igwe

O

ne of the major challenges that face each sector in Nigeria’s budding economy is the prevalence of brain drain. It is on record that some of the best brains the nation boasts of are often seen in the Diaspora where they excel in different fields.

But the same cannot be said for the Nestoil Group. The company takes pride in hiring the best to boost the potentials of the company.

Little wonder most of its executive are the best in their respective fields, some of who worked abroad in technical and tough sectors before they were incorporated into the day-to-day workings of the group.

The key is human capital development. This the group said has increased its employee performance, capabilities and resources, resulting to the pivotal growth and productivity of the company. Firm believers that the people that make an organisation run are an asset to be invested in, the Nestoil Tower, houses an efficient crop of executives and workers, who are support systems for Nestoil Founder and Executive Chairman, Dr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi.

In a recent chat with the Group Head of Corporate Communications, Osagie Ogunbor, these crop of executives were the crux of the discussion. While highlighting the gains the company has made over the years, he posited that the vision of the Nestoil group has been carried out effectively by these crop of executives who directly manage the day-to-day affairs of the company.

From Chukwueloka O. Umeh, PhD, who is a research scientists to Obinna Ufudo, the corporate management professional; Jo Osojie, a financial services expert; Lynda Madu, corporate services asset; and Nnaji Igwe, corporate governance; Nnenna Obiejesi, administrative powerhouse; Tunji Olanipekun, business leader; Chuka Chukwudebelu; operations planner; Andy Njoku-Obi, civil engineer;

Chiemezie Ejinima, capital articulator; Chichi Emenike, cutting edge skills; Eberechukwu Oji, long scale experience and Ifeanyi Ezuka, operations aficionado, the list is endless.

Serial Entrepreneur: Dr. Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi Dr. Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi is the Executive Chairman of the Nestoil Group which he founded in 1991. He superintended the steady growth of Nestoil into the foremost indigenous Engineering Procurement Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) Company in West Africa.

A serial entrepreneur, Azudialu-Obiejesi has about 13 different companies under his belt of which Nestoil is the flagship.

Companies in the group provide services ranging from Fabrication and Dredging to Pipeline construction, Civil works, Horizontal Directional Drilling, Exploration and Production and Power.

Azudialu-Obiejesi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and an MBA from the University of Benin. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Business Administration by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 2009 as well as another Honourary Doctorate Degree in Science and Engineering from the Chukwemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Awka. Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi is an Honorary Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers and is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School.

Azudialu-Obiejesi is proud of how much Nestoil has evolved over the years despite daunting challenges. He is particularly proud of Nestoil’s successful completion of the Alternative Evacuation system for the NPDC/Neconde Joint Venture on OML 42. Through Alternative Evacuation, Nestoil Successfully devised a three-way separator which processes wet crude into dry export grade crude and evacuates for export thereby

bypassing the pipelines that are susceptible to shut downs and vandalism. Alternative evacuation is the latest testament to Nestoil’s growing reputation as an innovative company that constantly seeks proprietary ways of working in difficult terrains.

Research Guru: Chukwueloka O. Umeh Prior to joining Nestoil, Chukwueloka O. Umeh, PhD, was a research scientist working at General Electric's Global Research Center in Niskayuna, New York, where he was responsible for the research and development of several technologies used to increase efficiency and reduce emissions in land-based and aviation gas turbine engines.

Before he left GE to join Nestoil, Dr. Umeh was responsible for the design and manufacture of the combustion systems on several commercial and military aircraft engines. He holds several engineering degrees including a PhD in Aeronautical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York.

He has five US Patents and over 14 technical publications in technologies related to improving efficiency and reducing emissions of aviation and land-based gas turbine engines.

Apart from being the lead executive on some of Nestoil’s major pipeline projects like the OB3 Gas pipeline, Umeh also manages the group’s aviation and power business.

Corporate Management Professional: Obinna Ufudo The Founder of Nestoil, Dr Ernest AzudialuObiejesi is able to take his hands off the day-to-day management of Nestoil because of personalities like Obinna Ufudo who is Executive Director, Operations. Obinna has seen it all in the corporate world. He was the Group President/Chief Executive of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (Transcorp) from 2011 to 2014, where he

led the turn-around and repositioning of the company, increasing enterprise value of the business during his tenure. Prior to that, he was Executive Director at Heirs Holdings Limited and had also held senior management positions in the banking industry.

Ufudo is a financial services and corporate management professional with over two decade’s post-graduate experience. He has held senior level positions in Trading, Investments, General Management and Financial Advisory capacities across multiple industries.

Ufudo holds a Master of Science degree in International Securities, Investment & Banking from the University of Reading, UK. He also holds an Executive Master in Business degree from the IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Barcelona Spain. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.

Financial Services Expert: Jo Osojie Jo Osoje believes the ability of a company to manage its risks is pivotal to its success or otherwise. As astute Banker and Financial Services expert, Jo Osoje is the Chief Risk Officer of the Nestoil Group. He has about twenty-eight years work experience which spans Banking and Finance, Risk Management, Quality Assurance, Civil Construction and Engineering within and outside Nigeria.

Osoje was the Head of Risk, Corporate & Investment Bank (CIBD) and Deputy Group Chief Risk Officer at Access Bank Plc. where he developed annual credit portfolio plans and presented them to various rating agency analysts leading to successful ratings upgrade

by S&P, Fitch, Moody’s & Agusto.

Osoje holds a first degree in Civil Engineering, an MBA and a Master of Management (IT). He is a Senior Member of the Risk Management Association of Nigeria and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria. He currently serves

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Obinna Ufudo

Nnenna Obiejesi

Chuka Chukwudebelu

Andy Njoku-Obi

Chiemezie Ejinima

Chichi Emenike

Eberechukwu Oji

Ifeanyi Ezuka

as the Group Chief Risk Officer Nestoil Limited. His strength is in his versatility which may have caught the eye of Dr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi. Despite being recently appointed to manage the group’s Exploration and Production business, Osoje continues to oversee the Risk Management function of the group.

Administrative Powerhouse: Nnenna Obiejesi Nnenna Obiejesi serves as Group Executive Director in charge of Administration. Trained in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and The London School of Economics, Obiejesi holds a Master’s Degree (LLM) in International Business Law. She has 30 years of local and international experience in legal matters as well as Business Planning and Development. After her call to the Nigerian bar, she worked with Messrs Chike Chigbue & Co. [SAN] and Ike Obiora & Co [Legal Practitioners] where she practiced forensic advocacy under experienced and versatile principals.

She is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of The United Kingdom, and a Member of The Nigerian Bar Association. Mrs Nnenna Obiejesi who is an advocate for youth empowerment, is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Obijackson Foundation.

tasked with driving the profitable growth of the design engineering arm of the Nestoil Group.

He holds several degrees including a B.Eng. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, an MSc in Computer Science from Kennesaw State University, Georgia, and an MBA from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.

ing from Enugu State University of Science & Technology and an MBA in Oil & Gas Management from the prestigious Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. She is a member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN) and a certified member with the Council for The Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN). Currently, she serves on the council of the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA) as Financial Secretary.

Corporate Services Asset: Lynda Madu Lynda Madu was head hunted by Nestoil to manage its Corporate Services function as an Associate Director. Prior to joining Nestoil, she worked with KPMG (formerly Andersen) as a Management Consultant.

Madu later joined MainOne Cable Company where she was responsible for Corporate Development and the internal operations of the company at all its locations.

Madu’s experience spans Business Strategy Development and Implementation; Organisational Design; Business Process Design and Improvement as well as Human Resource Transformation. Madu holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from the Federal University of Technology, Owerri. She has a Global Executive MBA from IE Business School, Spain. Lynda is also a Project Management Professional (PMP), Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR).

Corporate Governance: Nnaji Igwe Every organisation needs stable, dependable and loyal people like Nnaji Igwe. He is one of the longest serving employees in the group having joined the parent company Obijackson Group long before Nestoil emerged.

He was then the Company Secretary and Legal Adviser. During a period of over 15 years, he managed and coordinated the role of legal adviser with that of managing the board meetings of all the companies within the group as Company Secretary.

He also superintended the then growing relationship with numerous financial institutions and handled the group’s loan portfolio and has served in various capacities within the group including managing its huge supply chain, shipment, procurement and logistics team. He is currently an Associate Director and Chief of Staff. He is also a Trustee of the Obijackson Foundation.

Barrister Nnaji holds an LLB from the University of Nigeria and was called to the Nigerian Bar in December 1989. He is a passionate advocate of effective corporate governance. He is a Member of the Nigerian Bar Association.

Business Leader: Tunji Olanipekun Tunji Olanipekun, PhD, is a business leader with a prolific wealth of experience in Finance, Financial Services, Oil & Gas, Accounting and Tax Management with over 27years of post-qualification experience as a banking professional, Chartered Accountant, and a Chartered Tax expert. Tunji Olanipekun has a First-Class Degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Lagos and a Master’s Degree in Corporate Governance from Leeds Metropolitan University (UK) and a Ph.D. in Business Administration.

Olanipekun is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA) among other professional membership within and outside the country. He is presently the Managing Director of EWT, a Nestoil company engaged primarily in industrial fabrication.

Operations Planner: Chuka Chukwudebelu Chuka Chukwudebelu joined the Nestoil Group from the General Electric Company in the United States, where he spent about 15 years in roles of steadily increasing responsibility, including Maintenance Support Manager responsible for the set up and configuration of site-specific maintenance management systems across GE’s Global O&M gas turbine fleet.

Chukwudebelu is currently responsible for guiding the day-to-day operations and long-range planning required to design, construct, procure and commission a major gas pipeline project. He has been additionally

Civil Engineer: Andy Njoku-Obi Andy has over 30 years cognate experience spanning Consulting, Finance, banking and dredging 20 of which were in Senior Management and Leadership positions.

He is the immediate past Managing Director of B&Q Dredging limited, a Nestoil Company and the foremost indigenous dredging company in Nigeria. He presently managing Hammakopp which is the civil engineering arm of the business.

Njoku-Obi obtained a first degree in Accountancy at the University of Nigeria. He also attended the Team Building Institute Pretoria and Sandston Business School Johannesburg (SMP) all in South Africa. He is an alumnus of the Institute of Management Development (IMD) Lausanne Switzerland.

Capital Articulator: Chiemezie Ejinima Before joining the Nestoil Group, Chiemezie Ejinima was senior manager in the Corporate Finance and Advisory Group of Zenith Capital – the investment banking subsidiary of Zenith Bank.

Ejinima is the immediate past Group Head of Corporate Finance in Nestoil, where he was responsible for articulating and championing the different capital raising endeavours to finance the investment and operational needs of the company and its affiliates. He has now been redeployed to the E&P arm of the business. He holds a BSc. in Accountancy from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, MSc. in Energy Finance from the University of Dundee in the UK, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria.

Cutting Edge Skills: Chichi Emenike Chichi Emenike is the Head of Gas Ventures in the Group’s Exploration and Production business and has 20 years experience in the Oil and Gas spanning across the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors. She started her early career in Exxon Mobil over a 10-year period before moving to Vigeo Oil and Gas, Suntrust Oil Company and Falcon Corporation Limited.

She holds a B.Eng in Chemical Engineer-

Long Scale Experience: Eberechukwu Oji Eberechukwu Oji has 24 years experience in the Oil and Gas sector. He is a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers and a Chattered Engineer with a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) Warwick University, UK, a Masters in Technology Petroleum Engineering, Curtin University, Australia, a Masters in Engineering (MEng) Electrical & Electronics Engineering and a Bachelors in Engineering (BEng) Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Oji has significant experience in the Upstream and Midstream sectors in Multinationals like Shell and across different countries like Gabon, Netherlands, UK, Norway, Singapore, Australia, United States, Bangalore etc. His fields of experience cover: Field Operations, Facility Maintenance, Well Intervention, Gas plant operations, Compressor station operations amongst others.

Operations AďŹ cionado: Ifeanyi Ezuka Ifeanyi Ezuka joined Neconde in 2012.

He has 17 years experience in the upstream oil and gas industry with various technical and senior positions. His experience spans through leadership, management, commercial, technical and operations aspects of the upstream oil and gas industry. He has led and participated extensively in Subsurface, Field Development and Production Operations activities while serving in various capacities in Schlumberger, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and Afren Plc. Ezuka holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Petroleum Engineering and Master of Science degree Petroleum & Gas Engineering from Federal University of Technology Owerri and University of Salford. He is an Alumnus of Athabasca University Business Faculty. An active SPE member and primary author to over seven SPE technical papers.

According to Ogunbor, all these tested and tried crop of executives have given the organisation the impetus to soar above its contemporaries. Not ruling out the challenges they face, Ogunbor is optimistic that they have indeed come to stay.

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

‘SLAVERY AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING EXIST WITHIN NIGERIA’

12.11.2019

Julie Okah-Donli

2/DASHBOARD

12.11.2019

Power of the Supreme Court to Rehear an Appeal and Review its Judgement PAGE 4

Effective Judiciary System, Panacea for Nigeria’s Dwindling Democracy PAGE 5

Group Writes EFCC to Probe General Electric, Rockson Engineering, over Alleged Power Scandal PAGE 5

LEDAP drags Akpabio, Others, to Court over NDDC ‘Interim Committee’ PAGE 6

QUOTABLES ‘The Nigeria Police Force is, without a doubt, one of our proudest national assets......However, in some of our urban areas, we want to see more compliance from the Police with the rule of law and the observance of human rights, in dealing with the ordinary Nigerian.’

– Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, Professor of Law, Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria

‘.....Once there’s a court order that somebody be released unconditionally or granted bail, you cannot stay the execution with respect to the liberty of a citizen, yet people do not care.’..’

– Femi Falana, SAN, Human Rights Lawyer and Activist

COLUMNIST

‘A Career in Law, is No Child’s Play’ PAGE 6

The Constitutionality of the Value Added Tax Act Revisited PAGE 10

DR. MIKE OZEKHOME, SAN, OFR, FCIARB, PH.D, LL.D Constitutional Democracy, means a system of government, in which political and governmental power, is defined, limited and shared by a grundnorm called the Constitution, which provides inbuilt checks and balances.

This column seeks to fiercely discuss constitutional, legal and political issues, with a view to strengthening, deepening and widening the plenitude and amplitude of democracy and good governance, without fear or favour.

The writer of this column, Dr. Mike Ozekhome, SAN, is a Constitutional Lawyer, Human Rights Activist, Pro-Democracy Campaigner, Notary Public and Motivational Speaker. He co-founded the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Nigeria's pioneer human rights league, on October 15,1987, the Universal Defenders of Democracy (UDD), in 1992, and with Chief Gani Fawehinmi and others in 1998, the Joint Action Committee of Nigeria (JACON), to push out the military. In his early days, he lectured at the University of Ife. Dr. Ozekhome is an author of many books. He is also a Special Counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC), at The Hague.

ONIKEPO BRAITHWAITE EDITOR JUDE IGBANOI DEPUTY EDITOR AKINWALE AKINTUNDE REPORTER TUNDE BUSARI GROUP HEAD OCHI OGBUAKU II ART DIRECTOR

/3

Has VP Osinbajo Been Disempowered?

L Rumours

ast week, Nigeria was awash with what I can only refer to as “beer parlour talk” and rumours, that all is not well within the corridors of the Presidency, so much so that, the Vice President (VP), Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN has been rendered redundant! On Friday, in a television interview which I watched, Presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, did admit that the duties of the VP had been decreased, and his staff strength, reduced by 35 people, using a ludicrous excuse that, we now have Ministers, so it is natural for the VP’s duties to be reduced - as if we didn’t have Ministers during the first term, when the VP was still playing those constitutional roles!

Of course, several conspiracy theories which I do not care to repeat, have accompanied the allegation of redundancy. However, I decided to examine this allegation from a constitutional point of view, to see whether we can lend any credence to it, and, sadly, my conclusion is that, as far as the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended)(the Constitution) is concerned, certainly the constitutionally provided roles of the VP, have been usurped and/or unlawfully eroded.

Economic Advisory Committee Though the Constitution does not clearly define all the roles of the VP, Section 141 establishes his office. The VP has the constitutional role of Chairman of the National Economic Committee (NEC), by virtue of Section 153(1)(h) Third Schedule Part 1 H 18(a) of the Constitution. NEC is endowed, inter alia, with powers to advice the President on the economic affairs of the country.

In September, President Muhammadu Buhari (Baba) announced that a new Economic Advisory Council (EAC) under the Chairmanship of Professor Doyin Salami, had been constituted, and will report to him, directly. People had wondered why Professor Salami, who was the Vice Chairman of the Transition Committee in 2015, was nowhere to be found within the 2015 cabinet or the Economic Management Team (EMT) headed by the VP. The EMT, was however, dissolved, roughly the same time that the EAC was established. The questions on the lips of many are: should the VP not have either been made the Chairman of the EAC with Professor Salami as Vice Chairman, or should the EAC not be reporting to the VP? If the VP’s EMT was considered to be doing a commendable job, it would probably not have been scrapped. However, by virtue of the provisions of the Constitution, the VP should be part of the EAC and they should report to him, but the President seems to have usurped the role of the VP, in this regard. Additionally, considering the fact that Baba instructed that all

Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN

Ministers go through the Chief of Staff to get to him, it may be pertinent to ask whether this instruction also applies to the EAC? In which case, we could say that the constitutional role of the VP with regard to the economic team, has been usurped, and indirectly been given partly to the Chief of Staff, who is a non-elected personal staff of the President, and whose role is not even established by the Constitution, if the EAC also has to report through the Chief of Staff, to Baba. To be honest, from the get-go, I found it rather bizarre that Ministers were asked to report to the President via the Chief of Staff, and not via the VP. Transmission of Power By virtue of Sections 145(2) and 146(1) of the Constitution, for the reasons stated therein, for instance, in the case of the President being medically unfit or by reason of death, resignation, impeachment or permanent incapacity, the VP shall take over the role of the President. In those situations, there is a clear line of succession.

Similarly, Section 145(1) of the Constitution provides that, the President shall transmit to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, a declaration that the VP shall perform the functions of the President in an acting capacity, when the President is proceeding on vacation, or is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of the office.

Three times during the life of Baba’s administration, when he was going on medical vacation to the UK, in accordance with Section 145(1) of the Constitution, Baba transmitted power to the VP. Strangely, this time around, Baba is away in the UK (and not being babies, we all know that, it is for a medical vacation, since that is what Baba goes to the UK for), but failed to fulfil this constitutional provision. This is a clear breach of Section 145(1), as the word ‘shall’ is used in this provision – ‘shall transmit’.

As we are all aware, the word ‘shall’ in our jurisprudence means a command, mandatory, compulsory – it is not optional. Baba does not have the luxury of deciding which trip he will transmit power to the VP, and which trip he will not, when he is off on vacation; he has no choice, it is a MUST! Indeed, Section 145(2) of the Constitution provides that, if the President is unable or fails to transmit power to the VP within 21 days, the National Assembly shall do the needful, by a resolution of a simple majority vote of the two Houses, and mandate the VP to act until the President transmits a letter to the Senate President and Speaker of House of Representatives, that he is available to resume.

In this case, there was no inability on Baba’s part, to do the transmission, as the whole of Nigeria was aware, well in advance, that Baba was travelling to Saudi Arabia, and then, on to the UK. Baba simply failed to, or made a

conscious decision, not to do so.

It is obvious that, bad drafting style pervades the Constitution and many of our laws. The issue of inability or failure to do the transmission, should have been qualified and limited to specific situations of incapacity, for example, if the President is too sick to execute a transmission letter, or mentally incapacitated, or there is a war situation. Leaving the provision as vague as it is, simply makes Section 145(1) and (2) somewhat contradictory, and defeats the purpose of Section 145(1). You cannot make a provision mandatory, and then, in the same breath, have vague or wide and unlimited provisos or exceptions to the compulsory provision. It defeats the purpose of such a provision, in the first place. If the drafters of the Constitution did not want to make the transmission in Section 145(1) compulsory, they should have inserted the word ‘may’ instead of ‘shall’. This reminds me of the celebrated amendment of the Electoral Act, which provides something to the effect that, INEC ‘shall’ use electronic means to conduct elections, or any other means it determines. The resultant effect of the second half of the provision, which one can only refer to, at best, as vague, is to make the first half which is meant to be compulsory, discretionary/optional, that is, INEC doesn’t have to use electronic means if it doesn’t want to, thereby defeating the purpose of the first half of the provision.

Why did Baba choose not to follow the Constitution, this time? Whether they choose to call Baba’s stay in UK, a private visit, medical tourism or any other name, that is all semantics.

As long as it is not an official trip, it is a vacation.

It is therefore, wrong, that Baba decided to blatantly disregard the grundnorm, whatever his reasons may be, using a loophole, and instead, attempt to run his office from London, having his personal staff taking official documents to him to execute over there to prove that he is not on holiday (wasting the country’s resources to fund these unnecessary trips by officials), when the VP should be carrying out those Presidential duties here in Nigeria in his absence, instead of wasting time going from one outing to another.

Or was the decision not to transmit power to the VP, made in order to prevent him from getting into the position and taking some decisive steps which Government may be reluctant or shy to take, like he did in the past, when he was acting President? Recall that, it was the VP as acting President, who made some hard decisions which may have been unpopular in some quarters, like forwarding Justice Onnoghen’s name to the Senate for confirmation after much speculation, delay, and procrastination, and sacking Lawal Daura, the former Director- General of the Department of State Services (DSS).

Chief of Staff, Malam Abba Kyari

ONIKEPO BRAITHWAITE

THE ADVOCATE onikepo.braithwaite@thisdaylive.com onikepob@yahoo.com Twitter: @TheAdvocateTD

“.....I DECIDED TO EXAMINE THIS ALLEGATION FROM A CONSTITUTIONAL POINT OF VIEW, TO SEE WHETHER WE CAN LEND ANY CREDENCE TO IT, AND, SADLY, MY CONCLUSION IS THAT, AS FAR AS THE 1999 CONSTITUTION......

IS CONCERNED, CERTAINLY THE CONSTITUTIONALLY PROVIDED ROLES OF THE VP HAVE BEEN USURPED AND/ OR UNLAWFULLY ERODED” Banana Republic It is indeed, a cause for alarm, when the President and agencies of Government, show nothing but contempt and outright disrespect and disdain for the rule of law and the Constitution, which is supreme (Section 1(1)). It is a recipe for anarchy and disaster, when Government itself, makes a mockery of the Constitution. It is even more troubling, when non-elected staff of the President, seem to be the ones discharging functions constitutionally reserved for elected officials. While I do not care much for gossip and conspiracy theories, I care when my country is made to look like a lawless, backward Banana Republic, in the eyes of the world.

Why, then, is anyone surprised that, the DSS which actually has no establishment statute, as it is not mentioned in the National Security Agencies Act, either as an agency on its own or as a successor-in-title to the State Security Service (SSS), has become a law onto itself, when it is part of a Government that has no respect for the rule of law? When it is not illegally raiding judicial officers or mounting a blockade to prevent members of the National Assembly from gaining access into their premises, it is busy disobeying court orders with gusto and aplomb, despite the hue and cry by civil society, against such disobedience.

Once again, the DSS disobeyed the order of a court of competent jurisdiction, by refusing to release Omoyele Sowore on bail, in spite of the fact that, the public was informed that, he has fulfilled his bail conditions, thereby violating his right to personal liberty, as enshrined in Section 35 of the Constitution. The flimsy excuse given by the DSS for not releasing Sowore, is that there was no one to hand him over to! Let us wait and see, how this Sowore bail saga, pans out.

Every passing day of this Government, certainly reminds us of the dark days of the military. Government and its agencies, are mostly unconcerned about the welfare and happiness of Nigerians, or the provisions of the Constitution.

They simply do what they like, regardless.

4/LAW REPORT

12.11.2019

Power of the Supreme Court to Rehear an Appeal and Review its Judgement

T Facts

he Appellant/Applicant (“Applicant”), by a Motion on Notice filed on 15th March, 2019, sought an order of the Supreme Court to the effect that, its earlier judgement delivered on 18th January, 2019 which dismissed the Appeal No. SC/535/2013 – Stanbic IBTC Plc v Longterm Global Capital Ltd & Anor, be set aside and an order of court setting down the said appeal for re-hearing on its merits.

The grounds for the reliefs sought, among others, were that the referenced decision of the Supreme Court occasioned a miscarriage of justice; it is in the interest of justice to set it aside; the decision that the Applicant did not seek leave of the lower court to file another brief of argument which was different from the one exhibited before the court, was based on an oversight by the Supreme Court, of the order of the lower court dated 8th October, 2012; the Supreme Court has the jurisdiction to set aside its decision reached without taking into account, the orders of the Court of Appeal; and that the case poses exceptional circumstances, to justify the invocation of the inherent powers of the Supreme Court to set aside its decision, especially as there is no alternative effective remedy available to the Applicant.

Issue for Determination Whether, having regard to the facts of this case, this is not an appropriate occasion for the Supreme Court to invoke its inherent powers to set aside its judgement delivered on 18th January, 2019, on ground of miscarriage of justice.

Arguments Counsel for the Applicant argued that, the Supreme Court has the inherent power to set aside its own judgement where the previous judgement was reached per incuriam, if it was erroneous in law, contrary to public policy, and if it occasioned a miscarriage of justice – ALHAJI MUHAMMADU MAIGARI DINGYADI v INEC (2010) LPELR-SC-32/2010; ANAMELECHI ITEOGU v LEGAL PRACTITIONERS’ DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE (2018) LPELR-43854. Counsel submitted that, the Supreme Court exercised its powers to set aside its own judgement in OLORUNFEMI & ORS v ASHO & ORS (1999) 1 NWLR (Pt. 585) 1, and in some earlier decided cases. It was submitted that, though the Applicant’s brief of argument filed on 20/09/2011 was not the exact replica of Exhibit AA1 which the lower court ordered, the circumstances of the subsequent proceedings of 08/10/2012 had overtaken the irregularity in the brief. Further, it was argued that, there was no jurisdictional basis to isolate Grounds 4 and 5 of the Notice and Grounds of Appeal as incompetent for failure to obtain leave of court, when it was by the same order that Grounds 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10 were filed.

Counsel posited that, at the proceedings of the court below on 12/02/2013, the Respondents withdrew their objection to the use of the Applicant’s brief of argument. Thus, the judgement of the Supreme Court dated 18/01/2019 is different from the appeal filed by the Applicant, and this is tantamount to denial of the Applicant its right to fair hearing as enshrined under Section 36(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) – ADIGUN v A-G OYO STATE 1987) 1 NWLR (Pt. 53) 708-709.

Countering the submissions above, counsel for the Respondents argued that, the Supreme Court cannot set aside or vary its judgement after delivery since it would have become functus officio. He relied on Order 8 Rule 16 of the Supreme Court Rules, and the case of NIGERIAN ARMY v MAJOR JACOB IYELA (2008) LPELR-2014(SC) in support of this submission. Further, the Applicant had taken steps by paying the sum of N500,000.00 costs awarded to the Respondents, thereby, rendering its application incompetent. Counsel also relied on the provisions of Section 235 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and other judicial authorities, to support his argument that the application is an abuse of court process. While disagreeing with the Applicant that the Respondents withdrew their challenge to the competence of the Appellant’s brief at the lower court, counsel submitted that, this notwithstanding, the court is not precluded from invoking its powers to strike out the said Appellant’s Brief of Argument ex debito justitiae, upon realising that it was filed in disobedience to the court order. Counsel concluded that, no miscarriage of justice was occasioned to the Applicant, and prayed the court to refuse the application.

Court’s Judgement and Rationale The Supreme Court acknowledged that it has inherent power and jurisdiction to set aside its own judgement, in very stringent and uncommon circumstances. The circumstances are circumscribed

by Order 8 Rule 16 of the Supreme Court Rules, which provides that the court shall not review any judgement once delivered, save to correct any clerical mistake or errors arising from accidental

Hon. Uwani Musa Abba-Aji, JSC

In the Supreme Court of Nigeria Holden at Abuja On Friday, the 12th day of July, 2019 Before Their Lordships Musa Dattijo Muhammad John Inyang Okoro Amiru Sanusi Paul Adamu Galinje Uwani Musa Abba-Aji Justices, Supreme Court SC.535/2013 Between Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc.......... Appellant/ Applicant And 1. Longterm Global Capital Ltd 2. Mr. Patrick Akinkuotu.......... Respondent (Lead Judgement delivered by Hon. Uwani Musa Abba-Aji, JSC)

slip or omission or to vary the judgement or order, so as to give effect to its meaning or intention. By the provision referenced, a judgement cannot be varied when it correctly represents what the court decided, just as the operative and substantive part of it cannot be varied, and a different form, substituted. The general rule is that, where a court has decided an issue and the decision of the court is truly embodied in its judgement or order which has been made effective, then the court cannot re- open the matter to substitute a different decision in place of the one recorded – ALAO v ACB LTD (2000) LPELR-408(SC).

The only exception contemplated under Order 8 Rule 16 is the

“.......JUDGEMENTS OF THE SUPREME COURT ARE SACROSANCT; THEY CANNOT BE REVIEWED AND THE COURT DOES NOT HAVE THE POWER TO OVERRULE, REVERSE OR NULLIFY ITS PREVIOUS DECISIONS.......THE POWER OF THE COURT TO SET ASIDE ITS JUDGEMENT IS STATUTORY, THUS, A STRONG CASE MUST BE ESTABLISHED, BEFORE THE COURT CAN EXERCISE ITS POWER OF REVIEWING ITS DECISION.....”

application of the Slip Rule, as expounded by the Supreme Court in ASHIYANBI & ORS v ADENIJI (1967) 1 All NLR 82.

Thus, the only circumstances where the Supreme Court has power to set aside its judgement and rehear the matter are: (i) where there is a clerical mistake in the judgement or order; (ii) where there is an error arising from an accidental slip or omission; (iii) where there arises the necessity for carrying out its own meaning and to make its intention plain; (iv) where any of the parties obtained judgement by fraud or deceit; (v) where such a decision is a nullity; (vi) where it is obvious that the court was misled into giving the decision under a wrong belief that the parties consented to it; (vii) when the judgement was given without jurisdiction; (viii) where the procedure adopted was such as to deprive the decision or judgement of the character of a legitimate adjudication; (ix) where the writ or application was not served on the other party, or there is denial of fair hearing; (x) where the decision or judgement is contrary to public policy and will perpetuate injustice – EDE & ANOR v MBA & ORS (2011) LPELR-8234(SC). The rationale for the above was stated by OPUTA, JSC in ADEGOKE MOTORS LTD v DR ADESANYA & ANOR. (1986) 3 NWLR (Pt. 109) 250 at 274 thus – “Justices of this court are human beings, capable of erring. It will certainly be short-sighted arrogance, not to accept this obvious truth. ...

When therefore, it appears to learned counsel that any decision of this court has been given per incuriam, such counsel should have the boldness and courage to ask that such decision shall be overruled. This court has the power to overrule itself (and has done so in the past), for it gladly accepts that it is far better to admit an error than to preserve an error.”

Aside from the foregoing however, it is firmly settled that, judgements of the Supreme Court are sacrosanct; they cannot be reviewed and the court does not have the power to overrule, reverse or nullify its previous decisions, whether on question of substantive or procedural law. The power of the court to set aside its judgement is statutory, thus, a strong case must be established, before the court can exercise its power of reviewing its decision, even on the ground of fraud, save for instances where the alleged fraud raises a reasonable prospect of success, and same was discovered after the judgement complained of – OLUFUNMISE v FALANA (1990) LPELR-2616(SC).

In the instant case, the Applicant was not pleased with the decision of the trial court; its appeal to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court were also dismissed. It is very unlikely that, all these decisions were given in error under a misapplication of facts, reached per incuriam, out of fraud or oversight perpetuating injustice to the Applicant. Likewise, it cannot be said that, they were given without jurisdiction and in nullity. The Applicant has also not complained of accidental slip or clerical error in the judgement, which calls for review or variance. The grouse of the Applicant, as alleged in its grounds of appeal and issue for determination, is against the decision of the Supreme Court, per Onnoghen, JSC that the failure of the Applicant to file an exact replica of Exhibit AA1 as ordered by the court below on 14/09/2011, rendered the brief of argument incompetent and liable to be struck out. The brief of argument filed on 20/09/2011, was radically different from that exhibited to the motion before the court. The new brief had 25 pages with six issues for determination, as opposed to Exhibit AA1 which spanned a total of 13 pages with four issues. There is a synergy of occurrence in reasoning and decisions from the trial court to the Supreme Court that the instant case was decided on its merit, and leaves no doubt that there was no miscarriage of justice which can warrant a review of the decision of the Supreme Court.

The finality of every matter before the Supreme Court, protects and guards it against unnecessary review and rehearing or reopening of cases that have been determined by it. The Supreme Court owes it a duty to jealously guard against such application to set aside its judgement, otherwise, the floodgate will be opened for the bastardisation of its judgement, on flimsy grounds of application to set aside. This is more so, as the Supreme Court reviewed all the issues in Appeal No. SC.535/2013, and the judgement delivered on 18/01/2019, represents the clear intention of the court. It cannot be appealed against to any other authority in line with Section 235 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), or reviewed by the Supreme Court.

Application Dismissed with Costs against the Applicant.

Representation O. Ayanlaja, SAN with Tayo Oyetibo, SAN for the Appellant / Applicant Chief F.O. Fagbohungbe, SAN with Abayomi Adeniran for the Respondents Reported by Optimum Publishers Limited (Publishers of the Nigerian Monthly Law Reports (NMLR))

12.11.2019

NEWS/5

Former Anambra State Governor, Sir Peter Obi unveiling the book, “A Chronicle of Leading Judgments” during the memorial lecture and book presentation in honour of the longest serving Enugu State Chief Judge, late Justice Innocent Azubuike Umezulike in Enugu… recently

VALEDICTORY SESSION Former Lagos State Attorney-General, Adeniji Kazeem, SAN (left) and Hon Justice Mojisola Olatoregun at the Valedictory session for Justice Olatoregun at the Federal High Court, Lagos, last Friday

Effective Judiciary System, Panacea for Nigeria’s Dwindling Democracy Mary Nnah For Nigeria's democracy to continue to flourish, the Judiciary must not only be seen as active, but must deliver justice without fear or favour. Nigerians, on the other hand, should support the activities of the Judiciary, by providing it with the needed tools, as well as abide by its decisions.

These were the views of eminent Lawyers, Jurists and Politicians, who gathered in Enugu recently at a one day memorial lecture and book presentation, in honour of the longest serving Enugu State Chief Judge, late Justice Innocent Azubuike Umezulike.

Umezulike, who died last year at the age of 64, was the longest serving Chief Judge in the South-East and South-South. He served as Chief Judge for 13 years, and had 23 books which deal especially on land and property laws, to his credit.

Speaking on the theme "The Overriding Role of the Judiciary in Contemporary Democracy", a

Professor of Law and former Dean of Law, University of Benin, Prof. Emeka Chianu, observed that the court was one of the chief objects in modern democracies, to ensure that principles and philosophies that underlie governance are upheld. Citing various case laws, he demonstrated how Nigerian courts have grappled with the call for the gains of democracy, to percolate beyond the sphere of public law to private transactional level.

Explaining that there was need for mutuality between the Bench and Bar, he said that democracy would thrive better when good advice was given, adding that, Nigerian courts deserved plaudits.

Although he agreed that much was expected of Nigerian Judges, he however, stated that Nigerians should learn to respect court judgements, to "ensure the fledgling democracy does not decline into pseudo democracy".

Former Anambra State Governor, Sir Peter Obi,

who was Chairman of the and ensured that his inclusive occasion, praised the Judiciary judgements, foreshadowed the for holding the country to- move towards moulding the gether. Describing the nation's law to suit changing times and Judiciary as one of the best in circumstances.

He said the book, “A the world, he said the Judges have resisted attempts that Chronicle of Leading Judgeordinarily could have derailed ments", is a three-part volume democracy, even at the threat offering "in-depth analysis of the landmark judgements of of their jobs.

Obi stated that, if a percent- an intellectual giant, and one age of the Judiciary was in the of Africa's most prolific writers nation's politics, the situation on land and property law".

“This is a must read and of the country would have been better, adding however, highly beneficial to Judges, that, democracy had been legal practitioners, law students throttled because "politi- and the public too. Honourable cians are trying to infect the Justice Innocent Umezulike’s Judiciary with their characters. versatility in law will be He described Umezulike helpful to all and sundry, in as one of the finest Judges resolving or understanding the country had produced, the matters at hand. His Lordcalling him a man of ideas ship showed panache for not and great intelligence. He said strictly adhering to precedent, his contributions to the Bench, and ensured that his incisive judgements foreshadowed the would remain evergreen.

Chief Justice of the Federa- move towards moulding the tion (CJN), Honourable Justice law to suit changing times and circumstances”, he added.

Ibrahim Tanko Chief Judge of Enugu State, Muhammad, said Umezulike showed panache for not strictly adhering to precedent, CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

Global Law Firm, White & Case, Deepens Knowledge in Oil and Gas Sector in Nigeria Akinwale Akintunde To celebrate 35 years of supporting clients in Nigeria, global law firm, White & Case, in collaboration with Standard Chartered Bank, hosted an oil and gas workshop for select participants in the sector.

Speaking during the workshop in Lagos, London-based White & Case Partner, Jason Kerr, said the law firm has been advising on Nigeria-related transactions for 35 years, and that the workshop was a good way to mark the firm’s sustained presence in Nigeria.

“We have built many friends over the years in Nigeria, and we wanted to bring them together to celebrate these 35 years”, said Kerr.

“We have had a series of events over the last several days, culminating in this workshop, which is a knowledge transfer exercise.

“We are just here to say thank you to our clients, for the support they have shown us over the years.”

He acknowledged that Nigeria has one of the largest gas reserves

in the world, with NLNG being one of the biggest producers of LNG in the world.

He also expressed confidence in Nigeria’s oil and gas market, which Kerr said has a strong future.

“NLNG is growing in Africa, and, if you look at Nigeria over the last 25 years, it has had its hurdles, but it has had some significant international transactions that have been great for this market, and have been given a serious profile internationally”, said Kerr.

“Nigeria has got some great fundamentals, and some serious business people.”

Kerr is impressed with Nigerian Lawyers, companies and law firms, because of their efficiency and exposure to international transactions. He said: "When I look at the legal community here in Nigeria, I'm very impressed, because they have been exposed to serious international players in the oil and gas market, for more than

two decades. They are highly efficient and professional”.

"When we come into Nigeria with our clients, we are more than happy to work with Nigerian law firms, because they are of fantastic quality.

We work with a number of law firms in Nigeria, and have done so for two decades."

Deji Adegoke, London-based Associate at White & Case, gave a presentation on key trends in the Nigerian midstream financing sector and the rise of hybrid financing structures, using a recent transaction in Nigeria as a case study.

London-based White & Case Partner, Robert Wheal, presented on dispute resolution in the oil & gas sector. Wheal said a survey carried out in 2013 by White & Case in association with Queen Mary University, London, revealed that arbitration was the most widely used dispute resolution mechanism, and the preferred method of dispute resolution in

the energy sector. He said that when the survey was carried out in 2018, arbitration’s appeal to the oil and gas sector had only grown stronger.

Wheal said that, reasons for this include the finality of the process, the ability to enforce an arbitral award in a great many jurisdictions worldwide courtesy of the New York Convention, the neutrality of Tribunal, flexibility of procedure, privacy and the parties role in selection of the Tribunal members.

According to Wheal, disadvantages of arbitration include, an arbitrator’s lack of coercive powers, higher risk of jurisdictional disputes, less use of summary procedures as compared to litigation, no right to appeal, and difficulty in dealing with multi-party and multi-contact disputes.

In conclusion, Wheal noted that African-related arbitration is on the rise, with more than 72 known arbitration institutions operating in 39 African countries.

Group Writes EFCC to Probe General Electric, Rockson Engineering, over Alleged Power Scandal Akinwale Akintunde

its position as the leader of the consortium, to ensure that the KPP is executed to international standards, both in terms of time, quality and output.

“GE appears to be hiding behind Rockson, to disappoint the legitimate expectations of Nigerians. It remains inexplicable that a 36-month project has lingered to date (about 10 years), and, most astonishing is the fact that, GE has since received its full payments on the contract”, CEHEJ stated.

The letter reminded the Commission of CEHEJ’s latest research report by a team of energy researchers led by Dr. Yemi Oke of the University of Lagos titled, “Kept in Darkness” - Holding Non-Performing Electricity Contractors Accountable”, which indicted some Contractors, notably Rockson Engineering and General Electric (GE), and detailed some of their atrocities in Nigeria. Copies of the report, had earlier been forwarded to the Commission.

CEHEJ also sought investigations and sanctions “of government officers that approved the shipment of untested GE units and released the payment for the non-working equipment, which has inflicted losses and damage to the Nigerian economy, especially for the overpriced General Electric (GE) Gas Turbines”.

“As structured, CEHEJ is of the

A human rights group, Centre for Health Equity and Justice (CEHEJ), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to conduct an effective investigation into the role played by General Electric (GE) in the $9 billion power project scandal.

In a letter to the acting Chairman of the anti-graft agency, Ibrahim Magu, CEHEJ stated that the probe is with a view to recovering any stolen public funds, so that they are used to provide public goods and services to Nigerians.

CEHEJ’s letter followed the reported summon by the EFCC of the Chairman of Rockson Engineering Company Limited, Mr. Joseph Arumemi Ikhide, whose company got about $2 billion of the vote for the power project, with only about 40 per cent job done.

The group believes that General Electric (GE), as the leader of the consortium which includes Rockson Engineering, should also be invited and investigated.

According to CEHEJ in a letter dated November 5, 2019, “as a matter of fact, it was GE that introduced Rockson Engineering and assured the Federal Government in the contract for the Kaduna Power Plant Project (KPP), of utilising CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

Businessmen file Fundamental Human Rights Suit against IGP, DIGP, AIGP, Others Akinwale Akintunde Two businessmen, Akinfolabi Akindele and Taiwo Oyewunmi, have dragged the Inspector General of Police, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Assistant Inspector General of Police and Commissioner of Police to court, over violation of their fundamental human rights.

In the fundamental rights enforcement suit filed before a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja, the Applicants are praying the court to declare

that the arrest and detention of Taiwo Oyewunmi by the 7th and 8th Respondents on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 on the instruction of 1st to 6th Respondent, is unconstitutional, null and void.

Joined in the suit as 5th to 9th Respondents, are Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ali Mohammed, Taofik Tijani, Sergeant Musa Mohammed, Ibrahim Dalatu and Biodun Aguda.

The Applicants are asking the court to declare that the

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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12.11.2019

LEDAP drags Akpabio, Others, to Court over NDDC ‘Interim Committee’ Akinwale Akintunde A civil society group, Legal Defence and Assistance Project (LEDAP), has dragged the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio to court, over the appointment of an Interim Management Committee, to manage the affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), pending the appointment of a Board for the Commission.

Joined, as Plaintiffs in the suit filed before a Federal High Court, Abuja, are some indigenes of the Niger Delta area, including Iruo Onoruvwe, Anatole Osuji, and Walter Abere.

Other Defendants aside from the Minister and the NDDC are Dr. Gbene Joy Nunieh, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, and Chief Ibanga Bassey Etang.

The Plaintiffs in the suit, are challenging Akpabio’s powers to constitute such an interim management team to run the NDDC, and asking for a court order to nullify the Interim Management Committee.

Akpabio had told reporters in Abuja last week, that the interim committee was

to prepare ground for the new Board and supervise the forensic audit, which the President had ordered some weeks ago.

According to him, “we are not against the forensic audit of NDDC as directed

by President Muhammadu Buhari, but let the process be credible”.

He had announced the three-man Committee, comprising Dr. Gbene Joy Nunieh, as the Acting Managing Director; Dr Cairo Ojugboh as the Executive Director, Projects; and Chief Ibanga Etang, as the Executive Director, Finance and Administration.

The announcement of an interim management team had sparked outrage in the Niger Delta States, as many see the step as a way to scuttle the development projects of NDDC. In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/1333/2019 and filed by the Executive Director of LEDAP, Mr. Chino Obiagwu, SAN, the Plaintiffs contended that the appointment of the three-man Committee by Akpabio, violated Sections 2, 10 and 12 of the Niger Delta Development Commission (Establishment, etc) Act No. 6 of 2000 (as amended).

The Plaintiffs are seeking for a declaration that the purported appointment by the first Defendant of three-man interim management for the second Defendant, is contrary to sections 2, 10, and 12 of the NDDC Act 6 2000(as amended).

“A declaration that the purported appointment by the first Defendant of the third Defendant as the Managing Director of the second Defendant, the fourth as Executive Director, Projects, and the fifth Defendant as Executive Director, Finance and Administration of the second Defendant are contrary to the provisions of Section 12(1)c of the NDDC Act as amended, which provides that the Managing Director and two Executive Directors of the second Defendant shall be appointed by the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and confirmed by the Senate, in consultation with the House of Representatives.

“A declaration that by virtue of Section 12(2) of the NDDC Act, the Managing Director of the second Defendant performs his functions under the general direction

BUSINESSMEN FILE FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS SUIT AGAINST IGP, DIGP, AIGP, OTHERS invitation of the 1st Applicant (Akindele) by the Nigeria Police, IGP Monitoring Units, Abuja, to appear before it on October 28, 2019 is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void, on the ground that land matters are not within the contemplation of the functions of the Police, because they are civil matters.

The Applicants are also praying the court to declare that they are entitled to their personal liberty, freedom of movement, right to dignity and compulsory acquisition of property as entrenched in Chapter IV, Sections 34, 35(6), 36, 44 and 46(1) (2) of 1999 Constitution (as amended), and Articles 5, 6, 7, 12, 14 of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights Ratification and Enforcement Law of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

Akindele and Oyewunmi want the court to order the Respondents to tender a public apology to them, for breach of their fundamental rights.

The Applicants are also seeking an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the 1st to 8th Respondents, from further interfering into

land matters in Alaka/Stadium Area, Lagos State, that are civil in nature, and using the instruments of the State, to protect or favour the 9th Respondent.

They also want the court to award N5 million damages, for unlawful arrest and detention of the 2nd Applicant on October 22, 2019.

In the affidavit in support of their motion, the 1st Applicant, who is one of the Directors of Adamakin Investment and Work Limited, and 2nd Applicant, a staff of Lagoon Park Global Resources, stated that the Trustees of the Estate of late Madam Efunroye Tinubu family donated a Power of Attorney dated August 27, 2012 to Adamakin Investment and Work Ltd as agent, and the functions, duties and obligations, are well spelt out in the Power of Attorney.

Akindele said in the course of working for the Trustees of the Estate of Madam Efunroye Tinubu family, a judgement of Fafunmi v Osun Apena in Suit No: 124/1912's judgement dated 23/12/1912, and registered as No: 45 on Page 45

of the Board of the second Defendant.

“A declaration that the first Defendant cannot validly appoint the 3rd-5th Defendants as acting Managing Director; and Executive Directors of the second Defendant, while the list of nominated members of Board of the second Defendant submitted by the President, pursuant to Sections 2, 10, and 12 of the NDDC Act 2000 to the National Assembly, is pending the approval of the Senate.

“An order nullifying the purported appointments of the 3rd-5th Defendants as acting Managing Director and Executive Directors of the 2nd Defendant.

“An order restraining the second Defendant and its management from handing over, and/or permitting the 3rd-5th Defendants to assume the office of the Managing Director and Executive Directors of the second Defendant.

“An order restraining the 1st Defendant by himself or anyhow whatsoever, from interfering in the affairs of the 2nd Defendant in a manner inconsistent with the provisions of the NDDC Act.” No date has yet been fixed, for the hearing.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

in Volume 2212 of the Register of Deeds kept at Lagos State Land Registry, was presented.

The Applicants alleged that the Nigeria Police Force represented by the 1st to 7th Respondents, is working for the 8th Respondent in respect of the sixty plots of land the 8th Respondent purportedly bought from a Aboki Bada Family, and has no right to sell the land at Alaka/Stadium Area of Lagos State.

"The 1st Applicant entered into an agreement with the 2nd Applicant's company, Lagoon Park Global Resources, and as a result, they challenged the 8th Respondent who occupied sixty plots of land at Alaka/Stadium Area, the 8th Respondent petitioned the 1st Respondent, as the head of the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, the 1st Respondent immediately detailed its squad called IGP Monitoring Unit at Force Headquarters, FCT, Abuja, represented by 2nd Respondent and other sub-IGP Monitoring Unit, in Zone 2, Onikan Lagos, represented by the 3rd Respondent, the 4th and 5th Respondents in Lagos, whilst

the 6th and 7th Respondents were detailed to effect the arrest of the Applicants.

"Fortunately, the 1st Applicant was away in Abuja, not around, and a letter to appear in their IGP Monitoring Unit at Force Headquarters, FCT, Abuja was served on his counsel, Mojisola Odulate, who went to see the 3rd Respondent on the same issues brought by the 8th Respondent, and the 2nd Applicant was not as fortunate, as the 6th and 7th Respondents arrested him and detained him at SARS Cell at the 4th Respondent office in Ikeja, Lagos.

"The 1st Applicant has attached a lot of documents to buttress the fact that, first and foremost, this matter is purely a land matter, and the Applicants have not committed any criminal infractions on the land at Alaka/ Stadium Area, Lagos State that warranted the IGP to have use the instruments of the State to pursue the Applicants, to the extent of arresting and detaining the 2nd Applicant for 24 hours, which is a total flagrant violation of their human rights", he stated.

Legal Personality of the Week Jeremiah Avwenaghogho Oharisi

‘A Career in Law, is No Child’s Play’ Please, give a brief introduction of yourself My name is Jeremiah Avwenaghogho Oharisi. I am the Crown Prince of Ughelli Kingdom, in Delta State. I was called to the Nigerian Bar in November 2010, with experience in litigation and corporate legal practice.

Have you had any challenges in your career as a Lawyer, and if so, what were the main challenges?

The challenges that I have had as a practicing Lawyer, were as a young Lawyer, fresh out of Law School with a whole lot of expectations. What I considered a real challenge like most young Lawyers, was poor or inadequate remuneration. I found myself in a situation were my monthly income at the time, was hardly enough to pay for the cost of my transportation for a month. I quickly saw the need to create alternative sources of income, if I was to meet my financial demands, since I was already a young family man.

I am glad to say that, it all worked out well in the end. In the beginning, poor remuneration was really demoralising, to say the least.

What has been your worst day as a Lawyer?

Jeremiah Avwenaghogho Oharisi

I was a young Lawyer, and was to appear alone in court. I was the first Lawyer to arrive at the court, that fateful morning.

However, to my disappointment, my case was called last, because I was still young at the Bar, and there were many seniors in court. Even some of those Lawyers that were called to the Bar the same year as I

was, were in the company of their seniors.

I pleaded with a few of my seniors to allow my case to be called out of turn as it were, but, everybody seemed to be in a hurry. It was not a good day for me, because I missed an important appointment, and at the time, this made me feel bad about the whole “seniority at the Bar” mantra.

a Minister in the temple of Justice. Now, that’s a cliché. But, quite frankly, I wanted to be able to somehow make a difference in society, even if that means playing a small part in ensuring the discharge of justice and compliance with “the rule of law”, as well as the principles of equity and fairness.

What is your most memorable experience as a Lawyer, so far?

I have had a few memorable experiences, as a Lawyer. The one that stands out now that I think about it, would be the day I got my first favourable verdict in a civil matter.

What would be your advice to anyone wanting a career in law?

First, I want such a person to learn to manage their expectations. A career in law, is no child’s play. I mean, this is a profession where for those in litigation, you must continue to slug it out. The beginning is always “not so rosy”, but if you keep faith, then comes Hallelujah!

Who has been most influential in your life?

Dr. Charlse Apoki (an educationist and a preacher), is by far the most influential person in my life. He is a mentor, a father and a friend. Whenever I am in doubt, I go to him for counsel. He is a realist, and has done very well in his life pursuits, and I believe there is still so much I can learn from this “unusual” man of God. Why did you become a Lawyer?

What informed my decision to study law, was so that I can one day become

If you had not become a Lawyer, what other career would you have chosen?

I would have become a Psychology Professor, if not a Psychologist. Apart from law, I have always had a passion for Psychology, and I still continue to study Psychology.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

Ten years from today, I should be a Professor of Law with a lot of political/ social influence. I would watch out for me, if I were you. Thank you, for this privilege.

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TALKING CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY DR. MIKE OZEKHOME, SAN

SMS only to 08098898888

Totalitarianism, Capitalism and Communism: Distinctive Features (Part 11)

A

itself, became “the greatest financial institution of the Middle Ages.” This was the setup during much of the period of the feudal-ecclesiastical order.

Introduction

s a society, we have always flourished when we lived together in communities. A country is nothing but one giant community, and like every community, it must be governed. Today, let us study about the main purpose and functions of the totalitarianism, capitalism and communism government. Government is an institution or a system made up of a group of people, who take care or manage a country or a State. When we say governance, what does that entail? How does it work?

Totalitarianism Benito Mussolini coined the term totalitario in the early 1920s to characterise the new fascist State of Italy, which he further described as “all within the State, none outside the State, and none against the State.”

Origin of Totalitarianism The term “totalitarianism” is traceable to the fascist era of the 1920s and 1930s, and it was first widely used by Italian fascist theorists, including Giovanni Gentile. Its gradual advance came to be extended to include not just extreme ideas, and often impracticable dictatorships of the far right, but also Communist regimes, especially that of the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin. It is still frequently associated with Cold War thought of the 1940s and 1950s, a period during which it was most commonly exploited as a governance terminology, although its thoughtful implications surpasses that era’s political fears and wordcraft.

Father of Fascism, Benito Mussolini

Meaning of Totalitarianism “Totalitarianism” as used here, denotes the most extreme modern dictatorial tendency of possessing perfectionist and utopian conceptions of mankind and society. It is a form of rule in which the government attempts to maintain 'total' control over society, including all aspects of the public and private lives of its citizens. It is also a form of government that theoretically, tends to infringe on individual liberty with absolute impunity, and that solicits to cow all aspects of individual life to the authority of the State.

One of the tenets of totalitarianism is also that, traditional social institutions and organisations are dissuaded and suppressed. Thus, the social structure is feeble, frail and people become more persuaded to assimilate into a single, unified movement.

In the seventeenth century, the proponent absolute or autocratic government and royalists such as Thomas Hobbes and Jacques Bossuet advocated, in a variety of ways, a virile and concentrated State as a guarantor against any form of abuse or dissident that is not in conformity with natural law and biblical precedent. Nevertheless, totalitarianism, properly understood as a political reality, was conceptualised in the early twentieth century by Thinkers such as Carl Schmitt in Germany and Giovanni Gentile in Italy who helped to lay the foundations of fascist ideology, emphasising the defensive and unifying advantages of dictatorship.

Attributes/Features of Totalitarianism A conventional way of describing totalitarianism, is to present a list of characteristics common to Italian Fascism, German National Socialism, and Soviet Bolshevism (Other regimes may also be included - notably, Chinese Communism under the rule of Mao, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), and Pol Pot's "Democratic Cambodia").

Despite the many differences among totalitarian States, they have several characteristics in common, of which the

“CAPITALISM UNDOUBTEDLY PROVIDED AN IMPROVEMENT OVER THE FEUDAL SYSTEM, IF ONLY FOR THE GREATER FREEDOM IT BROUGHT TO THE WORKING CLASSES. BUT, IT ALSO BROUGHT MANY INJUSTICES. THE GAP BETWEEN THE RICH AND THE POOR, TENDED TO WIDEN”

most important are: A Single mass party, typically led by a dictator; System of terror, using such instruments as violence and secret police; Monopoly of weapons; Monopoly on the means of communication; Central direction and control of the economy through State planning; the existence of an ideology that addresses all aspects of life, and outlines the means to attain the final goal; A single mass party, through which the people are mobilised to muster energy and support; The party is generally led by a dictator and, typically, participation in politics, especially voting, is compulsory; The party leadership maintains monopoly control over the governmental system, which includes the police, military, communications, and economic and education systems; Dissent is systematically suppressed, and people terrorised by a secret police; Autocracies through the ages have attempted to exercise control over the lives of their subjects, by whatever means were available to them, including the use of secret police and military force; However, only with modern technology, have governments acquired the means to control society; therefore, totalitarianism is, historically, a recent phenomenon.

Distinction between Totalitarianism and Dictatorship Totalitarianism is often distinguished from dictatorship, despotism, or tyranny by its supplanting of all political institutions with new ones, and its sweeping away of all legal, social, and political traditions. The totalitarian State pursues some special goal, such as industrialisation or conquest, to the exclusion of all others. All resources are directed toward its attainment, regardless of the cost. Whatever might further the goal is supported; whatever might foil the goal is rejected.

This obsession spawns an ideology that explains everything in terms of the goal, rationalising all obstacles that may arise, and all forces that may contend with the State. The resulting popular support, permits the State the widest latitude of action of any form of government. Any dissent is branded evil, and internal political differences are not permitted. Because pursuit of the goal is the only ideological foundation for the totalitarian State, achievement of the goal can never be acknowledged.

Capitalism The pursuit of happiness by means of material prosperity, is not a new idea. It was the way of life, of many ancient Greeks and Romans. But, it fell into disrepute throughout the entire Middle Ages. Why? Mainly for religious reasons.

Medieval society was dominated by religion, in every field of human activity. For the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, poverty was a virtue. It was a “test” that had to be accepted, by the poor. The rich were rich and the poor were poor, by what was labelled a God-ordained arrangement. Voluntary poverty was considered “holy,” and “usury” (lending for gain) was condemned by canon law.

Yet, while anathematising Jewish moneylenders, Catholic cathedral chapters lent money at high interest rates. The papacy

The Birth of Capitalism With the breakup of the feudal system, town and intercity trade grew. So did trade between nations. And ideas circulated more freely, particularly after the invention of the printing press. The influence of the Catholic Church, began to wane.

Medieval Catholicism had been the greatest obstacle, to the development of a new economic system. Yet pockets of capitalistic trading, manufacturing and banking had been growing toward the end of the Middle Ages, right within Catholic Christendom. This was true in such Catholic cities as Venice in Italy, Augsburg in Germany and Antwerp in Flanders.

Then the Protestant Reformation, broke out in the 16th century. While it would be an exaggeration to say that the Reformation fathered capitalism, it did release ideas that gave a decided boost to it. For one thing, Calvinism relieved legitimate business profit of the stigma of “usury.” Moreover, certain Protestant beliefs provided people with the incentive to work hard so as to succeed in life, and thus, prove they were among the “elect.” Success in business, was considered to be a sign of God’s blessing. The resulting wealth became available “capital” for investment in one’s own business venture, or some other one. Thus, the Protestant ethic of hard work and thrift, contributed to the expansion of capitalism.

Not surprisingly, the capitalist economy developed faster in Protestant countries, than in Catholic States. But, the Catholic Church quickly made up for lost time. She allowed capitalism to develop in lands where she was powerful, and became an extremely rich capitalist organisation in her own right.

Capitalism undoubtedly provided an improvement over the feudal system, if only for the greater freedom it brought to the working classes. But, it also brought many injustices.

The gap between the rich and the poor, tended to widen. At its worst, it brought about exploitation and class warfare. At its best, it produced an affluent consumer society in some lands, with material fullness. But, it has also produced spiritual emptiness, and has failed to bring true and lasting happiness.

Communism The Protestant Reformation, was a revolt against papal abuse of power and privilege. Yet, it unleashed a flood of ideas, that went far beyond what the original Reformers anticipated. These ideas sooner or much later, were to produce revolutions in fields other than religion. Not only did the revolt against Rome boost the development of capitalism, but it also contributed to innovations in the fields of science, technology and philosophy leading to godless beliefs.

With the advent of the steam engine and machinery, capitalism spread out from the field of commerce, into that of industry. The latter part of the 18th and 19th centuries, saw the creation of huge factories requiring a large labour forces recruited among peasants, craftsmen and even children. But, capitalist “exploitation of man by man” led to the creation of workers’ movements and revolutionary philosophies, such as communism.

Theoretically, the term “communism” denotes “systems of social organisation based upon common property, or an equal distribution of income and wealth.” In current practice, communism is a system of government based on the holding of property by the State, which controls the economy under a one-party political structure.

For millions of have-nots throughout the world, communism seemed to offer hope for a better life. It appeared to be the best means for levelling off the flagrant social inequalities created by the capitalist system. Many were even prepared to forgo immediate hopes of freedom if, by means of a revolution, better living conditions could be obtained. Freedom would come later, so they thought. But, years have gone by. The communist system of government, has had time to show what it is capable of in many countries. The results have been disappointing, even with regard to material prosperity, not to speak of freedom and happiness.

For years, in the Western world, many of the young, and even some not so young, were attracted by the communist ideology. But, persistent bad news seeping out of many communist lands and the one-way flow of refugees, have left many disillusioned. (To be continued).

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK “Democracy's a very fragile thing. You have to take care of democracy. As soon as you stop being responsible to it and allow it to turn into scare tactics, it's no longer democracy, is it? It's something else. It may be an inch away from totalitarianism.”

(Sam Shepard).

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12.11.2019

Julie Okah-Donli

‘Slavery and Human Trafficking Exist Within Nigeria’ In search of greener pastures,many innocent Nigerian young women (and men),find themselves at the mercy of human traffickers.With promises of juicy and well paying domestic jobs in Europe and the Middle East, most of the females from poor families, end up as sex slaves, where they are exploited by their Madames and Barons for long periods of time, usually spanning several years. Onikepo Braithwaite and Jude Igbanoi sought out the Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Julie Okah-Donli, who in a conversation last week, aside from discussing issues of local and international human trafficking, gave an even more worrisome dimension to the fight against human trafficking the sale of babies to harvest their tissues, such as their stem cells, for medical purposes

O

ne of the functions of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) which you are Director General, is to encourage people to fight slavery. Does slavery exist in Nigeria? If it does, what exactly is NAPTIP doing to bring this abominable practice to an end?

Of course slavery exists in Nigeria, only that it has a new name - human trafficking. NAPTIP is the Nigerian Government Agency with the mandate to fight modern day slavery. The Agency is doing this through five main pillars: Policy, Prevention, Protection, Prosecution and Partner- ship.

The number of Nigerian girls and children trafficked abroad continues to be on the in- crease, despite concerted efforts by the

Government and various agencies to stop it.

What in your view, are we not doing right?

What steps must Government take, to stem the ugly tide of human trafficking, both within and outside Nigeria? It is common knowl- edge that, children and girls are trafficked from one part of the country to another. Also, a lot of trafficking is going on from Nigeria to other West African countries, like Ivory Coast, Mali and Chad. How do you deal with this?

The fight against human trafficking is a continuous

“OF COURSE, SLAVERY EXISTS IN NIGERIA, ONLY THAT IT HAS A NEW NAME - HUMAN TRAFFICKING”

one, which must be sustained. I do not agree that incidences of human trafficking are increasing, but public awareness is growing as a result of the efforts of NAPTIP and its partners. My major strategy is massive awareness creation, through campaigns from the grassroots to the highest levels of government. We also actively engage with the international community, and create alliances at local national and international levels.

As part of this strategy, I have commenced the inauguration of State Task- forces against human trafficking, which I hope to complete by mid-2020.

The world is aware that some of the Arab countries use Africans, especially illegal immigrants as slaves, and subject them to the most horrible conditions; some even end up being killed, and others, permanently maimed. We also understand that, the Arabs also have African collaborators assisting them in their dastardly business - agencies that supply them with victims. Can you tell us more about

12.11.2019

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“THE PHENOMENON OF BABY FACTORIES IS ANOTHER SAD COMMENTARY.....OUR GREATEST CONCERN IS THAT, MANY OF THE BABIES ARE SOLD FOR THE HARVEST OF THEIR TISSUES, SUCH AS THEIR STEM CELLS, FOR MEDICAL PURPOSES”

this? Do we have such collaborators here in Nige- ria? Has NAPTIP been able to infiltrate them and make arrests? Are you getting any coop- eration from the Governments of the Arab countries that are involved in slavery?

The trafficking of young Nigerian women to the Middle East, is a phenomenon that has escalated in recent years. Unpatriotic labour recruiters lure these women with promises of well paid domestic work, but, they end up in domestic labour and sexual slavery. We've reached out to relevant government agencies and some of the Middle East countries, but, we have not received much support. However, recently, the Attorney-General of the Federation has published a Gazette, granting NAPTIP the powers to regulate the activities of these labour recruiters and other such groups, who are implicated in recruiting Nigerians into slavery abroad or within Nigeria What is NAPTIP doing in terms of public education and awareness, to make potential vic- tims of human trafficking understand that the grass is not greener on the other side, and that these offers of a brighter future in foreign countries, are nothing more than a scam? What programmes does NAPTIP have to reintegrate those who have been rescued from places like Libya and Italy, and brought back home?

In terms of public enlightenment, I must say that we have done and achieved quite a lot under the circumstances we find ourselves. We are continuously engaging with endemic and other commu- nities from grassroots, in churches and mosques, in town halls and at intellectual fora.

NAPTIP also has very good presence in the social and traditional media of communication. In addition, our networking efforts with stakeholders, have broadened and deepened the anti-trafficking message to the nooks and crannies of Nigeria.

What is the situation with human trafficking of our women to places like Italy for prostitution? Have you been able to make any impact in reducing the numbers that go?

The trafficking of Nigerian women to Italy and other parts of Europe, is still of great concern.

However, a lot of policy measures and programmes have been put in place, to mitigate the prob- lem, including engagement of Communities and State Governments, to stem the tide of irregular migration.

Part of the initiatives involve negotiations with

destination countries, to ensure that that victims of trafficking are correctly identified and given requisite support and assistance, both in those countries and when they return.

The Strait of Lampedusa, has become a notorious death trap for many Nigerians and other Africans. Many have lost their lives, trying cross on rickety boats from Libya to Eu- rope. What has your agency done to engage these countries bordering on the Strait, to cur- tail this?

Nigeria is engaging with all countries, where our young ones have been trafficked or are in transit. Last year, the Federal Government deployed planes to evacuate Nigerians stranded in Libya, who wanted to return. Under that programme, about 5000 Nigerians were evacuated, apart from about 14,000 others who have been returned by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), un- der a Programme sponsored by the European Union.

What has been the attitude of the courts with regard to cases involving human trafficking?

How many convictions has NAPTIP obtained since your assumption of office? How fast do trafficking cases go in court?

Overall, I must acknowledge the role of the courts in helping us punish traffickers who prey on the vulnerability of our young ones, and seek to exploit them in very inhumane ways. So far, the Agency has secured 405 convictions, about 65 of which happened under my watch. However, there is a lot of room for improvement. Many Judges tend not to understand the gravity of the crime of human trafficking, and either tolerate incessant adjournments or give sentences well be- low the prescription of the law. We are actively engaging with the judiciary, and have trained a number

of Judges on issues of human trafficking. I am confident that, things will get better Lately, we have been seeing the Police busting so-called Spiritual/Healing homes, Muslim, Christian and non-religious, with people being kept there for years, living in the most atro- cious conditions. There is even an ongoing case of a man running a home, purportedly healing mentally challenged people. He was arrested, but, surprisingly, it is the relatives of the inmates of his psychiatric prayer ‘clinic’ that are asking the Police to release him, that he is not guilty of any wrongdoing and has been of assistance to them. What role does NAPTIP have to play in this type of situation?

Unfortunately, there's nothing much NAPTIP can do, since the Police are handling those cases. When it started in Kaduna, we reached out to the Police to get NAPTIP involved in the investiga- tions, but they never obliged us. It is unfortunate that, those rescued from such perilous situa- tions, are returned to their families who sent them there in the first place The issue of illegal baby factories, is on the front burner presently. There seem to be a considerable number of them, in the Southern parts of Nigeria. Recently, some pregnant teenagers were rescued from one of such establishments, where one of the victims con- firmed that she overheard one of the proprietors negotiating to sell male babies for N500,000 and females for N300,000. They were also lured to the place, on the pretext of job offers. Again, does NAPTIP have a role to play in this type of local human trafficking?

Of course, NAPTIP has a role to play once trafficking is suspected, in any situation. The phe- nomenon of baby factories is another sad commentary, on how much our societal values have been eroded. Our greatest concern is that, many of the babies are sold for the harvest of their tis- sues such as their stem cells, for medical purposes.

The 27 women rescued from a baby factory in Lagos have been with NAPTIP, and five of them have since had their babies. We are investigating the matter, and everyone involved will be brought to book.

What is the level of cooperation you receive from State Governments and security agencies? A major challenge identified by some, is that there seems to be a disconnect between your agency and other security agencies. To what extent, has this hampered your work?

Inter-agency rivalry is normal in most law enforcement environments, and ours is not different. We have however, taken steps to build trust and confidence with our sister law enforcement agencies including engagements at policy, tactical and operational levels. The State Governments have been less forthcoming, but with the formation of State Task-forces, I am confident that the situa- tion will continue to improve.

Statistics and data are crucial in your work; how do you generate them? Given the fact that human trafficking is done clandestinely, how reliable are those statistics?

NAPTIP has a very robust data gathering and analysis system, that enables us to collate data from all our Zonal Commands, and our partners.

NAPTIP data have proven to be authentic, and are quoted globally.

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12.11.2019

The Constitutionality of the Value Added Tax Act Revisited This article by Efe Etomi and Elvis Asia, discusses the Value Added Tax (VAT) system in Nigeria, concluding that the present system is not only unsustainable, but requires urgent restructuring, as they believe that, for one, the system is contrary to the ideas of a Federation, because it deprives the States the opportunity to make laws on consumption tax, within their own localities

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Introduction

he opening sentence of JeanJacques Rousseau's 1762 Social Contract treatise that ‘man is born free and everywhere he is in chains’, aptly describes Nigeria’s federalism. Nigeria declares itself a Federation, but is shackled by the centralisation of power in everything that matters. The problem was largely created by military incursions, with unruly Decrees. Taxation, is an example of Nigeria’s chained federal structure.

The Value Added Tax (VAT) was first introduced in 1993 by the Value Added Tax Decree No. 102. The Decree was deemed an Act of the National Assembly (NA) under Section 315(1) (a) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. The Decree consequently, became the Value Added Tax Act (VATA). In 2007, VATA was amended to principally expand the scope of VAT to practically all goods and services in Nigeria, except those specifically exempted in the First Schedule to the Act, without constitutional considerations.

Expectedly, VATA has been the subject of litigation with respect to Sales Tax Laws in the States, and now, consumption taxes. The recent decision of the Federal High Court in The Registered Trustees of Hotel Owners and Managers Association of Lagos v AG Lagos & Anor on October 3, 2019, Advocate has reignited the debate on the constitutionality of the VAT regime in Nigeria.

The Nature and Scope of Nigeria’s VAT Regime VAT is a consumption tax on goods and services payable by consumers, with the obligation to collect the tax vested on the supplier of the goods or services. The persons being taxed under the VAT system, are the consumers.

The supplier of goods and services, merely act as collecting agents for the Government.

The tax is imposed on ‘value added’ to goods and services at every level, from production to when the goods or services reaches the final consumer.

A major issue with the VAT system in Nigeria, is that it deprives the States of the Federation the right to make laws and regulations on consumption tax within the States. A combined reading of the VATA leaves no one in doubt that, the Act centralised consumption tax in Nigeria, unlike most other countries with a federal structure.

Despite the sharing ratio under VATA (15%, 50% and 35% for the Federal, State and Local Governments respectively), States have historically challenged the VAT regime by enacting Sales Tax laws, and now, Consumption Tax laws in hotels and event centres.

Constitutional Provisions on Taxation in Nigeria Under the 1999 Constitution as amended, the legislative powers of the Federation are divided into two lists namely, the Exclusive and Concurrent Legislative Lists. Matters not contained in either of the lists, are deemed to be on the residual list. The Federal Govern-

ment exercises powers, on matters on the exclusive legislative list. Some items on the Concurrent Legislative list are reserved for both the Federal and State Governments to exercise power, while others clearly define the extent of the powers of the Federal or State Government. The legislative lists specifically provide for the extent of the powers of the National Assembly and the state Houses of Assembly (SHA), to make laws on taxation.

Exclusive Legislative List Items 58 and 59 of the Exclusive Legislative List, state the categories of taxes over which the National Assembly has power to make laws to be “Stamp Duties, Incomes, profits, capital gain, except otherwise prescribed by this Constitution.” There is no express provision for VAT or consumption tax, generally. The Exclusive List justifies the enactment of Stamp Duties Act (SDA), PITA, CITA and CGT; but the same cannot be said, of the VATA. Concurrent Legislative List Items 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the Concurrent List, provide for taxation. These items, again, confirm the power of the National Assembly to legislate on capital gains, incomes or profits taxes and stamp duties. The only difference is that, the National Assembly is empowered to make laws allowing the States to collect the taxes from individuals. From the provisions, the State Houses of Assembly can only legislate on administration, regulation and collection of taxes, fees and rates by the Local Government.

Interpretation of Constitutional Provisions on Taxation as it relates to the VATA Various propositions can be made on the interpretation of taxation powers, under the above constitutional provisions. In the first place, the argument can be made that, the absence of a provision for taxation of consumption spending both in the Exclusive and Concurrent lists, means the matter is reserved exclusively for the States. This is

“.....THE PRESENT VAT SYSTEM, IS UNSUSTAINABLE. NIGERIA NEED NOT WAIT FOR A REVOLUTIONARY DECISION, TO RESTRUCTURE THE VAT SYSTEM. THE PRESENT TAX SYSTEM IN THE COUNTRY, IS CONTRARY TO THE IDEAS OF A FEDERATION”

consistent with the general phantom conception of a ‘Residual Legislative List’, which is deemed to contain matters not contained in either the exclusive or concurrent list.

A weighty contrary argument is that, the Exclusive and Concurrent lists provisions on taxation, would appear to demonstrate an unequivocal intention by the Constitution to centralise taxation legislation in Nigeria with the power of the states limited to collection and administration of tax on individuals, and legislation for taxation at the local government level. This position is justified by the fact that, the Constitution leaves no room for the States to legislate on imposition of any of the tax listed in the legislative lists. Item 7 of the Concurrent List, impliedly bars States from having anything to do with Taxation of companies, and Items 9 and 10 limit the legislative competence of States on taxation to the Local Government level. This argument is also supported by the canons of constitutional interpretation, which is to the effect that, the Constitution must be interpreted broadly, to give effect to the intention of the makers.

The constraint to the above argument, however, is that ‘taxation’ as envisaged under the Constitution, is not at large. The relevant taxes contemplated by the Constitution are specifically defined, and there is no omnibus provision that would appear to expressly extend the power of the National Assembly, to any form of tax outside those specifically listed.

Perhaps, a more plausible position would be that, both the Federal and State Governments have power to make laws on consumption tax within their area of exclusive competence, as defined by other items of the legislative lists. For the Federal Government, this would mean imports, exports, inter-state supply and electronic supply of goods and services.

For States, this means they can legislate on consumption tax with respect to commerce, trade and transactions, within their States. This position, is also not free from complexities.

For example, how would you determine whether a transaction is inter-state? Should the rules of origin or destination apply, as between the States? There is also the challenge of e-commerce. How should the determination of the authority with power to impose and collect the tax be made between the States and Federal Government, in cases of electronic transactions?

Judicial Consideration of the Constitutionality of VATA

Overtime, the courts have had the opportunity to determine the question of the constitutionality of VATA, in a number of cases. The final analysis of the cases would show that, the question is far from being effectively answered.

A major case where VATA was upheld by the Supreme Court (SC) as against Lagos Sales Tax Law, was Attorney-General of Lagos v Eko Hotels Limited & Anor.

In that case, the issue before the court, was whether VATA has covered the field of Sales Tax, and whether the imposition of both VAT and Sales Tax, creates double taxation.

The court answered these questions in the affirmative, and consequently, upheld the decisions of the Federal High Court and Court of Appeal, setting aside the Sales Tax Law of Lagos State.

Surprisingly, though the Supreme Court relied heavily on the doctrine of covering the field in deciding the case, the court expressly stated that, it was not ‘asked to determine on the validity of Value Added Tax Act or the Sales Tax laws of Lagos State’. The decision therefore, is a mechanical application of Section 4(5), without reference to Section 4(4) and the Exclusive and Concurrent Lists of the Constitution. The fact that VATA is an existing law, as held by the court, is not enough to invoke the doctrine of covering the field, because the doctrine will not apply if VATA is unconstitutional.

In The Registered Trustees of Hotel Owners and Managers Association of Lagos v AG Lagos & Anor, the Federal High Court considered the question of whether VATA has covered the field of consumption tax, in relation to the Lagos State Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Law and fiscalisation regulation, made pursuant to the law.

The court held that, the provisions of VATA which deal with services consumed in hotels, restaurants and event centres, are unconstitutional and void, to the extent of its inconsistency with the Constitution. The court accordingly, upheld the Lagos State Consumption Tax Law. The decision of the court cannot be faulted, to the extent that consumption tax is not contained in the Exclusive or Concurrent List. However, there is an arguable issue on whether taxation, generally, was not intended to be vested exclusively on the National Assembly at the Federal and State Government levels, as argued above. The decision is also in conflict with Nigeria Employers Consultative Association & Anor v AG Federation & Ors. where the Federal High Court in Abuja in 2018, relied on the Supreme Court decision in Eko Hotels’ case to nullify Kano State Consumption Tax Law, on the premise that it imposes taxes on goods and services already subject to VATA. Conclusion Despite many decades of litigation on the constitutionality or otherwise of Nigeria’s VATA, the fate of the Act still hangs in a balance. Whichever position who takes on the issue, the present VAT system, is unsustainable.

Nigeria need not wait for a revolutionary decision, to restructure the VAT system. The present tax system in the country, is contrary to the ideas of a Federation. The country can learn from countries like India, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and even the United States, in formulating a consumption tax regime, suitable for a federal system.

Efe Etomi, Partner & Elvis E. Asia, Senior Counsel, Chief Rotimi Williams’ Chambers, Lagos

12.11.2019

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Positioning Africa: The Changing Landscape in Alternative Dispute Resolution Welcome Address by Mr. Olatunde Busari, SAN, C.Arb, Chairman, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria Branch at the 19th Annual Conference, 2019 which held last week, at the Landmark Events Centre,Victoria Island, Lagos

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All protocols observed, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen. n behalf of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria Branch, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the 2019 Annual Conference holding in Lagos, at the Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Origin of CIArb The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) is an international centre of excellence, for the practice and profession of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). It was established in 1915, to provide a membership organisation for arbitrators, with a view to raising the status of arbitration to the dignity of a distinct and recognised position, as one of the learned professions. The CIArb provides education and training for arbitrators, mediators and adjudicators. It also acts as a global hub for practitioners, policy makers, academics and those in business, supporting the global promotion, facilitation and development of all ADR methods. Our growing membership of 16,000, is based across 133 countries, and supported by an international network of 40 Branches.

Our Gold Standard qualifications, are internationally recognised statements of excellence.

Our pathways training programmes, focus on imparting knowledge and the skills needed for successful careers in the field of ADR. Today the Institute is regarded as the world’s leading centre of excellence, for the promotion and facilitation of dispute resolution.

There are six branches in Africa: Kenya Branch, Mauritius Branch, South Africa Branch, Zambia Branch, Zimbabwe Branch and the Nigeria Branch.

THE NIGERIA BRANCH The Nigeria Branch, is one of the fastest growing branches of the Institute. It was granted Branch status by the Institute in 1999, nearly 20 years ago. Presently, the Branch has Chapters in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Ibadan. Our growing membership of 1,331 members, provides users a choice of highly trained and experienced alternative dispute resolvers of international repute. Our Branch continues to collaborate and work with other institutions with similar objectives, in the interest of promoting arbitration as the preferred means for dispute resolution.

We are represented on International Arbitration Institutions and Organisations, including the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), International Court of Arbitration Paris, the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA). and the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), The Hague, Netherlands.

Our members continue to excel in their various fields recently, a total of nine of our members were elevated to the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria on Monday 23rd, September 2019. The elevated members are Mrs. Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour, C.Arb (the Immediate Past Branch, Chairman), Mr. Godwin Omoaka, FCIArb, Mr. Olumide Aju, FCIArb, Mr. Emeka Ozoani, MCIArb, Prof. Mamman Lawan, ACIArb, Mr. Olukayode Abayomi Enitan MCIArb, Mr. Ayo Asala, ACIArb, Mr. Anthony Malik, ACIArb and Mr. Ama Etuwewe, ACIArb 2019 Annual Conference Today, we are gathered as Arbitration and ADR practitioners, to gain and share experience in the various aspects of the law, practice and process of ADR and Arbitration. I am delighted to welcome the more than 600 delegates from 12 countries in five continents of the world, to this International Forum. The theme of our 2019

Annual Conference “Positioning Africa: The Changing Landscape in Alternative Dispute Resolution”, is focused on the number of changes currently taking place on the global and regional scenes, which will in no small measure, impact alternative dispute resolution.

These include the African Continental Free Trade Agreement which has already been signed by 54 African Countries, including Nigeria, the Singapore Convention, and specialist arbitration amongst others.

The Conference will feature seven plenary sessions on varying sub-themes relating to the main conference theme. Our distinguished panelists will exchange ideas on subjects and topics such as “Bridging the Litigation – ADR Gap; the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement, AfCFTA and its ADR Implication for Africa, the Singapore Convention and its Implications for Cross Border Mediation and Possible Challenges”. Other topics that will be discussed at the Conference include, “Arbitrability and Public Policy Considerations in the Enforcement and Enforceability of Domestic and Foreign Arbitral Awards in African States, the Explosion of Specialist Dispute Arbitration in Africa, Award of Interest in Arbitration and Ethics in ADR”.

Some Questions to be Answered at the Conference This Conference provides an opportunity to learn from the experience of other climes, assess our capabilities and capacity in the field of international dispute resolution, and to ask the questions, What are the current initiatives and developments in respect of the Court assisted mediation? What are the relevant ADR Rules and their implications on ADR practice? How will the implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement and its Protocols affect economic integration in Africa, Trade and ADR? Are there any specific problems militating against the use of ADR as a tool for economic development in Africa? Do we have adequate infrastructure? How will the ADR protocols of AfCFTA, in particular, affect the existing landscape for arbitration practice in the different African countries? Does our legal framework meet international standards?

The Singapore Convention, are there possible challenges and implications for Mediation in Nigeria? Are we effectively utilising mediation in settling disputes? How have Courts in Africa dealt with the issue of arbitrability and public policy considerations that would prevent the enforcement of Awards? What are the current trends in specialist arbitration? Are there misconceptions amongst stakeholders on the Award of interest in Arbitration? Are there differences in various African countries on the power to and basis of award of interest in arbitration? What are the ethical practices obtainable in diverse regions? Do the cultural nuances in Africa, have any role or impact on ethics in arbitration?

Role of the Judiciary We cannot over-emphasise the fact that, a supportive Judiciary is crucial for the effectiveness

“THE CONFERENCE WILL PROVIDE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS, IDENTIFY CHALLENGES AND PROFFER WAYS TO ADVANCE ARBITRATION IN AFRICA, IN TERMS OF STANDARD AND QUALITY OF SERVICES AND SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURE”

Mr Olatunde Busari, SAN, Chairman, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria Branch, giving his welcome address

of arbitration, as an attractive dispute resolution mechanism. The courts in Nigeria have made significant efforts, to bring about a change in the litigation culture. They have, over time, employed their powers to endorse ADR within the framework of the Civil Procedure Rules of courts, by encouraging the use of ADR mechanisms before and after litigation proceedings, and enforcing ADR outcomes.

Several States including Lagos, Oyo, Kano, Delta, Rivers, Abuja, have established Multi-door Court houses offering court connected ADR, and thereby, making available alternative doors for dispute resolution.

Increase in the Role of Arbitration A number of African countries (54 at present). have signed the AfCFTA. The Agreement aims to boost intra-African trade, by making Africa a single market economy. The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) estimates that the implementation of the agreement could increase intra-African trade by 52% by 2022, and double the share of intra-African trade by the start of the next decade. One of the main objectives under Article 4(f) of the Agreement, is to establish a mechanism for the settlement of disputes concerning the rights and obligations of State Parties. It is therefore, imperative to improve the capacity of dispute resolvers in African countries, as Africa embarks on the road to greater Intra- Africa trade as well as increased trade with countries outside the continent.

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has announced agreement on a United Nations Agreement on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, also known as the “Singapore Convention”. The instrument is regarded as a long-sought mechanism, to give cross-border disputants the confidence that, if they engage in mediation of international commercial disputes, any resulting agreement will be enforceable by its terms. As mediation takes centre-stage in the new UN treaty on mediation, it has become necessary to undertake an in-depth study of the Singapore Convention and its implication for cross border settlement in Nigeria.

Arbitrability and the enforcement of arbitral awards, is at the centre of any arbitration process.

It touches on the capacity and jurisdiction of the arbitrator or the arbitral tribunal to embark on an arbitration with respect to any matter referred to them. The public policy reason for non-arbitrability of certain disputes, are borne out of public desire to protect the State and public interest. Enforcement and enforceability of arbitral awards, gives credence to the process resulting in the expansion and increasing use of arbitration. For this reason, arbitrability and public policy considerations, have become a recurrent issue faced by arbitrators, Judges, contract drafters and other stakeholders.

With the increasing use of arbitration as a mechanism for dispute resolution in various industries, there is a rise of specialist arbitrations such as, Sport Arbitration, Islamic Finance Arbitration and Energy Arbitration. Specialisation is

inevitable, as certain areas of economic activity are subject to specific laws and regulations, and develop particular customs and conventions.

Award of interest is a critical remedy in the context of arbitration, it has increasingly become an important consideration amongst arbitration practitioners and users. It is an important and not altogether easy task, for an arbitrator to determine what interest to award to a successful party. The making of an award of interest will involve consideration of a number of factors, including the period for which interest should be awarded, the rate of interest to be awarded, whether simple or compound interest should be granted, if compound, on what basis should it be compounded.

Code of Ethics The use of arbitration as a dispute resolution mechanism, continues to grow in leaps and bounds. Persons who act as arbitrators undertake serious responsibilities to the public, as well as to the parties. These responsibilities include important ethical obligations. The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators published a Code of Ethical Conduct for its members, in 2009. The Code of Professional and Ethical Conduct for Members, was published pursuant to the Bye-Laws of the Institute, so that members may be reminded of the professional and moral principles which should at all times govern their conduct. The purpose of adopting a Code of Ethics for ADR practitioners involved in alternative dispute resolution, is to serve not only as a guide, but as a point of reference for users of the process, and to promote public confidence in dispute resolution techniques.

Indeed, several initiatives are being put in place, to address some of the concerns militating against the optimisation of the benefits of ADR in African Countries The Conference will provide the opportunity to discuss, identify challenges and proffer ways to advance arbitration in Africa, in terms of standard and quality of services and support infrastructure. We hope that, we can all together, place Africa on the world map, by making Africa an Arbitration and ADR destination for users and practitioners from all over the world.

Finally, I commend all those who have made this Conference possible, either through their financial support and other various resources, including their time. We are grateful to our members, who diligently commit their time and resources to the work of the Institute. I will like to particularly mention my colleagues on the Executive Committee, members of the Conference Planning Committee, co- Chaired

by Dr Wale Olawoyin, SAN, FCIArb and Mrs Obosa Akpata, FCIArb for all the efforts put into organising a world-class conference, members of our various Committees, our approved tutors and members of staff of the Secretariat.

I welcome you all to the 2019 Annual Conference of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

I thank you for listening to me, and welcome you to Lagos.

Mr. Olatunde Busari, SAN, C.Arb, Chairman, Nigeria Branch

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12.11.2019

Lagos State Attorney-General & Commisioner for Justice, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo, SAN, giving goodwill message on behalf of the Governor of Lagos State

Mr Olatunde Busari, SAN, Chairman, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria Branch, giving his welcome address

Dr Wale Olawoyin, SAN giving the Co-Chairmen's opening remarks

Dr Oba Otudeko, Chairman, Honeywell Group giving a goodwill message

Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, former Chairman of the Nigeria Branch and former Attorney-General of the Federation chairing a session

Mrs Obosa Akpata, Co-Chair of the CPC, giving the wrap up and vote of thanks

Hon. Justice M.L. Garba JCA delivering a presentation on behalf of Hon Justice Bulkachuwa PCA

Hon. Justice Osas Obaseki-Osaghae of the National Industrial Court

Hon. Justice (Prof) C. Obiozor of the Federal High Court

Hon Justice Kunbi Oyefeso of the Lagos State High Court

Chief Gbola Akinola, 1st Vice Chairman of the Nigeria Branch, chairing a session

Dr Babatunde Ajibade, SAN during one of the sessions

Rev Dr Yemi Agbelusi speaking during a session

12.11.2019

CIArb IMAGES/13

Dignitaries during the National Anthem

L-R: Mrs. Olufunke Adekoya, SAN, a past Chairman of the Nigerian Branch, Chief Sena Anthony and Ms Funke Aboyade, SAN

L-R: Dr. Wale Olawoyin, SAN, Mrs. Tayo Kola Daisi, Mr. Olatunde Busari, SAN, Mrs. Folashade Alli, Mrs. Biola Adegbuyi and Mr. Ayo Akintunde, SAN

L-R: Mrs. Obosa Akpata, co-Chair, CPC, Mrs Yemisi Busari, Dr Oba Otudeko and Mrs. Adedoyin RhodesVivour, SAN, immediate past Chairman of the Nigeria Branch

L-R: Mrs. Sola Adegbonnire, 2nd Vice President of the Nigeria Branch, Mrs. Oyinkan Badejo-Okusanya and Mr. Greg Nwakogu

L-R: Dr Kariuki Maigui, Africa Trustee, Mr. Olatunde Busari, SAN, Mrs. Yemisi Busari and Mr. Sam Nderitu, Chairman, Kenya Branch at the pre-Conference Cocktail at Sheraton Fourpoints, Lekki, Lagos

Mr. Olatunde Busari, SAN presenting a plaque to Africa Trustee, Dr. Kariuki Maigui

Retired Hon.Justices Bankole-Oki (left) and Gbajabiamila

Life Bencher and former Attorney-General of Lagos State, Mrs. Hairat Aderinsola Balogun

L-R: Mrs Yejide Osunkeye, General Secretary of the Nigeria Branch, Mrs Josephine Akinwunmi, and Mrs Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour, SAN

L-R: Dr. Wale Olawoyin, SAN, Mr Olatunde Busari, SAN (middle) and other attendees at the Conference

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12.11.2019

The President’s Private Visits and Temporary Presidential Succession under Section 145 In this article, Professor Ukhuegbe examines the provisions of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) and the issue of President Muhammadu Buhari’s trip to the UK, without transmitting power to the Vice President to act in his stead, and concludes that, simply travelling on a private visit does not warrant such transmission of power

T Vacation?

he bulletin from the Presidency that President will be in the United Kingdom for two weeks for a “private visit”, has led some to suggest that this is tantamount to a vacation, and therefore, it is one of the two situations covered

by Section 145(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). That provision requires the President to issue to the National Assembly a declaration stating so, and Presidential power is automatically transmitted to the Vice President who will be Acting President for the duration of the President’s absence. However, this view is mistaken. A private visit by the President, within or outside Nigeria, is simply a non-official visit. Whether it is a vacation or not, a totally different matter.

Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution Section 145 provides: "(1) Whenever the president is proceeding on vacation or is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, he shall transmit a written declaration to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to that effect, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, the Vice President shall perform the functions of the President as Acting President.

(2) In the event that the president is unable or fails to transmit the written declaration mentioned in subSection 1 of this section within 14 days, the National Assembly shall by a resolution made by a simple majority of the vote of each House of the National Assembly, mandate the Vice President to perform the functions of the office of the President, as Acting President, until the president transmits a letter to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives, that he is now available to resume his functions as President."

Certain things are immediately clear from the text of Section 145. There is no mention of traveling abroad anywhere in the section, and therefore, it is not a pertinent factor. Thus, the section will apply even where the President is spending his vacation in Daura, or even Abuja. Second, there is no requirement for the President to notify the National Assembly before embarking on a foreign trip, although it is ordinarily prudent to let the leadership of the National Assembly know. Third, transmission of power to the Vice President arises only where the President is PROCEEDING ON VACATION OR WHERE HE IS OTHERWISE UNABLE TO DISCHARGE THE FUNCTIONS OF HIS OFFICE. Transmission of a Presidential Declaration to the National Assembly is mandated for

President Muhammadu Buhari

“WHILE A SECTION 145 PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION IS REQUIRED WHENEVER THE PRESIDENT PROCEEDS ON A VACATION, WHETHER WITHIN OR OUTSIDE NIGERIA, SIMPLY TRAVELING OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY OR, AS WE HAVE ALREADY NOTED, EVEN UNDERGOING MEDICAL TREATMENT WITHOUT MORE, DOES NOT JUSTIFY A DECLARATION”

only these two purposes by Section 145. Incapacity to discharge the functions of the office is presumably for a grave illness, or a serious physical or mental incapacity. The bulletin issued by the President’s office, did not say that he is proceeding on vacation. So, he will keep functioning as President throughout his private visit away from Nigeria, and no transmission of a Presidential declaration to the

EFFECTIVE JUDICIARY SYSTEM, PANACEA FOR NIGERIA’S DWINDLING DEMOCRACY Justice Ngozi Emehelu, who praised members of the Umezulike Foundation for putting the book together, described the late Judge as an “acclaimed Scholar and erudite Jurist”, and wished them well in their endeavours.

Anglican Archbishop of Enugu Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev Emmanuel Chukwuma, asked Federal Government to obey judgements of the courts, in the interest of the Judiciary and country at large. Chukwuma who is the spiritual father to the family said Umezulike was "incorruptible", despite the glitter of lucre and booby traps on his way, stressing that, he bestrode the legal world like a colossus, and that his cerebral prowess was evident in his many leading literary works and incisive judgements.

He described Umezulike as one of the finest Judges the country had produced, calling him a man of ideas and great intelligence. He said his contributions to the Bench, would remain evergreen.

Daughter of the legal icon, Chisom Cynthia Umezulike Esq, announced the commencement of construction for the

National Assembly is required.

Section 145(1) is modelled on Section 3 of the XXV Amendment to the United States Constitution. However, the present Section 145 (introduced

by Section 14 of the Constitution (First Alteration) Act 2010) is a significant revision of the original Section 145. It makes a Presidential declaration of the transmission of power to the Vice President mandatory, where the President is proceeding on vacation or is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office. A default by the President for up to 21 days allows the National Assembly to mandate the Vice President with presidential powers (Section 145(2)). Recall that with the late President Yar’Adua, under the original Section 145, this was only done after several months by the “doctrine of necessity.”

We may well summarise the legal regime of the section, as follows. If the President is incapacitated, irrespective of whether in Nigeria or elsewhere, the Presidential declaration under Section 145(1) is required. Of course, where the President is seriously incapacitated, such as a severe stroke, he may be in no position to issue the declaration. Such a possibility is anticipated by the language of Section 145(2) (“In the event that the President is unable...to transmit the written declaration”). In such a situation, the National Assembly may either wait until after 21 days to exercise its authority under Section 145(2), or the process of removal of the President for medical incapacity under Section 144, may be initiated by the Federal Executive Council.

That said, even where the President undergoes medical evaluation, check up or treatment, whether in Nigeria or elsewhere, the Presidential declaration is not required, unless the President will be temporarily incapacitated by, for example, application of an anaesthetic, or he’s required to undergo a prolonged (risky) surgery that requires him to be anaesthetised. At this point, before this is done, whether in Nigeria or elsewhere, a Presidential declaration is required, because he would clearly be unable to give it afterwards if things go wrong, or even during the surgery.

While a Section 145 Presidential declaration is required whenever the President proceeds on a vacation, whether within or outside Nigeria, simply traveling outside the country or, as we have already noted, even undergoing medical treatment without more, does not justify a declaration. The same is true also where the President is on a “private visit” to his hometown, which President Buhari does frequently, or where he travels, even within Nigeria, on a private visit, such as to attend a wedding or his political party convention.

Professor Solomon Ukhuegbe

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

Justice Innocent Umezulike Law Library and Legal Research Centre. The Justice Innocent Umezulike Law Library and Legal Research Centre, will not only house the millions of books from his Lordships private collection, but also updated collectives of law books, journals, articles and law reports.

The Foundation aspires to create a library of excellence, and serve as the key reference for critical legal research in Nigeria.

The Justice Innocent Umezulike Foundation will continue to host the annual law lecture, publish Justice Umezulike’s unpublished works, and ensure easy electronic and online accessibility of all his legal footprints.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, while contributing to the subject-matter, stated that the country's democracy had suffered various forms of abuse, adding that, it was more disheartening when Judges were subjected to arrests and prosecution, as well as being hounded to write statements on issues they knew nothing about.

"It is not democracy, when the homes of Judges are invaded in the night by security forces. It is not democracy, when

Judges write judgements under duress. It is not democracy, when Judges are being monitored as if they are common criminals. These and more, are the many excesses, which the Judiciary have been subjected to. If the Judiciary must protect democracy, it must also be protected against executive recklessness", he said.

While urging that the Judiciary must continue as a defender of democracy, saying it must not succumb in the fight against autocracy, a former Dean of Law, River State University, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Prof Uche Jack Osimiri, stressed that, one major challenge the country had faced since the inception of her democracy was religious intolerance. He advocated the inclusion of comparative religion in the school curriculum, saying it would go a long way in diluting tension among the various religious beliefs in the country.

Director of the Nigerian Law School, Enugu Campus, Dr Francis Ojeih, suggested a synergy among the Judges, saying "if united, they can handle any attempt by any arm of government, to undermine their constitutional role".

12.11.2019

THE LIGHTER SIDE/15

LEGAL HUMOUR

We Hold Your Brief JUDE IGBANOI jude.igbanoi@thisdaylive.com Dear Counsel, I pastor a small Church, at Egbeda. At the close of our midweek service last week, I got a telephone call, that some members of our church were arrested the previous day, at a social Events Centre near the Church. Being within a walking distance from the Church, I thought their arrest was in some way, related to our Church.

I went there with two other members of the Church, and confirmed that the three women were actually in detention. On inquiry, the police informed me that they were arrested at an engagement ceremony, selling new ‘mint’ Naira notes to people who wanted to use the money to ‘spray’ at the event.

The Police did not only collect the money from them, running into several hundreds of Naira, they were further detained for another day, before they were released on bail.

I spoke with two different Lawyers. One said they didn’t commit any offence, while the other said they

did. They haven’t been charged to court, yet.

Kindly, clarify this issue, so we know what next step to take, Rev B.O., Egbeda, Lagos.

Dear Rev, It is indeed, a criminal offence to buy or sell new Naira currency notes, in any denomination.

This law has been in place for over a decade; its just that, the authorities lack the manpower to effectively monitor and enforce it. The action of your Church members who happen to be engaged in this business, is an offence which contravenes the CBN Act, 2007.

Sections 20 and 21 of the CBN Act 2007, prohibits dealing in Nigerian currency in any manner, as proscribed by these sections of the Act. Therefore, the sale of mint notes and even the spraying of Naira notes at parties, are offences under the Act.

Where there is a will, there is a lawsuit. ˾˾˾ Q: When attorneys die, why do they bury them 600 feet underground?

A: Because deep down, they're really nice guys. ˾˾˾ Q: How can you tell when a lawyer is lying?

A: Their lips are moving ˾˾˾ Criminal Mistakes A man charged with drug possession in Pontiac, Michigan claimed he’d been searched illegally. The Police said they saw a bulge in his pocket, that could have been a gun. As he was wearing the same jacket in court, still with its bulge, it wasn’t a gun – unfortunately for him, it was a bag of cocaine.

In Oklahoma City, a man who was accused of armed robbery made the mistake in court of losing his temper when he was identified by the store manager, saying that he should have blown her head off. Needless to say, he was found guilty.

A peeping Tom in Virginia, left lip prints on a window. When he returned a few days later he was arrested, and a positive lip match sent him to prison.

A man who robbed a supermarket in Long Beach, was later arrested at home. He’d filled out a credit application form earlier at the same supermarket, and was recognised.

Lawyer Petitions Human Rights Commission over Alleged Unlawful Arrest of Clients by Police Peter Taiwo A Lagos-based Lawyer, Mr. Lanre Oyetunji, has urged the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to investigate and intervene in the human rights violations of his clients, who he alleged were harrased and unlawfully arrested by the Nigerian Police.

In a Complaint Letter addressed to the Executive Secretary of NHRC, the Lawyer said his clients, Gbenga Arogundade, Sukurat Arogundade, and Kazeem Arogundade of the Iberekodo Community, Ibeju-Lekki, were unlawfully arrested by the Police, orchestrated by one Adewale Moshood Musefiu, Otunba Olatunde Arogundade, Idowu Arogundade and DPKAY Homes.

Oyetunji, in the letter dated October 22, 2019, said the Iberekodo community is the benefial owner of the vast acres of land situate, lying and being at Iberekodo Village, along Eleko Road, Magbon, Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State.

According to him, the Community from time immemorial has been exercising acts of ownership in and over the subject land, without disturbance from any quarters whatsoever.

He said sometime in 2010, the Community entered into negotiations with one of the Engineers working for Arogundade, Engr.

Omatsola Ogbe, who had approached the Community for the sale of part of the Iberekodo Community land.

"Further to the negotiations, the Community agreed to sell and assign approximately an area of 20.156 acres (120 plots) to

Engr. Ogbe in the total sum of N36 million.

"At the time of sale of the subject-matter, it was mutually agreed that Engr. Ogbe would commit resources towards proccessing the excision of the subject land by the Lagos State Government in favour of the Community, as the land was said to be under Government acquisition. To this end, Engr. Ogbe made payment required from him for excision of Iberekodo Community land, and a file was opened for the proccess at the Ministry of Lands, Alausa, Lagos with the File No. KL/7583.

"Recently, our client (Engr. Ogbe), observed that certain persons came to the subject land, and started trespassing on the parts of the land. At the time, representatives of the Community were delegated to confirm the identity of these trespassers, and they were from DPKAY Homes and Property Limited. Our clients got to know that, the DPKAY Homes were brought by one Adewale Moshood Musefiu, Otunba Tunde Arogundade, and Idowu Arogundade.

"Following the discovery, we made an official complaint to the Lagos State Special Task Force on Land Grabbers on behalf of our clients (i.e. Engr. Ogbe and representatives of the Iberekodo Community), thereafter, the parties involved in the trespass (DPKAY Homes, Adewale Moshood Musefiu, Otunba Tunde Arogundade, and Idowu Arogundade) were invited alongside our clients by the Lagos State Special Task Force on the 14th of October, 2019, to amicably resolve the matter. But, they (the trespassers) failed to honour the invitation, while our clients were available and

duly represented at the scheduled meeting.

"However, to our surprise, rather than attend the summons from the Special Task Force, DPKAY Homes, Adewale Moshood Musefiu, Otunba Tunde Arogundade, and Idowu Arogundade, engaged the instrumentality of the Police Force, to harass and intimidate our clients and members of their family. Without any Police Investigation, one Inspector Rebecca (08065680352) from the IGP Intelligence Response Unit on Saturday, the 18th of October, 2019 at about 5am, arrested Mr. Gbenga Arogundade, Mrs. Sukura Arogundade (wife of Waliu Arogundade) and her son, Kazeem Arogundade, and detained them at the Police Station, Ajiwe till 3pm the following Sunday, 19th of October, 2019, for no just cause.

"It is worthy of note, that the Police are seeking to arrest the same set of persons who have voluntarily honoured every invitation from the Police Headquarters. The following members of the Arogundade family, namely, Alhaji Monruf Nofiu Arogundade, Waliu Arogundade Gbenga Arogundade, Tosin Arogundade, Segun Muraina Aro, Sheriff Apena, Talaitu Kunle Ajanaku and Mutaila Alugbere (as representatives of the Iberekodo Community) have not failed to honour any invitation at every given occasion to the Police Headquarters, in respect of this matter. In the light of this, seeking to apprehend them at 5am without any prior invitation or without following due process, clearly presupposes that DPKAY Homes, Adewale Moshood Musefiu, Otunba Tunde Arogundade, and Idowu Arogundade, might be using the instrumentality of the Police to their advantage", the Lawyer stated.

GROUP WRITES EFCC TO PROBE GENERAL ELECTRIC, ROCKSON ENGINEERING, OVER ALLEGED POWER SCANDAL CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 view that the contract was designed to fail from the beginning, as the Government of Nigeria is inhibited from exercising statutory rights as project owner, despite huge significance or potentials of this project to the Nigerian economy.”

“CEHEJ is curious that the project has no provision for a mandatory take over and completion of the work handled by any member of the consortium by the other members, in the event of failure or lack of capacity to perform. By the nature and structure of the contract, an impression has been created that GE simply used the contract as a scheme to dump equipment on the Government of Nigeria and disappear, having received money in full, while the Government of Nigeria continues to bear the losses and burden of useless, unused, outdated and possibly disused pieces of equipment”.

“Much more confounding, CEHEJ observes that the contract

has no provision for liquidated damages for late delivery. The absence of such liquidated damages clause for late delivery, has “rewarded” the Contractors (GE and Rockson) with unlimited incentive not to perform on the contract. Under this contract, failure to perform simply gets “rewarded”, as against being sanctioned or penalised”.

“It is assumed, based on findings made by the research team led by Dr Yemi Oke of the University of Lagos, that GE might have schemed or structured the contract in a way to avoid any penalty from the Government of Nigeria, for dumping disused turbines on the country, in exchange for taxpayers’ dollars invested in the project by the Nigerian Government.”

CEHEJ also said that: “unexplainable absurdities characterise the project, ranging from dissipation of public funds, lack of

accountability of public officers, lack of integrity, dereliction of statutory duties, unlawful and unjust enrichment of Contractors by the Federal Government despite failure of contractual obligations, and without demanding accountability on the part of such Contractors, among others.

“In fact, the rumour in the market, is that GE is in a discussion to sign a big contract with NLNG, which is a shame, because of the loss, and damage GE had purportedly caused to the Nigerian economy. CEHEJ therefore recommends to EFCC that, GE should be blacklisted from any new contract in the meantime, until the Kaduna Power Plant issue is solved, and the plant operational in the shortest time possible. As the leader of the consortium, it is GE's responsibility and obligation to have the plant running immediately and keep Nigeria out of darkness, especially with the plant now 10

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12.11.2019

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TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 •T H I S D AY

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BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET OVERNIGHT OBB

A S

A T N O V E M B E R

REPO 5.57 4.43

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

5 8 9.25

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

435.47 % 0.03% -1.58%

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08152447875

8 , S & P INDEX 1/4 TO DATE YEAR TO DATE

2 0 1 9 5.61% 21.99%

EXCHANGE RATE N306.90/1US DOLLAR* ĚŠ

Quick Takes Sahara Group Lauds UNDP

Africa’s huge economic growth potential can be harnessed through robust intra-African trade, collaboration and a ďŹ rm resolve to pursue shared goals, the Executive Director, Sahara Group,Temitope Shonubi, hassaid.Astatementquotedhimtohavesaidthiswhilespeakingatthe UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme(UNDP)“HighLevelDialogueâ€? in Accra, with the theme: “Africa’s Money for African Development, a Future Beyond Aid,â€? at the weekend. Shonubi said Africa needs to look beyond dependence on foreign aid and embrace the pursuit of economic growth and development as a “single entity with common interests, goals and aspirationsâ€?.

According to Shonubi: “It is Sahara Group’s ďŹ rm belief that African businesses can be the greatest contributors to Africa’s success. But tackling some of the toughest global challenges cannot be achieved by any one company or sector alone. We therefore need to partner, not merely in business, but in building the better, stronger and more economically vibrant Africa that we all desire.â€?

He noted that Sahara Group’s experience across the continent had shown that intra-African trade can be enhanced through uniform trade policies, shared infrastructure and technology, ease of movement of personsandgoodsandtransparentregulatoryframeworkfordierent sectors. He said: “As a leading energy conglomerate on the continent, Sahara Group has continued to champion calls for increased trading activities on the continent, especially in the energy sector.

CLOSING GONG CEREMONY

Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Oscar Onyema (left), presenting a replica of the closing gong to Chairperson, CAP Plc, Mrs. Awuneba Ajumogobia, during a closing gong ceremony to introduce the company’s newly appointed board members and executive management to the capital market stakeholders, at the Exchange in Lagos‌recently

NEITI: Why Oil Theft in Nigeria May Not End Soon Stories by Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has given possible reasons why widespread theft of Nigeria’s crude oil and refined petroleum products may not end soon.

NEITI, which recently disclosed that approximately 488.6 million barrels of crude oil and 4.2 billion litres of refined petroleum products worth $40.06 billion and $1.84 billion respectively were lost by the country between 2009 and 2018, explained that a number of existing reasons and challenges suggest the practice could go on

ECONOMY for a while.

It hinted that already, the numbers for stolen oil in the first quarter of 2019, surpassed the total volume stolen in 2018 alone, by about 30 per cent, adding that the final figures for 2019 could be higher. However, it explained that the factors which suggest oil theft may go on for long in Nigeria were the lack of adequate metering devices at appropriate oil production points, positive markets for refined and stolen crude oil, poor legal systems to punish culprits of oil theft, as well as the size and remote positions of Nigeria’s petroleum infrastructure

which makes it difficult to secure.

NEITI stated that parts of the solution to tackling oil theft in the country would be to take advantage of current technology to monitor and track Nigeria’s crude oil from production facilities to the point of sale.

It also noted that the legal framework would need to be strengthened, “because current provisions of the law are clearly not sufficient to provide deterrence for beneficiaries of stolen crude.� “Ultimately, an effective strategy to combat crude theft would require multilateral actions, at the international level, to complement routine legal, regulatory and law

enforcement activities by national institutions. “Nigeria currently relies on operators to provide data on crude production and crude losses. These figures are not independently verified by government agencies. The situation creates opportunities for possible understatement of production or export figures, which may simply be attributed to theft and vandalism,� it said.

According to the organisation: “In terms of the size and extent of the infrastructure from which crude oil is stolen, Nigeria has about 4,441 kilometre (km) length Continued on page 24

‘China Will Not Push EximBank to Fund 3050MW Mambilla Power Plant’ China’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr. Zhou Pingjian, has told the federal government that the government of his country will not push the China Exim Bank to expedite the process of its funding of Nigeria’s construction of the 3050 megawatts (MW) Mambilla hydro power plant located in Taraba state.

Pingjian, while playing host to the Minister of Power, Sale Mamman; Minister of State for Power, Jedi Goddy-Agba, and the Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, explained that his government would at best impress it on the China Exim Bank to meet its obligations in

ECONOMY this regard.

A statement from the ministry of power, stated that the three ministers met with Pingjian, where they reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to actualising the Mambilla power project which was initiated some 40 years ago.

In 2017, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) announced its approval of contract for the engineering work of the Mambilla plant in the sum of $5.792 billion.

Nigeria is however reportedly expected to fund the project cost by 15 per cent.

The ministers according to the

statement however described the Mambilla project as one of the legacy projects of President Muhammadu Buhari which must be executed during his current tenure.

They thus reportedly requested the Chinese embassy to impress on the China Exim Bank to expedite action on the release of the project loan for the commencement of work.

The statement noted that Adamu, in particular said the environmental impact assessment exercise on the project was being carried out while a memorandum of understanding has been signed with the Taraba

state government for the payment of compensation to owners of land at the project site.

On the release of an interim fund of $200 million by the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Adamu assured that the ministry of justice was already working on a comfort letter to the China Exim Bank as part of the government’s commitment to the project.

He equally assured that although an arbitration was still ongoing with a previous investor on the project, the government was ready to Continued on page 24

Devon Kings Sponsors Reality Show

Determined to support entrepreneurs within the food sector in Nigeria, Devon King’s, has announced its sponsorship of the ‘King of Street Foods’ reality show, a programme produced by African food and lifestyle channel, FoodbayTV.The brand, produced by PZ Wilmar, announced the commencement of the competition, the King of Street Foods reality show contest sponsored by Devon King’s, in which food entrepreneurs across select states in Nigeria were identiďŹ ed and will be showcased, celebrated and rewarded. The weeks leading up to the maiden edition of the competition saw the brand and organisers kick-start the call-to-entry phase of the contest, as a diverse range of street food entrepreneurs across the country were asked to vie for a place in the competition by stating their business, their unique proposition and what they would do with a sizeable sum of money.

Thirteen contestants across Lagos, Calabar, Enugu, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kano were eventually selected for the competition based on set criteria. The winner of the contest would walk away with a sum of N1 million and additional prizes from Devon King’s, while the runners-up will be rewarded with consolation prizes. Joyce Coker, PZ Cussons’ HR Director, expressed excitement at the prospect of the competition’s maiden edition, saying it would create a stronger connection with consumers.

Ghana to Spur Oil Production

Ghana plans to revise its laws on oil and gas licences in an eort to spur production and will revoke licences from four companies that havenotdevelopedtheirassets.Thecountry’sDeputyEnergyMinister, Mohammed Amin Adam, told Africa Oil Week in Cape Town that the proposed changes would allow companies producing in blocks to explore elsewhere in the same area without having to get a new licence. “Wearechangingourstrategy,â€?Adamsaid,addingtheyhadprovisions in law that “constrain investment.â€? They would also allow companies to continue exploring in marginal ďŹ elds even once their licence had expired. Parliament has 21 days to review the regulatory changes, and Adam said he expected them to go forward without delay.

He said revisions are needed urgently as the nation’s last bid round for 14 blocks “wasn’t so successful as we anticipatedâ€?, receiving fewer than four bids. Additionally, he said Ghana expected 14 wells drilled, and $890 million invested between 2013 and 2016, but not a single well was drilled and companies spent just $95 million.The government also plans to revoke licences from four companies that are not developing their assets. The licences were awarded between 2011 and 2016, but he declined to name the companies as they had not yet been notiďŹ ed.

“Africans do not need aid. Rather, our young people need investments.

Private equity is a force for positive development in Africa. We have a large youth population, who are eager and innovative. They are looking at solutions to problems in their communities but are hampered by the access to capital and investment, mentoring and training�

Founder,TEF/Chairman, UBA,

Mr. Tony Elumelu

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BUSINESSWORLD NEITI: WHY OIL THEFT IN NIGERIA MAY NOT END SOON

of pipelines conveying crude oil and 5,120km for refined products. “This is in addition to 124km and 164km for condensates and liquid petroleum gas respectively.

There are also about 2,000 wellheads spread across 258 oil fields.

The vastness and remoteness of Nigeria’s network of pipelines and oil installations, mostly in very difficult terrains, no doubt presents its own challenge to effective policing of these assets and the products they convey from points of production to sale destinations. This makes them vulnerable to activities of thieves and vandals.� With regards to market for stolen crude and refined products, NEITI stated that the market incentive for stolen oil could be analysed in two parts, the first being rise in volume of theft corresponding with significant rise in international crude prices. “This is largely a supplyside factor that increases the vulnerability of the producing country in direct proportion to price movements. The second dimension of the role the market plays in incentivising oil theft is found in the considerably lower prices which oil thieves are willing to sell their products to middlemen and end users. ‘CHINA WILL NOT PUSH EXIMBANK TO FUND 3050MW MAMBILLA POWER PLANT’ indemnify any funds agreed after the arbitration without affecting the loan agreement with the China Exim Bank.

Mamman, equally told Pingjian that the Chinese government had nothing to fear as regards Nigeria’s commitment to the project.

He noted that the federal government was working to remove any impediment which could pose any threat to the delivery of the project, adding that the Chinese government had enough influence to ask its Exim Bank to hasten the process of the loan disbursement.

But in his response, Pingjian who reportedly stated that his country does not encourage superfluous projects, advised the ministers to encourage the direct participation of the Chinese government or companies in some of its projects to reduce borrowing and facilitate easier execution of projects.

NNPC Expands Pipeline Networks to Meet Domestic Gas Demand Peter Uzoho The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said it is expanding and integrating gas pipeline network in the country to meet unprecedented demand of the substance.

The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari, disclosed this at the NNPC Day, during the just concluded 2019 Lagos International Trade Fair.

Kyari, who was represented at the event by the Managing Director, National Engineering and Technical Company (NETCO), Mrs Kate Iheme, said the corporation remains the chief enabler of the Nigerian economy.

He said with ongoing reforms, the NNPC was focused on transforming from a traditional oil and gas entity into an integrated energy outfit with interest in power generation and transmission.

Kyari said: “It is common knowledge that NNPC is expanding and integrating gas pipeline network systems to meet the unprecedented domestic gas demand nationwide. “Towards this end, significant progress has been recorded in the execution of some key ongoing gas pipeline infrastructure projects like the Escravos Lagos Pipelines System (ELPs II) and the 0B3, among other gas infrastructure projects.

Peter Uzoho Global energy research and consultant group, Wood Mackenzie, has predicted that the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act, which was recently signed by President Muhammadu Buhari will lead to a loss of value of $2.7 billion over the life of remaining oil and gas assets.

This, the firm argued, would lead to value reduction of 18 per cent.

Mackenzie also said the PSC amendment took investors by surprise, pointing out that both legislative and executive process in the amendment happened within 26 days, thereby giving investors no time to think about it.

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

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

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT)

had also enhanced petroleum products supply and distribution nationwide. “The result is a sanitised fuel supply and distribution network which has thus far banished the ugly episodes of petroleum products scarcity and snaky fuel queues across the country. “With reliable fuel supply system emplaced, commuters, businesses, transporters and other stakeholders can now

engage in fruitful commercial endeavours without the perennial monster of fuel scarcity. “This in no small way, shows how the corporation enables business activities in the country,� he said. Kyari, however, commended the promoters of the fair, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) for providing businesses the opportunities to showcase their products and services.

Earlier, the President of LCCI,

Mr. Babatunde Ruwase, in his welcome remarks, said the oil and gas sector plays a vital role in the Nigerian economy as it contributes 65 per cent of government’s revenue and 88 per cent of the foreign exchange earnings. Ruwase, represented by the Deputy President of the chamber, Mrs Toki Mabogunje, added that the industry provides petroleum products for over 200 million inhabitants of Nigeria to meet their needs.

AFRICA DAYCELEBRATION

L-R: Manager,Trade Finance AnglophoneWest Africa, African Export- Import Bank, Afreximbank, Mr. Remmy Nwachukwu;Vice President, Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), MrsToki Mabaogunje; President, Mr. Babatunde Ruwase; CEO, FAE Envelope Limited, Layo Bakare Okeowo; Group Executive,Transformation and Resources, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr. Chiugo Ndubuisi, andTechnical Adviser to the Managing Director, NEXIM, Mr. HopeYongo, during the Africa Day celebration at the Lagos InternationalTrade Fair held atTafawa Balewa Square, Lagos‌ yesterday ETOPUKUTT

In a report seen by THISDAY, the global energy, chemicals, renewables, metals and mining research and consultancy group, stated: “Using Wood Mackenzie Valuations powered by our LENS Platform, we analysed the economic impact of SB 21.

Applying the change across all deepwater PSCs with commercial assets, remaining value to investors reduces by $2.7 billion or 18 per cent overall. ‘’There is a strong correlation between the remaining pre-tax value per barrel and the scale of impact. This is highlighted by OML 130 which is generating significant cash flow after a sustained period of investment.

Its reduction in value is only 11 per cent. ‘’This increase in Deepwater

royalty won’t be the end of fiscal change. Royalty is just one piece of the fiscal framework.

From 2024 onwards, all 1993 Deepwater PSCs will begin to expire with Shell’s OML 118 the first of them. ‘’It is expected that NNPC will renegotiate tougher PSC terms in exchange for a 20-year renewal. A non-binding Heads of Agreement was signed with Shell in February which provided a ‘clear commercial framework for a potential Bonga SW Aparo FID.�

The firm added: “‘That framework included a possible reduction in the cost recovery ceiling from 100 per cent to 80 per cent, and the removal of 50 per cent investment tax allowances. Even the removal of fiscal consolidation within

the contract was raised. ‘’Higher royalty significantly alters this framework. FID on Bonga SW Aparo already looked unlikely this year, but now further negotiations will be needed if this project - and others - are to ever move forward. Fiscal uncertainty is set to continue for deepwater investors long after this change.’’ It, however, stated that, ‘’it is worth noting that SB 21 is not the worst outcome for Deepwater investors. House Bill 89 would have resulted in a government share of 77 per cent. ‘’On the face of it, this change is relatively modest, a guaranteed 10 per cent royalty and a small price-based royalty on top which responds to fluctuations in the oil market. Deepwater fields, which contribute a third of

Nigeria’s liquids production, will continue producing and most new projects could still make money at a discount rate of 15 per cent and a long-term oil price of $65/bbl.�

It added: ‘’This royalty change may look reasonable from within Nigeria, but in the global competition for investment, it pushes Nigerian projects another notch down the attractiveness ranking and possibly out of the money. “It will increase government revenues in the near term, but it is hard to see major new Deepwater projects progressing, particularly with the added uncertainties of contract renewal and the challenging business environment. And that risks declining Deepwater revenues in the long term’’.

Project Managers Warn against Quacks

Group Business Editor

Goddy Egene

“Before now, the corporation had also completed the repair of the vandalised 20-inch ELPS-A pipeline, thereby ensuring gas supply to gas-fired power plants and also supply into the West African Gas Pipeline.�

The GMD added that the NNPC downstream entities namely, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC), the Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company (NPSC), NNPC Retail and NNPC Shipping,

WoodMac Faults Nigeria’s New PSC Legislation

Obinna Chima

Capital Market Editor

NEWS

Oluchi Chibuzor Project management experts in the country have stressed the need to embrace collaborative efforts to reduce trends of quacks in the profession.

This, they agreed would lead to better engagement with people and community and discourage people who parade themselves as certified project management professionals (PMP).

Speaking at a breakfasting meeting in Lagos, organised by the Project Management Institute (PMI), Nigeria Chapter,

the Regional Mentor, Africa, PMI, Ike Nwankwo, said it was necessary the global body focuses on Africa with major interest in Nigeria.

He also said the efforts would help encourage global best practices and standards in the country, saying recent trends showed people having certification from un-recognised centres.

According to him, “As a growing nation, it is imperative that the country adapt methodologies of successful project in solving national challenges.

“Through global advocacy, collaboration, education and research, PMI works to prepare more than three million professionals around the world for the project economy; the coming economy in which work and individuals, are organised around projects.�

The PMI was founded in 2005, it has over 800 members from all facets of projects and from all industries and active in promoting project management to industries, corporate and government organisation.

The President, PMI Nigeria,

Mr. Lambert Ofoegbu, said its involvement in project management advocacy throughout Nigeria, was to help deliver successful programs, and projects towards the development of a better Nigeria. “The project economy is one in which people have the skills and capabilities they need to turn ideas into reality. It is where organisations deliver value to stakeholders through successful completion of projects, delivery of products, and alignment to value streams. And all of these initiatives deliver financial and

societal value.�

On her part, the PMI Educational Foundation Community Engagement Committee, Titilola Park, said the organisation has helped put youths on the path to success by incorporating project management skills into their daily lives in various free programmes run by the body. “PMI are narrowing its strategic focus even more in order to make a greater impact and provide increased value to young people around the world by working through non-profits,� she added.

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BUSINESSWORLD

ENERGY

LAPO Microfinance BankRestates MAKE Commitmentto SustainableFinance WEALTH Nume Ekeghe LAPO Microfinance Bank Limited has said it is championing the course of sustainable finance in the banking industry.

As a result of this, the bank has restated its commitment to supporting sustainability financing in the country.

The Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, LAPO Godwin Ehigiamusoe, said this at the Lapo Microfinance Bank, sustainability finance conference, held in Lagos, recently.

He said the conference with the theme, ‘Enhancing Sustainable Finance in the Microfinance Subsector,’ was basically to promote the practice of sustainable finance and banking values especially

among microfinance banks.

Ehigiamusoe said: “Microfinance industry is growing, having a large number of institutions and also considering the nature of their clients who are obviously active on the environment, I feel there is need for microfinance banks to adopt some of these principles as LAPO has done for the past six years.�

He said the bank has achieved paperless transactions in all its board meetings, management meetings, review meetings and has also decided to track the numbers of paper that would have been used, put naira and kobo and discovered it has been able to save millions of naira in doing that. “Because we are tracking, we

have been able to ascertain how much we are saving on monthly basis especially if we put in the cost of digital devices, we still make some profit. “The second thing is that if you also look at the social dimension, supporting the people you do business with; for instance, LAPO has priority in recruitment of children of our customers,� he said. On his part, Executive Director, Global Alliance for banking on values (GABV) Mr. Marcos Eguiguren, said, “I think it is a great milestone for Nigeria to have a bank such as LAPO organising a conference on sustainable finance especially with a focus on microfinance industry that is why we are supporting this.

Kenya Airways Partners Safarilink Kenya Airways Plc and Safarilink Aviation (F2), Kenya’s premier safari airline, recently signed a one-way codeshare agreement to open up Kenya to global travellers.

The feat would be achieved by selling Safarilink’s direct flights to the best safari and unique beach destinations within Kenya and Tanzania.

This codeshare agreement means that KQ would sell 18 remote Safarilink destinations in their global sales and distribution network, enabling them to combine their travel experience between respective international destinations and 18 remote destinations within Kenya and Tanzania that Safarilink

operates.

During the signing of the partnership, Kenya Airways Chief Executive Officer Sebastian Mikosz said, “As part of our strategy to continue growing the network, we have seen the need to give travel ease to our customers by connecting their destinations.� “This partnership will also significantly open up Kenya’s tourist destinations to international travelers by allowing tour operators and travel agencies to create unique holiday packages connecting from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (KJIA) to Wilson Airport and eventually to their respective safari destinations, which is a great convenience to

them,� a statement explained.

The partnership would see KQ place its codeshare flight numbers on the Safarilink flights so that customers from international destinations can book their full safari experience directly via KQ holidays or via tour operators and travel agents.

It would provide daily scheduled flights that will provide convenient access to the eleven air strips in Maasai Mara and direct flights to Amboseli, Samburu, Lamu, Zanzibar, Ukunda, Vipingo, Kilimanjaro, Tsavo, Lodwar, Kitale, Lake Naivasha, Laikipia, Lewa downs, Olpajeta, Loisaba, Nanyuki and, Mt. Kenya, avoiding long and cumbersome road transport.

MamadorTargets School Children through Campaign Raheem Akingbolu In a bid to promote and encourage healthy feeding habits among Nigerians, premium brand, Mamador, has launched a campaign spurring Nigerians to adopt a healthy and balanced breakfast lifestyle.

The campaign seeks to emphasise the importance of breakfast as the most important meal of the day as well as provide information on easy and affordable breakfast options and recipes.

According to the promoters of the brand, the PZ Wilmar brand was also using this campaign to further introduce consumers to the latest addition in the Mamador portfolio – the Mamador Light Fat Spread. The newly-introduced spread is said to contain ‘health and taste benefits that deliver on healthy nutrition

and is packed with nutrients that helps children and families have an active head start to the day, amongst other benefits.

According to a brand representative, the breakfast campaign would involve a series of activities geared towards sensitising the public on the need for a healthier approach to breakfast. PZ Wilmar Food Ltd., through its new Mamador Light Fat Spread, seeks to reach and educate millions of children in select schools across the country as regards the importance of breakfast and the role it plays in their optimal bodily and mental functioning.

Through the breakfast campaign, the brand also seeks to create awareness as regards the health repercussions of unhealthy breakfast habits and food combinations that are typical of Nigerians, proposing healthier

options in the process.

Assistant Brand Manager, Mamador, Omobolanle Akin-Fatodu, emphasised the need for families to not only eat breakfast, but also the healthy kind, which is the ultimate goal of the breakfast campaign. “Not only is it important to eat breakfast, you should also eat the right kind of breakfast – a meal packed with nutrients to get you off to a great start and keep you going throughout the day. “Sadly, it is the most skipped meal of the day, so the product is on a mission to help Nigerians develop a breakfast-eating habit, and a healthy one, at that. We recently launched our new Mamador Light Fat Spread which offers loads of benefits - it is Cholesterol and Trans-Fat Free.

Stakeholders to Chart Roadmap on Fourth Industrial Revolution Stakeholders from the public and private sectors will tomorrow gather to set agenda on how Nigeria will not be left behind in the emerging Fourth Industrial Revolution, at the WorldStage Economic Summit (WES) 2019.

WES 2019 with the theme ‘Getting Nigeria Ready for Challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution’ will hold at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Lagos, Nigeria.

According to a statement by the organisers, World Stage Limited, the federal government

will be making strong presence at the summit through Director Generals of some strategic agencies which include the National Identity Management Commission, Standard Organisation of Nigeria, Corporate Affairs Commission, Security and Exchange Commission, while private sector will be represented by the leadership of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Nigeria Computer Society, Association of Telecommunications Operators

of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, Trade Union Congress, Nigeria Labour Congress, NACCIMA, NUPENG among others.

The lead paper will be presented by Dr. Babatope Ogunniyi of the Department of Economics, University of Lagos, while there would be a panel discussion on the theme of the summit with emphasis on relevant laws and policies requirement for the fourth industrial revolution; developing infrastructure, industries and business models, among others.

LAST Grace Omenyo Agada Will They Fight over Wealth When You Die?

When a poor man dies in a family people mourn for what is lost. When a rich man dies in a family people rejoice over what Ă“Ă? Ă–Ă?Ă?Þ˛ Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă–Ă?ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ÞÙ ĂĄĂ’Ă‹Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă–Ă?Ă?Ăž behind after the death of a rich man is the reason why people fight in wealthy Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă˜Ă™ Ă™Ă˜Ă? among the people left behind earned the ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ˛ Ă’Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ ĂĄĂ’Ă™ ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂŽ ÞÙ Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ˜ Ă’Ă“Ă? ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ Ă“Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă‹ĂŽË› Ă’Ă?Ă˜ Ă’Ă? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹Ă–Ă“Ă Ă?Ëœ Ă˜Ă™ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ă—ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž ÒÙå Ă’Ă? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ share or distributes his wealth. Earning wealth cancels the motivation for others to complain. But when this man dies everyone else becomes a beneficiary of wealth. Rather than earn their own wealth they benefit from a dead man’s wealth. When wealth is given to a group Ă™Ă? ĂšĂ?ÙÚÖĂ? Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă“Ăž Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ right of share and transparency becomes critical. It is at this point that family fights begin to ensue. Whether this fight will happen in your family depends on what you choose to do now. Without a Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ ĂŽĂ?ËÞÒ ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜Ëœ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ? Ùà Ă?Ăœ ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ ĂĄĂ’Ă?Ă˜ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă? fights can severe family relationships and sacrifice family ties for money ties. Ă™ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ family leaders must put the right plans in place. Ă’Ă?Ă˜ Ă‹Ă?Ă• Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ’Ă?ÞÒĂ?Ăœ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă• ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ùà Ă?Ăœ wealth. I usually get a resounding No response. Some of these no responses are affirmative in nature others are defensive. When I get an affirmative no response it is usually because a family Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă•Ă? ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ăž ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ their family will remain intact for many generations. Current peace is not a guarantee for future peace. Besides the current peace that exists in most families today is hollow peace. Hollow peace is false peace. When false peace exists in Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁËœ Ă“Ăž Ă“Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂœĂŁ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ pain and resentment out of respect for ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă Ă‹Ă–ĂœĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă“Ă–Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ăœ Ă™Ă? ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ™Ă‹ĂžË› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă•Ă“Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™Ă? ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă?ÒËÞÞĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ the death of a parent. Research shows ÞÒËÞ Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ?Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ă– ÞÙ Ă•Ă?Ă?Ăš wealth and family together for more than ÞåÙ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ÞÓà Ă? Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă—Ă?Ă‹Ă˜Ă? that the children of your wealthy friends will end up in court a few years from now.

If there is no fight prevention plan in ÚÖËĂ?Ă?Ëœ ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă?ÓÚËÞĂ?Ë› Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă? where I get a defensive No response Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœËœ Ă“Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? a family leader already see signs of potential fights. Rather than confront ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžËœ Ă’Ă? Ă?ÒÙÙĂ?Ă?Ă? ÞÙ Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă? ÞÒĂ?Ă— Ă?Ă™Ăœ his children to handle. Even in families ĂĄĂ’Ă?ĂœĂ? ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă? Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ùà Ă?Ăœ wealth will come from external sources.

Random family members will come out of ÞÒĂ? åÙÙÎ ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ•Ă? ÞÙ Ă–Ă‹ĂŁ Ă?Ă–Ă‹Ă“Ă—Ă? ÞÙ ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ˛ Friends will do strange things. Creditors will harass your family and your once vibrant business will fight for its life. Ă’Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă? Ă˜Ă™ Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂĄĂ’Ă?ÞÒĂ?Ăœ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– be fights over wealth and there are three reasons for this. Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂžËœ Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽ ÞÒËÞ fit the description of a problem child. Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂž ÞÒĂ? Ă?ÓÑÒÞ˛ Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ? call this child the problem child because ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă• Ă’Ă? Ă“Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă— Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? family. But smart professional call him the “symptom bearerâ€? because he is the one that embodies hidden problems in ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁË› ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă— Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽ Ă“Ă? Ă˜Ă?Ă Ă?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? problem he only reflects the problem

ÞÒËÞ Ă?âÓĂ?Ăž Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁË› ĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă— Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜ are created when there is a presence Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă‹ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ăœ Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ă• Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă‹Ă– Ă“ĂžĂ?Ă— Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁË› Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ? also create problem children by having Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă•Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜Ë› Ă’Ă?Ă˜ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă?ÒÙÙĂ?Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽËœ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜ Ă•Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă™Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ?Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ăš ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÒËÞ causes endless sibling rivalry after ĂŽĂ?ËÞÒ˛ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž understand that their small nuclear family will expand beyond its bloodline. Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă—Ă‹Ă–Ă– Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ăœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ åÓÞÒ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă?Ă–Ă— Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă“Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă Ă?ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂŁ ÞÙ Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂŁË› Ăž Ă?Ă?ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ ĂšĂ™Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂĄĂ?Ă–Ă?Ù×Ă? Ă˜Ă?ĂĄ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă—Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂžĂ’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’ Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă? new member can disrupt family unity.

If these new members are not carefully chosen their entrance into a family Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă?ÖÓÒÙÙÎ Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă?Þ˛ Ă’Ă“ĂœĂŽËœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂœĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ÞËÞĂ? ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜Ë› Ă™Ă?Ăž ĂœĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž and Estate document do not consider Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ most of them are structured naturally fuels conflict. If asset are passed on to the next generation without Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ensue. If the basis for the distribution of wealth to the next generation is not ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ăœ Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽĂœĂ?Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ùà Ă?Ăœ ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ˛ Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ sure your trust and estate plan foster ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂŁ ĂœĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽ ÖÙÙÕ Ă‹Ăž Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă–Ă?Ă‘Ă‹Ă– ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ë› So what can family leader do to prevent war from happening in their families?

Family leaders must do three things.

First they must resolve the problem of the problem child. If you have a problem Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă–ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x;Ăœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁËœ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă’Ă?Ă–Ăš ÞÙ Ă‘Ă?Ăž to the root and cause of the problem. Ă’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’ Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă?âÚĂ?ĂœĂž Ă?Ă‹Ă?ÓÖÓÞËÞĂ?ĂŽ conversations you can get the help ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽË› Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ to set up a new member induction and onboarding process for incoming ĂšĂœĂ™Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ÞÓà Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ě‹Ă–Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂšĂ? Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ ingrain certain important family values and beliefs and verify alignment of a new family member. Ă’Ă“ĂœĂŽËœ Ă‹ Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă‘Ă?Ăž Ă‹ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă“Ă™Ă˜ ĂœĂ?Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂœĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ÞËÞĂ? ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă’Ă?Ă–Ăš ÞÒĂ?Ă— Ă Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?ĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ confirm that their wealth transfer document supports generational family unity. Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ today is different from maintaining order and peace in a family for many generations. When your descendants Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄ ÞÙ Ă‹Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’ Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă’Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂœĂ?ĂŽ ĂšĂ?ÙÚÖĂ?Ëœ you need more than just a last wish Ă‹ĂŽĂ Ă“Ă?Ă? ÞÙ Ă?ÞËã Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă•Ă?Ă?Ăš ÞÒĂ?Ă— united. Without an organized system Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜ ÞÙ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ?Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ unity will disintegrate and wealth will end. Now is the time to plan. Ă’Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–ĂŁ ÞÒËÞ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂĄĂ?ËÖÞÒ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ? Ă“Ă˜ Ă•Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? family together.

Grace Agada is a Generational Wealth Advisor, Legacy Expert and Author of the popular Solid Wealth Book.

She is a Consultant and Coach to an exclusive list of top executives and entrepreneurial clients running Businesses from $1-million to $1 billion in size. She help Affluent clients prepare and execute a Ten Generation Wealth Legacy, Diagnostic Family meetings, Family Business Succession, Family Bank Systems, Sudden death contingency plans, Next generation grooming, and second opinion review of existing Trust and Estate Plans to support generational wealth goals.

Email: info@createsolidwealth.com

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Between NLNG and Nigeria’s Global Warming Challenges Chineme Okafor assesses the intervention of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited in addressing environmental issues in the country, in the past 30 years About 31 years ago, exactly on June 23, 1988, the conversation about climate change became a national issue in the United States when the country’s Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee entertained a landmark testimony on the issue from Dr. James Hansen, then director of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Institute for Space Studies.

In his testimony, Hansen stated that, “global warming has reached a level such that we can ascribe with a high degree of confidence a causeand-effect relationship between the greenhouse effect and observed warming.�

He added, “in my opinion, the greenhouse effect has been detected, and it is changing our climate now,� and made it clear that climate change posed a threat to humanity.

Hansen equally attributed the phenomenon to human exploitation of carbon energy sources including oil and gas, and from then on, the conversation about climate change took off across the globe.

A year after Hansen’s landmark testimony to the US Senate, Nigeria enunciated a law today known as the NLNG Act to harness and monetise its natural gas resources.

Within the operational context of the Act, the NLNG was principally set up to convert and export associated gas as LNG. It has however become Nigeria’s largest response to global warming, reportedly reducing the country’s flare profile from 65 to 25 per cent so far.

In 2018, the World Bank reported that Nigeria flared an equivalent of 7.4 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas to earn the seventh spot in the world’s highest gas flaring countries. Russia, according to the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership (GGFR) flared 21.3bcm within the period.

These countries according to the GGFR contribute immensely to climate change by releasing millions of tons of carbon to the atmosphere.

But for the NLNG‌ Nigeria would have in the last 20 years flared approximately 180.5bcm or 6.37 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of Associated Gas (AG) to the atmosphere.

Thus, by converting this volume of gas to liquefied natural gas (LNG) and natural gas liquids (NGLs), the NLNG in its 2019 Facts and Figures report, stated that it kept an equivalent of 2,310 LNG and NGL cargoes from been flared and rather converted to better use. This, from experts’ considerations represented significant wins for the global environment even though the originally pronounced intention for the NLNG was to monetise flared gas.

From its existing six trains, the NLNG indicated that it could produce up to 22 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of LNG, and 5mtpa of NGLs. It also informed that an equivalent of 3.5 billion standard cubic feet per day (bcf/d) of natural gas were consumed by its six plants which plans for further expansion have lately gained immense traction. “Plans for building Train-7 that will lift the total production capacity to 30mtpa of LNG are currently progressing with some preliminary early site preparation work initiated. Further work awaits FID by the shareholders,� said the NLNG in the report, to further suggest an upsurge in Nigeria’s contribution to tackling global warming.

Monetisation of gas Over the 20-year operational period, the NLNG explained that it had paid Joint Venture (JV) feed gas suppliers from oil fields in Nigeria up to $28 billion with an equivalent of 60 per cent of such payment getting into the pockets of Nigeria’s federal government which is the largest shareholder in the venture through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

It equally reported that up to $36 billion, out of which 49 per cent went to the federal government, had been paid as dividends to its shareholders. “As a good corporate citizen, NLNG also contributes to national wealth and the economic wellbeing of states in which it operates, by paying all applicable taxes and tariffs. “In 2018, the company’s corporate income tax paid to the federal government of Nigeria amounted to about $864 million, over 40 per cent of what was paid in 2017,� it noted to buttress the benefits the conversion of otherwise flared

Attah gas has so far brought to Nigeria.

Overall however, it indicated that since 2011, when its legally-backed tax holiday ended, it had paid corporate income tax worth $5,656,646,965.99 to the government, in the fraction of $65.080 million in 2011; $107.037 million in 2012; $118.592 million in 2013; $1.402 billion in 2014; $2.169 billion in 2015; $323.273 million in 2016; $606.668 million in 2017; and then $864.074 million in 2018.

Beyond monetising otherwise flared gas, NLNG as well stated that its construction of

Plans for building Train-7 that will lift the total production capacity to 30mtpa of LNG are currently progressing with some preliminary early site preparation work initiated. Further work awaits FID by the shareholders

the six trains ensured an inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Nigeria and that its assets were now worth about $16 billion.

It also explained that since 2008, it had contributed about four per cent of Nigeria’s annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It equally highlighted its job creation prowess and comprehensive support for the application of Nigeria’s local content law in its operations. “More than 12,000 jobs each construction year.

Overall, the major sub-contractors employed over 18,000 Nigerians in technical jobs for the Base Project. Through each Nigerian Content plan for its contracts, NLNG has promoted the development and employment of Nigerian manpower,� it explained.

Next moves Having spent the first 30 years setting up and growing its production capacity to 22mtpa, cutting down Nigeria’s gas flare rate to 25 per cent, and yielding immense financial and material returns to its shareholders and stakeholders, the NLNG recently announced its plan for the years ahead of it. “It is about 1989 when the NLNG was incorporated and 1999 when the first gas cargo was exported from Bonny. Another 30 years starts now and here in this palace. The next 30 years will

even see more successes between us,� said the Managing Director of NLNG, Mr. Tony Attah, when he visited the king of Bonny kingdom, the Amanyanabo of Bonny Kingdom, King Edward Pepple, on the occasion of the company’s 30th anniversary.

Attah, noted amongst others that: “We recorded many successes in our partnership with the Bonny people. The Bonny Utility Company was set up to give power to the Bonny Island which has ensured 95 per cent power supply stability in the kingdom; the only place in Nigeria with such record. “Bonny Vocational Centre has pursued youth empowerment with huge success. Scholarships have been awarded to the kingdom.�

Beyond the company’s future plans for its host community, Attah, equally explained that it was going on an expansion drive which would see it add another train to its production capacity. “Train-7. It is the beginning of the next 30 years.

We were number four but now number seven due to the delay in building Train-7. If we do nothing, we will slip to number 10,� he stated.

He had equally told journalists at a meeting in Abuja that plans for Train-7 were in top gear and that up to $10 billion worth of FDI was expected into Nigeria in the next five years from the capacity expansion by an additional eight metric tonnes per annum. “Today, we are here to progress another milestone by issuing a Letter of Intent to award the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) Contract for Train 7 project to the preferred bidder SCD JV Consortium. As we issue this Letter of Intent today, we will be even closer to signing of the FID. “Train 7 is our sure way to attaining that ambition with 35 per cent increase in our production capacity, from 22MTPA to 30MTPA. We are working to achieve this project within four to five years after we sign the FID if we must stay competitive and profitable in the global market. “Our greater joy is that Train 7 at construction phase will attract an investment of over $7 billion, boost Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) profile of the country and provide about 10,000 jobs during the construction stage,� Attah added.

And, while it pursues its Train 7 expansion, the NLNG assured it would remain committed to addressing climate change challenges through the implementation of its Green House Gas (GHG) and energy management plan.

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Assessing Nigeria’s Quest to End Petrol Importation Nigeria’s dream of becoming a net exporter of petroleum products is gradually coming through, writes Peter Uzoho With the 650, 000 per day capacity Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant nearing completion, and the 445, 000 per day refinery of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) witnessing aggressive Turn Around Maintenance (TAN), coupled with the NNPC’s proposed 200, 000 condensate refinery, Nigeria is right on track to becoming a net exporter of petroleum products.

Over the years, Nigeria has been a laughing stock in the comity of oil producing nations due to her inability to refine her crude to meet domestic consumption. Nigeria is the second largest producer of crude oil in Africa and ranks sixth globally. The country produces an average of 1.9 million barrels of crude oil per day and has about 37 billion barrels of oil in reserves.

Every year, this oil producing nation spends billions of dollars on subsidy for the importation of refined petroleum products from other countries, (even from countries without a drop of oil), mainly on petrol. Nigeria produces crude, exports it and then buys from refiners in other countries at an outrageous cost. The country has been in this mess for decades with no solution in sight.

The four national refineries in Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna have never delivered up to half of its installed capacity even after series of TAN on them, and with huge amount of money spent on those failed attempts. The situation has plunged the country into huge economic loss as funds that would have been used to develop other critical sectors of the nation’s economy were used on petrol subsidy.

However, with the public and private sector collaboration and shared vision, particularly the NNPC and Dangote Group, the trajectory is beginning to change, and Nigeria will soon change from an importer of fuel to exporter in a few years to come.

Dangote’s Move Upon realising that private sector participation was necessary to drive economic growth and development of a country, Dangote Group decided to invest in the nation’s refining space to help solve Nigeria’s years of petrol import dependence.

The $12 billion refinery which is under construction at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos, is projected to complete its mechanical work by December 2020 and commence full operation six months after, the group’s Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects and Portfolio Development, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, said at the 2019 Oil Trading and Logistics (OTL) Expo in Lagos.

Also during the tour of the facility led by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, last week, Edwin disclosed that the products from the refinery could be marketed anywhere in the world including Europe, South America, West Africa and Central Africa.

He said: “It is one of our targets to take diesel to Europe. Our equipment is already being designed to do this. We can take surplus petrol to South America, apart from West African countries and Central African countries. That is why we decided to go for Euro V. “The refinery can handle all the Nigerian crude grades and all the African crude grades, as well as some of the Middle East grades and the US light oil.�

He added that the refinery could meet 100 per cent of the Nigerian requirements of all the liquid products and will have surplus to export.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had sometime said the refinery was expected to reduce the need for fuel imports in West Africa.

A statement from Dangote Group had quoted OPEC as saying, “Last year’s World Oil Outlook hinted that, in Africa, new projects could improve the situation somewhat toward the end of the period. This year, increasing confidence that the Dangote project in Nigeria will go ahead is indeed changing the picture. “Allowing for some uncertainty in the project’s start-up timetable, incremental potential in Africa is expected to continue to lag incremental demandbased requirements through 2020, after which the potential is for a balance or excess requirements. “A deficit of around 0.2 million barrels per

Dangote ReďŹ ner day in 2019 to 2020 is estimated to swing to an excess of around 0.3 million bpd by 2022 to 2023. It must be borne in mind that this regional outlook is unusual in that it hinges largely on a single project.â€?

However, Edwin corroborated OPEC’s view, pointing out that all hands were on deck to deliver the refinery on time.

He noted that Dangote Group’s ongoing refining and petrochemicals project can meet 100 per cent of the domestic demand for petroleum products –petrol, diesel, kerosene and aviation fuel, leaving the surplus for export in line with OPEC’s expectation.

He said that the high volume of petrol output from the Dangote refinery would transform Nigeria from a petrol import-dependent country to an exporter of refined petroleum products.

The President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, however, stated that upon completion of the refinery, 53 per cent of the refining capacity would be dedicated to the production of petrol.

This means that 344,500 barrels of its projected 650,000 barrels per day refining capacity would be dedicated to the production of petrol.

He said the group ventured into the project because of its belief in Nigeria.

I must say now that Dangote Group has turned this project to the story of all of us; we must all support this project to succeed, because the success of this project signals a lot. Of course, I am sure that the whole world is looking at the success of this project. Investors all over the world will look at the success of this project and will come to Nigeria to at least also enjoy the beneďŹ t of investing here

According to Dangote, “First of all, I think we believe in Nigeria and number two, if we don’t do it by ourselves nobody will come down here and do it for us. We know that there is growth in the population, almost three per cent annually. So, Nigeria is actually supposed to be feeding the entire West and Central Africa and that is what we are trying to do, that is why we went for this massive capacity.�

The Collaboration Both the NNPC and Dangote Group are actively collaborating to ensure the vision of making the nation a net exporter of petroleum products is achieved. Although, both have their individual business interest to pursue, the issue of solving this national problem has bound them together as each is backing the other to succeed.

The NNPC which has maintained its stand that Nigeria must end its penchant for petrol importation is aligning with Dangote Group to see to the eventual completion of the refinery to complement its 445, 000 bpd capacity refinery and the upcoming 200,000 capacity condensate refinery. Rather than seeing each other as rivals, both the NNPC and Dangote Group see each other as partners in the quest for national progress.

The Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari, has repeatedly said the corporation was not in competition with Dangote, rather both were out to support each other for the good of the country.

Also speaking at the facility tour, Kyari said: “First of all, we are not competing with Dangote; we are complementing each other and our objective is the same, to make Nigeria a net exporter of petroleum products. And you can’t do this until you have complementary activities by all stakeholders, the public and the private sector. “And what we are doing with our refineries is to make them work so that by the time the Dangote Refinery comes up we have a full complement with the NNPC refineries that will make Nigeria a net exporter of gasoline and other associated products.�

Probably in the next five years, if you combine the 650, 000 Dangote Refinery, the 445, 000 NNPC refineries and the addition 200,000 condensate refinery, we will have up to a million barrels refined products for the country.

Success Story In his remarks, Sylva stated that the Dangote Refinery would be a success story coming out of Nigeria. He also pledged the support of the

federal government to Dangote Group to ensure the completion of the facility.

Sylva said: “This is a very heartwarming moment for all of us as Nigerians. There is no way a project of this magnitude will be going on and government will not be interested. Anywhere in the world, if a citizen of a country has committed so much money into investing in this kind of massive project, government must show interest. “I must say now that Dangote Group has turned this project to the story of all of us; we must all support this project to succeed, because the success of this project signals a lot.

Of course, I am sure that the whole world is looking at the success of this project. Investors all over the world will look at the success of this project and will come to Nigeria to at least also enjoy the benefit of investing here. “So, we are actually here to assure you, Dangote Group, that as a government, as NNPC, we will support this project as much as we can. You have definitely done very well.

We will like to go from here to see the rest of the project. And then, please feel free to tell us where you think we can support. “As you can see, the whole team is complete, and whatever your concerns are, whatever your problems are, please feel free to let us know, so that we will together find a solution to problems that you might encounter. Because of course, in project of this magnitude, you cannot expect that you will not have problems. “We really are quite proud of you to have engaged in a project of this magnitude. If we as Nigerians don’t invest in this country, who will come and invest in it? The fact that you are investing this massively in the country is a signal for others to come to this country. That’s why we must support you to ensure that this project becomes a success, because if this project is a success, it is a success story that is coming out of Nigeria that will attract other people to also come here and invest. “So, let us all as Nigerians come together, let us all as industry come together and ensure that this project is a success story out of Nigeria�.

Also fielding questions from journalists after the facility tour, Sylva, described the refinery as one of the most impressive projects ever seen.

He added that the government will lend its support to Dangote Group in the area of feedstock, saying that will depend on what the group said is their need.

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IMAGES

L-R: Managing Partner, Colton Group, Mr. Collins Balogun; Celebrant/ Managing Partner, Colton Group, Mr. Anthony Ajulo; his wife, Yetunde and Mr. Adeyemi Kunle, at the 40th birthday celebration of Anthony Ajulo in Lagos ...recently PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍ°Ëœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

Photo Editor ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ ÔËÖË Email Ă‹ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜Ë›Ă‹Ă”Ă‹Ă–Ă‹ĚśĂžĂ’Ă“Ă?ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁĂ–Ă“Ă Ă?Ë›Ă?Ù×

L-R:, Chief Operating OďŹƒcer, Reddington Hospital Group, Emmanuel Matthews; Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, Yinka Sanni; Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Reddington Hospital Group, Dr. Adeyemi Omobowale, and , Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Dr. Demola Sogunle at the 2019 edition of the Together4alimb Walk, organized by Stanbic IBTC Holdings in Lagos...recently

L-R: Chairman, Class of 1988, Lagos State University (LASU), Bopo Oyekan-Ismaila; Prof. Bsbajide Elemo; his wife, Prof. Gloria; Chairman of the occasion, Musliu Obanikoro; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Establishment and Training, Lagos State, Abiodun Bamgboye and Chairman, Board of Trustee, LASU Alumni, Olateju Sonaiki, at the 31st Anniversary lecture of the Pioneer Class of 1988, LASU held in Lagos...recently

L-R: Nigeria Nollywood Actress, Ms. Ini Edo; Senator Florince Ita-Giwa; America Hollywood Actor, Jimmy Jean Louis and Ms. Uche Jombo during dinner party in honour of Jimmy Louis hosted by Senator Florince Ita-Giwa in Lagos...recently PHOTO: MUBO PETERS

L-R: Managing partner, SIAO, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo; General manager, LASEPA, Dr. Dolapo Fasawe; Director, Research and Development Dept. LASEPA, Mr. Sewanu Toplonu Adebodun; and Head, Consulting, SIAO, during SIAO courtesy visit to LASEPA oďŹƒce in Lagos...recently PHOTO: SUNDAY ADIGUN

Visitor, Comrade Ayodele Adewale (right); and Vice Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Eyitope Ogunbodede, during the employment opportunity program award� for three most outstanding graduating students in Public Administration by Adewale, at the University Campus, Ile-Ife...recently

The couple Mr. Taofeek Raji and his wife, Baseerah (middle) anked by the bride’s parents, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, (NUJ) Lagos State Council, Dr. Qasim Akinreti and his wife Hajia Noimat at their wedding ceremony in Badagry, Lagos...recently

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT Kogi’s Socio-economic Devt Depends on Better, Safer Roads, Says Bello Ȋ Emphasises environmental importance of thick vegetation Bennett Oghifo

G

lobally, construction of roads is done to ease movement of goods and people, which is the reason the Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello has said he is building roads to link cities, towns and villages to improve the state’s socioeconomic development.

It is also vital for roads to be well-drained with the appropriate landscaping that is required to make the sur-

roundings safe for travellers.

Kogi State sits at the centre of Nigeria with its landscape, dotted with Rocky Mountains, dense vegetation at some point and Savanna vegetation in other areas. Importantly, it is called the Confluence State because it is where the Rivers Niger and Benue meet and then flow as one to the Niger Delta where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

Kogi is an important satellite state to the Federal Capital Territory, and all things being equal, those who desire can live

in the state and do business in Abuja, as well as in the state itself. It is for this reason, among others that Gov. Bello is putting efforts into building of good roads, clearing unwanted vegetation, and in the process, make the state safe to live and do business in.

Kogi State attracts high volumes of vehicular and human traffic daily and Lokoja, the capital, is a preferred destination to unwind; for visitors either seeking to do business in the state or for pleasure, or to rest and then move on.

Ganaja-Ajaokuta Road

This is a fact, considering the strategic location of the state as a link between the Federal Capital Territory Abuja and other parts of the country. It is the only state that connects 10 other states in Nigeria.

Investors see the state as a good and safe destination, particularly because of its mineral resources.

In his inaugural address as the 4th Governor of the state, Yahaya Bello identified insecurity as a huge concern across the state. He specifically identified armed robbery and kidnapping as two striking menace that must be quickly tackled and tamed.

The situation met by the governor was worrisome.

Indigenes and visitors alike were forced to reduce their business hours and scope of operation if not out rightly shutting down and moving out of the state. More worrisome was the discovery by security agents of the presence of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in the state. Also, guns, rounds of live ammunition and other dangerous items were discovered in a forest between Kogi and Edo states.

These discoveries underline the dangers of thick vegetation along the highways. There were also security reports that criminals were using the state’s thick vegetation as hideouts and ambush spots.

Bello In an interview, the Chairman of Ajaokuta Local Government Area, Prince Aliu Mustapha Akaba, reechoed the prevalent security situation and said some of the roads in state had been abandoned for a long time and that they had vegetation in their middle.

This, he explained, provided shelter for hoodlums and kidnappers, who kill, maim and rape. He narrated the kidnap incidence of the Director of Local Government Services, Ajaokuta LGA and the fact that he was one time kidnapped

as well.

Also, His Royal Highness, Oba Francis Oke Mibole, Elesiio of Iwaa Land was not spared from the near-harrowing experience of kidnapping. The monarch explained that on one of his trips to Lokoja on this faithful day, he was accosted by three men armed with AK 47 rifles who attempted to impede his movement, shooting several rounds directly at his car. He said he was indeed lucky to have escaped unhurt.

His vehicle still bares holes from the gun shots.

Lagos, FIDC Renew Commitment to Ilubirin Project, to Deliver in 2020 Bennett Oghifo Lagos state government and the First Investment Development Company (FIDC), developers of the upscale Ilubirin Foreshore Housing Project have renewed their commitment to the expeditious development, completion and delivery of the estate to Lagosian by 2020.

Speaking during a recent inspection/facility tour of the on-going work at the estate, situated on the side-view of the picturesque Lagoon, Lagos Island, the Commissioner of Housing, Moruf Akinderu-Fatai said with the commitment from both parties, Lagosians and indeed, the general public which has been dreaming of a novel, all-purpose housing complex that seamlessly fuses living, commercial offerings and leisure will soon have such dreams fulfilled.

“We have a solid plan to deliver the first phase of the project (Residential) in the fourth quarter of 2020 to be followed by the Commercial and Entertainment/Leisre Parks in 2021. Ilubirin is a critically important development for the city that will rejuvenate the area. We have a duty to ensure that more Lagos residents become home owners and that the homes themselves are built to global and international standards”, Akinderu-Fatai declared.

While commending the

initiative and steadfastness of the Management of FIDC to the realisation of the Ilubirin dream, the Commissioner expressed optimism that when fully delivered, the project will go a long way in addressing the housing deficit in Lagos, the seventh fastest growing city in the world.

Re-echoing the Commissioner’s resolve, Project Director of FIDC, Wale Bamgbelu said there is “a collective determination and commitment from both parties to the timely delivery of Ilubiri, which will set a new standard for mixed-used housing estates.”

He added: “Ilubirin will create a benchmark for future community development in Lagos state anchored on the concept of ‘live, work and play’ with not only residential offerings but also offices, shopping, new school, hotel, medical center, leisure facilities and a brand new Marina for the Lagoon.”

Bamgbelu further disclosed that a revised Master Plan was recently completed, stressing that this will help in optimizing the Marina and “creating a new shopping spine through the new neighborhood.”

He explained that the Ilubirin first Residential offering, the “Premier Collection” will provide a total of 108 spacious apartments across five elegant blocks

consisting of 20 studios, 64 two-bedrooms and 24 threebedroom apartments carefully designed and detailed to provide some of the finest places to live in anywhere in the world.

Developed by the Ilubirin Fireshore Projects Limited, a Joint Venture between the Lagos state government and the First Investment Development Company (FIDC), the Project Director said,

“Ilubirin is set to become an awe-inspiring neighborhood for a forward-thinking and aspirational community.”

FIDC Chairman, Mr. Adebisi Adebutu was on hand to conduct the distinguished

personalities on the tour. The Housing Commissioner was accompanied on the tour by other top government officials, including the Special Adviser to the state governor on Housing, Mr. Ayo Amosu.

Adebiyi Enjoins Truck Drivers to Evacuate Highways Fadekemi Ajakaiye The Director, Federal Highways, Southwest, Engr. Mr. Funso Adebiyi has enjoined the Transport Unions to evacuate all trucks on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

He stated this at a stakeholders’ meeting held at Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) Project Yard on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway recently.

The parked trucks constitute obstruction to the ongoing reconstruction of the highways, and a quick response to evacuating them is of great importance, he said.

Adebiyi, who gave the objective of the meeting as the evacuation of trucks, explained that ongoing reconstruction work in Ogere, Ogun State, which is the Section 2 of the project is currently suspended due to the illegal parking of trucks on the highway.

The entire nation is like a construction site now, and our roads are broken into 9 major Trunk A. we currently have Trunk A1 to A9, which span from Apapa, Lagos state – Tollgate, Ogun state – Ojoo – Oyo - Ogbomoso – Ilorin – Ilela (Sokoto), he said.

As the yuletide approaches, it is known that traffic increases, and we are doing everything possible to make sure that this road is opened up, the

sections of the road that is not ready will undergo palliative repairs, so we will suspend construction, so that traffic will flow, he said.

“The Lagos-Ibadan road is the most problematic, given the traffic volume it carries and the heavy use by truck drivers, which has resulted in the suspension of work. One, these truck drivers are illegally positioned there and two, they are not allowing contractors to work, so the need for the briefing,” he said.

“If we don’t cooperate with contractors to execute this job, these funds will transferred to other projects, payment is made only through a channel, TSA, if we don’t allow them work and get claim from their money, we run to trouble. We need the whole public to cooperate with us,” he said.

“We are really having a whole lot of challenges; two of our engineers were knocked down and killed on the spot by reckless drivers, these engineers were breadwinners for their families.

We can’t afford losing workers to this project,” he said.

Adebiyi urged all stakeholders, as well as the entire populace to cooperate with them in order to speed up the construction works ahead of the yuletide and in good timing.

He appealed to communities to

desist from their hostilities towards construction workers, as they are only there to improve their livelihood.

For ease of construction, trucks should vacate the highway by a minimum of 50 meters from the road setback, he said.

The truck drivers and communities, who promised compliance, appealed to contractors that excavated materials are extended to fill the bad spots in their areas so as the places motorable.

Adebiyi promised to deliberate with contractors to channel waste materials from the excavation of the highway to fix the bad roads and also directed the reconstruction of some sections for accessibility of trucks to their parks.

The FRSC representatives urged that diversion signs be appropriately mounted at strategic points as accidents occur more at these spots. They promised to effectively supervise and enforce the compliance of all road users.

The Stakeholders present at the meeting included; the Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC), Nigerian Police force (NPF), Ogun & Oyo State Government representatives, Transport Unions. Others are Truck Drivers & Owners Association, Law enforcement Agencies, Traditional Rulers representatives, and Community Residents representatives.

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT

Cobblestone Creates Exciting Waterfall at Sisi Paris on Bourdillon Fadekemi Ajakaiye

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here is a waterfall of about 4 meters high that cascades into the swimming pool at Sisi Paris.

The water exudes different colours on its way, creating its own feel. That was the calm atmosphere the waterfall gave to the guests that night at the unveiling of the exquisite edifice.

There are fine pieces of real estate in Ikoyi and in other parts of Lagos and in Nigeria, generally, but Sisi Paris is different, excitingly.

The swimming pool and its waterfall is one of several common facilities in the facility.

Sisi Paris, developed by Cobblestone Properties and Estates Limited, is distinctively a colourful, tall and bold landmark on Bourdillon that keeps heads turning.

The concept, design and execution of the project were inspired by the Chairman of the Mike Adenuga Group, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr., who was the pillar of support for the project.

The event which was complemented by a jazz band, serenading the august

gathering by the pool side of the luxury apartment building, was attended by captains of industry, premium stakeholders in the property sector, celebrities and friends of the Adenuga family.

Cobblestone Properties & Estates Limited is a property development and marketing company and a major player in the real estate sector in Nigeria.

Prime property developers, Cobblestone Properties and Estates Limited hosted an evening of panache with friends and top-end clients to mark the birth of Sisi Paris, the latest beauty on the skyline of highbrow Ikoyi in Lagos.

Sisi Paris is one of its latest creations, built for those who insist on a lifestyle of luxury. The 10-storey luxury apartments come with opulent furnishing that visitors will find irresistible. The building is draped in luxuriant colours and sublime finishing. It comprises 3-bedroom and 4-bedroom apartments plus one 3-bedroompenthouse apartment that offers a breathtaking view of the Island.

A tour of the facility also revealed ensuite rooms, TV and cinema room, fitted kitchen, furnished laundry

room, domestic staff quarters in every flat; round-the-clock concierge service, the first of its kind in Nigeria, with a 24-hour power and CCTV for maximum security.

Sisi Paris’ rendition flows with modern trend in global real estate market that tends to cater to the needs of millennial clientele that are more assertive in their choice of lifestyle.

Discerning real estate developers like Cobblestone understand this trend, knowing full well that their clients are people of the future. The waterfall that cascades into the swimming pool is no doubt an innovative strategy devised to meet the choice of homes that appeal to the millennial.

Bourdillon Road in Ikoyi, Lagos is full of choice homes, some are rather conservative, but all that has changed with the entrance of the elegant Sisi Paris into the property market.

Standing right next to the waterfall while addressing guests at the swimming pool side, the Executive Director of Cobblestone Properties, Mrs. Bella Disu presented the fine points of Sisi Paris saying, “At Cobblestone Properties, we have developed and managed many commercial

Sanwo-Olu Urges Patronage of Local Market to Build Workforce Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo- Olu has declared unflinching support for the integration of Nigerian Engineers into national development.

The Governor said “Lagos State believes in inclusive governance and patronage of the local market as it helps in capacity building of our work- force; reducing capital flight and brain drain”.

This was contained in an address read on his behalf by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Engr Olujimi Hotonu at the Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria (ACEN) Conference, with the Theme: Integrating Nigerian Engineers into National Development, held at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja.

Sanwo- Olu declared that the government has strong belief in the professional competence of

our engineers and trust that they can hold their ground among their peers outside the country.

He opined that the nation could not continue to rely on foreign nationals for all her construction projects when there were local professionals who could compete favourably with their counterparts around the globe.

However, the governor noted there was the need for them to be encouraged through inclusion and involvement in the design and execution of major projects that cut across all the aspects of engineering including civil, mechanical, chemical to mention but few.

Adding that, it is only by so doing that our engineers will acquire the needed impetus, skills and experience to be more updated and globally competitive.

Governor Sanwo Olu dis-

closed that his administration was developing the necessary condition and framework for the State to effectively transit to a Smart city in line with the vision of the founding fathers, disclosing that stakeholders in the built industry and other relevant sectors would be encouraged to actively participate in the design and the execution of major projects so as to jointly realise the dream of a new Lagos that is safe with great aesthetic value.

Espousing the role of Engineers in national development, he said “the role of the construction sector in our daily life cannot be overemphasized.

Virtually all other sectors rely on the construction industry to provide and maintain their accommodations, plants and infrastructure. With the application of digital technologies, the role of the construction sector

MD/CEO of Merciport Resources, Mrs. Rita Adachukwu James speaking at a conference on Women in Oil and Gas… recently

L-R: Director, Real Estate, Cobblestone Properties, Mr. Olumide Ologun; Group Executive Director, Globacom, Folasade Adenuga; CEO, Cobblestone Properties, Bella Disu; Manager Facilities, Cobblestone, Olusola Odukoya and Project Director, Sisi Paris, Bayo Oyenuga at the opening of luxury apartment building, Sisi Paris, on Bourdillon Road, lkoyi, Lagos...recently Photo: Abiodun Ajala

and residential properties across Nigeria, but Sisi Paris is a milestone for us. It is our first, major luxury residential development. Her name, her design, and her colour arrest attention on the Lagos skyline, however, her real charm lies in being people-centred.”

The Cobblestone Exec said, “When we decided to restructure the building that

was here, we focused on delivering the ideal luxury living experience. To meet the needs of the average family, each 3- and 4-bedroom apartment was redesigned to have two living rooms, one of which can be re-purposed as a study, cinema, or playroom for children. Each apartment also has a fully fitted laundry and a pantry.

“We believe that true luxury extends beyond fittings and finishing; it is in every detail that contributes to superb daily living. That is why Sisi Paris goes a step further by delivering first-rate service.

Round-the-clock concierge will provide scheduling and reservation services while the on-site minimart is a one-stopshop for daily needs.”

is bound to become even more important owing to various global megatrends”.

Speaking further the Governor said “We require the services of construction engineers who will assist with project conception, implementation, delivery and management.

Thus, it is important for us to galvanise and integrate skilled professionals including project engineers to supervise and ensure effective management and timely completion of projects.”

He encouraged Engineers to always abide by the new Public Procurement regulations in their projects execution, the governor stated that, the passage of the Public Procurement Act [PPA], which emphasized competence, appropriate pricing, structured

funding, usage of standard and quality materials, amongst others, was meant or designed to entrench quality, efficiency and safety, in line with global best practices.

Earlier in his welcome in his welcome address, President of Association for Consulting Engineering, Engr. Charles Akindayomi stated that the conference was aimed at bringing Engineers together to rub minds on how to move engineering profession forward to meet international standard practice.

He said the body was working hard to ensure that they take good initiatives that could help to achieve sustainable development in all engineering practice, while

they were determined to ensure that all contracts awarded to any of their members was well monitored to ensure efficient execution and timely delivery of contracts as specified in the contract terms of reference.

In their goodwill messages, Presidents, Council for the Regulations of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Engr. Ali Rabiu and Nigerian Society of Engineers, Engr. Adekunle Mokuolu commended the organisers of the conference, noting that the outcome of the conference would help to shape the practice of engineering practice in the country, noting that the conference would help to promote the growth of engineering in the country.

Oji River Local Government Works to Protect Primates The Oji River Government has passed a new law, the “Primate Rights Bill,” effective November 1, 2019 that extends protection to primates found in the communities of Akpugoeze and Inyi in Oji River LGA. The local government took action in response to a need for greater awareness about the ecological and cultural values of the primate species found in the region and also to the global biodiversity crisis, said a statement by officials of the Legislative Chambers, Oji River LGA. The statement said, “In a report released in May 2019, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES, which is an independent intergovernmental body comprising more than 130 governments; www.ipbes. net) announced that nature is declining globally at rates unmatched in human history.

In addition, the rate of species extinctions is accelerating, with grave impacts on people

around the planet now likely.

The IPBES Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services is the most comprehensive ever completed. Compiled by 145 expert authors from 50 countries over the past 3 years, with inputs from another 310 contributing authors, the report assesses changes over the past 5 decades. Findings in the report show that about 1 million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction, many within decades, more than ever before in human history.”

Primates are notably vulnerable to hunting pressure and habitat loss and degradation – and thus vulnerable to extinction. According to the IUCN Red List (www.iucnredlist.org), of the 450 species of primate in the world, 269 are threatened (meaning that they are classified as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable).

This means that 60% of all primates are at risk – an alarming statistic.

To draw attention to the plight of primates, the Oji River government has initially focused on the Akpugoeze and Inyi communities given that these communities have, to some degree, long protected certain monkey species due to cultural and traditional beliefs.

For example, Akpugoeze harbors the Endangered Sclater’s monkey (Cercopithecus sclateri), a species endemic to southeastern Nigeria. Due to long-standing cultural beliefs, Sclater’s monkey is not killed or harmed by most people from the three communities comprising Akpugoeze (Akpugoeze Autonomous Community, Akpugoeze-Ugwu Autonomous Community, and Akpugoeze-Agbada Autonomous Community). However, some still hunt and kill monkeys in Akpugoeze.

The Primate Rights Bill institutes protection for all primate species in Akpugoeze and Inyi communities and includes punishments for offenders.

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Jersey Finance which was represented by Mr. Allan Wood, Head Business Development and Government of Jersey, represented by Mr. Frederick Holmes; Senior External Relations Officer (Africa and Commonwealth), in Partnership with the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), represented

by Mr. Obinna Anyanwu, Country Director Nigeria, hosted a focused presentation and dinner reception for CWEIC Strategic Partners and top Business Leaders in Lagos recently. The event was chaired by Mrs. Aisha Rimi, Partner, Africa Law Practice (ALP), CWEIC Strategic Partner.

Mr. Obinna Anyanwu, Country Director Nigeria Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC) (right) with Allan Wood, Head Business Development, Jersey Finance.

L-R: Mr. Frederick Holmes, Senior External Relations Officer (Africa and Commonwealth), Government of Jersey; Mr. Allan Wood, Head Business Development, Jersey Finance; Mr. Stephen Whale, Group Director, Private Wealth Services, JTC Plc, Mr. Mark Grigg, Head Corporate & Business Banking, Standard Bank and Mr. Paul Glennon, Principal, GlenQ Private Wealth Limited, Jersey.

Mr. Allan Wood, Head Business Development, Jersey Finance making a presentation on Jersey Finance.

Mr. Frederick Holmes, Senior External Relations Officer (Africa and Commonwealth), Government of Jersey delivering his presentation.

Mr. Greg Ogbeifun, Chairman/CEO, Starzs Investments Coy Ltd, CWEIC Strategic Partner (second left) making his remarks while on his right is Mr. Atiemoria Ehodaghe of Starzs Investments and from his left; Mr. Obaro Odeghe, Executive Director, Corporate Bank Directorate, Fidelity Bank Plc; Mrs. Chidilim Nwafor, representative of Mr. Chiedu Nweke, MD, CZAR Projects Ltd (Promoters of Periwinkle Lifestyle Estate), CWEIC Strategic Partner; Mazi Philip Obioha, Chairman, CWG Plc; Mrs. Owolabi Funmilayo, Assistant Director, Lagos State Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment (Lagos Global), CWEIC Strategic Partner and Mr. Mark Grigg, Head Corporate & Business Banking, Standard Bank.

R-L: Ms. Olamide Akinfolarin, Blackbridge West; Mr. Samuel Okeke, Division Head, Fidelity Bank Plc; Mrs. Miriam Giwa-Osagie, Director, Trust Services, Paxhill Minerva; Mrs. Ife Fashola, CEO, Kedari Capital Ltd; Mr. Frederick Holmes, Senior External Relations Officer (Africa and Commonwealth), Government of Jersey; Mrs. Aisha Rimi, Partner, Africa Law Practice (ALP); Mr. Allan Wood, Head Business Development, Jersey Finance; Mr. Sam Bassey, Special Representative to the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State, CWEIC Strategic Partner; Mr. Baylon Duru, Representative of Mr. Chibuike Achigbu, MD/CEO, Chimons Gas Ltd, CWEIC Strategic Partner; Mr. Obinna Anyanwu, Country Director (Nigeria) CWEIC and Mr. Femi Akioye, MD/CEO, The Imperial International Business City (TIIBC).

L-R: Dr. Andrew S. Nevin, Advisory Partner & Chief Economist, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC); Mrs. Uma Kymal of PWC; Mr. Allan Wood, Head, Business Development, Jersey Finance and Mr. Paul Glennon, Principal, GlenQ Private Wealth Limited, Jersey.

Mrs. Aisha Rimi, Partner, Africa Law Practice (ALP), CWEIC Strategic Partner and chair of the event delivering her opening remarks.

R-L: Mr. Atiemoria Ehodaghe of Starzs Investments Coy Ltd; Mr. Paul Glennon, Principal, GlenQ Private Wealth Limited, Jersey; Mr. Ezekiel Egboye, Chief Operating Officer, Rack Centre Ltd; Mr. Stephen Whale, Group Director, Private Wealth Services, JTC Plc; a guest and Mr. Ifeanyi Umejei, Co-founder, ICE Commercial Power.

Presentation in session

L-R: Mr. Philip Obioha, Chairman, CWG Plc; Mr. Obinna Anyanwu, Country Director (Nigeria) CWEIC and Mr. Theophilus Emuwa, Partner, Aelex

L-R: Mr. Obinna Anyanwu, Country Director (Nigeria) CWEIC; Mr. Frederick Holmes, Senior External Relations Officer (Africa and Commonwealth), Government of Jersey; Mr. Theophilus Amokwu and Mr. Charles Ujomu both of Zenith Bank Plc, CWEIC Strategic Partner.

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INTERNATIONAL

Israeli Researchers Reject Chemotherapy to Cure Early-detected Breast Cancer Israeli researchers have found that breast cancer can be effectively treated without chemotherapy if the disease is detected in its early stages, the Hebrew language newspaper “Yedioth Ahronoth” reports.

The study was conducted by senior oncologists from several Israeli hospitals.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among women, impacting 2.1 million

10 Suspected Terrorists Killed in Burkina Faso Burkina Faso defence and security forces said they killed more than ten terror suspects as they repelled an attack on a gendarmerie post in the east of the country.

A security source said that the attack came at around 5 a.m on Monday.

“Monday at around 5 a.m, armed individuals attacked the brigade of Foutouri gendarmerie in Komandjari province.

“Over ten assailants lost their lives,” the security source said.

According to the source, two members of the defense and security forces were injured during the exchange of gunfire.

This came after an attack by militants on a militaryescorted convoy of five buses carrying employees, contractors, and suppliers of the Canadian gold mining

company Semafo, in Tapoa province in East region.

The attack killed 38 people and dozens were injured.

The following day, Burkina Faso’s President Rock Marc Christian Kaboré addressed the nation and called on all his compatriots for a general mobilisation to defeat the escalating terrorism and disclosed volunteer recruitment for the defense in threatened zones.

Burkina Faso is faced with a worsening security situation, which had caused the closure of 1,455 pre-schools, post-primary schools and secondary schools in 2019, affected 202,595 pupils and 6,276 teachers in six regions.

Since 2015, terrorist attacks have claimed the lives of over 600 people including 200 of the armed forces and displaced thousands of others in the West-African country.

women each year.

It is estimated that 627,000 women died from breast cancer in 2018, about 15 per cent of all cancer deaths among women.

Today, most breast cancer patients are diagnosed in the early stages, giving room for surgery to remove the tumour with very high chances of

recovery.

However, after surgery some patients are advised to undergo chemotherapy treatment to eliminate microscopic cancer cells that were not removed in the surgery.

Chemotherapy often has serious health consequences over the years, including a

serious harm to the immune system, which may be lifethreatening.

In the Israeli study, published in the journal npj Breast Cancer, the researchers examined 1,365 women with breast cancer in over 10 years.

As part of the study, the women underwent an oncotype test to determine the

genetic profile of the tumours, and those with a low risk of recurrence were advised to give up chemotherapy.

It was found that among 97.4 per cent of those who gave up chemotherapy, the disease did not recur, and the mortality rate among this group was only 0.7 per cent.

COURTESY VISIT...

R-L: Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun; Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Ogun State Chapter, Bishop Tunde AkinAkinsanya and Evangelist of the Christ For All Nations (CFAN), Evangelist Daniel Kolenda, during a courtesy visit on the governor, in his office, Abeokuta ...recently

Congo Army Kills Leader of Splinter Hutu Militia Group Court Orders Netherlands to Repatriate Dutch Children from Syria Congolese forces have killed the leader of an offshoot of a Hutu militia in the restive east of the country, the army said on Sunday, two months after killing the leader of the main faction.

Juvenal Musabimana led a splinter group of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a group founded by Hutu officials who fled Rwanda after orchestrating the 1994 genocide.

His killing is the latest blow to the FDLR, which has been weakened in recent years by arrests of several of its leaders and military pressure from Democratic Republic of Congo’s armed forces, the FARDC, and other militias.

The army “neutralised another radical leader of the FDLR on Saturday the ninth of November at 14:00,” said Guillaume Njike, a Congolese army spokesman.

Musabimana, who was also known by his nom de guerre Jean-Michel Africa, was killed alongside four of his bodyguards following an intense firefight in Binza, North Kivu, near the Ugandan border, Njike added.

Congolese forces killed the leader of the main branch of the FDLR, Sylvestre Mudacumura, on Sept. 18.

The group split in a row over ranks and money in 2007, said Christoph Vogel,

a researcher at the conflict research programme hosted by the London School of Economics and Ghent University.

“Compared with Mudacumura, (Musabimana) is a small fish so I doubt this is as significant, but it shows that different actors seem to be converging on a more coordinated push against FDLR and anything they define as such.”

Rwanda’s foreign affairs minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said Musabimana’s fighters were responsible for a deadly crossborder attack in October in a mountainous region famous for its mountain gorillas in which eight people died.

“This is an act of justice,” he said.

“This is the confirmation of the resolve of (Congolese) President Félix Tshisekedi and the FARDC to eradicate armed groups and terrorist organisations in eastern Congo. We thank them for that.”

The FDLR has also been a source of friction between Rwanda and Uganda in the 2018.

Rwanda accused Uganda in March of supporting the FDLR and another Congo-based rebel group opposed to the Rwandan government. Uganda denied the allegations.

The Netherlands must endeavor to repatriate 56 Dutch children born to 23 Dutch women who had joined the ISIS (Islamic State) in Syria, a court ruled here on Monday.

The children live in detention camps in northeastern Syria.

The court said that children are not responsible for the behavior

of their parents, no matter how serious the acts or crimes committed by their mothers are.

“The children are victims of the actions of their parents,” the court stated in its verdict.

Therefore the Dutch government’s policy of not actively seeking to bring the children back must change, according to the

judge.

The court said that as for the mothers, “they deliberately went to Syria or Iraq to join ISIS, a terrorist organisation.

“They knew that that organisation is guilty of repugnant and gross crimes. “The women must face a trial for that.”

The obligation on the part

of the Dutch state to repatriate the children does not mean that they will be able to travel to the Netherlands immediately, given the situation in northern Syria.

“The state must make use of all the options that are available … but one cannot ask the state to take major security risks,” the judge said.

Egypt Opens Jail after UN Report on Morsi’s Death Egyptian authorities Monday opened up Tora prison in Cairo for a media tour, following a UN report on the “brutal” conditions in which jailed ex-president Mohamed Morsi was held before his death.

In a rare tour of the sprawling jail complex, journalists were shown an exhibition of furniture made by inmates, a farm with cows and ostriches, and a brief football match between prisoners.

The guided tour comes ahead of a mission to Geneva by Egyptian officials for a review on Wednesday before the United Nations Human Rights Council.

It was arranged in response to a stinging review last week by an independent panel of UN experts that blasted conditions in Tora.

The experts said the death of ousted Islamist president

Morsi, who was held in Tora for five years, could amount to a “state-sanctioned arbitrary killing”.

The former president died in June after collapsing in a Cairo courtroom while on trial.

“Morsi was held in conditions that can only be described as brutal, particularly during his five-year detention in the Tora prison complex,” the experts said in a statement.

His death “after enduring those conditions could amount to a state-sanctioned arbitrary killing”, the experts added. They also warned that thousands are at risk of death in the same prison.

On the media tour, abuse charges in Tora were dismissed by politicians and personalities that included for example retired ex-national football goalkeeper turned television pundit Ahmed

Shobeir.

“This prison is more of a seaside resort now compared to what it used to be,” Mostafa Bakry, a pro-Sisi parliamentarian, contended.

He told AFP that inmates were treated with dignity, pointing to a newly-mowed football pitch.

On documented allegations of abuse, Bakry said these were foreign-originated charges designed to sow chaos, echoing the common response of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

The former head of the army turned president led the military’s ouster of Morsi in 2013.

“Inmates are not sitting in their cells. They can play soccer or exercise and there are a lot of activities for them,” said Alaa Abed, a former policeman and current head of parliament’s

human rights committee.

Other senior officials declined to speak on the record during the tour, while AFP was prevented from talking directly with inmates.

The family of prominent human rights lawyer Mohamed el-Baqer, who was detained in September, said on social media they were prevented from seeing him Monday because of the media tour.

Rights groups have regularly accused Egyptian authorities of severe violations including torture, overcrowding and medical negligence in jails.

Some 4,000 people, including lawyers, activists, professors and journalists, were detained in a wave of arrests following rare antiSisi protests in September, according to local rights groups.

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NEWS

Guild of Editors Opposes FG’s Proposed Social Media Regulation The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has rejected the proposed social media regulation and advised the federal government to drop the proposed regulation of social media.

In a communiqué issued by the standing committee of the Guild following a meeting held in Lagos at the weekend, the body argued that the proposed legislation violates Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees “freedom of expression, including

the right to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference.”

The standing committee of the Guild also elected Mr. Mustapha Isah as Acting President to fill the vacant position of Mrs. Funke Egbemode, who has been appointed as Osun Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation.

NGE kicked against the proposed regulation of the social media space, declaring it as an

attempt to gag press freedom.

The group recalled that previous efforts in that direction were usually “misconstrued by security agents and some public officials to harass, arrest and in most cases, illegally detain journalists and other Nigerians for holding their opinions.”

It urged the federal government to seek ways to maximise social media to disseminate information on its activities and policies.

NGE also called for engagement of the founders and promoters of social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to creatively curtail extremisms of violence and hate speech.

The Guild warned that the proposed regulation will further worsen the country’s rating in poor record of Press Freedom and Freedom of Speech, which stands at 120 out of 180 nations surveyed.

The group argued that instead of ‘sanitising’ the social media, the government should engage and collaborate with the media to combat fake news and rumour.

“Such synergy and partnership in an Information Age, is the best way to make the most of the advantages of social media which far outweigh any perceived disadvantages.”

The Guild added that the country has sufficient laws,

including the Cyber Crime Act 2015 to deal with ‘hate speech’ and ‘Fake News’.

NGE further advised the federal government to test the existing laws “in accordance with due process of the law rather than create another legal instrument and atmosphere that would give agents of state the latitude to harass and criminalise citizens especially journalists.”

Gunmen Abduct Two Lecturers in Kaduna John Shiklam in Kaduna Two lectures have been kidnapped by gunmen in Mahuta community of Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The two lecturers whose names were given as Dr. Adamu Chinoko and Dr. Umar Chinoko are said to be biological brothers, teaching at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria and Kaduna Polytechnic, respectively.

It was learnt that Adamu was abducted on Thursday night and the kidnappers demanded a ransom of N2 million and a new motorcycle.

Umar who was said to have gone to deliver the ransom on Sunday was also abducted by the bandits after collecting the ransom .

The two kidnapped lecturers are indigenes of Kebbi State.

Spokesman of the Kaduna

State Police Command, Yakubu Sabo could not be reached as at press time.

However, spokesman of Kebbi State Indigenes Association in Kaduna State, Garba Mohammad, confirmed that the two brothers were abducted.

He said Dr. Adamu Chinoko was the first to be kidnapped by the gunmen on Thursday, while Dr. Umar Chinoko, who went to deliver the ransom for the release of his brother on Sunday was also abducted.

“Dr. Umar Chinoko went to pay a ransom of N2 million and a new motorbike the kidnappers demanded for and he was held.

“After they collected the ransom, they also held him hostage and demanded for yet another ransom of N5 million.

“As I speak to you both of them are still in captivity with the abductors.” he said.

Aisha Buhari Hosts Prayer Session for Nigeria Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari yesterday convened a special prayer session for the country at the Banquet Hall, State House, Abuja to commemorate the Eid Maloud festival.

The event, which reviewed the importance of supplication for the nation’s guidance and development, witnessed the presence of Islamic scholars from across the nation.

While addressing the guests, Mrs Buhari, in a statement by the Special Assistant to the President Media and Publicity, (Office of the First Lady), Aliyu Abdullahi, harped on the importance of worship.

She described faith as “ the highway through which our requests and innermost desires are achieved”.

The First Lady also reminded participants that Islam has outlined their responsibilities to their creator, societies, their close and extended families and neighbours.

She also asked them to carry out these responsibilities to the best of their abilities.

Speaking on the responsibilities of heads of households, she charged men to adhere to the teachings of Prophet Muhammad and be responsible to their families through love, care and provision. She said this will spread horizontally across the society and vertically across generations, insisting that this can address the multiple societal

ills that are bedeviling the nation; including rampant drug abuse particularly amongst women and youth, corruption in high and small places both in public and private sectors, and violent crimes.

She also appealed to the Muslim Ummah to promote the spirit of tolerance, love, harmony, and peaceful coexistence among the people of different faiths in the nation.

The Chairman of the occasion and Secretary General of Nigeria Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, said Nigeria has been caught at crossroads.

He said corruption has almost destroyed the nation, but for the intervention of President Muhammadu Buhari. Oloyede also said Nigerians must be better people in all ramifications if the country wants to attain greatness.

Scholars delivered speeches on issues of faith and practice, corruption, drug abuse, security, entrepreneurship and the emerging trend of child abduction.

Highlight of the occasion was a session of special prayers for the nation and its leaders conducted by a team of renowned Islamic Scholars present at the event.

The event was attended by the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari; Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola; Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu; former Governor of Nasarawa state, Sen. Tanko Almakura and other dignitaries.

80 HEARTY CHEERS...

R-L: Celebrant’s son-in-law, Olaleye Adebyi; his wife, Omowande; celebrant’s son-in-law, Osagie Ediale; his wife, Ayodeji; celebrant, Chief Olufemi Adeniyi-Williams; his wife, Temitope; his daughter,Tolulope Popoola; and her husband, Fela, during Adeniyi-Williams 80th birthday reception at the Muson Centre Onikan, after a thanksgiving service at the Cathedral Church, Marina, Lagos...yesterday. ABIODUN AJALA

Abdulsalami’s National Peace Committee Takes Campaign againstViolence to Bayelsa Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa The National Peace Committee (NPC) led by former Head of State, Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar (rtd), yesterday visited Bayelsa State in a bid to ensure a credible and violence-free governorship election next Saturday.

Leader of the team, Bishop Matthew Kukah, who spoke during the event which was held at the Diepreye Alamieyeseigha Memorial Banquet Hall in Yenagoa, the state capital, noted that as a journey, democracy requires constant practice to attain a level of stability.

At the event, which had the state Governor, Seriake Dickson; traditional rulers, politicians, and officials of

the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in attendance, Kukah explained that it is only the living that can enjoy the fruits of democracy.

He, therefore, enjoined the people of the state to rewrite their own political story by ensuring that no incidence of violence takes place before, during and after the election.

According to him, “Aviolence-free poll must be something that all of you must try to work towards. As you know, not every Bayelsan is a member of a political party, but it is on your behalf that this election is being conducted. I bring you greetings from the peace committee, and I want to enjoin you to ensure

that we all imbibe the thinking that only the living can enjoy the dividends of democracy.

“The idea behind the election circle and timetable is so we can imbibe the political culture or attitude that goes with politics.

Those who watch football, know I can do very little with the ball, but with Messi and Ronaldo, it’s a different thing altogether because they have practiced over time.

“So, in this election, as time goes on, it will make us better students and make sure that violence does not occur. I thank you all for breaking the campaign trail to listen to us. We hope that the best candidate wins the election

and that they make this place a more peaceful state. Let’s all join one political party which is then ‘Great Bayelsa Party (GBP)’.”

In his intervention, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Monday Udoh, noted that INEC was fully prepared for the poll.

He said|: “INEC is doing all it can to ensure people vote without molestation, shortage of materials and malfunctioning card readers.

Bayelsa State has done all it is required to do. We had 14 outlined activities.

We have done 12. We are receiving materials. They have been batched a long time ago with polling units of 2,244 in the state.æ

Winners’ Pastor Released after Seven Months in Captivity A pastor with the Living Faith Ministries (aka Winners’ Chapel) has been released from the captivity of Boko Haram.

The pastor, Moses Oyeleke, was abducted by the terrorist group on April 10, 2019 while on a journey to distribute relief materials at Chibok.

Oyeleke’s freedom was made

possible through some local non-governmental agencies who worked in collaboration with the Borno State Government to secure his release.

Also released to the Borno State Government yesterday was a woman, Ndagilaya Umar, of Government Science Secondary School, Askira Uba, also in Borno

State.

The mission that led to Oyeleke’s freedom started penultimate week after Governor Babagana Umara had reached an agreement with two respected NGOs and informing the military and security agencies.

The freed pastor and

the released woman were subsequently handed over to the Borno Deputy Governor, Usman Kadafur, yesterday.

The abductees, speaking at the Government House, Maiduguri, commended the security personnel and Kaltum Foundation for securing their release.

Gbajabiamila Eulogises Mamman Daura at 80 Adedayo Akinwale ín Abuja The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has felicitated with elder statesman, Malam

Mamman Daura, as he marks his 80th birthday.

Gbajabiamila, in a statement issued yesterday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, said that attaining the

age of 80 is a great achievement worth celebrating.

The Speaker described Daura as a peaceful, loving and unassuming individual.

He said, “I wish to celebrate

this great Nigerian, who has done a lot for the country in different ways. While wishing our elder statesman continuous good health and Allah’s protection, I pray he sees many more birthdays.”

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TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Visa to Acquire 20% Stake in Interswitch Emma Okonji with agency report Visa is set to acquire a 20 per cent stake in Interswitch, Nigeria’s payment channels gateway, with the payment of $200 million. Visa valued Interswitch at $1 billion.

Helios bought 52 percent of Interswitch for $96 million in December 2010.

Zenith Bank still owns a 5 per cent stake in Interswitch and is currently valued at N538.4 billion, according to report from Skynews.

The report said Visa and Interswitch were in advanced talk on the transaction that could be announced this week.

A source from Interswitch said it would be too early to comment on the deal. The source, however, did not deny the deal.

Interswitch reportedly generated an annual revenue of N30 billion. It reported a profit after tax of N5.3 billion in 2018 and has an impressive EBITDA margin of 43 per cent.

According to the report, the move by Visa to acquire a 20 per cent stake was targeted at becoming a cornerstone

investor in Interswitch ahead of the company’s prospective initial public offering (IPO) in London next year.

It was reported by Nairametrics that Interswitch has revived its plans for an initial public offering, via a dual listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange.

Interswitch, according to the report, has hired two financial advisers, the JPMorgan Chase & Co, and the Standard Bank Group to prepare it on the potential initial public offering.

Firms desiring to be listed on the stock market typically hire financial advisers that would help them with valuation, marketing of the offer, compliance with listing rules, and other regulatory filings.

Visa also wanted to make a strong statement against its closest rival, MasterCard, with its move to acquire a 20 per cent stake in Interswitch.

Earlier in the year, MasterCard had invested $300 million in Dubai-based Network International ahead of its stock market debut in London. Network

International, is the largest payment processor in Africa and the Middle East.

The rush to build stakes in African businesses by Visa and MasterCard is being driven by a desire to take advantage of established

platforms in markets that are both fast-growing and under-penetrated.

Interswitch is considered Nigeria’s first unicorn in the Fintech space and has dominated Nigeria’s payment channels gateway for over

a decade.

It is also one of the largest Africa-focused electronic payments and infrastructure companies, with pointof-sale terminals, online consumer payment

platforms and its own card, Verve.

Financial Analysts saw Interswitch’s move to cede a 20 percent stake to Visa as a huge competitive move to increase its market penetration.

Obasanjo: People Living with Sickle Cell Need Empathy, CONDOLENCE VISIT...

L-R: Grand daughter of the deceased, Eniola Fatimilehin; Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; younger sister of the deceased, Mama Not Sympathy Mercy Ogundiya; and daughter of the deceased, Mrs Funsho Taiwo, during the governor’s condolence visit to the family of the late Deborah Jibowu, first Nigerian female graduate in the sciences, in Lagos…weekend

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has reiterated the need for more collaborative efforts to foster better education and awareness about sickle cell disease, insisting that people living with sickle cell need empathy not sympathy.

The former president, who spoke last week in Lagos as the grand patron of the First African Congress on Sickle Cell Disease (ACSCD), emphasised the fact that every sickle cell sufferer has a unique story behind the pain they go through.

The three-day conference was organised by Dr. Sickle Cell - Center for Sickle Cell Disease in association with Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation and supported

by World Health Organisation, Federal Ministry of Health amongst other sickle cell foundations across Africa.

It was indeed a huge event for the sickle cell community in Africa and was attended by delegates from Ghana, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania,Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Namibia, India, Netherland, Egypt, Belgium, Canada, United State and United Kingdom.

The co-chair, ACSCD Congress, Dr. David Ajaere stated during his welcome address that the burden of sickle cell disease cannot be overcome by any single organisation or individual, stressing that it takes an holistic approach whereby partnerships are forged between organisations and relevant stakeholders with aligned interest and vision in a bid to overcoming sickle cell disease in Africa. The Director for WHO, Africa region, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti who was represented at the congress by Prof. Jeanmarie Dangou, Coordinator of

Non-Communicable Disease Primary Prevention and Integrated Management, also addressed the need for setting priorities for national, regional and global SCD prevention and controlprogramme.

The Kabaka (King) of the Buganda kingdom in Uganda who was represented at the congress by his Minister of Health, Dr. Prosperous Nankindu also shared insight on the fight against sickle cell disease in Uganda and how they have successfully made Ugandans more aware of sickle cell management by puporlarising the need for genotype screening before marriage.

The First lady of Lagos State, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu who was represented at the congress by Dr. Mobolaji Johnson, gave a welcome address to the local and international delegates at the Congress.

The Chief Executive Officer, National Marrow Donor Programme/Be The Match, Dr. Randal Mills also stated that a cure for sickle cell disease exists.

He further mentioned that access to curative bone marrow transplant requires partnership at all levels.

Hope Foundation and First lady of Abia State, Mrs. Nkechi Ikpeazu, said Sickle cell disease is mainly an African problem, adding that stakeholders on the African continent should lead efforts to eradicate She also acknowledged that some non-governmental bodies and a few governments were doing quite a bit to address the challenge of sickle cell and that individual efforts would yield better results if there is collaboration across borders.

Tension in Kogi as Armed Hoodlums Set Fire to SDP Office Barely five days to the governorship election in Kogi State, unknown persons suspected to be thugs have set fire to the secretariat of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Lokoja, the state capital.

It was gathered that the building was razed yesterday at about 1a.m. with valuable items such as furniture, documents, electrical equipment and campaign materials burnt.

The building, which is located few metres away to the state police command headquarters in Lokoja, was reported vandalised on Saturday, by suspected

armed thugs.

It was learnt that the SDP rented the building from AVM Ndatsu Umaru (rtd), a former military governor of Kwara and Kano states.

When contacted, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Akeem Busari, confirmed the incident and said the police had launched investigation into the arson with a view to identifying and bringing the perpetrators to book.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that incidence of attacks had increased in the state in the past few days, causing fear and tension among the

residents.

In his reaction, the state Chairman of the SDP, Alhaji Mukhtar Atima, accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of being behind the attack.

He said the obvious fear of defeat starring APC in the face made it to “release their boys to unleash terror on our party.”

Aside this, he said that the governorship candidate of the party, Mrs. Natasha Akpoti had been receiving threats from some quarters.

“No amount of harassment and destruction will deter the party and its governorship candidate from contesting

and winning the November 16 election,” he said .

He appealed to party members and supporters to remain peaceful and not to be deterred by provocative and uncivil conducts of members of the ruling party.

The Chairman, Media Committee, Bello/Onoja Campaign Organisation, Mr. Kingsley Fanwo, denied allegations that the hoodlums were sponsored by the APC. He said that Bello and the leadership of the party were currently engaged in rigorous campaigns , saying that ” there is no time for irrelevant issues now.”

NYSC: Why We Evicted Corps Members from Ebonyi Camp The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) yesterday gave further clarifications as to the reason why two corps members in Ebonyi State were evicted from the Orientation Camp in the state.

The two members according to reports were sent packing for allegedly refusing to wear the NYSC kits in camp.

They were said to have worn skirt against the usual trousers given to them by the NYSC. Efforts to make them change and wear the approved kits proved abortive forcing the NYSC to de-kit and decamp them.

Following widespread misconception and condemnation that trailed the story, the scheme on Monday

moved to clear the air on the issue.

The State Coordinator, Mrs. Ann Ibe said the NYSC followed due process in dekiting the corps members.

According to her, the corps members were queried for flouting Schedule 1 Article 3 (b) (ix) of the NYSC Bye-Laws 1993.

The article she cited according to investigation deals with code of conduct of corps members especially as it has to do with mode of dressing.

A copy of the bye laws states in Schedule 1 Article 3 that ‘every member shall observe the following code of conduct during the period for which the code relates.

It further goes on to state

in (b) (ix) that during the orientation, every member shall wear the various uniform provided for activities.

She further said that the bye-laws also stipulated punishment for offenders in schedule 2 article 1(I) (a).

The said schedule 2 article (I) (a) states that ‘failure to wear the uniform provided for any particular activity, the corps member should be informed to go and wear the uniform, failing which he will be decamped’.

Ibe said the corps members were dekited in line with the recommendations of the NYSC Camp Court.

The court, she noted is the NYSC Disciplinary Committee which handles cases arising in camp.

“The court considered their cases and gave opportunity to defend themselves for not being properly kitted in line with service regulations which includes undertaking to keep to the rules and regulations of the scheme”.

“They were properly defended by a corps lawyer and at the end, the court found them guilty and recommended they be decamped and de-kitted”, she said.

The State Coordinator, however, noted that though they were de-kitted and decamped in line with the bye laws of the NYSC, the matter has been forwarded to the Headquarters of the Scheme for final determination.

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TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 •T H I S D AY

Advertorial

THE NEEDLESS DELAY OF HIGH CHIEF O. B. LULU- BRIGGS’ FUNERAL

DUMO’S 13 FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS AGAINST STEPMOTHER “How can I be responsible for the delay?

How do I bury my father when I don’t have the body?

If I decide now to bury my father and Seinye still has an action in court in Ghana, how do I do it?”’

– Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, as reproduced by his spokesman and Publicist Ijuye Dagogo and published on his Facebook post of October 24, 2019 at 1:13pm and across other media platforms.

Contrary to the widely circulated statements of Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, Chairman of Platform Petroleum and the 2nd son of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs, that he, Dumo, is unable to proceed with the funeral rites of his late father on account of constraining litigations initiated by his stepmother, Dr. Mrs. Seinye Lulu-Briggs, he Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs is personally responsible for instituting a plethora of legal actions.

As a matter of fact, no lawsuit exists anywhere in the world, whether from him or his stepmother that stops or is likely to stop the interment of his father High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs. Not a single case out of the plethora of cases Dumo has filed nor the two lawsuits made in response to his by his stepmother impacts on the burial of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs.

Despite the fact that Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, a lawyer who ordinarily should not be engaged in forum shopping, has traversed multiple judicial jurisdictions beginning from Omoku in Rivers State, a judicial jurisdiction bearing no nexus with his claims, to Accra Ghana, Abuja and the Port Harcourt Judicial Division of the High Court of Rivers State in what can best be described as a transnational abuse of court processes and the misuse of the judicial system in a desperate bid to indict his stepmother for the passing of her husband, his father, High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs even when he has all material facts that his father died a natural death, there’s still no legal prohibition from anyone anywhere in the world on the burial of his father even though he, Dumo, wants the public to believe otherwise.

Dumo had in a statement reproduced by his publicist, Ijuye Dagogo bragged about his lawyerly manipulative skills when he said,”I am a lawyer and if I were concerned about acquiring

property, I would have done something regarding Moni Pulo, so that nobody gets revenue from the company, but I haven’t done any such thing.” Perhaps, this lawyerly

manipulative skill in abuse of court processes is what he has activated against his stepmother, which sustains his plot to delay his father’s funeral.

As at today, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs has instituted a total of 13 suits since April 2019, all of which are against his stepmother without impacting on the funeral of his father, High Chief O. B. LuluBriggs, while his step mother, Dr. Mrs Seinye Lulu-Briggs, has responded to his 11 lawsuits with just 2 lawsuits in her defence and for her protection, which also do not impact on the burial of her husband.Yet, Dumo claims her suits are responsible for the delay of his father’s funeral, when indeed not a single lawsuit stops the burial of the celebrated patriarch, nationalist and philanthropist, High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs. The following are the 13 frivolous suits he has initiated since the passing of his father after failing to bully his stepmother into setting aside his father’s Last Will and Testament.

SUIT No. 1: OHC/20/2019, Rivers State High Court, Omoku Division via Ex Parte Application.

On the 9th of April 2019 along with 2 of his 4 brothers, he initiated a suit OHC/20/2019 at the Omoku Division of the Rivers State High Court against his stepmother, Dr. Mrs Seinye Lulu-Briggs and 6 others via an ex parte application. The aim of the suit was to stop the reading of the Last Will and Testament of his father, High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs, dated 2004, which according to his Father’s lawyers contained burial instructions by his father.

SUIT No. 2: OHC/7MISC/2019, Rivers State High Court, Omoku Division via Ex Parte Motion.

When he failed to achieve his purpose with the first suit, he instituted another suit OHC/7MISC/2019 again at the Omoku Division of the Rivers State High Court against the Chief Registrar of the High Court of Rivers State on the 15th of April 2019. The aim of the suit was to obtain an Order of Court allowing him to deposit another Will purportedly given to him by his father in 2003. This was in spite of his opposition to the reading of the Last Will and Testament of his father, which was deposited by his father’s lawyers, on the grounds that his father had not been buried.

April 2019 alleging fraud and financial Malpractice against Dr. (Mrs.) Seinye Lulu-Briggs, the Force Criminal Investigation Department of the Nigeria Police on the 28th of May 2019 approached a Magistrate Court at the Abuja Judicial Division for an order to freeze the accounts of Dr. (Mrs.) Seinye Lulu-Briggs. The order was obtained 2 days later on the 30th of May 2019 resulting in the freezing of her accounts on spurious, fathom and baseless accusations lacking the least modicum of credibility.

SUITS No. 5, 6 & 7: Coroner’s Court, Kaneshie District Magistrate Court, Accra, Ghana via Ex Parte Application Dumo instituted the 5th, 6th and 7th lawsuits on the same day at the Coroner’s Court of the Kaneshie District Magistrate Court in Accra, Ghana. Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, following a petition on the 10th of July 2019 to the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ghanaian Police alleging the murder of his father by his stepmother, sought two Orders of Court, yet again via an ex parte application. The first was to privately conduct an autopsy on his father aimed at corroborating his allegation of murder and the second was for an order directing the Registrar of Births/ Death of the Republic of Ghana to privately release the mortal remains of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs to him purportedly for burial even when his request for an autopsy was yet to be carried out.

Strangely, due to the rush to clandestinely secure the orders, it was riddled with errors and had to be applied for and issued 3 times by the Magistrate within the same day, 12th of July 2019. Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs personally facilitated the said amendments in order to ensure the autopsy was done on the same day (12th of July 2019) that the order was made and without any notice given to his stepmother.

When by the grace of God Almighty, his stepmother, Dr. Mrs. Seinye Lulu-Briggs became aware of the secret moves to relocate the earthly remains of her husband to an unknown location for the purpose of conducting a private autopsy without her knowledge or involvement, given that she had been threatened by Dumo who had said before his pastor that he would accuse her of the killing of his father for refusing to accept his bid to set-aside the Last Will and Testament of his father, an ailing 88 year old man whom he knew died naturally, Mrs. Seinye Lulu-Briggs on the same day 12th of July 2019 IN RESPONSE TO DUMO’S LAWSUIT, had no option but to approach the High Court of Ghana asking it to set aside the Order of the Magistrate Court made based on an Ex Parte application by Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs and aimed at perpetrating mischief. She prayed the Court to ensure all parties were put on notice and for the court to hear the matters on the merits of the case. Her purpose for going to court was for it to determine the proper procedure for the autopsy given that Dumo was bent on fabricating indicting evidence against her. She did not go to court to stop the autopsy as is widely claimed by Dumo and his acolytes. Rather, she went to court to ensure the process was fair to all parties involved, which was eventually what was done.

Thankfully, the court heard the matter and determined the procedure for conducting the autopsy.

The autopsy was done on the 19th of July 2019 in the presence of pathologists presented by both Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs and his stepmother Dr. Mrs. Seinye Lulu-Briggs. The preliminary report was clear. High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs did not die a violent death but of Cardiac Arrest.

Dumo’s Pathologists, Dr. Francis Adedayo Faduyile, the current President of the Nigerian Medical Association, who was flown to Ghana for the exercise, and the renowned Ghanaian pathologist Professor Agyeman Akosa observed the autopsy procedure and have not disputed its preliminary reports to this very day. Members of the Nigeria Police Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Abuja, investigating Dumo’s fake allegations against his stepmother were also present in Accra, Ghana for the post-mortem. They too have not disputed the preliminary reports. But, of course, a desperate Dumo was not satisfied.

SUIT No. 8: GJ/1600/2019, High Court of Ghana, Counter-Claim against Seinye Lulu-Briggs

He however discontinued the Omoku suit on the 30th of April 2019 and instituted another suit PHC/1309/2019 at the Port Harcourt Division of the Rivers State High Court via another Ex parte application on the 15th of May 2019, yet again, against the Chief Registrar of the High Court of Rivers State and for the same purpose of obtaining an Order of Court allowing him to deposit a will purportedly given to him by his father in 2003, even though it contradicts his position that no will should be read before his father’s burial.

Dumo, on the 13th of August 2019 made a counterclaim against Dr. (Mrs.) Seinye Lulu-Briggs in her 12th of July suit wherein she prayed the court to put all parties on notice. In his counterclaim, Dumo is asking the court for a declaration that the mortal remains of High Chief (Dr.) O. B. LuluBriggs be handed to him (Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs) as head of the family, which again would afford him the opportunity, not necessarily to bury his father, but to carry on with his planned mischief of fabricating false evidence to indict his mother. So, Dumo’s claim that it was she who went to court and is responsible for the delay of her husband’s interment is untrue. Her suit was clear and did not impact on the burial of her husband. Even if she were to discontinue this lawsuit as he would wish, is he willing to withdraw his counter-claims to ensure his father is buried without further delay, given that his suit would still subsist even when she discontinues hers? These are some of the issues only him alone can address.

SUIT No. 4: Magistrate Court, FCT, Abuja. Banker’s Order arising from Petition to IGP

SUIT No. 9: Probate Registry of the Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt Division, Notice to Prohibit Grant

Based on a petition by Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs to the Inspector General of Police on the 10th of

On the 26th of July, after the unnecessary autopsy Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs demanded to be done

SUIT No. 3: PHC/1309/2019, Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt Division via Ex Parte Application.

41

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY on his father had been done, he yet again, approached the courts with two matters. The first was to the Probate Registry of the Rivers State High Court to give Notice by way of Prohibition and Caveat to the Probate Registry that no Grant should be concluded with in relation to the Estate of his father High Chief Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs as contained in his Will dated 2004 and deposited with the Probate Registry by Order of the Rivers State High Court made on the 25th of March, 2019, which was read on the 26th of July, 2019.

SUIT No. 10: PHC/2520/2019, Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt Division via a Motion on Notice The second lawsuit of the 26th of July 2019 was in partnership with 2 of his 4 brothers. It was to obtain an Order of Court restraining the Chief Registrar of the Rivers State High Court and the Probate Registrar from issuing a Letter of Probate with respect to the Last Will and Testament of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs dated 2004 and deposited with the Probate Registry by Order of the Rivers State High Court made on the 25th of March, 2019, which was read on the 26th of July, 2019.

All these suits were being filed mostly secretly in spite of Dumo’s public statements that he had no interest in the estate of his father and that his only wishes were either to find the cause of death of his father or to give his father a befitting burial depending on who he is speaking to at the material time. His wishes, according to him, could only come true when his stepmother vacates her lawsuits and hands over the mortal remains of his father to him. This is in spite of the fact that his stepmother did not have a single suit stopping or impacting on the burial of her husband. Besides, she has also always maintained that at any date of his choosing for burial, the earthly remains of her husband will be available for interment.

SUIT No. 11: Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt Division via an Ex parte Application Not done, Dumo along with 2 of his 4 brothers, yet again, on the 16th of August 2019 via an ex parte application sought an order for substituted service on his Stepmother in the suit seeking to restrain the Chief Registrar of the Rivers State High Court and the Probate Registrar from issuing a Letter of Probate with respect to the Last Will and Testament of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs dated 2004 and deposited with the Probate Registry by Order of the Rivers State High Court made on the 25th of March, 2019, which was read on the 26th of July, 2019.

SUIT No. 12: PHC/2751/2019, Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt Division via an Ex parte Application On the 20th of August 2019, yet again via an ex parte application, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs approached the Port Harcourt Division of the High Court of Rivers State to obtain an Order of Interim Injunction restraining his stepmother, Dr. Mrs. Seinye Lulu-Briggs and 27 others from giving effect to the Letters of Probate granted on the 9th of August, 2019 with respect to the Last Will and Testament of High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs dated 2004 and deposited with the Probate Registry by Order of the Rivers State High Court made on the 25th of March, 2019, which was read on the 26th of July, 2019.

SUIT No. 13: Coroner’s Court of the Kaneshie District Magistrate Court, Accra, Ghana via an Ex parte Application Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs on the 5th of September 2019 instituted his 13th suit, yet again, via an ex parte application, against his stepmother and yet again at a familiar ground, the Coroner’s Court of the Kaneshie District Magistrate Court, which has without fail granted him all his applications irrespective of their questionable imports and defective contents. This time he sought to obtain a Coroner’s Order for a second autopsy. Strangely, this same court ordered for the first autopsy to be conducted. Strangely, too, the same court acknowledging that the first autopsy had been done with its result still being awaited goes ahead to seek the violation of the first autopsy by ordering another one based on Dumo’s demands. Stranger than fiction was that this same court granted the order in clear violation of laid down procedures.

To this end, based on the fact that the intended mischief of Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs in seeking to indict his stepmother for the passing of his father had become unmistakably vivid to the blind and audible to the deaf, Mrs Seinye Lulu-Briggs approached Ghana’s High Court of Justice for the second time and IN RESPONSE TO DUMO’S LAWSUIT with an application, via a Motion on Notice, rather than the nocturnal ex parte processes accustomed to Dumo. Her intention was to invoke the supervisory jurisdiction of the High Court for Orders of Certiorari and Prohibition to be directed at the District Court Magistrate, Kaneshie District 2 with respect to the Order she granted for a second autopsy.

NO LAWSUIT STOPS THE BURIAL OF HIGH CHIEF O. B. LULU-BRIGGS Based on the above, it is crystal clear that although Dumo has instituted 13 suits against his stepmother, while she, on her part, has responded to his frivolous court cases with 2 lawsuits for her protection in law and against Dumo’s desperate bid to indict her for her husband’s passing, not a single one of the 15 lawsuits is responsible for why High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs has not been buried.

The public statements by Dumo that his stepmother, Dr. Mrs. Seinye O. B. Lulu-Briggs is withholding, stalling or delaying the burial of her husband with her suits are both untrue and misleading, as always.

Her intention from the very beginning has always been about according her husband a dignified interment and it is something Dumo, himself, is not desirous of, which is why he keeps giving excuses after each for why his father, High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs cannot be interred. He, Dumo, is responsible for postponing the funeral twice after dates had been agreed on and invitations extended to guests.

APPEAL BY MRS LULU-BRIGGS Dr. Mrs. O. B. Lulu-Briggs, on her part, has remained steadfast in calling for the interment of her husband, the statesman and nationalist, High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs. The truth is that nobody but Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, as the evidence shows, is personally responsible for why his father has not been interred.

He should be prevailed upon to respect the legacy of his father and end the wicked public spectacle.

His stepmother, Mrs. Seinye O. B. Lulu Briggs is prepared at any time of his choosing, suit or no-suit, to ensure the mortal remains of their patriarch; High Chief O. B. Lulu-Briggs is respectfully interred.

High Chief (Dr.) O.B. Lulu-Briggs’ in his Will has directed on how he wishes to be buried and that his funeral service is to be simple and done in the Kalabari tradition, as allowed by his Christian beliefs.

May God grant him his solemn wishes.

ORAYE ST. FRANKLYN

Spokesman, Dr. Mrs. Seinye O. B. Lulu-Briggs

NEWS

NAFDAC Destroys N3bn Fake Drugs Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed substandard and falsified medical products worth more than N3.226 billion in the past two years.

This was disclosed yesterday by the Director General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who stated that the agency, in conjunction with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has commenced the destruction of seized consignments of substandard and falsified medical products, especially Tramadol.

She noted that a total of twentyfour containers of the products have been destroyed.

Adeyeye made these revelations at a press briefing in Abuja to mark her two years in the office.

She also condemned the light sentences handed to peddlers of Tramadol and counterfeited drugs in the country and called on the judiciary to review the penalty to reflect stiffer sentence.

“It breaks my heart that a sentence of five years imprisonment or N250,000 fine is given to someone that is trafficking

Tramadol that is killing our youths, destroying homes and casting shadow in the future of Nigeria.

I am pleading to the judiciary to look at the consequences of narcotic on our homes and review the sentencing,” Adeyeye said.

She said: “The Agency raided two warehouses located within in a residential area in Igbo Amaeze Street, Awada Obosi, Onitsha, Anambra State, where substandard and falsified versions of popular brands of anti-malaria and antibiotics were stored.

“One hundred and nine cartons of assorted products including Lincocin Capsule, Augmentin, Artesunate, Panadol Extra, Cafcol 250mg Capsules, Busoopan, Laridox, Postinor 2 tablets, Coartem 20/120, Lofnac (Diclofenac Sodium) and Aldomet were evacuated.

“Investigation is ongoing to unravel the owners of the products.”

Adeyeye said NAFDAC also intercepted a truck conveying substandard and falsified medical products en-route Kano. The products are worth about N6 million.

She stated that NAFDAC staff

were always exposed to violent attacks and offer of huge bribe by producers of counterfeit drugs. The director general also pointed out that a daughter of a staff of the agency was kidnapped by those who were hurt by the agency’s regulatory activities but was later released by her abductors.

The director general, therefore, called on the federal government to come to the aid of the agency with improved funding to save the lives of Nigerians and to also review the salaries of NAFDAC workers because most of them could not afford decent accommodation in Lagos.

The agency, according to her, needed N1.53 billion to by Truscan, a modern hand held device used to detect counterfeited drugs. “NAFDAC literarily funds itself. We get little money from the government. We are funding our activities through the money that companies pay to get their products reviewed or approved.

We have little means but we need the support of international partners to buy devices. The Truscan device cost N15.3 million each and we are looking at 100 pieces to be distributed to 36 states,” she said.

Human Rights Watch Condemns Chaining Mental Health Patients Across Nigeria International watchdog, Human Rights Watch (HRW), has condemned the act of chaining mental health patients in various mental health facilities across Nigeria.

It urged the Nigerian government to ban chaining, labelling it as “terrible.”

In a report issued yesterday and signed by Emina erimovi , a senior disability rights researcher, the group said that detention, chaining, and violent treatment are pervasive in many settings, including state hospitals, rehabilitation centres, traditional healing centres, and both Christian and Islamic faith-based facilities.

According to the report, deeprooted problems in Nigeria’s healthcare and welfare systems leave most Nigerians unable to get adequate mental health care or support in their communities.

The group further stated that

stigma and misunderstanding about mental health conditions, including the misperception that they are caused by evil spirits or supernatural forces, often prompt relatives to take their loved ones to religious or traditional healing places.

“Thousands of people with mental health conditions across Nigeria are chained and locked up in various facilities where they face terrible abuse, Human Rights Watch said today.

“Detention, chaining, and violent treatment are pervasive in many settings, including state hospitals, rehabilitation centers, traditional healing centers, and both Christian and Islamic faithbased facilities.

“People with mental health conditions should be supported and provided with effective services in their communities, not chained and abused.

“People with mental health conditions find themselves in chains in various places in Nigeria, subject to years of unimaginable hardship and abuse.

“President Muhammadu Buhari said in October 2019 of the Islamic rehabilitation centres that he would not “tolerate the existence of the torture chambers and physical abuses of inmates in the name of rehabilitation.

“But the government has yet to acknowledge that this abuse is rife in government-run facilities too.

Between August 2018 and September 2019, Human Rights Watch visited 28 facilities ostensibly providing mental health care in eight states and the Federal Capital Territory, including federal psychiatric hospitals, general state hospitals, state-owned rehabilitation centers, Islamic rehabilitation centres, traditional healing centres, and Christian churches.

PDP Confused, Jittery over Possible Loss at Appeal Court, Says Kano Govt Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State has slammed the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over a false alarm it raised in a statement alleging plan to influence the choice of Court of Appeal judges who would sit on appeal filed by the PDP over the state’s governorship poll.

APC condemned the allegations made by PDP against it and its candidate, Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, with a view to blackmail the Appeal Court judges, saying those allegations clearly indicated that the opposition party was jittery, confused and afraid of possible loss at the Appellate Court.

This was disclosed yesterday

in a statement by Kano State Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, and made available to THISDAY in Kano, explaining that even if the judges were reshuffled, it’s the discretion of the court to decide who presides over its proceedings.

The statement added that the fundamental issue is for justice to prevail, noting that it had always been the trademark of the PDP to spread falsehood in the face of imminent loss of court cases as the opposition party did during the legal battle at Kano State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal and the Presidential election case.

The commissioner explained that it’s unfortunate that the opposition party, which resorted to legal means to redress its grievances, could be careless to

the extent of making unfounded allegations against the judicial process.

Garba added that while it’s not a crime for the APC members to have confidence in the outcome of the Appeal Court judgment, the party and its candidates have no intention whatsoever to disrupt the judicial process.

The statement said Kano State has been peaceful and there’s no indication of any tension as alleged by the PDP, adding that the government would not condone any act that’s capable of inciting violence through reckless, unguided and indiscriminate utterances that are inimical to the peace that APC has allowed the opposition to enjoy in the state for more than five years.

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Court of Appeal Reserves Judgment in Delta, Imo Guber Elections Alex Enumah in Abuja The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja yesterday reserved judgments in the election petitions involving Imo and Delta states governorship elections.

The court reserved judgment in three separate appeals challenging the victory of Emeka Ihedioha in the March 9 governorship election in Imo State.

The five-member panel presided over by Justice Oyebisi Omoleye, announced that judgment in the three appeals would be delivered on a date to be communicated to parties, after parties in the various appeals adopted their written addresses as brief of argument in the appeals.

The appeals filed against the judgment of the Imo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which upheld the election of Ihedioha, include that of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and his governorship candidate, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume; Action Alliance (AA) and his governorship candidate, Uche Nwosu and that of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate, Senator Hope Uzodinma.

The different appellants are asking the appellate court to void the election of Ihedioha on grounds that he did not obtain the constitutional one-quarter of the votes in at least two-thirds of the 27 local government areas of the state, in line with Section 179 of the Constitution.

In their various submissions by their counsel, the appellants are asking the court to set aside the decision of the tribunal and declare them winner of the March 9 governorship election or in the alternative order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh election into the office of Governor of Imo State.

The three man panel of the tribunal had in a unanimous decison delivered on September

21, held that Ihedioha was lawfully declared winner of the governorship election by INEC. The panel chaired by Justice Malami Dongondaji, had in the judgment dismissed Ararume, Nwosu and Uzodinma’s petitions for lacking in merit on the grounds that they failed to prove allegations made in their petitions.

Apart from their claims that Ihedioha did not obtain the constitutional one-quarter of the votes in at least two-thirds of the 27 local government areas of the state, in line with the provisions of the law, the petitioners had also alleged substantial noncompliance with the Electoral Act and Guidelines, including other irregularities.

But the tribunal in its judgment held that the case of the petitioners was unmeritorious because they failed to call relevant witnesses and that evidence of witnesses called were based on hearsay.

The tribunal in addition rejected documents tendered by the petitioners in support of their claims on the grounds that those who led evidence in the documents were not the makers of the documents.

In his appeal, Ararume urged the appellate court to upturn the decision of the tribunal on the grounds that the lower court erred in law when it arrived at the decision that his case and that of his party lacked merit and accordingly dismissed it.

The appeal which was predicated on 22 grounds was argued by his lead lawyer, Awa Kalu, (SAN), while that of Nwosu and AA, was argued by Niyi Akintola (SAN) and that of Uzodinma and APC, argued by Damian Dodo (SAN).

They all urged the panel to allow the appeal and grant all the reliefs sought by the appellants.

However, lead counsel to Emeka Ihedioha and Peoples Democratic Party, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN) and K.C.O. Njemanze (SAN) respectively urged the

Robbers Kill NNPC Gas Station’s Guard in Ondo James Sowole in Akure A-27-year-old security guard simply identified as Moses attached to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Station in Akure, the Ondo State capital, was killed early Sunday by a suspected gang of armed robbers that attacked the facility.

The gas station located at the popular Shagari Village junction was said to have been attacked around 1.30 a. m. as the suspected robbers machetted and shot the guard.

It was gathered that the robbers gained entry into the main offices of the filling station by destroying a burglary proof and some iron doors.

It’s not yet clear if the robbers were able to cart away money from the offices, but properties which included a CCTV camera was destroyed.

One of the fuel attendants at the station, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they noticed the incident when they resumed yesterday morning for normal

duty.

“We just came to work as usual this morning, only for us to see that some people have burgled our filling station by forcefully gaining entrance into some offices. We also noticed blood by the side of the station and saw the security guard (Moses) already dead. So, we quickly raised the alarm.

“The robbers broke the office of the station manager and destroyed some things inside the place. During the process of looking for money, they ransacked everywhere in the office,” he said.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer, Ondo State Police Command, Femi Joseph, said detectives have begun an investigations on the incident.

He said the remains of the guard had been deposited at the State Specialists Hospital in Akure by policemen from the Homicide Department of Ondo State Police Command.

court to dismiss the appeals for being incompetent and lacking in merit.

The Court of Appeal has also reserved judgment in the appeal filed by candidate of the APC, Great Ogboru against the election of Senator Ifeanyi Okowa as Governor of Delta State.

A five-man panel of the appellate court led by Justice Uzo Ndukwe-Anyanwu, reserved judgment to a date that would be communicated to parties shortly

after counsel adopted and argued their brief of argument in the appeal.

Respondents in the appeal are Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, PDP and INEC. Ogboru and his party, APC are seeking to upturn the decision of the Delta State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal which returned Okowa for a second term as governor.

INEC had declared Okowa and PDP winner of the March

9 governorship election in Delta State, having garnered majority of the lawful votes cast in the election.

But the appellants in a 37 grounds of appeal filed by their counsel, Nicholson Ichekor, asked the Court of Appeal to set aside the entire judgment of the tribunal on the grounds that the tribunal erred in law when it dismissed their appeal for lacking in merit.

The three-man panel of the governorship election panel led by

Justice Suleiman Belgore, had in September dismissed Ogboru and APC’s petition on grounds that the petitioners failed to prove the cases of irregularities and malpractices claimed in their petition.

However in the appeal against the the decision of the tribunal, Ogboru and APC argued that the lower court erred in law when it relied on the issue of over voting instead of allocation of votes as canvassed in their petition to dismiss their petition.

PROMOTING EDUCATION…

L-R: Group Head, Education, Sterling Bank Plc, Eniola Abosede Obe; wife of the Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Bamidele Abiodun; Principal Education Officer, SUBEB, Ogun State, Mrs. Ayelotiti Bolatito; and Chairman, Lafarge Africa Plc, Mobolaji Balogun, at the Lafarge Africa National Literacy Competition in Lagos...recently

Kaduna Monarch Accuses Plateau Communities of Attacking His Domain John Shiklam in Kaduna Paramount ruler of Agwam Attakar Chiefdom in Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Mr. Tobias Wada, has alleged that the Fulani and the Ganawuri people in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State should be held responsible for the frequent attacks on villages in his domain.

Speaking at the weekend in Attakar, while receiving relief materials donated by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to two villages in his chiefdom displaced following an attack by suspected Fulani

herdsmen, Wada charged both Kaduna and Plateau state governments to find lasting solutions to the persistent attacks. d the Ganawuri and the Fulani people in Riyom of ganging up against his people and alleged that they are responsible for the attacks in his chiefdom.

In June 2019, Zangang and Kirim villages in Attakar Chiefdom which share boundaries with Riyom were attacked. Seven people were reportedly killed while about 50 houses were said to have been burnt. Residents of the two villages fled their homes following the attack.

Wada said the Fulanis in Kaura

have been living peacefully with his people and wondered why those in Riyom have allegedly been attacking his domain.

The traditional ruler alleged: “We are facing very serious crisis from a section of people in Plateau State. That is our worry. That is our problem. We are living peacefully with the Fulanis in Kaura Local Government Area in Kaduna State. But, the Fulanis of Riyom and the people of Ganawuri in Riyom Local Government Area in Plateau State teamed up against the Attakar people.

“We have no problem with the Fulanis in Kaura Local Government.

On several

occasions, people have been invading Kaduna State without any provocation. I am using this opportunity to call on the governments of the two states to assist us so that peace will return to these villages.

“We have no other person to turn to than government. I have suggested several times that we need a police post and Kaura Local Government has generously built a structure for that purpose. It’s waiting to be commissioned when the attacks happened. We are appealing to government to ensure a permanent police presence at these borders so that we can have peace.”

Motion Picture Council Bill will Attract Investment, Says Lai Mohammed The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that the federal government is to finalise work on the Motion Picture Council of Nigeria Bill in order to create proper regulatory environment for the sub-sector of the creative industry.

Special Adviser to the minister, Mr. Segun Adeyemi, disclosed that Mohammed stated this in Lagos at the opening of the 2019 Africa International Film Festival.

Mohammed was quoted as saying that the film industry had put the country on the global map and MOPICON, when passed into law, would attract the much-needed investment to the industry.

He also disclosed that the government would establish the Endowment Fund for the Arts to create a legal framework for the financing of the creative industry.

The minister commended the founder of AFRIFF, Chioma Ude for keeping the festival flying and particularly, for using the 2019 edition to celebrate women in the industry.

He noted that women were taking an increasingly leading role in the creative industry and they were succeeding.

“This is quite delightful, as women most often succeed when they take charge, and examples are there for all to see, particularly in the creative industry.

“During our first tenure in office, I attended a number of movie premieres, stage performances and other creative industry events.

“It is amazing that a whole lot of them were produced by women.

“Genevieve Nnaji’s ” Road to Yesterday”, Bolanle Austen-Peter’s “The Bling Lagosians”, ” Waka the Musical”, “Saro the Musical” as well as “Fela and the Kalakuta Queens”, Mo Abudu’s ” The Wedding Party 1&2 etc “All of these movies and stage shows were runaway successes,” he said.

The minister implored the women in the creative industry

not to relent in showing the way in the industry.

He said the evidence of government’s support for creativity was evident in the granting of the industry, the pioneer status.

Mohammed said the policy had improved access to long term, low-cost financing for entrepreneurs and investors in the creative industry.

He added that the information technology sector was also granted access to long term, low cost financing through the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Creative Industry Financing Initiative (CIFI).

The minister reassured that the government would continue to support the creative industry.

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Withholding Tax Refund: Labour Ministry Urges GEION to Honour Agreement with Arco Martins Ifijeh Following the withholding tax dispute between General Electric International Operations Nigeria (GEION) and Arco Group Plc

(Arco), the Ministry of Labour and Employment has directed the former to honour agreement to ensure industrial harmony.

In a letter sent to GEION by the ministry, and cited by

THISDAY, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, William Alo, said its reconciliatory meeting with relevant parties on the dispute had earlier drew up conclusions

Buhari Celebrates Etiaba at 77 David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka President Muhammadu Buhari has sent greetings to the former Governor of Anambra State, Dame Virgy Etiaba, who turned 77 on November 11, 2019.

Buhari described her as “the good teacher who completely altered the history of Nigeria as first female governor between

November 2006 and February 2007.’’

A statement by the Presidential Spokesman, Femi Adesina, reads: “The President joins family members, friends, professional and political associates in celebrating the quintessential leader, who worked for 35 years as teacher in various schools and different parts of the country before retiring

and setting up her private school to further impart knowledge and skills to younger generation.

“As Dame Etiaba turns 77, President Buhari commends her disciplined and focused life, urging her to proudly reflect on her legacy of building the nation by imbuing the younger generation with sound moral and education values.”

which all parties were advised to honour.

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) had earlier complained that Arco failed to pay the terminal benefits of its former workers, who were former members of PENGASSAN. But the management of Arco claimed that they were unable to pay the terminal benefits because their principal, GEION over-deducted withholding tax and had refused to make necessary refunds.

Alo said following these complaints, the ministry on September 24, 2019 brokered a conciliatory meeting with relevant parties, while also extending invitation to the Federal Inland

Revenue Service (FIRS).

He said: “At the meeting, FIRS confirmed its readiness to refund the over-deducted sums to GEION upon necessary application to enable Acro fulfill its obligations to the erstwhile workers. We therefore made conclusions which parties are expected to abide by,” he said.

The conclusions reached, according to documents seen by THISDAY said that GEION should apply to FIRS and request for the refund of the over-deducted sums paid to FIRS as agreed during the reconciliation meeting; that both GEION and Arco should go back and within two weeks, reconcile the deductions. “However, for the sums agreed upon, both

managements should do the needful and ensure that the concerned workers are paid within one week,” the document shows.

It also showed that all tax deductions made by GEION on behalf of Arco substantiated with documentary evidence, with the objective of remitting to FIRS, but which were not remitted to FIRS, should be refunded to Arco within three days.

“That the sum confirmed by the Lagos State Inland Revenue Service Office as haven been remitted by GEION, but which is under dispute should be reconciled between GEION and FIRS within two weeks to pave the way for further action,” the document showed.

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SSANU Backs Enrolment in IPPIS Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has expressed its support for the enrollment of its members in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

Its counterpart in the university system, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, (ASUU) has rejected the move to enroll lecturers into the salary payment system.

While commending the federal government for reaching agreement on the full implementation of the new minimum wage, SSANU urged

the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission to expeditiously make public the new salary tables based on the consequential adjustments.

SSANU also commended the government for the closure of the country’s land borders, saying the action of the government has improved the local production sector especially in agriculture.

The association, however, decried the deplorable state of Nigeria roads, and called on the federal government to declare a state of emergency on roads.

The non-teaching staff of the universities in a communique signed by its National President,

Samson Ugwoke, and the National Public Relations Officer, Abdussobur Salaam, at the end of its 37th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State, reiterated its support for the enrollment of members to the IPPIS. On enrollment of SSANU members into the federal government IPPIS policy, it said: “NEC in session reaffirmed the commitment of SSANU towards enrolling its members into the IPPIS subject to the accommodation of all peculiarities in the university

system as agreed in the various meetings held between the government represented by officers in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and the university-based unions.

“NEC noted that the resolve of SSANU to join the IPPIS platform was in support of the government in its bid to entrench transparency and accountability in the university system as well as to curb the spate of personnel corruption which is one of the reasons accountable for the declining standard and rot in the Nigerian university

system.

“NEC urged the federal government to remain firm and resolute in its bid to stop corruption in all facets of our national life and resolved to give support to the government in all efforts to ensure that sanity is restored to the Nigerian university system.”

It advised the federal government to without further delay, release the balance of N30 billion Earned Allowances in the interest of industrial harmony in the universities.

SSANU in the communique

demanded that the audit reports of all disbursements of Earned Allowances be made public in order to guide the government in subsequent disbursements.

According to the communique, “NEC in session noted with great disappointment that the state of Nigerian roads is getting worse and more dangerous to traverse by the day. Coming from various parts of the country, members narrated the hazardous experiences they had on roads which have become death traps filled with pot-holes, gullies and craters.

I’ve Created 157,000 Jobs in ThreeYears, Says Obaseki Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, yesterday in Benin City, capital of Edo State, said he has created 157,000 jobs in the last three years of his administration.

He said the jobs were created through job tracking from organisations, job matching and placement, skills acquisitions and entrepreneurship and Edo Innovates programme.

Obaseki, who stated this at the Alaghodaro 2019 Youth Summit as part of activities to mark his three years in office, noted that many people doubted his ability to create the jobs when he made the promise three years ago but decided to take the risk.

He said he was able to achieve the feat by building a job creation programme around six key areas namely: the people, education, sport, entrepreneurship, arts and culture.

On education, Obaseki said by next academic session, he would establish 300 standalone Junior Secondary Schools where

vocational training would be offered, noting that any student that passed through the schools would have learnt a skill or a vocation that would make them earn a living.

According to him, “By the time they are graduating from JSS, the children must have had handwork because there will be fundamental training at the schools. We want to change the mindset that education is not about certificate. That is why I introduced EdoJobs to help the youths retrace their steps.

“We are mapping out our economy. We are looking at the future through our 30-year development plan. Our independent power supply would soon be available to power the street lights and production centres.”

He said over 2,000 youths that participated in the youth summit programme have been linked with jobs in some organisations present at the event, adding that about 150 youth have been empowered with engineering starter parks after undergoing various training.

Pastor Adefarasin Set to Host Experience Concert Nneka Emeghara The 14th edition of The Experience, a gospel music concert night that is promoted by the Senior Pastor of The House on the Rock Churches, Pastor Paul Adefarasin, will be held on Friday, December 6, at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos.

According to Adefarasin, this year’s edition with the theme ‘Let’s Worship Jesus,’ is poised to exceed its reputation as one of the major highlights of this season’s calendar.

It also promises a whole new level of intimacy in worship like never before to many people that would throng the TBS for divine experience.

He urged gospel music lovers to get ready for an unforgettable night of pure exhilarating worship, adding that The Experience concert would remain free for all and “is a must-attend for one and all.”

This year’s Experience will parade an incredible line-up of gospel music’s artists to keep the audience captivated throughout the night. The artist expected to grace the event include Travis Greene, Sinach, Nathaniel Bassey, Don Moen, Donnie McClurkin and Tope Alabi.

Other are Planetshakers,

Chioma Jesus, Eben, Sammie Okposo, The Lagos Metropolitan Gospel Choir and newcomers to The Experience stage such as Todd Dulaney, Mercy Chinwo and Preye Odede.

Adefarasin said: “The Experience is a significant contributor to both our national and state economies through tourism and its associated businesses. Entrepreneurs have developed and birthed various enterprises, which substantially contribute to the economy in areas of human capital development, hospitality, commerce and industry.”

The Experience, began with a God-inspired vision in 2006 and has gradually grown to become the largest gospel music concert in the world. It has multiple number of gospel music enthusiasts from across the globe attending this concert yearly.

Seen as a platform where anyone who wants to encounter God for himself or herself, The Experience has since evolved into a meeting point where hundreds of thousands of people irrespective of class, race, tribe, tradition, colour or religion gather to seek the face of God through praise and worship from dusk till dawn.

WORTHY HONOUR…

L-R: Namibian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Humphrey Geiseb; General Manager, External Relations,The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), Igo Weli; and Founder and Country Director, Future Trust Initiatives, Dr. Maureen Egbuche, at the 2nd African Future Trust Model United Nations Conference held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State…weekend

Dickson: How I Led Political Battles for Jonathan Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa In an emotion-laden voice yesterday, Governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson, accused those he said were escalating a purported rift between him and former president Goodluck Jonathan, alleging that they were unkind to him.

He said having led “many battles” for the former president since he (Jonathan) was deputy governor of Bayelsa State, it was unfair for people to continue to create division between them, adding that those who were making spurious allegations today were absent when he

fought gallantly, reaching out to every politician in the country to ensure that Jonathan succeeded as president.

The governor spoke during a media chat at the Government House in Yenagoa to throw light on some issues thrown up in preparation for the coming election in Bayelsa State.

Describing Jonathan as his leader, Dickson wondered why former president would be drawn into every election, including councillorship polls in the state, disclosing that in the course of the 2015 poll, he declined a N750 million campaign fund from ‘the

national’ just because he felt that the battle to support the former president was an Ijaw fight in which sacrifices had to be made.

He added that it would have been unthinkable for him to cede the task of supporting his preferred successor to anyone entirely, insisting that he had fought enough battles for the PDP to be accorded some level of respect regarding who would succeed him.

“I call on people to desist from using and creating friction and exaggerating situations. Every day the APC propaganda is talking about a purported

problem between Governor Dickson and former president Jonathan.

“For those of you who have been in this state, you know that no politician has stood by and supported former president Jonathan like Dickson.

He continues to be my elder brother and leader.

“So, for those of you who are dragging the former president into Bayelsa local politics, councillorship politics, you are not helping the man. We supported him and I, more than any other politician in this state fought battles led battles for the former president.

Mouka Moves to Redefine Innovation, Human Devt Dike Onwuamaeze The Managing Director of Mouka Limited, a leading Nigerian manufacturer of mattress and bedding products, Raymond Murphy, has declared that the company would make innovation its watchword as it repositions to maintain its place in the industry’s fierce competitive market.

Murphy made this statement when Mouka celebrated its 60th anniversary last weekend in Lagos with a resolve to continue to redefine the country’s mattress and other beddings industry through training and development of its manpower.

He stated that the effort at redefining the industry would involve a yearly upgrade of

its manufacturing facilities to ensure that its operations were met the highest local and international health, safety and environmental standards, with Information Technology (IT) as a major enabler of its innovative drive.

He also quoted an independent research, which rated Mouka as a brand that has more than 90 percent unprompted customers’ awareness in Nigeria.

Raymond noted that the anniversary celebration presented the company with an opportunity for self- evaluation.

“This is a big milestone for us. At 60, we are the market share leader in the mattress and beddings sector. Recent research, according to some marketing professionals whom

I met on my last trip to Dubai, also attests to the fact that Mouka is not only the leader in Nigeria, but also in Africa and the Middle East,” he said.

He traced the establishment of Mouka to a humble beginning in 1959 when the scion of the Faiz Moukarim family started the Moukarim Metalwood factory in Kano to manufacture furniture and iron beds.

“Mouka has been engaged in the creation of generation to generation business partners, job creation and sourcing local materials. Mouka is also reputed for high levels of governance and compliance, we pay our taxes accurately and on time. We contribute back to society through donations and contributions to the

local communities where we operate,” Murphy said.

The indigenous manufacturer’s helms man also revealed that it was an attestation to what has become an undying resolve for brand and service excellence that saw Mouka become the only African company to be listed twice in the London Stock Exchange Group’s companies to Inspire Africa report published in 2017 and 2019.

Mouka’s dint of innovation also translated to the launch of a bio-technology driven Mozzi repellents; a multifaceted insect repellent range. Widely described as the first of its kind in Nigeria’s beddings industry, this innovation remains a no mean feat yet to be matched in bedding sectors across the African continent.

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Bauchi Road Accident Claims Six Lives Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi Six persons have been confirmed dead in an auto crash that happened last Saturday at Sabuwar Gwaram village along Bauchi-Alkaleri road.

The Head of Operations, Federal Road Safety Corps, Bauchi Sector Command, Deputy Corp Commander Ibrahim Abubakar, who confirmed the incident in a telephone interview yesterday, said the two vehicles involved in the accident were a Toyota Camry and a Volkswagen Golf Car. Abubakar attributed the cause of the accident to over-speeding.

“The accident, which occurred last Saturday at about 10.55am at Sabuwar Gwaram along Alkaleri-Bauchi road, involved two vehicles. The two vehicles are a

Toyota Camry with number plate AT 401 JJN and a Volkswagen Golf Car with number plate AB 776 AKK. “The driver of the Volkswagen Golf Car in the process of trying to avoid a pothole, lost control and had a head-on collision with the Toyota Camry.

“We got a call and our men rushed to the scene of the accident and evacuated the victims to the hospital. Six people in the two vehicles, two females and four males were confirmed death by a medical doctor,” Abubakar said.

He called on drivers to obey traffic regulations especially during the ember months. “They should avoid excessive speeding which is a major cause of accidents on the highways.

“This call is very important

especially at this period of the ember months where there is a

high volume of vehicles on the highways. If they do this, road

traffic crashes which lead to loss of lives and properties will be

reduced to the barest minimum,” he stated.

Oshiomhole Backs Labour’s Clamour for Living Wages DikeOnwuamaeze

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congresss (APC)Adams Oshiomhole, has thrown his weight behind labour unions fighting for living wages for the workers.

“I am hundred percent in support of the trade union movement in terms of fighting for not just wage increase but for a living wage,” Oshiomhole said.

Speaking last night on Channels TV, the APC chairman described as unfortunate the system that made it impossible for workers to have a car or home of their own from their dint of hard work without resorting to corruption.

“You cannot have an economy in which even the most gifted and dedicated civil servant cannot afford a car or a home there is today not one honest civil servant that can after putting in 30 years in service can earn a wage such that one year salary or even two years salaries can buy him a new car.

“To be a director is not a night flights. It can take 25 years or more.

And yet he cannot boost of a decent house he can call his home from his wages if he chooses not to resort

to those practices we can define as corrupt”.

He advised government to understand that salary management requires seasoned professionals with the competency to administer salaries.

“Over the years, particularly in the public service ,government has not even begin to appreciate that salary administration is a matter for experts. It needs seasoned personnel managers to determine your employment and renumeration levels and ensure that you pay a competitive compensation in order to attract and retain the best workers.”

“The other argument, which needs to be addressed is people paying according to their ability.

But it is not the only criteria. We must also take into consideration the cost of living. These two must be reconciled. If your ability is N1 and my need to survive is N10, will you be underpaying so that I will die?

“I think that the government must accept its own responsibility to sit down and recruit the right expertise.

And revisit the orgonagram. And determine what ought to be their minimum level of payment.

YOUTH EMPOWERMENT…

R-L: Iyase of Benin Kingdom, Chief Sam Igbe; Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki; Deputy Governor, Hon. Philip Shaibu; Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Edo Chapter, Mr. Anselm Ojiezua; Enogie of Egbaen and President, Enogie Association, Edo South Senatorial District, His Royal Highness, Edomwonyi Iduozee Ogiebean; Chief Executive Officer, BusinessDay Newspaper, Mr. Frank Aigbogun; and Founder and Chief Executive Officer, SLOT Systems Limited, Nnamdi Ezeigbo, at the Edo Youth Summit, organised to mark Alaghodaro 2019, in Benin City…yesterday

Visa Openness Index: Report Shows Improvement inVisa Restrictions Idowu Sowunmi For the first time, on average, Africans could travel to approximately 27 countries visa-free or with a visa on arrival.

African travellers now have liberal access to over half the continent, the 2019 Africa Visa Openness Index published by the African Union Commission and African Development Bank, has revealed.

The report was launched yesterday on the sidelines of the Africa Investment Forum, which opened in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The progress on visa openness in Africa follows growing momentum for greater integration between countries and signals that

policymakers across the continent are pushing reforms, making it easier for African businessmen and women, investors, students and tourists to travel.

This fourth edition of the Index shows that 47 countries improved or maintained their visa openness scores in 2019.

African visitors no longer need a visa to travel to a quarter of other African countries, whereas visa-free travel was only possible to a fifth of the continent in 2016.

Currently, 21 African countries also offer e-Visas to make travel more accessible, up from up from 16 in 2018, 13 in 2017, and 9 in 2016).

The 2019 top performers on visa openness rank among the top countries for foreign direct

investment in Africa, and benefit from strong levels of growth, including in tourism.

The Index shows that Seychelles and Benin remain the top two countries on visa openness in Africa, with their visa-free policy for all African visitors. Ethiopia moved up a record 32 places on the Index and entered the top 20 most visa-open countries in Africa.

Ethiopia moves up a record 32 places on the Index, entering the top 20 most visa-open countries in Africa.

African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina, in his remarks, said, “Our work on the Africa Visa Openness Index continues to monitor how Africa is doing on free movement of people.:

According to him, “Progress is being made but much still needs to be done. To integrate Africa, we should bring down the walls. The free movement of people, and especially labour mobility, are crucial for promoting investments.”

The Visa Openness Index has inspired reforms in more than 10 African countries including Ghana, Benin, Tunisia, Ethiopia and Kenya, unlocking tremendous potential for the promotion of intra-regional tourism, trade and investments.

Despite the gains shown in the report, there is the need to move further. In 2019, only 26 per cent of Africans are able to get visas on arrival in other African countries, up by only one per cent compared to 2016.

Boeing yesterday stated that it expects the 737 MAX airplane, which was grounded after two crashes killed 346 people, to resume flying in January 2020, delaying its return by one month.

The group said in a statement that it still hopes to receive certification next month from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), allowing it to resume MAX deliveries to airline customers

before the end of the year.

“In parallel, we are working towards final validation of the updated training requirements, which must occur before the MAX returns to commercial service, and which we now expect to begin in January,” Boeing said.

Boeing added that it has completed the first of five milestones it must meet before returning the MAX to service: a multi-day

simulator evaluation with the FAAto “ensure the overall software system performs its intended function.”

It had previously planned for the model to resume flying in December.

The 737 MAX planes have been grounded globally since mid-March, following the deadly Lion Air crash of October 2018 and the Ethiopian Airlines crash in March this year.

Southwest Airlines and American

Airlines at the weekend pushed back their timeframe again for resuming flights on the 737 MAX until early March.

Southwest, the largest MAX customer at the time of the grounding with 34 of the aircraft, is currently doing without 175 flights per day out of a total of up to 4,000 while the planes are out of commission.

Julong Technology Unveils Plans for Operators of Dredgers 737 MAX to Resume Flying in January, Says Boeing As part of activities of the 13th Nigerian Dredging Summit and Exhibition which will kick off in Port Harcourt, Rivers State next week, Julong Technology Limited has revealed plans to offer Nigerian mechanised dredging operators a new deal to cut down on their field downtime.

According to a statement, the Director of Julong in Nigeria, Ubong Essien, will be at the exhibition ground with information, marketing brochures and a Powerpoint presentation on how the new Julong outreach in Nigeria will work.

Julong, a United Statesbased dredging solutions provider offering Chinese dredging products and services, has been in Nigerian market in the last ten years.

After supplying some Nigerian customers with dredgers and accessories, it has now established a technical operating base in Port Harcourt geared towards

a one-stop shop to offer spare parts and repair services for all users of Chinese dredging technology in the country.

The Summit Coordinator, Dr. Edmund Chilaka, in a statement on the event, said the groundbreaking seminar presentations will be made by industry operators such as Felix Osanebi, who will talk on “Pre-and post-dredge surveyors, proofing sand search reports and reconciling conflicts on mined sand quantities.”

Other presenters include Prof. Abam T. Kingdom, who will talk on ‘River and Port Development: Threats to Coastal Infrastructure and the Environment’; Prof. S. A. Ngah will talk on ‘Potable Water Supply and Facilities Management in Nigeria and the SDG 2030 Target’, while Dr. Hilary Efanga will discuss ‘Training Options for Dredging and Marine Skills Acquisition for the Nigerian Industry’.

AEDC Decries Rate ofVandalism in Nasarawa Igbawase Ukumba in Lafia The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has decried the rate of vandalism of its facilities in Nasarawa State, which has plunged many communities in the state into darkness for several months.

Consequently, AEDC has approached traditional rulers in the state to assist it end the unfortunate development by prevailing on their subjects to protect the company’s

facilities installed in their neighbourhood.

General Manager of Nasarawa Regional Office of the AEDC, Alhaji Ameen Shakur, expressed the company’s worries over the persistent vandalism of its facilities in the state yesterday in Obi during a Consumer Consultative Forum Programme organised by the Obi AEDC Office in Nasarawa State.

Shakur, who was represented by Sani

Ibrahim, lamented that the ugly scenario was giving the company challenges as the vandals either destroy, cannibalise or steal power accessories such as transformers cable and others to resell.

He said: “This dastardly act has plunged many communities of the state into darkness for several months hence we want our traditional leaders to help us safeguard our properties by prevailing on their subjects to be vigilant

on such properties installed in their localities.”

“AEDC and the Meter Assets Provider (MAP) would provide electricity prepaid meters and carry out instant metering for residents in communities of the state,” he said Shakur explained further that, “AEDC and the MAP will come to a community and open ‘One Stop Shop’ where customers can make their payments and get their properties metered instantly.”

46

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

TUESDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

2021 AFCON QUALIFIER

14 Eagles in Uyo ahead of Clash with Squirrels Nine more expected this morning Benin Rep. Squirrel scheduled to arrive town today Duro Ikhazuagbe

Super Eagles camp at the Ibom Meridien Hotel and Resort in Uyo bubbled with life yesterday as 14 players, including Captain Ahmed Musa started training ahead of tomorrow’s 2021 AFCON qualifying clash with Squirrels of Benin Republic.

The remaining nine invited players are expected to fly into the Akwa Ibom State capital this morning.

The players who were led in Monday’s training by Head Coach, Gernot Rohr include; Musa, goalkeepers Ikechukwu Ezenwa, Daniel Akpeyi and Maduka Okoye, defenders Kenneth Omeruo, Chidozie Awaziem, Olaoluwa Aina, Jamilu Collins and Semi Ajayi.

Midfielders Alex Iwobi, Ramon Azeez and Wilfred Ndidi, and forwards Samuel Kalu and Victor Osimhen completed the list of early birds in camp.

Expected to arrive this morning are defenders William Troost Ekong, and Abdullahi Shehu, midfielders Mikel Agu and

Joseph Ayodele-Aribo and forwards like Moses Simon, Samuel Chukwueze, Paul Onuachu and Emmanuel Dennis.

Enyimba FC defence stalwart Ifeanyi Anaemena who was last minute replacement for Bryan Idowu is the ninth player expected today.

The People’s Elephant’s Anaemena was invited as Idowu’s replacement because the Russia based defender submitted his international passport for renewal and the document is not ready for him to travel to Nigeria for the encounter.

Anaemena was impressive for the Home-based Eagles in their 2020 African Nations Championship qualifier against Togo at the Agege Stadium last month, and has also been a key player for Enyimba, two-time CAF Champions League winners, as they reached the group phase of this year’s CAF Confederation Cup competition.

The defender will also be part of the squad for the Day Two clash with Lesotho in Maseru on Sunday, 17th November.

After the opening day work out, Super Eagles are expected to again train at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium this evening before filling out against the Squirrels on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the delegation of the Benin Republic team is expected to land in Uyo today.

Both teams were part of the 2019 AFCON finals in Egypt, with Nigeria winning the bronze medals while Benin Republic famously defeated Morocco while holding their own against Cameroon and Ghana.

Already, CAF has named Senegalese official Issa Sy as

referee for the match, to be assisted by compatriots Nouha Bangoura (assistant referee 1), El Hadji Abdoul Aziz Gueye (assistant referee 2) and Fatou Thioune (fourth official).

The Day 1 clash in the 2021 AFCON qualifying series will also see Munkaila Nassam

Adam from Ghana as match commissioner while Kria Samir Bouzareah from Algeria will play the role of referee assessor.

The match officials arrived in Uyo on Monday.

Cameroon is the designated host nation for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

UNDER-23 AFCON

Amapakabo Gets Okechukwu, Awoniyi Boost for Zambia

Coach Imama Amapakabo has received important boosts for today’s make-or-break Under-23 AFCON battle against Zambia with the arrivals in camp of team captain Azubuike Okechukwu and star forward Taiwo Awoniyi.

The absence of the duo was greatly felt in the opening game of Group B that the defending champions lost by the odd goal to Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday, and Amapakabo is confident their arrival will spur his squad to a better performance against the Zambians.

“I am happy we now have Awoniyi and our captain, Azubuike. They are integral to the team and were influential in our qualifying matches. We will throw everything into the game against Zambia because we have left ourselves no choice at this point.

“I believe we have the team to not only overcome Zambia but go all the way in the tournament. We stumbled against the Ivorians but we have learnt from that and we now look forward to rescuing our campaign against the Zambians

and South Africans.”

Former Under-17 World Cup winner Awoniyi, who plays for FSV Mainz 05 in the German top division, landed in Cairo late on Sunday, while Turkey –based Okechukwu, who also captained the Class of 2015 and to the gold medal in Senegal, arrived in the early hours of Monday.

Okechukwu’s midfield partnership with Kelechi Nwakali was impactful in the handsome home wins over Libya and Sudan in the qualifying series, while Awoniyi got the important opener and also created chances in the defeat of Sudan that landed the Olympic Eagles in Egypt.

Nigeria take on Zambia at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo on Tuesday in a game they must pick up the maximum points to return to contention for a place in the semi finals of the competition, ahead of their clash with South Africa on Tuesday.

Only the top three finishers at the Under-23 AFCON will qualify to fly Africa’s flag at the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament in Tokyo, Japan next year.

Ahmed Musa

Kenneth Omeruo

Daniel Akpeyi

Raak Wins Star Prize at 2019 Ondo Auto Rally Estonia-born Argo Raak at the weekend won the third edition of Ondo State Auto Rally organised by Motorsports group ‘Work and Play’ at Ilara - Mokin.

The race, which paraded some of the best off-road racers in the country took place at the new purpose-built Off Road Track, that the organisers have said would be the home of the Work and Play group’s flagship event.

The event got supports from, SMT Volvo, Toyota, Elizade, Airtel, JAC, Dinkkiia, Meristem, Monster Energy Drink, Tomi Homes, The Federal Road Safety Commission and the Ondo State Fire Service.

Raak whose off-road buggy crashed to deny him a podium chance at the 2018 edition, said he was fully prepared for this

year’s championship. “I put in a lot in preparation for this year’s edition, practicing for two months. I am very delighted to return the best time at this year’s event,” Raak gushed moments after he was declared winner of the event.

President of the Work and Play, Adeoye Ojuoko, said the event keep getting better and its success belongs to every member of the non-for-profit group that has kept the vision of promoting motorsports development alive in Nigeria.

“This year edition was quite different, in that; we were able to have a well-established offroad challenge that was well controlled, minimised all forms of risk as well as tailored to international standard,” he said. Ojuoko confirmed that the new track is full of diverse

character that makes the race very challenging. Some of the challenges include an enduring seven-metre long muddy ditch which complimented the topography and water hazards.

“This is the track for any racer willing to test his endurance, patience and focus,” he added, stressing that Raak’s victory with 2:52:25 minutes in five laps won him N500, 000. It was also a five-lap record for buggies on the newly launched track.

Kurdyasv Eugene lurked behind Raak in sub 16 seconds (at 3: 08:06) to place second leaving Ralp Tupas and Kingsley Uwatse to settle for the third and fourth place respectively.

Femi Dada, who hoped that his hybrid buggy “Mental” was going to impress at the event was disappointed with the

Ogunkoya Emerges Chairperson of Southwest Athletics Reigning African 400m record holder at 49.10secs, Chief Falilat Ogunkoya-Omotayo (MON) has been chosen as the chairperson of the South-west Athletics Association (SWAA) while the Chairman of Ekiti Athletics Association, Mr Samuel Fatunla emerged as the Technical Director.

The SWAA, a body comprising of all chairmen of athletics associations in the six Southwestern states of the country and members from the zone on the board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) met in Lagos at the weekend and in a communique after the meeting,

it was unanimously resolved that Ogunkoya-Omotayo, the twotime Olympic medallist should continue as the association’s chairperson.

Ogunkoya-Omotayo was voted the best quarter-miler in the world in 1998.

Chairman of Lagos State Athletics Association, Dr Solomon Alao who hosted the meeting will serve as the Director of Marketing/Sponsorship with Dr Isaac Ogada, chairman of Oyo State Athletics Association and Mr. Dare Esan, the editor of Complete Sports serving as the Secretary and Media Director respectively.

The association also appointed Elder Ademola Adigun, Chairman of Osun State Athletics Association as Treasurer while Honourable Olamide George, the South-west representative who also doubles as the vice president of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria will serve as its leader.

The association thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing Mr. Sunday Dare, an indigene of the zone as Minister of Youth and Sports Development and pledged to give his ministry total and unalloyed support to ensure he succeeds in his assignment.

Raak celebrating his victory at the Ondo Auto Rally in Ilara-Mokin..at the weekend

toughness of the track. Same for Richard Ike. Minister of Woks and Housing, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola and the Chairman of Elizade Nigeria Limited, Chief Michael Ade-Ojo were guest at the event.

Fashola in his opening remark enjoined the sportsmen to embrace fairness while praising the innovation of the Work and Play Team.

Chief Adeojo, on his part pledged the support of Toyota for the race and urged youth to engage in positive activities that can promote development of the country.

The next edition will hold on the 11th of April, 2020 at the Smokin Hills Resort in Ilara-Mokin in Ondo State

47

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 12, ͺ͸͹΁ ˾ T H I S D AY

TUESDAYSPORTS

Messi’s Inspiration Lands UCL Winners for Barca Life Salary Barcelona players past, present and future have another reason to thank Lionel Messi - as it has been revealed that he inspired former club president Joan Laporta to award every single winner of a European title at the Catalan club a lifetime salary.

More than 290 players could be benefiting - with the Nou Camp side having amassed five Champions League tiles, four Cup Winners’ Cups and three Fairs Cups.

Juan Carlos Heredia who was victorious in the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1979 alongside Johan Cruyff - is

one of the recipients, and explained how the reward was inspired.

‘When Barcelona won the Champions League final in Rome against Manchester United with a goal from Messi, the club president declared that all those who were European champions with Barcelona were going to receive a salary for life.

And he fulfilled it,’ Heredia explained to The Tactical Room.

Messi’s goal came in the 70th minute of the 2009 final, sealing the win over Sir Alex Ferguson’s side after an early

Sameul Eto’o strike.

Since then, the Catalans have won two more European titles in 2011 and 2015, with names fro Neymar to Marc Bartra added to the list of Barcelona’s European

champions.

Former Spanish politician Laporta was Barcelona president from 2003 to 2010, and oversaw the club as they won six trophies in one season under Pep Guardiola in 2009.

The 26-time La Liga victors are leading their Champions League group and on track to put another squad in contention for the lifetime salary.

Becoming champions of

Europe again in 2019-20 would be the fifth time in 15 years, and send a response to the three straight titles rivals Real Madrid have managed since the Catalans were last crowned.

Ronaldo Abandoned Team after Being Substituted Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly left the Allianz Stadium before the final whistle of Juventus’ 1-0 Serie A win over AC Milan on Sunday after being substituted for the second match in a week.

Paulo Dybala replaced Ronaldo on 55 minutes with the Argentina striker going on to score the winning goal 22 minutes later to keep Juventus top in Serie A ahead of Inter Milan.

Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo looked glum as he came off and directed some words at coach Maurizio Sarri before heading to the changing rooms and Sky Sport Italia reported that the 34-year-old had left the stadium three minutes before the match finished.

However Sarri said he did not know whether Ronaldo had left the stadium early.

“Disrespectful to his teammates? Like I said, I don’t know,” Sarri said. “If it’s true that he left before the end it is a problem to be resolved with his teammates.”

“I have no problem with Cristiano, he should be thanked because he made himself available despite not being in the best condition,” said Sarri.

“In the last month he has had discomfort in his knee and this is a little problem for him.”

Ronaldo had reacted furiously after been substituted in his team’s 2-1 win against Lokomotiv Moscow midweek which saw Juventus advance to the Champions League last 16.

“The important thing is that he made himself available. If he gets angry when he comes out this is part of the game,” continued the Juventus coach.

“It’s only natural a player is going to be irritated about leaving the pitch, especially when he worked so hard to be there.

“All players who are trying to give their best will have at least five minutes of being annoyed when they are substituted, but a coach would in general be much more worried if he didn’t seem upset.

Messi with other players in jubilation mood

Man City Players Fume at Liverpool’s Opener, Says Gundogan Manchester City players were left fuming in the dressing room after watching replays of Liverpool’s controversial opening goal in a 3-1 loss at Anfield on Sunday, according to midfielder Ilkay Gundogan.

Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold appeared to handle the ball inside his own box in the sixth minute but instead of a City penalty the

hosts broke and 22 seconds later Fabinho drilled in a spectacular goal from outside the box.

The goal was checked by VAR and allowed to stand as Liverpool went on to clinch the victory and move nine points clear of City in the Premier League title race.

“We saw the incident again in the dressing room afterwards and for me, obviously, it’s a penalty but if you ask a Liverpool player

they would say, ‘You can give it but it’s maybe a 50-50 situation,’” Gundogan told reporters.

“It takes a tough mentality to fight against that and unfortunately they scored the second straight after.”

City are aiming to become the first team since Manchester United in 2009 to win three consecutive Premier League titles but now occupy fourth

spot in the table.

Last season, City recovered in the second half of the campaign to erase Liverpool’s 10-point lead at the top and Gundogan wants the same level of commitment from his teammates.

“We have to accept it, but there is a long way to go. Last season in January we were quite far behind and able to turn it around,” Gundogan added.

Tsitsipas Beats Medvedev in London ATP Finals Opener

Barca, Madrid Avoid Each Other in Revamped Super Cup in Saudi Arabia

Sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas won his opening match at the ATP Finals by edging out fourth seed and fellow debutant Daniil Medvedev in London.

The Greek 21-year-old beat the Russian 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 at the O2 Arena.

There was just one break of serve in the match with Tsitsipas, the youngest player in the tournament, earning his first win over Medvedev.

“It is one of the toughest and most important victories of my career,” Tsitsipas said.

“It’s not easy coming in knowing you’ve lost five times before [to Medvedev] but this victory means a lot to me, this crowd means a lot to me. “[There are] Greek flags everywhere - it almost feels like I’m playing in Athens.”

World number one Rafael Nadal plays defending champion Alexander Zverev later on Monday in the same group.

Novak Djokovic, who can overtake Nadal at the top of the world rankings this week, leads the other group after winning on Sunday.

The top two players in each group after the round-robin stage progress to the semi-finals on Saturday.

The 2020 Spanish Super Cup is to be held in Saudi Arabia, with Valencia taking on Real Madrid and Barcelona facing Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals of the revamped competition this January.

Previously a one-off game between the winners of La Liga and Copa del Rey held at the start of the season, the competition has this year been extended to two semi-finals and a final, as revealed by the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) on Monday.

It has also been confirmed that the competition is to be held in Saudi Arabia for the

The men’s season-ending event, which is taking place in London for the penultimate year, features the top eight players of the year.

Tsitsipas and Medvedev are two of four singles players aged 24 or under at this year’s championships although familiar names Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer are the top three seeds.

Tsitsipas, who beat Federer en route to the semi-finals of this year’s Australian Open, won the Next Gen event a year ago - the season-ending tournament for players aged 21 or under - and said he had “goosebumps” when making his debut in London.

“I watched this event for the first time in 2010, I used to watch on TV dreaming of potentially playing on these courts,” he said.

He had lost all five of his previous matches against US Open runner-up Medvedev but was rewarded for being the more aggressive of the two players as he looked to take the initiative and move to the net regularly.

There were no breaks in the first set but Tsitsipas played better in the tie-break, earning the crucial mini-break to move 6-5 ahead by winning a gruelling point at the net with a volley.

next three seasons - a move RFEF say should help the ‘image’ of Spanish football ahead of a bid to host the 2030 World Cup. “The Spanish Supercup will be held in Saudi Arabia during the next three years and will do so in winter in order to lighten the calendar of competitions, as claimed by clubs and players,” a statement confirming the location said.

“The new format was already announced last February by the president of the RFEF, Luis Rubiales, and in addition to the change of date, it entails a Final Four. Through this

transformation, clubs will be able to plan their preseason better.

“In addition, the fact that this competition is internationalized will allow the Super Cup to be valued and, at the same time, will contribute to make visible and improve the image for the 2030 World Cup nomination.”

Some had been concerned by the possibility of holding the tournament in Saudi Arabia, due to the treatment of women and minorities in the country, but RFEF have said that the decision comes with assurances that women will be given ‘unrestricted access’

to the matches - while also announcing the launch of an undetermined women’s football tournament “The agreement reached between the RFEF and the Saudi Arabian Football Federation contemplates the unrestricted access of women to the matches, and the launch of a women’s soccer competition in Arabia,” the statement goes on.

“Football is essential to open borders, improve societies. It can be used as a blockade or as an element of change and the Federation has chosen the latter.

GOTV BOXING NIGHT MINI

Organisers Assure Fans of Adequate Security Flykite Productions, organisers of the maiden edition of GOtv Boxing Night Mini, have assured fans going to the event on Saturday of adequate security. The boxing show holds at the Rowe Park Sports Complex, Yaba, Lagos.

Speaking on the event, Jenkins Alumona, Managing Director, Flykite Promotions, said necessary arrangements have been put in place to ensure the safety of the boxers,

officials and the fans at the event venue.

“Preparations have been put in place regarding toplevel security. This is the inaugural edition of GOtv Boxing Night Mini and it is important that from this very edition we prioritize the security of everyone who will be at the venue,” he said.

GOtv Boxing Night Mini will feature five potential

explosive bouts. Rilwan “Real One” Oladosu, reigning West African Boxing Union (WABU) lightweight champion, will square off against Ola Adebakin in a national lightweight challenge; and Rilwan “Baby Face” Babatunde, West African Boxing Union (WABU) welterweight champion, will take on Dennis “The Range” Mba in a national welterweight challenge.

Other bouts are a national

cruiserweight challenge between Kabiru “KB Godson” Towolawi and Tunji “Germani” Olajide; and a national light welterweight challenge between Waheed “Showmax” Shogbamu and Semiu “Jagaban” Olopade.

There is also an all-female clash as Cynthia “Omo Bobby” Ogunsemilore will take on Omowunmi “Mummy’s Pet” Akinsanya in a national super featherweight challenge.

Tuesday November 12, 2019

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Price: N250

MISSILE TUC to Governors “The economy is ailing and the organised labour is not willing to cause more harm. However, we may be forced to act if the governors do not perform” – The Trade Union Congress telling governors who say they cannot implement the consequential adjustment to stop spending money on frivolities.

TUESDAY WITH REUBENABATI Philanthropy: Femi Otedola’s Example abati1990@gmail.com

“God has been so kind, the only way I can show my gratitude to Him is to use my resources to support those who are underprivileged. This I intend to do for the rest of my life. In a world full of conflicts, diseases, calamities and inequality, we all need to show the milk of human kindness, to reach out and comfort the sick and give a helping hand to the weak.”

W

ith those touching words about the collective humanity that we all share and the purpose of life, Femi Otedola, Nigerian multi-billionaire and entrepreneur issued a cheque of N5 billion in support of Save the Children, a 100-year old UK-based charity.

Otedola’s donation is for the rehabilitation of displaced and underprivileged children who are victims of the insurgency in the North Eastern part of Nigeria. The cheque was presented by Tolani Otedola, the billionaire’s eldest daughter, at a gala event in Abuja, Sunday, organised by another daughter, Florence Otedola, who is popularly known as DJ Cuppy. The latter is an Ambassador for Save the Children and a member of the organisation’s Africa Advisory Board. Femi Otedola’s friend, Aliko Dangote, also a billionaire and a philanthropist of note, added his own donation of N100 million bringing the total donation to N5.1 billion. I do not know how rich Otedola is, but any man that would give away N5 billion (about US $14 million) to support children or anyone in distress certainly has the milk of human kindness flowing through his veins. Otedola deserves special recognition and a word of gratitude for his generosity. By this singular act, and similar gestures in the past, he seems to be changing the narrative about the art of giving and the need for a sense of community and philanthropy in Nigeria. It is not enough to give, but to give consistently and generously, without any expectation of reward or gain.

Of all his efforts as an entrepreneur, Otedola would probably be most remembered for his acts of philanthropy in the long run, that is his social entrepreneurship, the readiness with which he offers a helping hand. In the last year or so, he has been on record for picking up the medical bills of Christian Chukwu, former Captain and coach of the Super Eagles or the Green Eagles as the team was earlier known. Chukwu (now 68) was a commanding presence on the football field. He led his local team, the Enugu Rangers to many victories, and as a member of the Green Eagles, he was a play maker and motivator of the team’s last line of defence. Both his fans and teammates called him “Chairman.” That was not for nothing. And yet the same man could not pay hospital bills. Femi Otedola stepped in and helped out. He did the same for Peter Fregene (now 72), Nigeria’s former international goalkeeper (1968- 1971). And for Majek Fashek, the gifted Reggae musician who at the height of his glory was dubbed “the rainmaker”, in attestation of the force and mythical quality of one of his famous tracks: “Send Down The Rain.” Many fans of his would insist even today, that whenever Majek Fashek performed that song, rain actually fell! But the magic has since left the stage, the myth has been compromised.

The same Majek Fashek could also not pay hospital bills. Femi Otedola bailed him out.

He also did the same for two famous Nigerian actors: Sadiq Daba and Victor Olaotan. There are probably many others whose cases are not reported in the media.

Nigeria is a very strange place where the future is as uncertain as the present. The gap between

Otedola the rich and the poor is wider than the entire Sahara Desert. The average Nigerian lives on less than a dollar per day. Social infrastructure is in a state of decay. There is no social security scheme. The public health system collapsed long ago. Private hospitals detain the sick who are unable to pay for treatment. One woman gave birth in a hospital; she and her baby were detained. The country once tried to introduce a National Health Insurance Scheme. It has never worked, because it is used as an instrument of political and ethnic patronage. Ours is a country where even the rich are not sure of tomorrow. Talented people, distinguished professionals in various fields of endeavor end up becoming beggars, or destitute, not necessarily because they did not plan for their future or for unforeseeable accidents of life, but they suffer because Nigeria often leaves its citizens stranded. The state routinely disappoints the people. It is unfair. It can be cruel. People are treated as if they do not matter.

This is why every act of kindness is significant.

It is not the amount that matters, but the very thought itself, that gesture that reminds us occasionally that in this pressure cooker of a society in which we live, you can still find a rich man who gives out a dollar or two, a concerned citizen who helps an accident victim, a cab driver who finds a document or some money forgotten by a passenger and returns it, or a security agent who does his work with the fear of God. Such persons are quite rare in these parts, and it is why we need a constant reminder that beyond the state or government, Nigeria is a country where we must continue to search for the meaning of Being-ness, and the reasons for being human. An Otedola helping the sick and the weak reminds us of the big difference that we all can make, not in dollars but each man in his own station according to his strength through simple and possible gestures of kindness.

As for Otedola, I do not imagine that he goes about with an ambulance-load of cash looking for other people’s medical bills to pay.

Far from it. He supports other causes as well, particularly poor students whose school fees he pays, educational institutions to which he has donated buildings and religious bodies and groups that he has assisted. By involving his children in his most recent donation, he also signposts a strong narrative about parenting and sustainability. His N5 billion donation is routed through the Cuppy Foundation. The cheque was delivered by his eldest daughter.

What else does a man need to say to his daughters or the suitors who want to marry a billionaire’s daughters? He tells them clearly that life goes beyond music, fashion, dancing,

boo-ing, bae-ing, vacationing and Gelato-ing.

It is not surprising that his donation of N5 billion drew enthusiastic applause. The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo said it is “the single largest donation to philanthropy in the country.” He may well be right. But perhaps the most notable reaction has been that of Reno Omokri, who describes himself these days as “a table-shaker.” And did Reno Omokri try to shake the table? In this particular matter, he didn’t actually shake the table; he broke the legs. Said he: “Femi Otedola has just put the billionaires of the North East to shame. Where are the Indimis, the Mai Deribe family and other oil billionaires from the North East? Google their names and some of the first pictures you will see are of their children in private jets marrying President’s children and displaying obscene wealth while surrounded by extreme poverty. It took a Good Samaritan stranger to do what the natives of the North East failed to do! Shame on them and God bless the talakawa that they have refused to look after.” This harsh and pain-inflicting comment has stretched the narrative a bit further - with the daughters of the two families that Omokri calls out directly defending family integrity on social media. The emerging controversy about how the rich Nigerian one per cent engages the rest of society and gives back or not is useful.

But while Omokri may be accused of trying to politicize or ethnicize the Otedola gesture, we need to place his comment in proper context.

One, he probably generalizes when he refers to “Oil billionaires from the North East” in a manner that may be unfair to some other persons from that part of the country. The North East, one of Nigeria’s six geo-political zones consists of the following states: Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe. I don’t know whether Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is an “oil billionaire” or not, but I know he is from Adamawa state.

One of the reasons for his popularity among his people is his generosity and common touch.

General TY Danjuma is from Taraba state. He easily belongs to Omokri’s “Oil billionaire” category, but it is a fact that through his TY Danjuma Foundation, the General has done a lot for his own people in Taraba State and across the North East and Nigeria. There is also a Muhammadu Indimi Foundation which prioritises the North East. We can praise Otedola without hurting the feelings of others. Two, while stating this, I am mindful of the bigger point in Omokri’s comment which is the felt, seen, and often commented upon abdication of responsibility by the Nigerian Northern elite.

The Nigerian elite is generally callous, selfish and irresponsible but the most alienated, the worst set can be found in the Northern part of Nigeria, an indolent elite that has occupied the higher rungs of privilege and power before and after independence and yet has not been able to translate its access to power into advantages for its people. Northern Nigeria has the largest number of out-of-school children. It has the largest number of girl-child brides, and other children under difficult circumstances. It has the largest number of persons living below the poverty line. It has the smallest number of educated Nigerians, and the highest number of Nigeria’s “lazy youths.” Reno Omokri throws up the questions: why don’t we have the Northern rich, as many of them as possible, helping their own people? Why must it be a Yoruba man from Epe donating N5 billion to assist displaced children in the North East? Our response to Reno Omokri is that philanthropy needs not wear an ethnic or partisan garb. It is about the collective humanity we share. Isn’t Reno

Omokri himself running a #Free LeahSharibu campaign? Leah Sharibu is neither a member of his church nor is she of the Itsekiri stock.

Bill and Melinda Gates, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Oprah Winfrey, George Soros, Mark Zuckerberg have supported worthy causes around the world.

What we may legitimately say is that the example of Femi Otedola and others like him necessarily generates a conversation about the purpose of wealth and the place of the privileged in a dispossessed society. Aliko Dangote who made his own donation to the Save the Children charity is probably the leading philanthropist in Nigeria today, in terms of spread and scope, through the Dangote Foundation, which is run by his daughter, Halima Dangote. Dangote appeared on stage recently in New York, with Mo Ibrahim and Bill Gates and he said he is inspired by their examples. Mo Ibrahim, Bill Gates and Warren Buffet are among the most generous givers in modern history. It is an ethic that should be encouraged. Closer home in Nigeria, there are other examples: Tony Elumelu, of the Union Bank of Africa (UBA) is the founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation which promotes Africapitalism and provides opportunities for young entrepreneurs in more than 40 African countries. What TOE, as he is otherwise called, has done with that Foundation is impressive and reliable. Jim Ovia is the founder of Zenith Bank. He has invested heavily in education, not for profit, but to provide opportunities for young persons. He is the founder of James Hope College, a world-class, private school in Agbor, Delta State where he tries to provide a strong, educational foundation for the youth of tomorrow. Recently, he launched a branch of the school in Lagos with an offer of full scholarship to 40% of students. Aigboje AigImoukhuede, of Access Bank and Coronation Capital, has a scheme called Africa Initiative for Governance (AIG). Every year, AIG sends five students from Nigeria and Ghana to the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, to take post-graduate degrees in Public Policy. He believes that when they return and they are injected into the public sector, over time a crop of well-trained experts would have been created to act as agents for public sector transformation in Africa. The scholarships are fully funded. There are other philanthropists of course who intervene in their own way – like Professor Pat Utomi who supports widows, Florence Ita-Giwa who provides for the poor in Bakassi, Sir Emeka Offor, Mr. Oba Otudeko, Folorunsho Alakija, Otunba Subomi Balogun…

We can have more people in this country willing to give back and help. Reno Omokri may have been direct in his finger-pointing but there is certainly a large community of rich Nigerians out there who do not know what it means to be public-spirited. They are happy to go about in private jets: it costs about US $4 million per annum to maintain a private jet in Nigeria (Otedola’s N5 billion donation is the cost of maintaining a private jet for about 4 years) and yet most of the nouveaux riche are much happier going about in those jets with girls with long legs, fake skin, fake eye lashes, Brazilian butt-lifts, fake accent, and small brains, rather than help the poor. Their type can be found across Nigeria.

But it is not enough to make donations or set up a Foundation. There must be transparency and accountability in the management of funds and processes. Sustainability is important. Too many Foundations rise and fall. We hope Femi Otedola and his daughters will find every reason to sustain their new-found passion.

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