CONVENTION SHOCKER: PDP splits!

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PDP held its 2013 Special National Convention in Abuja, yesterday. Photos by Gbemiga Olamikan and Henry Unini

PDP Special National Convention: President Goodluck Jonathan and other PDP leaders cuting cake at 2013 PDP Special National Convention.

President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice President Namadi Sambo.

President Goodluck Jonathan casting his vote.

Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State (left) and PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

From right; Governors Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State, Godswill Akpabio of Akwa-Ibom State and Senator Ken Nnamani shortly after casting their votes.

From left; Governors Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State, Gabriel Suswam of Benue and Liyel Imoke of Cross River.

New PDP Faction

L - R, Mrs Sally William Chinebu, former Deputy Governor, Imo State, Mrs Ada Okwuonu, Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha and House Leader, Hon. Mulikat Adeola Akande at the Convention.

From left, Kano State Gover nor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido and Sokoto State Governor, Aliyu Wamako at the press conference.

Another faction of the PDP at Press conference announcing new PDP Factional Leadership in Abuja, after walking out of the convention, yesterday.

From left, Former Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Adamu, Kwara State Governor Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amechi , New PDP Factional National Chairman Abubakar Kawu Baraje, Kano State Governor Rabiu Kawankwaso and Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido .

New PDP faction: From left: New National Secretary and former Governor of Osun State, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Adamu, Kwara State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amechi, New PDP Factional National Chairman, Abubakar Kawu Baraje, Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso and Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido at the press conference announcing the new PDP factional leadership in Abuja.

From left, Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido and Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Wamako at Press conference announcing new PDP Factional Leadership in Abuja.

Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013 — PAGE 5

PDP splits Continued from page 1 officers for it.

The governors are: Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Musa Kwankwaso of Kano, Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara, and Babangida Aliyu of Niger.

The governors and their teeming supporters had earlier stormed out of the Eagle Square, venue of the PDP Special Convention, after they alleged that the list of delegates for the election of national officers of the party, scheduled to be conducted at the convention, and the contestants had been manipulated by the leadership to usher in their preferred candidates. Sunday Vanguard learnt that the PDP incurred the wrath of the governors when it also became clear that the party was not ready to adhere to the guidelines released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for the conduct of the convention and remove the impediments that led to the cancellation of the previous convention.

Agenda The embittered governors, some senators and House of Representatives members as well as other statutory delegates from their respective states later converged at the Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, where they unfolded the agenda and the names of the national officers of their faction.

Some former national officers of the party made the list of new officers of the new PDP. They were, Abubakar Baraje, who was named the new National Chairman, Olagunsoye Oyinyola, National Secretary and Sam Sam Jaja, who emerged the New Deputy National Chairman of the faction.

Shortly after being proclaimed the new National Chairman of the party, Baraje said he was ready to make the PDP the party that would give adequate attention to all members and give them a level -playing field to

achieve their political ambitions.

Baraje said the Bamanga Tukurled PDP had destroyed the core values, which the founding fathers of the PDP bequeathed to Nigeria and frustrated many key members out of the party, while those who knew nothing about the philosophy of the party were now the leading lights. He also denounced the tendency by the Tukur administration to breathe down on the neck of members, who do not do the bidding of the Presidency and its lackeys, saying that such a practice was undemocratic and retrogressive. Baraje said, “While we have done everything humanly possible to bring to the attention of critical stakeholders within the party the dangers inherent in the course being charted by that leadership, it has become very clear that the desperate permutations towards 2015 general elections have blinded certain people from the consequences of their actions.

Violations “Not only has the Constitution of the party been serially violated by Alhaji Tukur and fellow travellers, but all the organs of the party have been rendered virtually ineffectual by a few people who act as though they are above the law. “Unfortunately, it is obvious that that they get encouragement from the Presidency whose calculations are geared towards shutting out any real or imagined opposition ahead of the party’s presidential primaries for the 2015 elections. “As leaders of our great party, we consider it a sacred responsibility to save the PDP from the antics of a few desperadoes, who have no democratic temperament and are therefore bent on hijacking the party for selfish ends. While the list of their violations of the tenets of our great party is long, we will highlight just a few: *The National Executive Committee of the PDP, at its belated meeting of 20 June 2013, approved 20 July2013 for the conduct of a Special National Convention.

However, that date was changed to August 31 without reverting to NEC (the only authority vested with such powers) by a few people, apparently

SOLUTION

Vice President Namadi Sambo (left) and Kaduna State Governor Ramalam Yaro casting their votes at yestesday’s PDP Special National Convention . Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan.

acting on the authority of the Presidency. *Notwithstanding the fact that INEC had noted that the PDP congresses in nine states were not properly conducted, the illegal delegates from such states are being paraded at the socalled convention being held today in a cynical attempt to circumvent the law and further bring the name of the party to disrepute *In gross violation of the PDP constitution, which stipulates that the NEC meeting must hold at least once in a quarter, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and a few people have been running the party like a personal fiefdom without recourse to that important decision-making organ of the party. *The NEC of the party accepted the resignation of the former members of the NWC whose offices were affected by INEC observations based principally on the agreement that the affected officers would be returned to their respective offices at the convention *Notwithstanding INEC insistence that Senator Andy Uba is the duly elected candidate of the party in Anambra State and against the background that he is so recognized by majority of our party members, the Bamanga Tukur-led Executives announced a purported suspension of Senator Uba and some other members close to him in defiance of subsisting court orders. *Despite that the PDP Constitution is very clear that the state chapter of the party cannot discipline a national officer, the Deputy National Chairman, Mr. Sam Jaja, has reportedly been dismissed by some renegades, who have hijacked the Rivers State chapter of our party with the connivance of the Bamanga Tukur leadership. *The persistent change in the list of the party’s delegates in many states as part of a deliberate attempt to rig the party ’s nomination of candidates, especially at the Presidential and gubernatorial levels, with a view to foisting on the PDP some unpopular candidates who are bound to lose at the polls. *The suspension without due process of the Governors of Rivers and Sokoto states even when the illegal suspension on Sokoto State Governor has been

lifted, the Rivers Governor remains purportedly suspended for no just cause. *The illegal dissolution of the Adamawa State chapter of the party is a clear abuse of power

by Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, thus causing confusion in his home state.

“Given the foregoing, it is very clear that the Bamanga Tukur leadership cannot guarantee for our millions of party members democracy anchored on free choice and the rule of law. We have therefore, taken it upon ourselves to rescue the party from their inept and dictatorial leadership’.

‘Party brought down’ Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, in his remarks, lamented that the PDP, which started in 1998, had been brought down by those who knew nothing about it. “Let us see how we can reform PDP for those lofty goals to be achieved. They can never be achieved by the Presidency and the current PDP leadership,” Atiku said. “I’m sad to see this. I will, therefore, want to appeal to the rest of our members who are still sitting on the fence to join the new PDP. I want to assure you the new party will restore the fading values of the founding fathers of the party. By the grace of God and with your support the change will come.”

Faction illegal— Tukur In the meantime, National

Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, yesterday, took a swipe at Atiku and the six governors in the Baraje- led faction, describing their action as self -seeking. Tukur, who vowed that the party will resist the move as well as take very serious action against them, said the faction was illegal and unlawful, just as he said that there was crisis in the party.

Speaking with journalists, the PDP leader noted that the meeting held by the governors was a kangaroo one. “The PDP does not recognize any parallel party. Those who staged the walk- out and organized a kangaroo meeting are all self-seeking; they are treacherous individuals pursuing neither regional nor religious agenda, but pursuing their own agenda and personal interests.

“Their attempt to create a

parallel party is illegal, unlawful as there is no crisis within the PDP whatsoever.

“The PDP is studying the situation as it unfolds and will deal decisively as the situation warrants. “It is obvious that they are creating crisis where there is none to give the impression that the party is divided. This in their thinking will allow them to persuade loyal members of the National Assembly to cross carpet with them. We will resist this. ”

Anambra: Uba, Nwoye’s suppor supportter erss in free-for-all

BY HENRY UMORU & DAPO AKINFERON

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RISIS rocking the Anam bra State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, spilled over to the special national convention where supporters of the Chairman, Senate Committee on Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Senator Andy Uba, his brother and a chieftain of the party, Chief Chris Uba, and those of the party’s candidate in the state’s forthcoming gubernatorial poll, Tony Nwoye, engaged in a free-for-all. Eagle Square, venue of the convention, was literally turned into a boxing arena where the Anambra delegates threw decorum to the dogs and engaged in boxing before other delegates.

Prior to the fight, the Ubas, Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, were already seated at the Anambra State pavilion.

Nwoye came in at 11.15am with his supporters which thus charged the atmosphere and led to the fracas between the supporters which lasted for well over thirty minutes.

Oduah, who could no longer watch the theatre of the absurd, stormed out with her aides at 11.22am. Andy Uba and Nwoye had been produced by two parallel PDP primaries as the party ’s candidates ahead of the November gubernatorial election last weekend.

PAGE 6 —SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

PDP Convention Timeline

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN, HENRY UMORU, BEN AGANDE AND DAPO AKINREFON

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resident Goodluck J o n a t h a n , y e s t e r d a y, described the 14-year-rule of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as a blessing to the country. In a speech to the Special National Convention of the ruling party, Jonathan noted the strides in various sectors of the polity including communication, power, education and transportation as p r o g r e s s i v e developments that only those in the critical segment of the opposition have refused to acknowledge.

The President, in a speech covering 3,735 words, said the task before the party was “difficult, thankless but ultimately rewarding.”

His speech to rouse the party faithful nonetheless did not stop six governors present at the occasion to walk out to form for the first time, a parallel faction of the ruling party.

Before him, senior party

officials, including the National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, Obong Godswill Akpabio, had, in remarks at the Convention floor, reiterated the need for unity and determination to rally round the President. Anenih, while noting what he described as the seeming grievances among party men, pledged to redouble his efforts in reconciliation. Tukur, as he if in anticipation of the walk-out, called on the faithful to remain vigilant as he noted that troubles against the party were not yet over.

Jonathan, in his speech, narrated how the PDP had since it came to power at the federal level in 1999 posted several successes in the different sectors in the polity.

He also took out time to subtly poke the opposition, noting that the PDP had remained one without changing identity, flag, or name. In a subtle dig at the Lagos State government, he also said the PDP governor would focus on attacking destitution instead of attacking destitute persons.

Commending members of the former National Executive Committee, NEC, of the party who resigned to allow the regularisation of the election of members of the NEC, he said their action was in conformity with the party’s inclination to the rule of law.

“They are patriotic party members unlike others who drag the party to unnecessary litigation. We commend them and promise that the party will reward them. We are here fellow delegates in obedience to due process. We are confident that all those who will. be elected today into positions of responsibility entrusted with the mantle of leadership within the party will work diligently as one team.

The party has provided a level

BY DAPO AKINREFON

Delegates casting their votes at yesterday’s PDP Special National Convention . Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan.

How PDP has blessed Nigeria — Jonathan *Pokes opposition for refusing to acknowledge strides in transportation and other sectors *Says PDP will not attack destitute persons playing field for all contestants to demonstrate their readiness for this call to service.”

Noting how the party has survived because of its inclination towards internal democracy, he said: “Of the three political parties registered in 1998, and I want you to listen, only PDP has retained its singular identify and core vision as a political movement till date while others have been imploded along the way or subsumed their identity in search of political direction and relevance. The PDP has remained a strong fortress of hope for our people but remained focused on building a greater Nigeria, one that can afford this generation and the generation to come better life.”

The President started his narration of PDP’s delivery of democracy dividends with the multiplication of telephone penetration which, he said, progressed from “400,000 in 1999 before the PDP came on board to over 120 million today.

Our telecom sector has grown to be the biggest in Africa and one of the fastest growing in the world providing jobs for millions of Nigerians and creating a new generation of successful entrepreneurs and industrialists.” Jonathan also cited developments in the banking industry which, he said, has flourished and the education sector developments “critics never want to acknowledge”.

Besides what he claimed as progressive revival in primary education, he noted the construction of over 120 Almajiri primary schools and the establishment of nine federal universities.

The President also chided those arriving the federal capital for failing to acknowledge what he described as the state of the art road network leading into the city saying: “Our belief is that our critics don’t come into Abuja through our airport, (otherwise) they would see the airport road. If they drive round Abuja, they would have seen the outer lanes and others. We have changed the face of Abuja”, he said. “Under

the PDP government we have embarked on massive infrastructural development that all the geo-political zones are being linked up and people are acknowledging that driving across the country is now less painful. Though we are yet to get to where we want to, surely PDP will lead Nigeria to where we want to go.”

In what could be interpreted as a dig at the recent removal of some destitute persons from the All Progressive Congress, APC, controlled Lagos to Anambra State, Jonathan said: “We recognise Nigeria as one indivisible entity, we deplore ethnic distrust among our great people. For we are one people under one umbrella in this republic. In the PDP, we fight against poverty not the poor. In the PDP, we attack destitution, not the destitute. “In the PDP, we believe in the tenet of democracy and development.

This is who we are. We must remain a party of national unity, we must insist on justice and equity. We must insist on defending Nigeria from those who threaten her in words and deeds. We are a nation in God’s hands and we must keep it so.”

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n his own speech, Tukur said: “This is the first time this is happening in the annals of Nigeria to repeat the entire process of an electoral process of any political party. PDP is indeed showing a good example for other political parties to follow. Apart from this, the Special Convention is also coming on a very official and significant date which coincides with the birthday of our party which was launched on August 31 1998,that is 15 years ago.”

Anenih, also addressing the PDP Convention, said: “As you all probably knows, a lot has been written about conflicts and crises in our party, almost on a continuous basis. Let me assure you that a great deal of what is publi shed is

exaggerated. While it cannot be denied that there are differences and disagreements, now and again, our party has a very effective arrangement for conflict resolution. I want to take this opportunity to assure you that the PDP is one great family and appeal to all those who have one reason or the other to be aggrieved to take advantage of the abundant opportunities for conflict resolution in the party.” “As Chairman, Board of Trustees of the PDP, my focus has always been on reconciliation, party cohesion and discipline.

It is true that given the enormous size and spread of the party, there are bound to be challenges in his organization. However ,you will agree with me that recent challenges problems of indiscipline are weighing heavily and affecting the smooth operations of the party in nearly all of its chapters. We have a strategic obligation to put our house in order to retain our dominant position in the Nigerian political system and continue to be a stabilizing force in the Nigerian democracy.” Meanwhile, voting commenced at the PDP convention ground shortly before 3.00 p.m. after the chairman of the electoral panel, Senator Ken Nnamani, addressed delegates on the voting pattern. Delegates from all 36 states voted for the different positions on the ballot according to their states and each state was led by the highest political office holder.

Jonathan led delegates from Bayelsa State, Vice President Namadi Sambo led delegates from Kaduna, while the president of the Senate, Senator David Mark led delegates from Benue .However, voting was restricted to statutory delegates from Anambra and Adamawa States as elected delegates from the different factions were barred from voting.Voting ended around 4.30 pm following which the long process of counting the votes commenced. As at press time, counting was ongoing.

7:00 Operatives embark on last-minute security check 7:05: Female police operatives take position at delegates’ platform 7:15: SSS operatives take over presidential stage 7:20: FCT police boss, Femi Ogunbayode, arrives to take charge of security 7:42: Delegates arrive convention ground 7:45: Ken Nnamani, Bode George, Ebenezer Babatope, Stella Omu, Sam Egwu arrive 8:30: Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta), Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Josephine Anenih, Peter Odili, Godsday Orubebe arrive 9:00: Ushers take position 9:05: Gbenga Ashiru, Joy Emodi, Dan Suleman, Emeka Wogu, Onyeka Owenu arrive 9:15: Police helicopter hovers over convention ground 9:45: Jerry Gana, chairman, convention planning committee, arrives 9:50: Former Speaker of the House of Reps, Mr Dimeji Bankole, arrives 9:52: Nyeson Wike leads Rivers delegates bearing Uche Secondus emblem 10:05: Ministers take seat at VIP stand 10:07: Deputy Speaker, House of Reps, Emeka Ihedioha, Pius Anyim, DSP Alamaseigha, Bode Olajumoke arrive 10:30: Paul Play Diaro performs 10:45: Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa) and Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto) arrive 10:50: Andy Uba, Ibrahim Mantu arrive 10:55: More delegates troop in 11:00: Governor Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Chris Uba, INEC officials arrive 11:13: Delegates fight at Kaduna State platform, security agents move in to calm situation 11:15: Gov Jonah Jang (Plateau) arrives 11:17: Tony Nwoye arrives with Anambra State delegates 11:20: Chris Uba supporters fight with those of Tony Nwoye over sitting arrangement 11:25: Security operatives unable to calm situation 11:30: Olisa Metuh steps in to douse tension 11:32: Anambra delegates chant Nwoye to affirm his candidacy 11:35: President Jonathan, VP Sambo, Dame Jonathan arrive, go round to greet delegates 11:45: Programme commences with singing of the national anthem 11:46: NSDC boss, Dr Ade Abodunrin, goes round for security check 11:47: Chief Imam of Abuja gives opening prayer 11:58: Jerry Gana gives opening remarks 12:05: Party Chairman, Bamanga Tukur addresses delegates 12:07: Governors Kwankwanso (Kano), Sule Lamido (Jigawa) and Wamakko (Sokoto) converge at Niger State’s platform 12:15: Governors Kwankwanso (Kano), Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Wamakko (Sokoto), Babangida Aliyu (Niger) head to presidential platform to greet President Jonathan 12:40: Musical interlude by Paul Play Dairo 12:50: Goodwill messages 1:13: Onyeka Owenu performs 1:15: Governor Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), chairman, PDP Governors Forum, addresses delegates 1:25: BOT Chairman, Tony Anenih, addresses delegates 1:28: Speaker, House of Reps, Aminu Tambuwal, gives goodwill message 1:31: Senate President David Mark gives speech 1:40: Vice President Namadi Sambo addresses delegates 2:00: Muslims conduct prayers behind convention ground President Jonathan addresses delegates 2:30: Jonathan ends speech 2:33: Delegates cut unity solidarity cakes 2:40: Chairman, Election Panel, Ken Nnamani, addresses delegates on voting pattern 2:45: Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Rabiu Kwankwaso ( Kano), Abdulfatai Ahmed (Kwara), Idris Wada (Kogi) and Wamakko (Sokoto) leave convention ground with their supporters 2:58: Voting commences

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 7

Kirikiri monarch, chief spend weekend in prison

*Accuse police, businessman of being behind their ordeal

BY ONOZURE DANIA

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HE Baale of Kirikiri town, Lagos, Chief Waheed Sumonu Agunbiade, 82, and his deputy, Chief Kayode Ewarawon, are spending the weekend in prison after they were denied bail following their arraignment before a magistrate court late on Friday.

Their arraignment late on Friday is alleged to be a ploy to keep them in prison for the weekend by the police.

A businessman, who was said to have lodged a complaint of threat to life against them, was alleged to be working in concert with the police and the magistrate.

The plot to imprison them got credence as they honoured an invitation to report at the Area B Headquarters, Apapa, Lagos at 9 am on Friday, and waited there unattended to until about 4 pm when they were taken to court for arraignment.

The magistrate reportedly failed to release them on bail even on self recognition as traditional chiefs and they had to be taken to Kirikiri Prisons pending tomorrow when they can

perfect their bail conditions.

Agunbiade narrated his ordeal to Sunday Vanguard at the Kirikiri Prisons, yesterday.

He said that before he and his deputy were arraigned and imprisoned, the businessman, who, according to him, is also a claimant to the baale of Kirikiri stool, had threatened that he was going to deal with him but that he didn’t take it serious.

The octogenarian said that, on Wednesday, a police officer, from Area B Command, Apapa, brought a petition that was written against him and the other chiefs, by the businessman that they were threatening his life and property, and that they were needed at the police station, to give statements on Thursday.

On Thursday, according to him, they went to the police station to give the statements, after which they were asked to come back on Friday for fact-finding which they also did, but, on getting there, they were delayed till evening when they were charged to court and were subsequently remanded in prison.

He said, “We got there around 10 am, but we

were detained until around 4pm, when we were taken to court without the police carrying out any investigation over the allegation against us.

“While we were at the station, we discovered that they had already prepared the charge against us. Even when I tried to explain to the Area Commander, Mr Mohammed, he refused to listen to us. He said they should just take us to court.”

RECHARGING TO STARDOM: The winner of N5 million in the ongoing Glo “Recharge to Stardom” promo, Stephen Kuti (middle), flanked from left by winners of N1 million in the promo, Adedapo Kolawole, Linus Udo, Tayo Attah and all other winners during the prize presentation ceremony held on Friday in Lagos.

Obama seeking lawmakers’ approval for Syria strike

BY TONY NWANKWO with agency reports

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RESIDENT Barack Obama said yesterday that he had decided that the United States should take military action against Syria in response to a deadly chemical weapons attack.

But he said he would seek congressional authorization for the use of force.

He said congressional leadership plans to hold a debate and a vote as soon as Congress returns in September.

Obama said that though he had the authority to act on his own, but he believed it was important for the country to have a

debate.

Military action would be in response to a chemical weapons attack

the U.S. says Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government carried out against

civilians. The U.S. says more than 1,400 Syrians were killed in that attack last week.

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN (left) with Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer of Young Shall Grow Motors Limited, Chief Vincent Obianodo, who is recuperating after a recent attack by unknown gunmen, during the Governor's visit yesterday.

3 killed, 17 injured in Bauchi autocrash

BY SUSAN EDEH

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O fewer than three persons were killed while 17 others were, yesterday, injured in an autocrash in Darazo local government area of Bauchi State, about 25 kilometres away from an army check point in a village called Gindin Tsamiya.

The accident, which occurred around 7.24 pm, involved a Toyota Camry car with number plate, AKK 281 AA, and a Toyota commercial bus with number plate, XA 789 GML.

CHANGE OF NAME SHITTU—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Shittu Kehinde Husseinat, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Balogun Kehinde Husseinat. Lagos State University, NYSC and general public please take note.

Bauchi State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Mr. Sunday Henry Olatunji, who confirmed the incident, said 20 people were involved in the crash.

According to him,“Out of the 20 persons involved in the crash, we have 15 men, one female and two male children. Three persons, which include two men and a male child, were confirmed dead while 17 persons sustained injuries”.

The sector commander, who gave the names of the drivers of the two vehicles as Jafaru Ali and Aminu Dauda, said that when FRSC officers at Darazo command received information about the accident, they went to scene of the crash and conveyed all corpses and injured persons to Darazo General Hospital.

While attributing the cause of the crash to overspeeding and overloading, he cautioned motorists, particularly commercial drivers, to always adhere to traffic rules and regulations.

PAGE 8—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

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SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 9

Rt. Hon. Victor Ochei, Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly (fifth from right); Comrade M.C. Cartney Obrotu, Chairman, Delta State Chapter of Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria PASSAN (to Mr. Speaker’s immediate left); Mrs. Patience Okwuone, Welfare Secretary (to Mr. Speaker’s immediate right) and other PASSAN’s executive members during a visit to Ochei recently.

L-R: Mr. Uche Olowu, National Treasure, CIBN; Mr. Tay Kay Luan, CEO, Institute of Bankers, Malaysia AND Dr. Uju Ogubunka, Registrar/CEO, CIBN during the Breakfast Interactive Session with Heads of Human Resources of Banks and non-Banking Financial Institutions. The theme of the event is “Implementation and challenges of the Competency Framework”: Malaysia Model and was organised by the Center for Financial Services (CFS), a subsidiary of CIBN recently at Bankers House, Victoria Island, Lagos..

Girl, 13, beheaded; suspect arrested

BY PETER DURU middle aged man, Terseer Angyo, has been arrested by the Benue State Police Command for allegedly beheading a 13-year-old girl identified as Mnyorhan Asase, at Aliade in Gwer local government area of the state.

Sunday Vanguard gathered yesterday that the girl was murdered by her assailant in a forest area in Aliade while on her way back from a market in a nearby village.

Corroborating the story, the Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Deputy Suprintendent, DSP, Daniel Ezeala, said the police in Aliade were alerted by the moth-

A

er of the deceased about her sudden disappearance.

He said, “One Verlumun Asase, residing in Aliade, had informed the police that her daughter, 13-yearold Mnyorhan Asase, was attacked and beheaded on her way from the market

*Plans robotics championship

BY Olayinka Ajayi

T

he Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna has identified non-inclusion of foundational mechatronicssubjectsintheeducationalcurriculumat all levels as one of the c h a l l e n g e s facing innovative and

* Says Jonathan remains the best

T

he National Financial Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Elder Bolaji Anani, says no serving governor elected on the platform of the party will decamp.

Anani also said that the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan would give him victory in the 2015 presidential elections as his programmes has touched positively on the masses of the country.

Speaking on the occasion to mark his 60th birthday in Abuja, Anani, a former member of the Revenue Mobolization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission representing Cross River State, said the report that about seven governors of the PDP would decamp was s p e c u l a t i o n .

He, however, said that he was speaking on his

”Acting on that information, the police traced the suspect and found the head of the little girl in his possession. Investigation into the matter has fully commenced after which the suspect would be made to face trial before a competent court.”

Why Nigeria lags behind in system automation – FUT Minna

2015: No PDP gov will decamp – Anani

BY JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU,Abuja

at Tse-Nyajo, some seven kilometers from Aliade town. ”She reported that one Terseer Angyo allegedly forced the little girl into the bush where he cut off her head and hid it in black nylon back which was dripping blood.

personal capacity and not as an executive member of the ruling party, adding that for a party as large as the PDP, it was impossible not to have internal crisis.

According to him, “First, let me say this interaction with you is in private capacity. So, what I say to you, today, I say it as Bolaji Anani not as the National Financial Secretary of the PDP. ”Crisis in a big party like the PDP is normal.

If we do not have such disagreements, that means there’s a problem.

Because of the size, there will be problems.

With understanding, we will be able to come together and solve our p r o b l e m s . ”All the things we’ve heard about people or governors wanting to dump the party must be dispelled. They’re just rumours.”

creative thinking among Nigerians. This, according to the university, is evident in the fact that almost every task is done manually within the country. It believes system automation is an integral part of the development of any nation.

In a bid to bridge this gap, the university created a new School (faculty) of Inf o r m a t i o n andCommunicationTechnology(SICT).

The Acting Dean of the School, Dr Elizabeth N. Onwuka, speaking in a telephone interview with Sunday Vanguard, echoed the thinking of FUT Minna, emphasizing that teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics using traditional classr o o m approachesmakesyoungNigerians lose interests in these fields at the early age of schooling.

Onwuka, an Associate Professor in the Department of TelecommunicationsEngineering Department in FUT, said the non-inclusion of this strategic field of study at the prenursery, nursery, primary and secondary levels has deprived Nigeria the opportunity to develop her top talents at a very tender age.

This educational lopsidedness, she stated, continues to manifest in non-availability of top talents needed for the most desiredtechnologicaltransformation of the country despite her abundant human resources. Onwuka disclosed that in order to tackle this

technological challenge, SICT has begun the development of artificial intelligencebased mechatronics engineering system in N i g e r i a . To a c h i e v e this, brilliant Nigerian exp e r t s in mechatronics (Prof M.J.E. Salami andDrAbiodunM.Aibinu),lecturing abroad, have been attracted to join FUT Minna and establish a department of mechatonicengineering. “ P r e s e n t l y , theuniversityisorganizingamaiden edition of Nigeria Robotics C h a m p i o n s h i p (NIROC), which is aimed at introducing innovation and creativity in artificial intelligence, mechatronicsengineering,androbotics, all of which drive automation, to all spheres of life in Nigeria”, Onwuka said.

“The championship is expected to build a network of top talents; facilitate the teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics with fun using affordable and localydevelopedinteligentmechatronicengineeringsystems; improve intuitiveness; and imbibe research culture in all the educational tiers in the country”.

According to her, championship will be held later this year at FUT Minna.

The championship, among other things, will boost the country’s transformation agenda in the area of artificial intelligence, mechatronics and robotic system development.

BRIEFS Nwodo’s wife for burial Sept 24

B

urial activities for the late justice of the Court of Appeal, Justice Regina Nwodo, commences with a valedictory court session in Abuja on September 2 4 .

Justice Nwodo, wife of a former Minister of Information, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, died in a London hospital last month and her remains are expected to arrive Abuja anytime from September 20.

A committee, headed by former National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, with former Senate

President, Chief Ken Nnamani, as deputy, has been inaugurated in Enugu with no fewer than 15 sub-committees to arrange the funeral.

According to the Chairman of the Burial Committee, Dr Nwodo, besides the valedictory court session, other activities lined up for the funeral for the late jurist will shift from Abuja to Enugu, capital of Enugu State and Abagana in Anambra State. The deceased will be buried at Ukehe, Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State on September 27.

Tuface, real estate firm partnership

R

EAL estate firm, Ha ven Homes, says it went into partnership with renown artiste, Tuface, to release its latest album as part of its contribution to the entertainment industry.

“It is an album to look out for because the lyrics and message are what our society has been looking forward to. The song

is powerful and melody superb”, a statement by Haven Homes said, saying the song could be listened to on its website, www. the haven homes.com.

The statement added, “every home created by Haven Homes is a beautifully crafted work of art.

We use modern architecture to create a fine balance of brick and glass.”

2015: Friends endorse Jonathan

F

RIENDS of D r. G o o d l u c k Jonathan, one of the groups that campaigned for the President’s election in 2011, has endorsed him to contest in 2015. Addressing journalists at the end of the meeting of the group’s National Executive and

S t a t e Coordinators’Summit, held in Abuja,the National Chairman of the group, Hon. Emmanuel Ekpeyo, said re-election would ensure that the President continues with the gains of transformation.

Prof. Ojo is Bowen Varsity new VC

T

HE Senate of the Bo wen University, Iwo, has approved the appointment of Professor Matthew Akintunde Ojo as the new Vice Chancellor of the institution.

Ojo, started his academic journey in the

University of Ife, Ile Ife Osun State, where he bagged both his first and second degrees -B.A. Hon. English and Religious Studies and M.A in Religious Studies respectively.

PAGE 10—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

“When women have gone a step too far, they will stop at none”. Henry Fielding, 1707-1754. (VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS p 280).

ENRY Fielding, the author of world classic, TOM JONES, was an excellent writer and the classical “ woman wrapper”. So, he knew what he was talking about. For Fielding as for all men, there is an abiding warning - be careful when your woman (wife, running mate, mistress, girl-friend etc) intrudes too much in your business. Irrespective of whether the business is politics or a church or illegal oil bunkering the odds of a happy ending are very long.

Conventional wisdom has it that “behind any successful man, there is a woman”.

But, conventional wisdom is not history and the verdict of history has not been too kind to conventional wisdom.

Last week, in the first part, I mentioned three women, wives of Heads of States who interfered publicly in governance. One ended well, two ended in tragedy for husband and wife. In fact, the chances of a wife damaging her husbands’ political career, instead of helping it, are higher than two to one. They are more like 1000 to one. To be candid, I have searched in vain for an example of a political career that was saved by a wife jumping publicly into the fray. From this sur-

H

vey, it is my conclusion that a wife can only help if the public perception of her is very positive and if the citizenry, in general, consider her as a positive influence on her husband. Otherwise, a synergy develops – the President’s or Prime Minister ’s real or imagined faults are multiplied by the personal defects or wrong doings of the wife.

Today, in Nigeria, rightly or wrongly, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, the President’s wife, had become branded with two characteristics – none of which can possibly do her or the President any good. First, every governor in Nigeria, even if some will not admit it, must dread the arrival of Mrs. Jonathan in their state capital. After the experiences in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja, where her presence left people literally cursing “ whoever is the cause of this” (as I heard co-victims saying on Ikorodu Road when she held Lagos hostage), it is doubtful if anybody in that holdup, people who lost their daily income, missed business or doctors’ appointments etc, will ever want four more years of that nonsense. The Lagos hold-up almost resulted in the premature death of one of my friends – until he called his doctor who gave him an emergency prescription on the phone!! He will never forget Mrs Jonathan; so will millions of others.

Second, she might have forgotten, but few Nigeri-

Let's eradicate Polio 2 The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that's the essence of inhumanityGeorge Bernard Shaw wrote about the emer gence of Polio in my column on the 10th of February, 2013 in, LET'S ERADICATE POLIO. Six months on and it seems that Nigeria is nowhere forward in eradicating polio despite the ministry of health head’s boasting that Nigeria will be free of Polio by the end of the year.

For those who are not familiar with Polio, Polio is a crippling and potentially deadly infectious disease caused by a virus that spreads from person to person invading the brain and spinal cord and causing paralysis. Polio (poliomyelitis) mainly affects children under five years of age.

Polio can spread from these endemic countries to infect children in other countries with less-thanadequate vaccination and one in 200 infected leads to irreversible paralysis. So, amongst those paralyzed,

I

5% to 10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized.

Unfortunately, there is no cure; the most effective means to eradicate polio is to immunize every child to stop transmission and ultimately make the world polio free.

The last three countries where polio is thriving are Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria. Last year, India declared polio-free in February 2012 is perhaps, the best example of how a fully funded programme driven by committed leaders and dedicated workers to achieve success. If a country of billion plus can succeed then, Nigeria should be able to galvanize people power to the final push to see the end of polio. Our great challenge it seems a mistrust of the vaccines, insecurity, weak health systems and poor sanitation.

We also have perpetuate the systems that those that are disabled cannot partake in everyday life other than beg or do some vocational work and those that have broken the mould like

ans will forget the bundle of lies Nigerians were fed during her prolonged illness abroad – which must have emptied the national treasury of undisclosed sum. When she finally chose to tell the “truth”, it was followed by an extravagant “Thanksgiving” (more like fund raising) Service into which more millions were thrown. Prince Philip, the Queen of England’s husband was discharged from the hospital recently and his return home called for no more than handshakes from the hospital staff and his official assistants. His wife, the Queen, is more powerful than any Nigerian President. But, he knows

,

Eight years of “Madam President”: Issue for 2015 (2)

written in 2011 and send me a bottle of Gulder for accuracy of prediction.

POWER LIES Protest: Residents of Sakpoba/Dumez Road protesting “No light for six months” at PHCN Office, Benin City. Picture in Vanguard, August 21, 2013, p 7.

One funny fellow, who claims to be living near Brig-Gen. Ogbemudia, had been telling me lies about power supply in Benin – which according to him averages 18 hours a day. I had visited Benin at least twelve times this year, and there is a Vanguard Office there. I know this Jonathan supporter will be exposed eventually. He still has not told me how less than 4,000MW generated can provide all of Nigeria with 18 hours supply everyday. Jonathan’s supporter indeed. By their reasoning we know them.

Certainly, he will try to wrig-

Today, in Nigeria, rightly or wrongly, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, the President’s wife, had become branded with two characteristics – none of which can possibly do her or the President any good

,

that Britain is struggling with economic recession and the masses are suffering. The difference is clear.

Whether Jonathan likes it or not, Mrs Jonathan has become a 2015 campaign issue. And from my point of view, it is an issue which might cost the President millions of votes. The choice is his. Or is it hers?

ASUU AGAIN? ARE NIGERIAN STUDENTS TAUGHT BY DULLARDS? 2 Last week, you were treated to part of a column written in June 2013 predicting another ASUU strike. The current one is the second since 2011. Read what was

gle out of the lie again. With “supporters” like these…

“ROPE A DOPE – ASUU –4 “We do not know whether there is a special way of passing this Bill that had been begging for attention for years. We also doubt if the lawmakers were equally sensitive to what the nonimplementation of the said agreement [emphasis mine] had caused the academic community, students and parents and what it would cause them in the future”.

Prof. Ukachukwu Awuzie, President ASUU, lamenting the delay in passing the Bill arising from the agree-

the successful Nigerian paralympiads who came back with clutch full of medals. Even then, we can no longer consign polio victims to a life of penury and hopelessness. Most importantly, we have to prevent this life limiting disease affecting the next generation and beyond.

with disbelief that they believe polio vaccine is 'bad injection' or 'white medicine' that there is a conspiracy by the west to sterilize Muslim children. None of these myths are true of course, and more disturbing as we now heard that several medical workers have risked their lives in an attempt to complete one of the most ambitious health campaigns in history and recently, some of the workers were brutally murdered while carrying out this vital work in the North of Nigeria. As a result all vaccinations have been currently suspended.

So, as long as a single child remains infected, then others are at risk in the region to spread new cases every year. So can we expect our ministry of health to make the extra effort to expedite the process and help eradicate polio? What we need right now is a drastic change of mindset and education. Our children deserve better, our society and our country definitely can do without polio blighting the lives of the next generation.

The Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu once described the resurgence of the deadly polio virus as an embarrassment to Nigeria and vowed that the government will intensify efforts to change the situation. No more talking let us act to make this happen.

,

There is no cure; the most effective means to eradicate polio is to immunize every child to stop transmission and ultimately make the world polio free

,

So last week in the UK, I watched a documentary by Ade Adepitan - paralympics medalist in basketball, tennis player, actor, TV show host, himself ,a polio survivor went to Nigeria to cover the campaign to eradicate Polio in Nigeria. His documentary, JOURNEY OF MY LIFETIME, was poignant and heart wrenching that in this day and age, Nigeria remains behind poorer African countries who have successfully eradicated polio. Despite an initiative by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, there are pockets of resistance and new cases emerging.

I watched and listened to some of the Polio survivors interviewed by Adepitan

ment reached with the Federal government in 2009.

“It is unthinkable that wisdom should ever be popular”.

Goethe, 1749-1832.

Fuel queues are back; your wife is probably still searching for kerosene; power supply had reversed back to one hour a day. A guy seats in Aso Rock enjoying the “breath of fresh air ” which his “ rope a dope” strategy has yielded.

I dey laugh O!!!

Commonsense is not common. If there is anything funnier than the “rope a dope” strategy, it’s the new twist. You would think Professors and Senior Lecturers in our universities are intelligent; that they could not be fooled. Well, you are half right. They are mostly intelligent; but also mostly not wise. A good lot of the world’s catastrophes had been caused by “eggheads”. David Halberstam, in his book THE BRIGHTEST AND THE BEST, the best chronicle of the American misadventure in Viet Nam, had called the policymakers and top military brass, who produced the debacle, “intelligent but not wise”. Back in 1974, when I was reading the book, it had not registered in my mind that someone can be intelligent and not wise.

Now I know. Of all the definitions of wisdom, John Milton’s, 1608-1674, is the most apt for this column.

According to him: “To know/That which before us lies in daily life/Is the prime wisdom/ What is more is fume”. (VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS, p 275). Wisdom, is never taught in schools; it is learnt from experience, open mindedness and providential intuition; from being truthful to oneself all the time and not compromising with the truth – however unpleasant. When

ASUU reached the 2009 “agreement” with the Yar’Adua-Jonathan administration, the two sides compromised heavily on the truth. ASUU is now left holding the empty bag. As this piece is being written on June 3, 2011, the Sixth National Assembly had gone into history without passing the Bill. Yet, if the discussion between some of my friends in academia is a reflection of what others did on election days, they also “voted for Jonathan not PDP”. In the end, Jonathan and PDP had colluded to break the agreement entered into in 2009 to get ASUU back to the classroom. That self-deception on the part of highly intelligent people is bad enough.

A look at the composition of the present National Assembly reveals that except for the mini-tsunami in the Southwest, the PDP had again been overwhelmingly re-elected nationwide by people who deceived themselves that they “ voted Jonathan not PDP”. Was Jonathan running for Senate, House of Representatives and Governor everywhere? ASUU members, who might find themselves back in the trenches, can now ask themselves if they were honest with themselves and other stakeholders by keeping quiet until it is too late. To be quite blunt, did they actually expect Jonathan and the PDP to keep their promises? If not, why the self-deceit especially when it is now clear that the calamity Professor Awuzie predicts would come to pass for Nigeria’s education sector? ASUU is now threatening to go on strike again. A lot of sense that makes!! That’s like bolting the gate after all the chicken have fled.

V i s i t : www.Delesobowale.com

Nigerians Do Not Know What They Have

ture.

Marcus Garvey put it so succinctly "Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our mind." So right Marcus Garvey, the change has to come from within not outside of self.

It is easy to lay the finger of blame on others for the state that we are in, but actually, as individuals, we need to have discipline and dignity; we have to rise above the obstacles. We can no longer play victims. In the UK, like in other places, race is treated with caution, trepidation and not discussed in depth. This is probably because people do not want being reminded of the past, they feel that they will be blamed in part or they feel defensive. The problem is we continue to ply on thin layers of quick fix but not strong enough solution to lance the boil for good. Nothing is ever easy even the Martin Luther Kings' dream. It can only happen when we put our collective shoulders to the plough only then, can we begin to gleam our desired reality.

I am sure that we all can see the correlation between the race struggle in the US and other countries to our tribal/religious tension and our colonial past. We are fortunate to have a place to call home, while others were taken from our shores and displaced all over the world.

"One of the things I learned when I was negotiating was that until I changed myself, I could not change others." -- Nelson Mandela Fifty years ago, Martin Luther King stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington and made a landmark speech calling for an end to racism in America.

His "I HAVE A DREAM" speech is regarded as one of the most important moments in 20th century history. One man's conviction and courage to look fear in the face touched millions and it continues to resonate till this day.

Fifty years on what has happen to the dream? The jury is still out. Some believe the dream is exactly what it is, a dream. With the likes of Trayvon, Roney King to name a few, many more blacks are in the penal system than any other race; discrimination and prejudice is rife despite having a black president. This is not to say that many have not made their way to the top of the ladder, they have but it was a struggle.

Fifty years ago that, would have been a pipe dream not reality.

I believe Rev. Martin Luther King's dream was right for that moment when black people were living through segregation, penury and prejudice with no fu-

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 11

Oil or no oil, Nigeria has a problem to wean itself from dependence on oil and gas as a major revenue earner by embarking on deliberate and sustained diversification of its economy. To drive home the point, the Conference suggested that agriculture, tourism and other non-oil sources should be intensively explored, in order to avert the catastrophic consequences of a future

,

T

HE 2003 All Nige rian Editors’ Con ference (ANEC) has ended in Asaba, the Delta State Capital. The Conference which had as its theme “Nigeria Beyond Oil: Role of the Editor”, was relevant and apt for the times and also fell in line with the universal role of the media to set the national agenda of its country. Indeed, the Conference underscored the allimportant role of journalists to serve as the mirror and gatekeeper of society to point out danger signals in the horizon to avert a woeful end. From the tone of the welcome address entitled, “Diversify or Die”; the President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Femi Adesina left no one in doubt of the grave consequences awaiting the country in the face of dwindling oil revenue.

At the end of the Conference, enlightenment on the subject was virtually overwhelming as ample light was shed on the state of our economy and the evils of over-reliance on a single product. The Conference opined that Nigeria needs

the projects we saw during a tour of the city, the situation in which previous administrations did not quite treat Asaba as the real capital city has changed. One of our colleagues wondered aloud why Governor Uduaghan was not following the trend of his neighbours whose expenditures on propaganda often outweighed the cost of the

If our political leaders continue to go abroad for medical treatment thereby ignoring the development of a good health care delivery system, our hospitals will remain comatose whether or not our economy is diversified

,

without oil.

The host State-Delta gained immensely. As an oil state, it used the Conference to illuminate and widen its own preoccupation with the subject into a national one. Of course, the opportunity to show-case the state was not lost. From

projects being publicized.

As an aside, the few senior journalists invited by the governor to a private dinner on the eve of the Conference saw a governor’s wife that played the role of a humble cook and steward.

Does the lady not know the Nigerian meaning of first

PhD, Department of Philosophy, University of Lagos,

The new Neanderthals (2) tion that impels him to exaggerate the purported virtues of his ethnic group or race and simultaneously hyperbolises the weaknesses of others.

Bizarre cases such as Femi Fani-Kayode's, include narcissistic claims that the first lawyer, medical doctor, the first professor, the first this and that, is from one's ethnic group, without considering the possibility that the first armed robber executed by firing squad, the first Chief Executive Officer of a failed bank, the first Inspector General of police convicted of larceny and so on might hail from his ethnic group as well. As we suggested earlier, the latest research findings in the human sciences reveal that, insofar as congenital ability can be detached from environmental influences, there is no clear distinction among different ethnic groups, which implies that the spurious sociobiological anthropology of ethnic irredentism is hocus-pocus.

T

he notion that the Igbo or Yoruba or any ethnic group has an innate superiority over another is merely a myth generated by the overweening self-esteem of ethnic jingoists, given that peculiarities of indi-

t was not surprising I that the presentations were near perfect because

Nigerian plans, speeches and even budgets are always well organized. They are however also always

deeply about it and act wisely before it is too late.

Nigerian rulers pretend that Nigeria is a secular state because the 1999 constitution section 10 provides that "the government of the federation or of a state shall not adopt any religion as state religion." The veil of pretence is removed by section 38 which guarantees every Nigerian freedom of religion. Of course, freedom of religious worship is not identical with secularism. Nigeria is a multireligious country; she is not a secular state. Over ninety-seven percent of

,

H

ERD mentality is a necessary concomitant of primitivism. Evidence from psychology indicates that certain personality types are prone or easily susceptible to herd mentality and obsessive attachment to blood and ethnicity, irrespective of their educational and socio-economic background.

It follows that a man (or woman) might be educated in some of the best universities, dresses in the most fashionable clothes, and generally projects an image as the epitome of cultivated elegance and, yet, remains stymied in ethnic atavism. Such a person is psychologically and spiritually immature and hollow.

He is alienated from himself and instinctively, like an infant who depends on the security of his parents, seeks the comfort and emotional support that the group to which he belongs offers him. His existential centre of gravity is outside himself, a pathetic condi-

lady?

On the main subject of Nigeria beyond oil, I doubt if I was not left confused by the deliberations. The 2 main speakers from the top most hierarchy of the federal government spoke well. Labaran Maku, the Minister of Information was expectedly in his elements. Himself a seasoned journalist, Maku masterfully reeled out the quantum of government efforts so far in handling the economy. He didn’t forget to ask Nigerians to give the Jonathan administration more time to finish a good job. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Pius Anyim was probably more concise when he stated that “whether we like it or not, we are transiting from an oil Nigeria to non oil Nigeria and if we fail in this duty, the society will pay for it. Unlike most speakers who dwelt on the exhaustible nature of oil, Anyim revealed that even if oil does not finish, we are about to lose our major buyer- the United States. From the articulate contributions of these 2 high ranking government officials I became a bit unsure of who actually needed to be sensitized.

It must be admitted that religious fanaticism will destroy the country if Nigerians fail to learn appropriate lessons from the sporadic religious disturbances that have been occurring especially in Northern Nigeria since 1960

,

viduals from different ethnic nationalities used to classify ethnic groups as inferior or superior are largely due to contingent environmental factors.

Now, on the issue of religious differences as a potent factor which could destroy Nigeria, it is time for our people to think

Nigerians are adherents of different religions, although Christianity and Islam are predominant.

Consequently, if the country were a secular state, the reverse should have been the case; that is, the percentage of religious adherents would have been very low.

poorly implemented.

Therefore, the impression that our problem is due to our reliance on oil may not after all be our real problem. This is because if we diversify our economy and earn higher and more sustainable revenues, our stunted growth will not vanish if we mismanage the proceeds as has been done to oil. For instance, if we garner great resources from diversified sources and a huge chunk of it is misapplied, we shall still have problems like ASUU’s incessant strikes and the closure of schools. If our political leaders continue to go abroad for medical treatment thereby ignoring the development of a good health care delivery system, our hospitals will remain comatose whether or not our economy is diversified. he key note address T presented by Dangote- a manager of non-oil

products was no doubt instructive. But the address would be of no use if in our handling of public policies, we do not borrow a leaf from Dangote. For example, the latter does operate with an unwieldy workforce like our governments such as that of Bauchi State with hundreds of idle hands as special advisers and assistants. It is therefore not enough to seek to diversify our economy which ordinarily is the right thing to do, when we know that sustainable revenue that will

More importantly, there would be no need to build churches and mosques in Aso Rock and in the thirty-six state government houses throughout the country, or for Nigerian political leaders to regularly consort with pastors and imams depending on the religion to which they belong.

S

ecularism entails drastic decline in religious consciousness or observances and in the number of people who go to churches and mosques regularly. In addition, it involves noticeable reduction in the influence of religious institutions and in the inclination of individuals to turn to religious explanations or impulses in their daily lives.

It is instructive to observe that the same constitution which allows freedom of religion is silent on freedom from religion. A truly secular state must guarantee freedom of unbelief.

However, in this country unbelievers and atheists are looked at with suspicion, oftentimes with hostility. Being an atheist in Nigeria comes at a great economic and social cost.

If you are an atheist like me, your colleagues, friends and family members will look at you as if something is wrong with you, as if you are from another planet. That is why

accrue from the effort will be wasted on issues like having 3 ministers in one ministry as is the case today in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs he media did well to T seek to determine the national agenda by focus-

ing on what can sustain the nation. But unfortunately, in spite of the power of the media, the subject did not become the topical issue in the land. Instead, we were inundated by stories of a supposedly hale and hearty Governor Danbaba Suntai who could not on his own, disembark from an aircraft. How the electoral commission warned in vain that it would not relate with unknown faction of a party for the coming Anambra election and how the party concerned carried on as usual with impunity, suggesting that we may not get men of vision out of the elections were the issues of the moment. Other issues that took prominence in national discourse included the failure of the aviation sector which often purports to be security conscious to stop a stowaway young chap who took advantage of the lack of perimeter fencing at the Benin airport to gain entry into the tyre of an aircraft and fly in it to Lagos. These topical issues which have nothing to do with oil suggest that, oil or no oil, Nigeria needs to first solve its basic problem of national indiscipline.

most unbelievers in Nigeria are closet atheists; they would rather keep their lack of faith to themselves rather than admit it publicly.

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igeria is a relii o u s state to the core, a society where most people are intoxicated by religion - after all official documents from government agencies often have provision for individuals to indicate their religion.

It must be admitted that religious fanaticism will destroy the country if Nigerians fail to learn appropriate lessons from the sporadic religious disturbances that have been occurring especially in Northern Nigeria since 1960. Now, highly placed Nigerians tend to dismiss or deliberately downplay the religious provenance of these violent clashes.

Oftentimes poverty, ignorance, lack of proper education and unemployment are cited as the principal causes of violent religious disturbances. Nevertheless, the Holy Bible and the Holy Koran contain passages that encourage religious intolerance and violence against unbelievers.

There are some passages from both the Holy Koran and the Holy Bible against non-believers.

TO BE CONCLUDED. g

PAGE 12—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

C M Y K

SUND AY SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PPA AGE 13

REPORTS & TOP STORIES OF THE PAST WEEK

PROLOGUE

BETWEEN SUNTAI AND HIS SPONSORS

A puppet and his puppeteers zThe fatal embrace

BY JIDE AJANI

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here is a decidedly fatal em brace in the air. In this in stance, however, Danbaba Suntai would not be the first.

Before Suntai, there was Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. But before Umaru, there had been, in other climes, Mad King Ludwig of Bavaria, Woodrow Wilson, Adolf Hitler, Idi Amin, Deng Xiao-peng, Ferdinand Marcos, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Menachem Begin – all these individuals had had one form of infirmity or the other, some bordering on mental disability, while in office. The lesson to draw from their situations, as explained in a book, WHEN ILLNESS STRIKES THE LEADER: THE DILEMMA OF THE CAPTIVE KING, by Dr. Jerrold M. Post and Robert S. Robins, is that these individuals as puppets and those shielding members of the public from the true position of their health as the puppeteers, are locked in an egregious and fatal embrace, “each dependent upon the other for survival - a captive king and his captive court” - while exploring what was described as the impact of physical and mental illness on political leadership.

Suntai is the puppet and the puppeteers are the likes of his wife, Jerry Gana and John Dara who told Nigerians last Sunday that Suntai was hale, C M Y K

fit and hearty to rule Taraba State.

Alas, and without prejudice to Suntai’s very personable personality before the air crash which forms the bane of his present situation, the Suntai Nigerians have been privileged to see cannot be subjected to the rigours and demands of governance of a state. Simple!

Therefore, the lessons from the book are simple and straight forward.

It must be acknowledged: “The illness or disability of a leader can change the course of history. When Lenin became too infirm to remove Stalin from a position of power, when the Shah of Iran’s terminal cancer was kept secret from fellow Iranians and foreign supporters until Ayatollah Khomeini’s Islamic revolution had succeeded, the political consequences were monumental.

“In this absorbing book, two experts in political psychology reveal how the infirmities of leaders have affected their own societies and the broader course of world events”.

In this society of clashing interests that Taraba State is, religion and ethnicity are being brought in.

Firstly, Suntai is a Christian. The logic in some quarters there is that once he’s out, a Muslim would take over as governor. Cheap talk! Those Christians who are expressing this fear should be considered as pagans or Christians of little minds. When in

Therefore, the fatal embrace, the delusion of which suggests to the puppet and the puppeteers that they are in good stead is no more than a delusion grandeur which would, in the final analysis, spell doom as was the case with the respected and respectable but late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua whose handlers subjected Jonathan to ridicule.

Therefore, Mr. President, as leader of the PDP, should do that which is right and stop this show of shame.

1999 Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi chose a Christian as his deputy, the talk in Kaduna was that the governor turned senator may not last and a Christian would take over as Kaduna State governor. Behold, Makarfi’s deputy died even before the tenure was completed.

Then came Governor Patrick Yakowa who succeeded Namadi Sambo when the Office of the Vice President was offered to the latter. Some people went to town insisting that they would have to endure over eight years of a Christian governor in Kaduna. By a twist of faith per cruelty, Yakowa lost

Taraba National Assembly Caucus support Acting Governor: From left, Hon. Dr. Aminu Ibrahim Malle, Senator Abubakar Umar Tutura from Taraba Central, Chief Whip House of Representatives, Isaka Bawa and Hon Ibrahim El-sudi addressing press men, calling on Taraba Acting Governor to continue taking responsibility of the Taraba State Governance at National Assembly Abuja. Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan

his life in a plane crash. There was Yar ’Adua who also passed on before the expiration of his tenure paving the way for Goodluck Jonathan. Whereas no one should celebrate at the demise of another, human beings are very fond of playing god by removing God from the equation.

Those who seek to enthrone this needless silliness on the polity in Taraba were part of those who complained when a cabal hijacked the Presidency to the embarrassing exclusion of a sitting Vice President Jonathan. They are all members and leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Were Taraba State to be under the control of the All Progressive Congress, APC, what vibes would have been emanating from the PDP headquarters?

Were Suntai to be a Muslim, what would some masquerading Christian leaders be saying about that?

From the look of things, Taraba State itself might become incapacitated.

Alhaji Garba Umar, the Acting Governor, has been instructed by the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Haruna Tsokwa, to continue his job and disregard any shenanigans oozing forth from Suntai’s end.

The issues to look at are so simple and straight forward in this unfolding disgraceful show: What does the Constitution say?

Has the law been breached?

How was it breached?

What constitutes incapacitation?

All indices of gauging the situation and responding to these posers suggest that Suntai and his handlers cannot score anything good or convince anyone that they are right.

Therefore, the fatal embrace, the delusion of which suggests to the puppet and the puppeteers that they are in good stead, is no more than a delusion of grandeur which would, in the final analysis, spell doom as was the case with the respected and respectable but the late Umaru Musa Yar ’Adua whose handlers subjected Jonathan to ridicule. Therefore, Mr. President, as leader of the PDP, should do that which is right and stop this show of shame.

PAGE 14 — SUND AY SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

By SONI DANIEL, Regional Editor, North

T

HE return, last Sunday, of Governor Danbaba Suntai, a pharma cist and politician, to Jalingo, the capital of Taraba State, which he has been governing since year 2007, has thrown the state into turmoil, and broken the cord that once bound politicians in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, into camps - those for and against the governor and his Deputy, Garba Umar, who has been acting since his boss was involved in an air crash on October 25, 2012. While Suntai’s supporters insist he is hale and hearty and capable of resuming work, his opponents have resisted the governor’s resumption of office, arguing that he is not fit enough to rule over them. This report presents the details.

T

he stage appears set for a prolonged personality clash in Taraba State going by the political drama that is unfolding in the state.

Not many are surprised though. As Governor Danbaba Suntai was being supported out of the aircraft that conveyed him from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja to Jalingo that bright Sunday afternoon, it was all too clear to those who had assembled to

C M Y K

receive him back to a state he had missed for over ten months, that he was a man of sorrow, writhing in deep pains and gnashing his teeth.

All the same, hordes of the governor’s supporters, friends, family and political associates erupted in unbound excitement, pouring over themselves and spilling over every available space at the tarmac of the medium-sized landing field and routes leading to and from the airport.

In their bliss, the supporters failed to take cognisance of the simple fact that a man said to have fully recovered from the severity of the injury sustained in the air crash barely managed to ease out of the plane. The jubilation also robbed the Suntai men from noticing the pain and tears in his eyes, as the band that went to bring him out of the jet tried to lift him from the back. As the aides carried him, the sharp pains apparently intensified and he screamed, twisting his face momentarily and his carriers halted the lifting for a while apparently to mitigate the twinge.

Although the message on the true state of health of the governor was lost as a result of the elaborate celebration that attended his return, it was not long that the reality began to unfold. The traditional greeting that dignitaries normally extended to those waiting to receive them on

Continues on page 15

SUND AY SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PPA AGE 15

TROUBLE IN TARABA Continued from page 14 arrival, was denied Suntai’s supporters at the airport.

Since then, he did not address the people of Taraba either in person or by proxy. And, while the natives were beginning to understand what was going on around the governor, his political advisers began to play dirty, churning out irksome claims that he had resumed work in accordance with the provisions of the law.

It was clear on Monday morning that the script of the theatre of the absurd that was about to be staged for the people of Taraba and Nigeria had been carefully written and the plots and their actors outlined before the arrival of the governor.

That Monday morning, Adamawa State Governor Murtala Nyako made history as the first person to visit Suntai since his return to the state. But the history that the Adamawa governor came to make was nearly ruined when he broke down and cried on seeing his host. On arrival at the Government House, it was the wife of the Taraba governor, Hauwa, who received Nyako and led him to a conference room where he met with her husband. Neither the acting governor, nor any senior government official was in attendance at the courtesy call.

The Nyako visit

C

onfronted with the reality of Suntai’s health, Nyako simply offered a word of prayer and left Jalingo before midday. He came face to face with the veracity that his Taraba counterpart that he knew before the crash near Yola airport last October was not the same man that he saw ten months after. As Nyako found out, the accident had taken a toll on the man, who was before now not only very active but also at home with all who came his way. He managed to control the tears rolling down his cheeks as a man who had fought many battles, and left.

As the Adamawa governor departed Jalingo, those who have taken it upon themselves to manage Suntai and his future were confused over what to tell the people of Taraba and the nation about the visit. Anxious journalists, who had wanted C M Y K

to use the opportunity of Nyako’s visit to hear how Suntai would speak, were utterly disappointed when they were kept out of the meeting. Instead, the organisers allowed two television cameramen- one from Adamawa and one from Taraba Television, to record the event. The footage was later shown to journalists but none of them got what they wanted most: the voice of Suntai.

Rather than dispel the growing claim that the Taraba governor could neither speak nor recognise anyone around him, preventing him from meeting his commissioners, the acting governor, other top government officials and journalists since his return from the U.S, exacerbated the story and made those who had believed that he was well to doubt the claim.

Those minding the governor, who have now been labeled a ‘cabal’, must have shot themselves on the foot by taking the decision to shield him from even vital officials of the government, including the state police commissioner and the Director of State Security Service.

W

hile the people were still wondering whether it was wise in the

otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to the Speaker of the House of Assembly a written declaration to the contrary, such functions shall be discharged by the Deputy Governor as Acting Governor”.

Suntai’s supporters led by the Majority Leader of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Mr. Joseph Albasu Kunini, were quick to declare that he had already complied with the Constitution by transmitting a letter of intent to resume work to the House of Assembly. Kunini, who did not seek the consent of the leadership of the House, said that it was not required of the governor to address the members or for the members to debate the contents of the said letter.

“There is no room in the Nigerian Constitution for the House to deliberate on the letter once it has been transmitted to the House by the governor,” Kunini told journalists.

“To us the governor has complied with the provision of the law by sending the letter to us through his Special Adviser on Legal Matters. The letter from Suntai was received by the Clerk of the Taraba Assembly and promptly handed over to the Speaker and that com-

Confronted with the reality of Suntai’s health, Nyako simply offered a word of prayer and left Jalingo before midday first place for Suntai to return home, his handlers pushed harder to get him to assert his powers on all fronts in the state power machinery. Barely 24 four hours after his return, the cabal bared its fangs. It claimed that Suntai had transmitted a letter to the Taraba House of Assembly to inform of his resumption as stipulated in Section 190 of the 1999 Constitution.

The section states: “Whenever the governor transmits to the Speaker of the House of Assembly a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is

pleted the required action.

“The Taraba State House of Assembly does not need anything other than the hard copy with the governor ’s authentic signature and there is no need to discuss it at the plenary,” the House Leader explained.

But to show the depth of division Suntai’s ill-health had caused, Kunini had hardly ended his statement when the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr. HarunaTsokwa, a man said to be loyal to the acting governor, Umar, thundered.

Tsokwa, who addressed journalists in his office,

•Gov Danbaba Suntai insisted that the deputy governor, Umar, remained the acting governor until Suntai addresses them on his state of health.

Although Tsokwa acknowledged the letter from Suntai, he nonetheless made it clear that it must first be deliberated upon by members at plenary before the governor could resume.

Tsokwa said: “Governor Suntai should come and address the House of Assembly before we decide on his resumption. The letter is with us and it has to be debated at plenary”.

While pleading with the people to remain calm and law-abiding, the Speaker assured of the readiness of the House of Assembly to work for the interest of the state at all times.

Confusion

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hile the different groups had thought that they had reached the climax of their plots, the main event that jolted the key contenders was unfolded in quick sequences on Wednesday thus adding to the confusion that has now become the order of the day in the agrarian state.

First, it was the Taraba Attorney General, Timothy Gibon Kataps, who briefed

journalists in the morning, restating the position canvassed by Kunini that Suntai had indeed resumed work as far back as Monday, August 26, 2013 by sending the controversial letter to the lawmakers.

Kataps said he had to cut short his trip for the NBA meeting in Calabar to return to Jalingo to clear the air on the raging controversy surrounding the resumption of Suntai and warned the faction led by the Speaker not to confuse the people of the state with his insistence that the governor must speak to them as a condition for resuming.

Just as he rounded off his speech, Kataps position changed dramatically and the fortunes of many other contenders in the crisis, tumbled. A terse statement

by Sylvanus Giwa media aide to Suntai, named Kataps as the new Secretary to the State Government, SSG, while one Alhaji Aminu Jika was appointed as the new Chief of Staff to the governor. Giwa also announced the dissolution of the Taraba Executive Council. All commissioners were ordered to hand over government property in their possession to their permanent secretaries with immediate effect. Rather than

PAGE 16—SUND AY 16—SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

TROUBLE IN TARABA 29, 2013, and jointly signed by the Speaker and 15 other lawmakers, they noted that Suntai could not have written the resumption of work letter, given his failing health.

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•Alhaji Garba Umar raise the hope of even those appointed, more tensions reigned in the state, as no one heard directly from the governor. But later in the day, a video footage of what was said to be the first broadcast by Suntai to the people of the state surfaced and added to the calls for him to return to hospital for treatment than heed the call to return to work. The footage, failed to convince doubting Thomases that the man had finally spoken. The man’s speech, as seen from the footage streamed by a private television station on Thursday afternoon, generated more concerns for even the governor’s media men and handlers than those his traducers. It was clear that many people doubted the authenticity of the speech while others wondered what the production meant to achieve.

Controversial speech

T

he speech of contro versy and the dissolution of the Taraba Exco, were to raise the bar for more confrontations between Suntai and his supporters on one side and the acting governor on the other.

On that Wednesday, members of the Assembly

met behind closed doors for several hours to take a common position on the state of the governor. After that meeting, which stretched into the night, the members decided to meet with Suntai apparently to gauge his true state of health, even though most of them were already convinced that the man was not fit to resume work. After many hours of staying at the Government House, the Speaker sent one of his aides to inform waiting journalists that he would meet with them after meeting Suntai, a meeting that went late into the night.

It was therefore good news for most of the journalists on Thursday morning when the Speaker released a statement to the effect that Suntai should not resume because he was not fit to rule the state for now.

The Speaker pointed out that after their meeting with the governor on Wednesday night they came to the conclusion that he could not have signed the letter to resume work.

Tsokwa along with 15 other lawmakers said that the acting governor, Umar, must therefore continue to act until Suntai was fit to take over.

In the letter dated August

art of the letter read: “It is no longer news that the governor of Taraba State Pharmacist Danbaba Danfulani Suntai was involved in plane crash on the 25th of October, 2012, whereof, he was flown to Germany for treatment in a condition that made him incapable of transmitting a letter to the Taraba State House of Assembly informing it of his absence in office.

“The House invoked the provisions of section 190(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and transmitted power to his deputy to act the office of the governor of Taraba State. We are all living witnesses to the way and manner the Governor was brought into the state on Sunday, 25th August, 2013.

“The leadership of the Taraba State House of Assembly made several efforts to see him since his arrival, until yesterday the 28th August, 2013 when they were allowed access to the ailing governor and their visit revealed that he spoke

whom power was earlier transmitted to by the state House of Assembly still remains the acting governor of Taraba State and he will continue to act in that regards until such a time the governor is capable of administering the state”.

The acting governor, Umar, later, on Wednesday, confronted Suntai by asking the people of Taraba to ignore the dissolution of the state Executive Council the previous day, describing it as being masterminded by a cabal bent on hijacking the state for their selfish interest.

Umar also warned banks not to honour any instrument not signed by him or Suntai with immediate effect.

The statement, signed by the acting govenor ’s press secretary, Sule Kefas, said, “Members of the public are advised to disregard yesterday’s announcement of the purported dissolution of the State Executive Council and the appointment of a new SSG as well as the Chief of Staff.

“The announcement is a mere attempt by a cabal to hijack the machinery of governance in the State and not a directive that was given by the Executive Governor, his Excellency Danbaba Suntai.

“To this end, the bankers of the Taraba State Govt are reminded to note that all

The announcement is a mere attempt by a cabal to hijack the machinery of governance in the State and not a directive that was given by the Executive Governor, his Excellency Danbaba Suntai. in the manner that brought more doubt to his authorship of the letter purportedly transmitted to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.

“In view of the above, we are convinced that Suntai could not have authored the purported letter transmitted to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.

“Be that as it may, we the undersigned members of the State House of Assembly have unanimously resolved in our meeting that the deputy governor upon

financial instruments relating to the State Government’s accounts should be honoured only if they are in tandem with the provisions of the law, in which case, must contain: Verifiable signature of the Executive Governor of Taraba State, his Excellency Governor Danbaba Suntai, or verifiable signature of the Acting Governor of Taraba State, his Excellency Alhaji Garba Umar, Acting for the Executive Governor.

“Acting governor of Taraba

State Garba Umar is reassuring the good people of Taraba State that substantial progress has been made in the ongoing discussions to resolve the misunderstandings of the past few days, since the return of our leader, his Excellency, Gov Danbaba Suntai from the United States.

“His excellency the acting governor is happy to note the high sense of patriotism and the brotherly manner with which Tarabans have been viewing and handling the developments, urging us all to sustain this in the coming days and weeks.

“His excellency, the acting governor, however, wishes to remind all Tarabans that a moment like this calls for greater restraint and vigilance”.

N

ow, the Taraba case is one of the big masquerades inside the ‘bush’ dictating the tunes for the political gladiators to dance naked in the market square while the godfathers smile away in Abuja. The difference between what happened to President Goodluck Jonathan in 2010 and what is happening to Umar, the acting governor of Taraba is that one is a Christian and the other a Muslim. From the look of things the forces in Jalingo and Abuja, who are also close to Jonathan, do not want a Muslim to step into the shoes of Suntai in 2015, whereas Umar wants to use his current position to launch himself into political reckoning in the next elections and set a new record in the political annals of the 22-year-old state. That is why the struggle may be turbulent if allowed to fester. The danger in it all is that the 16 proUmar lawmakers may consolidate their position and edge out ailing Susntai through impeachment or a medical board, as stipulated by law. But they need to know their onions and stick to it because if they are united by pecuniary reason, the offer of a filthy lucre from the other side could persuade them to jettison their course and throw the acting governor overboard.

The stage is not only dicey but perilous for both Suntai and Umar. Either way, one of them must give way in the game that has all the trappings of catch 22: you either win or lose, head or tail.

C M Y K

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 17

This administration is impacting positively on the transport sector —Anyaegbu, Chisco boss

BY JUDITH UFFORD

T

he story of the Execu tive Chairman of Chis co Transport Nig.Ltd, Dr. Chidi Anyaegbu, one of the leading transport companies in the country, is an individual who is determined to establish a reputation grounded on hard work, vision and ambition.

By dint of remarkable commitment, hard work and pronounced astuteness in the industry, the company has indeed expanded its scope of operation from one bus bought from Leventis Nigeria to a fleet plying the west coast of Africa namely, Ghana, Lome, Cotonou and Togo daily.

Anyaegbu has also delved into courier service, haulage, oil and gas, hospitality, importation and exportation and real estate business as well as the FOREX market. In the process, he has provided gainful employment to more than 4,000 skilled and unskilled people.

In a chance encounter, he spoke on road transportation in the country and the positive changes the Jonathan administration is making in the sector. The chat began with his views on the economic policies of the Jonathan administration which he said would have far reaching effects in the long run.

“Over the years, the Nigerian economy has depended solely on crude oil. This has limited the growth of the economy to a very large extent. But since the entry of the Jonathan administration, the emphasis has shifted to other sectors of the economy such as tourism, entertainment, transportation and other non-oil sectors. The way things are at the moment, the poor are really hard hit by the harsh economic realities, but I can confidently say this wouldn’t be for long because, in the long run, the policies that have been set in motion by this administration would pay off as they would impact the economy positively”.

Recently, the Luxurious Bus Owners Association of Nigeria, LUBAN, commended the

Federal Government for making our roads now motorable.

This does not sound like popular opinion. What’s his view?

The effect of good roads on the nation’s economy cannot be over emphasized, he said. “It is a very good policy and a credit to this administration to put our roads in good shape.

As a transporter and member of LUBAN, I have to say that good roads are most desirable for us because it makes the business easy by reducing the cost of spare parts and repairs as well as reduction in fuel consumption of these vehicles. I therefore salute this administration for the efforts that have been made on our roads”.

Just as he saluted this aspect of government’s transformation agenda, I was quick to remind him of the government’s effort in reviving our morbid rail system and how this will impact ‘negatively’ on the patronage enjoyed by LUBAN. Responding, he said that is a very narrow way of looking at the issue. There is no way a good and functional rail system will impact negatively on road transportation. According to him, the rail system is only an arm of the transport sector. “Its patronage is quite different from the patronage of road transport, because they have different classes of customers.

However, I would like to say that the Federal Government has even indicated in some fora that the rail system would be handed over to the private sector to manage after the transformation. So, in the long run, it is the same private transporters that would manage it. So, as it is, the railway system cannot be a threat to road transport because they have different classes of patronage and routes.”

As a leading transport company in Nigeria, he noted that the main challenges facing the industry are lack of professional personnel such as drivers, transport administrators and technical staff, high cost of spare parts, high cost of importation of vehicles, decay of in-

Dr. Chidi Anyaegbu

There is no way a good and functional rail system will impact negatively on road transportation.

According to him, the rail system is only an arm of the transport sector frastructure and other related facilities. The transporter therefore hinged the scarcity of luxury buses in the country on these factors. Adding the high cost of purchase to the list, Anyaegbu disclosed: “One luxury bus is about N65 million.

Add the high cost of import duty and other government charges to that and you will understand the disappearance of luxury buses from inter state travel”.

Proffering solutions to ease the problem and bring ours to internationally acceptable standard, he said the first step in this direction is the right infrastructure. “Government should encourage practitioners

with grants with none interest loans, low duties on import charges and bailout facility”.

Known for his philantropic activities which has earned him several traditional titles, Anyaegbu has contributed tremendously to the socio-economic and human advancement and development of the people of Amichi in particular and Nigeria in general using his financial and material resources.

For example, the transporter built a 3.6km asphalt road with a complete drainage system and donated same to his home community, Amichi, in Nnewi local government area, Anambra State.

Presently, he is constructing

a state of the art hospital in his home town, the first of its kind throughout the federation, to help deliver quality health care to his community.This will be donated to the Nigerian Red Cross Society when completed.

Anyaegbu has also completed and donated a multi-purpose civic centre to the same community.

He funded the building of a Cathedral for his home town to the tune of N78million.

Through a foundation, he has provided scholarship assistance for indigent students in Amichi.

In furtherance of his commitment to ensuring that education is within the reach of his kinsmen and other deserving indigent Nigerian youths, he has attracted a campus of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka to his hometown. He is single handedly funding the construction of the building for the campus which has reached an advanced stage.

In addition, he single-handedly built and equipped the department of transport studies at the University.

PAGE 18 — SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Email: woman.vista@yahoo.co.uk

Helen Ovbiagele Woman Editor

I

was admiring this couple at their wedding recep tion, marvelling at how well-matched they were; not only in their good looks and easy smiles, but also in the way they reached for each other ’s hand unprompted from time to time, as if ensuring that they were connected all the time. As the chairman of the occasion made his speech, they smiled at the same time, giggled at the same time, and as if on cue, they would turn to smile lovingly at each other. I was mesmerized by the sight.

In my mind, I projected the union into the future, and saw a home in which love, peace and unity were in abundance to make a very happy marital life. And yes! Children! As many as they want; to gladden their hearts as products of the love and joy they share, which was evident to all and sundry that day.

I was jolted out of my reverie by the hooting and laughter of the audience, at what the chairman must have said, or was saying. In contrast to the reaction of the audience, for the first time that day, the couple weren’t smiling. They just sat up rigidly, staring at nothing. I wondered what was responsible for the drastic change in their countenance. Accustomed to the usual jokes and advice by whoever chairs a wedding, I had tuned out when the chairman was called upon to make his speech, as I didn’t think it would be different from what I had heard at other wedding receptions. When the laughter wouldn’t die down, I asked a lady at my table what was going on.

‘The chairman is praying that the couple would have triplets in nine month’s time.

One baby for each mother-inlaw to look after on her own, and one for the couple themselves. He’s advising that they should all come to live together in the same house, and he would go visit them from time to time to assess their care of the babies, and C M Y K

NEWLY-WEDS AND BABY PRESSURE award marks. Isn’t that funny? An impossibility, don’t you think, ma? Can you imagine two mothers-in-law each assigned a grand child to look after, and in the same house!

Imagine the chaos, the meddling and the quarrels. It can’t happen. Never! ‘ ‘Of course, it can’t. He was only joking, anyway. But why are the couple frowning? They don’t seem to see it as a joke.

I’m sure they don’t really expect his wish to come true, and they would start with triplets.’

At the night party for the taking-away-of-the-bride, I asked her mum who’s an acquaintance of mine what she thought of the triplets joke.

‘The man, God bless him, meant well, but it was the wrong thing to say because my daughter and her husband, who are both still under 30, don’t want to start a family yet.’

It was on the tip of my tongue, as an African, to ask why they got married now when they’re not willing to start having children yet, but I held my tongue. Times have changed. The young of this generation have their own ideas about marital life. In our days, having babies right away, if you can, was part of the deal of getting married. If you didn’t get pregnant the first month, tongues would start wagging about the possible cause; to the embarrass-

Thank you, auntie. Maybe you can write on the need for our people to stop putting babypressure on newly-weds. It’s so unsettling when a couple have other things to do first. Some people would even start telling one about the number of children that a couple who had wed at the same time as you, already have. That makes one feel a failure, doesn’t it? It isn’t fair.”

,,

View-Point

ment of the couple and their parents. The newly-weds would begin to run from pillar to post in search of a solution.

In most cases, there’s nothing wrong with them both. The anxiety for the woman to get pregnant takes the joy out of their relationship and intimacy, and if the situation persists

even for a year, reactions from friends and relatives may put a strain on the marriage. A few more years of this, and the union could be headed for the rocks. Couples who stick together, and disregard unsavoury comments from other people, find that they become relaxed and they go on

to have as many children as they want from God. My friend must have known the question that I wanted to ask, because she went on to explain that her daughter and the husband are born-again Christians who want to avoid temptation of doing what they shouldn’t do while single.

So, they decided to get married now and begin to live together. “ They both work,” she added, “but they’re also pursuing post degree courses in their professions, and they agree that having children now wouldn’t be in their best interest. On both parts, we parents tried to talk them out of that decision, but in the long run, we had to respect their wish. It’s their life. They have many years ahead of them to have babies. I noticed that they were a bit upset that the chairman made that remark about triplets, but we couldn’t have told him not to

(07036819426)

mention babies, could we?”

“Of course not! It would have been as if there’s something wrong with them. Maybe if he had merely prayed that the union would be blessed with children, the couple wouldn’t have minded. But to go on and on about triplets in nine months’ time, must have been seen by them as pressure for them to start breeding right away. They would feel that people would look out for pregnancy, and begin to pity them if it didn’t happen. This generation hates pressure of any sort.”

“Auntie, you’re very right,” said the bride, who had walked up to us and had been listening to our conversation unnoticed. “That was why we wanted a very quiet wedding in our own church, but our parents would hear of it. Our pastor agreed with us that it’s best to start a family when it’s convenient for us, and he praised us for wanting to wed now in order to avoid temptation. Can’t people pray for couples without expressing an immediate supply of babies?”

“Jums!” exclaimed the mother. “What are you doing here? You weren’t meant to hear that. Anyway, maybe it’s good that you heard. We respect your decision, as you heard me say to your Auntie here.”

“I knew she would support our decision. Thank you, auntie. Maybe you can write on the need for our people to stop putting baby-pressure on newly-weds. It’s so unsettling when a couple have other things to do first. Some people would even start telling one about the number of children that a couple who had wed at the same time as you, already have. That makes one feel a failure, doesn’t it? It isn’t fair.”

This young lady is very right. Most young people who get married, do so because they want children in the union; just like it’s always been since the world began.

But these days, they may have other priorities first, which the rest of us should respect. We shouldn’t put pressure on their union by giving them a time at which they should present the world with babies, even though this is said jokingly most of the time. We don’t know those who may experience some delay in starting a family. So, since babies and the time they come are in the hands of God, I think it’s best to pray that a couple would have a harmonious union blessed with all the good things of life, including babies, and not mention any specific time, or the sex or number of the children they will have.

File name - newly-weds – July7, 2013.

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 19

Email: woman.vista@yahoo.co.uk

The Founder of Christ Mega Church Nigeria & Overseas and current President, United Gospel Churches Association of Nigeria- UGCAN, Bishop Priscilla O. Otuya is an interesting woman who is enviably grounded in all fronts. As an entrepreneur, Otuya handles the administrative arm of Swan Dredging & Marine Limited, a dredging company she cofounded with her husband. As a mother also, she has 12 biological children to her credit; some of whom are already toeing her footsteps in ministry.

Otuya who is of Kwale extraction in Delta State was recently consecrated as Bishop at the Chapel of Christ the Light in Lagos. Vista Woman had an encounter with her. Enjoy!

Now that you’ve become a Bishop, what should we expect?

Service, service and more service. I hope to use this office to be a blessing to people. I’m aware there are lots of misconceptions in the society about the position, especially as most people begin to see you as a leader and head. I however believe that your being a leader is to serve others and lead by example.

I understand you’re the first female President of UGCAN; how do you hope to open doors for more women to head the association?

I’m going to work towards that because I believe women are natural leaders. According to the Bible, women have been endowed with opportunity and power to take the church of God to the next level in Christ. The last one year as UGCAN President has actually been very fulfilling. We have done projects that include civic education to sensitize ministers on their rights and responsibilities because when I came in, I realized that there was need for reorientation so that we could be better representatives of God and the people. We have also had the women’s program aimed at sensitizing them about their role in nation building.

One other area that I am passionate about is the future of our youths. In this vein, we did a youth program aimed at mobilizing them about their role

God can’t give women dominion just to sit in kitchen

— Bishop Priscilla Otuya, UGCAN President and how they can carve a niche for themselves. We are embarking on a campaign crusade for the restoration of the ideals that we stand for, with less emphasis on prosperity. We are focusing more on things that would foster unity and oneness.

But do you realise there’s still controversy over women holding leadership positions in church?

I think it is more of ignorance and misunderstanding. I personally did a research on women and I discovered that God has given women dominion for this end-time. You can go to the book of Micah chapter four. Dominion means power to control, rule and lead. God cannot give one dominion just for her to sit in her husband’s kitchen! So, I think that controversy is a product of ignorance. In UGCAN, we’re working towards a campaign to create awareness amongst men of God to help them see the truth from

Senior Bishop Johnson Ibodeme, Executive Director of Don Stewart International College of Bishops, presenting the prestigious Certificate of Consecration of Don Stewart International College of Bishops to Bishop Priscilla Otuya during her consecration in Lagos.

C M Y K

the scripture. The problem is that most of us pastors do what I call ‘second hand gospel’- what you hear, you preach; not what you

,,

BY JOSEPHINE IGBINOVIA

(07036819426) terrible experiences. My oldest sister got missing, and the one after me also got missing! I prayed and cried to God and He told me He wanted to teach me to understand people’s pain so I would know what they’re going through when they cry. That was how I began getting closer and closer to God until He called me to serve Him as an agent of salvation. Today, I am very happy that I took that call seriously.

This is actually the 25thyear.

Let us into your educational background…

I did nursing but could not practice because of marriage. I didn’t have kids on time, so, when they started coming, I had to abandon everything to take care of them. I actually waited for four years before God finally blessed my marriage with children. Now, I have 12 biological

I think it is more of ignorance and misunderstanding. I personally did a research on women and I discovered that God has given women dominion for this end-time. You can go to the book of Micah chapter four. Dominion means power to control, rule and lead.

discover by yourself. So, we want to correct that.

You said UGCAN is working towards changing the system?

Yes. That’s why I’m a Bishop today. In fact, you need to see all the men of God that came to consecrate me as a Bishop. The list included Archbishop (Prof)Magnus Atilade, Archb i s h o p George Amu, B i s h o p J.C.Okose, B i s h o p Johnson Ibodeme, Archbishop David Robert, Bishop Samuel O. Fadeyi, Bishop Rafiu, B i s h o p V.O.Okojie a n d Rev.Pastor Mike Utih.

If they didn’t believe, they wouldn’t have been there to perform the consecration.

Can you share with us how your journey into the ministry began?

It was v e r y rough. I had very

children! I had 13 but actually lost one. When I asked God why He gave me so many children, He said He wanted to prove to the world that He’s the one who takes care of children. True to His word, we’ve always lived a comfortable life. Each delivery actually brought me a new breakthrough. Some of my kids were even ordained before the age of thirteen because of the gift of God in them.

Taking care of them all must have been very challenging…

Whatever you have grace for cannot be challenging. Even if you have just one child, unless you have the grace, taking care of that child will still be challenging. My children are my best friends and when you see us together, you could mistake us for sisters and brothers because of the way we relate. Three are engaged and will be married very soon.

How do you cope with taking care of them, running the ministry and playing your role as a wife?

Like I said earlier, if you have grace for something, it will never be challenging. First and foremost, the Lord taught me to work with Him. One thing I first did as led by the spirit of God was to resign my appointment to stay with my kids. The first is now about thirty years old and the younger ones are now being taken care of by the grownups. When I began my business, I put my first son, right from when he was fifteen, as the head of the business and began to mentor him. Right now, he heads the business. My second son is an engineer working with my company, Swan Dredging & Marine Limited. It all has to do with planning and as a mother you owe it to God and to your family to raise your children.

God really helped me achieve that.

PAGE 20—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

RESPONSE TTO O DEPORT ATION DEPORTA

A cure worse than the disease

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State

Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State

BY AKIN OSUNTOKUN As the cliché goes, all this would have been laughable if it is not so tragic. In the heat of the subsisting venom and vitriol, it seems nobody now cares that the first set of “deportees” from Lagos were no other than Yoruba indigenes of Oyo and Osun states. I say this because this knowledge is not reflected in the way and manner protagonists have been conducting the debate on the so-called “deportation” of Igbo from Lagos. This precedent completely nullifies the presumption and dangerous peg

of tribalism on which the mutual trade in personal and ethnic slurs, derision, denigration, demonisation, and hubris has been hoisted. It tells us that Governor Babatunde Fashola’s action was not motivated and informed by ethnic calculations neither was it intended and directed against any particular group or nationality. It is a detribalised act but it is not a good policy. It is a joke carried too far. It is a conduct unbecoming of any government that aspires to be taken seriously.

It fails miserably on the template of cost-benefit analysis. It is an instance in which the cost - in

distraction, goodwill and reputation- has far outweighed any conceivable benefit from the forceful relocation of a few pathetic destitute. It also underscores the predilection of Nigerians for political theatre and excitement at the expense of calm and fruitful introspection; for heat and passion over and above light and reason; for mutual recrimination over cooperation and consensus.

In the first place, there was no need for ethnic casus belli. The ill-starred destitute were not relocated as Igbo but as indigenes of Anambra State. It was done in replication of the precedence of Oyo and Osun states where similar victims were earlier repatriated. They received the short end of the stick not as Yoruba but as indigenes of specific states. It was then left to the government of those states to respond and take up the challenge of accepting or rejecting the folly of the Lagos government. I am not a lawyer, but it seems to me that any litigation initiative on the case is a wrap up, open and shut case against Lagos State. Rather than political grandstanding, the affected governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, for instance, should have proceeded to the courts and seize an opportunity to make the destitute of today the multi-millionaires of tomorrow – in consequent hefty damages that would accrue to those hapless Nigerians through judicial penalty and sanction.

Quite significantly, it also poses the unique utility of testing the Nigerian Constitution on the key and basic question of citizenship.

How then did the unbecoming nuisance of repatriating some unfortunate citizens of Nigeria from one state to another transmogrify into a virulent diatribe across the ethnic divide bringing out the worst in the protagonists? It will be difficult for any thinking Nigerian not to admire and identify with Professor Chinua Achebe, but it was his grating remarks in the Biafra evocative book, There Was a Country, and the debate it spawned that served as the dress rehearsal for the present turn of events. In the book, the civil war was relived all over again with the attendant ripping open of old wounds and injuries. The story was told from a partisan point of view where blames and villainy are liberally attributed to the other side in counterpoise to the exhortation of heroic Igbo exceptionalism. The thematic backdrop was of a martyrdom suffered by a people whose surpassing excellence had incurred the envy and spite of fellow Nigerians. There was the account of how within the decades of the 1930s through to the 1960s, the Igbo caught up and excelled the Yoruba in education and modernisation.

Yet I do not begrudge Achebe.

The indomitable Sir Ahmadu Bello was the one who counselled that if you do not blow your trumpet, nobody would blow it for you. The modernisation rivalry among the component units of Nigeria, especially between the Igbo and Yoruba, is the stuff of which social progress and advancement is made. Nigeria will be the better for it. But there is also the pernicious strain, which is neither good for the Igbo nor fair to the rest of Nigeria. It has been repeatedly stated along the following lines“the military coup of 1966 presented a pretext to carry out a plan that had been laid out years before. It was a plan that aimed at a total extermination of the Igbo or, at least, their containment. The pogrom and the brutal war that followed was the final solution to the perceived Igbo problems in Nigeria. When Anthony Enahoro travelled round the globe arguing that starvation was a weapon of war, he was following the script for the total extermination of the Igbo. When Benjamin Adekunle boasted to foreign reporters, ‘I want to see no Red Cross, no Caritas, no World Council of Churches, no pope, no missionary and no UN delegation; I want to prevent even one Ibo from having even one piece to eat before their capitulation; we shoot at everything that moves and, when our troops march into the centre of Ibo territory, we shoot at everything even at things that do not move’, he was following the same script.”

Could there indeed have been a plan by

Incidentally, it was the NCNC –as it evolved to become the eastern regional denominated party – that went into alliance with the Norther n People’s Congress, NPC, (having spurned overtures from the Action Group, AG, of the Western Region) to form the Federal Government at independence.

And in the post-independence years, the adversity and hostility between the West and the North only deepened with the northern backed factionalisation of the AG and the imprisonment of Chief Obafemi Awolowo. In the century before British colonialism, the long-drawn war to checkmate the expansion of the Sokoto Caliphate into the Oyo Empire served as the singular presage to the unhappy relations between the Yoruba and the inheritors of the caliphate within Nigeria. Thus, it is difficult and improbable to impute any logic to the suggestion of a grand conspiracy between the Yoruba dominated western region and the Caliphate-dominated northern region.

If ever there was such a conspiracy, western region could not have been part of it. Neither, for that matter, could the northern region.

If we were not to stand guilty

In the first place, there was no need for ethnic casus belli.

The ill-starred destitute were not relocated as Igbo but as indigenes of Anambra State.

It was done in replication of the precedence of Oyo and Osun States where similar victims were earlier repatriated

the rest of Nigeria…laid out years before….. aimed at a total extermination of the Igbo?

Recent political history of Nigeria does not bear out this preposterous and extravagant claim. Such conspiracy would have required at the minimum an entrenched and long-standing political rapport between the governments and peoples of the northern and western regions.

On the contrary, the first lesson in politics and most successful political currency among the Yoruba (until the advent of the nascent APC) is to swear fidelity to the political canon of everlasting defiance and resistance of the Hausa-Fulani standard bearers of feudalism and hegemony. If there was any relationship between the two blocs, it was that of adversity, mutual suspicion and disdain.

of seeing ghosts where none exists, it was the chain of events set in motion by the western regional crisis of 1962 leading to the military coup of January 15 1966 that culminated in the civil war. It is possible that the coup was not a product of Igbo conspiracy but, in politics, perception can be more important than reality. And in the interim between January and July 1966, this perception was reinforced by two inadvertent events. The coup-makers were not tried and punished (courtmartialled by the army authorities) as they should; and the Ironsi government, perhaps, in good faith, legislated the abolition of the regions and the unification of Nigeria under the

Continues on page 17

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 21

In defence of Femi Fani-Kayode -- a true son of his mother’s husband

BY OLAITAN LADIPO

T

he striking resemblance between Chief Femi FaniKayode, a former Adviser to President Olusegun Obasanjo and an erstwhile Minister of Aviation, and his late father is enough to convince anyone of his biological paternity. However, when the Yoruba hail a person as a ‘husband’s child’ it is not necessarily, nor limited to, a confirmation of DNA. Perhaps more than anything else, it means they stood up to be counted when it mattered, usually in matters of family honour. As I said in an earlier write-up, Femi Fani-Kayode is a fearless exponent of his opinion on just about everything, especially matters that concern the Yoruba, in a situation where many of our other so-called elders and leaders shirk the responsibility. In that, Femi is demonstrating that he is a chip off the old block.

On a graduation day at the University of Ibadan, I observed as a mounted police officer rudely caused a small group of dignitaries to scamper in different directions on the forecourt of Trenchard Hall.

All dispersed except a rather tranquil gentleman in immaculate suit who appeared totally unconcerned with the mounted officer’s antics. Instinctively, the mountie backed his horse away.

I recognised the handsome man because I had met him once and seen him on at least two other occasions previously. He was Chief Remi Fani-Kayode, aka FaniPower, a former Deputy Premier of old Western Region and father of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode. The senior Fani-Kayode was attending the graduation of Lola FaniKayode, Femi’s sister.

Chief Remi Fani-Kayode did not have any bodyguards and there were no police escorts around him but he stood his ground. His calm comportment (a far cry from the mindless thugs of Femi Aribisala’s recent malicious portrayal) was enough to check the impudent horseman. It reminded me then of a Yoruba saying, perhaps originated from Hausa, that even when shorn of all adornments, a prince never loses the bearing of a Dan-Zaki.

Save for a precious few, the current debate on Lagos State government’s deportation of a number of destitute individuals to their states of origin is fast becoming absurd. This is mainly because many commentators, deliberately or ignorantly, sidetrack the real issues.

It is abhorrent that politicians would pass the buck of caring for a highly vulnerable group of Nigerians, not to talk of physically toss the individuals between themselves. On the other hand, it is exceptionally bad manners when non-natives call the abode of their host communities a no man’s land, as some have dubbed Lagos.

It is also clear that essentially only our Igbo brethren exhibit this discourteous habit. Other ethnics usually show appreciation for generosity and show respect for host traditions and ancestry. It is even more important to note that the Igbo do this usually, only in matters pertaining to the Yoruba.

While it is true that Fani-Kayode has a habit of stirring (actually, he throws IEDs at them) Nigeria’s political hornet nests, it is dishonest to suggest, and wicked to pretend, that he started these ethnic exchanges. Short of hypocrisy, there is no basis for

accusations of boorishness by Chika Ezeanya, of vulgarity by Regina Askia despite her implausible denial, and of bigotry

by Femi Aribisala, to name just three.

Insolence is not a virtue and must not be condoned. Those who lack it, Chief Obafemi Awolowo once said concerning Nigeria’s rude neighbours in Cameroun, Chad and Niger, ought to be taught good neighbourliness.

The ferocity of the revenge military coup of July 1966, they say, is to ensure that the Igbo will never again dare to think, let alone plan or carry out against the North, the kind of cowardly murders of 15th January 1966.

Whether intended or inadvertent, the lesson appears to have sunk home, as even people like the late Chinua Achebe sheepishly resorted to castigating only the ‘soft touch’ Yoruba. In 1983, Achebe was presidential running mate to the late Alhaji Aminu Kano, a man accused of actively directing pogrom against the Igbo in Kano. Any notion that his 1983 political choice was an attempt to bury the hatchet of Nigeria’s civil war was subsequently dispelled twelve months ago by Achebe’s contentious swan song, There Was A Country.

Secondly, since the natives of Port-Harcourt demonstrated that they would defend ownership of their little corner of Nigeria with everything they have, including permanently dispossessing the Igbo of properties the natives believed they (the Igbo) acquired through unjust clannish devices, the Igbo have learnt to tread carefully in the South-south.

Thirdly, when our Igbo brothers, typically, started the parasite-andhost debacle by ignorantly

alleging that the Fulani-led North were parasites, they did not expect the response they received. The North retorted that the Igbo are actually the parasites on the rest of Nigeria. They pointed out that nearly all of successful Igbo prospered outside of Igboland and that, statistically, as at 1966, ninety-eight per cent of Igbo leaders were either born in the North, lived in the North, or spoke Hausa. They (northerners) concluded that despite the propaganda to the contrary, the Igbo have never worked to have a country of their own but, usually, only wanted to ride on the back of other ethnics. Biafra, they said, was an opportunist attempt to coerce unwilling nations, including the highly educated and sophisticated people of Cross River and Akwa Ibom and their oilrich land, into a would-be Igbo dominated country. Loud noises about ‘northern parasites’ have since muted.

A

nyone who bothers to read the substance of Femi Fani-Kayode’s submissions will find that the foregoing are the key points he tried to make, in his own way.

Unfortunately and for a trained lawyer, Femi Fani-Kayode can be disappointingly inarticulate. For a Cambridge University graduate and someone whose father is on record for graduating top of his law class at the same Cambridge, it is sometimes painful to read Femi’s brash, arrogant commentary.

However, before we all decide to bury Femi for his delivery, let us remind ourselves that the salvation of Nigeria is beyond literary courtesies and delicate wordsmith. If it were not so, Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Niyi

Fani-Kayode

Osundare, Mohammed Haruna, Adamu Adamu of the Daily Trust, Okey Ndibe, and other artful and scholarly exponents of the finesses of English language would have saved Nigeria by now.

Our Igbo brethren have shown a habit to start things they cannot finish. To put it in another way, as soon as they realise the truth is not what they would like it to be, they revert to time-worn diversions of victimisation and imagined supremacy. Initially, many Igbo commentators continually asked for a debate of Nigeria’s civil war, pretending there were no factual records, but it soon became clear that what they wanted was for the rest of Nigeria to adopt Chinua Achebe’s versions. No sooner that others started to point out Igbo roles in bringing about, and Igbo leaders’ criminal treatment of Biafra children during the civil war, than they no longer wanted to know.

What Nigeria needs presently, perhaps more than ever, is truth raw and naked. This means truth derived from facts. And just because some of our Igbo brethren do not like to hear the truth, it does not mean that others must not speak it. *Ladipo can be reached via email: olaitanladipo@aol.com

A cure worse than the disease Continued from pg 36 unitary rule of the military – whose hierarchy was disproportionately skewed in favour of officers of Igbo origin. I do not need to be an apologist for the northern region to propose that no group can be dispossessed of power in the summary and traumatic manner that functionaries and officers of northern extraction were wiped out in the January 1966 coup and not react in a bitter riposte commensurate with its capacity to exact revenge.

Beyond the leveling up of scores in the counter coup, was the subsequent gross violation and pogrom of the Igbo resident in the North a product of conspiracy?

Without a shade of doubt it was.

But it was a conspiracy that did not antedate 1966. As a matter of fact, the original objective (from which it deviated at the instance of the British High Commissioner in Lagos) of the July 1966 counter coup was to terminate in a secession of the North from Nigeria and not remain to pursue

any hidden agenda. Nothing exemplifies the lack of a Nigeria wide or even a northern conspiracy against the Igbo than the incoherence and sheer ineptitude that characterised the conduct of the Nigerian government towards the Eastern Region in the months leading to the civil war. Remember the Aburi debacle?

Yet, I was not of any mind to join this hoopla until I read a rejoinder

by Mr. Femi Aribisala. One virtue I have always urged on Femi FaniKayode (a close friend and a brother) is to exercise a sense of proportion and moderation in his all too frequent public interventions.

Alas, how successful I have been in this regard is plain to all those who have followed him! Fani-Kayode is gifted at working himself into a storm in a tea cup on virtually any issue that catches his fancy; and has a provocative penchant for overstating his advocacy. Subtlety and diplomacy are not his strong points. And he has been duly admonished and upbraided in sundry responses. Now the other

Femi (Mr. Aribisala) is an academic and a pastor and he is 61years old.

He took umbrage and has published a rejoinder to the younger Femi and it is a cure worse than the disease. His words: “Power-power, Fani-Igbo: I was having private lessons in mathematics at the home of a colleague, Enitan Abiodun, when we heard the noise of a crowd outside. We rushed to the veranda to see Chief Femi Fani-Kayode (alias Fani-Power), then deputy governor of the Western Region, standing on the seat of a moving convertible. He was surrounded by a mob, which was shouting and hailing him. On hearing the noise, Enitan’s mother rushed to the veranda shouting ‘Awo!’ only to discover that the people outside were not supporters of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, but those of his arch-enemies.

“The shout of ‘Awo!’ by Mrs. Abiodun brought the procession to a screeching halt. ‘Who said that? Who said that?’ demanded the mob, enraged. “‘Fani-power’

turned and looked up at us. His eyes were the usual blood-shot red.

At the time, many claimed it was because he regularly smoked Indian hemp. Fani-Kayode pointed to our building and identified to his thugs that the offending shout came from our direction. We did not know that the floor of the convertible he was standing in was loaded with empty bottles. His thugs reached for the bottles and rained them down on us as we all scrambled back inside the house for dear life.

Like father, like son: that was 48 years ago. Today, Femi FaniKayode, the 53-year-old son of ‘Fani-Power,’ continues in the mischievous tradition of his father.”

Pray, what civic etiquette does one learn from this kind of admonition, reeking, as it does, of pure and unadulterated malice?

Why should one hide under the cover of an opportunistic moment to vent personal animus with reckless abandon? So what was the whole uproar against Mr. Fani-

Kayode about if those who criticise are themselves a worse advertisement on the ethics of public engagement?

Mr. Aribisala has published quite a number of peculiar and controversial sermons on Christianity, which many Christians will find grossly offensive, for example, “God is the servant of man”; yet it will not be proper to wonder whether such behaviour might be attributable to what his parents did or did not do 50 years ago. The hallmark of a true and genuine man of God is charity and temperance towards all, not unrestrained anger and bile; the measure of good character and learning is sobriety and comportment when others are losing their cool in bitterness and outrage; an elder, according to Yoruba adage, is quick to hear and learn but slow and hesitant to speak and join a cacophony. As a pastor, academic and elder, how does Aribisala fare on each score? *Osuntokun is a former MD of News Agency of Nigeria, NAN

PAGE 22 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

How do i get more money for my needs?

Dear Rebecca am 25 years old. I am in training as a panel beater but abandoned it due to financial problems. I travelled down to the east, in order to to set up a business . After take off, I was faced with the same problems so I dropped it. In Lagos, I started with being a steward. still Financial problem.

So I went back to being a panel beater and my problem persisted. I’m just confused and don’t know what to do.

The most annoying part of it all is that relatives and friends keep demanding for money from me. I just wonder why?

Where do I get the money to give out when I desperately need money myself?

What will I do to have enough money for my n e e d s ?

Zack, Lagos.

I

that motor companies don’t pay their workshop workers well, you could take driving lessons, become a very good driver, and look for employment as a driver. I know several mechanics, panelbeaters, motor electricians, etc. who had no money to buy tools and rent a workshop, who are now full-time drivers and earning decent wages,

much higher than the government recommended monthly salary of N18,000. They join companies or work for individuals. I think you have been too restless and unsettled, to make a success of any profession so far.

You have to decide what you enjoy doing most, and then embrace that profession.

For money to stay with you, you have to be prudent in your spending.

You didn’t say how much you get in a month, and what your expenses are.

However, sit down to map out a plan of action.

Don’t engage in borrowing and don’t spend more than you earn. Cut your coat according to your cloth.

I don’t know what your

V

work and careful planning, you can do it. Try to avoid money-draining habits like smoking, heavy drinking, women and other wasteful ways of spending. Don’t take on duties in the extended family which you cannot easily afford.

Above all, pray to God to direct your footsteps and give you peace.

Isn’t this girl a two-timer?

Dear Rebecca

I

REPL Y REPLY ERY few people in the world have enough money for their needs, so you are not alone in the problem. As for people asking you for money, it must be that you have the appearance of someone who is financially comfortable.

God has probably given you a body which looks healthy so that whatever you put on, comes out well on you and makes you look comfortable. Be thankful to God for this. It is nothing to get get angry about.

There are some rich people whose wealth cannot reflect on them due to poor health or poor physical structure. You are lucky too that you do have a profession, even though you’re still in training. My advice is that you concentrate well so that you can become one of the best panelbeaters in the country.

If you’re good at your profession, people will seek you out to give you job to do. Also if you have a secondary school education or some technical school background, you could be employed as a panel beater by a motor company in its workshop, to work on customers’ vehicles.

You can increase your earning power by joining a mechanic’s village and renting a corner part time, for weekend private panel-beating. Another option is, if you feel

expenses are or what money problems you say persist no matter what you are engaged in, but I would advise you sit down and plan your life properly. What do you really want to do? Set up a workshop of your own?

If so, get any honest job you can get and try to save up for tools. This is not easy but you are young, and with hard

I doubt that this girl was a virgin Dear Rebecca

I

COMMEND your efforts towards the enlightenment of youths in order to guide them in the right path.

The good Lord will continue to be with you.

Amen.

I am a boy of 24, an undergraduate. I am in love with a girl of 19 who is in a Polytechnic. We’ve been together for about two years now. We were both virgins, until last December when we made love.

I was expecting blood to come out of her private parts since she claimed to be a virgin but. there was none. Right from then, I began to doubt her faithfulness, though I have promised to marry her.

My question now is, is it possible that blood does not come from a girl who is having sex for the first time? How do I know if she is truly mine?

Yours, Gbola REPL Y REPLY

O

NLY God knows the best marital partner for you; be she a virgin or not.

Being a virgin before marriage is desirable for girls but it is not what makes a woman a sexually faithful wife. Some

girls who have had a hectic sexual life, or even been call girls, can make very faithful wives, whereas some girls who were virgins could be sexually unfaithful for one reason or the other after marriage. Also, being sexually faithful in marriage does not necessarily make the marriage successful or a happy one. There are so many factors besides faithfulness, which can affect a union.

Some are: a sense of responsibility and caring, courtesy, patience, tolerance, kindness, cleanliness, and good relationship with the extended family of one’s partner. You look out carefully for these when choosing a marital partner. If she meets 80% of these, then with a spirit of ‘give and take’ between you, the union stands a chance of being successful.

Now, I think that girl was foolish in allowing you have sex with her simply because you promised to marry her.

Now, that you’ve had your way, you doubt that she’s the wife for you because there was no show of blood to show that she was a virgin when you had sex.

I’m not saying you should marry her when your mind tells you not to, but the poor girl could be branded promiscuous by other men who are also looking for a virgin to marry, when they discover that she isn’t. They won’t buy her excuse that she lost her virginity to a man who had promised to marry her. Yes, there should be a slight show of blood at a girl’s first sexual intercourse, as that is when the hymen (a thin film of flesh stretching across up in her vagina) breaks, but sometimes, the hymen can break during vigorous exercises like climbing, jumping, biking, or through the use of tampons for menstruation.

If this happens during the girl’s menstruation, she may not know, as the blood would mix with the normal monthly flow. It is a person’s behaviour during marriage or a relationship that matters, not what she used to be.

So, if you really love this girl as your ideal lady, go ahead and marry her, even if she tells you she had had a previous sexual experience. She may well have told you the truth, though. Ask God to direct you to the lady He wants you to marry.

’M 17 years old, waiting for my UME results. I met this girl during my S.S.2 extra-mural classes. She is quiet, beautiful, chocolate skinned and so yummy!. I could not resist telling her the way I felt about her. T h e n trouble began one day when a guy approached me and told me that the girl was his girlfriend and he has noticed that she now pays me more attention than him. I asked my girlfriend what she had to say but she was evasive in her answer. The next day in class, a friend told me that he saw my girlfriend going into a guest house with the same guy. I was furious and confused but couldn’t say a word. I decided to let the sleeping dog lie. When the holiday was over and she returned back to her boarding school, I paid her a visit on her visiting day. She introduced me to her sister and friends as her boyfriend.

When another holiday came, I decided to visit her at home. I was so surprised at the way and manner she relaxed in the arms of another guy when he came in to see her. She later told me that the guy is one of her relations but I’m yet to believe that. I think she is not faithful to me. I’m even thinking of putting an end to the relationship. I need your help.

Disturbed Boy,

REPL Y REPLY This girl has the right to have other boyfriends since you are neither married nor engaged to her. You too can have other girl friends. In fact, what you both need now is general friendship with several members of

the opposite sex in order to study and understand them and their ways. Later, the knowledge would be useful when you begin to have romantic relationships. At 17, and waiting to go for higher studies, what do you need to be tied to any girl for? Why would you want her tied to you?

Neither of you is ready for marriage or a committed relationship at all.

A romantic relationship involves a lot of maturity to handle it, as it can bring heartache. Do you want that at this stage of your life? Already, you are worried about where this girl goes and who could be dating her, or which male is really relation.

Also, you risk being messed up by the boy who claims that she is his girlfriend! Don’t take the bait and begin to fight over her. Even when you’ve completed your studies, have got a job and are ready to get married, don’t fight over any girl. If boys are claiming your girlfriend, tell her to choose, as you wouldn’t want to get involved in violence, much as you love her. I advise you leave this girl alone to pursue her life while you tackle the serious business of acquiring higher education. That is more important to you now than girls. It’s no disgrace if you have no girlfriend, or if a girlfriend leaves you. Don’t encourage people to bring you news of a girlfriend and don’t go confronting or investigating her.

When people come with news, tell them “Thanks, she’s free to befriend anyone.

We’re not engaged.”

That should keep them quiet, and give you peace of mind. It’s when you are engaged formally to a girl or married to her that you get worried about her and other men.

•All letters for publication on this page should be sent to: Dear Rebecca, Vanguard Media Ltd, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B 1007, Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria. E-mail: dearrebecca2@yahoo.com

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 23

She would rather be a single mum the second time around!

H

AVE you no ticed it’s taking men a long time to settle down these days and make an honest woman of one of the ‘catches’ they always have on the leash? When Joseph hit his 30s, I often counselled him on the advantages of settling down and having all his children whilst he was young. “What’s the hurry,” he always told me.

A suave gentleman with a good job and a nice to-die-for pad, he believed it wouldn’t be an effort to meet a partner when he was good and ready to settle down. He recently hit 40, and a dad to an adorable son whose mother doesn’t want to get married! “I couldn’t really believe it when she told me”, Joseph said, scandalised. “I was too old for her? Too old? She was in her mid 20s, when we met and already had a child.

“When she became pregnant, I grudgingly decided to ask her to be my wife thinking she would be grateful to have a stepfather for her child.

She was also for it at first, but after she had the child, she told me she didn’t think I was financially buoyant enough to

look after her and two children. That her furniture business was doing well and she would rather be on her own. 1 was free to visit my son any time I wished and contribute to his upbringing. I was speechless? Not even my mother could talk her round. She’s put a big dent in my self-esteem, I tell you! I’m now 40 and don’t think I’ll ever have a genuine girlfriend to make a wife of.

I want to settle down and have children by one woman. As things are now, it seems I’ve mucked up and made a mess of my future. It’s true 1 loved clubbing and each weekend, I’d take home a different girl and we’d have a great time.

I

was young and all I wanted was sex and more sex and 1 didn’t see anything wrong with what I was doing - that was until now. To my embarrassment, I’ve discovered, that no decent girl will come near me. Yes, I do get girls, but they ’ve been around a bit, and I’ve slept with most of them. Just before the end of the year, I went to an office and met a lot

of girls having a natter.

It so happened that, out of the seven of them, I’d slept with five.

“They greeted me warmly but I was shaking in my shoes with embarrassment. I was sure that as soon as I left, they’d be. having a good gossip at my expense! I don’t want that kind of life again. I know it’s my fault that I suddenly found myself out of the market. I mean, I never dreamt I would get involved with a single

mother, not to think of such a person giving me the elbow! .

“I know I can’t change the past but I need to find a girl to settle down with.

I can now see how my stupid behaviour has affected my future. Do you think I can get rid of my nasty reputation?” The way he looked at me as if 1 could utter the magic word to turn his life around made me feel sorry for him. But 1 told him to pull himself to-

gether. The mother of his son had dented his ego, but that didn’t mean there weren’t nice girls out there who would be happy to settle down to married bliss with him.

H

e needs to get over his ‘de pression; then forget his love them-andleave them’ attitude once he gets back on the dating circuit.

He shouldn’t act as if he was desperate either.

But apart from the excuse

the mother of his son gave for not marrying him, he should find a way of widdling the real reason why she threw him over. This could help him in his future relationships.

Some few weeks after when 1 ran into Joseph, he was in the company of two lovey girls.

“Looking for a wife materials, are you?” I asked him as soon as the girls wee out of earshot. “I don’t think I’ll bother about any wife”, he confessed resignedly.

“These two girls are friends and I’ve taken both of them to bed at one time or the other.

When they found out, they didn’t look too worried. In fact, they are quite happy to go with the ‘there’s joy in sharing’ jaz! Tell me Candida, where are the wife materials?”

“My mum now jokes that I’d treated the wife materials as one-nightstands and they’re now making other men good wives. I don’t think so.

The unfortunate bit is that, like women, if a man stays too long before deciding to get married, the preferred candidates would have been taken ... “

08052201867(Text Only)

Yoga all across the world

T

HE Beatles’ asso ciation with the Transcendential Meditation. Movement in the late 60s helped popularise yoga especially in Europe and America.

There had been yoga institutions on both sides of the Atlantic since the closing decade of the previous century. But at no time has yoga reached as many people in so many different places as today.

Yoga schools and yoga books and videos are being sheperded into existence almost on a daily basis.

Much the better for mankind as yoga seems to have a say in almost all the departments of existence. Firstly, it improves the body’s health and vitality, secondly it treachs the type of mental discipline that conduces to the

alertness of the mind, thirdly it teaches proper repose for both body and mind.

Countless persons everywhere are testifying to the palpable difference yoga has brought into their lives. There are numerous reports of people having received so much help from such a short period of practice. Peiple afflicted by conditions such as asthma back

pain, constipation, and even heart disease have all benefited from the pratice of yoga.

But most yoga teachers will tell you that yogadoestn’t cure anything. What it does is remove the impurities in the body and then nature takes over the effects the healing.

The relaxation technique of yoga enables the practitioner to regain lost

* The Spread Eagle Pose

energy and vitaity.

There’s an increase in the zest for living and psychological negativities such as anger, impatience, intolerance and depression do not easily assail our beings. The ancient Romans made a veritable observation of the individual when they coined the dictum; a sound mind in a sound body.

The whole business of yoga is one of continual purification of both body and mind. In such a state it is assumed that the body will better be able to express life both in its physical and mental aspects. The following illustratons drive ho.me the fact that yoga is catching on as a means to physical conditioning and as a therapy form.

A yoga class doing the Triangle Pose Technique: Standingn with the feet rather wide apart, turn the trunk to the left and lowering it

place the palm of the left hand flat down on the floor on the outside of the left leg while raising up the right hand and straightening it at the elbow.

Fix your gaze on the palm of the raised hand.

Breathe normally and retain the position for about 10 or 15 seconds.

Benefits The triangle stretches the leg, spine, and trunk muscles.

It promotes flexibility of the hip spine and legs.

It tones the nerves of the spiner and the abdominal organs.

It reduces pain in the lower back and invigorates the circulation.

The Spread Eagle Technique: Sit with the legs stretched out as far back as possible and slowly lower the trunk till the chin is on the floor.

Place the fingers on the

toes and breathe normally.

Stay in the position for about 5 to 15 seconds.

Rest and repeat.

Benefits: The Spread Eagle stretches the hamstring and inner thigh muscles. It helps expand the chest. It stretches the spinal column and is said to invigorate the entire nervous system.

VARIATION 3 Exhale as you bring the body forwards Grasp the toes of both feet. Breathe slowly and deeply. Try to bring the forehead to the ground. If you can, try to bring the chin, and finally the chest, to the floor.

Don’t elbow the body to bounce up and down Keep the back straight to get the m stretch in the lumbar region Hold the feet with the respective hands

Yoga classes at 32 Ademola Adetokunbo Victoria Island, Lagos, 9.10am on Saturdays

P AGE 24— SUND AY Vanguard , SEPTEMBER 1 , 2013 SUNDA

bunmsof@yahoo.co.uk

08056180152,

This ‘winner’ didn’t take it all!

A

BOUT a fortnight ago, I ran into an old friend on the Island. I was really glad to see him. He’d simply disappeared from the social scene with his family and no one’s heard from him for almost ten years. After the

usual pleasantries, he told me he had to leave when he did as his life was virtually falling apart. He explained: “I was thinking of what to do with my life - after I was,made redundant from work when I heard the good news that a bosom friend, Leke, was being made a top dog in one of the newly created local governments. What a stroke of good luck. We were very close and I was sure he would help.

“After a series of meetings with him, he agreed I wasn’t really the businessman material. But if I could provide fund, the fund would be invested with contractors who had little or no cash, and regular returns would be made to me on my capital. I was ecstatic. All my redundancy pay and the little I had put by from the petty contracts I’d done, I handed over to him. Talk about watching your money grow! Since he was the over-all boss, my cheques were paid regularly and my investments almost tripled.

My Volvo car had had its share of refurbishing.

This was the time for buying a new car. And none of the Tokunbo variety either. I had suffered enough!

went round a few car I dealers and collected prices of cars that would

now suit my new status.

My capital was still in my friend’s outfit - all that I would be spending would be the interest, and this was after my friend had taken his share! I also had money to buy my round of

drinks at the club and at parties. Life was good.

Out of greed, I told my friend I wanted a really showy car. Could I lump my savings with the capital and re-invest so that the returns would be high? He was agreeable to this but when next I saw him, he told me some nosey external auditors were looking through their books with a tooth comb. He, therefore, suggested that we cool things for about six months. Since the auditors complained that the company we used featured too frequently in their books, I suggested we register a new company. He reluctantly agreed.

H

is reluctance led me to pump all the money I had into this new company knowing the returns would be higher. After that, if my friend wanted to take things easy, I would be satisfied with my nice windfall. I was stuck in one of the long petrol queues that were the,norm in those days, and was getting really impatient by the long wait when one of my friends spotted me and walked over to my car. “Isn’t it sad about Leke?”, he told me after the usual pleasantries. My heart dropped to my shoes.

“Leke”, I spluttered, “What happened to him?”

“Didn’t you hear? He died

Y

OUR column to express your loving thoughts in words to your sweetheart. Don’t be shy. Let it flow and let him or her know how dearly you feel.

Write now in not more than 75 words to: The Editor, Sunday Vanguard, P.M.B. 1007, Apapa, Lagos. E.mail: sunlovenotes@yahoo.com Please mark your envelope: “LOVE NOTES"

My Angel

You deserve an award for the role you've played in my life. I looked at the Grammy Award, I look at the

this morning”. This conversation took place around twelve midnight. As soon as I filled my tank, I drove straight to Leke’ s house. It was a bit quiet but the night guard confirmed what I just learnt. I didn’t know how I made it back home. I woke my wife and was crying like a lunatic.

My tears were for all the fortune I would be losing by Leke’s death. What would happen to my five children for goodness sake? My landlord had also reminded me that my annual rent would be due soon. Now this! My wife was really upset that I took Leke’s death so hard. I hadn’t told her the shady deals Leke and I had and how much we were making on the side. e was buried a week af H ter he died. His remains were laid in his house

for about two hours before ‘he was taken away for burial. I wanted to be there. To see his body. To really confirm that he was now helpless to retrieve my money for me. His body wasn’t the most pleasant sight I’d seen. He looked grotesque and almost unrecognisable. How could you? I screamed at him silently as I paid my bogus last respect.

How could you die now with all that money at stake? I staggered out of the room and went back home. There was no point going for any funeral service or the actual burial. I didn’t feel up to it at all. bout a month later, I Awent back to his office.

Because Leke and I were very close, I never dealt with his staff directly. It was Leke who always collected the cheques and he always promised to take care of the ‘boys’. It was one of them who told me, along with the contractor we always used, that the auditors were around if I wanted to talk to them about salvaging some of my outlays, I readily agreed. What was there to lose? The auditors told me after I’d said my piece that my money was a small drop in the ocean of misappropriation they were trying to sort out.

They said I should write a formal complaint in triplicate and bring them back to the office. They would look into my case after they’d dealt with the big ones. ut they weren’t re B ally optimistic about my getting any

thing back in the near future. I never went back.

What was the point? I was now in my late fifties.

What sort of jobs would I be looking for at my age?

And since all my savings were now wiped off leaving me in debts, what capital could I boast of to start a new business with?

I finally relocated to Britain. We are all British citizens and my pensions were being paid already.

Life was bearable but I missed home. It was at

Oscars, I look at the Noble Prize of Literature, I look at the Personality Awards. I look at the People Choice Awards, I look at Miss Nigeria, Miss Universe Award. All these awards combined is not still enough to give you for the roles you've played in my life .

So, I award myself, my life to you. I love you very much.

Omorville Omorville@gmail.com, 08062486549

Moon of my heart!

Love is a beautiful thing when you share it with the right person. Love does not mean it will be all rosy, but when that challenge comes then the thing we feel for each other now stands its ground to make us because it is real or break us because it is fake.

this point my wife started talking back whenever I scolded her. She said I was a tyrant and a bully. That she stuck it in Nigeria because I refused to encourage her to work. Well, that was over, she threatened.

One more violence from me and she would deal with me! I was gubsmacked.

“She’d never in her life spoken to me like that before. I was blind with rage and struck her. She rushed out of the house and came back with the police! They told me that my wife feared for her life and didn’t want me around her and her children as I was a dangerous man. Could I pack a few of my things and leave?

felt really defeated and I I’d forgotten that you don’t get away with domestic violence in Britain. If a family were to break up,

it is the husband that is asked to leave. So I left and that was the end of my marriage! My wife had found one caring job to do, my children were in good schools so they don’t really need me.

Even the two sons of the marriage, who I’d thought would come with me opted to stay with their mother. Was I such a bad father?

“I found a modest accommodation and have since picked-up the pieces of my life. I have a British passport, so girls are no problems as they believe I would remarry and make my new wife a citizen. I don’t intend to do any of such thing. And I don’t intend to tell them either. Since women are deft hands at deceiving and using men, I intend to play them at their own games.

Life is never what you planned it to be. Who could ever have guessed I would be grappling with so much set-backs in my later years?!”

A Different ‘Birds and the Bees’ (Humour) A HUSBAND had always insisted he and his wife only

SMS only

ever make love in the dark.

After 20 years, the wife decides to turn on the light and find him holding a vibrator. She goes absolutely ballistic. “How could you lie to me all these years?”

She yells. Her husband looks her straight in the eye and says calmly: “I’ll explain the toy - you explain the kids.”

Man No Be Wood! (Humour)

G

OD appears to a man and tells him he’ll have to give up cigarettes, drinking alcohol and having sex if he wants to get into heaven.

The man says he’ll try his best to succeed. A week later, God appears and asks him how things are going on the abstinence front. The man says that fags and drinks were easy to give up, but when his wife bent over to take some meat out of the freezer, he just couldn’t resist. “We don’t approve of that sort of thing in heaven you know,” God says sternly.

The man replies: “They don’t approve of it in the supermarket either!”

Family’s wonder Cure?

(Humour) RENDA and Steve

B

take their six-yearold son to the doctor.

With some hesitation, they explain that although their little angel appears to be in good health, they ’re concerned about his rather small penis. The doctor examines the child. “Just feed him pancakes. That should solve the problem,” he declares confidently.

The next morning when the boy arrives at breakfast, there’s a large stack of warm pancakes in the middle of the table.

“Wow, Mum!” he exclaims. “Are they all for me?” (Just take two;”’ “Brenda replies. “The rest of them are for your father.”.

This is what makes love beyond words, it sweeps through our heart like a plague just to make us know it is real and this is what we share, my moon.

Ekhas_Theory- 07031338939 d4greatness@yahoo.com

My only woman

Do you know that the twenty four hours in a day is not enough to spend my love with you, one week is not sufficient for me to enjoy the world with you. Ten years is still not enough to live with you. Each time I'm with you I wish time could be timeless, let it not rotate, let it not click, let us just be there swimming in the ocean of our love. I love you.

Kelechi Ndubisi (KC) Kconeofafrica@gmail.com, 08032900530

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 25

.... CRIME AND NATIONAL SECURITY

Daniel, being led away by security men, after his arrest in Lagos

Madam Evelyn Ohikhena, Daniel’s mother

BENIN AIRPORT STOWAWAY SAGA

Teenage boy wanted to fulfill ambition to go to America - Mum *The quarrel with sister moments before risky action *Why he survived inside aircraft’s wheel — Expert

By SIMON EBEGBULEM, Benin-City

M

ADAM Evelyn Ohikhena, like many other Nigerians, was shocked when she was informed by her sister in-law in Germany, that her son, Daniel, stowed from Benin-City to Lagos via an Arik flight penultimate Saturday. Before the call from the sister who read the story online on Sunday morning, Madam Oikhena had gone to the police station to report a case of missing person.

The mother, a saloonist with four children, was invited, on Tuesday, by officials of the Department of State Security (DSS). She narrated her ordeal to Sunday Vanguard thereafter. “My son’s name is Ricky Daniel. He answers one name in school and another one at home. He is in JSS 1. Before now, he was in a private school Young Scholars, but, because I could not afford his school fees when my saloon got burnt, I now took him to Ogbe Secondary School to continue his third term”, she said. She continued, “My sister- in-law in Germany, who was unaware that we were looking for him,

called to alert me of the development.

She got the news via internet. I think she said she read it in Vanguard. She was the one who told me Ricky was in Lagos, that he broke airport security and entered the wheel of the plane heading to Lagos. Soon after she called, my attention was drawn to newspapers by sympathizers and family friends. I rushed to Ring Road where I bought a newspaper and thereafter I went to the police station to report the matter. He was not used to leaving home”. According to her, the police initially did not believe her story as they said “I did not know who I was looking for.”

Narrating how the boy left home without being stopped, Mrs Ohikhena said, “I left home around 9pm on Friday for the house of my elder sister who gave birth to pass the night. When I came back the following morning, my daughter told me that she and her brother-the stowed boy- had an argument , that she found him watching film when she woke up to ease herself and that he broke the television set.

The sister explained that my mum-their grandmother- settled the quarrel but when she woke up in the morning, she

When we commenced the search for him, his nine year-old younger brother told me that each time they were watching film, he always said he will go abroad, that he will go to the airport to enter plane. He told me to go and check the airport could not find him”. Debunking the claim by the teenage boy that he left the house because he was being maltreated, Madam Ohikhena said, “ I did not maltreat him, but I don’t play with him . And I don’t joke with my children’s education. I give them the best of education. Everybody knows me, go and ask about me in Oba Market.

When we commenced the search for him, his nine year-old younger brother told me that each time they were watching film, he always said he will go abroad, that he will go to the air-

port to enter plane. He told me to go and check the airport. I did not believe him. He does not have friends, he hardly leaves home. My son thought he was going to America. My only joy now is that he is alive”.

T

he stowaway saga began penul timate Saturday when the pilot of the Arik plane, about to take from Benin-City enroute Lagos, claimed to have seen Daniel and informed the control tower which promised that security agents will apprehend the boy.

The stowaway teenager, however, successfully entered the nose wheel of the aircraft. He was found when the plane arrived Lagos by officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). His survival in the aircraft wheel well was surprising too because most stowaways face numerous health risks.

From statistics, from 1947 to September 2012, there were 96 stowaway attempts worldwide in wheel wells of 85 separate flights, which resulted in 73 deaths. An aviation expert, David Learmont, suggested that no one would be willing to risk such journey, adding that stowaways who survive usually traveled relatively short distances or at low altitude. He also attributed why stowaways are prevalent in Africa to the poor perimeter security in several airports.

PAGE 26— SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

INTRIGUING EXPERIENCES

PA ADEGOKE A T 85 AT

With N18, I trained five children to the university level ·Says his wife unilaterally changed their kids religion ·‘Railway

P

a Adebisi Adegoke, 85, and a former chief relations officer of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, retired in 1990. In this interview, he speaks on how he, a Muslim, has been living with his Christian wife, Iyabo, 74, for the past 52 years and why the railway of his time was effective.

BY LEKAN BILESANMI The beginning I was born in 1928 in Oyan, Osun State.

At a very early age, I was taken to Ghana where I started Quranic School. My uncle had sent for me to come there. The idea then was that I would be trading with him because he was a trader, and at the same time schooling, but it was when I got there that he discovered that that I was too fragile to be involved in trading. So, I started going to Quranic School first before going to conventional school. This was after I had clocked 13. I went to Ogbomosho Baptist School established

by Ogbomosho settlers in Ghana. Then I went to Anshate Kotoko School. I returned home in 1946 after I had completed Standard Six. It was in Saint Paul’s School, Oyan that I completed my primary education and proceeded to Ibadan Boys High School for my secondary education. It was after that, that I got a job with the Ministry of Education of Western Region then. I was one of the members of the ministry that started the free education programme of the Action Group. I worked in Abeokuta and Ilaro, both now in Ogun State. But because the routine nature of the job had become monotonous and boring, I decided to cross to Lagos to join P and T, that is Ministry of Communication. I later found the job difficult because I didn’t understand the techniques of sending telegraph, I could receive though.

If I had not taken that decision, and management got to know this shortcoming, my appointment would have been been terminated. So, I decided to resign voluntarily. And immediately, I got a job at the Nigerian Railway Corporation, the so- called Nigerian Railway Department in 1955.

I was initially working in the accounts department but I knew I was not good at calculations. Figures terrified me. So when an opportunity came, I quickly crossed to the management side and I found this one so easy. I was in the personnel department. This was in 1958.

This was a happy moment for me because I crossed from the junior cadre to the senior cadre, then known as senior service. I left in 1990 as assistant director after 35 years of active service.

Meeting his wife

When I came to Lagos in 1954, we were living on the same street. I think she was living with the parents then at 37 Ibadan Street, Ebute Metta and mine was number 135 on the same street. I saw many of her peers, all of them playing after school hours, but I was particular about her. She could not have known.

Later, I moved from that house to Mushin because, at Ebute Metta, we were about four living in the same room, but because I wanted to have privacy, I decided to look for my own room. So, on this particular evening, I was returning home when I saw her. I called her but it was obvious she didn’t recognise me. After some explanation, she finally did. And that was where we started our relationship. We got married in 1957.

The attraction She was beautiful and had these straight legs. Those were the first things I saw that attracted me to her.

Broken homes When you are blessed with children, sometimes it makes separation difficult. I didn’t want to part with my children by separating from their mother. Of course, we had our trouble moments like every marriage around, but my focus was I will not leave these children so that if there was any problem, we settle it amicably between us. And when our children started coming of age, they became arbiters in any misunderstanding we may have. But, above all, patience played a big role in it which is lacking in most homes these days and that is why broken homes are common in the society. You hardly see such in those days.

Event that shook the marriage That was when I was about to retire.

I had two sisters. One is dead while the other is alive. My children thought I was bent on sending their mother out of the house. My daughter went to my sisters, and they all used trick to invite me home. They started pleading that I should not send their mother out but, unknowingly to them, I was not serious about that action, and the reason was so simple, when they were about to get married, I would not have wanted another woman to be their mother on the happy moments.

Trained five children to university with 9 pounds (18naira) Our children enjoyed free education of the government at that time. That programme was a sort of relief for me.

Again, things were not as bad as it is now, economically. But, more impor-

of our time was good’

tantly, we planned for everything we spent money on or did. I wanted one or two of the children to be doctors because that was one of the few professions in vogue at that time. The major and only profession you find was medicine but these children didn’t listen to me. One of them, now an assistant director in Federal Inland Revenue, would attack the suggestion saying medicine was not the best profession for him. I suggested accountancy to him but he said he would rather read business administration. I told him to look at the OyingboMarket, all the women selling there were also doing business administration, ‘so how can you now say you want to read business administration?’ He now said if after graduating as business administrator and he could not find job, he would go to Ebutte Metta and be splitting woods for others. And that was what he did. When he finished school, I wanted him to come over to railway but he was not employed even though I was the one that constituted the selection panel for the job; so he just went to Ebutte Metta to split woods in Oko Baba even with an upper credit grade.

Happiest moments That should be my first appointment to the railway. We were four living in a room. And I was the only one withouta job. The house rent was usually shared equally among the four, same with food.

It was a thing of joy that I could also contribute to the upkeep of the room.

The second was in 1968 when I crossed from the junior to senior cadre because before the elevation, I had thought I was not going further than that position, so I was pleasantly surprised and happy that I was promoted.

Between then and now in the railway I think the level of corruption compared to now was very low, maybe because there was no much money in circulation at that time. The white men were the administrators of the railway and their dedication to duty was much more than what it is now. At that time, if a police man took money and he was caught, he was going to jail. Sometimes policemen would come to our office with a letter and they would show the accused and immediately you would be invited to EBJ (Ebutte Metta Junction Railway),which was the headquarters of the police at that

Pa Adegoke with wife time. The way people were prosecuted at that time is much more than what they are doing now. Today, there is no prosecution anymore and that is why corruption is on the increase. Our bosses, the white men, were not corrupt. At that time, there was not much to desire, or I should say, we were contenedt with whatever we had, but now, everybody wants to build storey- buildings, send their children to private schools and abroad.

We worship differently I tried to convert her initially until I discovered she couldn’t be. As a matter of fact, that would have been our first problem. She was and still a Christian and I was and still a Muslim. I thought I could convert her to Islam, but she was and still the type that goes to church virtually every other day. She attends Cherubim and Seraphim Church. She goes to church four times a week. And I guess that is why when I was on transfer to Bauchi, before I could return to Lagos, she had converted the children to Christianity. I was in Bauchi for two and a half years and, because I didn’t want to be carrying my family everywhere so that their education would not be distorted, I decided to leave them in Lagos, but, before I returned here, the children had started praying in Christian way and going to church. I tried to bring them back to Islam but they didn’t bulge. But in all of this, our religions never affected our relationship and marriage. Of course if it does, we would not have lasted these 52 years. It is your attitude that matters. We don’t discriminate on religion here. The most important thing is that you are worshipping God. How you worship Him may differ but the point is it is God. Saddest moment That was when I lost my first child in 1958.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 27

By BENJAMIN NJOKU

njokujamin@yahoo.com

OPA WILLIAMS ON ROMANCE

I needed a born-again woman in my life when I married C

omedy merchant, Opa Williams, got married officially to his wife, Patricia, a pastor in Foursquare Gospel Church, Surulere, in 1994.

But, before then, they had been living together as husband and wife for four years. Their marriage is blessed with three kids. The couple speaks on their journey into marriage....

How I met her got married officially on 24 September, 1994. Come next year, I will be 20 years in marriage, though I have lived with my wife for 24 years. I met her in my sister’s saloon in 1988.You know when a man meets a woman, the next thing is for them to strike a relationship. We became friends before we started staying together. She had her first child in 1990, two years after I met her. I told her then, if I’m going to marry her, you must become born again.

I wasn’t born again but I think I knew my weakness. I felt that if I’m not strong in faith, I needed somebody who will be strong in faith. I think that was what delayed our marriage in the first place. I insisted she must be born again before I would propose to her. Then, she was more of a church goer.

I

Attraction She was innocent,young and respectful. These were the things that attracted me to her.

am pursuing my own career.

Our marriage has been built on tolerance and allowing each other to have his/her space. I respect her space as well as she respects mine.

How we live Most times, I’m domineering because I have to dominate my house. And she respects my decisions. Sometimes, she makes her own decisions as well, and I respect them. I think problem sets in when one party wants to lord it over the other.

Even though we are married, we have our different destinies. She has her destiny

•Opa Williams

I am waiting for him to join me in my ministry — Wife

I

am children’s pastor at Foursquare Gospel Church, Surulere. I became a pastor in 2003. I attended a Life Bible College in 2000, and graduated in 2003. Our relationship started when I was living

Proposing to Her I don’t think I proposed to her.

One thing led to another. I just said to her ‘let’s go and see your family’. That was it. I didn’t kneel down with banquet of flowers and a diamond ring to propose to her. But I knew I was going to marry her. When I insisted she must be born again, that’s when it dawned on me that she was going to be my wife.

We had been living together, even before we had our first child. I’m not influenced by the western culture.

20 years after marriage I think tolerance and respecting each other’s space is what has been keeping us in marriage. I am a showbiz man, I hold a lot of meetings at odd hours, and she’s a pastor. We agreed to pursue our individual careers. She told me she has a desire to become a pastor. I encouraged her to go ahead and actualise her dream. But she must not disturb me when I

as a human being just as I have my own destiny. It is for her to fulfill her destiny just as it’s for me to fulfill mine. I will help her to fulfill her destiny and she will help me to fulfill mine. When my wife was setting up her school, she told me that’s what she wanted. I had wanted us to set up a farm.

But she asked me to support her and I did. As a man, you must be in control of your house, but you must not oppress your partner. In fact, most times, it’s oppression and assertion of ‘my will and not your will’ that leads to the break up of most marriages.

with my elder sister. I was very young then. Later, I got a job with Ibru Sea foods. He has been a source of encouragement to me. He is the kind of man that does not interfere in his spouse’s career. He gives you the chance to do whatever you feel would give you happiness. Because of this, I also encourage him in any project he wants to embark upon. I always pray for him and stand by him. I know God is doing wonderful things in his life and I have no doubt in my mind that one day, he will join me in my ministry.

Proposing marriage I love him and accepted his proposal for marriage immediately. We had a child before we got married.

Mrs. Williams

What I saw in him He’s a very brilliant person; he’s full of love and caring. Those were the things that attracted him to me. When I lost my dad in 1988, I needed somebody in my life. I came to Lagos and was staying with my elder sister before I met him. Then, he was like an elder brother to me; he was not only giving me useful advice, but, also, he was there for me. As a matter of fact, I had no choice than to fall in love with him. When you are with him, and you are faithful and committed to him, he will definitely bend his back for you.

What I don’t like about him Will I say he’s the opposite of what I am? I love him for that, because he complements my efforts. If he’s not the way he is, may be I wouldn’t have fallen in love with him.

Intimacy He’s the type that doesn’t take his family for granted. He ensures I’m always happy. He is my best friend.

We are very close to each other and that’s what marriage is all about.

Advice to young couple Like what I used to advice my first daughter who is 23 now,. I always tell her that when she’s ready to settle down, she should marry somebody who will take her for whom she is; somebody who will love and cherish her. There are a lot of deceitful men out there. My husband was serious with me and that was why I married him.

Closeness to God Before now, he was not a strong Christian. But, today, he has come to realise that it’s good to serve God. He goes to church regularly now. He has promised to dedicated more of his time to serving his Maker and I’m very happy for him. I have been praying for God to touch him.

PAGE 28—SUNDAY, Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Panache as Mohammed Haruna’s daughter weds

I

L-R: Dr.Ibrahim Babaminin Sule, Alhaji Haruna Mohammed, the groom’s dad, and Alhaji Danladi Abdulhameed

t was a gathering of who’s who in the society in Kaduna penultimate Saturday when the former Managing Director of New Nigerian newspaper, Alhaji Haruna Mohammed, gave the hand of his daughter, Fatima, in a wedding Fatiha to Ismail Yusuf Ibrahim.

The wedding took place at Sultan Bello Mosque, Kaduna, and was presided over by leading Imams in Kaduna State. Some of the dignitaries at the occasion: Photos by Olu Ajayi

L-R: The publisher of Vanguard newspapers, Mr Sam Amuka ,with Alhaji Isa Funtua.

Sheikh Ahmed Gunmi (left) with Hon. Mohammed Ali of Kaduna StateHouse of Assembly.

L-R: Hon.Yakubu Moh’d , Hon. Mohammed Ali and the publisher of Leadership newspapers, Mr Nda Isaiah.

L-R: Emir of Mafara, Alhaji Bello Mohammed Barmo and Emir of Shafe, Alhaji Habibu Aliyu .

Ibe Kachukwu bags Odogwu title

T

he Executive Vice Chairman of Exxon Mobil, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachukwu, was conferred with the title of Odogwu of Onicha-Ugbo, last weekend, by His Royal Highness, Agbogidi Victor Chukwumalieze 1, the Obo of Onicha-Ugbo. Some of the dignitaries at the event:

L-R: Alhaji Isa Funtua and a former Minister of Agric., Alhaji Abba Ruma.

Ogbonna’s ar artt collection IN a bid to make Nigeria one of the biggest tourism destinations in Africa, Chief Solomon Ogbonna, a businessman of international repute and a lover of arts work collection has initiated a move to open an art museum by declaring his art foundation open to the world. Here, he shares the moments with friends and associates.

Dr. Ibe Kachikwu being conferred with the title by Eze Chime

Senator Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa (left) with former Deputy Governor of Delta State, Chief Benjamin Elue.

Dr. Ibe Kachikwu accompanied by other Ono-otu title holders arriving

Prof Slyvester Monye, Presidential Adviser,Project Monitoring and Evaluation (left), with Speaker of DSHA, Rt Hon. Victor Ochei

L-R: Chairman, Aguene Art Foundation, Chief Solomon Ogbonna; Chairman, South South, South East, Traditional Ruling Council, Lagos, Dr. Sylvan O. Ebigwei and President General, Aka Ikenga, Chief Goddy Uwazurike.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013 —29

Razzmatazz as Raymond Obieri turns 70

S

ir Raymond Obieri may be regarded as a man who shies away from limelight as much as he could but penultimate Saturday was a clear exception for the corporate th titan as he rolled out the drums to celebrate his 70 birthday.

The event took place at Muson Centre, Lagos. The dignitaries include corporate heavyweights who came in their numbers to celebrate with the banker, administrator and industrialist par excellence.

Sir Raymond Obieri and wife, Lady Betty Obieri, flanked by Chief and Mrs Joseph Abigail Sanusi

L-R: Chief Christopher Ezeh with Mr & Mrs Goodie Ibru.

L-R:Mr Emmanuel Ijewere, Mrs Onome Olaolu, Senator Kola Bajomo and Apostle Hayford Alile

L-R: Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Admiral Allison Madueke (rtd) and Hon Justice Okechukwu Okeke

The celebrant, Sir Raymond Obieri.

Olorogun Sonny Kuku (left) with Bashorun J . K Randle.

O

shoke Dakpokpo and Anthonia Odufa Dakpokpo consummated their relationship in a holy wedlock. Both the traditional and ‘ white’ wedding took place in Abuja. The Christian wedding was held at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Maitama.

Pa Omojola marks 75 with book launch Labour leader, Comrade Oluwide Omojola, popularly known as Baba Omojola, celebrated his 75h birthday in Lagos penultimate Saturday. The old fighter also launched a book ‘Yoruba Social Science Term’ to commemorate the special occasion. He was joined by other activists and commentators as well as his family and relations to celebrate the occasion.

HOLY MATRIMONY Chiazor Alex-Okorafor and Okechukwu Alpha Orji were recently joined in a holy wedlock at Owerri, Imo State.

Wedding bells

L-R : Comrade Femi Aborisade; Engr. Olaitan Olakunle; Frank Kokori; Baba Omojola; Prof.

Adeniran Adeboye and Dr. Amos Akingba.

Mr. and Mrs. Odufa Dakpokpo during ‘the white’ wedding

Mr and Mrs Okechukwu Orji after the wedding.

L-R : Engr. Olaitan Olakunle; Frank Kokori; Baba Omojola and Prof. Adeniran Adeboye and Dr. Amos Akingba.

The Dakpokpo couple during the traditional wedding

PAGE 30—SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 31

PAGE 32—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

America, Syria and the rest of us

BY FEMI FANI-KAYODE

I

am proud of the decision that the British Parliament has taken not to join in the attack on Syria. Prime Minister David Cameron has been badly humiliated and this is a great triumph for Ed Milliband, the Leader of the Opposition. Kudos to my friend, Mr. George Galloway, MP, for his brilliant and stirring speech on the floor of the House of Commons on this issue. I must confess that the only speech that has moved me as much as Galloway’s in recent times was the riveting and spell-binding speech delivered by the Irish MP, Mrs.Clare Daly, on the floor of the Irish Parliament where she described President Barack Obama as a ‘’war criminal’’ and a ‘’murderer of children’’.

People like Galloway and Daly are amongst those that I would describe as today’s ‘’servants of truth’’ and history and posterity will be very kind to them regardless of the contempt, anger, insults and ridicule that they have been subjected to by the retrograde forces of conservatism that presently control the world.

The resolution of the British Parliament not to go to war in Syria gives us hope that sanity may eventually prevail in a world that has proved to be increasingly insane. Yet sadly it appears that France and America are as eager to go as ever. As the assault on Syria is about to start and the carnage is about to begin, please take note of the following words- the biggest mistake that President Barack Obama will make in his distinguished political career and in his Presidency is to strike Syria on the false and contrived premise that President Bashir Al Assad has used chemical weapons against

his own people.

President Barack Obama Syrian President Bashar British Prime Minister, What we are witnessAl-Assad ing today is the laying David Cameron of the foundation and the planting of the her allies on Syria, a relathey bought into the propaseeds for what will tively small country of 22 ganda that 911 was carried Ousting of seven eventually be World million people, will be so out by Osama bin Laden, M-East leaders War 3. I am not sugbrazen, so vicious, so just as they bought into the I suggest that those that gesting that the chilling and so ruthless that, propaganda that Muammar have bought into all this military strike on Syria will for the first time in world Ghaddafi was a monster that absolutely ridiculous and witness the beginning of history, Russia, Iran and was about to kill all his nonsensical propaganda World War 3. What I am China will come together, people, just as they bought take the time out to listen to saying is that it will lay the finally pick up the gauntlet into the propaganda that what the distinguished and foundation for it. I believe and muster the courage to Obama was the Messiah respected American General that the war itself will come say ‘’no more’’ to American who wanted to spread Wesley Clark (the man who at a much later stage and lawlessness, manipulation, democracy in the Middle had the distinct privilage probably long after both deceit, double standards East, just as they bought and honour of leading the Obama and Russia’s Presiand butchery. At that point, into the propaganda that NATO forces in Europe dent Vladimer Putin have there will be no going back Hosni Mubarak had to be during the attack on Sloboth left office. However the and, slowly but surely, one removed to bring stability to bodan Milosovitch’s forces military action that America thing will lead to another in Egypt, just as they bought in Serbia and Belgrade in is about to embark on in the Middle East and the into the propaganda that the 90s) said in 2007 about Syria will be the first step on conflict will spread until the Tunisia would be better off America’s intentions in the the road to that terrible final final conflagration comes. with an Islamist President, Middle East and about how conflict. After they have The truth is that just as just as they bought into the those plans had been struck Syria, nothing will be Shakespeare wrote in his propaganda that Iran is evil, hatched as far back as 2001. the same again and we shall famous play, “Julius Caejust as they bought into the He claimed that just two finally be on that longsar”, over 400 years ago, in propaganda that the Saudis weeks after 911, America awaited conflict-ridden the world today, “Caeser has are angels, just as they had taken the decision to slippery slope to Armagedcrossed the Rubicorn, war is bought into the propaganda remove the leaders of no don. And after that war has less than seven Middle been fought and won, Eastern countries by any historians will have cause to means necessary in order to say that the brutal, unjustififully secure the Middle able, indefensible and East. He actually listed illegal attack by Obama’s those countries, Today, and America and her allies on for the past five years, we Syria is where and when the are bearing witness to die was finally cast. They everything that he said will say that that is when the would happen and those Americans finally crossed things are unfolding before the line of no return, of no our very eyes. It is only the fear and of no shame. They dull, the shallow and the will say that that is when the naive that can possibly deny Americans should have been this. Clarks’s tape can be stopped. found on youtube for those that doubt what I have said.

The West and Muslim world

Nothing describes the frightful situation that we are faced with today in the Middle East better than the words of Mr. Dmitry Rogozin, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, when he said, just a few days ago, that ‘’the West handles the Muslim world like a monkey handles a grenade’’. The events and bloody carnage that we are about to witness being unleashed by America and

Nothing describes the frightful situation that we are faced with today in the Middle East better than the words of Mr. Dmitry Rogozin, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, when he said, just a few days ago, that ‘’the West handles the Muslim orld like a monkey handles a grenade’

inevitable”.

Yet many have bought into and wholeheartedly accepted the American propaganda that Al Assad has used chemical weapons against his own people. It is in the same way that they bought into the propaganda that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction and chemical weapons that he was about to use against his own people and the rest of the world. They bought into that propaganda just as

that Israel can do no wrong, just as they bought into the propaganda that there was no coup in Egypt, just as they bought into the propaganda that Hamas must not be recognised, just as they bought into the propaganda that Hezbollah are terrorists and just as they bought into the propaganda that Lebanon did not deserve to be stable and must be nothing more than a weak and crisisridden buffer-state which exists at their pleasure.

Bad precedent

Finally, let me make two two points. First, there is absolutely NO evidence to suggest that it was Al Asssad’s forces that used the chemical weapons that were unleashed on the civilian population in Syria the other day and it could well have been the rebels that did it. The fact that Assad’s troops were also affected by those weapons Continues on page 33

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 33

Continued from page 32

Genetic liars

tells me a lot. No sane leader poisons his own soldiers with sarin gas. And he certainly does not do so on his own doorstep, on the day that international weapons inspectors arrive in his country and in the middle of a war which he is on the verge of winning.

Secondly the fact that America and her allies have decided not to go through the U.N. Security Council on this matter makes whatever action they take against Al Assad and Syria manifestly illegal. It violates every rule of international law and it creates yet another bad precedent.

Permit me to end this essay

Evil agenda

The resolve by America not to go through the UN Security Council before

doing anything creates the greatest problem of all. Who appointed America as the policeman of the world and who annointed her as the spokesman for the international community?

The Security Council was established to stop and prevent precisely the type of cruel, illegal and arbitary use of power that the American government is about to indulge in and unleash on Syria. No country should be allowed to play God and when they choose to do so, they must be told clearly and categorically that they are operating outside the law. The truth is that America has gone beserk and the power it wields today has caused many that are in positions of authority over there to be reckless, arrogant and delusional. There is an evil agenda that is unfolding before our very eyes which many people that are not discerning, bright or knowledgeable enough can possibly recognise or appreciate. Many have argued that the rebels could not have launched the chemical attack because they did not have the heavy weapons, the know-how or the capabilities to do so. This is hogwash. The Syrian rebels can do anything and muster or use any kind of heavy weapons as long as their American, French, Saudi and Turkish friends are ready to help them. That is the bitter and ugly truth.

Cannibas

T

he fact that the rebels are led by brutal cannibals and Al Qaeda Islamists and that the American government is in an unholy alliance with such beasts tells me everything that I need to know. The American government is ready to get into bed with even the devil and do just about anything to get rid of or discredit Al Assad, including turning a blind eye to the use of chemical

The world in the throes of another war?

America, Syria and the rest of us weapons against Syrian civilians by those rebels and then blaming it on the Assad regime. I do not believe for one minute that Al Assad used chemicals weapons.

The fact that the Syrian rebels are killing Christians and secularist Muslims in droves and that they wish to establish an Islamic fundamentalist state on the borders of Israel also tells me that those that support such people are misguided individuals that do not care for Muslims, Christians or Jews. The Americans are effecting the agenda of Satan, pure and simple.

They should go ahead and use their power. We know that nothing and no-one will stop them. They should satisfy their blood-lust and kill as many people as they like in Syria. They should remove as many governments and conquer as many nations as they choose in the Middle East and elsewhere. They should take as much oil as they like. They should do as they please and establish their ‘’new world order ’’. One day God will rise up and avenge the weaker nations of the world whom they have manipulated, discredited, cheated and destroyed. They should revel in the moment and

enjoy the killings and carnage that they are about to unleash. However the one thing that they shall not do is to compel those of us that are discerning enough to see through their lies, their greed and their wickedness to clap for them and sit back silently as they slaughter the world and impose their values. All we can do is create awareness about their evil agenda to those that care to listen. And we shall continue to do so whether they like it or not.

Deceived by their own govt

One day the good people of American themselves will understand that they have been deceived by their own governments. American governments and American Presidents are simply puppets and middle-ranking representatives of a much greater force that seeks to destroy mankind and control the entire world. All you need to do is to be a student of eschatology to appreciate this. The assumptions that many have made about what is true and what is not true in Syria and elsewhere are simply wrong.

Yes, chemical weapons were used and many people,

including innocent women and children, were killed but the question is who by,

who gave the order and what was the motive and purpose for such a heartless act? In the May 6 edition of the Washington Times newspaper, it was reported that Mrs.Carla Del Ponte, the former International Court For Criminal Justice prosecutor and a respected member of the United Nations Independant International Commission Of Inquiry On Syria, told Swiss TV that ‘’there were strong concrete suspicions that Syrian rebels that were seeking to oust Al Assad had used the nerve agent sarin”. This honest Canadian lady certainly seems to know what is really going on but who is listening to her? One day, the American people will open their eyes to the evil and manifest injustice that their governments, particularly Obama’s government, have inflicted on the people of the Middle East, Pakistan, Afghanistan

and north Africa. Until then we shall sit back and watch American forces kill perhaps as many Syrians as they did in the first few days of the bombing of Baghdad when they snuffed out 150,0000 innocent Iraqi souls, including women and children. I hope that they can sleep well at night when this happens. The blood of those innocent souls is as much on the hands of those hapless cheerleaders that believe everything that they are told by the international television networks and that defend or seek to justify this abominable action as it is on those who actually ordered and executed it.

with an interesting contribution from a deeply courageous and insightful Englishman by the name of Mr. David Icke. He said: ‘Tthese genetic liars are so desperate to bomb the Assad regime into history. This is because the global plan to subvert and conquer the Middle and Near East has had its time-table scuppered by the Syrian government’s refusal to fall in the wake of a civil war. That civil war was orchestrated through psychopathic mercenaries by the hidden forces behind NATO. Those forces are now planning to bomb Syria via their political puppets who dare not refuse to take orders - not that this lot need much encouragement. They are planning to kill and maim even more people with brown faces on their way to controlling the whole of the vast region known as Eurasia. The plan was for them to have invaded Lebanon and Iran by now so they are seeking to bomb away the blockage and stalemate in Syria where the NATO armed-and-funded ‘rebels’ have been losing ground to the Assad military. To do so, they are claiming, with no evidence, that Assad ordered a chemical attack on his own people. They have tried this before without success when it became clear that the alleged ‘Assad’ chemical attacks were instigated by the very ‘rebels’ that NATO controls to manufacture an excuse for NATO to invade. Now, in pathetic desperation, they are doing the same thing again and this time refusing to take no for an answer or produce any credible evidence (they can’t) because their masters’ time-table demands that Assad be removed now – just as it did with Gaddafi in Libya. And the global corporate media is playing its usual part in repeating the lies as fact. By doing so, the blood will be on their hands as well, just as it has always been throughout corporate media history.

They are so stupid, so uninformed, so moronic, that they can’t see that they and their families are going to be subjected to the same Orwellian fascist society that they are providing the daily propaganda to justify’’.

These are powerful and instructive words from Icke.

As Sir Winston Churchill once said, ‘’the truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but, in the end, there it is”. May God bless and protect the good people Syria.

PAGE 34 — SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Starved of funds, our diplomats abroad did odd jobs to survive

— Ambassador Suleiman

BY VICTORIA OJEME AND FAITH GORA

A

mbassador Dahiru Suleiman is a retired diplomat. In this interview, he takes us through the world of diplomacy as it applies to Nigeria, mentioning where the country is getting it wrong and how the lapses can be corrected.

What is Nigeria’s foreign policy currently like?

Nigerian foreign policy has seen some modifications here and there. During colonization and the fight against apartheid in South Africa, the foreign policy was based on the liberation of the continent of Africa from colonialism and the obnoxious apartheid policy, two, to defend the interest of the black race anywhere they are found in the world and, three, to protect and project a positive image of Nigeria and also to protect the interest of Nigerians wherever they may be in the world.

After the colonization era and the collapse of apartheid, the foreign policy focus shifted to economic diplomacy and the idea was to attract foreign direct investment into Nigeria. Up till now, the economic diplomacy has not subsided, but there was a time 22 years ago they were talking about citizen diplomacy.

When you talk about citizen diplomacy, you are still talking about the protection of the interest of Nigerians wherever they are, so you are not saying anything new.

Strictly speaking, the foreign policy goals of any country, once they are set, you may have variations depending on the

government in power. For example, in the Unites States of America, the foreign policy goals hardly changes whether the Republican Party or the Democratic Party is in power.

There may be slight variations here and there. For instance, there may be more emphasis when the Democrats are in power on seeing to the establishment of democracy in all parts of the world and protection of human rights; then you have one of the cardinal principles of the United States foreign policy that has undiluted support for Israel; so whatever Israel does, America will not condemn.

The Emeka Anyaoku Committee raised to review Nigeria’s policy is yet to conclude its assignment.

What do you feel should be its focus?

I know they submitted an interim report and i participated in the seminar that took place in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where suggestions were made and papers presented by stakeholders but we have to look inwards now and ask ourselves, what is it that Nigeria wants to achieve on its foreign policy?

One, we need to put our house in order. If our house is in order, then our foreign policy agenda will be better pursued. If you have a disorganized home, you cannot have an effective foreign policy because domestic issues affect foreign policy like the economic diplomacy we are talking about or attracting foreign direct investment.

If the house is not in order, nobody will come to invest; if

•Explains how Nigeria can be a big player in world affairs we want to attract foreign direct investment, we have to put our house in order, and, if our house is in order, we are in a strong position to pursue our foreign policy goals like the defence of the interest of Nigerians, the protection of the interest of the black race and the rest of it.

So the Anyaoku Panel, I don’t expect them to make any recommendation outside putting our house in order first before embarking on the foreign policy of government. Of course we want to be friendly with all nations of the world; we want to be a major player in world affairs.

I expect that the Anyaoku Panel will make a strong recommendation to government to put its house in order and to also reinforce the foreign ministry; in a situation where the ministry is not properly funded, you cannot expect the officers to do their job the way it should.

I also expect the committee to make a strong recommendation for language training. It is not good to have a diplomat who can only communicate in English. Anywhere you go in the world, foreign diplomats speak foreign languages in addition to English; it may be French, it may be Arabic, it may be Portuguese, it may be Spanish.

In the years gone by, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs placed emphasis on language training. For example, I went to a university in Portugal where I studied Portuguese for one year; then i was posted to Brazil

where I spent five years; from there, I was posted to Angola.

The training allowed me to polish my Portuguese and now I can describe, I can write, I can translate in Portuguese language.

Where you have a diplomat who doesn’t understand any other language apart from English, he is handicapped in the performance of his job.

Sometimes you find that people are more comfortable with you when they know that they can discuss in their own language, but where they find that you speak only English, maybe

in foreign countries run to the various embassies for help, but the missions were in no financial position to help. Where you needed to hire a lawyer, the money was not there. Where you needed to bail out the Nigerian, the money was not there. But these Nigerians will not understand, because they have been told that the embassy should take care of them. So the government says I should take care of you but I don’t have the resources to carry out the mandate. The same government that says I should take care of you has not empowered me to

They say we should defend the interest of Nigerians wherever they are, but government that said it did not fund the missions certain things they may want to discuss with you, they will not because you don’t share much in common.

During your tour of duty as an ambassador, do you think Nigeria’s foreign policy focus is on that same pedestal today?

It is emphasis here and there, but the goal has not changed; it is just that government has not helped matters. They say we should defend the interest of Nigerians wherever they are, but government that said it did not fund the missions; so Nigerians that find themselves in trouble

take care of you; so how do I go about it?

On economic diplomacy issue, it is good to attract foreign direct investment into Nigeria, but you need to re-orientate the officers in the diplomatic missions. If the officer is just trained in political issues and you now want to go into economic issues, you have to re-orientate him. Yes, they are educated, but they have not been given the type of re-orientation or the type of briefing to make them effective in what they are doing. We have to make sure that when we say Continues on page 35

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 35

‘Starved of funds, our diplomats abroad did odd jobs to survive’ Continued from page 34

this is the policy, we need to summon the ambassadors and brief them properly and let them return to their missions and then properly address their own officers so that the officers know the exact thinking of the government. But if the government just makes an announcement without any briefing whatsoever, then it becomes difficult for the officers and missions abroad to effectively carry out the mission of the government. All this boils down to what I have been talking about putting our house in order.

Funding of missions abroad has always been an issue. How was the situation during your time?

The problem of funding has always been with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Missions will send their estimate or budget to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and these are collated and sent to the Ministry of Finance or to the Budget Office. Invariably, what missions abroad will get will be about half of what they requested. So where you have to pay for the houses that you rented for officers, how will the rent be paid? If you reduce the allocation for payment of utilities, electricity, water, garbage disposal, how will the mission take care of those expenses when you have children in school and you did not allocate the exact amount for the payment of school fees?

Under-funding has been going on for long and unless it is taken care of, the Foreign Affairs Ministry will be handicapped in discharging its obligations. I remember when I was in Abidjan, between1990-1992, there was a time we spent six months without being paid our allowances because there was no money. So this kind of thing will result in an untoward situation; when you have an officer who has a family and you have not paid him for six months, such an officer could be easily compromised.

I learnt that the funding has improved, but I don’t know if it has improved to the level that missions are now adequately funded or it is just slightly better than when I was in service. But I can say for a fact that when I was in service, funding was very poor and that affected the performance of the missions.

When I say the officers get compromised, it was all encompassing so that whoever reads it will say compromise in what? They go out of their diplomatic duties to do things they should not do At the moment, Nigeria has an estimated 98 diplomatic posts. Would you say there

Suleiman...Abidjan was bad when I served as diplomat there

has been value in so many of such posts given the realities on ground?

I think the missions are more than 98. If you are talking about embassies, you are talking about high commissions, you are talking about consulates, may be more than 98. I think by the sheer size of Nigeria and the fact that we want to be known throughout the world, you may find that a country like South Africa may have more than what we have. So if we are thinking of one day becoming a member of the United Nations Security Council, we have to reckon with certain countries, so that by the time we need them, they will not say ‘oh, you never reckoned with us, that is why you never established your presence in country’.

But where you have a mission that normally consists of five people, you have 10-12 people; I will not support that. Let us have manageable missions; instead of big size missions, if we have manageable missions, then the resources can be applied better.

Nigeria seems to always sacrifice in terms of human and material resources to bring political stability into troubled African countries.

Do you think we have benefited from some of these commitments?

I happen to be one of those who were against the “Father Christmas” role of Nigeria. Yes we helped in the decolonization effort in Africa and the collapse of apartheid in South Africa.

Whether those people appreciated what we did or not, that is immaterial. They are out of bondage. We went to Liberia, got them out of the problem they had, Sierra Leone, we got them

out of the problem they had.

Whether they appreciated what Nigeria did or not, that is a different thing; but what I feel Nigeria should do is to try to extract certain conceptions.

They say in America there is no free lunch; if America is the most powerful country literally and economically and there is no free lunch with them, why should there be free lunch in Nigeria?

I

give you an example; we did a lot for Angola, but Nigeria never benefited anything from Angola; even when Nigeria wanted to sign a fishing right with Angola, they didn’t agree, but they signed a fishing right agreement with Ibru organization. When I was in Angola, Ibru fishing trolleys were fishing in Angolan territorial water, but for the Nigerian government to sign an agreement with them, they didn’t.

So perhaps it is our own way of making our own foreign policy at that time just to make sure that everybody was out of the woods, but we never thought of, after we come out of the woods, what will be our reward? Liberia, the same thing happened; Sierra-Leone, the same thing also happened.

Senate President David Mark said something, he went to watch the final of the African Cup of Nation (AFCON) between Nigeria and Cote d‘Ivoire. When he came back, he said that African countries don’t like us because of the comments he heard. I have said it many times that we are not liked in Africa, we are only tolerated.

All these African countries, they tell you something when you are around, but behind you, they say a different thing.

Nigeria has never had territorial ambition but despite the fact that we have never had territorial ambition and we have been Father Christmas to everybody, they still resent her and that is nothing but envy. They envy Nigeria because of what God has blessed Nigeria with. So, we have not received commensurate appreciation for what we did.

But it does not mean that Nigeria should not continue to do what is right since it is part of our foreign policy goal to defend the interest of the black race wherever they are.

It has been argued in some quarters that the practice of appointing politicians as ambassadors does more harm to Nigerian interest than good. What is your opinion?

I was a professional. I spent all my adult life in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Will I be happy if you bring someone from nowhere and make him ambassador over and above me?

No. I don’t think what Nigeria is doing is right. You can do your research work; you will not find any country that appoints so many politicians as ambassadors. I have said it and I will continue to say it.

Every country in the world is professionalizing but in Nigeria instead of professionalizing, we are politicizing and we should deemphasize that. Professional work should be left to the professionals.

It is a constitutional provision that the President can appoint only three non-career ambassadors. Only three and all the rest must be career, but in Nigeria you get 40%, 50%, 60% of ambassadors who are politicians. There is no way the country can derive maximum benefit from it. I don’t mind, they want to go to high flying missions, let them go but please

ended up as disasters.

If you are to advice, what percentage do you think should be given to political appointees?

To be honest with you, I wouldn’t recommend more than 10% maximum. If you will not bring someone from outside and make him a colonel, brigadier or assistant commissioner of police, commissioner of police, controller general of Customs or controller of Immigration, why should you bring to foreign affairs?

This is not to say that there are not some non- career ambassadors who have not performed well. I can tell you some like Professor Jubril Aminu performed creditably; I can tell you that Professor Joy Ogu in New York is performing creditably, but we should stop seeing the diplomatic service as a dumping ground for politicians who could not realize their ambition of becoming senators, House of Representatives members or ministers.

What do you think about increasing the retirement age of Nigerian career diplomats given the loss of experience that results in such retirements?

They say when you reach the age of 60 you retire or when you serve for 35years, this is the regulation. But, with good health, do you retire someone at the age of 60 who is performing optimally? Left to me, the diplomatic service in particular where you have invested so much to train and re-train officers, the retirement age should not be less than 65.

I do attend our meeting of retired career ambassadors.

When you hear retired ambassador contributing to issues, discussing issues, you know that these are people who have a lot to offer the country

When you have an officer who has a family and you have not paid him for six months, such an officer could be easily compromised don’t appoint too many of them.

When they go there, they don’t even know from where to start.

You get somebody who was a local government chairman who doesn’t even know what is happening in Abuja, and then you are now sending him abroad to represent the whole of Nigeria.

In fact when I was heading the Establishment Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I frustrated every effort to bring in outsiders to join the ministry as officers. If you want to be a career diplomat, start from the scratch and rise through the ranks but not for you to come at the middle.

I can tell you that most of those who transferred to the ministry from the middle on a higher level or on a higher level

and most of them are young.

Okay look at me, I am retired but I know I am strong physically, mentally but I retired five or six years ago. So you have specific jobs requiring specific skills like it was done for university professors and judges.

Career diplomats should retire at the age of 65 not 60. If you go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, you see everybody looking agile and young but maybe in one or two years you are asking them to go with all the skills they have been able to fashion out; so I think we are wasting too much manpower by asking people because of 35years of service or 60 years of age to go; I think something should be done about it.

PAGE 36—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

'We are retired but not tired. We are the UNTOUCHABLES'

All letters bearing writers' names and full addresses should be typed and forwarded to: The Editor, Sunday Vanguard, Kirikiri Canal, P. M. B. 1007, Apapa, Lagos. E-mail: sunvanguardmail@yahoo.com

State pardon: Gazette delay worrisome Dear Sir,

T

HE presidential pardon pronounced for former Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Diepreiye Alaiyemeiseigha; former Chief of General Staff, Lt. General Oladipo Diya; former Minister of Communications, Major General Tajudeen Olanrewaju; former Minister of Works and Housing, late Major General AbdulKarim Adisa and others

was considered by us at the We Want Jonathan 2015 as a right decision taken at a right time.

Regardless of the public outcry against that of the former governor.

What we do not understand now is that, going to six months after that presidential pardon was approved by the National Council of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and granted by the President, the gazette to that effect is yet to be published.

The former officers were granted

pardon on Tuesday March 12, 2013.

One thing that is clear is that, apart from Chief Alamieyeseigha, those retired Generals need the conclusiveness of the pardon process more in the sense that they have suffered enough due to lack of payment of their entitlements and of course restoration of their status.

One, their salaries and other entitlements have been put on hold for over sixteen years now yet they have their families who have suffered as a

Still on dust raised over deportation of the Igbo from Lagos Dear Sir,

F

IRST, I wish to align with the thoughts of IFEKA OKONKWO from Awka, Anambra State published in your Sunday Vanguard of August 18th on the exchange of abuses between persons on subject matter mentioned above and also call on your Newspaper to discontinue further publication on the issue because I observed that you have put more petroleum on the fire by even devoting whole four pages of your Sunday discourse 18 th August. to both KELECHI AND NELSON write ups as replies to Fanikayode on the issue,

with the photographs of FANIKAYODE & FASOL A (our OMO EKO KONIBAJE) instead of that KELECH & NELSON who were the writers.

All our media houses should exercise discretion to ensure that publications which are likely to cause ethnic, tribal and religious disharmony are not entertained.

Secondly, for young ones like the above mentioned writers who do not know the History of Lagos should get copy of the book titled POLITICAL AND CULTURAL PERCEPECTIVES OF LAGOS authored by ALHAJI H. A. B. FASINRO (OFR). Reference to this book is to make those people who often stated that Lagos is no man’s land to desist from such reckless

statement. Although pursuant to our Nigerian Constitution, every citizen is free to live in any part of the country but in reality, where you do not have ethnic descent, you cannot rubbish the people of the area of their rights to ancestry land.

Finally, Governor Obi was mischievous by not blowing the whistle earlier before the freight, of the unfortunate destitutes and Lagos State government on its part was careless to fall into his trap by the action it has taken. Let us hope there would be no repetition of this act again in any part of our country.

B. A. Bakare, 6 Akinwale Street, Ogba, Ikeja.

E-mail: Bilbak12@Yahoo.com

result of that.

Two, they were cleared by Oputa Panel set up with state fund and which submitted its report containing its findings and recommendations, especially on the phantom coups of 1995 featuring General Olusegun Obasanjo, then former Military Head of State and that of 1997 featuring Generals Diya, Olanrewaju, Adisa and others. The Oputa Panel, however, explicitly posited that their status be restored and their withheld entitlements be paid to them.

Three, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR, needs to really prove those fifth columnists singing Jonathan’s Anti-Yoruba Administration wrong by doing this once and for all, being that the Generals, truly, are largely of Yoruba extraction.

It has become imperative also that, now that the pardon has been granted, the gazette to really authenticate that the pardon has actually been granted should be published bearing all the names of the pardoned people. This, more importantly, will now enable the Army Council, constrained by lack of the gazette since March this year, to now carry on with the payment of the Generals’ entitlements and restoration of their status without further delay. *Ukachukwu Ugo, member, We Want Jonathan 2015, South East Nigeria, wrote from Akwa. Email: wewantjonathan2015@gmail.com

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 37

(1)

BY BILESANMI OLALEKAN

S

enator Muhammed Ndume - Borno South was the Minority Leader in the House of Reps as an ANPP lawmaker before he moved to the PDP and then became a senator. His political career took a twist when he was accused of sponsoring the Boko Haram Islamist group.

In this interview, he hails the onslaught against Boko Haram by the military forces but says the insurgency by the sect festered after government took it for granted that Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau died during a raid on his hideout in 2012.

Ndume warns that same mistake should not be made in the wake of the current claim that the sect leader has been killed. The senator also speaks on some other national issues.

W

HERE were you and what was your reac tion when you heard that the leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, was dead?

First of all, I was not very sure since his body was not shown and there was no categorical statement from the military that he was dead, like the American military told the world about the late Osama bin Laden, they were categorical. I was not around when the announcement concerning Shekau’s death was made. However it is not the death of Shekau that concerns me, it is the problems that relate to the insurgency that concern me. I hope the death of Shekau means the death of Boko Haram insurgency and the security challenges that we are facing in the North- east.

But the death of a sect leader like this does not usually bring insurgency to an end.

Government must take action in order to make sure that the Boko Haram insurgency comes to a total end. Mind you, we in the North-east are in the fore front of the whole crisis. We are in the centre of the crisis. We know how it feels. I was home last week, I went round my constituency, saw the two most affected communities, Dambua and Dangoza. It was a pathetic sight to behold.

Towns that were very vibrant and lively have suddenly become ghost towns. It is either the people have run away or have been killed. What you see are children here and there. You can hardly get somebody above 30 living around.

Though I think it is getting better now especially with the emergency rule because normalcy is beginning to set in.

You were part of the Presidential Committee raised to dialogue with Boko Haram at a time and, suddenly, you found yourself in the web of the sect-government crisis, leading to your arrest and arraignment in court.

Any regret that you wanted to assist the government in the first place?

No, I didn’t regret it at all.

Though I feel bad about the whole thing and that is why I said before the interview that I would not want to talk about it and I will appreciate if we don’t go beyond that because security issues are not something you politicise, trivialise, tribalise. It is a calamity and I have always said instances

Ndume ... I hope Shekau’s death means the death of Boko Haram

THE BOKO HARAM REVELATION

We took sect leader Abubakar Shekau for granted – Senator Ndume

z Says two communities in Borno have become ghost towns z‘Critics got Senate’s stand on child marriage wrong’

In 2009, when Boko Haram was crushed, everybody thought it was over, saying Shekau was dead even though some had contrary views, only for him to resurface in 2011 and unleashed very serious damage on government of this nature should be looked into collectively, not looking for scapegoats, but solutions to the problems. But when government sees problems and they begin to look for scapegoats, then you are not finding solution to the problems. And you know for now it will be subjudice talking much about it because it is still in court.

As a leader and someone who is from the affected area, I think when you have serious issues like the one we are having now, you don’t trivialise, tribalise or give it a religious colouration. It is like cancer, it will just keep on spread-

ing and, before you know it, it is beyond control. Initially, government was trivialising the matter until they saw that it was going beyond them, so I was happy that they brought in the military. And that is why results are coming out now. People, I mean civilians, are themselves volunteering information because they have seen that government has shown seriousness. Youths are now arresting Boko Haram members. I know some boys, all the way from Borno, went to Lagos to arrest a suspected Boko Haram member.

In those days, nobody talked about it. But they have all seen

that government is damn serious about fighting the insurgency, and that is why they also are showing support for the the government action and we are all seeing results. But it is not time to relent on what they are doing until they finally get to the end of the problem. In 2009, when Boko Haram was crushed, everybody thought it was over, saying Shekau was dead even though some had contrary views, only for him to resurface in 2011 and unleashed very serious damage on government.

All of us must support government because it is a national issue, it is not a religious issue because it has never been. When they now go about attacking mosques, would you now say that is religious? alking about government T showing seriousness, some have said the emergency rule was late in coming?

That is true. The emergency rule had been in some local government areas in the states affected prior to the main emergency. Government was not as serious as it is now in tackling the issue. It has

even gone further in creating a garrison in that area in order to effectively tackle the issue. This is something that would have been done long time ago. If it were done then, we would have gone very far. But as the saying goes, it is better late than never. And I think we have paid the price for it. Of course, the action is effective. But it is not perfect as we all know. I am more concerned about the civilian JTF, that is, the youths who are giving out information leading to the arrest of the sect members, I think they (government) should use this opportunity to organise them because, at the moment, they are just there, there is no structure; government should take advantage of this opportunity and organise these youths. There is no support whatsoever aside the cover the JTF gives them. After the menace of the Boko Haram, what do you do with them? The soldiers would go back to their barracks, where would the youths go ?

The child marriage controversy

Continues on page 38

PAGE 38—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

ment in Borno State was a Yoruba man.

The Chief Judge in Borno in 1979 to 1983 was Justice Kalu Anya. He is from South-east. But, today, all that is gone. This is how this country is supposed to be, it does not matter where you come from. The important thing is to have a good President. The region he comes from, to me , does not matter. It is a President that can deliver, not where he or she comes from.

‘I hope Shekau’s death will end the Boko Haram insurgency’ Continued from page 37 That is not true. There was nothing of such.

How about your colleagues that….

You had better talk to my colleagues then. You are talking to me. You want to hear from me?

So, listen. I Senator Muhammed Ali Ndume didn’t vote on marriageable age. And nobody in the chamber that day did. On the issue of marriageable age, nobody did. What happened was that Section 29, Subsection 4 or thereabouts of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, says that if you want to renounce your citizenship, you must be 18 years of age or you must be of marriageable age. The committee was saying that the clause should be removed and those that are in support of the clause to be expunged should vote yes while those against it should vote no. That was what happened.

The issue of age and marriage didn’t arise at all. We all voted according to our conscience.

Then Senator Yerima raised an issue that expunging it would affect Islamic legal system which didn’t specify age bracket in marriage. So, where the issue of marriage came in, I don’t know.

That was why the Senate president was even saying no, we had taken a decision on that already but, for me, I am really surprised that we are wasting energy on this when we should be talking about lack of electricity, unemployment. I have a daughter that is 25 years old now, she will marry at the time she is ready to .

I married my first wife at the age of 19 when she was in the university. When I was to marry my second wife, she was about graduating from the university at the age of 22. I don’t think we should waste much energy discussing this. After all, do you marry without consent? If you have a daughter that you brought up, would anybody marry her out for you? Or are you going to marry out your daughter when she is not ready for marriage?

There is no light, there is security challenge, the schools are shut and here we are talking about marriage. This is one of my concerns for this country. I am even worried now talking about it with you because I know very soon, they will start abusing Ndume on the pages of newspapers and in the social media. I saw my name and picture on the pages of newspapers on the day we voted on the citizenship issue as if we killed somebody.

But it is proven that early marriage brings about diseases like vesico vagina fistula, VVF. That is a lie. That is happening because we don’t have a good health care system; otherwise when you see pregnancy that may be injurious to the child and mother, you perform CS on the woman. Why don’t we insist that we should have good health care system? Why don’t we insist that parents should be more responsible? I will not marry out my daughter under 18.Please let us talk about serious issues.

The jumbo package members of the National Assembly collect is said to be adding to the high cost of governance in this country and as explained by Obi Ezekwezili, a former minister, recently, that about N1trillion has been spent on you people in the last 10 years.

Let me say that the cost of governance in Nigeria is prohibitive.

Out of the national budget, you spend about 75% on recurrent expenditure. Is that not too much?

However, you don’t isolate the National Assembly. It was only in the last three years that the budget of the National Assembly shot up. So, since the last three to four years now, the budget has always been N150b which includes the running cost, salaries of members of the National Assembly, legislative aides, National Assembly Commission, National Assembly staff, National Assembly capital and recurrent. Take N150billion

*Ndume...Lawmakers not responsible for high cost of governance

When I was to marry my second wife, she was about graduating from the university at the age of 22. I don’t think we should waste much energy discussing this in this year ’s budget as against the budget of N4.9trillion, what percentage does that give you?

And out of that, go and check the salaries, allowances and emoluments that go the members of the National Assembly, not National Assembly as a whole and check out the figures. Go to the Presidency, each of the ministries, look at their spending, then you can now talk, but you don’t just want to make news for news sake. If you take the N3.2 trillion which is the recurrent expenditure of this year ’s budget and take N150 billion and divide it, you now say it is the National Assembly that is responsible for the high cost of governance in this country? Let me tell you, even the budget loopholes or leakages are more than what the National Assembly is taking. Agreed that the cost of governance is high, it is not because of what the National Assembly is being paid. If National Assembly members are taking jumbo pay and milking the country as they are saying, go and see former members of the assembly, are they not supposed to be rich Nigerians? When have they taken the money to? Are they not supposed to be building

structures that would make them richer even after leaving the assembly? Go and look at them especially those that didn’t return, go and see the type of life they are living; that is when you will know whether they are taking jumbo pay or not. And then go and look at a retired director and see the life he is living after retirement.

Go and see even this minister that is talking, she was minister just a few years back and see her standard of living now and compare it with our former senate presidents. Go and take the statistics of the office of minister for education while she was there, the personal emoluments she was spending in the office as a minister and compare it to what was being paid to a senator that period. I don’t want to join issues with anybody but this issue of looking for scapegoat syndrome that is common with us should be stopped. The President said that they are going to sacrifice 30% of their salaries, did it work? Have they implemented it? We in the assembly, out of the allowances, we said we are going to cut off 30% across board and we did. But that has not been done in the executive arm. The budget quagmire we found ourselves in was because members of the appropriation cut off personnel cost of some of the ministries which nearly turned this country upside down. You people are talking about those who just for traveling expenses, they are spending billions of naira, no one is talking about that. The matter came up as a result of petition. A member of the executive spent about N2billion on travels only. If you give me N2billion today, I will not play politics again, if you say you are giving me and not that I should give my people, that it is mine, I am done. It is just that we are the most endangered species in all of this but we are ready to take the bashing. We are the symbol of democracy. But truly the cost of governance in this country should be looked into so that

about 75% should go into capital while the balance can go to personnel and recurrent.

Objectively, is your party, the PDP, in crises?

Yes, but that does not mean there are no gains. However, democracy, not PDP, has not given the much desired dividends we deserve.

Blame is not only on the doorsteps of the PDP. It is a collective responsibility. Just because the PDP is on the driver’s seat does not mean the passengers are less guilty. Yes, the PDP government has been running this country for the past 13 years, but not independently, it runs the country interdependently. The opposition is there. Nigerians are there. It is supposed to be a collective thing. So, on the assessment of our democracy in the last 13 years ,I will say we are yet to get to where we are supposed to be. But we can’t put the blame squarely on the door steps of the PDP because you can’t have a bad leader if you don’t have a bad followership. Leadership is supposed to be for the people, by the people; if it is not working well, you don’t just look at the head, you look at the whole body.

There is controversy as to which region should be elected in 2015. The North insists it is their turn while the South-south is saying the President must be given a second term. You are a northerner. What is your take?

Let me be honest with you. I feel bad when we begin to tribalise an important issue like this.

We are in democracy which is about elections. We are copying the presidential system and, in the presidential system like the American that we are copying, in America today, are they talking about north or east? south or west? There was a Nigerian mayor in Ohio or Columbus.

There was one again in Russia.

But here, is it possible for you, Ola, to leave Lagos and go to Borno to win election? But let me tell you, in 1979 to1983, the Secretary to the State Govern-

Has this president delivered?

I told you that I don’t want to talk about personalities but issues or ideas. It is weak minds that discuss personalities. As I said, you can’t have a bad President until you have a bad followership.

Is Jonathan running this country alone? So please let us refrain from discussing personalities, let us talk about issues that will move our country forward. If Obama dies today, America will be up and running. I have said it several times, government should be like a rail track and, once the train is on the track, unless something happens, you cannot suddenly stop. But Nigeria is being run like a bicycle now. You know bicycle depends on the person riding it. If you ride it fast, it will be fast and if you choose to be slow, slow shall it move, if you stop, it will stop too. That is how we are running it. We should build strong institutions not personalities. Once the policies are right which of course will determine the speed of the train, that is all we need, not personalities.

At the time you defected to the PDP, it was barely three months to the general elections of 2011.

How did you win the election on a different platform and even to a higher level-Senate?

It was just the work of God. I am a very lucky person. I am from a poor background. My father didn’t go to school and my late mother was barely educated before she was married to my father. I don’t have anybody that is rich in my family. I went into politics without any godfather.

My god father presently and all along from the beginning is God. If I have a political god father, I would not be going through the travails I am going through now.

But I believe that God allowed it to be so because of a purpose which I don’t know and I pray it is positive. There is no magic. My guiding principle in life is, ‘Don’t ever forget where you are coming from if you want to know where you are going’. I know that I am from, so I always relate with the poor and up till now the poor identify with me. And incidentally, the poor are the majority and the poor are the ones that decide one’s fate and the voice of the people, they say, is the voice of God. That was how I emerged. An individual in our politics that time, that was our sitting governor, thought he could play God, but the same God came out to say no. Although we cannot see Him but He is always there and it was through Him that I emerged victorious. I went to PDP, even my being in PDP is God’s choice. I won the election decisively. There was no election petition against me. As a matter of fact, I have never gone to court in my life until they said I sponsored Boko Haram. I have never gone to court even on a civil issue.

But God must have put me through all these for a purpose and I hope it is a positive one.

SUNDAY

SONI DANIEL, Regional Editor, North

M

ajor General Sam Momah served as the Minister of Science and Technology during the administrations of Generals Sani Abacha and Abdulsalami Abubakar, and carved a niche for himself by creating what has come to be known as “Technology Incubation Centres” to help Nigeria in her drive for technological advancement and industrialisation.

He stands out as one of Nigeria’s intellectual soldiers and outstanding engineers, having also qualified as a certified civil engineer and a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.

He has just published a book, “Nigeria Beyond Divorce”, in which he argues against the break-up of the country and pleads with Nigerians to seek peace and pursue it in the interest of the nation.

Excerpts from an interview with him:

Let me start with the book itself. What informed the choice of the title: Nigeria Beyond Divorce? ssentially, of late, Nigerians have become very despondent about the country to the extent that many feel we should just go our separate ways. They feel that the country should disintegrate and I get surprised with the calibre of people who hold this view. They are not just people on the street but very responsible Nigerians. I feel bad too because when you see the way the country is going you tend to wonder what is left. I did my own little research and I felt that if you look at all the unstable countries in Africa over the years - Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, etc - you find that the crises that destabilised them started like what we are seeing in Nigeria. It is these little things that nobody is checking that gave rise to the big crises that are currently rocking the African countries. I felt like raising the alarm to warn my fellow countrymen and women that it’s not just a matter of just saying go your separate ways, but the aftermath of such an action because Nigeria is a country of 170million people. If we decide to go our separate ways, it is not going to be that smooth because the boundaries are not known between one tribe and the other, one region and the other, one town and the other and the refugee problem that 170 million people would throw up could overwhelm West Africa. So even if 10million or 20million refugees spread to West Africa, they are going to destabilise the region and Africa. So, we have to realise the enormity of the problem that the split of Nigeria could cause for the country and people as well as our neighbours.

I want to use this book to drum it into the consciousness of all well-meaning Nigerians that there is no alternative to peace and unity

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013 PAGE,39

WARNING FROM AN ARMY GENERAL

Failed countries’ crises started like Nigeria’s ’What Abdulsalami told me about the short tenure of his regime’ Says lack of fund to attend university forced him to join the military closer to the people and significantly trim the large bureaucracy for the benefit of Nigerians. If we have Provincial Councils in the six geo-political zones, it will eliminate the need for the large number of ministers, commissioners, special advisers and all other categories of people who are drawing entitlements from government on daily basis, but adding nothing to the system at the end of the day. The establishment of Provincial Councils will give room for technocrats drawn from various fields of human endeavours to man the various sectors of the economy and eliminate the role of politicians who are currently being paid jumbo salaries by government at all levels.

E

Major General Sam Momah

You lamented the issue of corruption, indiscipline, wastage, underdevelopment and all that but you left everything hanging without putting the blame on anyone. Are you afraid of hitting the nail on the head? am not afraid of anybody, but it is just my own way of remaining very objective in all matters and at all times until I get the real picture of what I am talking about. In the case of Nigeria, I am not an auditor, I am not an accountant, I am not a lawyer; I am just a soldier, who has no access to all the facts and figures. So I didn’t want to accuse anyone wrongly without the facts and figures. As you know, it takes time to really prove a point in this country, but the sad thing

I

,,

and that we cannot afford to go our separate ways after living together for 100 years. Let us sing it as a song that Nigeria is beyond divorce. I want to call on Nigerians to realise that we fought a civil war and lost 3million souls. I want Nigerians to note that no nation fights two civil wars and survives. Nigeria cannot survive another war and we have to find a way to live together. That is all I am saying in my book.

Today in Nigeria, special persons are tampering with national assets like oil pipelines and those who should punish them claim it is their turn to loot national treasures

is that Nigerians are fond of jumping into conclusion without the facts and I don’t want to be caught in that web.

In chapter five of the book, you attributed Nigeria’s problem to over bloated bureaucracy caused by ‘undue creation of states’. What do you mean by that? Are you opposed to more states being created in Nigeria?

Of course, I am trying to say I am against the creation of states per se because the states are not viable. Today, only Lagos State has proven to be viable - that is, it can generate the resources to run on its own without waiting for federal allocations. In fact, I can say that only Lagos State has continued to prove that it is a state that can stand on its own and render services to its citizens. I want to believe that if we had remained

with the 12 states that were originally created, things would have been better. Going by what is happening now and the recent discovery of Shale gas in the West, it is doubtful if Nigeria will continue to get the kind of oil revenue it is getting and be able to carry along all the states in the country. My fear is that we may soon get to a stage where the Federal Government may not be able to sell enough oil and raise money to distribute to the states. That is why people should not dismiss the issue of Federal Government not being able to pay salary as Okonjo Iweala stated. It is possible, given the way things are going in this country. We have to tell ourselves the home truth and not to have states that we cannot fund. Rather than continue to create new states, we should be talking about provinces so as to bring the number of development centres

You once served as a minister and most of these things you are talking about in the book were not done. Do you have the moral right to complain about them today? hat you should know is that the military has its own way of doing things. They had a limited period to stay in power and many of their leaders did not want to do anything beyond the period they elected to stay in office. Take the case of Abdulsalami Abubakar, who had all the opportunity to stay in power for as long as he wanted but he decided to quit sooner than most Nigerians expected. When Abubakar came, he asked me how long I thought we could stay as a government and I said, ‘Well, sir, you could stay for a year plus’, and he quickly replied that he wanted to leave as soon as possible and he left the scene before a year. That being the case, there was nothing much that administration could do. If we had stayed beyond a year, one could have planned a programme of activity and implemented same.

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You also talked about poor productivity as part of the problem facing Nigeria under what you called poor productivity aggravated by wrong application of the federal character principle. What do you mean by that?

I personally feel that federal character principle has contributed to over 50% of the problems Continues on page 40

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Continued from page 39

facing Nigeria today. Although the initiators of the principle meant well for the country, the implementation over the years has left much to be desired. It has destroyed merit and enthroned mediocrity and indolence in the land.

Nigerians no longer work hard to achieve promotion and get appointed into key government positions but depend on primordial considerations. It is even worse when it comes to admission into Unity Schools. Whereas some Nigerians from certain parts of the country are given a set of cut off marks as a condition for admission, some other Nigerians from different parts, are also expected to score some points in order to be admitted into the same Unity Colleges. This is indeed the country’s dilemma. No country can operate like that and expect to excel. Young students from the southern part of Nigeria cannot just understand why they cannot gain admission into the Federal Government colleges in spite of their high scores in common entrance examination, while others from the other part of the country who score lower marks in the same examination are given express admission all in the name of federal character.

Federal character is encourages cheating rather than promote national development and sense of cohesion. This principle should be redefined and made more productive so that it does not continue to sacrifice merit on the altar of mediocrity. Federal character as is presently practised in Nigeria tends to inculcate cheating culture rather than emphasise hard work, selflessness and nation-building, the core values, which our founding fathers lived by. Nigerians should be given equal opportunities to go to school and access to jobs based on merit. The Federal Government should ensure that all Nigerians have access to basic and tertiary education through scholarship and grants but the standards of education should not be lowered for anyone no matter where the person comes from. That is the only way to make federal char-

WARNING FROM AN ARMY GENERAL

Failed countries’ crises started like Nigeria’s What did you achieve as the Minister of Science and Technology under the late Gen Sani Abacha?

Well, like I have said, the military has its peculiar method of doing things. You are an officer and you are merely commanded by your superior officer to come and carry out some tasks already outlined for you. Under the military, you may not be able to exercise the kind of freedom that is obtainable under a civilian administration such as we have today. There is no room for politicking and in our time there was nothing like an individual programme for implementation. You can whisper your own idea but you don’t go against the position of the military leader.

But I understand that you established some Incubation Centres across the country.

What were they meant to achieve? es, within my ministry, I did a lot of innovation and General Abacha himself was very happy with me.

The Incubation Centres, which I started in 26 states, were meant to provide a platform for Nigerians to learn skills and trades that could make them to be self-reliant and take Nigeria’s technological drive to the next level. It was meant to enable Nigerian school leavers to have a place to learn any technical trade of their choice and be able to stand on their own.

All the centres were equipped with vital tools and were to be replicated in all the 776 Local Government Areas of the country. The idea was to provide a training programme that could last about six months for each trainee. It is the same thing that applies in China, where we got

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Federal character as is presently practised in Nigeria tends to inculcate cheating culture rather than emphasise hard work, selflessness and nation-building, the core values, which our founding fathers lived by.

acter serve the collective interest of Nigerians. Federal character can be solely applied to political appointments to give a sense of belonging to all but it should not be used to determine admission into public schools, appointments or promotion into the civil or public service. Using this principle to administer the schools or public service has the potential of destroying the core values of the public service and the interest of Nigeria. The transformation agenda of the government may not work effectively with the principle still in place.

the idea from.

But unfortunately since I left, maintaining the centres has not been easy. There was even a time when they wanted to scrap it. I had to appeal to them to retain it.

That is the main problem in the third world: they don’t ensure continuity of projects and programmes thereby truncating many lofty dreams.

Why did you join the army of all the professions? Was it by accident, family choice or passion?

It was by accident. We are a

to lift their country from obscurity to sufficiency whereas we in Nigeria want to reap where we did not sow Cast you mind back to the army when you entered and when you left the army. Would you say you are happy with what you achieved?

Yes, I am very happy, even though it could have been better.

But I thank God that I made the rank of a Major General in the army. It is not a mean feat because it is only when you reach the rank that you thank God. I am a twostar General and that is something to thank God for because it is not a mean thing. Some hardly get one star but I hit two. I am very happy with what God used the army to do for me.

So, what would you have been if you had not enrolled in the army? had always wanted to be an engineer and that was when they advertised and said they would train, I opted to train as an army engineer so as to meet my age long desire. Today, apart from being a retired General of the army; I am also a certified civil engineer, a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, NSE, and a writer.

I have a burning desire to write given my background as a researcher when I trained and in many army institutions around the globe. I was challenged to begin to read wide and research into contemporary issues, when in one of my training programs in the British War College, a Major was made to lead the rest of the trainees some of whom, including myself, was already a Lt Colonel, but he seemed to know more than the rest of us.

It was a big challenge that made me to begin to read wide and make notes. By the time I looked at my notes, it was already more than enough to write my first book.

From that time, the interest to read and write has become part of my life. It is my passion in life.

But would you encourage any of your children to go into the army?

No. I don’t want any of my children to join the army for the fear that anything can happen and consume your life. Your best friend can decide to backstab or betray you and so on. I was lucky to stay off trouble throughout my years in the army. Others were not so lucky.

I

Major General Sam Momah

family of eight, three boys and five girls. I am the second boy, my senior brother was in secondary school when I was about to finish primary school and you know in those days it was not easy to pay school fees. My father was a reverend, but in those days, all you could get from church members was one chicken, yams or egg as the case may be. There was no money. So when my brother was in secondary school, my father said I had to wait for my brother to finish before I could go in. I didn’t find it comfortable. Given the situation, I had to go and live with my senior brother in the South-west. There was this teacher who used to be friendly with my cousin and he got the army recruitment form for me and spoke to my father to allow me to enroll. As God would have it, I took the military entrance and passed in flying colours. I seized the opportunity and went into the army as soon as I finished secondary school instead of going to wait at home for my senior brother to finish from the university because of lack of money.

That is why I say that I joined the army by accident because my original plan was to go the university and read an engineering course and become an engineer, which was a more respectable course of study at the time. The army was not a popular choice in those days.

In fact my father still objected to my joining the army even after I had been successful at the interview, which was very rigorous and based strictly on merit. It was conducted by white men who were mostly British and Indians. My father said I was not going to anywhere. He asked himself, “How can I allow my son to become a soldier?” He told me to perish the thought and begin to look for something else to do until he had enough money to send me to the university to go and read engineering. Despite my pleas to him, he refused to budge and it was my mother, who gave me the

money to go for the interview in Lagos.

My father only relented after my success at the interview. The white men, who interviewed me and the other Nigerians, later handed me a sealed envelope containing some money, which I promptly handed over to my father on reaching home and he was happy with me. It was the money the army had given to me to use and prepare for my trip for overseas training that they put in the sealed envelope. While abroad for my training, I used the little allowances I was being paid to train my siblings back home and that really helped the family.

So I think the army has treated me well. Not only did they train my very well they also exposed me to so many opportunities in life. That is why I feel I should pay back with this book that I have written so as to leave it as a legacy for the younger ones to know about Nigeria, how we started the journey and where we are heading so as to be able to also help our leaders on how we can improve on our situation.

In all your 36 years in the army, you were not involved in any of the numerous coups.

How did you do it? ctually it is my own fate that kept me through all the years without being linked with any incident in the army. God has always been with me because my hands were clean and I thank God that I was never part of any coup because it runs against my professional training.

I was professionally trained in military academies in many parts of the world, particularly the Indian Defence Academy, which is very unique and thorough. In fact, the environment alone is training itself because it is in the middle of nowhere. You just go there to do training and nothing more. They have a distinctive predicated on the principle of the country that they have to work and succeed no matter the condition of their land. They abhor greed and work

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Is that why you are apolitical?

Yes, that is who I am. I don’t want to join any political fray because I have not seen people of like- minds. Until I see people who are ready to serve, to offer service without getting paid, I would remain as I am. This is because Nigeria needs to be salvaged from the bread-and- butter politicians, who are merely running all over the place for what they can get from the system for themselves and their acolytes and not really to serve national interest.

Singapore that moved from third world to first world today has enough for all because people are investing and working for the overall interest of the nation unlike what we are doing in Nigeria, trying to carve empires for ourselves at the expense of the nation and the people.

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SUND AY SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 41

REPORTS & TOP STORIES OF THE PAST WEEK

CRUDE OIL THEFT (2)

The conspiracy that robs Nigeria of billions of dollars How barons, military personnel, govt officials, IOC’s bleed the nation The fear over 2013 revenue target

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his is the concluding part of the investigative story on how members of a powerful cabal continue to conspire, robbing in the process, Nigerians of billions of dollars. It is very revealing but also represents a narrative on how mis-governance inspired by greed makes a mockery of the nation.

By EMMA AMAIZE, Regional Editor, South-South,SAM OYADONGHA, Yenagoa & JIMITOTA ONOYUME, Port Harcourt

Production projections

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NPC said after repair works on the Nembe Creek Trunk Line, which has a daily capacity of 150,000 bpd, “daily average crude oil production is expected to increase to 2.50 m/bpd which will exceed the national daily target of 2.48 m/bpd.”

It added, “Our expectation is to increase production from the 2.48 to 2.55 m/bpd (both crude and condensate) for the rest of the year. We have the capacity and potential to maintain production above 2.55 m/bpd in the country.

“All that is required is to continue the fight against pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft to achieve this target.

This will increase our 2013 average production to about 2.34 m/bpd if the current fight against pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft is sustained.”

But who is winning the war?

Tackling pipeline vandalism is really the important aspect, but the truth is that there is nothing on ground now to show that the country is winning the war against oil thieves, especially the cartel. Except for the exploits of soldiers of the Joint Taskforce, JTF, who are doing their best in the difficult terrain, where they battle regularly with armed vandals, the oil pipelines are still at the mercy of thieves and

The cartel in operation their big-time sponsors.

Speaking on whether the nation was winning the battle against oil theft, Kuku, the PAP boss, said though the Federal Government had made tremendous progress, it still needed the cooperation of the international community to win the war.

His words “I want to say that the Federal Government has taken very great steps in dealing with the issues of oil theft. It’s not going to be won in a single day. It is a very specialised

and mechanised crime issue. It’s not a crime committed ordinarily by poor people; it’s a crime committed by an organised people, but it is a matter of demand and supply. It’s an international crime and government is taking steps, like I said, even to the U.K, to South Africa and the U.S., and has urged them to participate in dealing with it as an international crime.” He explained that without

Continued from page 42

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Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

The conspiracy that robs Nigeria of billions of dollars Continued from page 41 international buyers, there would be no local suppliers and this would consequently lead to a decline in oil theft because the business will no longer be lucrative.

Bayelsa as theater of war

In Bayelsa State, which is a theater of war between oil thieves and soldiers, the level of oil theft is alarming and of grave concern to stakeholders – mind you, that is the state of President Goodluck Jonathan and the Petroleum Resources Minister, Deziani AllisonMadueke.

Investigations showed that in spite of the clamp down on illegal refineries in the vast mangrove swamp of the state by special security forces, codenamed Operation Pulo Shield, the perpetrators of the illicit trade are not relenting. The situation on ground in the creeks of the state is very different from the respite many had anticipated when the Federal Government granted amnesty to Niger Delta militants, who were outraged against the Nigerian state over what they described as the glaring marginalisation of the region and environmental injustice.

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t the peak of the campaign that almost crippled crude oil production, the Federal Government was forced to extend olive branch to the creek ‘Generals’ with a view to creating unfettered flow of crude oil.

The creek ‘Generals’ were also awarded juicy surveillance contracts to secure crude oil pipelines. One of the ex-militant leaders, Ebikabowei Victor Ben, alias Boyloaf, said to be in-charge of the Bayelsa axis, could not be reached by Sunday Vanguard for comments on the situation of things in his area.

However, during a trip to Southern Ijaw area, which is the den of oil thieves in Bayelsa, Sunday Vanguard discovered that the JTF had destroyed thousands of illegal refineries and impounded hundreds of vessels and equipment used in siphoning crude from oil facilities that crisscross the region. The Brass-Akassa corridor on the Atlantic fringe of the state is regarded as the black spot for illegal bunkering in the central Delta.

Alarmingly though, the ease with which more camps spring up and the manner oil thieves tap into the pipelines in the deep mangrove swamp to get raw crude for their illicit business, has left many puzzled.

Surprisingly, the natives, who, at a time, were outraged against the oil majors over alleged environmental injustice and neglect, are the ones now decimating their already fragile ecosystem with impunity.

Both the young and old are involved in this business. Without the active connivance of the natives, a source said, the oil barons would not have gotten easy access to the communities.

Sadly, even children have C M Y K

Investigations showed that in spite of the clamp down on illegal refineries in the vast mangrove swamp of the state by special security forces, codenamed Operation Pulo Shield, the perpetrators of the illicit trade are not relenting abandoned school to join their parents in refining stolen crude, oblivious of the danger to their health and future.

A source told Sunday Vanguard that there was an abandoned oil well on the Brass Island on the Atlantic fringe, where barges illegally load crude oil and transfer to a mother vessel waiting on the high sea. Ironically, the very river most of these communities depend on for drinking water is what the illegal refinery operators pollute.

Some of them were seen pumping the excess of their consignment into the river in broad daylight.

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nly about 30 per cent of the refined oil, according to experts, is recovered, while the remaining 70 per cent is discarded into the environment.

“This, to a large extent, is responsible for the repulsive stench on the river and thick smoke in the air reducing visibility in the snaky creek and exposing boat drivers to the danger of collision,” a community leader asserted.

“The fact that electricity supply from the national grid to the communities is not reliable has made diesel and petrol-powered generators the main form of power supply across the Delta.

“It has also made illegal refining a lucrative business for the unemployed youths, who are not aware of the long term effect on the environment and the health of their people”.

TOP: A vandal in his boat. BELOW: The barons’ vesels

Field day in Rivers

In Rivers State, where the leader of the Niger-Delta People Volunteer Force, NDPVF, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, Ateke Tom, Farah Dagogoh and Ebripapa are in charge, oil thieves are also having a field day.

Sunday Vanguard joined the JTF on a ground trotting exercise, weeks ago, on the waterways of the state. The impact of oil spill from oil theft was mind-boggling.

There were traces of crude on the river, in spite of the efforts to fix some of the points ruptured by oil thieves on the Nembe Truck Line, between San Barth Manifold and Krakrama on the waterways. About seven boats conveying soldiers, journalists, Shell staff, surveillance contractors and the technical team went for the verification exercise.

Spokesperson of Shell, Mr. Joseph Obari, explained that his firm had to engage some locals as surveillance contractors to alert on ruptured points on its pipelines. The company would later send its maintenance team to work on the points.

Journalists, soldiers escape death

Just when the team was minutes close to the Krakrama manifold, which was the last point to verify the work done by the maintenance team of Shell, the boat conveying some journalists and soldiers suddenly capsized. They were rescued.

In a chat later, Commanding Officer, 130 Battalion, Lt Col Banshe, told the journalists on the team that security agencies would not relent in their war against illegal bunkering in the state.

He said those into this illicit trade were in the creeks, stressing that security agencies had started smoking them out. He pointed at a flyboat on the jetty in Abonnema seized by his men during a patrol.

The Commanding Officer said the repair works carried out by Shell on the ruptured pipeline would boost their patrol of the waterways.

No retreat, no surrender in Delta

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n Delta State, Sunday Vanguard gathered that OFSL, chaired by Tompolo, gave oil thieves the battle of their lives for the one year the contract to the company to police oil pipelines in the state lasted.

Tompolo is supported by the chair of Delta Waterways Security Committee and Itsekiri youth leader, Chief Ayiri Emami; a former chair of Warri North Local Government Area, Mr. Michael Diden, Chief Dennis Otuaro, and Barrister P.K. Seimode, both members of DWSC; who are all board members of the company.

However, since February 2012 when the contract to the company expired, the NNPC has not renewed it, leaving the monitoring of oil pipelines in the state strictly in the hands of JTF and

Continues on page 53

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 43

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BY OLAYINKA AJAYI

N Delta State, aspirants for 2015 governorship election in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have started laying their ground works. Though not so pronounced, the aspirants are leaving no stone unturned towards ensuring that they clinch the coveted slot. Among them is Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi Olejeme, believed to be a loyalist of the President Goodluck Jonathan’s government on the boards of numerous corporations and establishments, including the board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) as Chairman.

She was the only woman who contested for the party’s ticket against the incumbent, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, during the last governorship primaries in the state and who also lost the contest for the same position in 2007 when she took a shot at it against the duo of former Governor James Ibori and Chief Great Ogboru. Despite her acceptance and popularity that time, the tongue in cheek assertion that the state was not ripe for a female governor was the reason for her failure to break the record.

Interestingly, this time around, in the PDP, those hoping to clinch the governorship ticket for 2015 in that state are many.

Besides Olejeme, others include Chief Clement Ofuani; Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, representing Delta North Senatorial District; Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Victor Ochei; Prof. Sylvester Monye; Sam Obi; and the Minister for Niger Delta Affairs, Godsday Orubebe Though the primordial view culminating in the gender bias that quickly comes when a woman puts herself forward to compete in an election for important political office such as governorship is still rife in Nigeria, political analysts in Delta State are not clearly divided on the chances of Olejeme picking the PDP ticket to contest the governorship election in 2015 with the certainty of sweeping the polls.

But as a staunch boardroom expert with a wealth of experience in social-economic development, Olejeme has a record of success in administrative governance and business management; one from a humble beginning but that has risen to become an outstanding grassroots politician, philanthropist, human rights activist, anticorruption crusader and a nationalist.

The calculations in the political landscape of the state may be changing and the pattern of choosing the candidate for the party’s ticket in the past, usually in favour

2015: The battle for Delta and the female successor question

Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi Olejeme of insiders in government at whatever levels, is no doubt giving way to a fair contest.

Such practice as adopted in 2007, when Ibori was about to wind down, made him to carefully look at the PDP members within government and settled for insiders for the purpose of continuity of programmes and projects. At the back of his mind, he felt Ovie Omo Agege, his former Executive Assistant, or Uduaghan, his former Commissioner for Health, would fit the bill. At the end of the day, about 15 aspirants turned up for the primaries at Ogwashi-Uku. Right now, to avoid any crisis, Uduaghan is said to be consulting widely and refusing to be attached to any aspirant jostling to succeed him. Analysts say this is a plus for Olejeme.

Her strong contact in the Presidency and her tireless work for PDP at the federal level are other things going for her. And if the permutation that the governorship position will be ceded to Delta North holds true, as an influential politician in Anioma, she stands as the most favoured to pick the party’s ticket.

Though some political analysts believe most women vying for governorship may be playing “ notice me” politics to be picked as running mates, Olejeme feels otherwise.

“I believe it is time for us to embrace change. President Ebele Jonathan is transforming Nigeria and i believe we must all cue in. I have a mandate from God, that is my strongest conviction that, when God sends you on an assignment, He backs you up,” she said in response to a question around her work at NSITF recently.

Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa

Hon. Victor Ochei

Chief Clement Ofuani

Prof. Sylvester Monye

Uduaghan has been quoted as telling the Anioma political stakeholders to unite and speak with one voice to be able to realise their dream of occupying the governor’s office in the next dispensation ”The success at NSITF speaks clearly of the limitless possibilities of transforming any system. I am a very passionate person, and, once I set my heart on something and I am convinced I have God’s backing, nothing can stop a moving train.”

The Executive Chairman, Delta State Board of Internal Revenue (DBIR), Mr. JoelOnowakpo Thomas, during his state-wide inspection of the board’s zonal offices and different ongoing projects, said recently that whoever will succeed Uduaghan in 2015 will be stepping into a big shoe and Olejeme is no doubt one individual whose feet fit perfectly into the shoe.

As NSITF Chairman, Olejeme has fared well. She supervised the successful enactment into law of the Employees’ Compensation Act in December 2010, and the setting up of necessary human and physical infrastructure for the implementation of the Act. She is currently in the lead to amend the provisions of NSITF Act to position the fund to commence the implementation of social security benefits for the aged, the unemployed, child care and the physically challenged.

Since her appointment as the Board Chairman of the NSITF, she has led the campaign for the provision of adequate compensation to

workers both in the private and public sector.

Also, she is the convener of the Subsidy Re-investment Empowerment Policy (SUREP) Sub- committee on Public Works and Road Rehabilitation. The policy of the Federal Government is designed to cushion the impact of removal of fuel subsidy and to accelerate economic growth through investment and infrastructure development in the country.

And going by the soft spot that President Goodluck Jonathan has developed for women in politics and his fair allotment of positions to them in government, Olejeme’s chances of becoming the next Delta State governor is a living hope given her performance in the present g o v e r n m e n t .

Certainly there are several factors that will come into play in determining the next governor as events unfolds towards 2015 and one of such is where the interest of the incumbent governor lies H o w e v e r , Uduaghan has been quoted as telling the Anioma political stakeholders to unite and speak with one voice to be able to realise their dream of occupying the governor ’s office in the next d i s p e n s a t i o n .

Elder statesman, Edwin Clark, was also said to have told a Delta North group under the name, Anioma Agenda (AA), that they should seek and fight for their right to produce the next governor of the state. This, to an extent, is an indication that Clark is not averse to fair play that is now in favour of Delta North where Olejeme looms large as an Anioma Continues on page 44

PAGE 44—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Delta: ‘APC is no threat to PDP’

BY FESTUS AHON

happen in 2015. ‘A boaster can do but little’. The only area I think they will manage to win will be those states they won before now and if they are not even careful we will take some of the states from them. They can never penetrate any PDP state.

Olorogun John Oguma is the Chief Executive Officer/Managing Director of Obakpor Engineering Limited and a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Delta State.

Oguma, in this interview, speaks on the 22nd anniversary of the creation of Delta State among other issues.

Excerpts:

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HAT is your comment on the 22nd anniversary of Delta State?

The journey so far has been very smooth. The creation of Delta State on August 27, 1991 has brought tremendous development to the state.

Our leaders, Olorogun Felix Ibru, who laid the foundation, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, our political leader, and Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, the incumbent governor, have all tried in their own ways in developing the state.

How do you rate the civilian governors compared to the military administrators?

I keep saying it that the worst civilian government is far better than the best military government. During the military era, the office of the governor was being run by three persons; the military governor, the chief detail and the driver. They didn’t have special advisers, personal assistants and others. The office that was being run by about 10 persons is run today by many commissioners, special advisers, personal assistants and other aides.

When Chief Ibori came in as governor, he inherited eight ministries; I was in the meeting with the leadership of the PDP at Gordons Hotel, Ibusa when Ibori addressed us that he wanted to create two additional ministries to make it ten then. But today in Delta State we have 28 ministries being headed by commissioners who have SAs and PAs. This shows that a ministry is equivalent to the then Military Government House. What three men were enjoying then is what over four million Deltans are enjoying today.

There was no single infrastructural development during the military; the Ughelli/Asaba road during the military era was one lane but today the over 150-kilometre Ughelli-Asaba road is being dualized by the state government.

The state government has been able to build an international airport at

Olorogun John Oguma Asaba; making air transport easy for the people. Another nine kilometer runway is being constructed at Osubi.

The contract has been awarded and the contractor has been mobilized. There are proposed flyovers at Asaba and Effurun towns. All the money meant for these projects were being spent by one administrator during the military era. So there is no way you can equate military regime to civilian government.

What is your comment on the forthcoming senatorial bye-election in Delta Central, especially now that the PDP is seemingly threatened by the emergence of APC? APC is not a party but an expired drug. APC has been removed from medical terms for a very long time. So anyone associating himself with APC must be an expired politician. When they brought DPP to Delta State with pineapple as its logo, I told them that if you take pineapple in a wrong way, it might lead to diarrhea as such cannot rule the state. They didn’t take me serious but today it has come to pass because Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan is about completing his second term.

When former Vice President Atiku Abubakar registered ACN I laughed because I know that brooms are used in the kitchen and kept after in a hidden corner. So if a mature man after dressing you see him holding a broom, won’t you call him a mad man? So the only reliable party we have in this country is the PDP with the umbrella logo that is big enough to cover everybody. You will see what will

What is your comment on the seeming marginalization of the Urhobo people by the federal and state governments?

It is not true that the Urhobo people are marginalized by the federal and state governments. This is a democratic era; the governor didn’t get to Asaba though the firing of gun shots but through the ballot box and, like every other politician, the party must be taken care of first.

Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan didn’t get to Asaba as an independent candidate but as a candidate of the PDP and the party has a manifesto.

Uduaghan’s actions and

Governor Uduaghan has the entire Delta as his constituency. He is not governor of only Urhobo, Itsekiri, Ijaw, Isoko, Anioma or Ika but governor of Delta State. We have a deputy governor who is also chairman of Delta Tenders Board; all the projects in this state go through the office of the Urhobo son who is the deputy governor. Since the inception of Udughan’s administration, you have an Urhobo man as the commissioner for finance of the state.

Are you therefore saying that the Urhobo are faring well in this present political dispensation?

Of course. We are faring well; the Osubi Airport after its upgrade will be bigger than Asaba and the contractor as I told you has been fully mobilized.

Just wait and see what will happen as from October in that airport.

APC is not a party but an expired drug. APC has been removed from medical terms for a very long time. So anyone associating himself with APC must be an expired politician

For the first time in the political history of this country the Urhobo man is absent in the Federal Executive Council. What is your reaction to this?

During the last elections, did the DPP members vote for Jonathan? No! They didn’t because they alleged that they didn’t have a candidate. So it was left for only PDP members to vote. Do you call that one support for President Jonathan? It all started when someone came from Urhobo that to say Ibori and Governor Uduaghan were not good and many persons in Urhobo followed him and at the end he went to Jonathan that he has returned Uduaghan as Delta governor. This person I am telling you now, his own son lost election in Delta south. Who then in Delta central went to Mr. President to say that we have returned PDP?

developmental strides are in line with the party’s manifesto. The entire Delta State is the governor ’s constituency and not Urhobo alone, there must not be sentiment.

We are cr ying wolf over marginalization. Is Uvwie not part of Urhobo? Ovwor, Otu-Jeremi, Sapele, Kokori, Ughelli, are they not part of Urhobo? The dualization of Ughelli township road and other numerous link roads to the East/West Road and street lights, are they not in Ughelli an Urhobo town?

Our cry over marginalization is not also correct to the extent that of the about 28 ministries in the state, the Urhobos are occupying about 10. We Urhobos should not forget the fact that

Some persons see the forthcoming senatorial bye-election as a means to correct the wrongs; what will be your charge to the electorate and aspirants ahead of the election?

The bye-election should be seen as an acid test for the PDP in Delta central because if we make the mistake again, that will be the end. It will affect us at the state and federal levels. The bye-election is going to be the first election the APC will contest and as such the shakers and movers of the APC across the country will relocate to Delta central. Failure of the PDP is not a thing the Urhobo should allow to happen. We cannot afford to be in opposition; that has been my stand and I will continue to support the PDP.

The battle for Delta and the female successor question Continued from page 43 heavyweight.

Should everything go in favour of the NISTF boss come 2015, the point would be proven that Nigeria is not merely paying lip service that women also deserve the mandate to lead at high and very responsible capacity.

SENATOR IFEANYI OKOWA The medical doctor turned politician and now senator representing Delta North Denatorial District is probably the biggest contender for the position from the district. Okowa was a local government chairman (1992), Commissioner at various times in the Ibori administration and was Secretary to the State Government in Uduaghan’s administration. In 2010; he resigned his appointment to contest for the senatorial election.

Ekweme, as he is popularly called, he is known to have a strong and formidable support in Delta North. A well known grassroots politician, Okowa contested the 2007 PDP

Godsday Orubebe primaries only to come second to Uduaghan.

He is also reported to have a hug appeal in the other two senatorial districts. He has a formidable financial chest.

PROF. SYLVESTER MONYE An intellectual and member of

President Jonathan’s kitchen cabinet, Prof. Monye is believed to be more of a technocrat than a politician. Monye was appointed Special Adviser to the President on Performance, Monitoring and Evaluation of Ministries, Departments and Agencies, a job he got on the merit of his critical stance on the way government is run. He was educated at the University of London and Strathclyde in Glasgow, where he obtained M.B.A. in management science and marketing management.

After a teaching career where he rose through the ranks abroad, he was, in 1999, appointed a professor of international business at the University of Applied Science, Bremen, Germany.

In 2000, he returned to Nigeria and served in various capacities in the public service and, in 2006, was appointed secretary to the National Planning Commission.

CLEMENT OFUANI An accomplished accountant, Ofuani was a former Economic Adviser to the Governor of Delta State, a former

Commissioner for Economic Planning and former Senior Special Assistant to the President (Yar ’Adua). Ofuani may not have contested for any elective office and may not have been tested on the political landscape of Delta, he sounds confident that he will make an impact in the Delta 2015 race. Ofuani studied at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu and the University of Lagos, Akoka.

GODSWILL OBIELUM An ex-police officer, Obielum gained limelight when he was stationed in Rivers State as the commandant of an anti-crime squad. He later rose to become the Commissioner of Police in the state, a period when he became very close to then Rivers Gov. Peter Odili. Obielum gained massive political relevance when he returned to contest the 2007 PDP governorship primaries in Delta State. In 2011, he made the Delta State list for federal appointment.

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 45

ALLEGED FRAUDULENT PRACTICES

House Committee on Finance fingers 21 banks *CEOs to appear before Reps investigative panel on Sept 23

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BY EMMA OVUAKPORIE

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Some reprobate banks are involved in the criminal act of converting the huge funds in dormant accounts into profits, even with known and accessible next of kin

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Dr Abdulmunin Jibrin....Generally, returns made so far by the banks are incomplete. money banks. As a fallout of two separate meetings with Chief Executives of the banks, three different templates were distributed to all deposit money banks in the country to complete and submit to the Committee. ”In the last few months, the Committee has analysed volumes of documents submitted by the banks and is pleased to announce that it

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OME three years ago, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, headed then by Mrs Farida Waziri, became the second home of bank chief executives. A similar scenario may soon unfold if the House Committee on Finance of the House of Representatives findings on how banks allegedly defraud the Federal Government through falsification of tax papers, improper tax remittances and, in some cases, outright nonpayment of taxes is anything to go by.

Between 2009 and 2011, some banks’ bosses allegedly got their fingers soiled through unwholesome banking practices and insider- trading that made some of them go to jail.

The stock market crashed with over N1trillion unaccounted for.

Waziri then made some powerful bank CEOs to lose their posh cars, mansions across the globe, shares and private jets.

This led to the acquisition of some banks and, in some cases, outright sale of others deeply involved in unwholesome and voodoo banking practices.

Last Monday, the House Committee Chairman on Finance, Dr Abdulmunin Jibrin, opened a can of worms in a press release entitled: ‘How banks defraud and short change Nigeria’.

Jibrin, whose entire academic background is on accounting, emptied banks and left a big gash in their bowels in the release.

This is an indication that the investigative hearing scheduled for next month would be earth-shaking.

In the release, Jibrin noted that in “pursuant to the statutory mandate of the House Committee on Finance and its oversight functions over the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and tax matters, the Committee on Finance has been investigating tax remittances, tax assessments and payments by Banks”.

Giving an insight into the investigation, the lawmaker went on:”Since the inception of the 7th assembly, the Committee on Finance has been inundated with reports on cases of tax evasion and sharp practices in tax remittances by banks. ”Consequently the Committee decided to bring the banks under close legislative scrutiny. ”To this end, the Committee has commenced a series of engagements with the deposit

The data submitted to the CBN in their monthly returns on the same issues were found to be different from what was tendered before the Committee. Even more embarrassing are the inconsistencies and huge variances in some data provided in different pages of documents submitted

has enjoyed tremendous capacity support from the DFID, NABRO and reputable professionals in the industry in conducting its revenue generation and remittances investigations”.

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the published audited accounts of some banks showed huge variance with the figures submitted to the Committee. ”The data submitted to the CBN in their monthly returns on the same issues were found to be different from what was tendered before the Committee. Even more embarrassing are the inconsistencies and huge

ccording to him,, “preliminary findings show a poor quality of returns by the banks, discrepancies in data submitted, outright refusal to present documentary evidence, blanket violations of existing laws, self exemption from existing rules, false declaration, manipulation and distortion of information among others.

These despicable acts of gross misconduct clearly depict the unscrupulous and roguish character of some banks and their Chief Executive Officers.

For the Committee on Finance, this is unacceptable”!

For instance, Jibrin stated,balances reported in

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variances in some data provided in different pages of documents submitted, thus leaving the committee to conclude that many Banks blatantly engage in the creative accounting technique of inflating their operating costs to reduce their exposure to taxes”, the Committee Chairman said.

Jibrin explainedthat some banks had also created exemption rules for themselves in total disregard for the provisions of extant tax laws, particularly violations of the stamp duty, withholding tax and VAT acts. “Some Chief Executives deliberately refused to sign the templates, obviously evading presentation of the document under oath in line with legislative procedure”, he said. ”Similarly, key information and data were omitted. Such data include details of staff PAYE and utilities with tax

implications. There are also many cases of late remittances or outright failure to remit money collected on behalf of government.

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enerally, returns made so far by the banks are incomplete as the order of presentation was contrary to the guidelines provided in the template. Clearly, this is aimed at misleading the Committee. Documentary evidence requested was also provided in a haphazard manner. Out of the 21 banks under scrutiny, only six have so far completed and supplied all the information requested for in the proper format, albeit with certain queries to answer.

“The banks are, CitiBank, Stanbic IBTC, Standard Chartered Bank, GT Bank, Access Bank and Zenith Bank.

“The others, besides poor and incomplete documentation, have questions to answer.

“They include First Bank, Union Bank, United Bank for Africa, Diamond Bank, Unity Bank, Mainstreet Bank, Sterling Bank, Heritage Bank, EcoBank, FCMB, Wema Bank, Skye Bank, Enterprise Bank and Keystone Bank. ”All templates that are not signed by the CEO and CFO of the various banks are of no consequence and will not be treated by the Committee.

Chief Executives of such banks must sign the templates and complete their outstanding checklists within 48 hours to set the stage for the last round of engagement between the Committee and the banks. ”Between the 23rd and 27th of September, the Chief Executive Officers of the banks must appear in person to defend their templates in a technical session before the Committee. This exercise is being conducted in the most transparent manner as all

such appearances will be broadcast live on television for Nigerians to see very clearly what the Committee is doing.

“It is obvious that over the years, government has lost billions of Naira in fraudulent and underhand dealings corruptly designed by some banks to evade tax. This is in addition to being massively and callously shortchanged by banks saddled with the responsibility of collecting and remitting taxes. At this point, it is pertinent to note that since government continues the yearly ritual of domestic borrowing to balance its budget deficit, it has become a bazaar for many banks who provide such funds at outrageous interest rates and care less about the implication to the private and real sectors, both of which continue to struggle to get the crumbs at a very high cost.

“Domestic borrowing by government has denied the private sector access to affordable funds to grow their businesses and in the process generate employment and create wealth. ”Yet again, some reprobate banks are involved in the criminal act of converting the huge funds in dormant accounts into profits, even with known and accessible next of kin. Why should they not pay their taxes in full and remit in full and promptly what they collect on behalf of government?

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he Committee on Finance expects maximum cooperation from the banks in respect of this investigation. Anything short of this, the Committee will not hesitate to bring to bear the full weight of the law on such banks. Government taxes all over the world are sacred and our tax revenues must be so treated through complete and timely remittances. Nigerians must know how well banks are playing their role as tax collectors and how well they are discharging their responsibilities as tax payers. ”With the revenue challenges the country is currently facing, it is imperative to look everywhere to plug all leakages in accruable government revenue. The banking sector is one among other sectors that the Committee on Finance will be engaging. By all means at the end of this exercise, the Committee will look at the various extant tax laws, introduce new clauses or make amendments where necessary in order to strengthen our tax system and block areas of leakage”.

Between September 23 and 27, the bank CEOs may turn the National Assembly into a second home far away from their original homes.

PAGE 46—SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Threat of military strike on Syria sends ripples through global oil market

BY TONY NWANKWO with reports culled fron CNN

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Oil platform of $100. This fills the coffers of the six Gulf states, who in a post-Arab Spring- environment are spending record amounts to fund economic development, create jobs and buy internal peace.

If crude gyrates higher — as it did in 2008, when it surged past $145 a barrel — future demand could plummet and so too could oil prices. This is what happened in the second half of that year, when prices fell to below $40.

Oman’s long-serving central bank chief, Hamood Sangour Al Zadjali, said attempts are being made behind the scenes to return calm to the region.

But when asked if there could be a further push on the upside for crude as a result of what is transpiring regionally, he said: “That could be true, and that would be beneficial for us because we still depend largely on oil prices for our budget revenues.”

However, Oman sits near the

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HE oil market is caught in a pricing tug of war. It is clear emerging markets are beginning a slowdown which will likely cut demand for crude oil over the next year. The panic selling in equity markets from Indonesia to India, Dubai to Sao Paolo is a leading indicator of what may be ahead in 2014.

But at this juncture, the likelihood of military intervention in Syria, daily bombings and killings in Iraq, and uncertainty about the flow of crude through Egypt’s Suez Canal are far outweighing concerns about the developing world’s waning thirst for energy.

Energy traders acknowledge the return of the so-called Middle East risk premium — calculated to be $10 to $15 dollars a barrel. It is based on whether supplies might indeed be interrupted or, in the case of Iraq after four months of intense bombings, production has fallen below market expectations.

For a record three years running, North Sea Brent crude has averaged more than $100 barrel. As a result, the dozen members of OPEC, dominated by the major producers of the Gulf, earned one and a quarter trillion dollars in 2012. This was, in part, because of the cloud of uncertainty that hovers over the region.

It is a difficult balancing act.

An escalation of violence triggered by military attacks on Syria is pushing crude well above what oil kingpin Saudi Arabia believes is a fair price

While regional oil producers may be swimming in additional funds, the higher prices will hit the economies which are running current account deficits

revenues. The near $25 premium over Oman’s projections will wipe out a planned budget deficit, officials said.

While regional oil producers may be swimming in additional funds, the higher prices will hit the economies which are running current account deficits and are subject to the capital flight we see currently.

Indonesia, India, Turkey top the list of the most vulnerable.

With their currencies under severe pressure, there is the added danger of skyrocketing inflation due to higher imported energy costs.

It may all sound a bit alarmist at this stage, with the mad dash of money out of emerging markets, but strategists suggest this is not the 1997—1998 Asian financial crisis all over again.

Two years ago, countries such as Brazil complained their currencies were overvalued and that in turn was undermining export growth. Now we are in

midst of the pendulum, and perhaps overshooting in the other direction.

That may be today’s narrative in a climate of so much uncertainty, but policymakers and energy planners in the region say it is way too early to call an end to the long term trend of rising emerging market demand.

Oman’s central banker is one of those. “We think the growth momentum will continue in these countries and there will be demand for Omani oil,” Al Zadjali said.

The country is banking on it, with BP and the government putting up to $20 billion into a new natural gas field. More tenders for additional exploration are in the pipeline, officials stated.

Oman, perched on the edge of the Arabian Sea, sees itself outside the region’s real danger zones, Syria, Iraq and Egypt.

But it is too early to suggest in this geo-political climate whether that will remain the case.

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mouth of world’s busiest oil shipping lane, the Strait of Hormuz. It is now producing about 935,000 barrels a day, according to energy officials.

The Sultanate’s 2013 budget was built on oil projections of $85 a barrel, with energy making up 80% of total

From left: Managing Director, Consolidated Breweries Plc, Mr. Boudewijn Haarsma, Directors - Chief Samuel Bolarinde and Mr. Sijbe Hiemstra, during the company’s Extra Ordinary General Meeting, at Lagoon Restaurant, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The dividends of the N36billion Niger bond

BY WOLE MOSADOMI

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EVERAL years back, Minna, Niger State capital, used to be one of the cheapest state capitals in the country where housing, food and other amenities were at affordable prices.

Besides, infrastructural facilities such as roads among others were in good shape and enjoyed by all without much stress.

However, with the pronouncement of Abuja as the new federal capital, things started to change as Minna, Suleja and other towns close to the new federal capital came under pressure.

Out of the states from which the new federal capital was carved out, Niger is the closet to Abuja and this proximity affected social amenities provided as they are overstretched.

Many civil servants and even contractors prefer to settle in Suleja, Zuba and even Minna and transact their businesses in the new federal capital.

Successive administrations in the state made presentations on

the need for the Federal Government to come to their aid in terms of finance.

When the administration of Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu took office in 2007, one of the coordinal points of the administration was how to reverse the decaying infrastructural facilities.

Knowing that the federal allocation accruing to the state could not meet up the set goals of his administration, the Aliyu administration opted for bond.

Opposition against the bond mounted but the Aliyu administration was not deterred.

Many financial experts including a former Director General of the Security and Exchange Commission, Alhaji Sulaiman Ndanusa, who is also from Niger, backed the bond as long as the money would be judiciously spent.

The state government eventually took the initial N6billion bond part of which was spent on roads spread over the three senatorial districts of the state. The bond was not spent on electrification of some villages in order to boost small scale

Governor Babangida Aliyu industries at the grassroots.

The roads on which the bond was expended include the new Bussa-Lunma-Babana Road which had been abandoned for almost three decades for N1.5billion.

Others roads rehabilitated were Batati-Dabban Road, Mokwa-Rabba Road, the first phase of Minna Lapai-Gwari road as well as the road leading to Gurara water falls.

By August 2011, 80% of the N6b bond had been repaid while the

balance was also offset early this year.

As a result of the prudent management of the N6b bond, another N30b was applied for last October out of which N9billion has been drawn. This loan is tied to projects which include the Shiroro-Erena bridge. The construction of this bridge put an end to the risk being experienced by people of the area who were forced to cross the river by ferry which often resulted to capsizing and loss of lives and property.

Other roads embarked upon from the new bond is the completion of the Birgi- Gwari Lapai road to the permanent site of the Federal University of Technology Minna.

A breakdown of the projects being executed shows that the eastern by-pass in Minna will cost N2.5b, the Lapai-GwariFUT permanent site road, N924.8m, rehabilitation/ construction of KwakutiKaffinkoro-Gwada road, N2.2b, Rijau-Dukku road, N2.6b, construction of bridge across the River Kaduna at Shiroro, N1.4b and the dualization of the Idi

burial ground-Ahmadu Bahago roundabout at N1.4b.

In all, about 130kilometers of road projects are to be constructed besides the bridge which is expected to link the northern and southern parts of the state.

The state Commissioner for Information, Communications and Integration, Professor Mohammed Kuta Yahaya, who led a team of journalists to inspect some of these projects, said it was an opportunity to correct the negative impression that the bonds were not judiciously utilised. It was also an opportunity to assess the ongoing projects and also see the competence of the contractors handling them.

The commissioner explained that the 66.8km KwakutiKaffinkro-Gwada road is not a Federal Government project.

Meanwhile, because of poor quality jobs by contractors, the state government has revoked the contracts for the construction of about 90 kilometers of roads across the state.

Kuta said the contracts will be re-awarded to competent contractors.

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 47

BY UDEME CLEMENT

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HY do you want President Jonathan to scrap the Aviation Ministry?

There is no Ministry of Aviation any where in the world where the citizens work honestly to develop their economies. It is only in Nigeria that we have Aviation Ministry. Our own ministry has become so ineffective and must be scrapped to ensure sanity in the industry. NCAA must be granted fully autonomy to run the industry like what obtains in developed countries. For example, the President granted waivers on importation of aircraft and spare parts to enhance growth in the sector but some people in the ministry are trying to hinder the process of free importation of aircraft to exploit the airline operators. They would tell you to go the ministry and obtain a written note from someone on a policy that Mr. President has already made a pronouncement.

Jonathan has done his part, but some people in government are creating problems for him.

Most airline operators are already expressing discontent about the airports projects even when President Jonathan has commissioned those projects. Does it mean he is not aware that the work done is not up to 50 per cent?

The truth is that Jonathan has good intention but implementation by people working with him, especially the contractors, is very poor. It is quite obvious that some people in government are creating problems for the President by not doing a good job. He must have been deceived to commission the airports when the projects are not completed. Those people know exactly what they are doing, because they allowed the President to commission the airports when the work done is not up to 50 per cent.

Why did the President not carry out a thorough

Alhaji Mohammed Tukur assessment of the projects before commissioning?

Looking at the way the whole exercise took place.

Jonathan was deceived by the people who knew that the projects were not fully executed. For instance, because of the insecurity in the country, he could not thoroughly inspect the projects by himself. So, he just saw part of the airports and commissioned with the hope that the work was fully done. If we want to do the right thing, the contractors must be called back to do the work well for sustainability.

Can you list specific airports where the projects are not fully executed?

Kaduna airport is number one. The quality of work there is nothing to reckon with.

The terminal building is not completed

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The renovation/ remodelling projects embarked upon by the Aviation Ministry across major airports in the country has sparked controversy.

While some stakeholders say there is scam in the scheme, others express disappointment on why airports are commissioned when the work done is said to be not up to 50 per cent.

The Deputy Secretary General, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Alhaji Mohammed Tukur, in this interview, urges President Goodluck Jonathan to scrap the Aviation Ministry and grant Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) full autonomy to run the sector. He also calls on the National Assembly to probe airport projects across the country.

The Senate must take the step to probe the airport projects across the country

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and they left it half way.

What is even surprising is the fact that the Vice President is not saying anything about the poor quality of work in the airport. Kano airport is worse than Kaduna because, as I speak, there is no counter for people to use. After launching, it was locked up and now rain has removed the roof. You can see the shameful situation we are in this country. Work in Enugu airport has not finished till now.

Are you saying the renovation of airports across the country is not a good initiative?

No, that is not what I am saying. The renovation of airports is a good initiative but the work is not properly done. The poor quality of work done is the reason the whole thing is becoming an issue. The contractors must be called to order.

What is the way forward?

The Senate must take the step to probe the airport projects across the country.

Their oversight function should include checking the projects done and the amount given to ascertain if the projects are commensurate with the billions of Naira released so far. The Senate must also investigate how much

money was collected for a particular airport and the level of work done, because so much has been given for the projects and yet an airport is already leaking after rains.

Are you sure the minister is aware of the poor quality of work done at these airports?

If the Minister is not aware, then let her set up another committee to inspect the projects and monitor the activities of the contractors in charged, instead of saying that people don’t like her. What legacy will she leave behind with these projects? For instance, the glasses used at airports are not of good quality and that is why you have to close your ears due to the sound. The Minister must prepare her records to reconcile with the money collected and what she has done. The poor quality of work is a national disgrace for Nigeria and a slap on our faces.

Many people in the industry are complaining about the quality of work done at the airports. Why is the Managing Director of Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) not talking?

Well, the Managing Director of FAAN has a good team but he cannot come out openly and talk.

May be some people are preventing him from saying the right thing.

What are other challenges facing the industry at present?

Another challenge now is the new policy introduced by the Minister, which contradicts the Civil Aviation Act of 2006. The existing Act complies with the aviation regulation globally and if we throw it away and accept the new policy, Nigeria may lose the Category One certification.

It took NCAA time and efforts to achieve the Category One and we may end up losing it just like that.

The new policy was written by the current Minister with some people.

They just wrote something and took it to government for approval without passing through the National Assembly. Such policy is not recognised because it was signed when there was no Director General of NCAA. The former Director General left office and handed over to a senior Director in the organisation. So, the paper signed is invalid, because there was no Director General and due process was not followed.

This new policy may pose a serious challenge for the new Director General of NCAA, because even the Category One given to Nigeria still has some outstanding issues to tackle, in order to achieve 100 per cent certification.

Another challenge is the fact that we have not finished the remodelling projects but the airports have been launched already.

BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE

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HEN Governor G o d s w i l l A k p a b i o appointed Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel as the Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government (SSG), late July, the move raised dusts for many reasons. Emmanuel, who hails from Onna Local Council in Eket Senatorial District, was to take over from Umana Okon Umana, who wielded enormous influence in the Akpabio administration and politics of the state for the six years he held the SSG post.

As scribe to the Akwa Ibom government, Umana was one of the major figures that shaped what has been dubbed by Akpabio’s associates as the u n c o m m o n transformation of the state.

In fact, in a statement by the Commissioner for Information, Mr. Aniekan Umanah, which announced Emmanuel’s appointment on July 30, the governor described

Nigerian Inter-bank Settlement Systems (NIBBS) from 2009; NonExecutive Director, Zenith Bank, United Kingdom; Zenith Bank- Gambia; Zenith Bank-Sierra Leone; Zenith Insurance; Zenith Pensions and Custodian; Zenith Securities; Zenith Trustees and Zenith Registrars.

The statement said Emmanuel is a corporate strategist and an experienced private sector player, adding that he has wide experience in various blue-chip organizations such as Price Water House and Diamond Bank Plc. Shortly before Umana was eased out of the position, Akpabio was said to have met with stakeholders from Eket Senatorial district and introduced Emmanuel to them as the new SSG. The governor was said to have informed the caucus that the new SSG had the capacity to drive the programme of his administration especially the Ibaka Deep Sea port project.

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‘There is no Aviation Ministry anywhere in the world except Nigeria’

Akwa Ibom: Emmanuel treads on familiar turf

From his deep knowledge of the financial terrain and wider connections in the financial world, the new SSG is considered to be placed in a good position to harness resources where needed to build vital state infrastructure

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Umana as a brother and a friend who displayed exceptional competence in the discharge of his duties in the last six years, c o m m e n d e d his dedication and contributions to the “ u n c o m m o n transformation of the state” and wished him success in his future endeavours.

Given this testimony from the lips of Akpabio himself, a series of questions immediately trailed the choice of Emmanuel. The questions include: Can he adequately continue from where Umana stopped?

Won’t his appointment hamper ongoing transformation of the state?

Does he have the wherewithal in terms of knowledge, experience, network of contacts and capacity to run the affairs of the state government?

The governor supplied answers to some of these questions in the same statement relieving Umana of his job.

Describing Emmanuel as a great Ibibio son, who, until the appointment, was Executive Director on the Board of Zenith Bank Plc from December 2006, the release further states that the new SSG doubled as Non-Executive Director, Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) from 2008 to date and Director,

Indeed, Emmanuel, a t h o r o u g h - b r e d professional, is not a greenhorn in administration and management.

Educated at the University of Lagos where he graduated in 1988 with a 2nd Class Upper Degree in Accounting and at the Leeds Metropolitan University where he graduated with M.Sc Corporate Governance, he is well-regarded within the financial services industry as a leading authority in

Mr Udom Gabriel Emmanuel corporate governance and related issues.

A Fellow of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA), Fellow of Institute of Financial Management as well as Associate of Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (ACIT), as Executive Director, Emmanuel had direct supervision for Zenith Bank’s corporate strategy and planning, corporate financial advisory services and control, business d e v e l o p m e n t , international investors’ relations, oil and gas sector, infrastructure and power sector, multilateral, conglomerates and private banking (MCP) as well as telecommunications sector and brought his expertise as a corporate governance specialist to bear on his assignment.

Observers say his appointment as SSG demonstrates Akpabio’s quest for prudence and accountability in the management of the resources of Akwa Ibom for the common good because Emmanuel has immense exposure, is widely traveled with knowledge and experience across markets and cultures.

From his deep knowledge of the financial terrain and wider connections in the financial world, the new SSG is considered to be placed in a good position to harness resources where needed to build vital state infrastructure, which in turn will boost the u n c o m m o n transformation agenda of Akpabio.

It is to be seen whether or not Emmanuel will live up to these expectations.

Delta DPP denies dissolving party’s executive

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HE Democratic Peoples Party,DPP, Okpe chapter, Delta State at the weekend debunked a publication alleging that the Okpe DPP executives have been dissolved and a caretaker committee set up, describing the publication as unfounded and should be disregarded.

In a statement signed by the Secretary, Mr. Oniyama Monday and the Assistant State Youth Leader, Mr. Alagbasha Robert, said it was not their intention to react to this baseless and unfounded publication but decided to do so because of the negative effect the report will have on the teeming

supporters of the party.

The statement explained that the it was clear that the authors of the purported report are not in touch with the present realities in politics that was why they could wake up from their bed and dissolve a registered political party.

It reiterated that the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC recently clarified to the public that there is neither crack nor faction in DPP, as the national chairman of the party warned that those illegally parading themselves as leaders should desist from it or face the full weight of the law.

PAGE 48—SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013 sameyoboka@yahoo.com

08023145567 (sms only)

New Methodist Church prelate emerges today

By SAM EYOBOKA & OLAYINKA LATONA

*THE FRONTLINERS

NTENSE intercessory prayers, horse trading and highwire politicking which began some weeks ago will today dovetail into the election of a new prelate who will pilot the affairs of the Methodist Church Nigeria for the next five years.

The polls will take place at the Williams Memorial Methodist Cathedral, Ebute-Metta, Lagos Central Diocese of the church with the outgoing prelate, Most Rev. Sunday Olatunji Amos Makinde who was inaugurated on November 12, 2006 at Trinity Methodist Church, Tinubu, Lagos, presiding.

Sources close to the church told our reporter yesterday that there will be two services today; the first one starting at about 8.00 a.m. and the second which is the main event of the day, when the election is expected to hold, will be an exclusive affair with only invited guests in attendance.

The morning service which

*Stephen

*Agwu

*Uche

may drag till around midday will be headlined by the ordination of some persons as priests. Our source said 145 persons would be elected priests while eight members of the church will be elevated to the rank of deaconnesses. That service will be followed by a series of very crucial meetings before the conclave, otherwise known as the Electoral College, when all non-members are expected to vacate the au-

ditorium.

Unlike the Catholic Church Conclave, there will not be smokes---black or white---to indicate successful election but none of the members of the Electoral College would leave the venue until a new prelate who will take the church to a new height emerges.

Feelers reaching our desk during the week suggest that a number of persons are gunning for the coveted post of

prelate but the three front-liners who are above the age of 60 with intimidating credentials remain the candidates to beat.

They include the Archbishop of Umuahia, Most Rev. Sunday Ikechukwu Agwu. Born on December 1, 1952, he joined the church in 1974 and was commissioned in 1982.

The second is the Archbishop of Ibadan, Most Rev. Michael Kehinde Stephen who was born on April 8, 1949. He joined the church in 1971 and was commissioned in 1974.

Our source says that Stephen served as Conference Secretary for about 10 years under the Prelate Emeritus Sunday Mbang.

The third front runner is the Archbishop of Enugu, Most Rev. Samuel C.K. Uche. Born on January 29, 1953, he joined the mission in 1976 and was commissioned in 1979.

Whoever emerges prelate at the 44th special conference of the church later this evening shall be installed on October 10 as the ecclesiastical, priestly, pastoral head of the church. He shall exercise pastoral and spiritual oversight over the whole church and to this end, he is expected to visit archdioceses and dioceses and such circuit in each diocese as time and opportunity allow.

Whoever emerges today will determine the choice of the next Secretary to the Conference in accordance with an unwritten zoning formula which says that the two most coveted positions in the church should be rotated between the South West and the South East where the church has firm root.

I

Cleric tasks leaders on materialism

By OLAYINKA LATONA

S

ENIOR Overseer of Power Church of Christ and Church Reforms Ministries, Apostle Felix Anaele has called on Nigerian Christian leaders to shun materialism, preach the true word of God and embrace righteousness so as to attract God’s favour.

Speaking in an interview on the state of the Nigerian Church, the man of God urged ministers to always do the will of God and shun inordinate material acquisition, noting that religious leaders are called to bless the nation and not to plunder the flock.

Continuing, he challenged gospel ministers to embrace the old-time religion that deemphasised materialism.

According to Anaele, many ministers establish churches out of greed and covetousness, stressing that where there is greed the love of God will not exist. The cleric therefore advised ministers to be selfdisciplined. This, according to him, will help them in their ministerial work, stating that

his ministry was concerned with how to keep aflame the faith of our fathers.

He said: “I am afraid for the men of God who use their positions to amass wealth at the expense of God’s people. If this continues, God will not be happy with the household of faith because the Church is expected to stand for mercy and preach the unadulterated Word of God. “It is a pity that most churches are now after worldly things and it pricks God’s heart as ministers teach heresies and it is not supposed to be so. I am pleading that Church leaders should obey God’s word in totality so that it will be well with us in the Christian body”.

The cleric denounced the practice of putting pressure on members to donate at all costs, warning such practices only promote graft and corruption.

“Christianity and the Church shouldn’t be a money-making venture. We are to save souls and be compassionate like the life of our Lord Jesus depicts,” he pleaded.

Solemn assembly at Church of Latter Day Saints

I

T was a solemn assem bly last Sunday as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Afijalo, Oshodi in Lagos celebrated its 9th annual stake conference with very loud emphasis on evangelism and mission work.

The church founded by Joseph Smith in Utah, US prides itself to be a restoration of the church founded by Jesus Christ with 75,000 missionaries worldwide.

Brother Morukayo Ezekiel and another young lady, Sister Blessing Umoh who spoke on missions and salvation, outlined six pathways to salvation, to include prayers, songs (hymns), look up to the Temple (regular Temple worship), Daily srcipture study, sacrament attendance and seeking the counsel of the prophet.

He stressed the need for mission work particularly among the youth of the church, arguing that there is special reward for missionaries even when Continued on Page 46

Journalists are nationbuilders –--Cleric

BY ONOZURE DANIA

S

ENIOR Pastor of Grace Assembly, Femi Paul, has urged journalists to build bridges across all facets of national life through their writings.

Pastor Paul gave the advice when he hosted Ikeja chapter of National Association of Judiciary Correspondents (NAJUC) to a luncheon at the church, in Oregun, Ikeja.

The lawyer-pastor urged the journalists to use the power of the pen to re-construct Nigeria to become a great nation.

According to him, journalists should should endeavour to build not burn bridges, adding "I believe so strongly that journalism is a tool that could be used powerfully to transform a nation”.

He likened journalists to be scribes in the Bible who were often considered to be wisemen by reason of their learning, adding that the Bible was written by scribes and scribes generally are responsible for the version of truth that people meditate on for generations.

Pastor Paul chided the Federal Government for not maximizing the resources of the land for the good of the citizens, especially its workforce. While highlighting some projects embarked upon by his church as part of its corporate social responsibility, the cleric said the Grace Assembly will continue to be a pacesetter in giving succour to the needy and defenceless in the society.

Reacting to questions, he said: “We must put behind us the days of bitterness and seek to forge a better future by what we write for national transformation," adding “naturally, you will write about Church and religion, but it is important to remember the fact that just because some people are not doing the right thing does not mean everybody is doing the wrong thing. I implore you to balance your reports so that you don’t use your powerful position to cause disaffection across the nation.”

*BOOK LAUNCH

A

BOOK titled Forward Only written by the General Overseer of Bible Life Church, Bishop Leonard Umunna to mark his 50th anniversary on the pulpit, will be launched today at the church auditorium, 7, Fasasi Street, Ajegunle, Lagos at 10.00 a.m.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 49

N

O other person in the bible writes like Paul. Far more than everybody else, Paul talks about himself. He is always drawing attention to himself. His epistles are littered with “I,” “me,” “my” and “mine.”

In Romans, Paul refers to himself 103 times. In I Corinthians, he refers to himself 175 times. In II Corinthians, he refers to himself 103 times. In Galatians, which is one of his shorter books, he refers to himself 69 times! Clearly, Paul is just as concerned about telling us about himself as he is about telling us about God. Jesus says: “If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.”

(John 5:31). Virtually all of Paul’s credentials are his witness of himself.

This is a tell-tale sign that his word is not the word of God. If God wants to talk about Paul, he would get others to do so.

All about Paul With Paul, the gospel is not just the gospel: it is Paul’s gospel. (Romans 2:16). God is not our God: he is Paul’s God. (Philippians 4:19).

We are not just God’s beloved, we are Paul’s beloved. (I Corinthians 10:14). We are not just God’s children: we are Paul’s children. (Galatians 4:19). It is not just about Christ’s sufferings: it is about Paul’s sufferings. (Colossians 1:24). It is not just about Christ’s doctrine: it is about Paul’s doctrine. (II Timothy 3:10). Here is a man so totally consumed with himself that he even blatantly appropri-

THE WORD OF PAUL IS NOT THE WORD OF GOD (2) ates the things of God. The words of such a man must not be confused with the word of God. Paul says: “Those in Asia have turned away from me.” (II Timothy 1:15). But the question is: have they turned away from the Lord? Paul also says: “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:9).

This can never be the word of God because Jesus, and not Paul, is God’s standard.

It is ridiculous to insist, as some Christians do, that Paul’s word is the word of God when Paul himself contradicts this.

Paul says to the Corinthians: “I speak not by commandment...and herein I give my advice.”

(II Corinthians 8:8-10).

Paul's "advice" may or may not be sound, but it certainly is Paul’s and not God’s. Indeed, Paul sometimes makes a distinction between the Lord’s commands and his own commands. He says: “Unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord..., but the rest is from me, not from the Lord.” (I Corinthians 7: 10-12). Therefore, Paul’s commands are not commandments of God. If Paul’s word is the word of God, it would not be necessary for Paul

It is ridiculous to insist, as some Christians do, that Paul’s word is the word of God when Paul himself contradicts this himself to flag us when he claims to be speaking the word of God. For example, Paul says: “We can tell you this from the Lord’s own teaching...”

(I Thessalonians 4:15).

This is not the Lord speaking but somebody speaking about the Lord.

If Paul’s word is the word of God, it would be totally ludicrous for him to say: “The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.” (II Corinthians 11:31). This is the statement of a man given to speaking his own words, whose words have been questioned.

Self-opinionated Paul Who is speaking here: “I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes.” (I Timothy 2:9). Is it Paul or is it God? There really should be no argument about this because Paul himself admits it is his word. This would ex-

plain why Christian women ignore it and continue to braid their hair, and wear jewelry and expensive clothes.

Paul is very self-opinionated. For example, he says in his conceit: “Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: but I give my own opinion.” (I Corinthians 7:25). If Paul has no commandments from the Lord on a subject, it is best for him to keep quiet. Are we now to conclude that his opinion is also the word of God? Certainly not! As observed, even Jesus never once offered his own opinion. Neither did he ever speak his own words. (John 12:49-50).

Paul’s pride often gets the better of him, leading him to say things he himself admits he should not say. For example, Paul says: “Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast.” (II Corinthians 11:18). He then boasts about his pedigree and declares himself the best of all Christians. Can we then still insist that even Paul’s

Orubebe tasks politicians on Godliness

By CHRIS OCHAYI

A

BUJA---MINISTER of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe has enjoined Nigerians seeking political positions in the land to first seek the face of God and ask for His counselling before taking the plunge.

Elder Orubebe who spoke at the celebration of the 3-year anniversary of the Glory Sanctuary Christian Center, GSCC, Ogbogbagbene, Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State, advised politicians to avoid aspiring to power just for selfish reasons but to serve and give hope to the needy in the society.

The minister who stressed the need to give hope to the aged, widows, orphans and the poor in the society, wondered why politicians and the society at large do not give attention to the plight of the less privileged in the society, Highlight of the anniversary

celebration was the donation of gift items to over 2,000 widows, aged, orphans and the poor by the church.

Elder Orubebe further urged the public not to allow the aged, widows and the poor to live like paupers even if they are labelled witches and wizards, noting that children are expected to share their earnings with their parents.

He challenged children to celebrate their parents while they are alive, rather than spending huge sums to organise big burial ceremonies for them when they are dead.

Orubebe, founder of Glory Sanctuary Christian Centre, also charged them “to be thankful for our parents who God used to bring us to this world,” noting that the vision to establish the Sanctuary as service unto the Lord came in 1998.

According to him, the aim was to preach the gospel and win souls in the creeks of Niger Delta region and the entire world.

While recalling his political journey which he started as a councillor, Orubebe attributed his political ascendancy to the counsel of God. “I never lobbied to become minister; instead, I went to God in prayers, who told me I was advertising Him,” he said.

In his sermon, the president of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor who was guest speaker at the event, likened Elder Orubebe to Biblical Cornelius. Describing him as a wise man, Oritsejafor said what Orubebe is investing in will be used by God to take Niger Delta region out of the wilderness.

According to Oritsejafor, Orubebe is a man that fears God, a prayerful man and a man who has the ability to give, adding that the minister is like an eagle the Lord is using to liberate the Niger Delta region from the wilderness unto the shining light prepared for them by God.

foolish boasting is the word of God? Certainly not! Elsewhere the same Paul admonishes us: “What, then, can we boast about? Nothing!”

(Romans 3:27).

Pagan plagiarism Paul cannot be speaking the word of God when his word is littered with plagiarised quotations of pagan writers.

The man who hardly ever quotes Jesus is in the habit of quoting pagan writers; including Hippolytus, Aratus and Menander; men who extolled the idol god “Zeus.” When Paul says: “We are his offspring,” (Acts 17:28), he is not speaking the word of God. He is quoting the Greek poet Aratus’ “Phaenomena.” When Paul says: “God is not far from each one of us for in him we live and move and have our being,” (Acts 17:27-28); he is not speaking the word of God. He is plagiarising the Cretan seer, Epimenides. When Paul says: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons,” (Titus 1:12); he is not speaking the word of God. He is here again quoting Epimenides.

When Paul says: “Bad company corrupts good manners,” (I Corinthians 15:33); he is not

A

LL Saints Cathedral Church, Ughelli in Ughelli North Local Government Area, Delta State, will host the next conference of the Anglican Bishops in Bendel Ecclesiastical Province scheduled for Tuesday to Wednesday.

The Archbishop of the province and Bishop of Esan Diocese, Most Rev. F.J. Imaekhai will declare the conference open. Theme: 'Modeling Christ to the world.

Philippians 3:1-13.'

speaking the word of God. He is plagiarising the Greek dramatist Menander’s “Thais.” When Paul says: “The good that I would I do not; but the evil which I would not do, that I do” (Romans 7:19); he is not speaking the word of God. He is plagiarising Hippolytus. When Paul says: “If any widow has children or nephews, let them learn first to show piety at home” (I Timothy 5:4); he is not speaking the word of God. He is plagiarising the Roman playwright Terence.

When Paul says: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12); he is not speaking the word of God. He is plagiarising the Mahaparinibbana Suta Buddhist scriptures.

Time-bound words Jesus says: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.” (Matthew 24:35). This shows that the words of Jesus are the words of God because they are from everlasting to everlasting.

But many of the words of Paul have passed away.

Christians don’t subscribe to them anymore.

Paul says: “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak.” (I Corinthians 14:34). If this injunction is the word of God, why is it that virtually no church in the world today obeys it? Women don’t keep silent in the churches.

Therefore, this word of Paul has passed away. It was never the word of God. It was, and will always be, the word of Paul.

Ughelli hosts Anglican bishops A statement by the Provincial PRO, Sir. Rufus Isaac said delegates are expected to arrive Ughelli on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. to hold a preliminary session of the meeting, an action plan for the development of the provincial activities will be deliberated upon the following day.

Solemn assembly at church Continued from Page 45 people believe that its full of hazards.

Similarly, visiting Sister Emilia Ahadjie commended the choir and the two young persons who spoke earlier while urging parents especially mothers to encourage their children for mission work. "We have to teach our children very well to fortify

themselves well enough for the victory that will crown their efforts. We should pray with them, encourage them to be diligent in their duties to participate in all church activities.

"We should teach the children the virtue of hard work and let them know that hard work does not kill. All the commandments given to us are for our benefits," she explained.

PAGE 50 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

The nationality question of a halcyon ethnic past, especially retailed by right-wing and conservative groups who view Nigeria as the “artificial creation of Great Britain for its own interest.” But the creation of modern Nigeria by the amalgamation in 1914 followed a series of historical situations, particularly history that made some aspects of the African past unsavory. The Lagos we talk about today was a brutal slave port, and if we must tell ourselves a bit of truth, British colonialism and the amalgamation of Nigeria was pos-

,

W

HAT does it mean to be a Nige rian? This question may seem clearly resolved in the Nigerian constitution: anyone born, whose forebears as at October 1 1960, had roots in any portion of the land which as at January 1914 became amalgamated as the Union of the old protectorates of Southern and Northern Nigeria. Such a person is a Nigerian by birth and has every right pertaining thereto that affiliation guaranteed under the bill of rights. But there are cleavages in the national imagination that make this question increasingly unresolved and academic.

It also leads to that question “what is a nation?”; in fact, “when is a nation” to quote Soyinka in his book, The Open Sore of a Continent which in critical ways further problematizes that question. Classical theorists of nation have described the “nation” as a system of affiliations, whose soul is at its most pristine, the kin, but at its most complex a broader network of principles beyond the primordial boundaries. “Nationalism” Gellner writers, “is not the awakening of nations to self-consciousness: it invents nations where they do not exist.”

Benedict Anderson offers the description of nation as an “imagined community.”

There is in the echoes of these definitions a striking truth that nations are artifices of history. Their artificiality draws from the fact of their hybrid condition; their “amalgamation” of very multiple affiliations into a coherent order or force of union. The modern nation, a 19th century invention is thus a means by which order was often imposed on the chaotic and unsustainable prenational dynastic states for greater security and higher productive capacity. Nationalism thus, again as Anderson puts it, is the “expression of a radically changed form of consciousness.” Many disenchanted Nigerians today romanticize the idea

was basically a forceful closure of an inevitable history following a destruction of the prenational dynastic states. This background is crucial because those who wish to “renegotiate” Nigeria around these protonational hegemonies we now call the Igbo, the Hausa-Fulani, the Yoruba, the Ijo, the Idoma, the Efik, the Edo, and so on and so forth, must realize that the amalgamation of Nigeria did some profound good which we, from the distance of time, now fail to acknowledge. While we must acknowledge that the African past was not “one long night of savagery” we must at the same time accept that the past was no el-dorado. We must return to the past only to salvage the best things we left behind, and try to leave the weightier baggage behind. Did Britain colonize and amalgamate Nigeria for exploitation and for its own benefits? Yes, no doubt.

But a struggle commenced from then to free the lands that had become Nigeria from the clutches of exploitation and political oppression under colonialism: basically to

We must return to the past only to salvage the best things we left behind, and try to leave the weightier baggage behind. Did Britain colonize and amalgamate Nigeria for exploitation and for its own benefits? Yes

sible only because we Africans by the 19th century had made a formidable mess of our society.

The Yoruba groups had been fighting their own “world wars” (“Ogun-Ijaiye”) for a hundred years; From the 17th century, the Aro-Abam confederacy made Igbo land and much of the Niger delta ungovernable through slave raids and engineered civil wars; the Caliph in Sokoto and the Shehu in Borno who had himself displaced the dynastic sovereigns of Bornu were at war, and the jihad, an offshoot of developments in Sudan and the Ottoman dynasty of the Khelides in Egypt and Turkey was spreading war and violence; pushing boundaries to the point that either the Sokoto Caliphate or the Aro Confederacy would eventually have established a dynastic rule in West Africa in the long run.

The amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914

,

free Nigeria from the stranglehold of British exploitation and control. That struggle was called the anti-colonial nationalist or independence movement. It was won for Nigerians by a generation of anti-colonial fighters led by Nnamdi Azikiwe, so that by 1953, we had limited home rule; by 1960 we had political independence, and in 1963, to establish full sovereignty outside the British commonwealth, the Nigerian Federal Parliament declared Nigeria a Republic, no longer a subject nation to England, but its own sovereignty under the constitutional presidency of Nnamdi Azikiwe, premiership of Tafawa Balewa and the parliament of the Federal Republic. The implication is quite simple: Nigeria was no longer established to serve Great Britain. In declaring itself a sovereign republic, it claimed its own sovereign mandate to exploit itself for itself and by

itself.

All the former profits once accruing to Great Britain reverted inexorably to those who inherited Nigeria, presumably, the citizens of Nigeria as defined by its constitution and national charter. Now, the question, did Britain stand by while its interests were at stake? Hardly. No capable nation, seeing a profitable intervention in another nation, stands aside. From 1945, when it began to plot its strategic withdrawal following a review of the Atlantic charter, colonial Great Britain began to formulate its post-imperial policy towards soon to be free “possessions” as they referred to their colonies. They made strategic recruitments in the national political, intellectual, and bureaucratic leadership.

It is called “partnership building.” In 1947 for instance, the colonial office helped to organize and fund the Northern Peoples Congress and the Action Group as countermands to the anti-colonial party, the NCNC. The poisoning of the national well began from some of these subterranean moves aimed at securing the “crown’s long held and long term interests” to quote a particular archival source. Between 1947 and 1957, the foundational discourse on Nigeria, or what we now call the “national question” was raised and settled.

Among the central questions was whether Nigeria could remain one nation, or whether as Britain withdrew, the nations and peoples with whom they had entered into old treaties of protection, and who came to be amalgamated into the Union of Nigeria might seek independence on their own. Nigeria in other words has long had its National conference to determine the “nationality” question.

The Nigerian national Conferences were held in Ibadan in 1950 and ’51, and in London, in what we call the Constitutional Conferences in 1957 and 1958. The national question was settled in those meetings, in other words, even if some charlatans remain ignorant of the minutes of our last meetings. It is melancholy consolation to observe that the history of Nigeria continues to reproduce certain foundational anxieties and questions already settled, by the pre-independence discussions that took place among the leaders of the new nation leading towards independence and freedom from Great Britain. (To be contd.)

Fore estimonies of the dep. go vs’ wiv es orevver ttestimonies govs’ wives

BY TONY NWANKWO

F

OREVER Living Products held its success showcase in Enugu for distributors, recently. In attendance, among other dignitaries, were the wives of deputy governors of the former Eastern Region: Mrs. Nneka Onyebuchi (Enugu State); Dr. (Mrs.) Mina Tele Ikuru (Rivers State) and Mrs. Glory Effiok Cobham (Cross River State). And what a spectacle!

They sang, screamed, danced and had fun. According to Ikuru, a medical doctor of 12 years standing, the creative director of Efsy Moti Designs and a Sapphire Manager in Forever Living Products, “I must confess that Forever rallies and Success Showcase events are the only programmes I ever attend where people are free and willing to dance, the way they want to dance and have a lot of fun”. And for Onyebuchi, “This event will boost my business in Forever. People will now know and appreciate the fact that Forever products are the secret of my healthy lifestyle”. And for Cobham, “My state is at peace and we would want to host another Success Showcase in Calabar within the year”.

The wife of Enugu State deputy governor, Onyebuchi, had this to say about Forever: “The products are healthy and natural. By using the products, you make good money in monthly bonus paid by the company. By using the products, people will see the result on you and appreciate you the more. By using the products, your family will be happier and fitter; your husband is happy, your children are happy, your relations are happy. Everybody loves using Forever products, because there are many gains by simply using them”. She continued: “Bringing Suc-

From left at the FLP function: Mrs. Nneka Onyebuchi (Enugu State); Mrs. Glory Efiok Cobham (Cross River State) and Dr. (Mrs.) Mina Tele Ikuru (Rivers State) respectively. cess Showcase to Enugu means a lot.

It will open the FLP business further here. It will help my FLP business to grow. People will come to know and appreciate the fact that Forever products are the best products in the world today. They are superior products, they are quality products and above all, they are natural products. Today, people will appreciate what Forever is all about, and then they want to know the secret of my healthy lifestyle. It will really boost my business”. Summing up her personal opinion about the company and its wide range of health, beauty and weight management products, Onyebuchi said: “I love Forever. I use the products, My entire family uses the products and I share the products too.

Once you start using Forever, you can’t go back to your old ways”.

To Cobham, wife of the deputy gov-

ernor of Cross River, “I am aware that Forever is an international company that deals on supplements that enhance everybody’s health, promotes healthy living and gives benefits to its distributors. FLP is an exceptional company.

The company makes exceptionally natural products that ensure its millions of distributors enjoy their lives. I would encourage another Success Showcase in Calabar pretty soon. Although the company just had one last May in my State, we are pushing to ensure that another FLP event comes to Calabar within the year, because the benefits are enormous. From this Enugu programme, I have learned a lot of things.

I have learned how to plan, how to launch the business into an uncomfortable environment, and how to look for people that can be helped, particularly the people who are suffering from

health issues and those who are looking for how to improve their well-being”.

The wife of the deputy governor of Rivers State, Ikuru said, “Incidentally, I do more of business, entrepreneurship and mentoring than just the medical practice since I became a Forever distributor. I am the founder and creative director of Efsy Moti Designs, one of the top-most fashion industries in the country. We have had beautiful Success Showcase events in the past in Port Harcourt, but I must tell you that one thing I have noticed about Forever is that everyday, the knowledge you gain from your own source is improved upon. This is more so as we discuss our monthly activities, the use of products, which is the reason we are introducing more products in Port Harcourt and Rivers State. We also talk about how to manage individual times and efforts. I have learned a lot of things here. I cannot just say one new thing. Everything sounds new to me today. I have added to my knowledge. We have had a wonderful time, dancing and screaming.

This one has been great”, she said.

FLP managing director, Nigeria/Benin Republic, Mr. Cornelius Tay said distributors from Enugu, Abakaliki, Awka, Port Harcourt, Benin-City, Calabar, Nsukka, Nnewi, Owerri, Aba, Abuja, Warri were in Enugu. “That is why we are No.4 in the FLP world”.

He said when the company decided to open a Distribution Center in Enugu, the management was aware of the competitive environment in the city. “Now, the competitors must find their level…the superior, premium brand has returned to Enugu. Water must find its level”, he declared, advising families in the eastern parts of the country to take full advantage of the opportunity Forever presents.

H

Love

i, few things in life can cause us to experience such a broad range of emotions, from the floating in air feeling of being in love for the very first time to the pain and agony of our most recent broken heart. In between, somewhere we find the love we not only can live with, but want to live for. Cheers!

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08107578275 •Favour, tall, sexy and busty, needs a man, for a relationship. 08144464087 •Anuoluwa, 40, a widow, with kids, in Kwara state, needs a responsible man, for marriage.07017733913 •Obin, 44, a born again and a mother of one, needs a God fearing man, for a serious relationship.08102870930 •Esther, 26, sexy, busty, calm, beautiful, fun to be with, loving, caring and a born again Christian, dark in complexion, 5.5ft tall and an undergraduate, from Delta state, needs a loving, caring, friendly, understanding, average height and employed, for a relationship, that will lead to marriage.08035315488, 08164073366, BB Pin 316106EA •Ada, from Imo state, but resides in Lagos, needs a born again man, aged 38-48, who is Igbo by tribe, tall, educated and has never been married before, for a relationship, that will lead to marriage.

08069193368

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08102236020

Searching Male

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08168782601 •A guy, tall, dark in complexion, Godly and resides in Delta state, needs a slim, tall and fair in complexion lady, for a wife.08084308915 •Austin, nice, humble, from Edo state and a business man, needs a fat lady, for a serious relationship.08061227917 •Udofia, 37, needs a pretty, busty, good looking, and born again lady who is average height, aged 32-35, from Edo state, for marriage.

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DISCLAIMER! Dear readers, please note that we neither operate, nor are we an affiliate of any match–making agency in or outside the country. Any reader who transacts business with any one claiming to be our agent does so at his/her own risk. Our mission is only to provide a platform for social networking.

Also note that neither Vanguard, nor Yetunde Arebi will be liable for any error in the publication of requests which may result in any form of embarrassment to any member of the public. We therefore request that text must be sent through at least one of the numbers for contact. This notice is necessary to enable us serve you better in our refreshingly different style. You can send your requests to 33055. For enquiries, text or call 08026651636

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013,PAGE 51 needs a God fearing and em- 08035667404 ployed lady, aged 18-25, for a •Kris, a graduate from Edo serious relationship. state, needs an employed lady, aged 20-26, for a rela08034156637 •Brian, 31, employed and re- tionship. 07082236426 sides in Warri, needs a lady, •Mairo, 27, from Delta state, for a serious relationship aged needs a lady, aged 19-25, for a serious relationship that will 35-45.08159673552 to marriage.

•A guy, 19, needs a devoted lead Christian, girl, for a relation- 07033685282, 08062887430 ship that will lead to marriage. •Lin, 53, Ibo by tribe, a divorce and a businessman, in Lagos, 08163937553 •Rufus, 22, chocolate in com- needs a lady who is a Chrisplexion, good looking loving, tian, educated and employed, nice and a music artiste, re- aged 36-42 and who is 5.3 ft sides in Benin, needs a beau- tall or above, for marriage, sintiful lady, for a relationship. gle mothers with only one child are welcomed.

08137153481 •Iyke, 26, good looking and a 08057002189, 07065557964 graduate, needs a nice and •Chima, 35, tall and resides in mature lady, for a loving and Imo state, needs an intelligent romantic relationship. lady, for a relationship that will lead to marriage.08082047770 07033659622 •George, 29, needs a serious •Joshua, 30, from Delta state, minded lady, aged 26-34, for needs a good looking girl, a serious relationship, that will who will love him, for whom lead to marriage.08105668044 he is. 08131675885 •Roland, 38, tall, dark in com- •BJ, 37, a Christian, needs a plexion and handsome, needs lady who is ready for mara tall and well shaped lady, riage. 08080448071 aged 25-35, for marriage. •Joseph, from Benin needs lady aged 35-45, for mar07033568844 •Paul, 34, employed and needs r i a g e . 0 7 0 3 7 3 7 7 3 7 4 , a nice and God fearing lady, 08067221521 for a serious relationship. •Jeffson, 37, employed, needs an educated and God fearing 08076058580, 08161989573 •Prince, 48, a Christian and a lady, who is employed, for a business man, needs a mature, serious relationship that will caring, understanding and lead to marriage, aged 24-33.

God fearing lady, who is ei- 08030668150 ther medical doctor or a legal •Victor, needs a lady, for a serelationship. practitioner, aged 30- 40, for a rious serious relationship, that can 08036407134 lead to marriage.08039533557 •Greg, 37, needs a beautiful, •Chukwuemeka, a business fair or chocolate in complexman and resides in Lagos, ion Christian lady, who is a needs a God fearing lady, for graduate, employed or in busirelationship that will lead to ness for marriage, aged 25-32.

08035667404 marriage.07069571464 •A guy, resides in Benin, •Frank, from Warri, Delta state, needs a mature and caring needs a good looking lady, for lady, aged 35-50, for a serious a serious relationship, that can lead to marriage. relationship.08069169212 •Mark, loving, caring and a 08135637327, 08058724495 graduate, needs a lady, aged •Sca, 5.75inches tall, slim, 18, for a serious relationship. from Port Harcourt, but resides in Lagos, needs a good look08060296139 •Nelson, 20, from Edo state, ing, tall, matured and emneeds a girl, aged 18-22, for a ployed lady, aged 30 and above, for a romantic relationrelationship.08153080811 •Kelvin, 6ft tall, humble, lov- ship. 08064999687 ing and a Christian, employed •Chuks, 24, a student, average and from Abia state, but re- height, from Delta state, needs sides in Lagos, needs a lady, a lady, aged 22, for a serious who is honest, a Christian, relationship.08115204435, loving, caring, romantic and 08174950198 employed, for a relationship, •Ejyke, 23, 7ft tall, a graduate, needs a sweet, caring, sexy aged 20-25.08140274243 •Yoma, tall, handsome, sexy and endowed lady, who is atand strong, needs a rich lady, tractive, for a romantic relafor a loving and a romantic re- tionship.08065129319 lationship that will lead to mar- •Jerry, 28, tall, fair in complexion and a graduate, from riage.08076086684 •Lanre, 30, 5.6ft tall, dark in Delta state, needs a girl, aged complexion and a graduate, 22 -30, for a serious relationneeds a slim, loving, caring ship.08102265460,08064274976 and beautiful lady, aged 18- •Wesley, calm, needs a lady, 26, for a serious relationship. for a serious relationship, aged 20-24.08139252025 07033273088 •David, 20, 4ft tall, dark in •Uche, 29, resides in Lagos, complexion and a student, needs a girl, aged 27-28, who needs a lady, aged 18-22, for is a Christian for serious relaa relationship.08162815887, tionship.07039366256 •Emmanuel, 22, resides in La08103198380 •Richard, 42, 6.2ft tall, hand- gos, needs a good, caring and some, romantic, a graduate, loving lady, for a serious relaemployed and resides in La- tionship.08153271309 gos, I needs a tall, pretty, •Adekunle, 22, dark in complumpy, busty and romantic, plexion, needs a girl, for a relady, who is a graduate, either lationship.08134888036, employed or in business, aged 08169846872 25-35, for a relationship, that •Prince, 33, needs a loving will lead to marriage. and caring lady, around Ibadan and its environs for a 08034891658 •Frank, 25, from Delta state, serious and mutual relationneeds a girl, aged 19-24, for a ship. 08100592091 serious relationship that will •Chuks, 24, from Edo state, lead to marriage. needs a lady, from Edo state, for a serious relationship.

08137816041.

•A guy, needs a beautiful girl, 08182307694, 08065186134 who is fair or chocolate in com- •Henry, tall, handsome, an plexion, a graduate, employed undergraduate, from Rivers, or in to business, aged 25-32, needs a well composed lady, for a serious relationship. for a relationship.08130873179

PAGE 52—SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER1 SEPTEMBER1, 2013,

By JAPHET ALAKAM

chimeena@yahoo.com 08056180157

LECTURE

BY JAPHET ALAKAM VISUAL

A

•L-R, Prof. Jacob Jari, guest lecturer, Prince Yemisi Shyllon, OYASAF founder and Jessica Williams, OYASAF scholar at the event

‘ Art foundation, panacea for its development’ the art teachers, government’s failure to provide an enabling environment, art for money sake etc.noting that there has not been any significant transitions in more than 50 years of modern art practice.

S

peaking on money exchange for art work, Jari said that his experiences have made him understand that in art business reputation counts, but asked whether it should really count?

According to him “ why not collectors accept a person’s

work on the aesthetic value of it and not on the history of the artists. If art is to be developed should it be so.” He added.

He made reference to incidences where works of art were bought because of the signature of the artist and opined that such attitude is affecting the development of young artist in the country. He also noted that this situation and the economy of the country has forced many artists to produce art just for the market sake thereby retarding their creativity and development of the industry.

In all, he stated that the problems which led to the absence of any obvious change in the works of

,

RT has been described as a goldmine as well as the best alternative to oil as far as revenue generation , job creation etc, are concerned in Nigeria. In fact, Art has made Nigeria a significant country in the world culture map as a major contributor to the development of world civilisation. But despite these laudable goals, the sector is still faced with many problems which need to be addressed by the various actors in the industry. And for art to overcome some of these challenges, there is the urgent need for the establishment of a foundation for the arts by the federal government run by a Board of Trustees with professional integrity and ethics where all the various sectors of the arts have a clearly defined fund to draw from.

This was the submission of Professor Jacob Jari of faculty of Environmental Design, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria while delivering a lecture at the third Omooba Yemisi Adedoyin Shyllon Art Foundation (OYASAF) lecture series titled “The Price of Art and Its Implication on Art Practice in Nigeria”.

Prof Jari who has seen it all in art, having taught art in the secondary, tertiary schools and have practiced it for years during the lecture held at the OYASAF conference centre, Maryland, Lagos enumerated some of the challenges facing art in Nigeria. The problems include: the neglect of art teaching in primary, secondary and universities in the country, not encouraging

Patrons of art and artist with sincere desire to develop art should set up art foundations which should provide funds to assist creative artists with new ideas

modern Nigerian artists is encouraged primarily by the price of art which is not

Candle of Purpose concert for slain Taiwo Adebayo thereby bringing back memories of the lad who was simply described as “Reach Out” Taiwo’s mother, Mrs Titilola Adebayo who said that both the concert and establishment of the Foundation were meant to add meaning to life, disclosed that Taiwo was a twin, born on the 6th of June, 1986 who was always willing to give a helping hand to people irrespective of the person’s origin.

BY PRISCA SAM-DURU CONCERT

T

HE Paroche Foundation last week at the Muson Centre, Lagos, held a colourful and elaborate concert in memory of the 26year old graduate of Political Science from Babcock University, who was killed in Lagos on the 19th August, 2012 by a drunken driver.

Organised by Tsoule events, the concert tagged, “Candle Of Purpose” featured notable Nigerian musicians currently making waves in the music industry which include Davido and Buchi.

The Paroche Foundation named after Taiwo’s nickname (Paroche) which was formally inaugurated on the anniversary day he was killed, was to carry on with the legacy he left behind from which he got his nickname.

Ranti Ihimoya performing in a concert The Muson Hall was creatively and flamboyantly decorated with corresponding colours and lighting coupled with all kinds of musical instrument contributing to the venue’s adornment. The number of youths who were on ground to lend a helping hand in giving the hall as well

as the concert itself, a perfect touch was in excess. And through their scintillating performances, the artistes in no less a way, wowed the hundreds of Lagosians who gathered to further the course of their departed son, friend and good spirited Nigerian

founded on any logical basis.

And to overcome this issue, “patrons of art and artists with a sincere desire to develop art

A

lso speaking prior to commencement of the show, one of the trustees of the foundation, Pastor Reuben Onwubiko, Africa Marketing Director of Glaxo Smithkline, disclosed that the Foundation will as part of its mission, create awareness on causes and symptoms of drug and alcohol addiction as well as rehabilitate young people who have been ravaged by drug and alcohol addiction.

,

should set up art foundations which should provide funds to

assist creative artists with new ideas which might not be, from the superficial point of view, commercially viable but which sharpen the artists’ desire for freedom of expression, a condition which gives birth to different feats of gainful development.”

A

fter listening to the well detailed lecture, the audience was left with no option than to agree with the fact that the process is not well taught and that the stakeholders have not built institutions that promote art and until they do that the challenges will continue. They also observed that collectors taste determine how money will exchange hands in art but that the artist must be able to place a value for the work by painting good works.

The lecture which was organised by Omooba Yemisi Adedoyin Shyllon Art Foundation (OYASAF) as part of its efforts towards the promotion of art was attended by art patrons , scholars, teachers, writers, artists and others.

SUND AY SUNDA

Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013, PAGE 53

BUSTED *Over 608 suspected oil thieves arrested *594 raids carried out in six months *748 illegal refineries busted *24 sea-going vessels impounded *133 barges involved in oil theft seized *861 giant open wooden boats, popularly referred to as Cotonou boats, seized *910 large surface tanks used to reserve the crude have been scuttled.

‘Giant open wooden boat, popularly referred to as Cotonou boats’

The conspiracy that robs Nigeria of billions of dollars Continued from page 42

navy. Oil thieves are said to be very much in the business despite the forays made by security agents.

A concerned stakeholder, however, told Sunday Vanguard, “Security agents have illegal oil refinery operators working for them. They are in the business together.

I am aware that even some Cotonou boats and boats seized from oil thieves by OFSL operatives were handed over to their owners by some unscrupulous security officials.

“The biggest problem in Nigeria is not using a metering process to monitor what is produced like it is done in other oil-producing countries. The oil stolen by illegal oil refiners is nothing compared to what is stolen by the cartel of government officials, security agents and oil companies.

“If crude thieves operating illegal oil refineries steal crude oil filled in a Cotonou boat for instance, it will take them three to four months to refine it and, after production, they will start selling it. Now, what is what they are stealing compared to the eight vessels that get missing out of the 10 that is loaded in the terminal?”

‘JTF on top of situation’

M

edia Coordinator of JTF in the Niger Delta, Lt. Col. Onyeama Nwachukwu, was, however, categorical that the security outfit was winning the war against oil thieves. He said over 608 suspected oil thieves were seized in 594 raids carried out between January and June.According to him, oil theft was on the decline in the region. His words, “So far, we have carried out 594 illegal oil bunkering patrols, and several arrests have been made. In the two quarters we are talking about, we have scuttled about

The oil stolen by illegal oil refiners is nothing compared to what is stolen by the cartel of government officials, security agents and oil companies

748 illegal refineries within the region and we have impounded 24 sea-going vessels; we equally arrested 133 barges involved in oil theft. And 861 giant open wooden boats, popularly referred to as Cotonou boats, have been scuttled over this period.

“About 910 large surface tanks, which oil thieves engaged in illegal refineries used to reserve the crude have been scuttled. We have taken into custody about 608 suspects who are involved in oil theft and oil theft related cases.”

On the rate of oil theft, which reportedly led to a combined shut-in of 190,000 barrels per day production in Bayelsa, Nwachukwu said that the JTF was making a positive impact.The spokesman said: “Of course, we stepped up our operational activities and I can assure you that oil theft now is going down”.

A hoax While many people agree that JTF has performed, the general allegation is that

oil companies are raising the alarm to defraud Nigerians.

C

oordinator of the Ijaw People Development Initiative, Ozobo, stated, “Oil companies are not sincere about their reports on the actual degree of loss of the country’s oil revenue. They are over- blowing the whole situation to make more profits and pay lesser tax and returns to the Federal Government. ‘’It is also true that the oil companies are running illegal oil wells and underestimating the number of barrels produced per-day, which the government does not know about. This is sad and barbaric. ‘’The attitude of the oil companies is worse than the known oil thieves we are shouting about. Only a few of the oil wells and oil barrels produced per day by the oil companies are reported. I tell you, there are many oil wells and barrels produced that are not known by the Federal Government.”

Way out Noticeably panicky, the Federal Government recently beseeched the international community not to buy stolen crude from the country. But ex-militant leader, Tompolo, who spoke through the Secretary of Tompolo Foundation, Mr. Paul Bebenimibo, said, “That is not the solution. Government can effectively check illegal crude oil activities by renewing the surveillance oil facilities contracts in Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers States, as well as expanding the job to other oil bearing states. Performance could be measured by regular meetings with stakeholders and the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, must wake up and live up to expectation.”

IPDI coordinator, Ozobo suggested, “The Federal Government should

launch a probe into the internally computed fraudulent reports of the oil multinational companies to ascertain actual loss of oil revenue in the country.”

He added that government should also investigate daily activities of oil companies and number of oil wells under their operations because they are always armed with misleading audited reports.

“Clearly, we have to develop a modern technology to always check the activities of the oil companies”, he said Many people think the task of policing the pipelines should not be a matter for the security forces alone, since they do not have the workforce to place men at every kilometer.

T

hey advised the oil majors to improve on their surveillance technology so that any breach on their facility would trigger an alarm to deter vandals and alert the security forces.

Some people contended that the crusade against crude oil theft and illegal refining cannot be achieved by the use of brute force, and stressed the need for government to address the obvious contradiction of people in the oil producing communities lacking in the midst of plenty. Community leaders said the people should be carried along in the campaign to stamp out the menace, while some youths groups counseled that dialogue should not be a one-sided affair of placating the ex- militant leaders by way of pipeline surveillance job.

Some activists, who spoke to Sunday Vanguard, said government should legalize illegal refineries, adding that they should be made to pay tax to government at the end of the day.

“We should be allowed to use our God-given wealth which is oil and our God-given talent, which is ability to refine crude for the benefit of our country. We should be made to pay tax at the end of the day”, one of the former agitators stated.

A top security source who also spoke anonymously said government should set up a special court to try those arrested for crude oil theft. He said conventional courts were slowing the effort of security operatives in the region.

The security source said lawyers file motions of different sorts at conventional courts to secure freedom for those arrested for oil theft.

C M Y K

C M Y K

PAGE 54 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Nigerian refs are part of a corrupt system – NRA boss

BY OKEY NDIRIBE

C

HAIRMAN of the Referees Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Suleiman Muazu has dismissed allegations that Nigerian referees were the most corrupt officials in Nigerian football.

Muazu made the remark while speaking to sports

Suleiman Muazu

journalists in Abuja during the FIFA physical test for referees and assistant referees held at the National Stadium, Abuja.

In response to a recent threat issued against cheating referees by the Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji , he said: “ I don’t share the view that Nigerian referees are the most corrupt officials in

We won’t lose focus — NFF Continued backpage

from

“Keshi has named a killer squad and the players are eager to return to Brazil because they have an unfinished business there which is the World Cup,” Umeh said, expressing delight in the invitation of Hol-

land based Uche Nwofor whose brace against Bafana Bafana gave Nigeria a 2-0 win over South Africa in the Mandela Challenge.

“We expect him to re-enact the form he displayed in South Africa and pray that God give him the grace to do well. He was fantastic in that encoun-

ter.”

Umeh assured the Malawi delegation of the best in terms of hospitality. “We are number one in terms of hospitality,” he said, pointing out that “when the Malawi delegation return to their country, they would know that they visited true African brothers.”

Nigerian football. In the first place, bribery must involve a giver and a taker. The giver, just like the taker, is a criminal.”

Continuing, the NFF board member said, “sometimes, we hear that club managers follow referees to their various houses for the purpose of offering them bribes.

If a referee does not accept what he is offered from such a club, he could be accused of having accepted money from the opponent’s club.”

He maintained that Nigerian referees were not more corrupt than other officials in Nigerian football adding that they could be said to be as corrupt as other officials were. Responding to another question on the FIFA test conducted for referees, he said all of those who came for the exercise had realized that” if they don’t perform well, they will dropped. “

Malawi not in Super Eagles class, says James Peters Continued backpage

from

NAN reports that Nigeria have nine points and merely need to only avoid defeat to reach the final elimination round, while Malawi need an outright win to advance.

Peters said the experience the Super Eagles’ players got from their recent outings would be an advantage to them.

“Our boys have peaked since the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil and the Mandela Challenge match has added to the team’s strength.

“With the Super Eagles’ present form, they will beat Malawi on their own ground.

“Fortunately for the Malawians, they are coming to Nigeria for

this decisive match, and this will save them from that embarrassment,” the former U-20 national team handler said.

“Without mincing words, I am sure the Super Eagles are ready for the match,” he said.

Peters who was also a former assistant Super Eagles coach said the Nigerian side now posed a threat to many of their African counterparts.

“Today, it will be difficult for any African team to beat the Super Eagles of Nigeria. This is because both Brazil and Nigeria produce worldclass players more than any other country in the whole world,” Peters said.

C M Y K

SUNDAY VANGUARD, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013 — PAGE 55

African Junior Championships:

Nigerian athletes win more gold as curtain falls STORIES BY BEN EFE, MAURITIUS

N

IGERIAN junior athletes yesterday painted a rosy future at the African Championships, with spectacular performances leaving an impression that the dark days of Nigerian track and field are numbered.

Omezie Akerele was the star of the evening as he practically rescued the 4x400m gold in the most sensational manner that is reminiscent of the heroics of Enefiok UdoObong at the Sydney 2000 Olympics where Nigeria won gold in the men 4x400m relay.

Here in Bambous, Mauritius the Nigerian junior quartet found themselves playing second fiddle to Gambia after the third leg runner, Ugbochukwu Ottah failed to maintain the tempo Adedamola Adeniyi and Charles Okezie had started with. But Akerele who won silver in the flat stepped up to the plate. He chased down Tijan Keita the African youth champion at Warri 2013 and at the 200m curve, Akerele closed down the gap with a much determined push and at the home stretch he changed gear overhauling the Gambian. Not surprisingly, the entire stadium was in uproar as Akerele anchored at 3.14.50 to win the race. Gambia placed second with 3.14.76, while Ethiopia was third with 3.15,08.

Earlier in the day, Ada Benjamin led the women quartet to the gold in the women 4x400m.

They did not experience much challenge as they raced to the finish at 3.37. 93, Ethiopia was second with 3.42.18 seconds, while South Africa had the bronze with 3.57.78.

In the women long jump event, Ese Brume leapt 6.33m to win the gold. But for the strong tail wind, she could have broken the African junior record of 6.25m. In men’s event Babajide Okulaja settled for silver with 7.42m, in the event that was won by South Africa’s Duwayne Andrew Boer with a jump of 7.58m.

“We are extremely ex-

cited with the performances of our athletes. I have hope that the change we yearn for is just around the corner.

This is the development we crave for,” said Athletics Federation technical director, Navy Commodore Omatseye Ne-

siama.

The events come to an end today with Nigeria still topping the medals table with Seven gold, while South Africa have four gold medals. Egypt and Kenya have three gold medals each.

Divine Oduduru and

Japhet Samuel are running the men 200m today, while Nkiru Uwakwe and Nkem Ezealah will run in the women race. Oduduru has the fasted time 21.53 in the qualifying heats. But the girls need to work harder to ensure gold for Nigeria.

City tame Tigers

H

ULL should have claimed the lead in the seventh minute when Graham’s ball took a fortunate ricochet off Nastasic and sent Sone Aluko clear.

But the Nigeria youth international squandered a glorious opportunity as he scuffed a low shot wide of the post after reaching the edge of the area unchallenged.

It sparked a lively pas-

sage of play and the inform McGregor saved superbly at his near post from an Edin Dzeko header at a corner.

Alvaro Negredo and Yaya Toure struck in the second half as Manchester City finally saw off a dogged Hull side 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium.

A week after suffering an unexpected loss to promoted Cardiff, the hosts were again troubled by one of the Premier League’s newcomers in what was an unconvincing display by Manuel Pellegrini’s men.

Harp excites soccer fans in Port Harcourt

I

SISTERS IN ARM... Ada Benjamin and Rita Ossai (left) after winning gold and silver at the African Junior in Mauritius

No pain, no gain, says Ada Benjamin N

IGERIA junior ath lete, Ada Benjamin clutched her ‘butt’ after a hard race in the women 400m event at the African junior championships in Mauritius. She was evidently happy, yet she grimaced, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

She told the team doctor she was feeling excruciating pains.

But before she was herded into the dope room after she won the gold, she said between smiles that she was ready to go through pain to win more athletics laurels.

“My coach told me that I should be ready to face pain I want to go far. Because I train very hard and after each session all I feel is pain and I always cry.

“But today, after winning the gold I totally agree with the saying ‘No pain, no gain’.

“I am ready to train even

harder to achieve more success,” said the Port Harcourt born Benjamin.

She has been around the junior athletics circle for a while without a medal to

her name and winning her first gold medal in Mauritius seem to have made her hungry for more of such glory. “When I was coming here I was pray-

ing to God to let me win the gold. This is because I trained hard and I am really glad winning the gold in a very spectacular way.

And for sure I want more of this each time.

Assar too much for Toriola •Lagos Int’l T/Tennis Classics

E

GYPTIAN champion Omar Assar yesterday won the men’s title of the first Lagos International Table Tennis Classics after overcoming the stiff challenge from Nigeria’s Segun Toriola.Assar beat Nigeria’s Segun Toriola 11-9, 11-4, 13-15, 611, 11-4, 11-9 In the women’s singles Nigeria’s Cecilia OtuAkpan beat her compatriot Offiong Edem 9-11, 11-7, 11-6, 5-11, 11-9, 811, 11-9. In other results,

Nigeria’s Olajide Omotayo beat Nigeria’s Azeez Ogunlade 11-9, 6-11, 117, 18-16, 11-6 in the boys category while Nigeria’s Esther Tosin Oribamise beat Nigeria’s Alimot Ayinla 11-9, 113, 11-5, 11-4 Players’ Quote Segun Toriola I really wanted to win the title for the country and the fans but things just went the other way.

There is no doubt that Egypt’s Assar played very well and he gave his

best. For me, it was exciting making it to the final and I want to thank the fans for their steadfastness in supporting all the players and I hope to see more of this being staged in Nigeria.

Egypt’s Omar Assar I am happy that I became the champion of this tournament and it will go down in history and for me I am so excited coming to Nigeria to win the title.

I thank the ATTF President, Khaled El-Salhy

N a bid to enhance the entertainment value of the Nigeria Premier League, kit sponsors of five clubs in the NPL, Harp Premium Lager gave football fans in the Garden City a spectacular experience at the star match between Dolphin FC and Rangers International of Enugu. Harp used the opportunity provided by the match between these two epic teams bring fun and excitement to the teeming football fans.

Entry to the stadium was free and The Harp Arena within the stadium grounds offered a special treat. The highlight of the fun filled afternoon afternoon included penalty shoot-out and ball juggling competitions, beer sampling as well as a raffle draw that saw lucky consumers walking away with prizes such as blackberry phones, generators and freezers. for facilitating my participation in the tournament. I enjoyed my stay in Nigeria and I hope to come back next year and also meet Toriola in the final.

•Aruna Quadri

SUNDAY Vanguard, SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

Liverpool boss taunts Moyes B

20 14 W orld Cup qualifier: 201 World

•Moyes •Rogers

We won’t lose focus — NFF

Egypt’s Assar wins Lagos Int’l T/Tennis Classics— Pg 55

RENDAN Rodgers insists that Liverpool are getting closer to matching Manchester United – and that the rivalry between the two clubs eclipses the Merseyside derby.

David Moyes will go to Anfield in the Premier League today as United manager for the first time, having failed to win there in any of his 12 visits as Everton boss.

Rodgers believes that Moyes will see for himself that a LiverpoolManchester United match is bigger than a Liverpool-Everton clash.

BY JACOB AJOM

T

HE Nigeria Football Federation will remain focused and concentrate on preparations for the all important 2014 World Cup qualifier against Malawi despite the seeming distractions from its rival, the Football Association of Malawi.

This was made known to Sunday Vanguard Sports by the first Vice President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Chief Mike Umeh. In a chat with our reporter yesterday, Chief Umeh said recent reports from Blantyre in respect of the Malawi national team “are all propaganda” and should not be taken seriously. “We don’t want to lose concentration be-

cause of late, they have put up a lot of propaganda,” Umeh said, pointing out that for a team that had been preparing for a World Cup qualifier for a long time to suddenly say they have no money to travel sounded like a big joke.

“It shows you how determined they are to make us relax. But they will be disappointed because we will remain focused so that when they come we will beat them silly.”

The NFF chieftain said the Super Eagles players are eager to return to Brazil after the FIFA Confederations Cup misadventure.

Continued on page 54

Malawi not in Super Eagles class, says James Peters

N

IGERIA Football Federation assistant technical director James Peters has declared that the Super Eagles are far better, technically speaking, than the Flames of Malawi, their opponents in the September 7 World Cup qualifying match in Calabar.

He argued that based on this he expects the

national team coached by Stephen Keshi to steamroll the Malawians and advance to the final stage of the qualifiers.

“The Super Eagles now have more experience than they had during the first leg match against Malawi at Blantyre in June 2012,” Peters said.

Continued on page 54

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS Man City Cardiff City Newcastle Utd Norwich City West Ham Utd

2 0 1 1 0

Hull City Everton Fulham Southampton Stoke City

EPL TODAY’S FIXTURES West Brom v Swansea City Liverpool v Man United Arsenal v Tottenham

0 0 0 0 1 1:30pm 1:30pm 4:00pm

BUNDESLIGA B. M’gladbach Hamburger Hannover Nurnberg Wolfsburg

4 4 4 0 2

Werder Bremen Braunschweig Mainz 05 Augsburg Hertha Berlin

1 0 1 1 0

ARROW HEAD: SuperEagles forward Emmanuel Emenike tries to outwit two Ivorian players at AFCON 2013 (inset: Coach Stephen Keshi)

CROSS WORD PUZZLE ACROSS 1. House of Reps Speaker (8) 5. Assistant (4) 7. Praise (5) 8. Upright (4) 9. Lantern (4) 11. Tradition (6) 13. Lagos masquerade (3) 15. Exclamation (2) 16. Pig’s nose (5) 18. Agent (3) 20. Glitters (6) 24. Forward (5) 25. Nigerian state (6) 27. Boring tool (3) 29. Ghanaian fabric (5) 31. Perform (2) 32. Oshiomhole’s state (3) 34. U.S. currency (6) 36. Vow (4) 38. Musical quality (4) 39. Inclination (5) 40. Eager (4) 41. Damages (8)

DOWN 1. Sample (5) 2. Niger state town (4) 3. Observe (5) 4. Lecture (6) 5. Everyone (3) 6. Use (6) 10. Inquires (4) 12. Carpet (3) 14. Colour (6) 15. Resistance unit (3) 17. Coax (4) 19. Rollicked (6) 21. Hatchet (3) 22. Satisfied (4) 23. Nigerian state (3) 26. Cry of derision (3) 27 . African country (6) 28. Endure (4) 29. Child (3) 30. Spoke (6) 31. Adorn (5) 33. Baking chambers (5) 35. Asterisk (4) 37. Possessed (3)

SOLUTION on page 55 Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa.

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C M Y