Nigerians presevere, vote in peaceful elections

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•An underaged boy being accredited in a Taraba State polling unit.

•INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega

•Children voting in a polling station also in Taraba State.

2015 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

After all said and done…

•Nigerians deserve credit for perseverance PROLOGUE

BY JIDE AJANI

E

VEN in the face of provocation of gargantuan proportions occasioned by the episodic failure of the Smart Card Readers, SCRs, Nigerians persevered, were patient and eventually voted at yesterday’s presidential and National Assembly elections.

It was, indeed, the dawn of a new electoral process for a nation that had been reeling under the unbearably crushing weight of a shambolic voting regime.

Yesterday’s elections, which suffered early avoidable hitches – and for which reason voting would have to be done in some polling units today – demonstrated to the whole world that Nigerians were never really the problem in the democratic voyage.

Rather, it was proved beyond reasonable doubt, that Nigerians want democracy; that Nigerians want peace; that Nigerians love a process that would lead them to an outcome devoid of rancor.

Avoidable hitches because Sunday Vanguard had consistently admonished Professor Attahiru Jega, the National Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, that there is a world of difference between the desire to accomplish and do good, and the capacity to deliver.

Had Jega agreed to borrow a leaf from Sunday Vanguard again, the way he humbled himself regarding the failed attempt to foist a lopsided 30,000 Polling Unit allocation on Nigeria, the embarrassment caused the nation and himself yesterday may have been avoided. Jega had been advised to tread softly on his dogged insistence that the SCR was the only answer to Nigeria’s electoral woes. Yes, the SCRs came with value addition to the process.

But the questions to ask are: Why would a professor put all his eggs in the basket of the SCRs? What consideration can Jega claim to have been his driving force to insist that elections should hold on February 14, 2015, knowing that INEC was not ready, especially in the face of the challenges suffered yesterday?

What other form of embarrassment could Jega have expected than to have the President and Commander-in-Chief, along with his wife, be rejected by SCRs? Had the massive failure of the SCRs been prevalent in the North as it was in the South, what sort of crisis would Nigeria have been plunged into?

Put differently, had President Jonathan not exhibited a statesmanly conduct in the face of his rejection by the SCR, would the country not have witnessed a spate of violence?

Fellow Nigerians, when Jega was being advised to expand the frontiers of acceptable conduct for yesterday’s elections, he carried on as though any suggestion that did not fit into his world view was either antagonistic or outrightly unpatriotic – without prejudice to the wrong-headed arguments put forward by leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; or the folly associated with the belief in and assurance that the SCRs would work without challenges as championed by leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC. Today, Nigerians know better.

Mercifully, Jega himself belatedly ordered that in areas where the SCRs did not work, the officers on duty should revert to manual accreditation.

It should also be noted that in some parts of the North, the issue of underaged voting could not be tackled by the SCRs (see pix).

On the whole, inspite of the challenges, Nigerians deserve to be congratulated for being peaceful because had what happened yesterday happened, some four or eight years ago, there would have been widespread violence.

Therefore, after all said and done, the doomsday prognosticators may have lost in the first bout because Nigeria is still one and kicking. Nigerians eagerly await the next round of thunder which may come when the results are announced.

PAGE 6 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

AFTER INITIAL ACCREDITATION HITCHES

Nigerians vote in peaceful elections Continued from Page 1 Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the polls, and his wife, Patience, were not spared of the hitches.

Jonathan was issued with Incident Form for accreditation after five SCRs failed to read his thumbprint.

The First Lady was also accredited with the Incident Form.

In Enugu, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to discard the use of SCRs for the polls after he could not secure accreditation with the machine.

Ekweremadu, too, was accredited with the Incident Form.

But Major General Muhammadu Buhari, the presidential candidate of the main opposition party, All Progressives Congress (APC), scaled the SCR hurdle.

“I think I am satisfied with the whole process so far,”Buhari, told journalists minutes after he was accredited for the polls at his Sarkinyara Ward A Kaafar Baru 0003 Polling Unit, Daura, Katsina State.

On his part, Jonathan was optimistic he will be victorious in the election.

Speaking on the SCR hitches, the President said only the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, could explain.

Other highlights of the polls include the hacking into the website of INEC by a group which called itself the ‘Nigerian Cyber Army ’.

The website was later restored.

The polls also witnessed some pockets of violence.

Explosions rocked Enugu and Gombe although the Inspector General of Police, Mr Suleiman Abba, said both incidents were unrelated to the polls.

A soldier and two other persons were reportedly killed in Rivers State while a chieftain of the PDP was said to have been shot dead in Osun State.

A man was allegedly arrested with 300 PVCs in Ebonyi State.

As the results of the polls trickled in, last night, there were indications that Vice President Namadi Sambo won in his unit.

He lost in his unit in the 2011 polls.

Bayelsa: Drama as Card Reader frustrates Jonathan, wife

In Bayelsa State, the

Unconfirmed reports said because of late arrival of materials in Opobo, the election might. Be shifted to today.

Osun: PDP member shot dead

Reports from Osun State said a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Yomi Ademola, was shot dead by hoodlums in Ikirun.

The victim was said to be a strong member of the APC before he defected to the PDP. He was reportedly killed in IdiOro area of the town.

Three suspects had been arrested.

•Sorting and counting of votes late into the night. presidential and National Assembly polls were characterized by delay in arrival of materials, technical errors and malfunctioning of the SCRs during the accreditation of voters in most wards in the state.

The SCR rejected the PVCs of President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Patience, both of whom arrived their polling unit at about 9.15am This caused a long delay as the INEC staff deployed to Polling Unit 039, Otuabula Ward 13 struggled to rectify the problem.

The President stood patiently for about 40 minutes waiting for the problem to be rectified by an INEC technician. But the wife, and President’s mother, Madam Eunice Jonathan, were provided seats to make them comfortable.

While the drama lasted, the SCR could not accredit the President and his wife causing the duo to resort to the filling of Incident Form.

However, the SCR cleared the President’s mother and his ADC. The malfunctioning machine caused a long queue even as voters defied the scorching sun to be accredited.

Also cleared by the SCR in his home town, Toru-Orua, in Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State was Governor Seriake Dickson who was cleared at about 9.30am.

The exercise was also smooth at Opokuma, the home town of Timi Alaibe, a former Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the

Presidential Amnesty Programme, where eligible voters came out in large number to cast their votes.

The exercise was also smooth at the Opolo polling unit of Senator Emmanuel Paulker where voters turned out in large number. But it was a problem for voters at Gbarain in one of the units in Yenagoa council area where the SCRs failed to function.

The SCR also failed to clear the state deputy governor who was at the coastal turn of Nemebe for the exercise causing him to fill the Incident Form.

Rivers: Amaechi, supporters shun elections

*Soldier, two others shot dead In Rivers State, Governor Chibuike Amaechi and his supporters in his Ward 8, Unit 14, Ubima in Ikwerre Local Government Area shunned the elections, blaming alleged failure of INEC to come with result sheets to the unit.

Meanwhile, the Brigade Commander, 2 Brigade, Port Harcourt, Brigadier General Koko Essien, said a soldier was killed by suspected thugs in Obio Akpor local government area of the state.

Sunday Vanguard gathered that one person was also shot dead in Oghale, Ward 3, Unit 2 in Eleme Local Government Area while effort was on to begin accreditation of voters.

Another person was killed in Ozuah community in Ikwerre Local Government Area.

A close aide to the

member representing D e g e m a / B o n n y constituency in the House of Representatives, Dr Sokonte Davies, dismissed the fear in several quarters that the lawmaker was abducted. The source, who said he established contact with the lawmaker when the news broke out, said Davies simply withdrew into his closet for security reasons.

In Asari Tor u Local Government Area, there was exchange of fire between security operatives and some hoodlums. In Ward 9, thugs allegedly hijacked election materials.

Senator Magnus Abe, who represents Rivers South East in the Senate, alleged that there was no election in all parts of his constituency. But the Minister of State for Industr y, Mr Kenneth Kobani, and a youth leader, Mr Mar vin Yobana, dismissed the allegation.

According to Kobani, elections went on peacefully in all the wards in Bodo, headquarters of Gokhana Local Government Area.

In Biera, the home town of Abe, in Khana Local Government Area, suspected thugs smashed vehicles parked in the house of a PDP chieftain in the area.

The Senator also alleged that he was attacked in Kpor community.

The Chairman of the Caretaker Committee in Akuku Toru Local Government Area, Chief Benibo, told newsmen that he had asked members of his All

Progressive Congress (APC) in the area to withdraw from the elections, alleging that his party members were being harassed.

Accreditation of voters started behind schedule in several polling units because of late arrival of materials. Also ad hoc staff of INEC had to resort to manual accreditation of voters because of the failure of the SCRs to function properly in several polling units.

Absence of election result sheets during accreditation of voters was an issue in several polling units. Some analysts who spoke on this said that, by the electoral law provision, result sheet should only be brought for signing by party agents.

In Opobo, the home town of the APC governorship candidate, Dr Dakuku Peterside election materials arrived very late.

It was a similar problem in several wards in Obio Akpor local government area where the APC governorship candidate, Barr Nyesom Wike, voted.

A former Chief of Staff, Government House and candidate of the APC for the Obio Akpor Federal Constituency, Mr.Tony Okocha, said result sheets were missing in all the 17 wards in the local government area.

But this was dismissed as untrue by some voters.

The Director of Communications of the APC governorship campaign organisation, Mrs Ibim Semenitari, in a statement, alleged that the PDP connived with INEC in the state to rig the elections.

Ebonyi: SCRs fail to authenticate voters *Correct lapses, Anyim tells INEC In Ebonyi, accreditation did not start at 8am as scheduled as voters were seen at polling units awaiting voting materials and electoral officials.

At 003 Onunuakpu and 001 Nwakpu Market Square, Ndufu Alike, SCRs failed to authenticate voters.

Because of the failure of the SCRs, electoral officials gave out Incident Forms to accredit voters.

Meanwhile, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, charged INEC to correct the lapses in the accreditation process linked to the SCRs in order to give credibility to the polls.

Anyim, who spoke to journalists in his home in Isiagu, Ebonyi State, said,”I have done my own accreditation. It was successful. But reports from most of the polling units indicate that the card reader is not working.

“INEC should correct the lapses experienced in this exercise to give credibility to the polls”.

On the bomb blast in Enugu,the SGF said,”it is surprising. The good thing is that there is no casuality.

“Based on that,the motive behind the action has been defeated.”

Man caught with 300 PVCs

Also in Ebonyi, yesterday, a man, Ozemena Odeta, was allegedly arrested at Ekawoke Ward in Ikwo Local Government Area while distributing 300 PVCs allegedly snatched from INEC staff during the distribution exercise in the area.

Speaking to journalists after his accreditation, the state Deputy Coordinator, Goodluck/ Sambo Presidential C a m p a i g n O r g a n i z a t i o n , Ambassador Franklin

Continued on Page 9

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 7

•President Jonathan casting his vote at Ward 13, Unit 39 Otuoke, during yesterday’s polls.

•Presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress, General Muhammadu Buhari and his wife, Hajiya A’isha Buhari casting their vote in the Presidential and National Assembly election in Daura, Katsina yesterday.

I am hopeful — Jonathan

•’Only Jega can explain Card Readers’ failure’ At exactly 3.09, President Goodluck Jonathan and wife, Dame Patience, voted at his polling unit, Otuoke, Bayelsa State.

Afetr casting his vote, he had this chat with reporters

W

HAT is your impression of the process?

I want to congratulate Nigerians for coming out en masse to exercise their right to vote.

But I want to sympathise with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for the Smart Card Readers across the country that malfunctioned. I want to urge Nigerians to continue to be patient and that they should bear with the commission.

In fact, because of the Card readers that malfunctioned, the Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, expressed anxiety and anger and he was boiling because of what INEC had done. I had to calm him down.

Even the governor of Delta State, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, also called me to express his disappointment and anger because of the failure of the Card Readers. I also had to calm him down too.

Do you have hope that all will be well at the end of the day?

I am hopeful that the elections would be successful, free and fair.

I want to plead with Nigerians to exercise some patience even though some people are said to have waited more than necessary at the polls.

Do you have

information as to what went wrong?

Yes, I have some information regarding some of the activities of INEC but it is only Professor Attahiru Jega, the National Chairman of INEC, alone that can speak for INEC. It is their duty.

I can’t speak for INEC. Jega will speak for INEC just as I can speak for the Federal Government.

There were stories of violence and a bomb blast in Enugu State?

There was no bomb blast.

The information I got was that somebody saw

something that he suspected looked like an Improvised Explosive Device, IED. I think the object was inspected and it was discovered that it was not a bomb.

I spoke with the governor of Enugu State this morning and he confirmed that there was

no bomb blast.

On the other incident, you know that the war on the terrorists is on-going as we want to take over Sambisa Forest. I was informed that some of these terrorists were on the run and they ran into the military and they were stopped.

What outcome are you expecting?

I am very hopeful.

I am satisfied with polls – Buhari T

HE presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress APC) in yesterday ’s elections, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), expressed satisfaction with the electoral process. Buhari spoke to journalists after his accreditation for the polls at Sarkinyara Ward A, Kaafar Baaru 0003 Polling Unit, Daura, Katsina State, at about 9.30am.

Clad in white babanriga with a cap to match, he arrived the unit to a tumultuous reception.

His security personnel had hectic moments controlling the surging crowds as they made desperate attempt to have a glance of the APC presidential candidate.

“I think I am satisfied with the whole process so far. Let me use this opportunity to call on my

supporters to remain calm and conduct themselves in the most peaceable manner

throughout the elections”, he stated.

Buhari expressed happiness over what he

described as “excellent “‘ arrangement put in place by INEC for the polls. “What I have seen

on ground here indicates the electoral body has really braced the odds, “ he added.

EU hails Card Readers’ use

By Soni Daniel

A

FTER observing the use of the Smart Card Readers (SCRs) for accreditation of voters in many voting units in Abuja, the European Union Election Monitoring Mission in Nigeria (EUEO-MIN), yesterday, gave a pass mark to the device, saying its deployment would check electoral fraud in Nigeria.

The EUEO-MIN chief, Santiago Fisas, made the remark while addressing journalists at the Model Secondary School, Maitama, Abuja for the elections, after assessing the accreditation of

voters with the SCRs. Fisas, who expressed satisfaction with the seamless operations of the facility in the area, noted, however, that the

slight delay associated with the accrediting process would not cause serious setback for the elections.

At the centre with

Registration Code 027, Maitama, the SCRs worked very well and no voter card was rejected as at midday when no fewer than 300 voters had been accredited.

INEC’s website hacked, restored

T

HE website of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was hacked into as the presidential and National Assembly elections got to a poor start, yesterday, by a group that called itself the Nigerian Cyber Army. The hacking was confirmed by INEC on its Twiter handle @inecnigeria.

Meanwhile, when Sunday Vanguard checked around noon, again, the website had been restored.

The electoral body, however, stated that its data base could not be hacked into.

•Prof Jega

PAGE 8 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

•Princess Stella Oduah, the PDP Senatorial candidate for Anambra North completing accreditation at the Polling unit at Akili-Ozizor, During the Election.

Nigerians vote in peaceful elections Continued from Page 8 Ogbuewu, stated that the suspect disappeared from the community after stealing the cards but resurfaced during the elections, yesterday.

He noted that the suspect was arrested by the police while distributing the PVCs to voters who agreed to for his candidate.

According to Ogbuewu, reports reaching him from different parts of the state showed that the SCRs failed to authenticate most voters.

“I want to inform you that the person that

snatched about 300 PVCs from the INEC staff during the last distribution exercise has been arrested by the police; immediately after the theft, the guy disappeared from the community but resurfaced during the elections”.

A police source, which confirmed the development, added that the police in the area had commenced investigation to ascertain the involvement of any other suspects.

Lagos: Osinbajo worried

*Tinubu patience

urges

LAGOS witnessed a huge turnout of voters for the elections but many of them were disappointed and would have to come out today to exercise their franchise.

Though the elections went on smoothly in some locations especially Somolu, there were hitches and complaints in many areas. The hitches include non-availability of electoral officers in a few polling units, late arrival of electoral officers and commencement of voting, malfunctioning smart card readers, outright failure of the

cards to function, and inability of some voters to locate their polling and voting points among others.

Most of the polling units in Amuwo Odofin, Igando, Oriade, Alimosho, Ojo, Oto Awori and Badagry local councils had issues with non and late arrival of sensitive materials.

Accreditation commenced between 11 and 12 am in some polling units in Badagry, Festac, Igando, Mushin, Oke Afa, Ikotun, Ejigbo.

In Igando, the situation was dire. At PU 017, Igando, the polling unit had up to 6000 registered voters with 11 sub polling units but they did not conclude

accreditation until about 4.30 pm due to card reader issues.

Some of the frustrated voters told Vanguard that the issue began with the submerging of large voting units in the area into polling unit 017 without proper identification of where registered voters in every unit will go for accreditation.

Late Accreditation in Lekki When Vanguard visited VGC area at 8:40am INEC officials were not available but observers, media and people were waiting patiently.

Accreditation started very late at Lekki generally because as at 9:15am, voting materials were still being sorted and shared among corps members at Ikota Primary School, Lekki, where the materials were stored.

At Oniru Estate, Lekki Phase1, nothing was happening as at 10am as people were waiting helplessly for INEC officials.

Voters were given tags as they waited for INEC officials.

The accreditation started around 12pm in Lekki/ Ibeju Lekki area Lagos.

Enthusiasm of voters was very high.

At Bonny Camp, accreditation started at four polling units around 9:45am and it took less than a minute for the reader to verify the dossiers of each voter.

Osinbajo, wife worried over hitches In VGC, Lekki where the All Progressives Congress (APC) Vice Presidential Candidate, Professor Yemi Osinbajo and his wife voted, the accreditation process did not start until about 10 am. When the process

eventually started, the card reader was non functional.

The development got Osinbajo and his wife worried.

Smooth balloting in Somolu At about 20 polling units at Somolu, the turn out of voters was not only high but also accreditation and voting went on smoothly.

Accreditation in most of the polling units in the area started as early as 8am, while voting started some minutes past 1:30pm.

In a few cases where the card reader did not capture the biometrics of voters, the incident form was used.

At ward 30 C at Apata Street, Somolu, voting commenced at about 1:42 after INEC officials urged voters to ascertain the validity of the ballot papers with signature and stamp at the back.

INEC officials gave preference to pregnant women, the elderly and physically challenged.

It was learned that of the 240 voters who registered at ward 3QC, Apata Street, Somolu, 97 turned up for accreditation, while 168 were accredited of the 567 registered voters in ward O C. Ijegun Imore, Satellite, Alakija In Ijegun Imore New site in Oriade Local Development Area, which has over 1000 houses, there is no polling booth for the teeming residents. Some voters who registered across the water in Ijegun Imore could not get boats to ferry them across.

At PU 008, Alakija, Satellite Town, the card

Continued on Page 9

Card Reader: So Smart, It Can’t Read

By Ikeddy Isiguzo, Chairman Editorial Board

N

IGERIANS should thank the Almighty that it was President Goodluck Jonathan, and not Maj-Gen Muhammadu Buhari, who had to spend the better part of an hour waiting for the smart card reader to unfold his biometric details. Four card readers after, several consultations and parttime tutorials on operating the machine, the card reader did not recognise the President and his wife Dame Patience Jonathan. They left for home, returned, tried again, the same result.

The President and his wife finally used the “incident form” at their voting centre in Otueke.

What would have happened in Daura if the card reader rejected Buhari’s card? Would the story not be that there

were plans to embarrass Buhari? How would voters have reacted?

Would it not confirm the All Progressives Congress, APC, allegation that the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, hired an Israeli security expert to jam the card readers?

Again, it was not the famed readiness of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, that saved the day.

The patience of Nigerians and the latitude they grant their public institutions saw the elections through. INEC was not ready, as usual.

Kayode Idowu, INEC spokesman typified the legendary arrogance of INEC. “It is not that the card reader did not work,” he said of the Otueke incident, “it did not read the President’s biometrics.” So much for sophistry.

The arrogance of INEC officials who hold voters responsible for the card

reader picking their biometrics was another notch in the heights INEC has raised its relations with the public. We are to assume that the card reader also caused the late arrival of materials, a traditional INEC forte, or the mixing up of the materials. What does INEC intend to prove with these elections?

INEC led Nigerians into believing that the card reader was the elixir for surmounting challenges on credibility of elections.

If we had not interrogated INEC on the card reader, it would not have conducted the tests that fully confirmed its ignorance about the workings of the device.

The retort that those who wanted to rig the elections were against the device was cheap blackmail.

INEC had not educated the public or its officials on the card reader.

Speculations about how the card reader worked continued into the polling

booths.

We were advised to wash out hands, and shun cosmetics; none of these was from INEC. If hands were to be washed, what happens to them after hours of waiting, under the sun, for INEC officials? Voters were the ones educating INEC officials to remove the flimsy cover on the device – in some places, that was what made the card readers work. INEC claimed to have trained its officials.

Back to the Otueke incident, which cast loads of doubts on INEC and its preparedness, how was INEC able to produce the four card readers used for the President? The rapidity of their delivery raises questions about INEC’s public posture that it programmed card readers to specific polling booths and that another polling booth could not use them. Were four INEC card readers dedicated to the president’s polling

booth? What could have informed INEC’s proactivity in this instance?

Card reader failures were more wide spread.

We knew about Otueke because of the media beam on the President.

What was the fate of millions of voters in other places, away from media attention? Could the failures have been avoided? They could at least have been minimised if INEC bridled its enthusiasm about a technology that it did not test and was using in elections that polarised Nigerians along several lines, the card reader was the final polarisation. The use of the card reader did not approximate to free and fair elections. INEC would not listen.

When the results are out, whoever wins could be full of praises for the card reader, but Nigerians should have better control of their institutions. INEC and its supporters failed to admit there was

nothing magical about smart card readers. Like ATM or POS machines, we regularly used, they can fail. Under certain circumstances – storage, poor handling, dust, weather conditions or poor network – they would not work. INEC promoted the card reader as if it was a different technology, infallible, like the Titanic, maybe.

Nigerians should be wary of wasteful and expensive technologies that create new problems.

Those, who like copying Ghana, claimed the device worked there, never mentioned that like in Otueke and other places, the card reader did not work in some places in Ghana.

When we remember the elections were postponed for six weeks, we can only ponder and wonder what INEC’s magical device would have done on February 14.

We have only begun the long trek to free, fair and credible elections.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 9

Nigerians vote in peaceful elections Continued from Page 6 reader did not work. The presiding officer, after communicating with his superiors said there would be manual accreditation and voting will take place today, a move the voters opposed at press time.

Kirikiri, Mazamaza It was complaints galore at most polling booths and voting points in Kirikiri, Mazamaza and Kuje-Amuwo areas.

Election officers were not available at most polling units as of 10.30 am At Dr Lucas Memorial Secondary School which served as voting points and election materials distribution point, some electoral officers refused to carry electoral materials to the polling units because the card readers were not working.

At Open Space polling unit, Berger (PU 031), only one of the two voting points had a card readers as voters queuing in the sun complained.

Voters whose surname started from A to M could not be accredited as of 11 am.

At PU 003 at Kirikiri there was no INEC official at 10.30 am. At Comfort Oboh/Okoduwa (PU 027) INEC officials went away at 10am when the three card readers did not function.

At Oyewole Primary School, Mazamaza only two of the three voting points had card readers at 11am.

At PU 055 at Kuje Amuwo, there was no INEC official at 4.30 pm.

Accreditation in some polling units was grounded owning to failure of card reader machines as voters were seen in groups expressing their anger and disappointment with some of them accusing INEC of planning to disenfranchise them as there were yet to be accredited as at 11:30 am.

Card readers at polling units 069 in Oshodi, 019 Oduduwa Way, 016 and 006 in Opebi Road and 03/07, 006, 004 all in Adeniyi Jones were not functioning.

‘Why cards malfunctioned’ Some INEC officials attributed the failure of the card readers to INEC engineers who could decode the inbuilt security installation in the card reader.

The security code in the card reader is reportedly designed to update the time and date of voting. One official claimed that the cards were initially programmed for February 14 that with the postponement to March 28, some of the cards had not been reprogrammed.

An All Progressive Congress, APC Agent,

Mr. Lanre. Adebola who confirmed the faulty card readers, said: “Everything is working accordingly but card readers are not operational. We have made calls to the engineers and they said they are coming but they are yet to arrive and voters are getting agitated, he stated.

Okota, Isolo, Ikotun, Egbe Some areas where INEC officials arrived late include some polling units around Okota, Jakande Estate and Isolo. As at 9;30am officials were yet to arrive while voters turned out en masse.

Card reader hassles were also witnessed in Ikotun, Egbe and Ejigbo areas where some card readers were slow or did not accredit some voters.

For instance, at Jakande Estate |PU 002, voters arrived as early as 7 am but the accreditation did not commence until 9am.

Some voters complained of not being accredited because of the challenges posed by the three card readers that were allocated to the unit. To ensure that every registered voter is accredited, the INEC officers resorted to manual accreditation.

The situation was not different at Lamoshe polling units 001, 002 and 003, and units 057 and 058 in Ejigbo, where the exercise started at about 3pm.

At unit 34, in Oke Afa, Isolo, about 300 voters were accredited there were three card readers rejection forms, a party agent at the polling unit, said that the INEC officials came at about 10:15 am two hours and the card reader initially was faulty.

Bomb scare There was a bomb scare in Ejigbo area at about 10:25 am during the accreditation of voters. People were suspicious of a Mazda vehicle with plate number DY 135 ABC parked close to polling unit 04. They said they were not going to vote if the car is not removed from the area as they woke up to see the vehicle there. They kept complaining until a police patrol team opened the car, checked and then moved it out of the polling unit.

Ifako, Gbagada The card readers were not functioning at several polling units, as at 1pm, in Ifako and Gbagada areas. At PU 039, no voter was accredited because the card reader was not functioning. At unit 019 Ajayi Anio Street, the voters said the INEC official got there at 11am and the card readers were also not working.

At units 001 and 062 in Gbagada, the card readers were not

•Oyo State Labour Party Governorship candidate, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala casting his vote at Unit 13, Ward 10, Itara Area of Ogbomoso North.

•Former governor of Oyo State, Alao Akala of Labour Party casting his vote yesterday. working.

Voters complained that INEC officials refused to accredit them manually.

As at 1:34 pm, accreditation was yet to commence in unit 114 Agboyi/Ketu area.

At Abati in Surulere, 590 voters were registered, 92 were accredited as at 11: 35, while only three voters failed the biometric test.

Festac Town In Festac Town, the exercise was marred by a number of defective card readers.rd At the 3 Avenue Primary School, Festac Town, although INEC officials arrived promptly at about 8 am., Madam Ajewole Abolanle was bitter that having been at the polling booth since 8 a.m. the card reader for PU 019A was not working as at the 10.30 am.

Contacted, the INEC Presiding Officer, said the card reader had not been properly reconfigured.

At Polling Unit 054, Amuwo Odofin Extension, the exercise smooth and card readers did not have issues.

NASS ballot papers missing in Ward C, Ikorodu In Ward 3 C Ikorodu West, Agric Area, only ballot paper for the presidential election was available as INEC officials failed to produce ballot papers for Senate and House of Representatives candidates.

Ikeja Voting at PU 008, Ward 3, Magoje/Randle Street, St Peter ’s Primary School, Ikeja, was suspended and postponed till today because the card reader did not function. The INEC’s presiding officer, Mayor Alani Okiki Opomosu, said the postponement was

necessary to ensure the voters were not disenfranchised.

Exercise a failure – Senator Remi Tinubu The lawmaker representing Lagos Central Senatorial District, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, lampooned the INEC over the “shoddy handling of the polls”.

Senator Tinubu, who spoke with newsmen at the Polling Unit located on Bourdillon Road expressed worry that some electorate may be disenfranchised at the end of the voting exercise.

She said: “I have been here since 8am and nothing has happened here but we are expectant and we will definitely berth the election and by then, everybody will be happy.”

The lawmaker decried the late commencement of voters’ accreditation saying, “as far as this election is concerned, it is a failure. This is a total failure. This shows incompetence and unpreparedness despite the assurance given by INEC. But I believe that INEC should be able to prove the presidency wrong by getting it right.

We know something is going on but we will vote and our votes will be counted, it will not be stolen. I am waiting even if it means waiting till 6pm and I will file a report.”

Kosofe, Somolu, Ikeja, Yaba At many polling points in Kosofe, Somolu, Ikeja and Yaba local g o v e r n m e n t s , accreditation did not start until 3:30 pm, after the electoral body changed its strategy to allow manual accreditation.

At Randle/Megaje polling unit with code EC 30 A, (008), the

Smart Card Reader was completely faulty and the electoral officials could not commence the accreditation until 3:30 pm.

Major Alani Okikioposun, a resident of the community lamented: “I arrived here before 8:00 am with the intention to vote. But at this time (11: 30 am), I am yet to be accredited.

And the excuse the official gave was that the card reader is faulty.

And until the technician from INEC comes, they cannot work.

The reaction of the electoral official angered some of us. And it took the intervention of the community leaders to pacify the angry electorate,” he added.

Okikioposun later informed Vanguard that a c c r e d i t a t i o n commenced at 3:30 pm and ended one hour after, while voting started at 4:30 pm.

In Kosofe Local Government, sources said that the sensitive electoral materials didn’t arrive until 4:00 pm, and the electoral officials completed the accreditation a few hours later.

When Vanguard visited Ogudu Health Centre, Kosofe Local Government with code 083 at 3:30 pm, the electorates including Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora were seen waiting for the arrival of the sensitive materials.

Be patient, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu urge Nigerians A former Governor of Lagos state and National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, urged Nigerians to exercise patience and be tolerant especially with the use of the card readers.

Speaking after his accreditation at INEC polling zone EC30B,

Ward 47 Alausa Ikeja, Tinubu said if the voting exercise continues the way it is, the election result will be credible.

According to him, Nigerians may have to endure more but in the future, the card reader might be the only way to go.

His words: “I believe that as the election is going, you just need to be patient because of the new system of identification. We must have to be tolerant and people may have to endure more but as we go ahead and move on in the future, it will be the only way to go”.

Commenting on the credibility of the polls so far, Tinubu said: “I cannot say from one polling booth. Until we get the validity test from reports from various polling booths before we can say. If we continue like this, it will result in a credible election”.

Calling on the INEC to protect Nigeria’s democracy, he said: “I hope INEC will work hard to protect this democracy. If General Obasanjo and General Abdulsalam Abubakar say there must be peace, there must be peace, honestly. If it takes President Obama of United States to support peace and appeal for the commitment of our nation, then we should not preach violence. We should not react violently, we should tell our people to vote”.

Tinubu, however, denied sending messages to his supporters to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying it is part of the gimmick and desperation of the ruling party.

“This is my phone and I can make it public

Continued on Page 10

PAGE 10 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

Yesterday: Not better than yesteryears

BY CHIOMA GABRIEL

T

HE day dawned bright and fair.

Nigerians woke up, yesterday, with only one thing in their mind: To go out and peacefully elect their next president.

The television stations came up live very early, affording Nigerians the opportunity to witness the main presidential candidates vote. Many saw live the ease with which the presidential standard- bearer of the All Progressives Congress, General Muhammadu Buhari, got accredited . In fifty seconds, he and his wife, Aisha, were accredited.

With the ease they saw on the television with which the card reader performed, they rushed out to their polling units expecting to be captured with the same ease.

Not many saw what the card reader did to President Jonathan and his wife, Patience, and so, out there in the field, it was a mixed bag of experience for the voters.

Across the states, it’s different strokes for different folks as the presidential election experience left many gasping for breath.

“I didn’t vote,” said Pastor Innocent. “We didn’t see the INEC people. We are still waiting for them. But there is no sign that anything is going on here. It’s a shame”. “ I got accredited before 8.30am. We started early

in my unit,”said Mrs Bisiriyu. “Everything is working smoothly here.”

Nigerians are lawabiding citizens who complied with all the rules. The shops were closed. Businesses were not opened. People either stayed at the polling units waiting to get accredited and vote or stayed home with their families. The young boys used the opportunity to play in the free roads while vehicular movement was restricted.

The rest kept busy with house chores.

Apart from coming out en masse to exercise their franchise, the elections provided opportunity for people to meet their neighbours they have not had time to see or speak with over the months due to the ever busy schedule of work and business.

While they waited for INEC officials to commence the voting process, they updated themselves on happenings about them.

As early as 7am, many Nigerians of voting age had stepped out to their various polling units to get accredited. Some had their dreams to vote without hitches fulfilled but others got disappointed due to the different experiences they encountered in the field.

As at 4pm in many polling units around Lagos, accreditation was

still going because the card reader failed.

“I didn’t get accredited,” said Mary Joseph.” My name was not in the list. I came out very early but my name was not the the list.

Maybe, I was meant to go and vote at another polling unit but things are not smooth at all.

This is where I registered and got my PVC. But my name was not there. My husband waited when I left but the card reader failed. So, he did manual accreditation. When they finished the accreditation, they said the ballot box was not yet available. It is past three O’clock. Look at the them at the unit. The card •General Muhammadu Buhari of APC monitoring the election on TV. reader failed and there was no ballot box. He is still there.”

For Badmus Lawal, were strict but very civil. voters said they would One of the voters said wait to see the end of it everything went well in Policemen and other they started all. agencies the polling units he security accreditation at 3:30pm. manned the polling “ I want to see the end voted.

“We don’t know what of everything. I came out Agents of “It’s smooth all along. booths. happened with INEC here as early as 8am and My wife and I got there various political parties officials. We didn’t see up till now (4pm), and got accredited with were also on grounds to them until three o’clock. nothing has happened the same card reader that monitor the election We are just in my voting unit. INEC people were process. Red Cross, civil commencing.” officials came this complaining about. By society groups and other In many polling units, morning and we tried to 1pm, the accreditation observers were also on patient voters waited do accreditation but was officially declared ground. under the sun and rain nothing happened. The closed by the INEC Generally, despite the to exercise their card reader failed. They official and by 1.30pm, issues and franchise. Despite the brought hand sanitiser, we commenced voting malfunctioning card queues and the long soap and detergents. and everything went reader, accreditation and wait and occasional They asked us to wash smoothly. I have no sad voting were generally exchange of hot words our hands very well for story to tell”. peaceful. There were no between voters and the oil to reduce. It didn’t Security forces, others issues, no incidents INEC officials, in most work. It’s around 3pm very civil besides INEC’s centres, voting went on that the card reader The soldiers complied malfunctioning card peaceful. began to work but it’s with the court injunction reader and late arrival of In some centres, INEC slow. That is why you are that ordered them off the ballot boxes. people did not come at seeing this crowd but we streets. There were only all as at 4.30pm and the will wait.” police check-points who

Nigerians vote in peaceful elections Continued from Page 9 again. I did not send any text message. That is part of the gimmick and the desperation of the ruling party and that is fraudulent. I did not authorize any text message to anyone. I cannot campaign today but I know what I have told my supporters and the supporters of our party. You all know which party I belong to and you know the candidate of that party.

That is the text message that I will ask people to believe.’’

He went further, “What kind of leadership, what kind of legacy, what kind of ethics are we teaching? If I have to compromise anything, is it the platform I helped build and by the grace of God is the best platform that is available? I will go any extent to investigate this if my phone has been cloned.’’

Borno: Problem operating SCRs

In Borno State, 10 out of 100 eligible voters were recognized and verified by the SCR at

the Mohammed Maina Polling Unit 069 in Polo area of Maiduguri metropolis.

At Polling Unit 070 in Satumari, on the outskirts of Maiduguri, an obser ver, Mr. Abubakar Umar, said the INEC adhoc staff sent to conduct the exercise had a problem operating the systems, particularly the computer and the SCR, pointing out that they had been at the polling unit since 7am, but, up till 10:30am, not a single voter had been accredited.

Umar said people were stranded as INEC officials had returned to their head office to try to resolve the problem.

The presiding officer, Mustapha Umar Ali, said, “We are encountering many problem regarding the SCR and verification of PVCs and thumb prints.

We have asked voters to exercise patience, as we will give them incident form to fill,” he stated.

Kwara: Frantic efforts to resolve SCR issues

In Kwara State, the

turn out was impressive across the state.

In Magaji Are Ward 2, GRA, Ilorin, opposite the residence of the state commissioner of police, the election was peaceful, according to Bello Kayode, the INEC officer there.

There were, however, hitches in Idofian Ward 2 where all the SCRs did not work by 10.35am while electoral officials were working frantically to solve the problem. It was the same situation at Popo Polling Unit in Offa.

The senator representing Kwara Central on the platform of APC, Dr Bukola Saraki, who was seeking re-election, in an inter view, commended the peaceful conduct of the elections.

Speaking shortly after being accredited at his Ajikobi Ward, Ilorin, Saraki said the peaceful conduct of the polls was a clear indication that the electorate was yearning for change.

In Ile- Magaji Baboko Polling Unit in Ilorin West Local Government Area, another chieftain of the APC, Alhaji

Abubakar Kawu Baraje, expressed optimism that the exercise was successful.

He assured that the ACP presidential candidate, Buhari, will win the election.

Enugu: SCR rejects Ekweremadu’s thumbprint

In Enugu State, the Deputy Senate P r e s i d e n t , I k e Ekweremadu, appealed to INEC to discard the use of the SCRs for accreditation in the polls,having failed to accredit him at Amachara Primary School, Mpu, A n i n r i , L o c a l Government Area.

Ekweremadu, who arrived the polling unit at exactly 11.06 am in the company of his wife, Nwanneka, was crest fallen when the SCR failed to work.

He was, however, accredited with the Incident Form.

“A presidential election as huge as this should not be used as a pilot scheme for the card reader technology”, the Senate principal officer said.

“The card reader is not functioning optimally. It

has made accreditation slow and stressful.

“INEC did not listen to our advice. This card reader should have been tried in a bye-election or supplementry election before a major election as this. INEC should immediately discard it and allow everybody who presents his PVC to be accredited and vote.

“The card reader is not recognised by the Electoral Act. It is not in our Constitution. I and my wife had to be accredited manually ”.

At Enugu-North senatorial zone, electoral officials were yet to arrive as at 11.55am many polling centres at Olido,Imufu,Umuida and Okurutte, all in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area.

Distribution of materials was yet to commence in most rural areas in Enugu-North senatorial zone.

Meanwhile, an explosion rocked WTC School 1, Polling Unit, Enugu around 7.38am, learning electoral officials and prospectors voters scampering for safety.

Two explosives were detonated at about 8.56am at the same premises by the

operatives of the AntiBomb Squad of the Enugu State Police Command.

According to an eyewitness,the bombs were kept in a Honda car parked beside the gate of the school.

At the time of this report, accreditation had not started at the centre and most centres in the state.

Enugu State Commissioner of Police,Dan Bature, confirmed the explosion at the polling unit.

Saying, “Three bombs were found in a Honda Accord car.

“One of the bombs exploded while we have just successfully detonated two. It was an Improvised Explosive Device, IED. “We are working assiduously to unravel the identity of the suspects. The suspects abandoned the car at the gate of the school. We are working to make the area safe.”

Meanwhile, the state PDP gubernatorial candidate, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, cast his vote at his Amube Ohum Ward 1 and 2 Polling Centre in Orba, in Continues on page 11

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 11

Nigerians vote in peaceful elections Continued from Page 10 Udenu Local Government Area at about 3.05pm.

Ugwuanyi’s running mate,Mrs. Cecilla Ezeillo, voted at her Aguobu-owa Ward 1,in Ezeagu Local Government Area.

Ezeillo was pleased that INEC approved the use of manual accreditation in areas where the SRCs malfunctioned during the elections.

Anambra: ‘Card Readers not working’

In Onitsha, Anambra State, many voters were disenfranchised as a result of the failure of the SCRs to function in most polling units in the state.

Mostly affected were Idemili North, Idemili South, Ihiala, Ekwusigo and Anambra East local government areas.

According to an All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA, leader in Nkpor Ward 1, Idemili North Local Government Area, Chief Ralph Nnabuife, “the card reader in the 17 polling booths are not working”.

“As you can see, we have been here since morning. INEC officials came early but we are surprised that the card reader failed,” he posited.

Also, the APGA Vice Chairman in the state, Chief Ifeanyi Udokwu Ekwueme, said “ the people turned out en masse to elect their representatives but the card reader failed them.”

Niger: SCR failure in most polling units *IBB, Abdulsalami preach peace In Niger State, two former military heads of state, Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar, called on Nigerians to maintain peace during and after the elections to allow democracy to thrive in the country.

The two former Nigerian leaders, who spoke to journalists at the Uphill Polling Unit where they were accredited for the polls, yesterday, maintained that democracy could only thrive under a peaceful atmosphere.

Abubakar said,”Like I have often preached, democracy can only thrive under a peaceful atmosphere and this is why we should all remain peaceful throughout these elections especially after.”

B a b a n g i d a said,”Violence cannot in any way do anybody any good and so people should be peaceful throughout the elections.”

The former military president, who came out for accreditation around

•General Buhari and his wife after voting.

9:40am, explained why he was hard on those embarking on campaign of calumny against former military leaders because they were trying to ridicule not only those who were concerned but also the profession.

On the election, accreditation and voting went on smoothly in Minna, the state capital and in most local government areas of the state.

There was massive turn out by the electorate amid SCR failure in most polling units across Niger State.

While some polling units commenced with the use of the new technology successfully, they soon collapsed thereby forcing the electoral officers to fall back to manual accreditation.

The exercise was peaceful except for the pockets of protests from some eligible voters who could not be accredited because of the SCR hitches.

Cross River: ‘Card Readers failed woefully’

In Cross River State, Governor Imoke urged National Electoral INEC to ensure that the failure that characterized the presidential and National Assembly elections is avoided in the April 11 governorship and House of Assembly polls.

Imoke, who gave the charge shortly after casting his vote at the Government Primary School, Itigidi, in Abi Local Government Area, advised that INEC should not use malfunctioning SCRs to disenfranchise Nigerians. He stated: “The most important thing in voting is that everybody must have the right to vote and you must not disenfranchise anyone for failure of equipment, it is wrong and INEC must admit that.

“We have a situation where the machine fails and they do not have enough Incident Forms, and it is so unfair. If using a machine was to give the process

credibility, I don’t think we have achieved that in these elections. I believe that the card reader machine has failed woefully. It is most unfortunate, there is no basis for this.”

Lamenting what he said was INEC insistence on the use of card reader, Governor Imoke said: “This is what we continually emphasized that card readers should not disenfranchise Nigerians and INEC has recognized this fact that when the card reader fails, manual voting should be used. We have received a series of complaints and challenges which I hope at the end of the day we will overcome and credible elections achieved.”

Polling Unit, one of the SCRs was bad while another was slow. At a polling unit by the Ona of Abaji, voters were accredited but the machines were very slow.

At Sokondobo Street, as at 9.30 am, materials were not available, but voters lined up waiting for them. At Naharati, Agyna Road, Padagi, accreditation was also slow and, for ten minutes, the SCR laboured to take the thumb print of one person. The INEC officials resorted to the use of Incidence Forms with names written and voters asked to thumb print.

Abuja: Officials arrange washing of fingers

In Ekiti State, the elections went on smoothly.

But one person identified as Jide Owolabi was allegedly shot when some hoodlums attacked the convoy of the deputy governor,Dr Olusola Olubunmi Eleka while he was about to cast his vote at Odo Oja area,Ikere Ekiti Owolabi was said to have been shot when security operatives in the convoy of Eleka fired to the air to disperse the hoodlums who wanted to attack the deputy governor Owolabi is now receiving medical treatment in an undisclosed hospital in the state.

But the APC senatorial candidate for Ekiti South ,Senator Tony Adeniyi, blamed Eleka, noting that Owolabi was shot amid a hot argument between the deputy governor ’s supporters and some PDP members who accused him of flouting the restriction order on vehicular movement.

Debunking the allegation, the deputy governor told journalists that the victim and others had planned a mob attack on his convoy and his security had to shoot into the air for him to escape.

Also,the House of All Progressive Congress (APC)candidate for the House of

In Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Ter ritory, FCT, the turnout was impressive.

But at Bwari Polling Unit 04, one of the SCRs, out of the four deployed to accredit 5,000 voters, packed up.

Another failed to accredit voters with dirty finger prints as INEC adhoc staff had to beg residents to fetch water to enable voters wash their fingers.

Also at 005 Unit, a register with names of voters starting with alphabets M-Z could not be located.

The Bwari Resident Electoral Officer contacted INEC head office which ordered manual register to accommodate the missing names.

At Zango Unit 006, Kudur u Ward, the turnout was impressive as voters besieged the unit as early as 5am and a c c r e d i t a t i o n commenced at 8.30am.

Meanwhile, there was high military personnel presence on the major road from Gwagwalada, through Kwali to Abaji.

The atmosphere in Abaji was calm with large turnout of intending voters who queued for accreditation.

Voters came out as early as 8am for the accreditation. At Wazam

Ekiti: Deputy gov, APC in shooting row

Representatives,Hon Oyetunde Ojo, and four others were attacked by hoodlums at Erinjinyan Ekiti.

However,in most of the polling units,voters had problem with the card readers,but were given Incident Forms for accreditation.

The elections were hailed by Governor Ayodele Fayose who described the conduct in the state as very peaceful, describing the turnout of voters as very impressive .

Also speaking, former Governors Kayode Fayemi and Segun Oni; a House of Representatives member, Hon Opeyemi Bamidele; as well as an APC leader, Mr Segun Osinkolu, condemned the attack on the member of the party in Ikere Ekiti, saying it confirmed the desperation of the PDP.

Delta: Man with 2 PVCs held

In Delta State, the polls were peaceful except in some areas where pockets of crisis were recorded.

There was a drama at Ibada-Elume community of Sapele Local Government Area as military operatives on the Warri/Sapele high way arrested one Daniel Akpoduado with two PVCs. In Oshimili South, Oshimili North, Aniocha South and Aniocha North, the polls were generally peaceful.

There were no complaints of malfunctioning of SCRs at the time of this report.

The APC gubernatorial candidate in the state, Olorogun O’Tega Emerhor, said: “This is an innovation; before now, there was concern that the card reader will not work, but in this locality, it worked well.

The accreditation is going on smoothly. I have done my own accreditation. I tried it, it failed twice but it was discovered that it was because my finger was wet, at the third time it worked”.

At Orogun, Ughelli North Local Government Area, the Delta Central Senatorial candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Obaisi Ovie Omo-Agege, said: “In my own wards; the two Orogun wards, there is no problem, everything is going on fine. But the reports we are hearing outside is not encouraging at all especially in Ughelli South.

“I hope it would be addressed as soon as possible. Peoples patient should not be overstretched. I here right now even in Okwagbe, the materials with the result sheets has not been released. That is what is also going on in Igun in Ethiope East. The most annoying, is the chairman of Ehiope West council using the police to chase away our agents from

polling units. We have made a report to police and we hope they will address it as soon as possible otherwise we will be forced to react”.

AT 11am in Units 1, 2 of Warri GRA Ward, it took the first voter who stepped up for accreditation to get through the process.

Late arrival of materials and failure of the card readers characterized the exercise in Isoko North and South Local Government Areas.

As at 7.45 am, there was the challenge of vehicles to transport the electoral materials to the various wards in the council areas, while distribution of ballot materials to the various polling units commenced at about 10 am.

Speaking on the late arrival of electoral materials in many areas of Delta, a chieftain of the APC in the state, Senator Spanner Okpozo, noted: “If there if any delay in the exercise, it is a problem of INEC. It shows that INEC did not prepare adequately for the election, though there is sincerity on their part. In the interest of those who have not been accredited, there should be room to accommodate everybody”.

Benue: Peaceful polls, problematic Card Readers

In Benue State, the general elections, which were peacefully conducted, were marred by large scale failure of the SCR. When Sunday Vanguard visited some polling units in Makurdi, Guma, Gwer, Gwer West, Otukpo, Ogbadibo and Okpokwu local government areas of the state, it was discovered that voters who turned out in large numbers at the various polling unit had to contend with malfunctioning SCR. Commenting on the development shortly after casting his vote at about 1:37pm, Senate President David Mark, who commended the peaceful conduct of the exercise in his constituency, however, raised concern over the SCRs failure.

“This election is certainly peaceful like we never had it before but the issue of malfunctioning card readers gives one cause for worry. INEC has to address that issue quickly.”

Mark who urged the people of the constituency to be patient with INEC urged the electoral body to quickly address the anomaly.

On his part,. the Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, noted that the elections would have been the best organised in the country but for the challenge posed by the SCRs in most polling units in his constituency.

PAGE 12 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

Remi Tinubu, Obanikoro win polling units •Bode George loses

BY OUR REPORTERS

T

HE lawmaker representing Lagos Central Senatorial District, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, won her Polling Unit 34, Ward 9, |Ikoyi. She scored 105 while her Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) challenger polled 21 votes.

At the same unit, the APC won the House of Representatives with 103 votes to PDP’s 16. APC also had 106 votes in the presidential to PDP’s 25.

Minister of State Foreign Affairs, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, also delivered Ward 8, Polling Unit 012, EtiOsa Local Government to the PDP. In the presidential election, the PDP had 151 votes to APC’s 86. In the senatorial election, it was 147:83 in favour of of PDP and 147:78 for the House of Representatives.

Tinubu, Fashola deliver Also Senator Bola Tinubu delivered his unit 047, Sunday Adigun Street, Ward C, Alausa, Ikeja as APC candidates defeated their opponents at the polls.

The counting at the ward started around 5 pm by the National Youths Service Corps, NYSC, INEC staff. Total number of people

accredited was 891 and total number of voters was 723 while the total number of voided votes was 15.

Presidential results were as follows: APC, 180; PDP 55; APA 1, and KOWA 2.

Senatorial: KOWA 2; PDP 53; APC 181; and House of Reps: KOWA 1; AD 1; PDP 53 and APC 178.

At Ward G-3, State Senior Secondary School, Itolo, Surulere, where Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State voted, the results were: Presidential (APC 317, PDP 135); Senate (APC 318 , PDP 129) and House of Reps (APC326 and PDP 114).

The result in Unit 005, Nobest, Council area, Egbe-Idimu Local Council Development Area, LCDA, Alimosho for Presidential. APC 220 and PDP 137, House of Reps, PDP scored 140, and APC 209, while the Senate recorded APC 213, PDP 139.

At Unit 039, Ifako, APC with 100 votes won the presidential poll while the PDP polled 50.

Bode George loses polling unit to APC Former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Olabode George, lost his 001 Evans Street, Lagos Island, polling unit to

Other results Agege Local Government Ward 11 Polling Unit 006 Party H/Reps Sen. President APC 21 24 23 PDP 11 9 10 The low result here is due to the slow working of the Card Reader. By the time senior officials of INEC came to rectify the situation, many voters had run home because of the rains.

Ward 11 Polling Unit 007 Party H/Reps Sen. President APC 118 121 130 PDP 71 76 69 Ward 11 Polling Unit 009 Party H/Reps Sen. President APC 103 07 117 PDP 81 80 71 Ward 11 Polling Unit 010 Party H/Reps Sen. President APC 122 136 129 PDP 86 85 81 Ward 11 Polling Unit 011 Party H/ Reps Senate APC 89 88 PDP 40 41 NCP 1 Ward 11 Polling Unit 012 Party H/Reps Senate APC 65 67 PDP 51 49

President 95 35 President 66 54

the APC by one vote.

For the presidential poll, the PDP scored 108 votes to APC’s 109.

INEC suspends elections in Orhiomnwon LGA in Edo

By SIMON EBEGBULEM

T

HE presidential and National Assembly elections have been suspended in Orhiomwon Local Government Council of Edo State till today, due to late arrival of materials.

The Deputy Governor, Dr Pius Odubu; a former Minister of State for Works, Dr Chris Ogienwonyi; and the state Campaign Director of President Goodluck Jonathan, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, are from this area.

Materials arrived the area at about 2:30pm forcing the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Mr Mike Igini, to suspend the elections until a later date. According to Igini “even in areas where we don’t have result sheets, when it is clear that result sheets did not arrive early, we have to suspend elections in such areas till tomorrow.

“INEC will ensure that the right thing is done.

Every genuine registered voter will cast he or her vote and that is our aim.

Whatever lapses we are witnessing today will be addressed so people should not panic”.

•The blinds waiting to vote in Niger State.

Card Reader problem: Jega failed to heed wise counsel — PDP

By Henry Umoru

N

AT I O N A L Leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, described the inability of the Smart Card Readers (SCRs) to accredit President Goodluck Jonathan as well as Governors Jonah Jang of Plateau, James Ngilari of Adamawa and Isa Yuguda of Bauchi, among others, during the presidential and National Assembly polls, as a huge national embarrassment.

The party called on the Professor Attahiru Jegaled Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to give Nigerians explanation.

In a statement by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the party noted that the poor working of the SCRs during the elections across the country would have been avoided if INEC had listened to “sound advice from well-meaning individuals and

House of Reps poll put on hold in Delta constituency

H

OUSE of Representative election in Ethiope Federal Constituency was, yesterday, put on hold on grounds of misplacement of ballot papers meant for the election.

The election which, according to a dependable source, has been slated for the April 11, would take place simultaneously with the governorship and state House of Assembly elections.

Some chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Ethiope East Local Government Area described the postponement as a big blow to the party and the electorate.

Speaking to Sunday Vanguard at Ovu, a PDP leader in the area, Chief

Mike Adiotomre, said: “We were shocked with the news as it was a big blow to the entire Ethiope constituency. PDP as a family was very prepared for the election, but the postponement of the election has demoralized the electorates. We demand an unreserved apology from INEC as a result of the waste of time and resources.”

On his part, PDP Ethiope East House of Assembly candidate, Chief Arthur Akpowowo, at the Eku town hall, venue for Ward 15, said: “INEC has failed in the preparation and conduct of the election. We were expecting to do the election but much to our chagrin, over 10 cartons containing 50,000 ballot papers were missing”.

organizations including the PDP regarding their deployment without proper testing”.

Metuh, who noted that the resort to manual accreditation by INEC hours into the exercise against its earlier guidelines clearly showed the failure of the system, said, “The unfortunate development is a vindication of our earlier position that as good as the idea of card readers is, it was too virgin to be successfully used in a

general election without proper testing especially in an environment as ours that is not entirely digitally proficient.”

The PDP equally frowned at reported cases of accreditation of underaged persons in some states especially in the northern part of the country and called on INEC not only to ensure that such unqualified persons are not allowed to vote but also to prosecute its officials involved in the crime.

INEC blames NURTW for election lapses •Approves manual accreditation of voters

By Jude Opara, Abuja

T

HE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) approved manual accreditation of voters due to the large scale failure of Smart Card Readers (SCRs) to function effectively in many parts of the country in yesterday’s elections.

INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education Committee, Dr. Chris Eyimoga, told a world press conference, yesterday, that the decision to amend the electoral guidelines at such a short notice was due to the large scale.

“INEC has been monitoring field reports since the commencement of the election this morning.

While the exercise has gone well in several places, in many others it has encountered some challenges especially with the use of the card readers; consequently accreditation has been slow in many places and has not commenced in others,”Eyimoga said.

“Even though the guidelines for the conduct of the 2015 general elections provide that where card readers fail to

work and cannot be replaced, elections in such polling units will be postponed till the following day, the scale of the challenge we have observed today has necessitated a reconsideration of this provision of the guidelines.

“The commission has therefore decided as part of the guidelines for the conduct of the 2015 general elections that in polling units where card readers have so failed to work, the presiding officer shall manually accredit voters by marking the register of voters, upon being satisfied that the person presenting the Permanent Voter Card (PVC) is the legitimate holder of the card.”

Iyimoga revealed that INEC will thoroughly investigate what happened, even as he promised the commission will deliver free, fair and credible elections despite the the challenges.

According to the national commissioner, the problem of late distribution of materials in Abuja and some other places was due to the problems which he said INEC had with the members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW).

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 13

PRESIDENTIAL, N ATION AL ASSEMBL NA TIONAL ASSEMBLYY POLLS Photos by Joe Akintola (Photo Editor), Kehinde Gbadamosi, Biodun Ogunleye, Akeem Salau, Diran Oshe, Bunmi Azeez, Lamidi Bamidele, Oscar Ochiogu, Abayomi Adeshida, Olugbenga Olamikan, Olu Ajayi, Dare Fasube, Nath Onojake, Ben Njoku & Ebun Sessou.

Governor Godswill Akpabio casting his vote at Independent High School in Ukana West Ward 2, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa IbomState

Gov Mu'azu Babangida Aliyu, casting his vote at the Umar Musa Polling Unit, Minna, Niger State

Chief Willie Obiano, Governor of Anambra State being, accredited to vote at Eri Primary School 1, Aguleri

Gov Liyel Imoke casting his vote at Itigidi, Abi LGA, Cross River State

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar being accredited at Ajiya Ward 2, Komihina, Jimeta, Yola, Adamawa State

Deputy Speaker, House of Reps and PDP governorship candidate in Imo State, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, casting his vote at Town School, Mbutu, Aboh Mbaise LGA, Imo State

Senator Musilu Obanikoro during accreditation at Polling Unit 005, Osborn Road, Lagos C M Y K

Director General of the DSS, Ita Ekpenyong, casting his vote at Unit 011, New Capital School, Asokoro, Abuja

Senator David Mark casting his vote at Otukpo Ward1, Polling Centre, Benue State.

Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, casts ballot at the Amachara Mpu Ward 010, Aninri LGA, Enugu State

Chief Bode George, during accreditation at Unit 1, Adu /Evan Junction, Opo Faaji, Lagos

PAGE 14—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

PRESIDENTIAL, N ATION AL ASSEMBL NA TIONAL ASSEMBLYY POLLS

First Lady, Dame Patient Jonathan casting her vote at Ward 13, Unit 39, Otabla, Otuoke, Bayelsa State

Senator Olorunmbe Mamowora and his wife Olanlesi, checking their names at Ward 083, Ogudu, Lagos

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN, casting her vote at Ward G3, Unit E002, State Junior Grammar School, Itolo Street, Surulere, Lagos

Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Seriake Dickson, casting his vote at Ward 2, Unit 5, Oruerewari, Toru-Orua in Sagbama Local Government Area

Asiwaju Bola Tinubu ready to cast his vote at Sunday Adigun Street ,Ikeja, Lagos

Vice President Namadi Sambo casting his vote in Kaduna

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo during accreditation in Abeokuta, Ogun State C M Y K

Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, Ogun State Commissioner for Commerce and Indusrty, being acreddtated

Governor Rauf Aregbesola casting his vote at Unit 4, Ward 8, Ifofin, Ilesa East Local Government Area of Osun State

Former Governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba during accreditation unit in Abeokuta Ogun State

Mr Jimi Agbaje, casting his vote at Ward C, Unit 9, Apapa, Lagos

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 15

PRESIDENTIAL, N ATION AL ASSEMBL NA TIONAL ASSEMBLYY POLLS

Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, casting his vote at Unit 20, Yaba Ward 7, in Ondo town.

A cross section of voters on queue under the rain to cast their votes in Okota, Lagos

Senator Rasidi Ladoja and his wife, Mutiat, being accredited by INEC officials at Ward 10, Ondo Street ,Old Bodija, Ibadan, Oyo State

Soldiers on election duty

A cross section of voters ready to cast their votes after accreditation at Unit 039, Oriade Nursery and Primary School, Satellite Town, Lagos

An old man displaying his voters card at Unit 037 in Ijegun Igba Nursery and Primary School, Oriade Local Government, Satellite Town, Lagos State C M Y K

Night counting in Abuja

A cross section of voters at the Primary School Voting Centre, Area 1, Garki, Abuja

Mr Adebisi Sebanjo, assisted from hospital, to vote in Ward C, Unit 9, Apapa, Lagos

PAGE 16 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

Delta guber: Oradajire vows to mobilise youths for Ogboru

T

he Coordinator of Ughelli South Grassroots Agenda, UGA,Comrade Kingsley Oradajire has vowed to mobilize five thousand youths of the association to make sure

that Great Ogboru becomes the next governor of Delta State in the forth governorship elections.

According to him, “Ogboru is the best man that can represent the interest of the three senatorial districts in the state because he has a unique spread across the state.

His wife is an Ijaw from Delta South, his mother is from Delta North while his father is Delta Central. This makes him very suitable for the post.

Ogboru has all it takes to move Delta State forward if elected governor of Delta State.

Speaking further on the choice of Ogboru, the people’s general as the endorsed candidate, Oradajire said”.

He reminded the newsmen about the positive comment made by notable politicians of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from Delta North and how they spoke in favour of the Ogboru governorship agenda. He mentioned Ogbuefi Abanum, a former governorship aspirant in PDP from Delta North and Hon. Dombiri Uwe a former

commissioner in Delta State from Delta North also of the PDP. Oradajire therefore maintained that there is clear evidence of the general acceptability of Ogboru by all.

Allaying fears that the mandate of Ogboru may be robbed again like before, Oradajire said “the people should not be skeptical about the Ogboru’s dream, noting that, Jega is a no-nonsense man who is ready

to conduct free, fair and credible polls. The group leader further argued that since due process will be followed, Ogboru will surely lead at the polls because, he is a man of the masses, a true democrat, and the true agent of change that we need in this time of our march to full democracy.

Oradajire asserted that only a man as dogged as Ogboru can confront the uphill task that we face presently in Delta State.

Odibo mourns Pa Uduaghan

C

onvener of En lightened Urho bo Patriotic Youths (EUPY), Engineer Bestman Odibo has expressed sadness over the death of Pa Samuel Uduaghan, father of Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan.

Odibo, also a chieftain of Peoples Democratic Party,PDP, in Delta State said the late Uduaghan was an extra-ordinary man who demonstrated a life of service, love, compassion and excellence. Pa Samuel Uduaghan passed on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 at Federal Medical Centre, Asaba. According to Odibo, “ I am saddened by the loss of this great man; a visionary leader and a true patriot of the Itsekiri nation. My deepest condolences

goes to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan , Mr. Oritsejolomi Uduaghan and other members of the family He will also be remembered as one of the greatest leaders in the history of Urhobo, Ijaw and Itsekiri especially for his unifying role, the tremendous respect he earned from his people and the impact he had on Deltans at home and abroad. It is sad that his death has come at a time he was making efforts to help strengthen the unity of Urhobo and Itsekiri. We won’t see another like him” .

He said the late Uduaghan will be remembered for his courage in speaking on issues of deep social and political import in Delta State.

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 17

bb pin:2BD74DOB

Enchanting photo moments What Mide Habibat Jinad in for the kill Miliki Express presenter, a lifestyle programme on does to keep Orisun TV, Habibat Jinad recently went in for a photo session and came out striking all sorts of her husband shoot alluring poses. There is about a dozen of those

N

•Mide Martins

ollywood actress, Mide Martins, wife and mother, certainly has good ideas about keeping her husband all to herself. In a recent interview, the wife of actor and producer, Afeez Owo Abiodun (insert), says she does whatever it takes to keep her husband all to herself, including having to do doggey sex style to satisfy his sexual appetite.

Yet, from this photo plucked from her Whatsapp profile display, it seems the pretty actress has few more tricks in her kitty – including looking damn good all the time.

O

•Habibat Jinad

ne of the things Nollywood actress, Ruth Kadiri may have to rub in our faces is the feat that she rose from grass to grace.

Her being brought up in Ajegunle hasn’t in anyway chequered her dream to be a star someday. On Tuesday, the actress added another year and the social media was awash with hearty birthday wishes for her. The theme picture of the day was this very same picture displayed here which went viral within minutes of it being posted on Instagram by Ruth.

•Ruth Kadiri

B

udding Yoruba actress, Bose Oladimeji stunned her fans recently when she revealed in an interview that she love sex so much and can’t stand a poor man. She’s a bold rising star that has both talent and attitude to pave the way to greatness for her. She took to the studio last week and shared a number of sexy photos that aptly pronounced her sex appeals.

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C M Y K

Ajegunle girl turned movie star takes over social media

Bose Oladimeji shows sexy side

Adediwura Blarkgold’s mask party @ 37 dediwura Adesegha known simply as Adediwura Blarkgold pulled another fast one on the entertainment industry.

When she turned 37 last week, many were expecting her to go the usual way of partying, which she did, but in a unique way.

First, she had all her quests masked to get people guessing who and who was at the party.

Later on, she unveiled the people behind the masks and it was surprises galore as guests found out their true identities, with much excitements.

The theme for the birthday celebration is, ‘Sexy @ 37’, and looking at the birthday girl one couldn’t agree more. “. I felt older within me but younger in appearance. It was a great experience to complete another life cycle in sound health. Moreso, I become wiser and more focused because I can eye 40 ahead” quips the celebrant.

pictures but I have decided to share this because of the bold aura it radiates. Hey, one thing this damsel wouldn’t stand is bad breaths.

She can walk away from a job because of that.

Adediwura Blarkgold

• Bose Oladimeji

PAGE 18—SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015 Onikoyi68@gmail.com

Gidi Culture Festival 2015 announces final lineup of Arists, hosts, DJs

Endowed Amaka Obi gets violated

by Fred Amata

By ADERONKE ADEYERI

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ith just over a week to go, Eclipse Live Africa, organisers of the Gidi Culture Festival has announced the final lineup of artists, hosts, comedians and DJ’s. The festival, which is happening on April 4, at Eko Atlantic, already boasts an impressive roster of African talents, daytime festivities, and partners that are working to ensure that GCFest is the ‘can’t miss’ event of the year.

The second lineup of GCFest artists include Burna Boy, Sean Tizzle, Iyanya, Yung L, R2Bees, Efya, Vanessa Mdee, The Veterans Band, Helen, Skales and Akpororo who will be lighting up the festival stage this year. They will be joined by hosts; Ehiz, Zainab Balogun, Kore Brown and Mercy alongside DJ Poppaey and DJ Spinall.

The previously announced first lineup included: Congo’s Awilo, M.I., SDC, Waje, Falz, Ghana’s EL, Kenya’s Victoria Kimani, Rwanda’s Urban Boyz (Rwandair ambassadors), Temi Dollface and Ebisan. DJ Neptune, DJ Lambo and South Africa’s DJ Gino Brown along with host N6, and UK Comedian Eddie Kadi were also announced in the first lineup.

The first and second lineups combine to make Gidi Culture Festival Africa’s musical offerings, the single biggest concert in West Africa. The festival’s daytime activities include the Fayrouz Art installation, a Volleyball tournament sponsored by Red Bull, The Melting Pot, being managed by Nylah’s Catering (www.nylahscatering.com), will offer food from all over Nigeria.

GCFest will also include beach football and the Kiddie’s Corner Fun Zone. With Lynxxx, Fade Ogunro and Osas Ighodaro as celebrity team captains, the volleyball and football tournaments provide a chance for fans to take on their favorite celebrities.

GCFest’s daytime activities and musical lineup come together to make biggest beach party this side of the Atlantic, there is simply nowhere else to be on April 4.The Gidi Culture Festival was founded by Chin Okeke, Teme Banigo and Bimbo Shittu with the intention of providing live, affordable, accessible entertainment to the African youth.

A

•Fred Amata and Amaka Obi

MAKA Obi, the seductively vulnerable Nollywood beauty who inspired D’Banj’s ‘Miss Endowed’ gets a beating of her life from Fred Amata in a new film ‘Diana’s Verdict’.

The film was released some days ago with some disturbing scenes of domestic violence at its height. Though the duo of Fred Amata and Amaka appeared as cosy as two cordial individuals could get in this picture but what they did to each other in the film was as shocking as it was thrilling.

Sixty year-old Fred Amata had married a very poor but captivating beautiful teenager, Amaka Obi at age 17, with a promise to see her through school which the parents could not guarantee. But along the line Fred erred and failed to give her the education that was the prerequisite for marrying her.

However, Amaka grew into a beautiful woman and instead of earning the adoration of Fred what she got was maltreatment as a result of insecurity and jealousy. As it turns out, he beats her up repeatedly for meaningless reasons until the inevitable happens. Then the intrigues, twists and turns build to an exploding climax which would get viewers biting their nails and holding on tight to the edge of their seats.

The film is a production of Heat Factory I.C.I and 2wice as Nice Studios in collaboration with Dove House Productions. It is written, produced and directed by Onesoul. The cast includes Amaka Obi as Diana, Fred Amata as Mr. Ugba, Keppy Ekpeyoung, as a jouirnalist, Ruth Agbo, as lawyer, and Seun Akindele.

Ijeoma Imoh toys with live cobras in new movie T

here is a popular joke where an actor was instructed by a director to tango with a lion. The obviously shaken actor asked if he had to really do that and the director told him he shouldn’t worry that it was all in the script. The perplexed actor replied that he knew but was wondering if the lion read the script too.

Well, Ijeoma didn’t have to tango with lions but a pair of cobras, which in my own reckoning may be a shade more dangerous than the lions. At first I thought it was one of those movie tricks when I saw the picture on Instagram but got a chill run down my spine when Ijeoma herself told me they were live cobras. She said she didn’t really have to do any cuddly scene with the serpents in the film but she did the poster with them- live! “ I didn’t carry the snakes in the movie, some other babes carried them. My part was to carry them for poster shots. They are real cobras but the snake charmer was around in case of anything. I only came in contact with the snakes in the movie when I was supposed to be bitten by a snake while wondering around the forest with my brother who was banished from our village” she says.

According to her, the film which is yet to be titled was wrapped up December last year.

She played the lead female role in the film.

What a way to make a living?

•Chin Okeke C M Y K

• Ijeoma Imoh

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 19 Onikoyi68@gmail.com

I am the Fela of our time – African China

Says every artiste should be able to do live bands After launching into the mainstream music world some years ago, Chinagoro, a.k.a African China, has stood out as a dependable social crusader, who has become a house-hold name in many homes across Africa. His high sense of creativity and philosophical undertone makes him a self styled voice of the masses and reggae dance hall star. In a recent chat, the singer disclosed that he’s set to rekindle and re-mode the undying spirit of fighting for the oppressed masses through the art of music. Excerpts:

BY IYABO AINA

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hat is happening to your career years after you released your last album?

Well, I just took a break to bond with my family. I didn’t go off the music circuit but had been in the studio working on a new album that is about to be released.

And my silence has nothing to do with financial challenges, don’t forget am still the C.E.O. of 45Entertainment.

Will you say you’ve made the kind of money the likes of WizKid and Davido are making these days?

No, I did not collect the kind of money they are collecting now. But I think you should know something, we pushed the bill from 30 thousand naira to 8 hundred / one million. I made investments that can compete with whatever they do with their money. Therefore, I don’t regret not making what they are making these days.

Any ongoing project?

Yeah, last year I came out with two new singles titled “Anu Gboko” and “Ghen Ghen”. And this year I am out with another new single based on the current political situation in the country and to speak on behalf of the masses. This one is titled

“Amen” with a dance hall Rhythm.

Does it mean you’ll still sing songs that talk about ills of the society ?

I represent Nigeria, and if governments are not doing what they are suppose to be doing I will tell them that my people are not happy and the only way I can do that is through my music.

What would you say concerning the content of Nigerian music now compared to when you were still vibrant?

Criticism is not what am going to be talking about here, the fact that Nigerians are enjoying themselves is okay by me. My style is my style and their style is their style. Everybody must not do the same. As long as it has a good rhythm and people are dancing to it, I am okay with it.

With the rate of upcoming artistes and so many known names in the industry, do you think your kind of music will stand the test of time in Nigeria?

You should ask yourself and tell yourself the truth. My songs has lasted 17years now; which of these songs do you think will last two years?

I’m not scared of the huge number of artistes out there, because I know what I’ve got

and will give my best to my fans.

It is not as if I’m boasting but I have dedicated so much of my time and energy to it because I have already set a standard and that standard will not drop but will continue to rise because I am born to sing and entertain people.

That’s why I am “African China” the legendary, take it or leave, I am the Fela of our time.

It’s been argued that songs most artistes do these days do not have any

I’m not scared of the huge number of artistes out there, because I know what I’ve got and will give my best to my fans.

•African China content compared to songs of 80s, what’s your take on that?

You just said it’s no content, so, no comment!

If you are to change anything in the industry, what would that be?

I will want every artiste to be performing live band and not sound track. Reason being that, it will help our

instrumentalists make money and also stop the untalented ones from crowding the industry.

We once noticed that you are featuring in Nollywood movies, have you added acting to your career?

Yes, don’t forget music video is all about acting. So I think actors and singers have something in common.

Woman Rising 2015 holds amid pomp and pageantry T he 5th edition of the annual Woman Rising by The Life House run by the co Founder Ugoma Adegoke was a two day event held on Saturday, March 21 and Sunday, March 22, 2015 and was hosted by Kemi Lala Akindoju and Aderonke Adebanjo.

At The Metropolitan Club, Victoria Island sponsored by Ours magazine was the screening of the award-winning documentary film “The Supreme Price” directed

by Joanna Lipper. The film explores the history of Nigeria as it tells the remarkable story of Hafsat Abiola, daughter of human rights heroine Kudirat Abiola, and Nigeria’s President-elect M.K.O.

C M Y K

Abiola, who won a historic vote in 1993 that promised to put an end to years of military dictatorship.

The final event was held at Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island Lagos. Sponsored by SKY Vodka, the eventful evening showcased a host of homegrown and international female musicians. Rolake Akinkugbe, an oil and gas investment banker, by day pianist and songstress by night, Modele with her amphibious sound also wowed the crowd as well as Tonye Garrick, Bumi Thomas with her sultry sound and Irene Bill aka girl with bass and a host of other live female musicians.

PAGE20 — SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

about our mobile account, Diamond Yello Account, which enables people open bank accounts from their MTN mobile number. The Mobile App is very user-friendly and available to anybody.

Level of adoption among customers The penetration rate is increasing. The bank has invested in training people and there is Wi-Fi in all branches for customers to download the app. The App has been repositioned so people can easily use it themselves.

Although technology has ushered in new ways in the 21st century User-interface for older people banking, there appears to be growing fear over Personal My 60 year old mother started using Identification, PIN, theft among bank customers across the globe a smartphone recently. Since she especially in Nigeria where e-banking applications are attracting has access to the internet she has the attention of the customers. Robert Giles, Head of Transaction been able to teach herself Banking, Diamond Bank PLC, in this interview with EMEKA quickly. My 3 year-old son AGINAM spoke on a number of issues in the mobile banking and uses the music Apps on my how Diamond mobile app and its revolutionary features will phones. There are old eliminate PIN challenges in the banking sector people using iPads and tablets. The technology is Excerpts very intuitive and they are easily adopting it. The is also educating those who call The Mobile App Diamond Mobile App is The Diamond Mobile App in. available to everybody Level of traffic so far gives customers the irrespective of their age.

The number of transactions opportunity to carry out How much does the App runs into millions every week transaction banking, login to cost? which is in billions of naira.

The monitor their account, send It is actually free. We money within and out most popular is airtime vending encourage customers to asides transferring funds Diamond Bank, pay PHCN download and use the App. between accounts. bills, buying internet service It is faster, easier and How the app works and how bundles and buy airtime friendlier. much bandwidth needed by a among others.

Looking at the app in the Every lifestyle features like user next five years One of the first things you see •Robert Giles, Head of Transaction Banking, like booking a movie ticket and In the next 5 years, I would like to see all watching movie trailers before when you look at the login page Diamond Bank PLC customers using electronic devices to service purchasing the ticket are is that if the signal is not strong themselves. The prices of smartphones have embedded in the app, giving it won’t log the customer in. become cheaper, the screens are getting better, technology and the smartphone Transactions get real-time customers access to all they costs of data plans are crashing. That means need to buy without going to update, whether they are market is increasing. There are fewer people would be using the branches and apps for different types of social, successful or not.

The is the bank to get cash. For cash flow would get round faster. The economy religious, information and available on iOS, Android and instance, with the app there is develops when money moves faster. It would banking activities and almost all Blackberry devices which are no need to get a scratch card also help increase people’s productivity. The of them are developed in very popular. for the internet.

App would also have changed in terms of Transaction error and Nigeria for different app stores.

Security of the app functionality. Entertainment will continue to It is a market that has great response time to correct The App has two layers of grow. Social media will be integrated in daily human development potential transaction error security. Unlike cards and activities. It will deepen education as well.

Transactions on the mobile app and there is a desire to increase cheque books, a phone is Issues to resolve in mobile banking online content development. are not supposed to fail. something you keep very close Internet connection, Wi-Fi connection The Mobile App and Failed transactions are to you. People do not forget depends on power. Telecommunications financial inclusion reversed immediately.

The their phones. The first level of companies should give priority to increasing All customers can access the resolution of failure transactions security is the password people data penetration. This is to ensure that there put on their phones. Secondly, across all channels is the same. App irrespective of the type of is stable data service. Consumer the App is tied to a single Transaction details are also not account they run. Financial understanding is also key. It is not just about inclusion is about access to stored on the phone as the device. At the point of the technology. Customers should know that download, authentication phone is just a window to the finance. This includes people the platforms are there to protect them. being able to transact from bank system. information is sent to the Awareness regarding the security of the system home regardless of their social App market in Nigeria customer ’s number. The is fundamental. Wide acceptance is important. status.

It is important to talk Nigerians are fast adopters of customer has a personal identification number, PIN, to make transactions and immediately they log in, they get an e-mail and SMS to show that their account is being HERE appears to be better marketing, communication and Director of Microsoft Nigeria, technology has the potential to accessed on the App. days ahead for young start-ups management. Following said, adding that, “Our efforts in transform competitiveness One of the security features entrepreneurs in Nigeria as the this, 30 of these 100 participants Nigeria started with the launch of amongst startups and SMEs, on the Mobile App is the Touch Microsoft Cloudpreneur Project will be provided with startup the Employability Portal in 2013, which is why we’re encouraging ID. How does it affect user will train 100 Nigerian start-ups models and, finally, the top 20 which provides a platform for adoption of the Cloud through this after which 20 of them will be performers will be mentored on youth to learn leadership skills and Project,” experience?

The Touch ID was integrated provided with mentorship to how tobuild their own Cloud- network with other leaders. Now Also speaking, Habiba Balogun in response to users’ requests. manage and sustain their Cloud- based business. through the Cloudpreneur Project, an Executive Director at Fate People who use apple devices based businesses.

“Microsoft is committed to we hope to enable and empower Foundation said “Fate The capacity building project have been using Touch ID to Foundation is delighted to partner make purchases on apple store. which is expected to provide and support Microsoft in its It is just a replacement of the participating startups with Cloudpreneur initiative which PIN. When you are using a PIN entrepreneurship, Cloud and ICT aims to empower entrepreneurs in training is in collaboration with there is always the fear of Fate Foundation and Mara the Tech-related business. losing it. However, Touch ID Mentor.

We commend Microsoft for eliminates the fear that being part of enabling wealth The program when completed someone will see your PIN. It will enable 20 best performing creation in Nigeria.” She said. is also faster. In essence, it is participants to receive mentorship “Mara Mentor is proud to bring an additional feature for users. to manage their own profitable our expertise in entrepreneurship Low penetration of mobile businesses based on Cloud support and mentorship to the banking in Nigeria Cloudpreneurs Project,” Hetal technology.

Shah, Director of Operations at Some of the more recent The Project will be open to 1 000 Mara, said, adding that, “As an features on the app address applicants who have been in initiative focused on enabling, accessibility. It is exciting and business for one to three empowering and inspiring more interactive. The bank is years.From these applications, 100 •A cross section of Nigerian secondary school students during entrepreneurs, we believe this is an investing in awareness. A lot successful participants will be recent Microsoft hour of code opportunity for young Nigerians of time is spent in digital chosen. These participants will business and we are receive a four-week long training improving youth skills for both young business owners, so that they in technology to get the training, and can contribute to the social and support, and mentorship needed to demonstrating how to use the on business management, entrepreneurship build or grow cloud-based App to customers who come including training on: sales, employability across Africa,” economic growth of Nigeria.” technology, entrepreneurship, Kabelo Makwane, Managing According to him, “Cloud businesses.“ into the bank. The call centre

Touch ID will eliminate PIN theft issue in e- banking, says Giles

The first level of security is the password people put on their phones.

‘Cloudpreneur project’ targets 100 Nigerian start-ups T

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 21

Relationship mix ed with lo mixed lovve and hatred

BY ONOZURE DANIA

D

o you know that when a love relationship turns sour, bitter can creep in and this may turn to hatred towards our partner?

Often, this feeling may be coming from our own life experience or from other people’s life experience.

Before you can love another person and get into a relationship with anyone, you need to first love yourself. You must be able to love yourself and be happy with yourself as you are, and you are not

Networking/ Sponsorship •Glory, 18, from Edo state,

needs sponsorship for her nursing school. 07038220557 •Anietie, wants a company or an individual that can publish and market his book on Technical Drawing.

08035522349 Friends Searching Female •Blessing, from Edo state, but resides in Warri needs male and female friends, aged l8 and above.09025579963 Searching Male

•Rex, cool, friendly and resides

in Benin, needs a female friend who is fat, gentle and responsible, aged35 and above.08185287322

Lovers Searching Female •A lady, sexy and hot, needs a mature man, for a serious relationship.08151583091 •Venessa, 29, big, bold, beautiful with an alluring backside and sultry body needs a big, strong and reliable man aged 55 and above for love and friendship.08052420758 • Cathrine, 26, tall, curvy, extremely beautiful and sexy with kissable lips, firm breast needs a very mature and caring man aged 45 and above to call her man.08182342689 •Tope, a fashion designer, needs a God fearing man, for a husband, aged 40. 08024169480 •A lady, 28, tall, fat, beautiful with a child, needs a responsible man who is capable of taking good care of her, for a relationship that will lead to marriage.

08097779870 •Nk, 32, tall, beautiful, self employed, fair in complexion, busty and from Delta state, needs

expecting that your lover or partner will make you happy or expect the relationship to give you love and happiness.

To love yourself, you need to be able to accept yourself as you are in the present moment.

If you can not accept yourself as you are, or don’t know how to love yourself, how is it possible for you to accept other people as they are and know how to love other people as they are?

If you are not peaceful and have no love within you, how can you share peace and love with others? You will be very

disappointed by your own expectation and the relationship will definitely turn sour and bitter.

If you expect your lover or partner or the relationship to give you love and happiness, to make you happy and be loved, it’s because nobody and no relationship can give you love and happiness.

Love and happiness comes from within ourselves, loving ourselves as we are and accepting ourselves as we are, whether we are in a relationship with someone or not. If we don’t have love

a divorcee or widower, for marriage, aged 45-65.

07059607136 •Joy, from Delta state, needs a matured man, who is God fearing and caring, aged 60-75.

07059607136 •Ola, 22, needs a guy for a serious relationship that will lead to marriage. 08180724276

•Fadairo, 44, slim, tall, employed and, resides in Benin, needs a sincere, reliable, sexy and employed, lady, with no kids, aged 25-32, from Edo or Delta, for marriage.08121655199 • Efe, 28, tall, a talented musician, from Delta state, needs a God fearing, very tall, slim, well educated and cultured, lady, who resides in Lagos, aged 25-37, for a sincere relationship that would lead to marriage.

08037874624, 08070564912 •Victor, needs a good a lady for relationship. 08068119683 • Romeo, 29, chocolate in complexion and resides in Onitsha, needs a caring and beautiful lady, for a relationship that can lead to marriage.07034234194 •Fegor, needs a lady, aged 24 and above, for a serious relationship.08169259203 •Dimm, 30, tall, gentle and resides in Lagos, needs a lady, aged 24-26, for a relationship.08038931447 •Godstime, from Delta state, needs a lady, aged 25 and above, for a relationship. 08064394444 •Notre, 26, employed and resides in Benin, needs a God fearing Delta lady who resides in Benin, aged 20-25, for a serious relationship that will lead to marriage. 08146396934 •Tony 37, tall, good looking, employed and needs an ebony, busty, pretty and sexy lady, aged 30-40, for serious relationship that will lead to marriage. 07039251735 •Kaye, 41, with two kids from a previous relationship, needs a sincere lady who is ready to settle down.

08164618603 •Elvis, 36, a businessman, needs a nice and romantic lady, for a serious relationship, aged 2038.08108851289 •Bobby, 50, dark in complexion, God fearing and resides in Lagos, needs a matured, fair in

Searching Male

•A man, 46, Igbo by tribe, caring

and God fearing, needs a tall, fair in complexion, decent, graduate and employed lady, who is a believer, aged 29-33, from Abia or Imo, for marriage.

08054517762, 08116499764, 08142372211 • Mac, 48, very romantic, resident in Benin City needs a financially independent decent lady of 45 & above for a confidential romance.

08081088842, 08061147400 •Stanley, 27, light in complexion, employed, from Imo, but resides in Lagos, needs a lady, for a relationship. 08038443555 •Babalola, 36 and resides in Lagos, needs a single and religious Yoruba Muslim lady, aged 30, for marriage.

08170141833, 08087074640, 08138856900 •Marvelous, 48, chocolate in complexion, sincere, humble and Igbo by tribe, needs a decent lady, for a relationship.08024428255 •Chuks, 28, from Asaba, needs a matured lady, for a relationship.08035010011 •Nat, 41, a trader, needs a decent lady aged 30-50, for a serious relationship. 08054945890 •Anthony, 38 and resides in Delta state, needs a busty, sexy, romantic, caring and employed lady, aged 36-46 for a serious relationship that can lead to marriage. 08035475200 •Terry,45, gentle, God fearing, tall and dark in complexion, needs a rich, mature Christian business or employed lady, for a relationship.07063918519

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

in ourselves and are not happy with our own self as we are, and trying to get love and happiness from other people or from relationship to get rid of the incompleteness and emptiness in us, then no matter how much our partner loves us and is nice to us, we will never be satisfied and happy.

At the beginning of a relationship, two people must be in love with each other and decide to be in a relationship sharing life together.

But, as time goes by, impermanence strikes, physical condition changes, appearance changes, abilities change, mentality changes, things change, environment changes, the state of mind changes, feelings change, hormones change, likes and

dislikes change, what we want and don’t want change.

After spending some time together getting to know each other deeper, exposing our real personality in front of our partner, we realize that we don’t really like or love our partner as much as before, because we start to see the qualities in our partner that we don’t like. The feeling of love become lesser and lesser, and one day, it’s completely gone. We are not in love with him or her anymore.

It’s heartbreaking for our partner to know that we are not in love with them anymore because if they are still in love with us, they might get upset and be angry with us and they have the rights and should be allowed to be upset and angry with us.

complexion, employed and resides in Lagos, for a relationship.

08153583007 •A guy, needs a God fearing, tall, slim and a well educated lady, aged 25-27, who resides in Lagos, for a sincere relationship that would lead to marriage.08037874624 •Smith, 29, resides in Abuja, needs a caring lady, for a serious relationship, aged 30-40.

07032241552 •Brown, 28, cute, jovial, nice, caring, lovely and romantic, from Delta state, needs a romantic and sexy lady, for a serious relationship. 07058781499, 08166714939 •Prince, 39, from Delta state, needs a pretty, romantic and employed lady, aged 36-48, for a serious relationship, that can lead to marriage. 08035475200, 07039251735 •SF, 42, needs a fat, dark or fair in complexion lady, aged 3040, who is financially stable for a relationship that will lead to marriage.08033681109 •Jojo, 24, from Benin, needs a lady, aged 25-40, who is wealthy and caring for a relationship.07034334839 •Olu, 47, employed and a single father, needs a lady for a relationship.07014320437 • A guy, 35, average height, employed, a Christian, from South east, needs, a lady, aged 25-30, who is educated, employed or self employed, for a relationship.

08050692597, 08036367319 •Yomi, employed and resides in Lagos, needs a lady, aged 25 and above, who is employed, for a serious relationship. 07062916442 •Tony, 41, dark in complexion, a decent catholic nurse, from Edo state, needs a decent qualified nurse, midwife who is a catholic, light in complexion and from either Agbor or Asaba who is ready to settle down within three months, aged 28-30, AA genotype.

0 8 0 3 6 8 7 2 6 1 9 , 08025152808,08030477348

mummy that will take care of him, for a relationship. 07037633468, victoriyke42@yahoo.com or ikechukwu victor • Kelly, 20, chocolate in complexion and from Delta state, needs a sexy sugar mummy, aged 30-45. 08036486352 •Sunny, 29, from Delta state, needs a sugar mummy, aged 3540.08184819753 •Kk, 34, resides in Port Harcourt, needs a sugar mummy, within Port Harcourt, aged 40-50 .08051884242, 08036666316 •Williams, 30, a graduate, resides in Anambra state, needs a caring and sexy sugar mummy.

08035217478 •Sammy, 27, needs a sugar mummy, aged, 45-50, in lagos.08185080968 •Gift, 23, handsome, romantic, from Delta state, needs a sugar mummy who is financially ok, that will sponsor his career.

08146604236, 08131822376 •Bartholomew, 28 and resides in Port Harcourt, needs a sugar mummy. 08060633771 •Sammy, 27, needs a sugar mummy, aged 45-50.

08185080968 •Jerry, 30, neat, needs a sexy sugar mummy, aged 30-50.

08138895902 • Charles, 22, dark in complexion and resides in Delta state, needs a wealthy sugar mummy, aged 36-45, who can take care of him.

07087131173 •Mc Kaycee, 26,6ft tall, dark in complexion, from Calabar, needs a caring and wealthy sugar mummy, aged 30-45 for a romantic relationship.

08167411270, 08063200829 •Jeffery, 22, tall, handsome, fair in complexion, resides in Benin City, and caring, needs a sugar mummy for a relationship, aged 25.07065941417 •Andy, 25, needs a loving and caring sugar mummy that can take care of him. 08114037557 •Justine, 26, tall, cool, good looking and resides in Lagos, needs a sugar mummy, for a relationship. 08082904343 Emma, resides in Delta state, needs a sugar mummy, aged 35-50, for a relationship.

09092080315 Nosa, 25, from Edo state, needs a sugar mummy, for a serious relationship.

0737831120, 07051117387

Sugar Cares Searching Female •Jenny, 25, pretty, needs a caring sugar daddy, for a relationship, aged 30-60. 08094716292 Searching Male •Roland, 28, a student, needs a sugar mummy who can take care of him.08101541128 •Victor, a student, needs a sugar

PAGE 22— SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

I feel fulfilled giving back to society —Empress Njamah

By AINA IYABO

Controversial Nollywood diva Empress Njamah, has joined the list of celebrities who do not think of themselves only but have found reasons to give back to society.

The screen diva has in recent times indulged in humanitarian activities in the nation’s capital, Abuja, staging not less than eight philanthropic activities annually to put smiles on the faces of the down-trodden.

In this interview, she opens up on how she spent last Valentine with the less privileged, her foundation and philanthropic lifestyle.

How old is Empress Njamah Foundation and what has kept it going?

The Foundation is nine years old and I must say its the “God” factor that has kept it going not me.

How did it come about?

It was inspired by the overwhelming spate of child neglect. I was moved to do something, to at least start that would give these children that tiny ray of hope and I still intend to do more with the help of the Almighty.

How many times do you hang out with the less privileged in a year?

It is not easy staging all the party but I can only thank God for being faithful.

Every year, the House of Empress Foundation organises nothing less than eight parties.

I stage a party during Valentine to express my love to them, I stage another at Easter, on Democracy and Independence Days, Christmas and of course I do celebrate my birthday with them. I stage all these parties not because I just want to throw money around but to make them know they are loved and therefore should not feel bad about themselves.

C M Y K

Tell us about your last Valentine party...

On February 14th, as a way of expressing my love, I paid a courtesy visit to Garki Hospital where I distributed gift bags amongst the children and other patients in the wards.

I also visited some of the homes run by House Of Empress Foundation: “Hope for Survival” and “Christ Foundation Orphanage” to mention but few.

What has been the challenge so far?

Well, I must say it’s been really turbulent but God is faithful and will always be.

At the same time, I do not see challenges; I only see opportunities to make things better.

Easter is around the corner, what are your plans for the less privileged this time?

The same thing I have done all these years. I will not only provide for their basic and educational needs but will also organise a program where I'll invite music artistes and some of my colleagues in the movie industry to come have fun with the kids. It will be a full day of fun as there will also be lots of food and drinks.

How do you raise funds for your humanitarian activities?

It’s been easy though. Like I said earlier, The “God” factor helps me miraculously weather the storms. It’s part of how I pay my tithe. I have never been funded by a single soul, government or friend; it has been my sweat all the way and the House of Empress has been supportive too.

How do you feel each time you party with these children?

I feel fulfilled as a person because growing as a child in church, I was taught to always help those in need because my giving could bring about that ray of hope that may have been dashed, thereby bringing God’s blessings. I celebrate them all the time not just on my birthday; the foundation

celebrates with the kids every month. I'm always happy to be with them becasue they feel me with loads of joy and happiness which words can’t explain.

What are the major side attractions you give to these children?

Dish out gifts to them and continuously inducing that positive mentality into them.

We have a lot of things we also do that makes them happy. We have what we call The Workshop which introduces them to interesting things and keeps them busy. These include art and craft/matting/ moulding/drawings and more, and I pay people who come to train them.

The girls learn catering and so many other things.

Sometimes, I pick the best performing among them and give them a treat like seeing movies/outing/dinners and many more.

Tell us more about “House of Empress”?

Just like a house with many rooms, HOE is a firm with many departments, from the clothesline to the multi-purpose unisex saloon to the events planning section and also interior decoration section. We are

I was moved to do something, to at least start something to give them that tiny ray of hope and I still intend to do more with the help of the almighty.

Mrs. Oluseyi Ifaturoti

unisex and everything is under one umbrella.

What inspired it?

Like I said, the God factor.

Everything happens for a reason. I rarely wear what's

in fashion but I people have always relied on me for fashion ideas. I soon began to love to dress people.

Here I am doing it and till date I dress up people for events and many more.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 23

08112662589

When a one-night-stand leaves a bad taste

F

or all you men out there who are fond of one-night stands, one day soon, your past could return to haunt you. The thrill of one-night stands never leaves the average male adventurer who wants to have as many notches on his bed-post as he could – and marriage seldom stops him.

In his quest to keep counting the number of his conquests he throws caution to the wind. Any girl ready to romp becomes a likely candidate – no matter he pedigree.

Some years back, Soji, a typical Jack-the-lad ran into a potential ‘victim’ at a party. Chatted all night with her. She was very friendly and enthusiastic.

‘Can we meet up later?’, he wanted to know. “Why not?”was the girl’s reply.

Could he have her address?

The girl looked a bit confused. Was he having a laugh? Seeing he was dead serious she asked. “You mean you don’t recall not only coming to my flat a few years back but spending the night?” Soji was very embarrassed and tried to play down his faux pox, but the girl was not only miffed, she ‘boned’ him outright!

Soji might have been left off lightly but not Samuel.

A thirty-something accountant, he told me recently that he’d just found out a girl he had a one-night stand with has had his baby! ‘And now I’m afraid my girlfriend will dump me if she finds out”, he said. “I used to be a right Jack the lad as far as girls were concerned – and there was no shortage of takers.

Then I met my current girlfriend at a party. There was something about her that intrigued me. She wasn’t wearing sexy clothes like most of the girls, yet she oozed sex appeal, I couldn’t believe it when she turned me down, but I didn’t give up. I got her number from a friend and bombarded her with texts, asking her out.

“She kept refusing, saying she didn’t want to be another notch on my bedpost. Then one day, I met her by chance in town and asked her for a drink and she said yes. I couldn’t believe my luck. When we talked, it was as though we’d known each other forever. She told me she knew my reputation and didn’t want to be made a fool of. But for the first time, sex wasn’t on my

mind because I knew she was special. I gave her my word I wouldn’t let her down.

“We’ve been seeing each other for close to a year and my friends say I’m a reformed character. I go everywhere with her and I’m not interested in other girls.

“Then came the bombshell from this `free agent’, that I met a couple of years back. I got a text from her saying she’d just had my baby. I had a quickie with her in my car when we met at a disco and

promptly forgot about her.

She was dressed in really revealing clothes and had sex in her mind. Who was I to refuse? She was a bit brash for my liking, but then, I thought, why not? Afterall, there were no strings attached. She rubbed herself against me and turned me on so much that I took her to the quiet spot where my car was parked and we had sex. I never saw her again, didn’t even remember her name. Yet she still managed to track me down.

“She wants us to meet and

talk about `things’. What a laugh! Why would I want to meet her? I’m not interested in her or her brat.

For all I know, I might not even be the father. Maybe after contacting her list of prospective `fathers’ and failed, she thought I might just bite her bait.

“All I’m interested in for now is my relationship with my gorgeous girlfriend. But I’m a bit worried in case my girlfriend finds out. A girl like this trollop could do al in her sick powers to ruin things for us”. I advised Samuel to meet up with the girl from her past and insist on a blood test to ascertain paternity. I also pointed it out to him he’d have to come clean with his steady. If she hears it from someone else, she’ll think he has something to hide.

She’s not likely to be happy about it when he tells her, but there;s no reason why she should dump him because of something that happened before she came on the scene. I haven’t heard from him since. I only hope he gets out of this dilemma with minimum of regret.

All over the world, quickies have always been a quick fix for various sexual problems – an easy and quick release from sexual frustration, a curiosity to find out hoe effective your ‘moves’ are.

It could even be a sort of having it back on a partner that hurts you. In the long run, the outcome could be devastating – even for a man. Fred, a businessman said he once went late to a private party and was able to count at least six girls he’d bedded.

“Three of them were huddled at a corner in a conversation hen I came in”, he said. “As soon as they saw me, they waved mischievously and continued with their talk, glancing at me from time to time and smirking. Were they laughing at me? At my sexual prowess? I was so uncomfortable that I left as soon as I decently could. So it is not only you girls, that feel embarrassed for being easy `lays’, men too find themselves in that boat from time to time”.

08052201867(Text Only)

Good posture through the years

C M Y K

owe it to ourselves to start to keep the body healthy very early in life. Parents should, therefore, realise the importance of fitness not only for themselves but also for those that they bring into the world to delight their days on earth!

,

M

Y yoga teacher was of the opinion that old age sets in when one throws away good posture to the winds. He would say “do your exercise regularly to avoid that sort of stiftness which starts from the nape to the neck down to the heels of the feet.’‘ I, myself, have found out through the years of teaching Yoga to others that even a little boy of less than six years could be incapable of doing the head-to-knee posture, whereas, someone of 30 who exercises regularly has no problem with the same posture.

That fact drives home the point that the deteriorating of the tone of the muscles can occur even while a child is growing up. Loss of muscle tone will not wait till you have attained the same age as Methuselah.

This means that we

Parents do not have to breathe down the necks of their children to get them to exercise. Children almost always learn by example. Seeing their parents exercise will in most cases inspire them to follow lead. Typical of this situation was what existed between my own Yoga

This exercise will strengthen the spine and expel fatigue in the small of the back

,

teacher and his children.

He would tell me that because his children thought most of the exercises were funny, they would want to join in the fun by doing them too.

The end result being that his children of both genders became very good at doing the exercises, enjoying all the therapeutic benefits of the practices.

He would tell me, for instance, that none of his daughters suffered

from period pains or had problems at child delivery. And, he would put all that down to their practice of Yoga.

After a few weeks of Yoga classes, I once told a group of ladies that one of the benefits of the head-to-knee posture was that of painless periods and one of them said, ‘’no wonder, I have not had to take pain relievers for some time now during my periods.

I see,’ I want the reader to know that this was an

honest-to-God incidence.

For a good posture, which means an absence of a round back, the following exercise is to be practised.

Lie flat on the back raising the legs vertically and making sure the small of the back remains on the ground.

Now, while you breathe in, bring down the right leg to the right side of the body to touch the floor. Exhale and raise again upwards. Thrice in all.

Repeat with the left leg to the left side of the body.

For the stronger individuals doing the exercise with both legs at the same time is encouraged. This exercise will strengthen the spine and expel fatigue in the small of the back.

Yoga Classes STARTED Physical Therapy Centre @ 32 Adetokumbo Ademola, Victoria Island Lagos.

9.00am — 10.00am on Saturdays

Leg Raise Pose

PAGE 24 — SUND AY Vanguard, MARCH 29 , 2015 SUNDA

bunmsof@yahoo.co.uk 08056180152, SMS only

Shortlived happiness: When the wedding cake lasted longer than the marriage

N

obody gets m a r r i e d thinking that one day they ’ll be heading for the divorce court. Bimbo was no

exception. She might have been nearing 40 when she walked down the aisle, with a fiveyear old daughter from a previous relationship, but she still believed in happily ever after. To now throw in the towel just eleven months after saying ‘I do’ was devastating and humiliating. How could something go so wrong in such a short period of time?

According to Bimbo, “I’d first met Lawrence – a 45-year-old owner of a furniture shop – at my th 38 birthday party two years ago through his sister who’s a friend of mine, I was a single mother to Daphnie, then three, and had successfully built a life for myself – I wasn’t looking for a man to complete me. I’m not one of those women who feels they need a strong arm to hang on, and while it did get a little lonely at times, I didn’t want to meet someone for the sake of it. I felt that any man would have to significantly enhance me and Daphnie’’s lief for me to feel he is worth our time. And from the moment I met Lawrence, this is exactly what he did. There was no racing of the heart – he wasn’t even my type physically.

Yet, I felt oddity drawn to him, it might be a cliché but I really did feel as if I’d known him for years.

“He persistently wooed me after our first meeting. He sent me little presents and constantly texted and phoned. I’d be lying to

say I didn’t a text flutter of excitement – but I was also wary of leeting my guard down. I can remember late one evening, his number showing yet again on my mobile phone. I was so unused to a man pursuing me that I simply got up to use the loo. When I returned, I put the phone on silent mode and refused to answer. I had been out of the dating game for so long, I had no idea how to respond.

But eventually I let him take me out for dinner. On our first date, he drove for miles just to take me to a Chinese restaurant he thought I would like.

“I hadn’t experienced this kind of attentiveness for a long time. I was so overwhelmed that for the first time in years, I allowed myself to think that maybe I didn’t need to be on my own afterall.

I also wanted my daughter to have a father figure in her life and Lawrence made me hope this might be possible. To say he was brilliant with Daphnie would be an understatement – they took to each other instantly. Seeing them together made me feel so content. Then, a few months into our relationship, Lawrence brought back the latest Babie doll – for her and I was touched. It marked the turning point for seeing Lawrence and Daphnie together made me want to weep for her and what I’d nearly deprived her of. If it hadn’t been for this, I would have taken things more slowly, been more rational.

“He proposed barely a year after we met, presenting me with a lovely diamond ring he’d brought from his

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"

RACE OF LOVE

Love is like a olympic race, the move and fast you run the more you get love. love is like a race, it might

trip. He said he wanted to give me and my daughter the security we deserved. The wedding was quiet but magical, I was marrying a man I loved and he loved me and my daughter too, I felt like I’d won the lotter y. Sadly, I see things differently now. I see that I paid for the wedding and put in all of the work to make it happen. It was the beginning of a pattern.

Lawrence moved into my house and, as stupid as it might sound, we agreed I would pay for the day-to-day bills whilst Lawrence would save towards the deposit on a government house we’d set our eyes on. It seemed a fair exchange at the time. I had incomes coming in from my various business and substantial savings, I didn’t for a second imagine that Lawrence might not be putting away money as we agreed.

“Then, a few months into our marriage,

Lawrence dropped the bombshell that he didn’t saved anything. He’d lent the money to his father, he said. His dad had fallen short of his mortgage repayament to his Insurance Company and they were threatening to re-posses his house. We had an almighty row. I wanted to believe him, I needed to.

We were in the early stages of marriage and I couldn’t allow doubts to creep in. So we soldiered on but, much as I wanted to ignore it, everything felt different.

From the moment he moved in, it seemed that he stopped making an effort. I was doing more than my share: paying the bills, taking care of Daphnie dn working on my newest showroom to support us.

“Lawrence didn’t seem to be doing anything or making an effort to make me happily, I could cope with the fact that our sex life had dropped considerably, but he also seemed to lose interest in

get a good start and continue until it get to a stage where the race we turn down against you, either it act good nor bad against you. when it's act good on you, it simply means that you are on the right track and you are maintaining your lane, but when it turns against you, it look like a broken plate that cannot be join together, no matter how hard you try how far you have gone..*** OGBONNA CHARLES CHIDUBEM 08169186581

WOMAN • • • • • • •

Changes her name Changes her home Leaves her family Moves in with you Builds a home with you Gets pregnant for you Pregnancy changes her body

Daphnie, who worshipped the ground he walked on. I sort solace in friends who told me the first year of marriage is always the worst. Deep down, I knew it was something worse than that. I wasn’t ready to face it yet, but an icy feeling of dread was starting to creep in.

Seven months after we married, he started coming home from work reeking of alcohol. He would plonk himself on the sofa and spend hours on his iPad. There was little communication between us. When we did talk, it was usually a row.

“It seemed to me that Lawrence had simply give up all pretence that he was the lovely man I’d fallen in love with, the facade was falling daily. One night, he came home drunk and staggering, and for the first time, I was afraid of him. Trembling, I told him he was disgusting and that I didn’t want him anywhere near Daphnie. He sneered and said: ‘I didn’t marry Daphnie – I married you’. He then became aggressive and threw a pair of shoes across the room at me, I was seeing his true colours for the first time. I should have thrown him out there and then, but it still felt too soon to admit I’d made a terrible mistake.

If I hadn’t so desperately wanted it to work, I may have reacted differently. But my parents had enjoyed a long and contented marriage before my father passed away, and I was still under the delusion that I could achieve the same happiness.

“My marriage was over – that much I knew.

I could no longer deny a truth that was starring me in the face. I had absolutely no idea who the man I married was.

A few weeks after this incident, Lawrence simply failed to come home. When I called his dad, he promised to investigate. Lawrence was alright, he told me later, he simply didn’t want to be found by me.

I was utterly devastated.

My instinct had been right but the reality was hard to accept. My marriage lasted less than a year and left me with a lot of frustrating unanswered questions.

“There’s no denying Lawrence was not the man I thought he was.

But who is he? Was he only with me for a few months of rent-free living, or did he simply fall out of love with me?

For almost a year since he left, I’ve been living a lie, desperately trying to complete a jigsaw with

a missing piece that won’t fit. And the worst of it is that I’ve put Daphnie through it all in the hope of making her life better, when all I’ve done is make it worse.

But I’ve learnt my lesson.

If something seems too good to be true, then, most of the time, it probably is.”

Nothing Personal – (Humour) A man and his girlfriend are getting intimate for the first time when the girl suddenly cools. “I guess you’re waiting for Mr. Right,” the man says, trying to be sensitive. “Oh no,”the girl replies. “That’s silly nonsense – I’m waiting for Mr. Big.”

• She gets fat • Almost gives up in the labour room due to

the unbearable pain of child birth • Even the kids she delivers bear your name Till the day she dies... everything she does... cooking, cleaning your house, taking care of your parents, bringing up your children, earning, advising you, ensuring you can be relaxed, maintaining all family relations, everything that benefit you..... sometimes at the cost of her own health, hobbies and beauty.

So who is really doing whom a favour?

My Dear men, appreciate the women in your lives always, because it is not easy to be a woman. *Being a woman is priceless

Chris Onunaku 08032988826/08184844015

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 25

BY NIMA ELBAGIR AND LILLIAN LEPOSO

I

n a side room at the American University of Nigeria, four girls chat and giggle. One teenage girl in particular catches our attention. She looks familiar.

Then we realize why.

We met her just a few weeks after Boko Haram had attacked her school and abducted almost 300 students. As the Boko Haram trucks carrying them began to speed away to the militants’ territory, she and her friend bravely jumped, barely escaping with their lives. She was one of the lucky ones.

School, she says, from that day on became a reminder of what almost happened. A place she never wanted to return.

But now she is back and the change in her is remarkable.

She dreams of remaining in the classroom as a teacher, so that, just like her tutors, she can influence and inspire young minds.

Studying with her here are 21 other girls from Chibok.

They, too, escaped Boko Haram. Like hundreds of others across Nigeria’s North East, they were targeted simply for going to school.

Choosing to go back to class is a statement of their courage and focus on education, which they hope will bring change back home.

“My people need my support,” one girl says. “And me going to school will make that change.”

Focused She wants to be a surgeon.

In a part of the world often lacking the most basic health care infrastructure, she has chosen to bring value to her community. One of three students we spoke to who wants to study medicine, she’s extraordinarily focused and firm in her responses. It is

By Aiyevbekpen Osakue

T

IME was when the sight of earth moving construction equipment was uncommon in Edo State. In particular, the first eight years of PDP administration in the state was standstill and characterized by inertia. In many cases, contractors never got to know their contract locations before certificates of completion were issued and payments effected to them. A clear example is the notorious N1.6 billion Iguobazuwa – Okada unexecuted dualization project that was fully paid for..

In the last quarter of 2009, under Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, a parade of earth moving construction equipment was undertaken by a company called SERVTECH through some major streets of Benin City. And for the young ones, who were C M Y K

Studying with her here are 21 other girls from Chibok.

They, too, escaped Boko Haram. Like hundreds of others across Nigeria’s North East, they were targeted simply for going to school

LIFE AFTER CHIBOK ABDUCTION

22 girls who escaped Boko Haram risk lives to go to school hard to imagine sitting with her now what she and the other girls have been through at Boko Haram’s hands, what they almost lost.

Some questions, though, they can’t answer: any questions about the night of the attack, any reference to their friends still missing.

These are too hard.

Enrolled on scholarships at

the university, these girls are the lucky ones, and they know it. There are 46 other Chibok girls who also escaped Boko Haram, but there are no funds available to pay for their education.

Dr. Margee Ensign, the school’s vice-chancellor, is hoping to change that by raising funds through the university’s foundation.

“The world paid, and rightly so, a lot of attention to the close to 300 that were kidnapped,” she says.

“We heard through various people that some had escaped that night and when it came to our attention that about a dozen wanted to come to AUN, we thought we can do that!”

She did more then just raise the funds. When the parents

Roaring of bulldozer bulldozerss in Edo probably seeing a maze of heavy equipment for the first time, they trooped out excitedly to welcome the equipment into their bedraggled capital city, which was apparently yearning for reconstruction. The first major road project embarked upon by Oshiomhole’s led APC government was flagged off in the first quarter of 2010. Since then, the sound of roaring bulldozers has continued to rent the air in parts of the state capital and some other major cities across the state. By the end of 2010, the state capital had literarily been converted into one huge project site.

Rather than complain, residents bore the inconveniences of having to seek alternative routes to their destinations with joy and equanimity. The work load on the technical supervisory corps of the

Ministries of Works and Environment was neck-breaking but they were upbeat being called to duty even at odd times. It was, to them, a welcome relief from pining away in rustic idleness to which they were previously condemned. By the end of 2012, many projects had been delivered and, for some others, work had substantially advanced to final stages of completion. And, thereafter, the pace of work slowed down. This was not unusual against the background of the fact that not only is contract performance seasonal and determined by weather condition, government projects are financed mainly through the ever sticky process of annual budgetary appropriation.

In spite of the daunting challenges, government continued to maintain hopeful

presence at work sites across Edo. Today, the challenges have been further compounded by the sharp drop in the price of crude oil at the international market. For a mono-cultural economy that is bereft of a lynchpin in foreign reserves, the impact could be near immediate and devastating.

Federal allocation to states and local governments has become miserably lean and barely adequate to fund recurrent commitments. Worse still, the Naira has been devalued by the Central Bank of Nigeria with huge implications for the construction industry. As a consequence, the country is mired in a near economic deadlock. States and local governments are particularly hamstrung and shackled in their capacity to respond to development needs of their

agreed to release their girls into her care, she and her security director traveled — just the two of them — to the outskirts of Chibok to go and get the girls, in spite of the insecurity.

Specter of Boko Haram Even on campus, though, the specter of Boko Haram is never far away. The American University is in Adamawa, one of the states in North East Nigeria that is under a state of emergency. This calls for constant vigilance at the school: Cars are searched by hand and guards and sniffer dogs are on constant patrol.

For the girls, to remain in school, they must draw upon all their reserves of courage.

It is a reality these extraordinarily selfpossessed young ladies softly acknowledge.

When we ask how it is they are able to persevere, one girl says with a slight smile, “I’m very brave and determined.”

She really is. All the girls are. But they’re hoping a day will come when they won’t have to be.

Source: CNN

people. In Edo State, many had thought that the government would be completely asphyxiated.

But the Comrade Governor has proven to be supremely skillful in the management of scarce resources. Equally noteworthy is the creative application of the money generated from internal sources which has given credibility to the claim that the tax of Edo people was at work.

It is against this background that one is saddened by the unwarranted politicization of the tax regime in the state. Politicians must not succumb to electoral pressures to denounce brilliant efforts in order to win election.

Policy decisions are not made in a vacuum but made within a complex environment of relationships in which the interest of the larger society must prevail.

•Osakue, a political strategist, is resident in Benin City.

PAGE 26—SUNDAY

Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

TERRIFYING NIGHT VIGIL

Robbers rape seven women during deliverance

BY SIMON EBEGBULEM

S

EVEN ladies who went for night vigil for deliverance in a new generation church, located at 2nd Cemetery Road, Benin-City, were allegedly raped by armed bandits who stormed the church at about 4am on Thursday.

The robbers were said to have earlier raided a

BY BASHIR ADEFAKA AND DAMILOLA IGBEDION

C

ulture and Tourism Re-invigoration Initiative, RubyPlus Africa, has opened up on its concern over the African culture drift into extinction.

Consequently, it is promoting national languages as against

foreign languages promoted by government, adding that doing so would play a big role in saving African culture. To RubyPlus Africa, any attempt by a society to forsake its language for a foreign tongue can lead, not only to loss of cultural identity but also, that the very basis for the existence of that society is endangered.

The organisation, now said to be positioned to help actualize this by inculcating African culture in teenagers, recently got the Federal Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s endorsement for a culture and tourism promotion partnership to reawaken positive attitudes of teenagers in Nigeria among same age groups on the African continent.

The initiative, following the authorities’ endorsement, is set out to help African teenagers to harness their energies and channel their exuberance to the benefit of their societies. By channeling the energies of these teenagers

building near Ewuotubu community where they robbed some tenants living in four different flats in the compound. It was learnt that two persons, including a police officer, were shot dead while others sustained various degrees of injuries in the process.

What was supposed to be an all-night marathon prayer session , tagged ‘Koboko Night’, meant to cast out

demons tormenting some members of the church, turned sour as the masked armed robbers, numbering six, shot sporadically, ordering the members to go back to the church shortly after they said the final prayers to depart the church.

The robbers had, on storming the church premises, rained bullets on the roof and ordered members to lie down.

Consequently, they raped the

women.

One of the victims, who narrated her ordeal to Sunday Vanguard, said, “Though I was not raped, I was beaten mercilessly when they were asking us to identify the pastor and we refused. After collecting our phones, money and jewelleries, they ordered some of the ladies to undress.

They threatened to kill them if they refused and, of course, they removed their clothes

We are worried Africa’s culture is drif ting ttoo drifting extinction —Emmanuel, RubyPlus Africa leader towards productivity, social vices will be gradually exterminated amongst them.

During a press briefing in Victoria Island, Lagos, Managing Director of E-JAY Prime Atlantic Limited, Mrs Jacqueline Emmanuel, who is also the leader of RubyPlus Africa, said, “It is imperative to note that teenagers

are the bedrock of every nation’s future be it economic, political or social. Teenagers constitute about 32% of the world’s population and about 70% of Africa’s youth population. It has been proven that emerging economies such as China, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and India are predominantly driven by youths.

“We partner with organizations across the private, public and social sectors in Africa and all over the world to harness and develop the potentials of African teenagers. Our scale, scope, a n d knowledge allow us to reach out to African teens including the most vulnerable and those living in rural areas.

We have functional and relationship expertise as well as breadth of geographical reach with which African teenagers can showcase their talents globally. We are passionate about taking on immense challenges

that matter to teenagers in Africa and helping them to overcome these challenges.

“African teenagers are our center-piece. We build their capabilities and leadership skills at every level and every opportunity. We do this to help build healthy relationships, confidence and internal support, get to real issues, and reach practical but lasting recommendations that avail a secured future for African teenagers. We bring out the potentials of the teenagers to fully participate in the process and lead the ongoing work of bringing out the best in them.

We achieve all these through our core operations: publishing of RubyPlus magazine, events organizing, counseling, promotion of African culture and tourism.”

As part of her commitment to ensure that African cultural values are preserved and eroding cultures are reinvigorated, RubyPlus Africa, now better positioned by the Federal Government’s approved partner, is putting finishing touches to a planned unprecedented African Cultural Display and Arts Exhibition across the continent.

This event, described by the boss of the organization, Mrs

O’t ega visits the Asagba, unf olds plans ffor or Delt a Nor th O’tega unfolds Delta North

D

elta

State

gubernatorial candidate of the APC, Olorogun Emerhor O’tega, paid a courtesy visit to the Asagba of Asaba, Obi Joseph C. Edozien, in a last-minute campaign aimed at securing the votes of the people of Delta North.

Emerhor, who was warmly received by the Asaba monarch, reassured the people of Delta North that his government will turnaround the state, adding that he will not disappoint them.

He said he was not happy that Asaba has been neglected by the PDP for the past 16 years, stressing that it was time to take over power from the ruling party.

Emerhor added that one of the reasons Delta is where it is today is because PDP has created a bad precedent whereby anybody that becomes the governor develops only his homeland to the detriment of other senatorial districts.

C M Y K

and were raped one by one.

“It was actually two churches that they attacked.

They raped five women in our church. Later, we found out that they raped two others in a church close to ours. They ransacked the church and collected any cash they found and escaped. It was a horrible sight”. The raped women are said to be receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital on Ekenwan Road, Benin City.

He asserted that his primary aim of contesting the 2015 governorship position is to use the resources of the state for economic prosperity and visible development in its twenty five local government areas.

The APC governorship candidate said that the PDP is bereft of ideas to develop Delta.

He told the Asagba-in-Council that he will declare a state of emergency on employment which he described as a major socioeconomic problem in the state, if elected on April 11, pointing out that the 16 years of “PDP misrule has produced harsh economic conditions”. The business mogul promised to build homes for Deltans adding that, as governor, he will have the power to acquire land to build homes for the people. He lamented that PDP conducted the economic affairs of Delta like a government agency waiting for federal allocation

before if can do anything. He said his government will not wait for federal allocation before he embarks on projects for the state, emphasizing that he will make the state a haven for investors.

Responding, the Asaba monarch promised Emerhor that his people will support him to realise his dreams, adding that Asaba people want leaders that can develop Delta and the state capital.

•Royal fathers praying for Olorogun O’tega Emerhor

Emmanuel, as unparalleled on the African continent has been planned in a way that will promote African culture vis-àvis display of skills by teenagers, exhibition of African arts and epic presentations teaching the rich history of Africa. She gave the modality for the show, saying that participants would engage in a competition and winners will be objectively selected by judges.

“African Cultural Display and Arts Exhibition will be in two phases of and the first phase being African cultural display through dance and drama competition, and the second being the exhibition of African paintings, arts, and crafts exclusively designed and made by prospective participants.

This competition is exclusive to participants from Nigeria at this stage whereas a national winner will be selected to represent the country at the continental competition where national winners from respective countries will participate at the continental grand finale holding soon after,” she added.

Group assures Okowa, Diden of Egbema votes

T

HE people of Egbema kingdom, in Warri North local government, Delta State, have vowed to deliver their votes to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, and Hon. Michael Diden, PDP’s candidate for Warri North constituency April 11 elections.

Egbema for Positive Change in a statement signed by Ebi Fetimi, president, Comrade Sart Yebu, secretary and Shola Korokoro, public relations officer, PRO, respectively, the group expressed confidence that Okowa and Diden would get all the votes in Egbema kingdom.

The group reaffirmed the support of the people of Egbema to Okowa and Diden, saying the duo would attract the needed infrastructural and human developments to Egbema kingdom, if elected on April 11.

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 27

Most Beautiful Girl in Eko Beauty Pageant 20 15 201

A T WO MONTHS AFTER CLASH WITH OIL PIPELINE V AND ALS VAND ANDALS

No clue on three missing security officials whereabouts

BY BOSE ADELAJA

I

n what appears to be a frantic effort to combat pipeline vandalism in Nigeria, Lagos State chapter of Nigeria Security and C ivil Defense

Corps, NSCDC, has cried out that oil pipeline vandals are being sponsored by some powerful individuals in the country, a situation which has enabled them to procure weapons that seem superior to those of law enforcement agents.

The state commandant of the NSCDC, Gabriel Abafi, spoke while referring to the January 2015 fracas in Oke-Oko, a border town between Ikorodu, Lagos and Ifo local government area of Ogun State, which left three members of NSCDC still missing and two others injured, while two policemen an d a civilian were felled by bullets during a raid by the NSCDC in the area. He called on the federal and state

governments to declare the affected area a danger zone, saying only a combined team of the military and other security agencies can put an end to the illicit business oil pipeline vandalism. Lamenting that the vandals had been having a field day since the incident, the commandant said he had intensified the search for the missing men by enlisting the assistance of other security outfits in the state. His words:

‘’We are still searching for three of our men. We have contacted all the security organisations to

help us in the search.

Unfortunately the vandals are having a field day in the community and this is so painful because what belongs to the entire nation is being cornered by some individuals who have sponsors and buyers”. According to him, the affected families have been contacted to join the state chapter in prayers for the recovery of the missing

*The police after pipeline vandals

officials as there is no clue to their whereabouts. He added: ‘’We want to keep the names secret so that emotions will not

be raised by affected families who have been coming to our office. Also, we have been pleading with them to join us in prayers”. Abafi claimed there was no clue on the whereabouts of the missing men.

He called on people to desist from buying products from vandals, saying, “If there are no buyers, these people will stop operation. We hereby urge the state and federal governments to declare the place a no go area for the vandals even if it means taking possession of the area.’’

Meanwhile, Oke-Oko residents have urged government to provide adequate security in the community. They claimed the vandals have re-grouped making the community unsafe without regard to law enforcement agents. It will be recalled that gunmen stormed Owutu Police Station, Ikorodu and opened fire, killing two policemen and a civilian after suspecting that their men might have been detained in the station following the raid by the NSCDC.

When Benin-City at ani ssttood sstill till ffor or the lat tice Oki Benin-City,, PPat atani latee Jus Justice

BY STEPHEN ONABE

I

f eulogies could wake a

dead man, the late Hon. Justice J.A.P Oki would probably have woken up from eternal rest as his funeral rites were heavily interspersed by torrents of panegyrics and plaudits which flowed freely from those who were affected by his exemplary lifestyle, defined by unbending moral uprightness, incorruptible disposition, circumspection and philanthropy.

Oki wielded as much influence in death as in his lifetime would be putting the story mildly.

Saturday March 14, 2015 witnessed arguably the largest human convergence in Patani, Delta State as friends, eminent jurists, politicians, businessmen and sympathizers from all walks of life trooped to the country home of the Beribo of Kabowei Kingdom and retired Chief Judge of Bendel State, to pay their last respect.

The funeral rites commenced

The late Hon. Justice J.A.P Oki Thursday, March 13, 2015 in Beinn City with a valedictory court session held at the High Court of Justice, Sapele Road in his honour.

Present at the court session was the governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

Also present were the Honourable Chief Judge of Edo State, Justice C.O. Idahosa, Chief Judge of Delta State, Hon. Justice Smith Zai-Laye Dawo, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Delta State, Charles Ajuyah (SAN), and

the National President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Austin Alegeh (SAN). Other eminent jurists at the event include K.S Okeaya-nneh (SAN), Sir Alfred Egbobiamen (SAN), Imma Dobelo (SAN), Albert Akpomudje (SAN), Henry Ogbodu (SAN), Pat Onegbedan (SAN), and Dan Okoh (SAN).

Idahosa, in a tribute, said: ‘’For the great legal icon, in whose honour we are here gathered, he imbibed and exhibited the principles of truth and truthfulness, justness and justice, firmness and fairness. Indeed, His Lordship’s contributions to the development of law and the substance of a viable judiciary in the defunct Bendel State in particular is so immense.

The finality of death cannot draw a curtain on his contributions”.

To Ajuyah, Oki could best be described as an ‘’illustrious, erudite and emblematic judge who made significant contributions in his very many illuminating judgments.”

Also in his tribute, Alegeh called

on his colleagues across the nation to imbibe the values of integrity and incorruptibility which Oki typified.

NAMA Company Secretary and the last son of the late Oki, Barr.

Paul Oki, had this to say about his father: “My father set very high standards for his children, fellow judges, legal practitioners and indeed anybody he came in contact with. He was a rare gem” .

With several titles, awards and plaques dotting his expansive living room in Benin City, the late Oki indeed lived a life of service to the nation. This perhaps informed the rally that his funeral service at St. Mathew’s Anglican Cathedral, Patani turned into.

Rt. Rev. Edafe Benjamin Emamezi, Bishop of Western Izon Diocese, who officiated at the service, along with four bishops, tasked worshipers to take a cue from the legacies of the late Justice Oki by “serving God and humanity in truth and honesty. ”

'The case ffor or more women in leader ship positions' leadership

BY OLAYINKA LATONA

G

overnment at federal and state levels, as well as corporate organisations, have been called on to work towards including women adequately in leadership positions more than it is presently.

This call was made by the Executive Secretary, Nigerian National Summit Group, Mr. Tony Uranta, during the second edition of “Inspiring Change”, organised by ESOB Heroes, a non-governmental organisation, in collaboration with Royalty Christian Centre.

Passionate to see more women participate actively in C M Y K

governance, Uranta stressed that if women were given their right place in governance, a nation like Nigeria can be turn around positively. He said: “Ever y politician concerned with governance should ensure that their government is dominated by women. This is not a sexist issue; this is issue that bothers on moral uprightness. With all due respect to my fellow men, women are more morally upright than men”.

The organiser of the event, Mrs. Adesumbo Adeoye, disclosed that her passion for women was born out of her

vision to support entrepreneurial ideas. She enjoined women to participate actively in election process to drive positive change in the nation’s polity. According to her, it was time for women to move beyond domestic responsibilities to which African culture had restricted them and aspire for leadership roles in the society. “I noticed that there were so many ideas but yet people were scared to start because of the fear of failure. And so I decided to train people for free, I hold free conferences to help them overcome such phobia,” she added. Delivering the key

note address, the wife of the Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Mrs. Nomthi Odukoya, told the participants that God created them for the purpose of solving problem.

She said: “There is much more purpose for your creation. You are here in the world to do something; you are not just to pass here and go back to God. “There is a problem in the world in the world waiting outside for you to solve.

Therefore, everything starts from your heart and there is need for you to keep it diligently because out of it the issues of life come forth”.

ll is now set for the second edition of the Most Beautiful Girl in Eko Beauty Pageant June 2015 (reloaded) in Lagos. According to Funmi Bolatiwa Quadri, Executive Director of Ereon Pageantry, this year’s edition has been upgraded with four beauty queens programmed to emerge as winners namely: Most Beautiful Girl in Eko Beauty Queen (MBGE) as overall winner, MBGE Tourism (new), MBGE Entertainment (new) and MBGE Environment.

She stated that the beauty queens would be attached with chaperons in their official duty and functions till the end of their tenure. “We now have two new queens namely: MBGE Tourism and MBGE Entertainment. Retained is MBGE Environment. Miss Hospitality is no longer in the league of our queens”, she said.

Miss Taiwo Samson, General Manager of Ereon Pageantry, said the 2015 edition of the pageant promises to be glamorous.

In a related development, Ereon Pageantry has floated the first pageantry online Tv b l o g s p o t , www.ereonpageantrytv.blogspot.com The blogsite is owned by Mr Scherey Momoh, an online publisher, veteran journalist and entrepreneur.

SURE-P: Markudi firm employs 95 indigent graduates

BY PETER DURU, MAKURDI

O

ver 95 graduates have been offered employment by a Makurdi based indigenous transportation company, Pleasur e Travels, on the

auspices of the Graduate Internship Scheme, GIS, of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme, SURE-P. Speaking at the orientation training for the beneficiaries in Makurdi, Benue State capital, the Managing Director of the company, Dr. Paul Ubwa, said the SUREP Graduate Internship Scheme avails skilled unemployed Nigerians the opportunity to earn monthly income.

Ubwa said, “The SURE-P GIS programme has provided a veritable platform for entrepreneurs, firms and well trained unemployed Nigerians to be merged for mutual benefits; it should therefore be sustained.”

Earlier the Managing Director of Lapidot Consulting, the firm handling the training of beneficiaries on behalf of SURE-P GIS, Mrs. Omobola Oluwaji, who commended the Federal Government for the programme, said it provides the unemployed an opportunity to be gainfully employed. Mrs. Oluwaji, who urged the beneficiaries to be good ambassadors of the scheme, encouraged them to take the training seriously.

PAGE 28—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

government, Nigerians desire strong societal institutions instead of strong chief executives.

National institutions in particular should be made to perform their core mandate. The NYSC for instance has no business being turned partly into a para-military force; just as its harsh environment

,

T

HE emergence of the All Progressive Congress (APC) cannot but be seen as a positive development in Nigeria’s political history that was hitherto replete with ineffectual political opposition. In the last one year, Nigerians have never seen a more robust opposition that gave the ruling party a run for its vast resources. The party should also be appreciated for the overwhelming awareness it brought to bear on the need for change in Nigeria. Of course, it is only a crazy nation that can continue to do the same thing while expecting different results.

It is now left for the citizenry to insist that whoever comes to office on May 29, this year must effect fundamental changes to the rot in our democracy in the last 15 years. In other words, if President Jonathan returns to power, he needs to be told right way that what we want is real transformation. At the same time, if the APC takes over what we want is not a slogan but real change.

For example, in the executive arm of

A serious government should push for a constitutional amendment that reduces the figure by no less 50% so that the nation can give priority to capital expenditure

supposedly to build resilience is devoid of an orientation towards the main goal of national unity for which it was established. Nigeria like every other civilized nation ought to have since done away with unwieldy bureaucracy. If it is unreasonable to have a large figure of 36 Ministers currently provided for in our constitution, it is worse that we have been having

PhD, Department of Philosophy, University of Lagos, , 08116759758

Consolidating democratic culture in Nigeria (1)

W

ith the ongoing elections, Nigerians are facing one of the toughest challenges in their quest for consolidation and sustenance of the modest political gains achieved since civilian rule was reintroduced in 1999. In other words, form March 28, they would engage in a peaceful and orderly selection of political office holders that would manage the country ’s affairs at various levels from May 29 until 2019. Expectedly, the electioneering campaigns, especially the presidential, have been particularly fierce, brutal and bruising.

The main opposition party, All Progressives Congress (APC) mounted a very vociferous campaign aimed at projecting the image of its flag bearer, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, as the long awaited messiah that would eliminate corruption, ensure security nationwide, and reinvigorate the economy. Integral to APC’s campaign strategy is unrelenting effort to discredit the present administration of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan as clueless, corrupt, incompetent, and disastrous in every aspect of our national life.

On the other hand, the ruling Peoples Democratic party (PDP) has worked really hard, somewhat belatedly, to showcase achievements of the federal government in agriculture,

more than that figure since 1999. A serious government should push for a constitutional amendment that reduces the figure by no less 50% so that the nation can give priority to capital expenditure.

Government should find courage to implement the Steve Oronsaye report which recommended the

anti-corruption, i n f r a s t r u c t u r a l development, health, education, economic management, political reengineering, payroll system, maintenance of civil liberties, and so on.

Also, the party’s campaign machinery has consistently maintained that Gen. Buhari is unsuitable for the office of President because of his age, concerns about his health and physical fitness for the job, unimpressive academic qualifications, dictatorial proclivities, antiquated ideas of economic management, religious extremism, hypocritical attitude to corruption etc.

In terms of personality traits and record of accomplishments in public office, the two leading presidential candidates are qualified for the job.

However, overall, because I consider Gen. Buhari’s negative qualities weightier than those of Dr. Jonathan, the incumbent President is a more suitable candidate than his arch rival. Moreover, although President Jonathan has made several mistakes that turned millions of Nigerians against his reelection bid, we must acknowledge his good works which should be consolidated if he is reelected for a second term of office. Now, as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is collating results of the just concluded

,

scrapping of duplicated institutions/functions. In the same vein, state governors should put a halt to their practice of appointing hundreds of 419 special advisers/assistants.

The police should be put into better use through proper funding. It should protect society and not just the ruling class.

Accordingly, we should stop holding down a large number of policemen to presidential and National Assembly elections, Nigerians must remain peaceful and avoid any act capable of truncating our fledgling democracy.

Therefore, everyone should internalise President Jonathan’s proclamation that “nobody ’s political ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian.”

Philosophers, right from antiquity to date, have theorised concerning the origin of civil society and the best form of government. Whereas some of them, like Plato and Aristotle, recommended aristocracy, others, such as Thomas Hobbes, Sir Robert Filmer and G.W.F. Hegel prefer some kind of monarchical arrangement.

John Locke, J.S. Mill, Prof.

Karl Popper, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo insist that representative government or democracy is the most appropriate system considering the plastic and complex nature of humans and the necessity of cooperative existence within a given geopolitical space.

Essentially democracy, as Abraham Lincoln defined it, is government of the people, by the people and for the people. Although in every form of government only a tiny minority or elite actually take decisions that affect the vast majority, the fundamental difference between a democratic system and the rest is that in the former there are specified intervals when eligible voters are permitted by law to select the tiny minority that would run the government at both the executive and legislative levels.

A democratic government cannot exist in a vacuum; it must be built on, nourished and sustained by, a robust democratic

between the salary of a legislator and his allowances is puerile because they have no right to fix any allowances for themselves as there is nothing wrong with Section 76 of our constitutions which provides that they “shall receive such salary and other allowances as the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal commission may determine” Also to stop are stories of fraudulent oversights by our legislators. The senate in particular should play its proper role in assisting the nation to ascertain that only fit and proper persons are appointed to certain key offices. As a result, immature clearance should cease. As argued in this column two weeks back, a nominee permitted to take a bow and go is not cleared but exempted; yet the only mandate the senate has is to clear nominees. To exempt any nominee is certainly not part of the mandate. As for state legislators, it is time to depart from political rascality. Legislators in states such as Rivers and Edo which ran two factions of one legislator owe posterity an explanation. In Ekiti, it is a matter for regret that in 2015, a state that lays claims to being among the most educated in the nation is where a few legislators are holding sway at the expense of the majority. It is hoped that those involved would see reason and return to sanity.

We also hope that as from May 29, 2015 legislators in states like Adamawa, Imo and Enugu would decline to impeach deputy governors for materialistic considerations.

Nigerians earnestly desire an end to politicians using judges to win elections. We want an end to what happened in Adamawa state in particular where the judiciary used delay to help Governor Murtala Nyako to stay in office and later helped to remove him in an unimpressive impeachment arrangement. While our judiciary can do better, civil society groups can do much to help the nation develop.

First, they need to speak out against unwholesome practices by political leaders especially our unending politicisation instead of governance.

Many of the groups who were authors of hate campaigns in the last electioneering period need a rethink. Traditional rulers constitute another group that must retrace their steps.

Whereas the constitution encourages them to enjoy their respectable positions of fathers of the nation, many of them often serve as campaign managers of candidates while others are always engaged in endorsing candidates for cash. The Awujale of Ijebuland may have had his preferences but he spoke like an Oba. His Osun colleagues should note

culture dominated by certain values. The values necessary in a democratic system include reasonableness, respect for the rule of law and for basic human rights and freedoms as enshrined in the United Nations charter on human rights, tolerance, and uncompromising desire for peaceful coexistence. But establishment of a viable democratic culture in any

early in the twentieth century under the supervision of the colonial power, Britain.

Since 1960 when the country became independent, various attempts have been made by several political leaders to deepen democratic culture, epitomised in the political writings and activities of Azikiwe, Awolowo, Adeniran Ogunsanya and Aminu Kano among others. Yet, ethnicity, religion, bulimic greed and hyperbolic political ambition among the political class remain the greatest obstacles to democratic consolidation in the country.

Of course, periodic military interventions retarded the evolution of genuine democratic culture between 1966 and 1999, to the extent that politicians sometimes conduct themselves as if they were military dictators propelled by authoritarian mentality.

Nothing exemplifies this shameful approach to democratic governance better than worsening impunity and brazen emasculation of the local government system by various governors in different states of the federation. That said, it must be acknowledged that the 1999 constitution, which constitutes the fundamental legal document or grund norm of the country, is replete with anti-democratic provisions. This is not surprising, bearing in mind that the document was prepared under the aegis of a military regime to serve certain entrenched feudalistic interests of the North. But there is no good reason why a constitution for a multiply pluralistic federation like Nigeria should contain provisions subordinating the interests of the federating units to that of the central government.

Indeed, the most remarkable progress in Nigerian history was made when the country operated regionalism, which indicates that proper devolution of powers to the federating units is the most appropriate political structure for Nigeria as a whole.

Moreover, restructuring the federation now along the six widely recognised geopolitical zones will deepen our democratic experience by allowing the component parts to organise themselves in the most appropriate manner consonant with their history, culture and resources for rapid social transformation.

Now, due to long-standing and entrenched interests benefiting from the current skewed arrangement, restructuring the federation will require a piecemeal approach. That is why Nigerians should accept recommendations of the National Conference organised by the federal government by seeing it as the first step in addressing the vexed issue of “true federalism.”

In my opinion, APC made a mistake when it refused to support the programme, because the action is a hasty and negativist cynical response to the task of reshaping Nigeria necessitated by the imperatives of our historical experiences. Moreover, the belief that Gen. Buhari will bring about meaningful change if elected President in spite of the disabled political structure we have now is too optimistic; it ignores the crippling effects of an overbearing central government on the developmental aspirations of the federating units.

,

The ‘Change’ Nigerians desire

guard related duties. The police should no longer be pressurized to be partisan; here, its posture in the defection of the House of Representative Speaker from one party to another is a good example. Only members of the House have roles to play in the selection and removal of their Speaker. Law enforcement is a police duty and it should be equipped to do that well. If that is done the unnecessary involvement of the military in elections would not arise especially now that the Judiciary has so spoken. All security agencies should be mobilized to follow best practices in their duties.

Modern facilities for security should be procured for intelligence gathering rather than the unending mundane stance which further punishes citizens through long queues caused by check points.

Nigerians are waiting anxiously for when they will not be whipped off the roads for easy movements for wives of elected political leaders The legislature in particular must change itself. First, its members should cease being the highest paid political office holders in the world.

Indeed, the salaries of its members which are drawn from taxpayers’ money should no longer be a secret to the same taxpayers that the legislators claim to represent. The argument that seeks to draw a line

A democratic government cannot exist in a vacuum; it must be built on, nourished and sustained by, a robust democratic culture dominated by certain values

,

country or geopolitical environment is a daunting time-consuming challenge because, among other things, it requires certain intellectual qualities and psychological dispositions which are not very easy to cultivate and sustain. It follows that democratisation is always and everywhere a work-inprogress. Citizens of fairly well established democracies such as Britain, the United States, Switzerland and Botswana are still battling to ensure that the system is not derailed by the ever-present centrifugal forces tending to weaken or destroy democracies all over the world.

Experiment with democracy in Nigeria as a colonial amalgam began

To be continued

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 29

C M Y K

PAGE 30 — SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

not know – because there is no where for the menstruation to come out.

There can be “still births” as babies can die, before the time of delivery.

There are also psychological consequences which include low self-esteem, poor concentration in school while bleeding can cause death.

By Emmanuel Edukugho

C M Y K

THE FEMALE SILENT KILLER

Female genital mutilation, ranging from the cutting off of the clitoris to the removal of the entire genitalia carried out from the youngest babies to teenagers has become a serious global public health and human rights issue.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that over 125 million women have been mutilated in 29 countries in Africa and Middle East, while condemning the practice as a “violation of the human rights of women”. United Nations Secretary General, Ban kiMoon, recently, in Nairobi, Kenya, launched a global campaign to end the deadly practice saying, “the mutilation of girls and women must stop in this generation, our generation” In this interview with Dr. Adedoyin Ogunyemi, a public health expert who leads an advocacy group in Nigeria committed to stopping Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), talks about it, the extent the practice is ravaging our country and how to tackle the problem and restore the dignity and respect of our girl children. She is of the Royal Hospital, Ojodu, Lagos.

‘Help! Parents are secretly cutting the genitals of their daughters’

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

Female genitalmutilation is actually female circumcision which is a harmful practice carried out in most African countries and the Middle East – Yemen was recently included. The practice involves total or partial removal of some or all the female external genitalia or genital reproductive organs,

Are there health consequences involved in these types of mutilations?

Can you specify the consequences?

Yes, there are short and long term health consequences.

The short term ones include severe pains (no anaesthetic or pain killing drugs administered), bleeding, anaemia, low blood level due to bleeding, infection like tetanus, hepatitis B,

for cultural, non-medical reasons, causing injury to the female organs. In the circumcision, the glands and clitoris, the vaginal tips are cut off. It’s no longer circumcision, but mutilated.

We see the practice as violation of human rights of women. They ought be free from discrimination, coercion. It is violence considering the injury, both physical and psychological, beyond public health issue.

Explain the types of FGM? There are various types of FGM. Type 1 is the removal or excision (cutting off) of the prepuce, the glands and part of or all of the clitoris – sensitive part of the vagina, the outer lips. Type 2, removal of the whole clitoris and the partial or total excision of the labia minora.

Type 3, cutting off or excision of the external genitalia or labia majora, that is removing all the clitoris and the vaginal tips, stitching, or narrowing of the vaginal openings, leaving only a small opening for urine and menstruation to pass through. Type 4, piercing or incision of the clitoris or the labia stretching of the clitoris and or the labia or

Many parents are cutting the genitals of their daughters secretly especially in the rural areas which can be stopped, not only by legislation but also through persuasion, community enlightenment, family and peer discussion

burning the clitoris and surrounding tissues and the vagina opening.

Then, there is the introduction of corrosive substance or herbs into the vagina which can cause bleeding and narrowing and tightening of the vagina.

HIV, AIDS, etc. There will be urinary retention because urine stays back.

Haemorrhage or severe bleeding during circumcision could lead to even death.

The long term health consequences include abcess, painful cyst, scars, keloid, painful sexual intercourse, difficult pregnancy and child birth, obstructed labour, narrow vagina, tightening makes labour very difficult and therefore resort to caesarian section, retention of menstrual fluid as blood can’t flow, eclampsia, hypertension, unsafe abortion, higher post partum. Infertility could occur and the women may

Can we know, from your findings, the reasons for female circumcision?

The reasons are mostly socio – cultural. No religious undertone, but spiritual purity may be adduced for the practice. You also have the need to preserve virginity, cultural identity, sense of pride of the coming of age, passage from being a girl to womanhood, to prevent promiscuity, sexual escapades by teenage girls.

But it may rebound as fear of sexual intercourse could lead to frigidity and unwillingness to respond to lovemaking. Reasons vary according to different ethnic beliefs.

What is the prevalence rate of FGM in Nigeria?

About 30% of our women have been cut. It should be zero. I can recall that some years ago when the late First Lady, Mrs. Stella Obasanjo attended a women’s conference held in a foreign country, she advocated zero tolerance for FGM and a day to be set aside by the UN to mark it around the world. I think it th was 6 February that was fixed and being observed worldwide.

FGM is both a public health issue and also human rights. It must be dealt with.

It is harmful. Nigeria has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world – 576 per 100,000 which is 13% of the global maternal mortality rate. If female circumcision is adequately tackled,it can reduce maternal mortality rate in this country. Public health issues should be dealt with beyond building of hospitals and magnificent medical facilities.

Female circumcision is carried out on babies from age of infancy, 2, 5 years to teenagers, particularly in babies to reduce the horror of the pains.

Currently, some states in Nigeria such as Ekiti, Abia, Ondo, Lagos, Bayelsa, Rivers, Ogun, Osun, Cross River and Edo have laws prohibiting female genital cutting. Many others are yet to enact laws prohibiting FMG, allowing it without noise done to kids and babies because it heals faster on babies, with less trauma. There is no singular federal legislation against

Continues on page 33

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 31

ANOTHER EXTRA JUDICIAL ATTACK IN BENIN-CITY

‘The police arrested me, tied me to their van and shot me’

SIMON EBEGBULEM, BENIN CITY

B

ARELY two weeks after one Chibuike Edeh, a 26-year-old worker of Protea HotelBenin City, died mysteriously in the custody of the police, a trigger happy police Inspector, identified as Obaro, allegedly shot another man, 25-year-old Smart Ogah, over N40 at a check point along llushi/Ubiaja Road in Esan South East Local Government Area of Edo State, last Monday. In a petition addressed to the state Police Commissioner, Mr Samuel Adegbuyi, through his solicitor, Sheriff Okoh Esq., the victim, currently receiving treatment in an hospital, narrated how Obaro allegedly pumped bullets into his body after he handed over N40 to policemen at the check point.

The Inspector was said to be angry that the money was too small. The victim, who narrated his ordeal to Sunday Vanguard at the hospital, said, “I was going to Uromi that evening when I met the police at the check point along llushi/Ubiaja Road. They stopped my motorcycle. They asked me for money and I gave them the N40 with me. One of them was collecting the money from me but the second police man said the money was not enough.

Before I knew what was happening, he slapped me.

They tied me to their Hilux van. This man who shot me went into the Hilux and brought out his gun. He shot me with the gun and dropped it. He said he will tell me that he is an Igarra man, that he will kill me and nothing will happen. His colleagues were blaming him for shooting me. The man said I looked like the C M Y K

•Victim seeks justice boy who assaulted them when they came to my village to arrest some body. I am from Ullushi main town in Esan South East. When they were blaming him, he now threw the handcuff key to others that they should remove the handcuff; that was how they took me to hospital.

“This happened last Monday. They apologised to me that they were sorry, that it was a mistake. Today, they told my uncle that they will take care of the bill and that they were going to give me N100,000 at the end of the day. But I didn’t agree to that. Since then, it only one of the policemen has been coming to the hospital to see me. Even since my first day in hospital, I have never set my eyes on the one that shot me. The policemen are attached to Ubiaja Police Station. The DPO came to the hospital twice; the first time he came he gave me N2,000. Now they want to destroy my life. I am assisting my mum in the farm. I am just an ordinary school certificate holder and I did diploma in computer basic information technology. I wish to continue my education but I don’t know what the future holds for me now because my hand has been battered by the police bullet. My dad is late, we are managing life with my mum. We are five in number and I am the only son of my father.

I am appealing to Governor Adams Oshiomhole and other wellmeaning Nigerians to help me so that I can get justice”.

Meanwhile in the petition addressed to Edo State Commissioner of Police, the lawyer is demanding that “ proper and adequate disciplinary measures be taken against our client’s assailants for their unlawful

They asked me for money and I gave them the N40 with me. One of them was collecting the money from me but the second police man said the money was not enough acts of torture, brutalization and violent attacks to his right to life, as well as authorise the payment of the sum of N10million to our client for further and better medical treatment abroad”.

The petition warned that if the demand was not met in seven days, the victim will proper commence legal action to demand for justice from the police.

Speaking to Sunday Vanguard, the lawyer, Okoh, said: “Our client’s right to life was almost violated. The shooting that took place was an attempt at summary execution of an innocent citizen by men of the police, using a double barrel gun.

In a country where every policeman on duty is assigned a rifle, we understand that the gun is a private gun belonging to the police Inspector Obaro who

Smart Ogah...Shot by trigger happy police man committed the act. The shooting was a violation of Section 36 Sub Section 6 of the Constitution which accords the right to fair hearing to the said Smart Ogah no matter what offence he may have committed. He was tied to a van and the assailant pumped bullets into him, that same act was a violation of Section 33 of the Constitution which guarantees Ogah the right to life.

“Read blocks have been abolished by the former IGP and we are not aware of any order from the IG instructing any police officer to come back to the road and mount check point thereby infringing on the right to freedom of movement of innocent Nigerians and extorting money from them.

This is a daily occurrence and a notorious practice by policemen from Esan Area Command, Irrua, Ubiaja Division and Uromi Divisions of the police who mount road blocks along Ubiaja Agbor Road and Ubiaja Ullushi Road and Ubiaja Ewohimi Road where they harass innocent citizens and market women every day. Even though several reports have been made in the past, no action has been taken because it is strongly believed that some top police officers get returns from these road blocks”.

Contacted, Edo State police spokesman, Mr Joseph Edogiawerie, said the command will contact the Area Commander concerned to have a detailed report on the Ogor incident.

PAGE 32— SUNDAY VANGUARD,

MARCH 29, 2015

We regard any crime in FCT as a big issue — Police Chief

By KINGSLEY OMONOBI, Abuja

F

CT Police Commissioner, Wilson Inalegwu, assumed office September 15, 2014.

Before then, he served in the United Nations Peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone and was also in charge of the police at the Presidential Villa. In this interview, he explains the challenges of fighting crime where the seat of power resides as well as preparations for the 2015 elections.

Strategies On assumption of office, I tried to understand my environment by talking to my colleagues, the DPOs, Area commanders and Heads of Departments first of all because in policing an area, you must understand the expectations of your community. You cannot just come with a solution without understanding what the issues are.I usually tell people that we are like doctors; you have to do your diagnosis before you begin to think of prescription of drugs. So I came with a policing strategy for the FCT, both the short term and long term and I looked at the little survey I had, I discovered that our people are concerned about crimes like robberies, one chance.

Some are concerned about the invasion of their privacy.

Cars are stolen once in a while but that did not put up quite much challenge because we went to the various communities and we found out that not all these people have cars.

Issues Then progressing from there, we began to have new issues of security in the Northeast impacting directly on the people and that C M Y K

became an issue for us; having a lot of people coming to settle in the FCT. Also we are looking at cattle rustling again because it became an issue in the rural places. So we had to strategies to deal with these issues heavily and so far we have had very interesting development. Cattle rustling have been occurring so much in the FCT because it is close to our borders like Nasarawa, Kogi, Kaduna and Niger states. We tried to interact with our colleagues in Nasarawa and Kogi because if we chase them out of FCT and they are still around Kogi, Nasarawa and Kaduna, then it means we are not safe.

We are also having interactions with the Area Commanders. I called the CP Nasarawa to look at areas around where we think this people will be pushed to.

Some of them are from Zamfara and other places.

They are herdsmen who don’t have cattle’s and naturally, when you don’t have something to do, it becomes an issue.

Because of that, I invited some of the leaders of the cattle traders , the leaders from the various villages, we met with them but the number is not as much as I would have loved to have.

We said that all of them should come to the FCT to meet with me and the Minister so that we will know the new ones that have come, look at their pedigree, their antecedents, where are they coming from. We will look at the new cattle traders; find how long they have been on the trade. We are also interacting with the various chiefs, the Gumo of

*Wilson Inalegwu

On the forthcoming elections, we took firm steps to ensure that elections in FCT are conducted under a very peaceful atmosphere Kuje, so that they take another look at those in their neighborhood. The Wakili Fulani as the case may be.

So we are looking at it comprehensively so that we know those who have just come to the territory and what is it that they are doing. Did they come with cattle to the FCT or did they just come to settle? We called the various youth leaders, the Gbagy original inhabitants; we interacted with them when we came.

We had the representative of the Okada riders, we also had market women, National Union of Road Transport Workers NURTW and various groups they came and we had a very interesting interaction, including

traditional and religious leaders. All these people came and one of the things we found is that they want peace, they want to partner with the police and other security agencies and for us, this is a step in the right direction.

Polls On the forthcoming elections, we took firm steps to ensure that elections in FCT are conducted under a very peaceful atmosphere.

We embarked on training of our officers on election duties, teaching them their roles and responsibilities at the election. We also went ahead to commission the Joint Operation Center which I think is the first in

the country for the elections and we have the best crop of officers from the various security agencies as members. We have from the DSS, the Military, Civil Defence, Road Safety and others.

This is to bring us all together because we cannot just work, we need coordination. The security agencies have all brought the list of their personnel that will participate in the elections. They have handed them over to us and we are doing a common deployment for all the agencies.

But the military role as you know is to be at the strategic places in case situation demand. But to other agencies that have submitted their list to us; the ones I have mentioned are part of the Joint Task Force. The Centre is to monitor the various voting centre’s and these deployment is based mainly on threats analysis because when we did based on the threats, we got some excerpts from the police intelligence bureau and military intelligence and the rest. We factored it from the plans we are making so that when we are deploying, we

Continues on page 33

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 33

‘We regard any crime in FCT as a big issue’ Continued from page 32

will deploy in such a way that they can deal with the threats that are identified in those locations. For instance, the threat in Maitama will definitely be different from the threat you will have in Kwali or Abaji.

So all these have been taken into consideration and we have adequate number of personnel. Force headquarters is also giving us men including Counter terrorists and Mobile Police personnel. The zone has given us a list of their personnel and all these we are deploying from the command so we can have peaceful elections.

Remember that in FCT, we just have the March 28 election. We don’t have governorship. We have had that of local government. So everything is being done to ensure that it goes peacefully.

Checkmating violence As a way of also ensuring that violence is checkmated

and stopped from occurring in the FCT, last Thursday, I went to meet all the forum of Imams, all the Jumat Imams, all the Imams you can think of in FCT. Under one roof we discussed. They were frank with us, we were frank with them and we invited them as partners to preach peace. It was very interesting because one of the men that I found there, I knew him a long time ago when I was DPO in Lagos. He wanted to travel to Pakistan and he spent a week in my house in Lagos.

I had forgotten about him and he said look, I was in your house in Lagos when I was to travel to Pakistan and the whole forum was very happy and they received me like a brother. Next week, I will be meeting with CAN. I will not invite them; I am going to meet them in their domain just like I did with the Imams. So we are having this relationship. They said they were going to tell us anything they find within their domain and they are going to tune their preaching to peace. I could see the desire for peace from their faces and in their

speech.

Tackling crime Concerning issues relating to tackling crime, I think FCT is doing very well.

Every day we are arresting criminals. Our guys came back from Zaria this morning. We had a guy who snatched a car from here last week.

We arrested two of them in Zaria; arrested the receiver and seller. We have so far recovered three cars, eleven cars in Zamfara and Sokoto which my guys are out there to bring down. So I think we are not doing badly. On a regular basis, the work of the Joint Task team that the FCTA set up, which I chair, a lot of motorbikes have been impounded as well as unregistered taxis and we continue to encourage people to go and register if you want to operate a taxi so that the numbers can be clearly displayed. People are falling victims; they are initially traumatized. The general fear is, you want to enter a taxi, you are not sure if it is one chance and all that but we try to discourage

this. We are also collaborating with Niger and Nasarawa command because a lot of them come from Madalla and One man village in the remote area.

Very soon, I intend to talk to the Minister after the elections period so that we can revive the G6-G7 so that we can have a comprehensive strategy that will bring on board our colleagues in the neighboring commands.

Zero tolerance Thank God all the CPs around the FCT are my friends, my brothers and all that.

The CP in Nasarawa is my course mate.

The CP in Kaduna we worked very well together. Our policy is to have zero tolerance to crime in the FCT. I tell my colleagues that if

any crime is reported to us, it is a big issue because there shouldn’t be any at all because the Minister of FCT is doing his best to pay allowances for personnel of ACCOS patrol and the IG is doing his best. He has so far given us a lot of vehicles more than any command. We have a lot of vehicles, and he didn’t just give us vehicles, he has also given us personnel from the Force headquarters MOPOLs. If you go around FCT, you will find a lot of new formations because the IGP has given us additional support. The policy of the force is that there should not be crime at all so any time we record any, it becomes a big issue because this is where you have the President, the National Assembly, Judiciary, name them.

And what happens here impacts on the image of the country because what attracts investors should be that Nigeria is safe. We are mindful of this responsibility.

That is why we say our policy is zero tolerance for crime.

‘Help! Parents are secretly cutting the genitals of their daughters’ Continued from page 30 FGM at the moment. The problem is still there.

Provision of clean water for the public will help combat many diseases.

You lead an advocacy group – Healthmark Consult, a public health organisation. How are you tackling FGM? There should be more media campaign and enlightenment on this harmful practice. Media involvement is lacking.

Many people are not aware of the health consequences of FGM. Girl, children or women should not be circumcised at all in the first place, unlike boys who need to cut off the prepuce or tissue on the outer tip of the penis. It must be removed for boys – for medical reason. More information and education on harmful effects of female circumcision on health of the girl or woman is needed across the country. It is not over yet.

For girls, there are other C M Y K

alternatives to FGM. Chastity rings, bangles can be worn to signify their virginity and readiness for marriage. Government must do more to reduce poverty, inequality; ensure gender balancing in education; discourage early marriage for girls; enhance access to education and health services, female empowerment. We need a mechanism to ensure community dialogue involving men, women, boys, girls, old and young.

We need to ban early marriages, encourage people to speak out-men and boys. Why should a girl be cut! Unfortunately, FGM is about women against women. We should speak to female circumcisers who do this work, provide alternatives like offering them loans to trade or acquire vocational skills.

Let’s try focused group discussion capable of having snowballing effect – one to another. Medicalisation of FGM may seem proper, but what is bad is bad. Female circumcisers are found in several villages across the

We should speak to female circumcisers who do this work, provide alternatives like offering them loans to trade or acquire vocational skills country. These are women themselves engaged to cut off female sex organs.

Why are we not getting experts’ statistics, figures on FGM and survivors or victims to speak?

Many things are expected to be done, but not done. It used to be 41% but dropped to 19%. It will keep falling until people speak out.

Speaking out can get FGM to zero level.

Systematic random sampling may be difficult to get, even what we get is a tip of the ice berg. It could be more. If we have improved social justice, people can speak up and be

heard. Legislation had been slow and slack without lobby. More of peer activities, peer education, multipronged approach are required. If a public health issue like this is not problemised, we cannot get it done.

Survivors and victims of FGM can’t speak for fear of stigmatisation.

According to the Nigerian Demographic Health Survey, NDHS, done every five years, one in four women, aged between 15 – 49 years has been circumcised.

In the 2013 survey, Osun State has the highest with 77%, Ebonyi 74%, Ekiti 72%, while Katsina had lowest 0.1%.

On the prevalence rate, South-West is 47.5%, SouthEast 49%, South-South 25.8%, North-West 20.7%, North-Central 9.9%, NorthEast 2.9%.

Among ethnic groups, Yoruba have the highest with 55%, Igbo 45%, Hausa 19%, Ijaw 13% and Fulani 13%.FGM is highest among daughters of circumcised women. Elite women with good jobs, professionals in various fields of endeavour are not left out, but female circumcision is done in secret, no noise. Many parents are cutting the genitals of their daughters secretly especially in the rural areas which can be stopped, not only by legislation but also through persuasion, community enlightenment, family and peer discussion. The campaign against FGM should go down to the grassroots where this deadly practice is still rampant.

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Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

judiciary. The executive does not intervene in the affairs of the other arms of government.

Meanwhile, after a person has been tried, the role of the executive comes in at the end when clemency is required.

And of course the President, when giving clemency, tries to seek advice from the ministries.

Negotiation, that is rather not common in Indonesia. Perhaps, what you do is to ask your legal team or the embassy to make case for clemency on your behalf. You obviously cannot intervene in the legal process. I am very sorry that we are facing this kind of situation where three Nigerians are now almost being executed.

The sad story of three Nigerians on death row in Indonesia — Ambassador Purwanto

BY VICTORIA OJEME

I

n this interview, the Indonesia Ambassador to Nigeria, Harry Purwanto, shares the story of Indonesia legislation that recognises capital punishment for serious crimes.

In your CV, I saw that you were once a Deputy Chief of National Counter Terrorism Agency. What was your experience like working with the agency?

Terrorism in Indonesia is not a joke, it is really there. We experienced terror attacks in Indonesia with more than 400 dead. The danger in terrorism actually is not in the attacks. The danger is in the impact, the population is intimidated, that is the first. The second, they try to destabilize the economy, offer the people their ideology. Terrorism in Indonesia is mostly ideologicaldriven. Indonesia has suffered from terrorism since independence. This agency is relatively young; it was established in 2011, it is doing a lot.

We apply a two-pronged approach – the hard approach and the soft approach. On the hard approach, we try to crush, destroy, decapitate terrorist groups. We are not only destroying them, we are also bringing them to justice. We have brought more than a thousand people to justice and more than 400 are in prison. Some have been executed, some are to be released C M Y K

because they have fulfilled their terms of jail. On the soft approach, we try to empower the society, so the people can have the confidence to challenge the terrorists who try to influence them.

We also try to give the people counter narrative because, without appropriate counter narrative, they are easily influenced by extremists.

Sometimes people are so convinced because if you are talking about religion, you are talking about something that can convince the people. Now we have done the first part. We have crushed the terrorists cells.

Meanwhile,what they are doing now is trying to use information technology to spread their lies and also try to make government look bad. And they are also trying to use the democratic environment in Indonesia, the freedom of press to disseminate this kind of information and this is a real challenge for us. In Indonesia, we have so many societies, so many ethnic groups, if we are not empowering the people, I think we are going to fail again.

There are three Nigerians awaiting execution in your country for drag trafficking. The Federal Government recently wrote a letter of clemency to your government on the matter. What is the reaction of your government?

There are nine foreigners on the list including three Nigerians.

There are 20 Indonesians as well.

Indonesia legislation recognises capital punishment for serious crimes. We apply death sentence in only serious crimes like terrorism and narcotics.

We remind foreigners going to Indonesia on the flight before they land that trafficking in Indonesia carries the death penalty, but there are certain amounts of the narcotic they can be sentenced to capital punishment for. This is not a government who sentences people to capital punishment. It is done through due process of law. When people are apprehended for trafficking, they are tried for the sake of it in the district court; after that, convicts can go on appeal to the upper court. If they are not satisfied with the upper court, they can still appeal to the Supreme Court. After the Supreme Court, there is still one more step which is clemency. So people go through the three steps but the request for clemency now is being denied by the President because we are on the emergency of the danger of trafficking.

Under the due process of law, is there no negotiation at all?

Well, actually, the government of Indonesia operates on the basis of separation of power between the executive, the legislature and the

Is the Indonesian government looking at prison swap to assist these convicted Nigerians?

Yes. We are already negotiating with some countries including Nigeria.

But the negotiations are not yet concluded because, in Indonesia, we are rather hesitant on prisoner swap.

When I met the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary, I really appreciated his appeal and I have sent his appeal to Jakarta and, of course, can appeal like this will not be only responded to by one institution. There will be inter-agency consultations before you have a response on these Nigerians who are in Indonesian prisons and a decision can then be taken on whether or not they can be sent back to Nigeria to serve their sentences. We are waiting for the response from Jakarta. This issue was raised by your country previously when we had our bilateral meeting but the response from the institutions in Indonesia was not so clear.

Has there been records of clemency because this is not the first time Nigerians have been executed?

In January, we had two. In 2013, we had one Nigerian as well.

I am very sorry that we are facing this kind of situation where three Nigerians are now almost being executed

What are the commonest crimes committed by Nigerians in Indonesia?

Trafficking. Well, not all traffickers are sentenced for capital punishment. Only those who are drug dealers and producers or brought huge amounts of narcotic into Indonesia face the death penalty. They are aware of the consequence that if they do, they will face the death penalty.

What lessons can Nigeria learn from Indonesia in its bid for industrialization?

How we can learn from each other! Indonesians can learn many things from Nigeria. And we can also share our experiences with Nigeria. In Indonesia, our import is smaller compared to our export.

We are industrializing our country, we do also invite more direct investment to Indonesia.

These help not only to create jobs but also aid to transfer technology because we have the capacity to absorb; this makes many foreign companies to rely on Indonesia.

SUNDAY

Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 35

PVC, CLONED CARD, CARD READER

The Jega diagnosis!

BY JUDE OPARA

P

enultimate Monday, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, was at a Town Hall meeting in Abuja where he took time to address many questions concerning the conduct of the general elections. Jega, who was there with two of his director; Engr. Chidi Nwafor of the ICT Department and Engr.

Emmanuel Akem of the Voter Registry Department, spoke on the concerns over the use of the card reader for the accreditation of voters.

Excerpts:

What is your commission doing to see that those Nigerians who, for reasons beyond them, are now displaced have the opportunity to exercise their franchise like other Nigerians in the general elections.

We have made arrangements for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to vote in the camps provided for that but we believe that, after the 2015 elections, the template we are putting in place is such that, in subsequent elections, we may be able to give the IDPs the opportunity to vote wherever they may be. There are people who may have been dislodged by flood, communal clashes and so on and so forth. So to answer that question, if somebody has been dislodged and he crosses the border to another country, we do not have the facility as I speak to be able to organize election for them; in fact, once they have left their states, it is very difficult for us to organize elections for them and to transfer the result to the appropriate constituencies where they belong, we don’t want to create more problems while trying to solve some.

What measure did you put in place to ensure that the PVCs were not cloned and that your system was not hacked by desperate politicians who may want to win elections at all costs?

In answering the question of cloned cards, let me say that we have confidence that people may try to clone the cards but a cloned card C M Y K

•Prof. Attahiru Jega cannot be read by our card reader and we have seen that during the mock exercise we carried out publicly. In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, somebody came with a cloned card and our machine rejected it; unfortunately during the commotion that followed, the person escaped before security agencies could apprehend him because he could have been apprehended and prosecuted for bring in possession of a cloned card. Many other people tried by deliberating going to polling units that were not their own to see if they could be accredited but they found out that they were not accepted by the card reader; we have said it that you must only vote at the polling unit where you were registered. About hacking, we have observed all the possibilities of how can you hack and what can we do to make it impossible for you to hack, we have put measures in place to stem that, let me leave it at that.

In some states like Bayelsa, many people did not come

We agreed several months ago with all the political parties that, once you come, your card is read, your details are authenticated that it was not a cloned card but an INEC issued card, you are accredited to vote out to pick their PVCs initially but with days to the deadline, it seems everybody has now decided to go for it. What do you think accounted for this?

The issue raised about Bayelsa is important, it is understandable that sometimes people wait till the last minute or until they have some form of motivation, whether coercion or

persuasion, before they come out and, when they all come out at the same time, it may affect orderliness in terms of the process of distribution. On the issue of double registration, let me use this opportunity to put this to rest.

Before the 2011 general elections, we were able to run a data on segmented basis at the local government and the state levels through what is called the Advanced Finger Print Identification Software (AFIS).

Consequently, we were able to eliminate about 870,000 multiple registrations; when we identified that somebody has registered more than once, we removed him from the register. But after 2011, it took a lot of time to clean the register. That was responsible for the delay in the production of the cards because, until you clean the register, you cannot begin to produce the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs). The process of cleaning that register took us a lot of time because we had to put every single person in a single data base and to check the entire finger prints in that data base and to

eliminate the multiple registrants and we have removed over four million people who did multiple registration from the data base. We have a rule that if you registered more than once, we remove one and leave only one we did not want to disenfranchise people because they committed an offence. But person who did multiple registration does not where he was removed, so that is the problem somebody will go to polling unit to say ‘I registered but I cannot find my name’ until he visits all the places he went to register so he can find where his card is. That is part of the problem like we saw in Anambra.

Before we did the Anambra governorship election, we made sure that we eliminated multiple registration from the register and you saw the problem, somebody will come to the polling unit waving their Temporary Voter Card (TVC) at that time saying, ‘This is my TVC but I can’t find my name’ and that is why we are saying that, this time, we will not use the TVC because, if we use it, over four million people will come to the polling units to claim that they are disenfranchised.

Many people and even organizations have come openly to call for your resignation. Are you thinking of yielding to their demand?

Yes, there have been all sorts of demands for either my resignation or for my removal or even now some demonstrations for that. But as far as I am concerned, I have a job to do and I am more focused to do it. Nobody has told me I am being removed and I am not under any pressure and I believe it will be a disservice for this country, at this point in time, for me to say I am resigning.

There is absolutely no reason I should resign. Everybody in INEC is focused on delivering the best election for this country.

A new political party, the Young Democratic Party (YDP), demanded that you accommodate them on the ballot. What is the position of the commission on their request?

Young Democratic Party was an association that wanted to be registered as a political party. We did not register it because we believed we had sufficient ground not to register it and the promoters went to court and the Federal High Court gave a judgment that they were due to have been registered and we have

Continues on page 36

PAGE 36—SUNDAY

Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

The Jega diagnosis!

you will be allowed to vote. So, the talk about if your finger print is not captured you will not be allowed to vote is not true. Our regulations are very clear that once you have been verified, you will be allowed to vote with an incident reporting form.

Continued from page 35 already instructed our lawyers to appeal that judgment.

Meanwhile, officials of the party went around evidently organizing press conferences that the court said we should put them on the ballot. I am happy that even the court now has come out to ask them to show cause why they should not be disciplined for lying against the court. So as far as we are concerned, we respect orders but there is process and if there is a judgment at the lower court and we believe there is veritable reason for appealing, we will appeal. So, we are following the normal legal process. So, my mind and to the best legal advice we have received in the commission, that case will have no impact on the conduct of the 2015 general elections.

There are many people who are physically challenged, what have you done to make it easier for them to cast their votes like other Nigerians?

During the registration, for people who have no fingers, we did special registration for them. Originally, that is why we have the incident form so that when somebody who has no fingers or no hands comes to a polling unit, even though the card reader will read his

card to authenticate that it was issued by INEC, there is no way he or she would be authenticated; so we have this incident reporting form. It is this incident reporting form for the physically challenged that we agreed with the political parties when there was a general concern that a department of Nigerians who may not have fingers may not be authenticated by the card reader because of no fault of theirs. We agreed several months ago with all the political parties that, once you come, your card is read, your details are authenticated that it was not a cloned card but an INEC issued card, you are accredited to vote. I was surprised to see some governors some days ago saying that INEC is saying that if your finger print is not authenticated, you will be prevented from voting; there is nothing like that.

Still on the physically challenged, what are you doing for the millions of Nigerians who are albinos who may not be able to stand in the sun for too long. Are they going to get reprieve like other physically challenged

On the card reader, we agreed with the political parties that if a card reader fails and, this is very, very highly unlikely, accreditation should be suspended and the card reader replaced and we adjust the time to compensate for time lost people?

With regards to the albinos, I want to assure that the commission is doing everything possible to ensure that every registered voter who needs to be assisted to carry out his franchise would be enabled to do so. We have in our guidelines that any person who has visual impediment is assisted, any person who has physical challenge is allowed to be on a separate expediting queue for the purposes of the election. We have a letter from the albinos and have duly informed our field officers that albinos that come should be regarded as those that should be on the expediting queue.

Now, the issue of the card reader is yet to be accepted by all the stakeholders, some say it could easily fail, why are you insisting on using it for the elections?

On the card reader, we agreed

with the political parties that if a card reader fails and, this is very, very highly unlikely, accreditation should be suspended and the card reader replaced and we adjust the time to compensate for time lost. Again, we said that if a card reader, for whatever reason, cannot be replaced until after the accreditation time which is 1pm, those polling units where that happens, we will have to come back the following day to conduct the election. We have agreed with the political parties on this in order to avoid the situation whereby, if you say when the card reader fails, go manual, everybody will make sure it fails so that they can go manual. On the second one, if you have been verified and it has been established it is your card but your finger print cannot be read, then an incident form would be written and you will be accredited and

There are concerns out there that some desperate politicians who may not want the use of the card reader have perfected arrangements to bring jammers to ensure that they do not work. Are you aware of that?

We have also heard of it but it is not technically possible because at the polling unit, the card reader is operating on a frequency and yes people can also go into that frequency to develop something that can jam it. But I tell one thing, there is a good news with the card reader, if you take the card far off from the card reader, it doesn’t read it; we took that into consideration before the card must be very close to the system and it can only jam if there is a space between the system and the card. Again the frequency which we are using to operate the card reader is very, very difficult to send resonating frequencies, let me leave it at that. Again, there are a lot of things out there in the realm of speculation; why will any sensible politician come to the polling unit to jam the card reader? How does he distinguish between who will vote for him and who will not vote for him?

The issue of security at the polling units is also very important.

What arrangements do you have to ensure the safety of men and materials on the election day?

Talking about security, we have an average of three policemen in a polling unit but we have been working very closely with the security agencies in the Inter Agency Consultative Committee (IACC) on how to minimize the role of thugs and how to ensure that nobody disrupts the electoral process. In 2011, we did the same thing when we said that anybody who wanted to remain after voting to witness the result being counted and pasted should be allowed to do so and people remained and there was no reported incidence of violence or thuggery in those cases. So, we believe that the arrangement for security will be even better in the 2015. But it is not 100%, those who may want to leave after casting their votes will feel free to go and those who choose to remain should be allowed to remain but, of course when they remain, they have to be orderly, there are rules and if they do anything wrong, that can be properly addressed.

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 37

By Dapo Akinrefon

Otunba Gani Adams is the National Coordinator of the Oodua People’s Congress, OPC. In this interview, he absolves the OPC of any form of attack during one of its rally in Lagos.

He also reacts to the allegation by the All Progressives Congress, APC, that it collected N9 billion from the presidency to destabilize the South-west.

Excerpts:

We expect Jonathan, Buhari ttoo split S/W es es — Gani Adams S/Wes estt vot votes *’The OPC problem with APC’ *Speaks on ‘N9 billion pipeline contract’ story the Alafin of Oyo, the Awujale of Ijebuland, Alake of Egba land. What will they do with such paltry sum?

With due respect to the APC, they should not derogate our traditional institution. They are the custodians of our tradition and culture, they should not damage our traditional institution because of their ambition. You have the right to convince anyone who does not support you but you should not assassinate someone else’s character because he or she did not support you.

The APC should desist from these acts because we have done a lot to propagate the culture of Yoruba land and sustain our heritage. I don’t see any reason that anyone who did not support Tinubu or Buhari’s ambition would be alleged of financial inducement. That was how they alleged that Afennifere and Yoruba Council of Elders collected from Jonathan. They even accused the President of frequenting the South-west.

A

NGRY reactions greeted the protest rally your group organised in Lagos, but what informed this rally?

We protested against the shortage of the Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs. More than 5 million in the South West have not gotten their PVCs, likewise, there are shortages of the PVCs in the South East and South South.

In the North East, which is the base of the Boko Haram insurgency, INEC has says it has distributed close to 90 per cent. But in the South west, states like Lagos state has not gotten up to 60 per cent of the cards, it is only Ondo State that has gotten up to 75 per cent of their PVCs and the elections is just days away.

The second issue is that is that of under aged children, who have been registered in the North which is against the stipulated age of 18 years who are eligible to vote in Nigeria.

Another is the illegal creation of the 30,000 polling units for the north by the Professor Jega-led INEC. These three cogent reasons, if not solved can affect free, fair and credible elections on March 28.

But why are you just protesting now?

We addressed a press conference believing that Jega will address the issue.

Rather than address these issues, the Arewa Consultative Forum decided to portray us in bad light saying that I was seeking relevance.

But the All Progressives Congress, APC, accused President Goodluck Jonathan of funding the OPC to destabilize the South West, how true is this?

The APC should be very careful with their remarks.

These are childish allegations. Because we held a peaceful procession, the APC spokesperson issued a statement that the Federal Government has given us a N9 billion contract.

But is this true?

There is actually a contract but it is not N9 billion, the contract is to secure the pipelines in the South west.

People in the South south have been benefiting from it, the contract issue did not only arise now. The APC had ear-

C M Y K

•Gani Adams

lier raised alarm that the federal government should not give us the contract and that was when the Navy and Army were brought in, but when the damaging of pipelines continued, oil theft and vandalisation in places like Arepo, Atlas Cove, they realized that this job should be given to the communities. They also realized that the OPC has members in all of these communities, government decided to approve the contract.

The contract is only meant to create jobs for the unemployed and save our common wealth. We are talking of losing N1.3 trillion annually from theft of crude oil and they believe that the money is not too much to protect our pipelines.

That is the reason APC is raising dust that N9billion was awarded. The contract will be three months for test running.

The APC decided to misinform Nigerians so that those who would want to join the rally would believe it withdraw. They wanted Nigerians to believe that the rally was economical but it is not. We thank that God put them to shame.

But is it true that during the rally, some of your members vandalized billboards of the APC? Sensing that they did not succeed in stopping the rally,

because they felt we did not have large followers, they sent pictures of a rally that was held in 2011. This was a rally held in 2011 by a group to protest that Boko Haram should not come to the South west.

It was alleged that some traditional rulers were financially induced to endorse a president Goodluck Jonathan’s second term ambition. What is your take on this?

That is one of the damages the APC is doing to Yoruba land. Where is the evidence that traditional rulers were given $250,000? Have we gotten to a stage where we damage the integrity of our traditional rulers?.

The late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, did not abuse any traditional ruler in his days.

The traditional rulers are fathers to all irrespective of party affiliations and their subjects have a right to bring their candidates to pay homage to the monarchs.

Nobody stopped Buhari not to visit the Ooni of Ife, the Obubadan of Ibadan, the Soun of Ogbomosho. I don’t know where the APC got the information that our traditional rulers got $250,000 to endorse Jonathan. WhT is $250,000 to the Ooni of Ife? The monarch is a multi billionaire even before he became the Ooni of Ife. Likewise

I was coming to that, why do you think the president has been visiting the Southwest at the slightest opportunity especially in the last three weeks?

When you know the importance of the zone, you should constantly visit the place. As a good politician, you have to seek support.

Jonathan is not the kind of person that will sit somewhere and expect to win. For you to judge your popularity, you need to meet the people and interact with them because the last chunk of the votes comes from the South west especially Lagos State.

The president has realized that he must not lose Lagos and that is why he is consistent in Lagos state to meet the people. I think that is part of his strategy and I think the APC can borrow a leaf from them, they are too confident in themselves.

But why is the South west divided between Buhari and Jonathan?

It has always been like that.

There is no candidate in the history of Nigeria that a zone will have hundred per cent support.

In the 2011 presidential election, we had some people in the South-west who voted for Buhari, Ribadu and Jonathan, it is always like that.

Ex-Minister warns against acts capable of scuttling democracy

F

ORMER Minister of National Planning, Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi, has warned politicians not to engage in act capable of scuttling democracy in the country as Nigerians elects those who will pilot their affairs for the next four years.

Making the appeal in Lagos, the ex-Minister, who was part of General Abdulsalaam Abubakar’s administration that returned the country to civil rule in 1999, appealed to all stakeholders in the conduct of the on-going general election to join hands to make a success of the exercise .

Urging politicians across the political parties not to see the presidential , governorship and National Assembly elections as a do-or-die affair, he enjoined politicians to refrain from actions capable of scuttling the polls or endangering democracy in the country. ‘’Sixteen years after return to civil rule,we have come a long way,we should see the 2015 general elections as an opportunity to deepen democracy in Nigeria, and this is why I’m appealing to all the political parties and their leaders to give peace a chance. We should avoid politics of hatred and bitterness.

I was a member of the military government that returned the nation to democratic rule in 1999, and therefore, I’m interested in having our democracy being nurtured to greater heights”,he declared Imploring all the political parties and their candidates not to see the election as do-or-die affair, Gbadamosi said;” ‘’In any election, there is bound to be winners and loser’s. If you are aggrieved or feel cheated, don’t resort to violence. Refrain from making inflammatory remarks and don’t incite people to violence. The appropriate channel to seek redress is through the courts. The judiciary is there to listen to your grievances. Never take law into your own hands.”

He explained that Nigeria can’t afford to fail.

“We have a lot at stake in this election. The whole world is watching us, we can’t afford to fail, and this is why we must all ensure that the election succeed.

It will be sad if we can’t conduct an election without rancor and violence 55 years after independence,” he added

•Chief Gbadamosi

PAGE 38—SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

We have a duty to protect the 134,000 corps members overseeing polls

•BrigadierGeneral Johnson Bamidele Olawumi

—Olawumi, NYSC DG

BY KINGSLEY OMONOBIABUJA

T

he National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has the mandate to promote national unity and development by mobilizing and deploying fresh graduates to various parts of the country for the compulsory one year national service. However, there is a new dawn of things happening in the NYSC with the innovation that is catching the eye. At the centre of this rebirth is BrigadierGeneral Johnson Bamidele Olawumi, the Director-General (DG) of the scheme. Following his appointment as the 16th DG, Olawumi developed a road-map for his tour of duty, a clear indication that he wasn’t in NYSC just to mark time.

His approach to administration was anchored on a four-point agenda aimed at aligning the scheme to current challenges and repositioning it as a force for good. These were anchored on the drivers: improving the service content of the scheme; enhancing the welfare and safety of corps members and staff; expanding partnerships for greater impact, funding and support; and increasing the visibility and relevance of the scheme.

It is against this backdrop that Sunday Vanguard had a chat with Olawunmi on pertinent issues including the 2015 elections. The officer ‘who left Army Headquarters as Principal Staff Officer to the Chief of the Army Staff, holds a B.Sc. in mathematics from the Nigerian Defence Academy, a B.Eng. mechanical engineering from University of Ilorin, and an MA Defence Studies from Kings College, University of London.

How many corps members are scheduled to participate in the general elections?

We have an MOU with INEC concerning the participation of youth corps members in the general elections. For the 2015 elections, INEC brought a new dimension by asking corps members who wished to participate in the elections to register online and, as at the close of registration, precisely, January this year, they had about 168,000 that registered.

Our plan initially was that Batch ‘A’ of 2014 should be used for the elections; unfortunately, there was six weeks poll shift and that Batch ‘A’ passed out on 19th February.

We now realized that we could no longer use them having passed out in order not to violate the NYSC Act. Now, we wrote to the INEC to explain to them that, about 34,000 of those who had registered were passing out, and we could hold

on to them. Now that they have passed out, if they have to participate in the March 28th and April 11th elections, it will not be right for them to participate as corps members. ‘However, because they have been trained and you need to get some other people as ad-hoc staff, if you wish, you could still employ them as adhoc staff where ever they are since they have registered and you have their data; but our conclusion is that wherever they are going to participate, they are not going to wear uniform, they are not going to be under NYSC.’ Therefore, if we remove 34,000 from 168,000, it will be 134,000 that are going to participate.

How many youth corps member have passed through the NYSC since inception?

As at the last passing out we have about 2.8 million corps members that have pass through the Scheme. You will be surprised that after over 40 years when the scheme started in 1973 we have just 20,000 passing through the NYSC scheme. It was until recently when we had more universities as a result of government policy and private university growth, that we started having the population rising as much 200,000, 250,000 thousand so on. As at today, we are just around 2.8million that have gone through the scheme.

Why did you embark on online registration for youth corps members that generated controversy?

I want to believe that we have gone beyond this but I will just give this explanation. The online registration came about because of what we feel prospective corps member were going through the suffering they pass through when they want to go and collect their call up letters. We felt there is a way we can take advantage of information technology IT to mitigate this kind of problem, which was why we went into this so called online registration. We looked at cost of providing the infrastructure in the Headquarters here in Abuja and in all 37 state secretariats, in all 37 orientation camps network, hardware infrastructure and all.

We looked at it and the amount was so huge. The amount was over N800million. Now, if we approach government and we say, we need N800million, the first question government will ask is what value do you want to add, or you don’t want corps members to travel to go and collect their call up letters. Some people will say are they complaining that they cannot go

I want to assure parents that the NYSC management has put together water tight strategies that will guarantee the safety and security of our corps members taking part in the elections and collect their call-up letters.

Let us even put that aside. If you ask me, there are other places that we want government to give us money not for us to go and establish this online platform I will give you two examples. For instance, the corps members today the allowance is N19, 800 and it will better for me to go and make case for increment than for me to go on an online registration. That is one.

During orientation camping exercise for the 21 days, a corps member will be fed on an approved sum of N500 per day.

That is what government provides and one thing is that Nigeria budget is not something that is hidden, it is there online you can go and check it; approved feeding allowance in the camps per corps member is N500. So is it not better for me to go and make a case for an increment than to go and start looking for money for online registration but then we are still mindful of the fact that, yes, this is national service. That is why we made the online thing optional, it is voluntary. For example if two people school in Kaduna, one is living in Calabar, the other one is from Kaduna; the one who lives in Calabar can do online registration and the one from Kaduna can just walk to his

or her school to collect the call up letter which its optional. We just do this to create an opportunity that if you like you can pay certain amount and then you don’t need to travel to go and collect it.

What we are just done is to give an option, which is why we say that process will continue to be optional. If you like you can travel to anywhere to go and collect your call up letter that is your problem, if you like you can use online platform.

Using the example of batch C of year 2014, about 37 percent of those who register, paid and registered online. Since we say it is optional, corps member are not kids, they are adult they can take decision on their own even if its two percent that says they will register online fine and good. Let us even look at issue of foreign based graduates; before the online registration, they have to come down to Nigeria and do certificate verification first and they go back again. When we start given call up letter they now come back to collect the call up letters and wait for four to five days. But with what we have done now, a foreign graduate anywhere in the world can register online, upload his or certificate and print his call up letter. By the time he comes to Nigeria he or she will just go straight to the camp. Is that not commendable enough?

We would have loved to give it to an independent body to do it for us but we did it ourselves because we want the data base to be domicile with us. Last year we had a two day stakeholder meeting with parties involved like civil society groups, COS, NANS and we have agreed to reduce the amount from 4000 to 3000.

They themselves commended the effort and because of the pressure from NANS, to reduce the fees we agreed to reduce it from 4,000 to 3,000 naira. The reduction is not because we want to reduce profit, no. And as from the next batch, I want to say it clearly; the amount is going to be 3000 and is going to be optional anybody who wants can pay and if you don’t want the status so

remain. You can go back to your school and pick up your call up letter.

In past elections like the 2011 version, some corps members lost their lives. Do you have provision to honour or reward them because, for the 2015 elections, many parents are sceptical about the security of their wards?

First of all, we have embarked on the Hope Alive Initiative whereby, for any corps member who loses his life or who has permanent disability, there is insurance cover. Government will pay some money and there is an insurance company that we subscribe with that pays.

However, for those who suffer disability, the one-off money government pays is one million naira. We don’t just want to leave them with that one alone. We want to continue to monitor such corps members. For example, there were nine of them in 2014 who, through one accident or the other, suffered permanent disability. We have honoured them.

We said insurance must have paid them but we want to monitor them because they got this deformity in the course of national service. So, we approached a particular bank to provide training for them and also give them start off capital.

The essence is that any corps members in the course of service who becomes disabled should not be neglected, because that corps member has offered service to this great country and this great country must not abandon him. We also believe it will give hope to those who are coming to serve that if such a thing happens to them, this great country will never forget their service. Lastly, on the question of parents being afraid to allow their children to participate in the elections, I want to assure parents that the NYSC management has put together water tight strategies that will guarantee the safety and security of our corps members taking part in the elections. Not only those who are taking part, but also those who are doing their primary assignment, there are water tight strategies to guarantee their safety and security.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 39

VISION 20:2020 We need economic growth sustainability — FRSC boss

*’Our concerns over speed limit violation’

BY UDEME CLEMENT The transport sector of Nigeria’s economy is poised for greater productivity in 2015, as the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Zone 2, is mapping out new operational measures and enforcement strategies to achieve 20 percent reduction in road traffic crashes and 30 per cent fatality. The Zone is working in line with the policy of the Federal Government to enhance efficiency in the sector, with a view to achieving the much expected Vision 20:2020 target. The Zonal Commanding Officer, Assistant Corps Marshal, Nseobong Akpabio, speaks on the structures being put in place to boost operational efficiency, how Nigeria can realise the Vision of being ranked among top 20 economies in the world, the enforcement of speed limiters in all commercial vehicles starting

by June 1, 2015 and the award of best Road Safety Organisation in Africa, bestowed on FRSC. You were the Zonal Commanding Officer of Zone 5 head quarters in Benin, and now you are in Lagos, as the Zonal Commanding Officer, How would you describe the two Zones? o begin with, I was in Lagos State as a Sector Commander between May 2012 and September 2013. On my promotion from the rank of Corps Commander to Assistant Corps Marshal, I was posted out to Zone 5 head quarters, and was appointed the Zonal Commanding Officer. I resumed in Benin on September 4th, 2013.

Zone 5 covers Edo, Delta and Anambra States and it carries the largest portion of vehicular traffic. This is because as you are leaving Ondo State after Ore, you are on our corridor, from Ore to Benin, from Benin to Asaba, from Asaba to Onitsha, where you branch off to Awka or Ihiala, then to Owerri. I spent one year and seven months in Zone 5.

Can you tell us precisely the performance level of Zone 5 head quarters and the structures you met on ground when you took over?

When I resumed in Zone 5, the operational activities and programmes were low. Infact, Zone 5 in terms of performance on national scale was number five in the country, which is 5th position in the annual assessment. Based on that, I decided to make a turn around as we have been doing to enhance operational activities in the area.

I held series of meetings with relevant stakeholders and reviewed the entire operational framework in the Zone with the staff. We found out that the OreBenin, Benin-Asaba, BeninAuchi-Okene as well as OnitshaIhiala-Owerri were the four major corridors that road traffic crashes occurred frequently. The highest among the corridors was Benin-Asaba. To tackle the situation, we commenced what we called Special Intervention Patrol on Benin-Asaba corridor, and immediately moved our patrol teams from the hinter-land to be on that corridor daily. We

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further increased our patrol frequency on that road, and our personnel who were in the other unit Command were moved to join the patrol teams on that corridor. So, on daily basis from Benin to Asaba, we had nothing less than 10 patrol teams in the morning and afternoon covering the whole area.

Aside from that, our Special Marshals and the volunteers were also involved. So, apart from seeing the coloured patrol vehicles being on the roads, there were so many un-marked vehicles on patrol on the same road by our Special Marshals. We set up sufficient monitoring to ensure that our teams were always on the roads. With that, we recorded reduction of road traffic crashes because of the increased level of enforcement on that corridor, as no driver violating road safety was left un-punished. Our enforcement was strict because the moment we caught any offender, we issued him ticket. We had mobile courts were offenders were tried, as we worked with the Judiciary in the State to prosecute offenders. We enforced sanctions because human lives were involved.

So, we recorded a downward reduction in road traffic crashes, even places where the were incessant cases of crashes almost everyday, such locations could stay two weeks without a single crash, due to the increased level of enforcement on that corridor.

After the success in Benin-Asaba corridor, we looked at another corridor that had the same characteristics in road traffic crashes and we discovered that it was Onitsha-Owerri corridor. So, we immediately commenced the second phase of Special Intervention Patrol on OnitshaIhiala- Owerri corridor. We carried out the same kind of monitoring and enforcement on the two cor ridors. We also embarked on inter-special patrols on other corridors, where we did not have enough personnel. As we progressed, we discovered a gap between Benin and Agbor, so with that, we recommended to the head quarters the urgent need to have a unit Command at a place called Abudu community, which is between Benin and Agbor. Right now, we have a functional unit Command there checking drivers from that corridor along with others. We also increased awareness campaigns by going to motor parks, churches, mosques, communities, schools and other places to enlighten people on road safety measures.

What do you mean by a gap between Benin and Agbor?

The distance in patrol frequency between Benin and Agbor was far.

For instance, if you are driving from Benin to be at the boundary of Delta and Edo, it takes over 40kilo-meters. So, because of that, a patrol team leaving Benin may not arrive there on time, and if there is a crash, someone may not survive. Therefore, to breach that gap, we created the new unit Command, which is nearer to Agbor to take charge of that area in a bid to prevent loss of lives in any crash. The Corps Marshal

Assistant Corps Marshal, Nseobong Akpabio

With increased awareness and stakeholders’ contributions, we work in synergy with other law enforcement agencies like the police, army, SSS, Civil Defence, members of local communities and volunteers as well approved the establishment of that unit Command at Abudu, which is currently operational.

Now, if there is a crash, in five minutes our team would be there.

Infact, if there is a crash from any side of the corridors our team is readily available to rescue the victims because the response time is faster with the new unit Command.

So, with increased awareness and stakeholders’ contributions we worked in synergy with other law enforcement agencies like the Police, Army, SSS, Civil Defence, members of local communities and volunteers as well. We had a post crash scheme where members of the communities were trained to rescue victims of road crashes when road safety Officers and other law enforcement agencies were not insight that particular moment. We gave out our emergency number, 122 for them to call us any time.

That was not limited to BeninAsaba corridor, the same synergy and increased enforcement were replicated in all corridors of Zone 5 head quarters. The local communities supported us a lot.

In a community called Uromi within Edo State, a stakeholder is now building an office for

FRSC, which is a good contribution to the service. The road that passes through Auchi, Uromi to Agbor is also a busy place where people travel to Abuja. So, he said it would be important for us to be on that road. You can see the level of collaboration, even our Special Marshals contributed to repay our patrol vehicles among other supports.

So, the Zone moved from number 5 position progressively with sustained awareness, operational efficiency and enforcement to number 1 position in the country right now. Zone 5 won the best Zonal Command Award in 2014, and with all sense of humility, I was honoured with the award of the best Zonal Commanding Officer in 2014, and accumulatively from 2012, 2013 and 2014. I was given a trophy at the national headquarters, which I handed over to my staff. My staff worked tirelessly and they understood exactly what we wanted to achieve. I dedicate the achievement, award and trophy to my staff, the Special Marshals, stakeholders, members of the communities and our volunteers because I did not do the work alone, but the ultimate glory goes

to Jehovah God. I commend the media houses all over the country for giving us tremendous support through out my tenure as the Zonal Commanding Officer of Zone 5. The media did well in informing the public on how to avoid road traffic crashes.

How would you bring your experience, operational efficiency and enforcement strategies to bear in a place like Lagos where you have a large population?

Zone 2 covers Lagos and Ogun States. It occupies a strategic position in the country not only in road safety but in economic activities. Lagos and Ogun handle the bulk of economic activities in Nigeria. Lagos alone takes about 27 percent vehicular traffic in the country. Lagos is like a country and has a large population that is more than some African countries. So, for someone to be here means he must deliver service. My strategy is to work with everybody including the Special Marshals, regular Marshals, the media, both print and electronic, land transport sector operators, schools and all relevant stakeholders because every living person has business to do with the roads. Therefore, we need the best road safety in Zone 2. We do not want people to go and die on the roads, even on avoidable crashes.

So, we need the public to understand this and give us maximum cooperation. We would collaborate with our sister agencies like we did in Zone 5.

Now we are reviewing operational activities in Zone 2 and would soon put in place strategic measures to restore sanity on the roads. We cannot do this alone without the support of road users. We want to raise our enforcement to a very high level. Already, I have told the Commanding Officers to be ready for maximum enforcement, because from the experience all over the world, once there is increase in road traffic safety enforcement, there is a corresponding decrease in road crashes. The Corps Marshal gave us the mandate to reduce road crashes this year by 20 percent and 30 percent fatality, and we must achieve this target and beyond.

We would increase our operational capacity and training for Officers. We must also increase our enforcement across all the Commands within Zone 2. Aside from creating awareness, we want the media to fully understand the concept of our operations on road safety. For instance, if a Journalist sees a crash, while reporting, he should be able to distinguish whether it is fatal, serious or minor. It is possible to have a serious crash because many people are injured, but no one dies, so, it is not fatal.

If someone is injured, it is a serious crash, but if no body is injured, no matter the damage done to the vehicle, it is a minor crash. We want the media to understand this, so that when they inform the public, their reports would be factual and not just what people want to hear.

Continues on page 40

PAGE 40—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

’Nigeria needs economic growth sustainability’ Continued from page 39 We also want to work with nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) involved in road safety business, land transport operators, owners of public buses, among many others. A bulk of the travellers pass through the roads and this requires high road safety awareness and enforcement. If buses are loading out of the motor parks, their tyres and vehicles should be in good condition to prevent crashes.

Road worthiness of vehicles is very important and a road safety officer must not be by any driver for him to know that. We want to also work with the industrial sector players to see areas they can support us because if they are producing goods and nobody buys, it becomes a problem, as only the living can patronise them. We are already working with NYSC road safety club members who are volunteers. We want them to create awareness in market places, motor parks and remote areas across Zone 2.

Everyone has a role to play in road safety because road accident does not have respect for anybody, age, status and social class. No individual has immunity for road traffic crashes.

Speed limiter was introduced in 2014. What is the role of this in road safety management?

From our research findings almost 75 percent of fatal crashes that occurred last year, up till 2015 were attributed to speed limit violation. The commercial vehicles carry the bulk of the travelling public and we must check the speed limit of these drivers, because once they are involved in a crash, we record mass casualties. In order to restrain them, government introduced the use of speed limiters to be installed in all commercial vehicles. The

enforcement would start by June 1, 2015 and must be total, as commercial vehicles would not be allowed to move on the roads without speed limiters. So, we have more than six months for enlightenment.

How would you assess the transport sector of the economy under President Goodluck Jonathan?

We are seeing tremendous improvement in the land transport sub-sector because we cannot talk about land transportation without the roads.

Before now, it took about 8 to 9 hours to travel from Lagos to Benin through Shagamu road.

Today, in four hours you are in Lagos from Benin. That is a serious improvement.Road construction as well as rehabilitation is not limited to Lagos-Benin road, but extended to other roads across the country.

So, the President has done very well on that and I give him kudos.

If we can sustain it, in few years to come, Nigeria would be one of the best countries in the world.

That way, we can achieve the Vision 20:2020 target of being ranked among the top economies in the world.

With the challenges facing the economy in terms of declining oil prices, devaluation of Naira and huge investments outflow from the country, do you think Vision 20:2020 is still realisable?

We can achieve Vision 20:2020 with sustainability in economic growth and development. If I take the transport sector to analyse, you see that aside from the federal, sub-national governments are also building roads across the country. There is a remarkable improvement on land transport sub-sector now compared to what we had before, which is part of government’s effort to achieve the Vision. There is what is called multiplier concept in an economy. If the roads are good to facilitate

We are seeing tremendous improvement in the land transport subsector because we cannot talk about land transportation without the roads

movement of people and goods, it would add value to the entire system, such that the multiplier effect would be seen in manufacturing, agriculture and other sectors of the economy.

Aside from land transport, there is great improvement in the rail transport system now, because today people live in Osogbo and come to work in Lagos by rail. If the rail system is sustained, most tankers and trucks moving on our roads and causing crashes would go through rail. That way, we would have less number of vehicles on the roads, meaning, less road crashes as well. Rail would also fast track delivery of products, equipment cheaper than hiring trucks and spending days on the road to convey these items to various places.

The aviation sector, which takes charge of air transportation, is recording remarkable

improvement now as most airports across Nigeria have been remodelled to meet international standard. The improved infrastructure and safety measures in aviation led to government retaining the Category-One status, which is an international recognition for Nigeria. The current Minister of aviation is working tirelessly to ensure safety in aviation sector.

Everything is so modernised that, today you can stay in your office and book a flight to anywhere within and outside Nigeria, but continuity and sustainability must be paramount.

FRSC won the award as the Best Road Safety Organisation in Africa. How do you see FRSC in the next five years?

The FRSC is the lead agency in road traffic management and administration in Nigeria and among the best road safety organisations in the world. FRSC won the Prince Michael ward as the Best Road Safety Organisation in Africa, which I can describe as an honour well deserved. That was not all, FRSC also won the ISO certification, being the first ever African law enforcement agency to be certified by ISO, an lnternational certification standard. Our programmes are certified because we work in conformity with international best practice.

Today FRSC has become a reference point in Nigeria and the whole African region.

Fortunately, Mr. President gave us internal Corps Marshal and Chief Executive, in the person of Corps Marshal Boboye Oyeyemi, someone from within us, who is not alien to the operational strategies and workings of our enforcement standards. He is efficient because he has been in the system from the beginning and knows everything required to move FRSC forward. So, we are in safe hands with the present Corps Marshal. He has never failed in all the departments and Zones he

worked. I have understudied him to know his principles and leadership skills in moving an organisation forward.

When you look at government’s initiative to establish FRSC in 1988, it is as if government had foresight about what the United Nations (UN) wanted to do. In 2010, the UN decided that every member country must establish a government lead agency in road traffic management and administration, to handle the issues of road safety in their countries. The UN’s decision was based on the number of road crashes all over the world estimated at 1.3million annually. Instead of allowing such incessant road crashes, which may eventually increase to about 5million by 2020, the UN made that declaration. To that effect, the UN launched what is called, United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety, 2011 to 2020. That Decade of Action is to enable all member countries to set the machinery to reduce road traffic crashes by 50 percent in 2020. Meaning that whatever data you had before 2011, by 2020 you must achieve 50 per cent reduction in road crashes.

To achieve that target, you must have a lead agency, a functional post crash scheme and other measures, such that, if there is a crash, someone must survive.

This implies that you must have necessary equipment, ambulance services, good roads and create road users awareness.

Then the driver license came up to meet international best practice, which what we are doing in Nigeria. Others include vehicles licensing, vehicles safety standard, which means limiting the number of aged vehicles coming into the country, improving more on local manufacturing to meet international standard. In all of these, there must be high level of enforcement to ensure compliance.

Geometric Power Plant’ll boost industrial activities in Aba, says Otti

BY AKOMA CHINWEOKE

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he governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance in Abia, Dr. Alex Otti, has expressed the hope that the completion of Geometric Power Plant in Aba will help to provide uninterrupted power supply to the commercial city and its environs just as he promised to build cocoa processing plant in Bende Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, if elected.

Otti said this in an interview with journalist at the project site during an inspection tour of the facility

by President Goodluck Jonathan adding that the take off of the plant would help to rejuvenate industrial and economic activities in the city..

He said: ‘’This is a good project and it means a whole lot for Aba and its environs because the day Geometric switches on power, Aba will begin to enjoy 24-hour uninterrupted power supply. ‘’This will further jumpstart a lot of economic and industrial activities in Aba,” he said.

Otti regretted that a lot of small and medium scale enterprises in the city were unable to operate ‘’because of epileptic power supply. So, the hope is that as soon as the company comes alive,

the industries will come back and employment will be generated.”

He opined that the boost in economic activities would help to reduce social tension, while security would be easily managed.

Otti, who joined other dignitaries in Abia to welcome the president, hailed Federal Government’s promise to intervene in resolving the disagreement between Geometric and the Bureau of Private Enterprise (BPE).

He noted that the company had been at loggerheads with BPE over the status of Aba business district, which ought to be carved out as an island for Geometric, but later sold by BPE to Interstate Electric as part of Enugu DisCo and said that government’s intervention would enable the company to complete the little work left for the plant to take off.

The former Diamond Bank chief recalled how the bank intervened in 2011 to ensure that work resumed on the project after it suffered a setback due to the global economic recession pointing out that he took the project to the board of the bank, when he joined in 2011 and got the bank’s approval ‘’to restart the project again,” He also said that in view of the

Dr. Alex Otti huge amount involved, he also took the matter to the former Governor of the Central Bank, Malam Lamido Sanusi, for further discussion.

He further explained that the Asset Management Company of Nigeria later intervened by taking part of the loan ‘’to make it easier for Geometric,” while the bank began funding in 2011.

Otti expressed optimism that with the president’s visit, the problem between Geometric and BPE ‘’will be resolved,” saying that ‘’the plant is virtually ready.”

Meanwhile, Otti said during a different town hall meetings he had with the people of Bende and Ozuitem communities that he

would also build cocoa storage facilities in the area.

He said that he would not only intervene in boosting cocoa production in the area but would also add value to the product in order to make it more profitable to the farmers.

He said: ‘’I appreciate that Bende people produce large quantity of cocoa so my first assignment, when I become governor, will be to establish storage facilities and processing plants in this place. ‘’We will add value to what you are producing with the processing plant so that your product can be processed into cocoa butter, chocolate and sundry other beverages, which can be exported to other countries,” he said.

Otti regretted that industries, including the Ceramics and Golden Breweries, Star Paper Mill, among others, which thrived in Umuahia and Aba, the commercial hub of the state in the 1970s and 1980s, had become moribund.

He said that he would create the enabling environment, with friendly policies that would attract the private sector and ensure that industries thrive again in the state. ‘’Government alone cannot create jobs but our duty is to create conducive environment

for the private sector to come in,” he said.

The APGA governorship flag bearer also promised to reconstruct the dilapidated UmuahiaBende Road to ease the movement of people, goods and services in the area. ‘’I have come to fix Abia and rescue the people from abject poverty and suffering,” he said.

He assured the communities that he would provide free and compulsory education, saying that ‘’your duty as parents is to release your children and wards of school-age to go to school.”

Otti also said that he would provide ‘’quality empowerment” for women and youths, regretting that many graduates had been turned into tricycle (otherwise called ‘’Keke”) operators due to the lack of decent and befitting jobs. ‘’Keke and tokunbo empowerment for our graduates and school leavers will soon become a thing of the past,” he said.

He said that the problem of Abia’s underdevelopment was not the lack of money, saying that ‘’the mistake we made is that we allowed our state to be governed by people who have no ideas and vision on how to develop the state.”

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 41

FIRE IGNITED B OL VES BYY HIGH VVOL OLTTAGE LEA LEAVES ORPHANS, BENEF ACT OR WITHOUT HOME BENEFA CTOR

‘Now we are homeless!’

By Favour Nnabugwu

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any people are for tunate enough nev er to have to experience homelessness. But for those who do, it can be a very traumatic experience, damaging physical and emotional well-being along with it.

To make matters worse, many homeless people carry with them the distressing experiences they have suffered which led to their homelessness in the first place, such as fire outbreak.

A fire incident occurred around 9 am on March 9, 2015 at No 1 Abu Close, along Favour Estate, Kubwa, Abuja where fire gutted two threebedroom apartments, a section of which housed a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Friendship with Christ Home for the Poor, leaving seven children, three adults including the founder of the home, Dr Tochukwu Franscisca, homeless.

A visit to the burnt building

by Sunday Vanguard evoked emotions.

Investigations revealed that the fire, caused by high voltage, razed the entire building.

Although there was no life lost to the fire, certificates and other valuables including clothes, were burnt.

Miraculously, however, the statue of Jesus Christ standing on the altar in the apartment was not touched by the fire.

Giving a vivid account of the incident, Francisca told Sunday Vanguard that there was no electricity in the morning of that day and she had dropped off the children in school when electricity was restyored to the house with full voltage.

She said she was not comfortable with the high voltage and had to change the meter to the second phase as the high voltage was burning all the bulbs in her apartment while the immediate neighbour, who is a relation of the owner of the house, was not happy with the change over to the second phase and they both argued over that because they shared one meter and the meter was in Franscisca’s apartment.

Minutes after, Franscisca observed smoke and fire coming out from one of her rooms and, before they could scream fire, the two flats had been gutted by fire.

After they managed to contain the fire with the help of neighbours, Francisca was left to face the stark reality of homelessness with the seven children in her care. No one was willing to take her in especially with

the children until a couple from about two streets away took pity on her and the children and gave her a room in their house for the meantime.

The only help she claimed to have got, aside the temporary accommodation, was

cident.

He said, “The fire was so huge that everybody left his house to assist to put it out. It is not the kind of fire that when you see it, you will not be moved to give a helping hand.

“I just want Nigerians to look into her matter because if help

After they managed to contain the fire with the help of neighbours, Francisca was left to face the stark reality of homelessness with the seven children in her care a bag of rice from her Parish Priest. “Since the fire incident, there has not been help from anywhere except a bag of rice l got from my church’ s rev father”, she stated.

In an interview with Sunday Vanguard, Pastor Victor Obatoke, who temporarily accommodated Francisca and the seven children, said he and his wife could not bear to leave the victims to live on the street after the tragic incident.

Obatoke claimed he never knew the doctor before the in-

does not come to her the way she is now, it will not be fair on her because after she has lost all that she had in the fire. I didn’t know her from anywhere, I was just helping a woman in need”.

“I am from Kogi and my wife is from Imo. My wife didn’t know her too. We just went there to assist in putting out the fire and observed that nobody was ready to accommodate them hence the need to shelter them for a while”.

As if that was not enough, the

owner of the building allegedly got Franscisca arrested and ensured that she passed a night in the cell at Phase 4 Police Station on the accusation that she razed his house before she was released on bail the following day.

Asked why she is addressed as doctor, Franscisca claimed to have read up to doctorate degree. Her words, “I went to primary school at Santana Awomama and Johnmary Anojulu Primary School from there to Mercy Juniorate Secondary School, Amapu Ntigha in Abia State”.

She also claimed to be the best student at the Facaulty of Education, University of Calabar in 1998 where she also bagged her doctorate degree.

All of the certificates, she claimed, were burnt in the fire.

Franscisca’s passion for the needy is legendary notwithstanding that she does not have the resources to take care of the people under her care.

This was confirmed by a neighbour who preferred anonymity.

He said, “When she moved into the compound in December, we were not happy after discovering that she used the apartment as home for the poor which was more like and orphanage. But along the line, we began to embrace her when we realised her passion for the poor children was inbuilt”.

Francisca is now urging Nigerians to help her and the children to secure accommodate and pay the children’s school fees, among other needs. She is pleading with Nigerians to imbibe the culture of good brotherliness by providing skill acquisition and capacity building to the poor, so they can become useful Nigerians and create job opportunities for others in the future.

She said her NGO has over the years engaged in providing counseling for street children and others to redirect their lives and help them to realize their God given talents.

She told Sunday Vanguard that she was into mobile counseling for street children before she managed to get the threebedroom apartment in December last year before it went up in flames early March.

According to her, “The organization’s main objective is to care for the aged, feed the hungry and clothe the naked as well as intervene in the education and medication of the poor”. Sunday Vanguard went to the Catholic where said she worships three times before meeting with the Parish Priest.

The Parish Priest of St Luke’s Catholic Church, Kubwa Village Market, Reverend Father James Akpaamo, confirmed that Franscisca is a parishioner (member) of the church but clarified that her home for the poor is strictly her private affair that has no affiliate with the church.

PAGE 42— SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

The battle for Kaduna Can el-Rufai stop Yero?

By Luka Binniyat

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n Saturday, February 21, Zaria witnessed a record crowd, as thousands of people thronged the city to end Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero’ s 2015 gubernatorial rally under the flag the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. For the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the PDP, Zaria’s 350,00 votes are of strategic importance, and of huge socio-political relevance, being the birth place of Yero and his closest rival, Mallam Nasir elRufa, of the APC. One of these men will become the next governor of Kaduna State which has a landmass equal the size of the six states of the Niger Delta, with estimated seven million people speaking 61 officially distinct tongues spread over 23 local government areas, LGAs, and where Islam and Christianity are most eerily balanced in Nigeria.

“I have never seen this kind of gathering in my life”, said Air Commodore John Ajeye (rtd), who had stepped down for Yero during the PDP gubernatorial primary election, in a phone chat with Sunday Vanguard last week.

“I was told that there was no time Zaria ever experienced that kind of crowd, since the burial of the mother of Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd) in 1972. It took us nothing less than four hours for the convoy of the governor to cover the three kilometers distance from PZ to Zaria city centre because of the sea of humans on the road”, said Zubairu Ahmed, a party official from Chikun Local Government Area, LGA, to Sunday Vanguard in Kaduna.

El-Rufai spokesman, Mr. Samuel Aruwan, had, in a press conference, said the crowd molested the supporters of his principal and destroyed his billboards. He said they were thugs. But, Mallam Yakubu Lere, Chairman, Media and Publicity Committee of Yero 2015 Campaign Organisation, also in a press conference, said el-Rufai supporters destroyed the billboards of his candidate in Zaria and backed his claims with a video clip. The clip shows some youths molesting passersby, bringing down billboards and narrowly lynching a man said to be a PDP chieftain in Zaria. He has to fire into the sky before the scores of broom waving and machete, daggers and stick wielding, roughly-clad

•Mallam Nasir el-Rufa youths scamper away.

By all accounts, the alleged youths of APC on the video shown are surely a minority compared with the people that received Yero in Zaria that Saturday.

Yet, this was the same Yero who received a cold treatment by the same Zaria people at the 40th anniversary celebration of the turbaning of the Emir of Zaria, Alh. Shehu Idris. It was said that Yero was booed and the crowd chanted, “Ba mu so!. Ba mu so!” in Hausa meaning, “We don’t want him! We don’t want him!”

Yero’s remarkable recovery from his disadvantage to what looks like stardom status in Zaria and in the many areas he was clearly lagging in opinion rating, has been attributed to a combination of reasons.

According to Ibrahim Galadima, a long time observer of political developments in Kaduna State, “one of the biggest undoing of the youthful governor has been the key persons that surround him. They are not grassroots oriented and they have done little in words and actions to promote some of the things

•Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero he has been doing.

“The governor has also been a victim of very poor media and public relationship. Where he was lacking in direct engagement with the press, his image makers have woefully failed to cover that deficiency. So it created the impression that the man was not doing anything at all. It implanted in the mind of the

The battle for the Sir Ibrahim Kashim house is only getting more interesting as no one knows what the elRufai camp is doing to turn the tide against Yero

people that Yero did not have what it took to be a governor having arrived at seat by accident of fate.

“But, in the past few weeks, he has seen this problem and brought in new aides, politely keeping the former aides out of the scene. Suddenly, the people have realised that he was not the sleeping governor that was said of him. That he had actually carried out many projects, programmes and developmental initiatives to a baffling level”.

On his part, Zakaria Markus, a former critic of Yero, told Sunday Vanguard that he once despised the governor, but has now seen him in a new light.

Said Zakarai: “I was baffled to confirm that Yero has actually provided 14,000 jobs mainly in the educational sector. He has also approved that Kaduna State University, KASU, Kafanchan campus be made an autonomous Kaduna State University of Technology. I now know that he has huge interest in the educational sector, employing about 200 lecturers for KASU alone. He has also revived the overseas scholarship almost 20 years after it

was cancelled.

“In his economic empowerment, he has provided 10,000 youths with skills and funds to start their own businesses.

“Why I am happy with him now is that the man he is contesting against does not believe in new jobs in the public sector.

He believes that one consultant can do the job of 100 civil servants. And he is ready to pay fabulous remunerations to engage them. I remember the lady and one guy he employed to work with when he was the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT. They came as consultants. The lady had not served her mandatory NYSC and was paying them the sum of N19 million per month. I recalled the battle he had with the Senate over the matter and other issues. My eyes are now opened.

“I also remember how he happily accepted the job of being the Chairman of Public Service Rationalisation Team, PSRT, in which about 120,000 Federal Civil Servants were sacked between 2005 and 2007.

“In a country where one worker provides for scores of dependants, as Nigeria’s only way of indirect social-welfare, I will never vote for anyone who does not see civil service work as a way of catering for the rest who government has refused to give any form of succor.

“I will not vote for anyone who will kill jobs instead of creating more. Many of us never saw it this way until now”.

The camp of el-Rufai has also said the APC gubernatorial candidate will create new jobs and do more if voted. But, the inability of el-Rufai to explain, for example, the unprecedented demolition of homes and property in Abuja while serving as FCT Minister from 2003 to 2007 has created fear in the minds of property owners in Kaduna State who do not have government documents of the assets; including thousands who intend to own property in the future.

But where the debate on elRufai and Yero is reaching an emotional peak is Southern Kaduna.

Here, el-Rufai has die-hard supporters, who would not hear of anything outside him. They had convinced quite a good size of the traditionally PDP voting area to the APC before now.

The vexing areas to the people of Southern Kaduna under Yero include “uncompleted Yakowa roads projects”; the many murderous night raids on Southern Kaduna communities by suspected Fulani gunmen and his perceived, or real arrogance against the elders and peoples of Southern Kaduna.

The battle for the Sir Ibrahim Kashim house is only getting more interesting as no one knows what the el-Rufai camp is doing to turn the tide against Yero.

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 43

Kwara 2015: Why Gov. Ahmed will not be re-elected – Ajibola, PDP guber candidate

By Wale Akinola

of reconciliation. I think PDP leaders at the state and federal levels have come to the reality of the situation. The primary was very free and fair. The delegates were resolute in their choice even if the margins among the three top aspirants were very close. In all political contests, one person must emerge; and the winner happened to be a strong party member, one who was a foundation member as well as a loyal financial member of the PDP. A lot of reconciliation has taken place. We have tried to make our campaign an allinclusive affair. Nobody is left out-we are all winners for the PDP because the task ahead is enormous.

Senator Simeon Sule Ajibola, three-term member of the Senate, is a foundation member of the PDP in Kwara State. He is the party’s governorship candidate in the state for the April 11 election. He speaks, in this interview, on his chances and other contentious issues in Kwara politics.

POLITICAL CLASHES It is unfortunate and it is quite disturbing that politics is becoming a do-or-die business in the State of Harmony. It shouldn’t be so. We, the leaders, have a duty to rein in our followers. We do not have to kill, maim or destroy houses to win elections. With all sense of responsibility, I say that the APC is the aggressor in all political disturbances recorded recently in Kwara State. You can cross check from the various security agencies. We know that they are jittery; they cannot imagine facing defeat at the polls and becoming the opposition party. But that is what majority of Kwarans want and they have seen the handwriting on the wall.

Let me give an instance. The APC has made much noise on the disturbance at Isapa, my home town. The information I have is that one of the governor’s aides engineered the crisis. He allegedly arranged some thugs to attack the homes and vehicles of members of PDP a few hours before the arrival of the APC campaign team.

At Kaima, our opponents were disturbed by the large crowd that trooped out to attend our rally. Immediately we left, they started vandalizing our billboards and attacked the homes of PDP leaders. Of course, our members were forced to defend themselves. There are several instances of intolerance bordering on loss of popularity in the APC camp. We can only appeal to their leaders to call their followers to order. On

•Ajibola our part, we are fully committed to peaceful electioneering campaign and rancor-free elections.

DISCONTENT IN THE PDP Let me admit that there were initial misgivings in my party after my emergence as the governorship candidate in Kwara State.

But that is the nature of democracy and those misconceptions have been corrected largely through information sharing and the spirit

AJIBOLA CANNOT WIN ELECTION/ NOT POPULAR AT HOME That has turned out to be an idle talk. It was a mischievous propaganda by those who chose to whip up religious and ethnic sentiments. But we have gone past that now.

Kwarans are very discerning and they are politically sophisticated. Religion has never been a factor in electing political leaders in our state. Even Dr. Olusola Saraki, may Allah bless his soul, never played politics on the basis of religion. He was very calculative and will never go against the popular wish of the people. So, those who said I cannot win the governorship election for PDP are myopic in their thinking and analysis.

Poverty does not discriminate on the basis of religion. Good governance, transparency and accountability have nothing to do with your faith. If you are crooked in your thinking or a kleptomaniac, what has religion got to do with that? Kwarans have had Moslem and Christian governors. They will assess each one based on his performance.

One of our governors who performed in office is the late George Innih. He was a Chris-

My pact with Niger people -Nasko, PDP guber candidate

By Wole Mosadomi

T

he gubernatorial election has never been so explosive and interesting as it is in Niger State. It is a departure from the past when an aspirant would be imposed on the electorate by the elders without resistance. Though there is a campaign by the opposition on the age of the PDP flag bearer who they say is too young to govern the state, Umaru Nasko, who turned 40 on March 13, said in a country where life expectancy is put at less than 50 years, a 40- year old should not be seen as too young to serve as a state governor.

Niger is eager for a change. The people’s expectations are high.

They are mindful of the fact that the state is still backward in terms of education, provision of potable water, health care delivery, industrial development and the economy. Past administrations, both military and civilian, have played their part but the belief of the people is that there is still a lot more left undone and, perhaps, that is why the people are looking forward to a dynamic, energetic, vibrant and an astute administrator especially somebody who has been in the system and who, therefore, knows where the shoe pinches most.

Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu had, at different times, made it clear to the electorate that he had no anointed candidate to take over from him but that his wish is for somebody from his cabinet to succeed him, not for any hidden agenda but to continue with the good works his administration started.

Fortunately, when the primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was held, Nasko, who, was, for many years commissioner in different ministries in the present state administration and, lately, chief of staff to the governor, picked the ticket and thus became the party’s flag bearer.

Nasko served the state as commissioner for commerce and tourism during which the two ministries witnessed rapid transformation.

Besides, he was the coordinator of the ward development project in Magama Local Government Area of Niger during which peoples lives were touched through the provision of roads, schools, market stalls boreholes and other infrastructural facilities.

His running mate, Alhaji Isah Liman Kantigi, was Chairman, Edati Local Government Council for years and, lately, the state commissioner for local government. The duo are seen in the political field as an impeccable combination and this has raised the hope of the people of Niger for better dividends of democracy after Aliyu. Meanwhile, some people saw Nasko as too

•Nasko young to be at the helm of affairs of the state.

On this, the PDP gubernatorial candidate said, “How an individual feels about his age is largely the state of the mind which is why a 30-year-old with the right exposure and experience can achieve more than a 70-year-old and vice versa. That is not to diminish the value of old age but it is only to underscore the need to give the young ones a chance.”

In an interview with our state correspondent, he affirmed that he has the zeal to provide positive change in hu-

Continues on page 44

tian and a non-Kwaran. We remember him with nostalgia. One of his enduring legacies is the Ilorin Stadium Complex that has been run down completely. Let the present government mention one project that is serving the interest of Kwarans. I can’t find any!

When they say Ajibola cannot win election, I chuckle. My response is to describe those people as mischievous or lacking a sense of history. In 1994, I won election to represent my zone at the National Constitutional Conference. In 1998, I performed the same feat in the senatorial election defeating the candidate backed by Dr. Saraki during the aborted transition programme of the Abacha government. In 2003, I was affirmed winner of the same seat after a protracted battle in court. And as you know, I was re-elected in 2007 and 2011. With this brief summary on my political journey, those who ignore Ajibola can only do so at their own peril.

RIDING ON SARAKI’S BACK It is a warped logic that I rode on Baba Saraki’s back to win elections. I just told you that I cut my political teeth, literally, so to say, in 1994 when I won my first election to the National Constitutional Conference. In that election and when I contested for the Senate seat under UNCP in 1998, I defeated the Saraki machinery. It was only in 2003 that Dr. Saraki and I worked in the same political camp. So it is warped logic to insinuate that Baba Saraki made me a politician.

Facts of history do not support that assertion.

PERFORMANCE AS A SENATOR In the political history of Kwara, I am the only lawmaker, and I don’t know of any other politician, who has published his achievements in a booklet. With all modesty, I think we have performed creditably; but more important is that we have been accountable to our people. As a senator, I have touched all the constituent parts of my zone comprising seven local governments. We can proudly list projects in education, water supply, rural electrification, road construction, skill acquisition and empowerment, social welfare and social development, contributions to community development and support to my party. In all areas of endeavor, we have something to point to including pilgrimage to Mecca and Jerusalem.

WINNING FORMULA AGAINST AN INCUMBENT You remember that those occupying the Government House now actually ‘hijacked’ our mandate. The mandate they exercise now was given to the PDP at the 2011 elections. Unfortunately, this governor has underperformed and that gives us a good campaign message to the electorate. Tell me one project that the present government in Kwara has inaugurated apart from the existing general hospitals that were refurbished. The only project they flaunt—the Vocation and Skill Acquisition Centre at Ajasse-Ipo, is yet to admit one trainee.

There is no doubt that Kwarans are yearning for a change; they truly want freedom and a government that serves the interest of the people. All we need do is re-assure the electorate and harvest the goodwill all around the state. From the reception we got while campaigning in most local communities, PDP is the party to beat in Kwara State.

PROMISE TO KWARANS We promise all Kwarans good governance; we promise participatory democracy, accountability and a government with a human face. The PDP has rolled out a fivepoint development agenda for Kwara State.

These are aggressive agricultural and rural development; affordable and accessible health services; qualitative education; massive youth employment, women empowerment and social security for the aged; provision of solid infrastructural base including housing for all, good road networks, water supply and rural electrification.

PAGE 44— SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

‘My pact with Niger people’ Continued from page 43 man development, eco-

nomic emancipation and infrastructural development in the state.

“A vote for me is a vote for progress, youth and gender empowerment, agricultural and economic regeneration, infrastructural development, health and education advancement, ethno-religious tolerance and integration, accountability, respect for the rule of law, equity and justice,”he stated.

One of the major problems in the country is lack of continuity of the projects started by a former government. Nasko said he will continue with the good works his predecessor started.

“We seek to continue the purposeful and pragmatic leadership style of the outgoing administration that has served in the best interest of the people. This is to consolidate on the gains of various remarkable achievements already recorded in the bid to create a springboard for higher performance,”the PDP governorship candidate stated.

“I also promise that my administration will advance all frontiers of developing the state and step up the implementation of vision 3:2020 document which is to make Niger state the best economy in the year 3:2020.”

He noted that the only way to achieve the vision is by developing the education sector and thus declared that his administration will strengthen all existing policies in the sector which is pursuing the free education, payment of National Examinations Council (NECO) and West African Examinations Council (WAEC) examinations fees and also increase the bursary allowances to deserving students.

Nasko promised that more schools will be built while the existing infrastructure will be expanded to sustain the tempo of increased pupils’ enrolments and the standard of quality educational services.

According to him, more emphasis will be placed on technical schools by making them become sources of producing quality furniture for all schools in the state.

He was quick in identifying the role of the civil ser-

vants which he described as the engine room towards actualizing the 3:2020 dream.

“The civil service is the key element in public policy making and therefore, we shall strive to restore professionalism and discipline in service and we will dispense with, in maximum speed any incidence of corruption and misappropriation in the civil service”, the gubernatorial candidate said.

Since the creation of Niger State in 1976, many industries have been established by government and individuals as a source of employment and improving the revenue base of government.

Unfortunately, several of these industries have packed up thereby overstretching the recruitment of workers into the civil service and also making the state 100% dependent on federal allocation.

The PDP flag bearer said there must be a departure form this, pointing out that the bitter experience by states across the country in terms of income from the federal allocation is a pointer to the fact that states should look more inwardly towards generating funds for their survival..

He noted that Niger is endowed with mineral resources such as gold, talc, iron ore, kaoline, quartz, oil and gas among others but that they are yet to be developed fully.

He said, “Attention would be given to this sector by keying into the flow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the global mining sector and open up to the business community. We also have on our agenda to provide incentives for investors which will include tax relieve, import duty relieve, foreign exchange remittance of certificate of occupancy, availability of Infrastructural facilities such as roads, electricity, water supply, hotel services and above all, we intend to provide effective mechanism and partnership for the actualization of Bida Basin Exploration project in order to make the state join the league of oil – producing states.”

He said Niger State Internal Revenue Board will be reinvigorated towards improving on its revenue base thereby serving the electorate much better.

Gbaramatu youths laud EPZ project

T

he youths of Gbara matu kingdom, in Warri South West local government area of Delta State, have expressed satisfaction over the peaceful ground breaking ceremony of the $16billion Gas Revolution Industrial Park, Ogidigben and Deep Sea Port, Gbaramatu by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Comrade Timi Oluba, who spoke on behalf of the youths in Warri, said President Goodluck Jonathan has set the pace for the rapid infrastructural and economic development in Del-

ta State.

He also commended Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo and Itskiri leaders for ensuring the successful flag off of the project by President Jonathan, adding that both ethnic groups are to benefit greatly from the mega project. " Indeed, we are proud of President Jonathan, we appreciate him for taking time despite his tight schedules to perform the ground breaking, and this project will be beneficial to not only the people of Delta State, but the entire country".

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 45

We ‘re desperate to get it right in Abia — Ikpeazu, PDP governorship candidate

By Levinus Nwabughiogu Okezie Ikpeazu is Abia State governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. In this interview, he says his government when voted into power in the forthcoming election, would change the story of the state for better. Excerpts: T does appear that Abia runs a style of government where anyone that comes as power ignores other parts of the state and concentrates on his area alone. Some say that’s why Aba is now a shadow of itself. Consequently, there is the impressioninsomequartersthatyoumay also ignore other parts and limit development to Aba and its environs only having come from there. How would you react?

A lot of people talk about Aba, yes there is need to lay emphasis on Aba but my own reason is different from what many people will say. My reason is in that two things; there seems to be some deficits in terms of infrastructure and that is the picture everywhere. If you want to criticize a government, even the Lagos state government, if you want to criticise them, you go to slumps in Lagos but that is not the thing that is overriding. My challenge in Abia is an economic vision.

Whatever we plan to do in government post May 29 will be driven from our vision. That will be the picture because from where are we today, what is our hope of survival? Abia is just a marginal producer of oil and that thing has made us lazy. So, I think we should think about a private sector led economy. We shouldn’t think about those things that God has given to us which other people donothaveasmuchaswedo.Wearethe best traders in Nigeria. We are very good in trade and commerce. We also have human capital, the best brains all over the world and in Nigeria. I think what we need to do is to leverage small and medium scale enterprises which many people around us don’t have. We are the best in garments making, the best in leather works and the best in fabrication of things. A lot of money is being pumped in the local manufacturing of motor vehicles. So, why can’t we produce the spare parts in Abia and sell to them to make up local content of the vehicles that will come in the years ahead? So, the economic agenda first.

But if I say Aba is going to drive the economic agenda, it is to drive it to the extent that will generate money to begin to think about developing Arochukwu in therealsenseofit,developingotherparts of Ikwuano, Umunneochi and the rest of them. The advantage that Aba has, so many other cities in Abia do not have it.

The first advantage is that Aba is located at a confluence of the states from the SoutheastandSouthsouth.Forinstance, it is 30 minutes to Owerri, 30 minutes to Port Harcourt, 30 minutes to Ikot Ekene and you can’t throw that away. Today, Abia is the only state that has rail network in 5 cities: Ovim, Mbausi, Umuoba, Aba Umuahia. And you can get to Enugu, Port Harcourt and federal government has returned rail transportation.Sothosethingswhichwehavecomparative advantage over, we will leverage them. So, For me, Aba is a priority because that city can replace oil and do better.ItisnotnecessarilybecauseIcome from there; yes I do but it is a strategic city and that is what I think is going to drive my emphasis in the days ahead.

And no section of Abia state will suffer because what Umuahia has got to offer, Aba may not have it to offer. There is limestone in Arochukwu that can support a huge cement factory. Am I going to put limestone in Aba in other to locate it a cement factory? Naturally, that will go to Arochukwu. So it is for us to think inwardsnowandleveragewhatwehave

I

naturally rather than allowing ourselves to be listed among oil states whereas we are just marginal in that field.

Most people in Aba and Abia State at large feel that your relationship with the sitting governor today is a threat to your candidature because according to them, he is a failure. They feel your affinity with him can as well rob you victory at the election. How would you react to that?

I beg to disagree for some of reasons.

Thereisaburdenattachedtoeveryname including your own and my own and when you look at that the burden, you weigh your odds. Do I run with the supposed burden or do I start on a clean slate? After looking at it I said to myself, firstly before now we used to have issues between the so called Abuja politicians and those in Abia. But that is no more.

PDP is one family and that is a major achievement.Secondly,whateveryoudo if you don’t have security you have not started.Just4to5yearsagoinAba,when you wake up in the morning and suddenly you pick up an AK 47 from the gutter. That is not the situation again.

Am I going to throw that away? Time was also when you come to PDP as a family, social justice was not resonating as much as it is doing now because equity and social justice is a very strong platform on which anybody that wants to run a government must locate. For instance, you are from one federal constituency and you pick a deputy from the samefederalconstituency,youarethrowing away social justice and equity. There is no balance and people will start to complain from the first day you start.

You can’t build on that kind of foundation.

•Ikpeazu Would you not sacrifice merit for political patronages should you win?

I do not think that those who should be invited to man key positions in our government tomorrow are going to be based on political patronage. The best form of political patronage should be to encourage politician to go into agriculture and other things but in terms of those who will occupy key positions it should be done and left for those that are academically and technically qualified with mind sets to achieve results becausewhateveryoudowithoutagenda setting and proper evaluation, you can’t achieve any result giving the time-

line that you have and l think we are desperate to get it right this time around in Abia to the extent that it would no longer be business as usual where people would come and say well l have been in politics for xyz number of years therefore l should be given this or that.

Before you are given key position to occupy, there must be an evidence that you can really thrive at that area and bring the requisite result. So that is my take on competence and it tells a story about the colouration of the government. If they see the kind of people that you are surrounded yourself with, it tells a story about how serious you and your agenda are.

Economicallyspeaking,howareyou going to drive Abia?

There are a few options for funding but the most critical of them will be determined by how innovative the vision bearer and members of the team are.

The most important source of income, which is a veritable tool in the hands of any administrator tomorrow would be the Internally Generated Revenue. Beforethelast4years,weweredoingN250 million a month in Abia but today it has moved to about N600 to N700 million a month for once or twice but with average of N600 to N650 million every month. That is what it is now but l think that we can do as much as N2.5 billion every month and the way to do it is to strengthen the institutions of service that we have. If you want to collect money for waste management, then the waste management agency should be able to render service. If the institution for waste managementisnotstrong,thenyoucan’t hope to collecting money for waste management because nobody would pay. I think that if we strengthen the institutionsofservice,wewouldbeabletodrive astrongerIGRprofilethanwhatwehave now even setting a target of N3.5 billion per month and it is achievable. That is part of the reason why some of us say Aba is critical and pivotal because that is where the critical mass of those who will do the IGR reside. Having said that, most government policies especially if you have strong statistics and you deployduediligenceandyouaresufficiently transparent in what you do, you should be able to attract donor agencies to key into your vision and help you drive development in specific areas like education, health, water supply and so on.

The road Cross River should not travel

BY EFEFIOM NSA

F

OR eight years running, Cross River State has become a symbol for all that is noble, peace and security. In fact, the state was, not too long ago, rated as the most peaceful in the country by the police based on the fact that it had the lowest crime rate.

In deed, these happenings were not by happenstance. They were a product of the policy of Governor Liyel Imoke to make peace and security an essential element of his governance process.

It was one of the legacies he vowed at inception of his administration to bequeath to the state. Until Imoke’s assumption of office in 2007, violence was daily occurrence in the state.

But Imoke toiled tirelessly to ensure violence in the state was eliminated.

However, recent events in the build-up to the general elections appear to be not only eroding this legacy, but also tend to suggest a ghostly apparition of the gone by vices.

A once peaceful state now appears to be gripped by an orgy of violence, which keen observers alleged is the handiwork of opposition parties and desperate politicians in the state,to realise their inordinate political ambition.

And it is very easy to arrive at this conclusion.

Tension was high in Calabar in the build-up to the PDP primaries for the Cross River South Senatorial District. And this is understandable given the caliber of persons that contested the ticket.

The incumbent senator, Prince

Bassey Otu, a political leader in the state, Mr Gershom Bassey, and Ntufam Ekpo Okon fought for the ticket.

The electoral officers were left with no other choice but to move the primaries to another day. The exercise was also moved from the Cultural Center to the U.J. Esuene Stadium to allow for proper security.

At the end of what many in the state hailed as a transparent and credible exercise, Bassey emerged the winner . Okon conceded defeat and is today the Director General of the PDP Campaign Organisation in the state while the incumbent senator crossed to Labor Party.

Since he pitched tent with the Labor Party, Otu’s supporters, using various faceless groups, have been engaging in hate campaigns through advertorials in newspapers and bulk sms.

As the hate campaign intensifies, so has violence found accommodation in the state. First, Imoke’s steward was shot dead at his home in Calabar.

Just when it seemed that life was returning to normal in the city, some unknown gunmen stormed the residence of Bassey. They shot a policeman and a Civil Defence personnel who were on duty , and made away with the policeman’s rifle.

That Bassey is alive today is because he wasn’t home when the gunmen struck.Before then, he and his campaign team were viciously attacked in Bakassi during his campaign tour of the area.

When all these were happening, the Labour Party, populated by politicians who just left the PDP after

being worsted in the PDP primaries, maintained silence.

Indeed, the much the party leadership did was to insinuate that the various attacks on PDP members were orchestrated by the victims.

There was not a single word of condemnation from the leadership.

Not long after that incident, a violent clash erupted in Ekori between supporters of the PDP and the Labour Party. Four people, including a cousin of Hon. Bassey Ewa, a PDP member of the House of Representatives, were killed in the fracas.

Typical of the Labor Party in the state, it sought to exploit that incident for political gains. It issued a statement claiming that the state police command was using that incident, as a guise, to clamp down on its leaders and candidates in that area, and throw them into jail. Not a single word did they mention of the fact that Ewa was also a guest of the police.

As if it is now a case of one day one trouble, the Labor Party House of Representatives candidate for Akpabuyo/Calabar South/Bakassi Federal Constituency, Mr Dominic Edem, was kidnapped by unknown gunmen. Few hours after the incident, Labor Party again went to town, accusing the PDP-led state government of sponsoring the kidnap.

Nevertheless, emerging scenario seems to suggest a simulated kidnap by some members of the Labour Party in order to tar the ruling PDP and also create a false sense of insecurity in the state.

As part of the Labour Party’s

scheme to stoke the embers of confusion in order to precipitate violence in the state, there were media reports to the effect that members of the party had staged a protest claiming that there was a plot by the PDP to rig the forthcoming elections.

Over time, this has become the stock in trade of the Labour Party in Cross River, always forging a crisis and invariably stoking tension in the polity.

Yet for eight years, the same PDP-led government in the state had ensured that the state buried its spectre of violent tendencies to become the most peaceful in the country.

In those eight years, several elections have been held, including three governorship elections, which Imoke contested, without a single incidence of violence.

It is an established fact that the personality of a leader has direct bearing on his or her style of leadership. Imoke’s humility, calm disposition and accommodation of dissenting views, have been the defining attributes of his administration.

As the opposition seeks to play politics with violence, they should realise that the interest of the state supercedes any individual interest.

The people of Cross River also know the character of the present administration. So the jaded tactics of using violence for political gains isn’t working. *Nsa, a member of the Cross River Youth Vanguard, lives in Calabar

PAGE 46—SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

The change next Delta House will bring — Olorogun Akpowowo OLOROGUN Arthur Akpowowo is the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the Delta State House of Assembly in Ethiope East Constituency for the April 11, 2015 general elections. Until he threw his heart into the ring, he was the state Youth Leader of the party.

In this interview, he speaks on his ambition and the state governorship election.

W

HAT informed your contesting the election, having been Youth Leader all the while?

I have the burning desire to serve my people as a lawyer; part of what I am trying to do is to be a parliamentarian. I want to bring my experience in politics to bear by serving the people of Ethiope East. I saw the House of Reps before choosing to go to the House of Assembly because I am a grassroots man. I want to serve my people and change the course of governance in this area. By God’s grace, my emergence as a member of Delta State of Assembly will bring drastic change in the lives of the people.

How do you describe the journey since you showed interest?

It has not easy but l give glory to God that l have come this far and waiting for my swearing in by the special grace of God come May 29, 2015. It has been wonderful because this is the first time I am contesting election to

win.

The overwhelming support I am getting in Ethiope East is marvelous.

You seen to be faced with a big challenge having two other candidates running against you.

How do you hope to scale through?

Politics is all about challenges and l see it as part of the game. If you watch carefully, you will hear that Eku community has given me her blessing through the Eku Council of Chiefs and Elders. I am their choice candidate.

They gave me their blessing because they know I have the experience having spent over seven years in the mainstream of the party as the state Youth Leader, coupled with my being a legal practitioner.

The APC candidate from Eku is my younger brother. I have no ill feelings about him and I am sure he is behind me since the whole of Eku has spoken so loud in my favour.

It was read recently in one of the national dallies where the candidate of the Labour Party,

Evans Iwhuhrie, said you did not go through the primary of your party, the PDP, and described you as being arrogant? What is your reaction? l initially decided not to join issues with him, but on the second hand, l said l should straighten those things he said that are not true because of the extent he has gone to malign my person.

The people of Ethiope East know both of us very well. He ought to know that he that lives in glass house does not throw stones but because of my status in Agbon and Abraka kingdoms, l will not go that much he has gone.

Ivwurie know that he did not participate in his party primaries.

The two co-contestants were disqualified at the venue without cogent reasons before they both went to the court to challenge the primary election of the party.

So there was no Labour Party primary that certified Evans Iwhuhrie as the candidate for the Delta State House of Assembly at Isiokolo.

It is funny to say there was no PDP primary which I resigned my appointment for, bought the form and was cleared by the party and ran with the incumbent lawmaker and two other contestants, Engr. Blessing Enamuotor and Ojuvwuederhi of Ovu.

•Akpowowo Ivwurie said I am arrogant man. It is shocking he could start using words on people and this is a man who says he wants to represent Ethiope East.

It may suffice lvwurie to know that my leaders I started to work with since I joined politics, I am still with them like Chief Michael Adiotomre, Chief Love Ojakovo, Chief Love Ojakovo and a host of others and that tells you how respectful I am.

For the period I worked under Barr. Peter Nwaobishi, the former state Chairman of the PDP, until we both resigned, we had a very cordial relationship.

Apart from the political circle, before l went to the university, I worked in a Division of Okoloko Group of Company in Sapele,

PDP has edge against opposition —Dr. Ebigwei

By Tony Nwankwo Dr. Sylvan Olisanye Ebigwei (MON) is the coordinator, Anioma Nation for Jonathan. In this interview, the president-emeritus of Aka Ikenga, the Igbo apex socio-political group, says the postponed election has exposed the evil machinations of INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega and his pay masters determination to rig the elections in APC favour. Ebigwei was recently appointed chairman, Board of Directors, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Awka, Anambra State. Excerpts:

Y

oruba elders and leaders of thought have openly endorsed the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP against the opposition APC. Do you think this will change the calculation of the elections?

The main battle zone for this election is the South-west. However, the distribution of the Permanent Voter Cards, (PVCs) is such that by the time the sum total of the PVCs available in the political zones, are calculated, these zones may be shortchanged. This is when compared to the total votes that may accrue from the other zones, especially, the South-west, Northeast and North-west. The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has a stronghold within the North Central zone. That leaves the other three zones more significantly the South-west where Lagos has the largest population or the highest voting strength in the country. But what is playing

•Ebigwei out now is that APC is strongly entrenched in the South-west, North-west, North-east and equally North-central. The states that are the main battle zones are Lagos and Kano. Even though Lagos has the largest population, when it comes to PVC distribution, Lagos is shortchanged with 2.3 million voter cards yet to be delivered to prospective voters. Whereas, Kano has about 800,000 plus of their registered voter cards not delivered. This is according to INEC itself. What this means is that as at today, Kano has the largest number of voter cards in terms of PVC distribution. Also, enough distribution of PVCs in the North, dwarfs seriously PVC collection in the whole of the South. That is why government should seek the removal of Jega.

Now, when it comes to the question on the PDP in this elections, by the scenario being canvassed,

PDP may win the election in the constitutional provision of 25% in the two thirds of the total states of the federation in terms of spread, while the opposition may not win the largest number of votes cast. PDP will still win the election irrespective of what the opponent acquires. The two huge battle states are Lagos and Kano.

It is most likely that the PDP will clear 50 percent of registered voters of Lagos State and PDP may equally surpass expectations in the whole of the SouthWest, though majority of the states in the South-west are under APC. Why this situation is rearing its head is because the South-westerners are working against the APC, because most of the people see the party as not working in their best interests.

Therefore, they want to release the core-Yoruba from the political stranglehold of the APC. Can the campaigns and endorsements change the tide in this election?

Politics is not a band wagon issue. If they win, it will be through the goodwill of PDP. PDP is spending more on campaigns but their money is falling on wrong hands. Many hustlers have set up shop as political platforms and they have vowed to clean up PDP campaign money, because the handlers of PDP campaigns have failed to identify who is who among the so-called campaign groups. Money is being given secretly to the leaders who share them among their few colleagues to the detriment of the masses

which they claim to be leading.

And this has caused a lot of bad blood among the so-called PDP support groups. Nigeria is not a country where you give campaign funds to a few people, they just pocket the money. What the campaign directors should have been doing would be to identify those genuine groups who are working for the party and give funds to those on ground with clear agenda to deliver to the them. So, the PDP may be wallowing in the euphoria that they have done their campaign, not knowing that they have run a good race but outside the track.

We pray that the PDP may win the election through the good works of the government and the transformation agenda which are there for everyone to see.

How do you rate Jega’s performance so far?

From the happen stances and for all the reports and lectures it seems Prof. Attahiru Jega had tilted his sympathy towards APC, because of the arbitrary creation of 30,000 Polling Units which he arbitrarily created and distributed, to the extent that it favours the north more than the South.

This has cast a big doubt in his integrity and morality as an unbiased umpire. Also, the PVC distribution from statistics available is heavily flawed because how can the North-east that is being devastated by Boko Haram with people displaced from war from wards to local governments, now have a larger percentage of collected PVCs more than a safe and well peo-

and, after my graduation, I went to the Law School and was later called to bar. Thereafter, I practiced at Ekobora Law Chamber at the Refinery Road.

Barr. Williams EKokifo was my Principal.

I later opened my private office, Akpowowo & Akpowowo & Co. So, let Evans tell you where he has worked before saying he has been tested.

A group of youths from Hon. Joseph Oshevire, the incumbent member representing Ethiope East in the House, came to identify with you. How do you feel?

In fact, almost every youth group in this LG has been identifying with me. They have one reason or the other to identify with me for what I have done so far, as a Youth Leader. So, the group from Hon. Oshevire, led by Friday Odaka, Osawata and others is a testimony to the fact that they have been watching me as a reliable person and the people’s man.

How do you see the chances of the PDP candidate, Sen. Ifeanyi Okowa, in the gubernatorial election?

I can assure you that he will win with or without the card reader.

This is so because we are fully on ground and also his antecedent and hard work will speak for him.

The primary was turbulent, but the man remained focused. He emerged from that primary stronger and he is generally accepted. PDP has been on ground with members relating well with the people at the grassroots.

pled South. Jega’s claim in this regard stands all logics on its head. Let us take Lagos which is a peaceful state with the largest population in Nigeria have less PVCs delivered to people than the war ravaged North-East.

Lagos, which is not a battle zone, but where non-indigenes like the Igbo are complaining of being denied of their voters cards.

Equally, the officials say the voters are highly compromised.

Once you are APC, they give you PVC, otherwise if you are PDP, they deny you the card. Furthermore, even the Card Readers which functionality is suspect because it has not been prepared to maximise the benefits for which it was adopted.

Normally, you cannot just wake up and sack Jega, because of the political effects that it can have on the integrity of the election after his sack. The integrity of whosoever may replace him if the ruling party wins. He can be sacked on proof of partiality.

If however, he is asked to go on terminal leave, heaven will not fall. He can be asked to go on terminal leave as Maurice Iwu did, and heaven did not fall. So there is a precedent. However, if some people had programmed Jega to use him to rig the election, there will be serious uproar.

So, it is now left for the government to critically look into what Jega has done. If they feel it is not in the best interest of the country and not in consonance with his constitutional briefs as INEC chairman, they can quietly ease him out by asking him to proceed on terminal leave. We must maintain the integrity of this election. The government must show that Jega has no moral obligation to remain as INEC chairman..

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 47

Showdown in Ebonyi *Gov Elechi’s missteps

By Peter Okutu

B

EFORE the commence ment of the last primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Ebonyi State, Governor Martin Elechi had planned that a former Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, would succeed him until the tide turned against him.

But his deputy, Dave Umehi, operating on the platform of Divine Mandate Campaign Organization of the PDP, gradually consolidated his governorship ambition as Elechi missed several steps and made far- reaching political mistakes.

An aspect Umahi is currently using to campaign is the fact that his boss failed in some sectors of the state economy, especially in terms of project initiative and execution.

The governor missed his

steps executing so many projects which are likely to be abandoned at the expiration of his tenure. The projects are Ebonyi International University, International Trade Centre, Ebonyi International Market, reticulation of water across the state, among others.

Elechi did excellently when he sold the idea that power would shift to Ebonyi South after his administration. This proposition was accepted by stakeholders across the 13 local government areas of the state.

But he missed it when he changed his mind and began to support a northern governorship candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Sir Edward Nkwegu, because his candidate (Chukwu) did not emerge after the PDP primary election.

Meanwhile, the Ebonyi State chapter of the party, under the

leadership of Chief Joseph Onwe, is determined not to allow the governor take over the structure of the party ahead of the 2015 general elections.

Elechi, again, missed his steps when he decided to deny his predecessor, former Governor Sam Egwu, the senatorial ticket for Ebonyi North because he allegedly wanted to return his brother in law, Senator Chris Nwankwo, the incumbent at the National Assembly.

Many who condemned Elechi over that action opined that if he could deny a man who contributed 90 percent to his becoming governor, a senatorial ticket, then, he was not worthy of their support.

Again, he missed his steps when he underrated the decision of the PDP National Secretariat and Ebonyi political heavy weights from Ebonyi, in

•Gov Elechi’

Aso Rock, Abuja.

His greatest undoing was to believe that some stakeholders in the state could save him even if those in Abuja were against him.

Another step he missed was when he allegedly concentrated political and economic powers in a former PDP youth leader against the wishes of some key stakeholders in Ebonyi.

Meanwhile, Umahi’s campaign is gaining popularity and personalities needed to effect a change in the governance of the state.

The governor apparently

missed his steps when he began to intrude into the affairs of the state House of Assembly without recourse to the doctrine of separation powers among the three arms of government.

This made him vulnerable to the impeachment notice served him barely a month ago by the Ebonyi House of Assembly.

Again, he missed his steps by bluntly refusing to pay the national minimum wage to workers in the state since 2011; if he had paid and stopped, it would have been a different case now but he never did.

Little wonder the state workers decided to embark on strike. This development has made him to lose the support of the workers who have decided to support the candidacy of the PDP governorship candidate.

These steps missed gave Umahi an edge to clinch the 2015 governorship election in Ebonyi as he has penetrated the 13 local government areas of the state with the message that power shift to Ebonyi South was necessary for political balance, equity, justice and fair play.

Ogun 2015: I'm in the race to win – Odunsi, SDP guber candidate

By Dapo Akinrefon

S

enator Kamar Akin Odunsi is the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, in Ogun State. In this interview, he declares that he is in the race to win the Aprill 11 election.

You are a professional before going into politics. Why did you decide to go into politics?

Well, I decided to go into politics in order to satisfy the yearnings of my people. As you know, I have retired from advertising industry from 2003 to 2010. I had almost seven-year break. But the call from my people for effective representation became a very strident call such that I could no longer resist responding to their call. Of course, because I knew I had the time to spare and I have a second address I can always come back to, it was not a big risk for me. I came on board in 2011 seriously. I have been at it since then. I believe the people of Ogun West needed effective and responsible representation in the National Assembly. I made up my mind from the moment I accepted to run that if I was eventually elected, I would serve my people and bring dividends of democracy closer to the people. So, I decided to go into politics in order to satisfy the yearnings of my people and provide effective and responsible representation.

Are you done with what you planned to achieve in the National Assembly? Or why the idea of governorship?

I have not actually done with the task of providing effective and responsible representation.

I believe my governorship aspiration is to continue to represent the people of Ogun State at a broader or higher level. But let me explain why I decided to throw my hat to the ring for governorship. I am somebody, who believe in party supremacy. Originally, I intended to stick to my senatorial seat and continue serving my people. But few

things happened that changed my senatorial pursuit. As you know, I was elected on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in 2011. The ACN eventually merged with two other political parties and became All Progressives Congress (APC). After the APC emerged, certain things happened and changed the entire equation.

Even when we were in the ACN after the election, what we planned for the people of Ogun State was not what came to pass.

We expected that we would work together collectively for the development and progress of all sectors in Ogun State. However, the Governor of Ogun State, Sen. Ibikunle Amosun decided to play the game according to his rules. In other words, he did not involve the rest of us, who brought to power at the state level. He ran a one-man show as it were to the exclusion of the rest of us that were elected along with him to the extent that he considered it worthwhile to meet and consult with those of us that represent other constituencies. He ran a one-man show. Every effort to make him work with us as a team fell on deaf ear. In that situation, he did so many things about the input of other components of the state.

I cannot truly begin to enumerate all things he failed to do as the state governor. But it was obvious to many of us that he was running a government to the exclusion of all of us, who represented other interests in the party and in the state.

You are competing against the incumbent. A lot of people may not know the inside story of your party. What they want to see is what the Amosun administration is currently doing. Are you in this race to win?

Eh! By the grace of God, you are speaking with the next governor of Ogun State. We are confident that we shall win this governorship election in Ogun State.

What is the source of that con-

•Odunsi, SDP guber candidate fidence?

Well, we have toured the entire state. We have gone round, speaking with people. We have reached to the people. What we are getting from the people of Ogun State is total rejection of this administration. The building of bridges and roads you see

I decided to go into politics in order to satisfy the yearnings of my people and provide effective and responsible representation around is a pure façade because there is no development at all in the suburbs. There is nothing to show and people are really unhappy with the Amosun administration. We have virtually gone to all wards in Ogun State.

We have not just visited in urban

centres. We have gone to all the rural areas. We have found that there is no development in those places absolutely. There are no roads. We have seen a huge number of jobless people. Farming is abandoned. The health sector is in a state of comatose.

Like an interview I read, Amosun referred to our schools as “ramshackle schools.” Yes, our schools are ramshackle because that is the way he wants to leave them. He prefers to build his socalled model schools at the expense of the existing schools. He has left the pupils in the state in ramshackle. I can imagine a governor describing the schools in his own state as “ ramshackle schools.”

What are you selling to the young people?

We have grand plan to provide employment for the young people through different schemes.

We are going to open up farm settlements that late Chief Obafemi Awolowo established in the state. We are going to attract young men and women into farms because we are going to modernize agriculture. That is not all. We are going to build rural roads so that industries can also develop in rural areas and not just in the urban centres alone. We have to check ruralurban drift that has been causing a lot of trouble everywhere.

We will ensure that there is employment opportunities for the young people, who are graduates on okada.

If elected, are you not going to build on infrastructure projects the Amosun administration has started?

We are going to review all ongoing projects. We are not going to abandon the project per se, but we will prioritise our needs. For instance, some of those roads are inflated projects, even overinflated. If you look at the cost of many road contracts in per kilometer in Ogun State compared with what it is elsewhere, you see what I am talking about. Most of them are over-inflated. When

we get to power, what I am going to do is that we will re-organise our priorities. I do not even know how many of those roads have been completed. You came through Ilo Awela road here.

Towards the end of the road, the contractor has stopped working for months now. Whenever it rains, those who live on the axis are susceptible to erosion. We know some of those projects need to be completed. It is public funds. We can throw it away, but we have to re-prioritise them.

Which of the ongoing projects will you like to discontinue?

I am not going to discontinue any project. But we will look at all the projects and re-order our priorities. For instance, rather than build many of these roads, what we probably need is a road our cities. All we need is a ring road that can prevent many of the excessive roads that they are doing. If we build some ring roads, it will cut a lot of expenditure. Look at Iganmode road, for instance. What we need in that place is not a six-lane road.

The traffic that goes through that route does not require six lanes.

What we need is good drainage in that place because we never have traffic jam in Sango/Otta.

So, what is the point in the new roads they are building now?

There is no point at all. In the end, you have destroyed heritage buildings and places of worship without adequate compensation.

Those are the real issues.

Are these issues potent enough to defeat the incumbent governor in the April 11 elections?

I know I am more experienced than the man, who is there now.

I believe I am a team player. I believe I have fear of God. Aside, I am a very successful person in various businesses that I have run. I have track records to show my performance. Even as a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I can point to several projects that I have executed across the Ogun West senatorial district.

PAGE 48 — SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

C M Y K

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 49

CHUKWUMA AZUONYE @ 70

L

ET us celebrate good men.

C h u k w u m a Azuonye, poet, scholar, and belletrist; one of the most versatile and most sophisticated intellectuals of his generation in Nigeria, belongs squarely to that”interstial” generation in Nigeria: that is how I describe that group of people born between 1945 and 1955; between the end of World War II and the formal transition towards decolonization in Africa in the 20h century.

This generation is in part inheritors of the best hope of the postcolonial state, and in some ways, the darkest enablers of its later crisis, having assumed formal authority of the nation, marked in Nigeria by the shifts occasioned with the military coup of December 1983. That generation took the baton from the older “ wasted generation,” of the Soyinkas, and ran their own race, and are today grand old men.

It does feel, given the incredible promise and optimism of those years, that the tragic cycle of waste may yet haunt the true measure of the work and contribution of their age in the shaping of the Nigerian or African i m a g i n a t i o n . H o w e v e r, among those who can look back and feel some consolation should be counted, Chukwuma Azuonye. Born on March 31, 1945 in Isuochi, in the

old Okigwe province of Eastern Nigeria, Azuonye was educated first at the National High School, Okigwe, where he first came under the direct influence of a young teacher, his English and literature master, the now late Adiele Afigbo, in the years long before he distinguished himself as one of Nigeria’s greatest modern historians. At Okigwe National, he was a class or two ahead of his friend, the poet, Chimalum Nwankwo.

In 1966, Chukwuma Azuonye was admitted to study English and Drama at the University of Ibadan, a prospect which he abandoned soon after, to return to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, because of the troubles that echoed in the “sirened afternoons”: the coup and counter coup; the pogrom and the massacre of the Igbo nation-wide.

This led to the Igbo exodus from all parts of Nigeria, and to the socalled “in-gathering” in the East. At Nsukka, in those years of early ferment from August 1966 to July 1967, just before the break into war, Chukwuma Azonye was active at Nsukka. As Secretary of the Nsukka Writers Club, he organized weekly readings that drew a wide-range of writers including Okogbule Wonodi, Obi Wali, MJC Echeruo, Ben Obumselu, and many of those who had fled from Ibadan and

converged at Nsukka to seek both physical and intellectual refuge. Among the writers who also read at Nsukka in the events organized by Azonye, sometimes at the courtyard of the Nsukka CEC or in the apartment of Stephen Vincents, a young poet, and American Peace Corp Volunteer from San Francisco, who taught in those years at Nsukka, included Ken Saro-Wiwa, and Gabriel Okara, then Eastern Nigeria’s Chief Information officer, who drove frequently from Enugu. As Azuonye recalled later in an interview, “I tried everything to make Christopher Okigbo join us. But he was elusive; he was nowhere to be found.”

It waswell-knownthat Okigbo and Achebe were at this time busy establishing the Citadel Press on Station Road, Enugu.

But as it turned out, Okigbo as elusive and could not join the readings in those years at Nsukka because of his owninvolvement in a secret arms running adventure prior to the war. The mood towards that war was both fervent and inspired at Nsukka, and in many ways shaped Azuonye profoundly. It gave impetus to the work he did even after those events. It shaped the mood at Nsukka in one generation.

Azuonye describes it as driven by a “passionate intensity.”

Indeed, a scene in Chimamanda Adichie’s

APC wins in Obasanjo A ward in Ogun

T

he All Progressives Congress (APC) seemed to be in the lead in some polling units as results of yesterday ’s presidential and National Assembly polls trickled in.

At Ward 11, Polling Unit 2, Olusomi’s compound in Sokori, Abeokuta, where former President Olusegun Obasanjo cast his vote, APC won with a wide margin.

Also, at Ajura ward 4 in Obafemi-Owode where Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun cast his vote, APC won with a wide margin.

Meanwhile, some senatorial and House of Representatives candidates in the state were among those disenfranchised following their inability to obtain Permanent Voter Cards.

They include the APC senatorial candidate for Ogun Central, Lanre Tejuoso, APC House of Representatives candidate, Mikhail C M Y K

Kazeem and former Special Assistant to erstwhile President Obasanjo on Women Affairs, Chief (Mrs) Titilayo Ajanaku.

Reports from many parts of Ogun indicated that the APC was leading in almost all the voting units across the state. The race was, however, neck on neck between APC and PDP in Ijebu area of the state.

kwa Ibom League of Professionals has promised Governor Godswill Akpabio and Mr. Udom Emmanuel, the PDP Governor in Akwa Ibom State victory in the forthcoming elections.

The State Chairman of Akwa Ibom League of Professionals, Comrade Mbuotidem Benson Affia while fielding questions from journalists in Uyo said, “We have done our ground work as professionals and speak with all amount of certainty that Akwa Ibom State is Udom Gabriel Emmanuel as our next governor.”

Affia, an insurance guru described the PDP

Half of a Yellow Sun, describes the tumultuous visit of Emeka Ojukwu to Nsukka in 1967, to address the University community; particularly the students at Nsukka, who were at the forefront of those clamouring for a new republic.

Azuonye was certainly thick in that event. As he recalls of that actual visit

by Odumegwu-Ojukwu, “I was one of those who carried him on my shoulder” at Nsukka. The war sooner certainly came, and Chukwuma Azuonye was among the young men who fought the war for Biafra. They were Biafra’s young intellectuals and artists – Obiora

When a systematic study is convened on his work, it will be clear that the renaissance and articulate range of his mind was a great gift of his generation

Udechukwu, Felix OkekeEzeigbo, Bons Nwabiani, Akomaye Oko, and so many others who spent the war constructing sites of Memory. Azuonye worked in the Biafran War Information Bureau under MJC Echeruo and with the Biafran Culture commission under the Directorship of the poet, Gabriel Okara. At war ’s end in 1970, Chukwuma Azuonye returned to Nsukka, and in 1972 graduated in First class

Honours in English; top of his class that included the likes of Felix OkekeEzeigbo who also achieved some distinction first asProfessor of English at the University of Benin, and later on at the University of Rhode Island in the United States.

Azuonye himself began with his appointment as Junior Fellow at Nsukka in 1972 and editor of Omabe the journal of the Nsukka English department.

Azuonye was central to the new flowering of the Arts and the renaissance that marked the Nsukka humanities from the 1970s, that included Obiora Udechukwu, Uche Okeke, El Anatsui in the Arts, Joshua Uzoigwe in Music, Pol Ndu, Ossie Enekwe, Azuonye, and the phalanx of the great Nsukka humanities scholars in those years: Echeruo, Nwoga, Obiechina, and for a very brief while, Obumselu, and of course, the great novelist, Chinua Achebe. Around these men, Nsukka felt organic and powerful, and arguably overshadowed its peers in that period in the continent as a great epicenter of artistic and literary production, and that distinct movement we now call the “Nsukka School.”

Chukwuma Azuonye was a great organizing force, both in the Odunke Arts Community, and the Okike Center at Nsukka. In 1974 he moved with Echeruo to teach at the University of Ibadan, and was awarded a Commonwealth Fellowship to complete his doctoral work at the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London. He defended his doctorate on the Igbo Epic at the University of London in 1979/80, and in 1981, returned to Nsukka once

more as the Head of the Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages. It was in that position that he collaborated with the late, distinguished critic, Professor D.I. Nwoga on the research into the Nwagu Aneke scripts – the syllabic system of writing of the Omambala Igbo as revealed to the mystic Nwagu Aneke.

In 1991 Azuonye joined the great migration of African intellectuals in one of the most devastating “brain drain” episodes in African history to the US. He went first as a senior Fulbright Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania, and later in 1992, was appointed Professor and chair of Africana Studies at the University of Massachusetts in Boston.

The travails of exile and devastating ill-health and loss has not stopped Azuonye’s fantastic mind or production. In 2007, as WEB Dubois Fellow at Harvard, he organized the Okigbo Conference.

ChukwumaAzuonye turns 70 this week with a vast array of published and unpublished work in poetry, fiction, and literary criticism. One of the most prolific of his generation of intellectuals, and one of these days, when a systematic study is convened on his work, it will be clear that the renaissance and articulate range of his mind was a great gift of his generation.

It is important to celebrate good men while they are still with us – particularly in this era pf philistinism when even the universities in Nigeria lack memory and culture – and yet it is seventy gun salute to Chukwuma Azuonye: poet, scholar, literary editor, and renaissance intellectual: one of the greatest pillars of the Nsukka School.

Akwa Ibom professionals back Udom governorship candidate, Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, as a professional that would maintain the tempo of uncommon transformation in Akwa Ibom State and open the state to industrialization.

According to him, “Mr. Udom Emmanuel is a pride to the professionals in Akwa Ibom State. He is a man with abounding experience and exposure that will take our state to another height.

L-R: David Umoh, Senior Manager, Data & Portals; Maurice Newa, Chief Commercial Officer, Airtel; and Nitin Anand, Vice President, Data Products & Services, at the Airtel Smart Network media launch in Lagos yesterday.

I salute Governor Godwill Akpabio for the love he has for the state and being sincere to us in everything especially in the issue of his successor. As professionals, we are happy with the PDP in the choice of Udom as the governorship candidate.

Udom is a complete gentleman that has innate love for the development of people as some of us are

SOLUTION

products of his benevolence and determination to build professionals for the advancement of the society”.

The headman of Akwa Ibom League of Professionals further noted that Udom, the banker turned Politician through his manifesto has espoused his blueprint for Akwa Ibom State and should be supported by all.

PAGE 50—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

Lagos CJ giv es daught er in marriage gives daughter

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hief Judge of Lagos State, Hon. Justice( Mrs) Funmilayo Atilade and husband, Arch Bishop Marcus Atilade last Saturday gave the hand of their daughter, Adefemi Atilade to dashing Tosin Ola, son of Mr Niyi and Toyin Ola, based in Atlanta Georga, USA. The nuptial rites held at the Ikoyi residence of the Lagos lawman and was wellattended by high-profile individuals.

.

Aisien Ogbebor marks bir thda birthda thdayy

N

otable industrialist, the Efeisogh’ Oba of Benin kingdom and Chief Executive Officer of Josien Holdings celebrated his birthday on March 6th at his home. His family, friends and

associates trooped in to wish him many more years and to celebrate with him. There was much to eat and drink as guests were treated to assorted refreshments.

L-R: Bride's parent; Prof. Magnus, Justice Funmilayo Atilade, the couple, Tosin and Adefemi Ola, groom's parents ; Mrs. Toyin & Elder Niyi Ola R-L: Chief Joe Aisien Ogbebor, with his wife, Fanni (l) and daughter (m).

The couple, Tosin and Adefemi Ola, cutting their wedding cake.

L-R: Ms Leslie Ikomi, Prof. Ayo Badejo, Mrs Gbemi Oyegoke, Mrs. Laitan Olorunfemi and Ms Bose Alabi.

R-L: Mr Paul Wixson in a warm handshake Chief Joe Aisien Ogbebor while Josephine Aisien (m) looks on.

L-R: Dr Wale Babalakin, Bride's mother, Hon. Justice funmilayo Atilade & Justice Yetunde Idowu.

L-R: Ms Funmilayo Ojugbele, Ayo Onikoyi, Taofeek Ojugbele and Mrs Titi Erunkulu.

Obi of Ow a celebrat es 7 6th bir thda Owa celebrates 76 birthda thdayy

OBI of Owa kingdom was recently joined by his subjects and other kings from adjoining kingdoms to celebrate his 76th birthday. The affair was a fiesta of sort as there was much singing, dancing and merrymaking.

Dr. Emmanuel Efeizomor, Obi Of Owa Kingdom (m), Obi Ezeagwu Ezenwali, Obi Of Umunede (l), and Obi Ifeanyichukwu Aliekwe, Obi Of Mbiri (r).

C M Y K

R-L: Mr Rod Nutal of Ledrop Group, Mrs Odegbami and celebrant, Chief Joe Aisien Ogbebor, sharing a joke.

L-R: Queen Clara Modupe, Queen Victoria Efeizomor, HRM Dr Emmanuel Efeizomor, Obi of Owa Kingdom and Dr (Mrs) Nelly R-L: Alex Kothoor of GND Nig. Ltd, Mrs Odegbami, with Mr & Mrs Paul.

Utuama

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 51

The Banjos and Adetunmbis in nuptial union

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he Banjos and the Adetunmbis became one family when their children; Oyin Banjo and Seyi Adetunmbi consummated their relationship in a Holy union penultimate Saturday in Ibadan, Oyo State. The couple, Oyin and Seyi exchanged matrimonial vows at Christ Life Church, Akobo before their families and well-wishers and sealed the joy at a reception that held at Professor Ogunlesi Memorial hall at UCH in Ibadan. Photos by Dare Fasube

Newly wedded couple, Oluwaseyi Adetunmbi.

Mr

and

Mrs

Laloko bags Egba chief taincy title hieftaincy

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ormer Technical Director of NFA and proprietor of Football College, Orile-Imo, Chief Kashimawo Laloko has been conferred with chieftaincy title of Olori Parakoyi of Egba land by the Alake of Egba land, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo.

The installation took place at the Ake palace of the monarch, Abeokuta, Ogun State. Photos by Wumi Akniola

Mr Morounkola Adetunmbi and Moji, his wife, parents of the bride.

Chief K. Laloko receiving his certificate from the Alake of Egbaland as the Oloru Parakoyi of Egbaland.

L-R:Chief Taye Makinde, Oba Olusegun Oyewumi; Erebese of Oodua Land, Oba Jide Awojodu; Afasa loye of Toba Ile-Ife and Oba Kayode Omisore; OOlu of Olorunsogo IleIfe, representing Ooni of Ife.

Dr Adetayo Banjo and Anne, his wife, parents of the groom.

Chief K. Laloko in group photo with Egba High Chiefs

Oduades and Adagbon yins dagbonyins

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he families of J.O Oduade and Rev. and Rev. (Dr) Adabgonyin became one at the traditional marriage of their children at Aguleri Agodo, Lagos

Cross section of clergy men that presided over the wedding.

US A’s P ast or Mik e USA Past astor Mike Francen in DIGC K ub wa 1 Kub ubw PASTOR Mike Francen, from the USA was Guest Pastor at Dunamis International Gospel Centre (DIGC) KUBWA 1, midweek service penultimate Wednesday.

R-L: Resident Pastor Ezekiel Pius of Dunamis International Gospel Centre (DIGC) KUBWA 1, Kubwa, Abuja with Pastor Mike Francen, Guest Pastor from the The couple, Mr & Mrs Privilege Funmi USA and Mrs Beckie Pius, wife of the Resident Pastor.

Adagbonyin C M Y K

Chief Mrs. K. Laloko and friends.

Mo tunra yi Motunra tunrayyo and Se Seyi

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he wedding ceremony between Motunrayo Animashaun and Seyi Oladapo Adanikin held at Likosi via Shagamu ,Ogun state recently.

Happy couple; Mr and Mrs Oladapo Adanikin

PAGE 52—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

PRESIDENTIAL, N ATION AL ASSEMBL NA TIONAL ASSEMBLYY POLLS

A cross section of voters casting their votes in Ejigbo, Lagos

Some voters eating before accredition in Lagos

Empty roads in Lagos

Oshodi Apapa Express road

PDP deputy gubernatorial candidate in En ugu State, Mrs Cecilia Ezeillo, voting

Foreign observers Night counting in Abuja

Some voters eating at Asokoro 11, New Capital Primary School, Kwame Nkrumah Crescent, Asokoro, Abuja, FCT. C M Y K

A cross section of voters in Somolu area of Lagos

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 53

BEFORE YOUR STATE GOVERNOR RUNS AWAY – 2

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n case you are wondering why some of them will run away before May 29, 2015, consider this. On that day, the man who had been surrounded by toughlooking security people will find himself alone with the people he had ruled for eight years. Only God can save him if he still owes civil servants three or four months’ salary, as well as local contractors who might never get paid.

Nigerian Governors and their Commissioners of Finance, as a whole, must be the most ill-prepared to govern any sub-national unit in the world. Almost invariably, the electorate does not know what they stand for. With the exception of a few, most lack the basic

understanding of economics and finance.

Their collective ignorance had been masked by years of robust crude oil prices – making it possible for them to spend like prodigal sons without caring if the spending is wise and sustainable. So, a governor announces N5000 per month allowance for the elderly and he is hailed.

Another appoints 1,000 Special Assistants and people clap.

Such eccentricities, bordering on economic lunacy, had been rewarded with awards by various self-serving organizations in the past.

It is fortunate that almost all are still in the saddle as the national cake shrinks in size. It would have been interesting to watch them squirm for two more years, instead of two months, as they try to find explanations for why they cannot pay salaries after years of wasteful spending.

Morning after the day before "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts."— Winston S. Churchill

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Y now, it is becoming clear which way the political climate will be for the next five years.

Whatever the decision, I pray that there will be calm and acceptance. We hold in our hands the power to shape Nigeria, no matter what our opinions and political affiliation is, we have to strive whatever the majority decision to contribute to nation building.

According to BLOOMBERG NEWS, Nigeria is Africa's largest economy and lead oil producer, generating about $70 billion in state revenue each year and more than two-thirds of which comes from exports in gas and oil.

But very little revenue trickles down to help the rural population because more than 70 per cent of the federal budget is spent on the salaries and benefits of a million public officials.

This is wrong. And we cannot reward failure and greed.We have to hold people in public office accountable. They have got to answer to the people not

the other way round.

We know that government corruption has worsened under Jonathan's administration, and Nigerian lawmakers seem to be in politics to get rich rather than improve the welfare of the Nigerian people.

Anyone taking the mantle of power has got to be determined to change the mind-set of our people that you do not go into politics to enrich your pocket.

Rather you go into politics to make a positive difference in the lives of our people. We have to reduce the level of corruption in Nigeria. Corruption has a knock on effect on progress, it slows down the advancement. This is not going to be easy but that is not to say it cannot be done.

We have no choice for chat the choppy waters only then we can make it out of the storm and into calm waters.

We should aspire to greatness and our nation deserves better and our children more so.

We have a steep mountain to climb nonetheless. If the truth be told, Nigerians are reluctant to work together to seek solution to our problems. This time will not be different but, it is

But, the main reason they might run away has not been disclosed. Let me do it now and it can be summarized in one word – SUCCESSORS. One of the reasons incumbent governors want to impose their chosen, or wife-

,

“Politicians are their own grave diggers.” Will Rogers, 1879-1935, VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS, VBQ, p 171.

same ordeal from whoever succeeds them. As Ayo Fayose is discovering in Ekiti, others will discover in June that the only way they can escape unfair comparison with their predecessors is to point accusing fingers at their predecessors. Political “godsons” will become the loudest whistle-blowers from 2015. The outgoing governors have mostly dug their own political graves.

Most out-going governors will find it difficult, if not impossible, to visit their own states in broad daylight after May 29, 2015. So, the governor you see strutting around the state today might vanish suddenly, under the cover of darkness, before May 29, 2015. Watch out…

Most out-going governors will find it difficult, if not impossible, to visit their own states in broad daylight after May 29, 2015. So, the governor you see strutting around the state today might vanish suddenly,

,

chosen, successors is to escape exposure of the atrocities committed in office. Unfortunately for the outgoing governors, both those who impose or fail to impose their successors will face the

CLARIFICATION OF AT TAH’S STAND ON AKS ELECTIONS

necessary for us to see growth and peace in our country and be at peace with our neighbours.

"A man who calls his kinsmen to a feast does not do so to save them from starving. They all have food in their own homes. When we gather together in the moonlit village ground it is not because of the moon.

Every man can see it in his own compound. We come together because it is good for kinsmen to do so." — Chinua Achebe We are always looking for someone else to get us out of the hole that we are in.

That hole was created collectively and it has taken so long to get this bad and no one but ourselves can do that and lift us out.

We are territorial and that limits our vision for

it popular? Conscience asks the question, is it right?

There comes a time when one must take the position that is neither safe nor politic nor popular, but he must do it because conscience tells him it is right."-Martin Luther King Jr. The time is now. We have got to talk of the big elephants in the room; Biafra, religion, north and south divide, politicians have capitalised on this to their advantage and to the detriment of our people.

Our reputation at home and abroad- we are seen as corrupt and ruthless, that every Nigerian is on the make, a place where nothing works with our greasing someone's palm.

We have become so dysfunctional that it seems

“ To be great is to be misunderstood”, Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882.

(VANGUARD BOOK OF

Our young people have been shut out for far too long- they are the future and yet they have not witnessed good leadership examples greatness. We have got to look beyond the immediate and plan far into the future.

We have a problem and we need to have the conversation and reconciliation. We have harboured far too long in resentment of one another, it is hampering our progress and it stops us from moving ahead. We have got to talk of the past injustices and address our grievances in order to heal.

"On some positions, cowardice asks the question, is it expedient?

And then expedience comes along and asks the question, is it politics?

Vanity asks the question, is

abnormal if you do the right thing. Once upon a time we were kings and queens, proud people with morals and dignity.

"If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favour freedom, and yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without ploughing up the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters.

This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one; or it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle.

Obong Victor Attah, the former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, AKS, (19992007) and the acknowledged Father of Modern AKS, is the only politician in Nigeria I can call my friend. But, he is more than that; he is a role model, a counsellor and a good sounding board. The major negative attribute about Attah is his total attachment to the original principles of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, which as a member of the G-34, he helped to establish. He had been on the Board of Trustees ever since.

Next to the death of his wife over two years ago, nothing pains Attah more than the total bastardization of the original principles of the party which has resulted in its nearly total disintegration today.

Meanwhile, all his attempts to talk to those who have “captured” the party had been met with rebuff. He is not alone. Chief Don Etiebet and the G-22, AKS community leaders, who were there from inception, had been sidelined while the party ’s political principles had been thrown into the dust bin. Until now, party members in Akwa Ibom selected their own flag bearers for every position. Now, somebody’s wife alone decides for them.

At least Governor Akpabio himself only recently

disclosed to the entire country what the party members and the people of the state had been saying all along.

Again all attempts to get party leaders at the national level were rebuffed. Telephone calls went unanswered; even personal visits yielded no results. Meanwhile Akwa Ibomites themselves wanted a say in who governs them. Then they took two steps. First, they organized a reception for Attah, last year, to demonstrate appreciation for his contributions at the National Conference as a VOICE OF REASON. Second, they asked him to counsel them in the selection of a leader since the PDP had rejected them.

Their search for a credible candidate for governor led to the emergence of Umana Okon Umana who was presented to Attah for blessing on Saturday, March 21, 2015.

By accepting the invitation to attend the rally, Attah was merely taking a stand against wrong doings in the PDP and hopes to act as a corrective voice within the party after the elections when a process of reappraisal will become inevitable.

It has become necessary to explain the position because I talked several times with Attah and it was clear how difficult the step will be to understand by those who were not privy to the truth. And who might misunderstand it.

Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will."-Frederick Douglass We have become morally vacuous, valuing money over integrity and respect.

We need to bring integrity back, pride in working hard and for an honest day's pay and pride that hard work pays and pride matters in what we do; hard work has to be seen as better than hustling.

We have got to stop promoting mediocrity; we need to stop short changing our services, providing services with the right equipment to-do their jobs, provide a better standard of care and service for our army to fight insurgency, provide basic amenities for all electricity, water, better roads, law and order and good quality infrastructure "We must now turn from considering the necessary struggle with language arising, as it were, from its very nature and the nature of the society it serves to the more ominous threat to its integrity brought about neither by its innate inadequacy nor yet by the incompetence and carelessness of its ordinary users, but rather engineered deliberately by those who will manipulate words for their own ends".-Chinua Achebe We have been a failing state for far too long; where everything fails to work, chaos reigns, impunity has been made to thrive without scrutiny we have bandits for public office and pay lips service to them while they rob us dry. We take their brand of Robbin Hood as act of altruism while they rob the nation and give us crumbs.

"The reality of today, different as it is from the reality of my society one

hundred years ago, is and can be important if we have the energy and the inclination to challenge it, to go out and engage with its peculiarities, with the things that we do not understand. The real danger is the tendency to retreat into the obvious, the tendency to be frightened by the richness of the world and to clutch what we always have understood"Chinua Achebe Our young people have been shut out for far too long- they are the future and yet they have not witnessed good leadership examples.

They have been fed on a diet of excess; gluttony, avarice and unattainable and stupendous excessive display of wealth. They have been fed a message that the only way you get recognition and a place in society is to lie, cheat and make money by all means necessary.

"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who does it or says it."-- Malcolm X Nigerians often are people of extremes we either love you or detest you in equal measures and we look for reasons to justify our hatred and mostly these do not make sense and in hatred nothing ever does because we are not rational when we become resentful, we cannot think straight.

We stick to our resentment even to the point of abject failure and retrogression.

"How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these".George Washington Carver

QUOTATIONS, p 81).

PAGE 54

C M Y K

SUNDAY Vanguard Vanguard,, MARCH 29, 2015

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 55 sam.eyoboka@gmail.com

08023145567 (sms only)

Christians mark Palm Sunday

By Sam Eyoboka & Olayinka Latona

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HRISTIANS the world over today mark the feast of the Palm Sunday.

Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in all four canonical Gospels.

In the accounts of the four canonical Gospels, Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem takes place about a week before his Resurrection.

The symbolism is captured in Zechariah 9:9 "The Coming of Zion's King – See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey".

It was perceived that Jesus was declaring he was the King of Israel to the anger of the Sanhedrin.

According to the Gospels, Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem, and the celebrating people there laid down their cloaks in front of him, and also laid down small branches of trees. The people sang part of Psalm 118:25-26 "...Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord ...."

The symbolism of the donkey may refer to the Eastern tradition that it is an animal of peace, versus the horse, which is the animal of war. A king came riding upon a horse when he was bent on war and rode upon a donkey when he wanted to point out he was coming in peace.

Jesus' entry to Jerusalem would thus symbolize his entry as the Prince of Peace, not as a war-waging king.

*Christians mark Jesus Christ triumphal entry into Jerusalem ridding on a donkey.

In many Christian churches, Palm Sunday includes a procession of the assembled worshipers carrying palms, representing the palm branches the crowd scattered in front of Jesus as he rode into Jerusalem. The difficulty of procuring palms in unfavorable climates led to their substitution with branches of native trees, including box, yew, willow, and olive.

The Sunday was often designated by the names of these trees, as in Yew Sunday, or by the general term Branch Sunday.

According to a release signed by the Director of Social Communications,

Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Msgr Gabriel Osu, Palm Sunday is the commemoration of the triumphant entrance of our Lord into Jerusalem following His glorious miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead.

“Palm Sunday is one of the major feasts of our Lord, and it is the day on which the Lord Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem as a King, riding on a donkey and a colt, the foal of a donkey. Accordingly, the crowds with palm and olive branches, who joyfully chanted: “Hosanna, Son of David”, greeted Him. On this day also, we receive and worship Christ in this

Martins: 'Elections not a do-or-die affair'

By Olayinka Latona

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ATHOLIC Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Mar tins has called on the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), political leaders and those seeking electoral votes not to see election as a do-or-die affair but rather allow God’s will to prevail during and after the elections.

Speaking on behalf of the Archbishop of Lagos at the annual laity week/awards at St. Agnes Catholic Church, Maryland,

Lagos, the Episcopal Vicar, Lagos region, Very Monsignor Bernard Okodua in his homily urged the electorate to serve God through by casting their votes in an honest way.

According to Okodua, in a message titled; “The consecrated life and the laity, any collaborative role?" where over 140 Catholic faithful in the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos were honoured, he urged the awardees not to relent in their service to God and humanity.

Monsignor Okodua further advised the

L-R: Head of Department (Pediatric), Gbagada General Hospital, Lagos, Dr. Olutekunbi Olanike; chief matron, Mrs. Oluwabunmi Afolabi-Olukotan; assistant pastor-in-charge of Province, Redeemed Christian Church of God, Province 23, Pastor Ade Omokorede, and wife of Pastor-in-charge of Province 23, Pastor (Mrs.) Helen Oyitso, during equipment donation and commissioning of the upgraded Children Ward of the hospital by The Lord’s Seeds Children School, in Lagos.

awardees and other members to continue to live their lives according to Christ injunction, adding that it is only the life that God approves that is acceptable to Him. In his words: “Many people were apprehensive following the postponement of the elections. This is done in order to re-arrange and prepare to ensure that our elections are free of rancor. Nigerians should honour God through casting of their votes.

"We should not vote based on money, bags of rice or material things which are offered by some of the politicians. We should know that God will not come down to choose our leaders for us,” he stated.

In his own message, Director, Lay Apostolate Centre and Chaplain Archdiocesan Laity Council, Fr. Innocent Opogah enjoined every family to consecrate themselves to God so that through them men and women who will dedicate their lives to God will evolve from each family.

The 2015 election is about leadership, everybody is struggling to be a leader and the message from this gathering is that "we must consecrate ourselves to the Lord and if every true leader is prepared to do so, I can assure you that the nation will be a better place."

Chairman, Maryland Deanery Laity, Lady Oge Egwu said over 140 faithful who have distinguished themselves in their activities and participation in church events and towards humanity were honoured.

“We also used this opportunity to begin a week-long laity week where we come together, pray for a way forward for the church, visit the less privileged, motherless homes amongst others,” she said.

same manner, acknowledging Him as our King and Lord.”

Stressing the significance of the day, Msgr. Osu stated that Palm Sunday also marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final week of Lent, and the week in which Christians celebrate the mystery of their salvation through Christ's Death and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

A major hallmark of the feast is the celebration of the Holy Mass followed by a procession of the faithful carrying palm branches, representing the Jews who celebrated Christ's entrance into Jerusalem.

Here in the Archdiocese of Lagos, the Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins is expected to lead thousands of faithful in Palm Sunday procession through the streets of Lagos Island and environs.

Presiding Pastor of Embrace International Assembly, Pastor Isaac Adeyemi urged Christians to embrace love and unity and emulate Jesus Christ by preaching peace, love and humility during and after Easter celebration.

Adeyemi maintained that the life of Jesus Christ empitomised love and humility and therefore urged all Christians to show love by caring for everyone around them.

He stressed the need for Christian leaders to depart from religiosity and catch God’s revelation which he described as the revelation of the spirit and God’s love.

Obey, Daniels, Tope Alabi, others for Embrace 2015

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HE leadership of Embrace International Assembly, headed

by Pastor Isaac Adeyemi has concluded plans to hold the eight edition of its annual Easter programme titled Embrace scheduled for Friday, reports OLAYINKA LATONA. Theme of this year's programme slated for the church auditorium in Ikorodu, is: “Embrace of New Beginning.”

Briefing newsmen ahead of the annual event, the presiding pastor of the church, Pastor Isaac Adeyemi, until recently a district overseer of the Foursquare Gospel Church, explained that the programme has been impacting lives of thousands of Nigerian youths both within and outside Ikorodu area since its inception.

According to him, this year's edition will be unique as the assembly is organizing the eighth edition of Embrace as an independent church from Foursquare Gospel Church.

He said: “Embrace is a vision God gave to us to reach out to the youths and we realized that today's youths love dancing and singing and if various network providers can spend huge amounts of money to encourage some of these youths to discover their various talents, why not the church.”

Continuing, he said: “This year's Embrace is a unique one in the sense that this will be the first one we are doing as an independent church; first time we are inviting an international guest, series of medical practitioners who will diagnose and dispense necessary drugs for those that will be coming for medical check-up including free food. There will be 100 free eye glasses.”

Some of the guest artistes that will be ministering include, “Evangelist Ebenezer Obey, Chad Daniels, Tope Alabi , Sammy Okposo, Bayo Adesuyi, Embrace Voices, Lepacious Bose amongst others.

PAGE 56—SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015

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HAIRMAN of an international nongovernmental organization, Stephanos Foundation, Mr. Mark Lipdo has said Boko Haram was not the only threat to the existence of minority ethnic groups in the North East and the Middle Belt regions.

Lipdo, who disclosed this at a sensitization workshop for representatives of minority ethnic groups in the Middle Belt, said the safety and security of the groups must be addressed holi-stically.

According to him, killings have been going on in Northern Nigeria for decades with impunity and the people are concerned about the trend.

"We acknowledge what the Federal Government is doing to contain Boko Haram; in fact the government has put in quite a lot to help reclaim some of the towns and cities.

"But as far as we know from our studies since 2011 to today, these killings are not all about Boko Haram alone, it has been about degenerating insecurity in the affected states that has evolved over time.

"Just because there was an election and people were venting their anger through killings, so how can we be able to rate that it is now safe, how will these people be able to understand the terrain, how will they be able to draw the security agencies to their own defense in the event that another violence erupts?" he said.

Lipdo said there was need for all stakeholders in the peace building process to return to the basics and identify the causes of the crises in order to find permanent solutions to them.

He lamented that most of the nation’s leaders were not concerned about unearthing the truth which, according to him, was the only guarantee to lasting peace in the region.

The chairman said a comprehensive study of the situation was also required to enable government and other partners resolve the lingering issues.

"This is why the leaders need to go back to the drawing board; we need to tell ourselves the truth.

Is it the political atmosphere that brings about violence; if it is then how and why?

"Is it religious atmosphere or religious interest that brings about violence in our society?

Have we been able to address this within just six weeks to say we are

safe now?

"I know that most of our leaders are more concerned about power tussle and vacuum within the system that is why they feel it is better to go on with the political process to be able to elect leaders into the positions; that is not to say that the problems have been solved over six weeks. Nigerians need to go back and understand what the history of the killings is."

Mr. Lipdo feared that Nigeria was drifting towards a regime where groups threatened by others would resort to desperate measures to protect their lives and property.

While fielding questions from newsmen, Prof Isaac Lar of the University of Jos, said genuine reconciliation was required to resolve the deep-rooted hatred that had characterized parts of the North.

He said Christians in the North must be prepared to imbibe the teachings of forgiveness and reconciliation as enunciated in the Holy Bible.

According to Lar, violent destruction of lives, property, and displacement of persons will never solve any problem. In fact, it is the guarantee that we can break up.

"We are Nigerians and no primordial interest should override our corporate existence and the purpose of this workshop is to tell us that we need each other irrespective of the ideological interests at stake.

"The message is that of the Christian position to killing. The Christian position to these killings is one of reconciliation and forgiveness and not dwelling in the past.

"We look forward to advancing the Christian gospel not through violence or counter violence. The Christian posture is forgive, let God take charge.

"So, we therefore have to work for social integration that will guarantee our unity that we once so much craved for," he emphasised.

He advocated for intensive education of Nigerians about their diversity which should be seen as the country’s greatest asset and the need for Nigerians to remain united.

Representatives of the various ethnic minorities in the Middle Belt region attended the 2day forum.

CHRISTIANS AND THEIR POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT (2) *Being excerpts from a lecture delivered by Prof. Gabriel Yomere at Jubilee Word Festival of Word of Life Bible Church, Warri.

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ET it be said that Jesus Christ did not discourage political participation for the faithful. In Judaism which provided the back-ground to Christianity, the God of Israel, Yahweh is the God of war (Joshua 6:20), economy (Exodus 16) and the God of obedience and moral virtues (Number 21:4-8). Yahweh is all in all in Judaic traditional thought, religion and politics.

God’s Kingdom not of this world.

is

Another form of argument is that “God’s kingdom is not of this world”. Consequently, we are “citizens” of heaven. It is a true statement if we understand the word “of ’ to mean that God’s kingdom is not derived from this world. It is derived from heaven.

That is why the Lord’s Prayer says: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is done in heaven”.

That is not an escapist prayer. That is a prayer that wants the heavenly kingdom to influence and change the earthly. Similarly, Paul did not find any contradiction in claiming a heavenly citizenship in Philippians 3:20 and at the same time claiming and using his Romans citizenship in Acts 16:37-39 and in Acts 22:22-29. Our heavenly citizenship will profoundly impact our earthly citizenship. It brings into perspective that wonderful phrase: “One nation under God”.

The world important

is

un-

Another argument similar to No. 5 above has it that “the world is not important”. Therefore we are to see those things which are above. If the world was not important, why does the New Testament say that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (II Cor. 5:19)? Why would He promise; the meek shall inherit the earth (Matt. 5:5)? Why would Jesus be given all authority in heaven and on earth in the first century? Why should Romans 13 say that the civil magistrate is God’s servant, a minister of justice? Why would the New Testament say so much about employers, employees, economics and stewardship of the earth?

Obviously the world is pretty important to God as expressed in Psalm 24:1The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof; the world and they that dwell therein.

While I agree with the statement that we are only to seek those things which

are above, I strongly believe that the statement is taking out of context. The context of Colossians 3 is that Christ (who is above) is sufficient for everything we need in life. Paul goes on to show how Christ is sufficient in our marriage relationship, children, employers, employees and whatever we do. The statement is not a call to escape from life. Rather it is asking that His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Neutrality of Christians Those who canvass this argument justify their position with the argument “I don’t want to be responsible for what is happening in Abuja or the state(s)”. But they fail to recognize the fact that by failing to act they have indeed actually taken responsibility for the evils being perpetrated. In the book of Esther, Mordecai told Esther that a failure to take a stand was not an option.

It is automatically taking a stand for the enemy.

Christ said: He who is not with me is against me (Matt 12:30). Brethren there is no neutrality in the things of God. On the final judgment day people will not be judged on their level of neutrality. Jesus will say, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of those my brethren you did not do it to me. Thus failure to act is treated as failure.

Living in the Last Days There are other people who believe that their generation would be the last one living in the last days. Against this background they live like those who don’t expect to be around much longer. They see no sense in the Church attempting to influence the happenings in the world and in the political environment around them.

Perhaps an even more perverse variation of this line of thinking is, we should rejoice that things are getting worse and worse. The darker the world gets the much closer we are to the Second Coming of Christ. This makes people to develop the attitude and approach of nonchalance to horrific events of history, rather than being participants in and changers of history.

Christian should be involved in politics Nothing can be politically right, that is morally wrong (Benjamin Rush, 1786).

Thus for evil to triumph, it is merely necessary that good people do nothing.

Expressed in another form, all that is required for the weak and the powerless to be crushed, is for no one to stand up for them. It is therefore very crucial that disciples (not converts) of Christ are planted in strategic positions in the

,

Peace in Middle Belt goes beyond routing Boko Haram----Lipdo

We can no longer sit on the fence and take our valuable voice and our right to vote for granted...If we stay out of politics, things can only get worst

,

legislatures, executives, judiciaries and in the bureaucracies of government (federal, states and local governments).

In this way policies and programmes of government could be positively influenced and thus gradually but steadfastly ensuring a fair and just society. We can no longer sit on the fence and take our valuable voice and our right to vote for granted. If we stay out of politics, things can only get worst.

But if we get involved and participate actively in politics then things may be different. Definitely it is not going to be easy. How do we go about it?

1. Christians should be better informed on politics Christians are affected either directly or indirectly on a daily basis by the way our nation is managed. So it is crucial that Christians should be well informed on the working of our governmental systems. It is not unusual today that political utterances from our Christians brethren are mostly based on their ignorant prejudicial opinions and not on facts. We need to be better informed and understand what is critical and what is true in the political happenings in our country.

2. Civic responsibility to vote When the ungodly are at the helm of affairs in a country the citizens may not have reasons to rejoice.

The first groups of people that will suffer are the voiceless, the disposed and the poor. A failure to vote is a failure to look after the interests of those for whom we ought to care (Isaiah 58:5-7). We thereby allow a minority to decide the fate of the nation. But if 80 per cent of the Christian population in Nigeria decides to cast their votes, you can imagine the impact that would have in deciding who becomes the next president of this country? Ladies and gentlemen, Christians have been too silent in this country for too long.

Humility may be a virtue but silence could be a crime. If we want our Government to be run more effectively and more ethically, we must play our part by getting involved in politics through the power of our vote and advocacy.

We should not forfeit or take for granted our valuable voice through our right to vote.

3. Consider carefully who you vote for Having decided that you are going to vote you must also decide who to vote for. i. Do you want to vote on local issue(s) or national issue(s)? ii. Do you want to vote for a candidate or a party? iii. Do you want to vote for the candidate you want even though you know that the candidate has no chance of winning?

To be able to make the right decision, you should be guided by the following factors: principles, personalities and programme Principles: Find out what the candidate and his party actually believes in and stand for.

Do you want to vote for a candidate because the candidate is your tribesman or because of what you think you can gain from the candidate if he/she wins - personal interest.

A Christian in his/her voting decision should be guided by the consideration as to what is best for the public good rather than for himself.

Personalities: It is important that you do not cast your vote purely on the basis of how someone is being portrayed---in the election campaign. Try as far as possible to get information about the candidate.

Programmes: It has been said that a politician thinks about the next election, a statesman thinks about the next generation. Therefore listen out for sensible proposals for long-term solutions rather than expedient short-term fixes.

First, how does the party intend to deal with the growing inequalities in the society. Linked to these are issues such as education, transport, housing, infrastructure, electricity, etc.

Time between elections The work of governing a nation continues on a dayto day, and year-to-year basis. If our impact in politics is to be felt, then our involvement should not end with actual election activities. The time between elections is equally important. One obvious way to influence the political happenings in the country is to send letters or e-mails to your representatives(s) in the National Assembly or the Houses of Assembly on matters about which you feel strongly.

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 57

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HE Lord sent word that I should wait on him for three days; he had something important to tell me. On the third day, he said to me: “Femi, there are only two kingdoms, the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. Everybody you are ever going to meet will come from one of these two kingdoms. It is your responsibility to determine which kingdom the people you meet are from. If the person is from the kingdom of your father, you must determine why I want you to meet him.”

“Every person you meet, you will meet for a reason, and you will meet by appointment. Nothing that will ever happen to you will be coincidental. Nothing will ever happen to you by happenstance. Everything that will happen in your life will happen for a reason. It is your responsibility to determine precisely what the reason is.”

Kingdom dynamics This is an absolutely amazing kingdom dynamic that goes to the heart of God’s providence. It means everything about the life of a believer is working to a script: God’s script. Thus, David told God by revelation: “You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your book!”

(Psalm 139:16).

If you stand on a street and a car passes by, know that it did not just happen.

The car was programmed

GATHER UP THE FRAGMENTS OF YOUR LIFE (1) to pass by. Everything, and I mean everything, is by divine contrivance. God is the God of all providence.

It is so complicated; it is mind-boggling. If you think the internet is intricate and complex, think again. God intertwines the lives of everyone together as a weaver does the threads of a carpet. Combined, they are all designed to form a particular pattern.

Just think; there are over seven billion people in the world today. Nevertheless, you will only ever meet a very small fraction of them. Why do you meet the few you meet? Take a second look at the disciples of Jesus, for example. Do you get the impression that Jesus just chose a random twelve? Did he make a mistake with the choice of Judas? Surely, every single person was chosen to play a preassigned role.

Successes and failures Look again at this episode in the bible: “As he was walking along, he saw a man blind from birth.

"Master," his disciples asked him, "why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?" "Neither," Jesus answered. "But to demonstrate the power of God.” (John 9:1-3).

You are too important to God for him to leave your life just at the whims and caprices of the devil According to Jesus, God has a reason for allowing anything that takes place to take place. God’s purposes were served even by this man’s blindness. He was blind in order that he might be healed and that God would thereby be glorified.

There is a simple kingdom dynamic in this. Understand it; internalise it.

Luck does not exist. Nothing about your life is haphazard. You should know that you are too important to God for him to leave your life just at the whims and caprices of the devil.

You are not under situations and circumstances; Jesus has lifted you far above them. Every little detail of your life is important. Take nothing for granted.

When God calls a man, he uses not only his strengths but also his weaknesses. God uses the complete man. He uses your successes as well as your failures. He uses your victories as well as your defeats. There is a reason why your marriage failed.

L-R: David Atoloye, Editor

in Chief, Applause Achievers Magazine; Pastor Nicholas Akin John, representing Pastor J.F. Odesola and Pastor Segun Adegbiji, Head of Drama & Public Relations, RCCG at a recent Applause Achievers Awards in Lagos.

Methodist Church tasks INEC on credible elections

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HE Trinity Church Council of Method ist Church held its 27th annual synod on Sunday with a charge on the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega led to deliver a credible election which Nigerians and the international community will all be proud of.

To achieve this, Synod recommends that INEC must

ensure that the card readers must be flawless and the level of security in all polling booths across the country is watertight, stressing that INEC must also guarantee the protection of numerous Youth Corps members who will serve as adhoc staff during the elections.

In a 9-point communiqué after the synod presided over by the bishop of The Trinity Church Council, Rt.

Rev. Oladapo Omotayo Babalola, with a theme ‘Aglow with the Spirit’, the church enjoined all Christians with PVCs to avail themselves of the opportunity to exercise their franchise and help put in place a government of their choice, as dictated by the spirit of participatory democracy.

The church also advised parents to consciously protect their wards from being

There is a lesson why you were attacked by robbers.

There is a purpose even to the madness in your life.

Purpose that is purposed Jesus fed the multitude by multiplying five loaves of bread. Then he said to his disciples: “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.”

(John 6:12). God would have nothing to be lost.

Therefore, gathers up all the fragments of your life.

While our strengths and abilities make us useful to God, it is our weaknesses that make us usable. Our failures and shortcomings remind us that we need God’s help and guidance in our lives.

Once God calls you, go into your wardrobe and bring out everything.

Bring out everything about your past. Bring out everything about your present.

When you examine them, you will discover to your amazement that they are all designed to give you a divine legacy. Accordingly, Jesus says: “Every

scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”

(Matthew 13:52).

The man who is instructed in kingdom dynamics discovers that all things about his past were treasures. He did not know this before because he was in darkness but now the Lord has put on the light.

Also, he discovers that all things about his present are treasures. God has worked and will work everything together for good.

You now realise that what you thought was bad for you, was actually good for you. What you thought was inconsequential; was really for the purpose that is purposed. This ensures that you can face the future in confident assurance that whatever it brings, whatever it holds, the end of it is peace; and the end of it is glory.

Renewal of life The Lord not only does new things. He says: “Behold, I make all things new.” (Revelation 21:5).

Can the Lord renew your past? Yes indeed! You need to behold it. The believer himself is a new creation.

He is renewed in knowledge after the image of God who created him.

When you sit down with Jesus, you will soon discover that the past, the present and the future are one.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8). The Alpha and the Omega is the one which is, and which was, and which is to come. (Revelation 1:8). Therefore, as you sit at Jesus’ feet, you start to see your past in a new light. You begin to have a new understanding of the past.

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. As you sit down under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit, you now start to get an understanding of why he took you through that particular route. You now understand why he made you to endure that temptation.

And you now realise that, of a truth, God leaves nothing about the life of a believer to chance. God always causes us to triumph in Christ.

Suddenly, you realise that everything about your life happened in the past.

Everything about your life was concluded from the foundation of the world when the Lamb of God was slain. That is why a true believer does not wallow in the past. He has been brought out of time into eternity. He redeems the time because the Lord makes all things new.

Therefore, a man schooled in kingdom dynamics cannot be a moaner and a groaner. He does not mumble and grumble.

Instead, he rejoices always, he keeps on praying, and he gives thanks to God in everything and for everything. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

CONTINUED.

*The month of March is usually dedicated as international month by the Foursquare Gospel Church, Magodo GRA Phase 2, Shangisha, Lagos when the church allows each region to celebrate God in their own way and language.

It's an international assembly of the Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria as the local church is made up of different nationalities including brethren from the West African countries. Penultimate Sunday was for the ECOWAS countries and it was attended by the Ghanaian deputy Consular General in Nigeria and the Minister of Trade and Investment.L-R: Minister Trade & Investment, Mr. Ben Heh; host, Rev. Dele Abegunde; his wife, Pastor (Mrs.) Abegunde; deputy Consular General, Ghana High Commission in Nigeria, Mr. Essilfie Isaac Joshua at a special service for ECOWAS nations at the Foursquare Gospel Church, Magodo Lagos. used for political thuggery or any form of violence before, during and after the elections, expressing deep sadness over the amount of lives that have been lost in the Boko-Haram insurgency that engulfed the North Eastern part of the country and commiserates with the families of the victims.

In similar vein, the church frowns at the inability of

the Federal Government to rescue the 279 Chibok girls who were abducted nearly a year ago, but appreciated the current offensive on the sect by the Nigerian Army, noting with praise the efforts of the regional and international coalition forces.

It also commended President Goodluck Jonathan for setting up a National Conference where the fu-

ture of our country was discussed, urging whoever emerges winner of yesterday’s presidential election to muster the political will and moral courage to implement the recommendations of the Confab as this will also help tackle the humongous problem of home grown terrorism, religious intolerance, endemic corruption and social vices.

Page 58 — SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

VIEWPOINT

By Ken Ugbechie

VIEWPOINT IN BRIEF

Honour for a man who transformed the entertainment industry

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N the Nigerian political folk lore, no politician or political leader has impacted the entertainment industry more than the governor of Delta State, Emmanuel Uduaghan, a medical doctor-turned-politician.

Whether it is the comedy community, the musical family, sporting fraternity or the movie matrix, Uduaghan has had the most inductive effect on the entertainment industry such that the success story being told today of the sector, as a major job creator, poverty alleviation tool and an elixir against the economic diarrhea called capital flight, could be traced directly to his commitment, belief and unrelenting support to the industry.

In Nigeria, the traditional narrative has been the negligence of the entertainment industry by government at all levels. But Uduaghan bucks the trend. He simply charted a new path and gave a new lease of life to an in-

Uduaghan, Ali Baba and the Forty Nobles dustry that has become one of the most effective public relations tools of the nation. It was in honour of his gesture and unalloyed commitment to deepening the industry dominated by Deltans that everybody that mattered in the industry, especially those from Delta State, converged on Asaba, the state capital, to honour a governor who showed uncommon devotion to the industry.

The event tagged “Thank You Concert/Dinner” turned into an emotional night of glamour, grandeur and testimonies. Almost all the entertainment buffs present, including sports personalities and comedians, recounted their individual and collective encounters with the governor and how such encounter had launched them to the crest of stardom.

The roll call included veterans like Opa Williams, Oris Wiliki, Ras Kimono, Daddy Showkey, Ali Baba, Sammie Okposo, Emma Ogosi, AY, Gordons, Iyanya, Fred Amata, Zeb Ejiro, Emma Grey, DJ Humility, Mandy, Timi Dakolo, Omoni Oboli and Uti Nwachukwu. It was fittingly capped with

the presentation of a Lifetime Award of Excellence to the governor. It was also a night of dance and laughter and Uduaghan, who one of the comedians described as “one of us”, did not disappoint as he danced and threw rib-cracking jokes.

Because of Uduaghan’s commitment to the development of the entertainment industry, a horde of hitherto hopeless youths had been taken off the streets and have themselves grown into iconic stage performers not just earning a living through entertainment but have become employers of labour.

The likes of Bill Cosby, Michael Jackson, Mike Tyson, Pele of Brazil, Classical music legend Pavarotti, Oprah Winfrey, among others, became global icons through entertainment. Some of them were actually salvaged from the ruins of despair and the valley of depression, but they found hope in entertainment.

It is the same hope that Uduaghan brought to his people. The introduction of a special talent hunt initiative, Delta Talent Quest, soon became one of the

most effective human capital development strategies as it churned hugely talented artistes out of the state. Today, Delta is the chief producer of entertainment icons in the country. Blessing Okagbare, Africa’s fastest athlete, and Omawunmi, the vivacious musical diva gifted with excellent vocal tonality and brilliant stagecraft, came from the governor’s foundry. Aside the new generation army of entertainers from his nursery, Uduaghan is clearly the chief sustainer and builder of members of the old brigade. The likes of Ali Baba, AY, Gordons, I Go Die (the original Warri boy), Jay Jay Okocha, Steven Keshi, Uti Nwachukwu (whom he calls his son and makes a joke about his dragging bachelorhood), Sammie Okposo et al have all profited from his benevolence, and they are quick to tell it to the world.

Unknown to many, the blockbuster, 30 Days in Atlanta, from the stable of Delta-born AY (Ayo Makun), would never have been possible but for the encouragement he got from Uduaghan. On this special night of testimonies,

Okotie’s Message for Jonathan & Buhari VIEWPOINT

By Ohio-Michael Elakhe VIEWPOINT IN BRIEF Presidential candidates must accept election verdict

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S we await the result of the presidential election, let us continue to sound it loud and clear, as Rev. Chris Okotie did in his Facebook piece, titled, A Message for Jonathan and Buhari, that the two political gladiators should accept the verdict with equanimity.

The admonition becomes imperative as the paradox of the structure of our politicking continues to baffle even the most optimistic watchers of events. This troubling trajectory means that the events of the days following the March 28 elections may be critical as we still have another round of voting on

VIEWPOINT

By Kalu Okereke

VIEWPOINT IN BRIEF

The people want to try a new thing

S

ATURDAY March 7, 2015, opposite Afaraukwu Junction

by Aba Road Umuahia, a crowd in village merrymaking emerged from Afaraukwu Village. Three black, fearsome masquerades, of Ekpo Ibibio was in performance.

Directly behind the masquerades was a young man clutching a live cock, the symbol of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA). Most of the youths in the crowd wore T-shirts with the portrait of Dr Alex Otti, the governorship candidate of APGA. As crowd and masquerade emptied into Aba Road, the entire neighborhood became ecstatic, with people miming the songs that oozed from a loudspeaker mounted in a moving bus. The lyrics told the story: “Abia bu ndi mbu. Ha abughi ndi ikpeazu”. Literally meaning, `Abia is number One and cannot come last’. The song is theatrically,

April 11, 2015. The heated campaigns have been worrisome to observers and we hope this process ends well.

With hindsight, we can say that our politician’s inability to resolve intra and inter party conflicts amicably is a serious flaw in our nascent democracy. The cheerleaders in this cesspit of murky politicking are the beneficiaries and cronies of politicians who have benefits at stake in this degenerate style of partisan politics.

Also, aside this media gibberish that marked these campaigns, the dangerous trend of unruliness which the rampaging foot-soldiers and campaign trains have subjected the same electorate they are courting to, is in itself a show of absolute disregard for the people; Nigerians went through temporary lull in economic activities because of these elections, and one

can only hope that whatever losses they have suffered is worth it at the end of the day.

Despite the ominous picture which these campaigns painted in the minds of the electorate these past weeks, voters must be wise and not be swayed by the ethnic and religious sentiments which have been some of the underlying emotions that the devisors of these calumny campaigns have adopted, as we go for the next round of voting.

Section 102 of the Electoral Act 2010 (As Amended) prohibits the employment of base sentiments as campaign or broadcasting tools.

Yet, it is ironic that despite this law, in full glare of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the law various enforcement agencies, sectional and faceless support groups have openly deployed these emotions in their campaigns. A critical ques-

tion in this vicious circle is this: Can our aspiring leaders who emerge out of the rummages of these elections stand shoulder-toshoulder with their counterparts around the world with their uninspiring display of primitive politics? The answer is no!

After 16 years of a chequered and stagnant democratic run, what we need now is not a cunning sleigh of hands in relying on specious sentiments; to upstage opponents, rather, we need to be won-over with outlines and timelines of realistic re-structuring agenda on issues that affront the progress of our economy.

Okotie reminds us: “Politicians seeking elective offices are being asked questions about their record of public service; about their integrity; about their competence or lack thereof. It is a whole new ball game; a far cry

Otti: The future Abia wants an elevation of the state and a caricature of the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with the name `Ikpeazu ‘. Then the sound of sirens and heavy police presence followed by a long convoy of cars heralded the arrival of Dr Alex Otti for the campaign rally scheduled for Afaraukwu Ibeku Village. As the cars slowly sneaked into the village, the people – mechanics, shop owners as well as attendants, students, drivers, and passerby, all came forward to welcome the Abia liberator. The scene was that of a revolt against an existing political order led by Governor T. A. Orji and his son, Chinedu. It is also a resistance against the effort of the Orji to anoint Dr Okezie Ikpeazu as a successor.

The question is how the people came to this political consciousness. It is imperative when it is realized that incumbent Gov. T.A. Orji had enjoyed

tremendous goodwill and support from the period preceding the 2011 elections. Such goodwill had followed his rapprochement with his adversaries who were in the PDP which culminated in his leading his own faction of PPA into the party. Such rapprochement and support was rewarded with 100% electoral victory for the PDP. His own victory at the governorship election was achieved mainly because of his confession which he made to the effect that he could not perform in his first term 2007 – 2011 because he was held captive by his godfather Chief Orji Uzor Kalu and that any further opportunity will allow him redeem his name. Such promises brought heightened expectations from the people. The overall effect was that even his critics allowed him the leverage to work. This was followed by jumbo allocations that accrued to the state from the Federation Account as a result of high oil prices from 2011

to late 2014. However as his second tenure draws to a close in a few weeks time, Abia state has been rated last in all indices of development with a deepening poverty and unemployment rate.

Abians will continually remember Governor T. A. Orji’s reign as one that was characterized by a great deal of arbitrariness, sleaze, inefficiency, cronyism, nepotism, abuse of office and outright and mindless looting of the state treasury. Such negative character trait of his governance has undoubtedly found practical expression in the near total collapse of governance as no strata of government is working, be it ministry, parastatal or local government. The dilapidation of infrastructure in Aba and the entire rural Abia, a comatose civil service, lack of accountability and transparency in public sector procurement, abdication of the powers of the state to to his son,

an elated AY told the audience how the governor encouraged him when he took the script to him and told him of his intention to shoot a movie in the United States that would put Delta on the world map. Today, according to industry statistics, the movie has grossed over N300 million at the cinemas, the highest by any movie in the history of entertainment in West Africa.

Only now has the Federal Government begun to pay attention to the entertainment industry. Even then, the Federal Government would need to ‘steal’ the Uduaghan template.

Ogus Baba, another talented Delta son and a proud Ambassador of the Uduaghan nursery, who put together the event, said it was solely to honour the governor who has done a lot to support the industry in the last eight years.

In his eight years in office, Uduaghan has planted seeds of hope among a people once hopeless and it is only a matter of time, the whole world would come dancing at their feet. ·Ugbechie is Editor-in-Chief of Political Economist magazine from some previous elections when the outcomes were generally well known before the ballot was cast...

We must see impact-driven growth and the evidence of our rising economic profile on our citizens. What we demand from our politicians is how to revamp the economy to achieve a strong, private sector-led growth; not how they would tear the nation apart if the elections don’t go their way”.

The Pastor-Politician roundedup his message brilliantly: “Millions are going to vote because they want their lives changed or transformed, not because they expect to die in the exercise… Every Nigerian must therefore hear this loud and clear: go out and vote; and equally important, respect the outcome. Let the politicians receive this with equanimity and philosophical discernment”.

God bless Nigeria and Nigerians so that the labour of our heroes past must never be in vain. *Elakhe is resident in Lagos.

destruction and disruption of family livelihoods through forceful relocation of markets etc has forced the people to the Afaraukwu Junction show.

While Afaraukwu is illustrated above, others are pelting pure water sachets on Governor T.A.Orji elsewhere. On the other hand Dr Alex Otti seems to have demonstrated a huge capacity to bring such progress into fruition. His impeccable credentials, managerial ability, integrity as well as articulated vision for the state development have endeared him to majority of the populace. This infact is the reason for the warm receptions that is accorded him everywhere he goes. However the snag in it and which is on everybody’s lip remains as to whether the people’s votes will count in these forthcoming elections as promised by Prof. Jega.

Will the elections be free and fair? If INEC is able to conduct free and fair elections in Abia State, there won’t be any doubt that the change which the people are clamoring for will come to pass. *Okereke is based in Abuja. (kalok @yahoo.com)

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015,

Page 59

Making a mockery of anti-corruption war VIEWPOINT

By Ochuko Ekpekurede VIEWPOINT IN BRIEF Anti-graft grandstanding ahead of polls

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ANY politicians are out in the field cajoling the electorate for votes using anticorruption messages. They have correctly read the mood of the electorate and understand how anti-corruption message resonate with them.

Now, every politician who fancies his chance to win an elective office sings the anticorruption song.

Much as the prominence given to anti-corruption issues in current campaign by aspirants to the political leadership of our dear country is a welcome development, a situation where people, either certified to be corrupt or have pending corruption cases hanging around their necks, now come around to lecture Nigerians on how they will fight corruption is perhaps the greatest insult of the current campaign.

The three sixty degrees transformation of politicians, from indicted felons into anticorruption campaigners, is a huge fraud and deserves condemnation. And you find examples across the parties but one political party certainly has preponderance of such characters.

I chuckle each time I listen to people like former Bayelsa State Governor Timipreye Sylva sermonizing on how his party will wipe corruption out of Nigeria. The same man was arraigned by the EFCC for corruption and I am not aware that the case has been thrown out or that the charges have been dropped.

Also, the last time I checked, the anti-corruption agency, the EFCC, claimed it has not closed its investigation into how Bukola Saraki, a former governor of Kwara State and chieftain of the APC, allegedly ran Societe Generale Bank aground and allegedly misappropriated the funds of Kwara State during his tenure. Yet, he has no scruples hollering on how Nigeria should fight corrup-

The three sixty degrees transformation of politicians, from indicted felons into anti-corruption campaigners, is a huge fraud and deserves condemnation tion. For many who know Saraki, who is now a member of the Senate, his recent posture, as a campaigner against graft, causes a starry-eyed response. Only last December, Saraki, as Chairman, Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology, faulted the Federal Government’s decision to budget N9.3billion intervention on the Clean Cookstove initiative.

What should perhaps be questionable was Saraki’s morality at raising an eye-

brow against what he obviously insinuated was exercise that did not follow due process.

He was being investigated over the N21,000,000,000 belonging to Joy Petroleum Ltd. Saraki had to run to the Federal High Court in Abuja, requesting for an injunction to prevent the police from arresting him, in order to protect his “dignity and prevent further harassment”.

What about Danjuma Goje, a former governor of Gombe State? In between campaigns, he shuttle to Gombe where a Federal High Court is hearing the case of how he allegedly mismanaged over N50billion during his tenure.

Bola Tinubu, the strongman of Lagos, notwithstanding all the hues and cries about the so-called satanic advertorial sponsored by his political opponents, has many explainations to make about how he ran the affairs of Lagos State as governor.

The alleged continued dominance in the execution of public contracts in Lagos by companies in which he

allegedly has interests raises moral issues.

In the camp of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, much has been said about the wrong signal implicit in the decision to appoint Femi Fani-Kayode as the face of the campaign of President Gooodluck Jonathan. FaniKayode is being prosecuted for corruption by the EFCC. Ditto for Ayo Fayose, the loquacious governor of Ekiti State.

Of course, these people have the usual alibi that they are innocent of what ever charges have been levelled against them until proven guilty by a competent court of law. The rule of law dictates so. But beyond what the law states, morality plays a very crucial role in the affairs of men. The morally tainted cannot come to the market square to preach integrity and accountability. My advice to all the political parties is to put their best feet forward when the debate is about corruption.

Jesters must not be allowed to continue to insult our collective intelligence. *Ekpekurede, a public affairs commentator, lives in Abuja.

Deconstructing the Delta Governorship Debate VIEWPOINT

BY JESUTEGA ONOKPASA VIEWPOINT IN BRIEF The perception of Deltans on the state governorship debate

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HE Delta gubernatorial debate, which held on the 24th of March, 2015 turned out to be one of the strangest events in the build up to the Governorship elections thus far. It was an event that had long been anticipated by Deltans across all three Senatorial Districts with the organizers having gone the extra mile in sensitizing the electorate on the importance of the debate.

The first bizarre occurrence was a last minute communication to the organizers right there at the venue by Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to the effect that he was not going to show up! Immediately thereafter, as if acting out a script, Chief Great Ogboru, his Labour Party counterpart, stood up and walked out of the venue with his supporters in tow!

Interestingly, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor of the All Progressives Congress, APC, remained unfazed and sat quietly insisting that the debate would not be a flop in consideration of Deltans who had long anticipated it as well as the organizers who had spent a fortune organizing it.

Chief Ogboru later returned only to disappoint the crowd once more by giving what I would consider to be a remarkably lame excuse to the effect that he would not participate in the debate unless Okowa was present!

What was intended to be a robust debate amongst the three main contenders for the Governorship of Delta, suddenly began to pan out as a one man show in which O’tega remained the last man standing to the delight and appreciation of both the audience and the organizers whose entire efforts would have been in vain but for the boldness and forthrightness of the APC candidate. All alone on stage like a lone ranger determined to do whatever it takes for the good of his people no matter what it takes, O’tega Emerhor proceeded to answer question after question put to him both by the moderator and the distinguished panelists which included ace broadcasters Donald Ovberedjor and Adesuwa Oyenokwe as well as the highly cerebral Professor Emina.

It was the quintessential master class as the APC flag bearer issued response after response with astonishing clarity on straightforward and feasible programmes he was obviously passionate about for the purpose of rescuing Delta from sixteen years of PDP misrule.

While I was initially confused by the strangeness of

While almost everyone acknowledges the fact that it takes a bold man to stand alone and present his manifesto with the clarity of vision of a man on a determined mission to rescue his people, an assortment of conspiracy theories are equally flying around in the state

a medical doctor refusing to be involved in the debate with a banker and industrialist and why Ogboru similarly refused to debate him on the perplexing ground that he would only debate if Okowa was present, something O’tega later said placed the entire affair in clear perspective to me. O’tega informed the audience that he had been uncomfortable with the organizers having placed him in the middle separating Okowa from Ogboru in their billboards advertising the debate. At the Grand Hotel, Asaba venue of the debate, the organizers had rearranged the participants with Okowa in the middle and O’tega and

Ogboru on either side. O’tega thereupon thanked the organizers that in so doing they had unwittingly shown to Deltans that both Okowa and Ogboru were working together, noting that both men would be voting for President Jonathan while he would be voting for General Buhari.

Varied opinions are presently gaining currency in places like Sapele, Warri, Effurun, Ughelli, Oleh, Obiaruku, and the state capital Asaba pertaining to the debate. While almost everyone acknowledges the fact that it takes a bold man to stand alone and present his manifesto with the clarity of vision of a man on a determined mission to rescue his people, an assortment of conspiracy theories are equally flying around in the state. One school of thought claims that Okowa and Ogboru had apparently planned to combine forces against O’tega and when Okowa failed to show up, Ogboru simply lost the nerve to engage O’tega one on one.

At any rate, regardless of the truth or otherwise of this assertion, something Ogboru himself said while withdrawing from the debate would appear to lend credence to this idea. He said something along the following lines: “…Since my main contender, Okowa is not here, I cannot participate. Whenever he is ready to debate I will be here…” In this fantasy assessment of his prospects in

the election, Ogboru of Labour Party – a party without even one Governor or Senator – rather comically sought to portray the game changing O’tega of APC, a party with an assortment of Governors and about half of the members of the National Assembly, as the underdog! What a fairy tale!

Many of us had long suspected Ogboru’s sudden romance with the PDP to the extent of printing posters of himself and Jonathan while Okowa was doing the exact same thing! We had pointed out that despite the laughable assurances of the likes of Joe Omene who tried to convince the Urhobo that Jonathan would stab his fellow and loyal party man, Okowa and switch his support to Ogboru, what the PDP is actually up to is what it does best: execute a grand political scam on the unsuspecting masses making up the electorate, use them and then dump them as usual.

By refusing to feature in the debate against O’tega, the agent of change, who was present with him at the event, Ogboru will have a difficult task convincing the good people of Delta that he is not working for PDP to retain Delta State in the PDP fold for another four if not eight years of merciless misrule and miserable underdevelopment.

•Barr. Jesutega Onokpasa,

178 Sapele/Warri Road, Sapele,Delta State. ekwetafia@gmail.com

PAGE 60—SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015 japhdave@yahoo.com 08066625505

Experts brainstorm on playwriting in time of insurgency

By NEHRU ODEH CONFAB

I

N a lecture entitled “Drama and the Revolutionary Ideal,” Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka described the theatre as “perhaps the most revolutionary art form known to man.” But what is the place of playwriting in contemporary times, in the time of insurgency, social anomy, electoral fiascos, national disintegration and redefinition of national boundaries, crash crunch and currency devaluation? What is the place of drama in the time of dizzying fast-paced social change, social media and film? What is the place of drama in a society defined by philistinism, in which individuals scrounge for survival on a daily basis; when art theatres are now empty spaces, worship centres, shopping malls, lovers’ trysts and rendezvous for rats and cockroaches?

Those were the issues that were thrown up recently at the 2nd playwrights’ Confab hosted by the Kwara State university (KWASU), Malete at the State Council for Arts and Culture in Ilorin. The conference, whose theme was “The Time is Out of Joint: Playwriting in the Time of Global incoherence”, was convened by Professor Femi Osofisan, multiple award-winning playwright, director, scholar and distinguished professor at Kwara state University, Ilorin. In attendance at the parley were playwrights, scholars, directors, writers and journalists from across the country.

While welcoming participants to the conference, Professor AbdulRasheed Na ‘Allah, Vice Chancellor Kwara State University, bemoaned the fact that playwriting had been relegated to the background in Nigeria. He also stated that the place of arts in national development cannot be underestimated, pointing out playwriting remains the only disciplines that has earned Nigeria and indeed Africa a Nobel Prize in literature won by Soyinka. “it is from playwriting that Nigeria got the Nobel Prize. So if anybody is saying what is the achievement of playwriting? Tell them that Nigeria has a Nobel prize in literature. If you listened to the citation of Soyinka then, he was described as more of a playwright, and even the Nobel Prize Committee acknowledged his work as a playwright, “Na ‘Allah stated.

The University’s helmsman also said it was in the light of this that KWASU created the school of Visual and Performing Arts to celebrate arts and allow the country to remain at the forefront on the Africa continent. He added that the university also established the Malete Film Village to provide state of the art facilities for writers, film makers, editors, music producers and other artists with a view to shaping Nollywood to an enviable height as the second largest film industry in the world.

He said the confab must be dedicated to the Nigerian achievement, which he said had put Africa on the map.

Also speaking at the event, Osofisan lamented the social political and economic crises bedevilling the country and how the theatre industry seemed to have lost its voice, if not its relevance, in the face of social turmoil.

“Where other contemporaneous

•A cross section of participants at the event arts- music especially and the films of Nollywood are thriving the theatre industry has fallen into decadence and decline,” he regretted.

He challenged the playwrights

Osofisan lamented the social political and economic crises bedevilling the country and how the theatre industry seemed to have lost its voice, if not its relevance, in the face of social turmoil

to ponder on the root cause of the decline and the role expected of them to salvage the situation from further degeneration.

The playwrights indeed did not disappoint, as they did justice to the topics discussed in the three sessions namely: “Varieties of Playwriting in the Context of Anomy, “ chaired by Professor Olu Obafemi of the University of Ilorin; “What the Directors Wants/Hates in a Script, “ chaired by Professor Ahmed Yerima of the Redeemers University Ede; and Theatre and Film in Nigeria: Whither Goes the Academic in the Nigerian Film Industry, presented by Segun Oyekunle, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Abuja Film Village International Limited.

Obafemi set the ball rolling by asking very salient questions.

“What do we do to ensure that we participate effectively in re-

•Prof AbdulRasheed Na’Állah

juvenating our society, in ridding it of the parlous state that it is? What kind of plays do we write to address the problems that are affecting us in the society. Should we design those themes that address those problems, understand themthe social economy, macro economics the market forces, issues of corruption, the failure of leadership, the absence of strong instructions?”

Professor Gbemisola Adeoti of the department of English, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, on his part, said Nigeria from independence had always been in search of that art that would appropriately address the burning issues in society and probably recommend the way forward in other to address issues of good governance He therefore recommended that Nigeria playwrights should not

forget her rich tradition of theatrical performance that the country has as they seek to find solutions to pressing social issues.

Malam Salilu Bappa of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria said since challenges differ in various times in the history of a nation, it behoves on playwrights to respond to those challenges. Bappa spoke extensively on the need for playwrights to face the various issues currently at the front burner of public discourse, especially the issue of insurgency.

Dr. Osita Ezenwanebe, Associate Professor of English, University of Lagos, spoke on certain rising of anger in the hearts of the people especially the youths “How can I as a playwright address this distortion.

How do I contribute in preventing the anger in the hearts of people from turning into hate and bursting

•Continues on page 61

Echoes from Nengi’s inner mind on canvass

By JAPHET ALAKAM VISUAL

D

espite the fear and ap prehension occasioned by the 2015 general elections , many Nigerians still demonstrated through their actions that all is well. This was so, especially in the art circle where many galleries opened their exhibition halls for different artists to showcase their works, if not for any thing to take the attention of many art lovers away from the tension soaked atmosphere. And as would be expected, the Omenka gallery, incidentally, one of the leading galleries in Nigeria was not left out, the gallery after its successful outing in the Johannesburg Art fair opened its exhibition calendar of the year with a solo exhibition that succinctly captured the mood of the nation at this time titled State of the Mind, an exhibition of recent paintings by emerging contemporary artist Nengi Omuku, The Slade School of Fine Art graduate trained painter who had participated in many solo and group exhibitions in London, last week opened her first exhibition in Nigeria. The

•I can drive, one of the works by Nengi

exhibition which attracted notable art collectors and lovers opened on 21 of March and will run till April 8th. It featured about 17 remarkable paintings done in different media that captures the state of her inner mind about the issues in and around her. A critical look at the works displayed reveals the creative

oeuvre of the young artist who is not afraid to express herself. With good colour combination and brilliantly done to attract buyers as seen with the way collectors picked some of the works in the opening day.

Speaking about the title, the Slade university trained painter said “it is basically

my state of mind while I made the paintings, the fear, feelings of been out of place and so many things that informed that”. According to her, “art is not always about things that are happening outside, sometimes they can be things happening within me and that is what my paintings are.”

Her work functions as a metaphor alluding to wider themes of race, understanding and a mutual belonging. A look at the body of works shows Nengi, through the use of colour, explores the supposition that the figure can be transformed based on the premise that things could not only look, but also be otherwise.

The release from the physical form has led her into a new territory, a moment-by-moment expression of beings that have been transformed from their present reality, reanimated through colour and marks.

It is her desire to convey portraits: presences floating through active spaces, presences that have the aspiration of becoming events in their own right. She also frequently explores the encounter - what happens when different forms meet. Another element of her work is the scape, in particular, the escape the bodies inhabit, which she says, “a •Continues on page 5...

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015, PAGE 61 japhdave@yahoo.com 08066625505

By CHRIS ONUOHA SEMINAR

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apo Adelugba was a theatre teacher and professor of professors, and the Daodu of Nigerian theatre, who touched many lives when he was alive and even in death he is still remembered. And that was why the members of the ‘theatre community’ held a post humus seminar to celebrate the late professor’s 76th birthday.

The seminar with the theme, Dapo Adelugba: Reminiscences On a Distinguished Life was held at the Afe Babalola Hall of the University of Lagos, recently.

The event featured paper presentations and tribute by many of his former students including, Prof. Duro Oni, Deputy Vice Chancellor University of Lagos; Prof. Akachi Ezeigbo of the Department of English, University of Lagos; the poet and literary activist, Odia Ofeimun; Ben Tomoloju, a playwright and arts and culture communicator; Prof. Sunday Enesi Ododo, a theatre teacher at the University of Maiduguri, Dr. Esohe SuinnerMolokwu, Dr. Sola Fosudo, Longley Evru, Tade Adekunle, Teju Kareem and Tunji Sotimirin, while Mr. and Mrs. Segun Adelugba, Chief and Mrs Kufo, Dr. and Mrs. Bolarinwa represented the Adelugba family.

Prof. Duro Oni who was the guest speaker minced no words as he narrates his encounter with Prof. Dapo Adelugba. According to his speech, it was an intriguing experience of his mentorship roles in his life. As

Thespians recount legacies of Daodu of Theatre, Dapo Adelugba he eulogizes and reel out tributes to the man he calls a great mentor, he mentioned that the next lecture that will hold in 2016 will kick start the annual lecture series in memory of Prof. Dapo Adelugba. In the process, he was emotionally carried away and eventually subsidized Adelugba’s book on sale at the venue at a half price for the students present at the seminar.

Prof. Akachi Ezeigbo who spoke emotionally about Dapo said that it is a unique privilege to have this lecture here in UNILAG when it should have been happening in any other institution.

Akachi said she identified with him for many reasons; first was when she read about him and had an encounter with his lucid and clarity of works. “He

He was a man that believes in the ability of every student, and once, he identifies you, he will never let go, a stubborn mentor who would do anything to make sure you come they way he wants you to be

that has an encounter with

him has one story to tell but the underlining factor is that he was a mentor that insists on excellence.

•Late Pa Dapo Adelugba

was the person that endeared me to loving theater, despite being an English scholar. I watched his productions and got fascinated by his creative ingenuity and commitments towards making theatre industry what it is today in the university.” She said.

Akachi said that Prof. Adelugba was such a wonderful and great scholar through which many Professors, thespians came out of his efforts. “I believe that students still grasp a lot today from a man that has been attributed as master mentor.” she said.

She finally admonished the students who are present in the hall

to be productive in all they do, empowering their environment to make a better society.

Theatre Art students from UNILAG gave a side attraction by taking the stage and rendering an appreciation song “Iya ni wura” to Prof.

Akachi for writing off the book price on display, making it possible for all the students present to have a copy free.

There was also a mini stage performance by the students.

Prof. Sunday Ododo in his short speech trails in same line of encounter and tributes, saying that everyone

As many speakers took time to express their feelings, contributing hearttouching tributes to the great scholar, they talked about his keen interest in his students, his serious mindedness and painstaking supervision of all the projects of his students and his concise approach with strict detailing on how things should be done on stage. According to them, he was a man that believes in the ability of every student, and once he identifies you, he will never let go. He was a stubborn mentor who would do anything to make sure you come out they way he wants you to be.

His humility knows no bound as he addresses everybody as Mr. or Mrs. He was dedicated up to his death, selfless, strict and time conscious.

In one of his humanitarian gestures, he pays fees for indigent students and shares bed with them at times.

He was instrumental to the establishment of Nigeria University Theatre Arts Festival NUTAF and National Association of Theatre Arts Practitioners, NANTAP, ensures the best comes out it during his time.

Exper ts brainst orm on Pla ywriting in time of insurgency Experts brainstorm Playwriting works as a playwright in this season of anomy, called on the need for playwrights to get those on the corridors or power to be interested in their plays.

“How exactly do our leaders relax? How exactly does the president relax? If we want to sit him down and make him watch a play, how exactly do we do so? What exactly is the nature of the things we can write that can actually attract people. If people are not coming to the theatre to watch the plays that we write, why don’t we take them to them? “Bello stated.

Dr. Greg Mbajiorgu of the

department of Theatre Arts, University of Nigeria Nsukka, spoke on the role of the playwright as an interrogator, juxtaposing his role in the light of the present challenges in the society with his old roles. He said unless the playwright begins to react to issues and change with the tides, social problems will persist.

2015 Anioma Cultural Festival postponed

lot of my paintings I situate bodies in spaces, but sometimes I separate the body from the spaces.”

These can be seen in some of the works which include: The Phantasmic Middle Creature, What we Bore, Beckoning, That Time of Night, Bodija Heires, Mother and Child, I can drive, I am not here, Who be You and others.

Speaking about the works, Nengi explains thus, for Together forever, which explores the issues of women and conception, she said “as a woman I am interested in this concept especially those of us that has not actually gone through it. Most of my paintings have to do with my experiences I haven’t had, so its almost like an

•Continued from page 5... out of rage? she asked .

In his speech, Ben Tomoloju, playwright, director and journalist said some plays alienate the people whose interests then are supposed to address because they are elitist, adding that language plays a very important role in making drama accessible to the people .

Akin Bello, playwright and winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature, who was more concerned about the effects of his

T

he Organisation For the Advancement of Anioma Culture (OFAAC), the organisers of the annual Anioma Cultural Festival postponed this year ’s festival due to security and logistic reasons arising from the rescheduled Presidential and Gubernatorial elections.

Anioma Cultural Festival which has become an integral part of the monumental exhibits of Nigerian cultural heritage, serving as a rallying point for Anioma people and the unification of Deltans diverse population will be held at a later date.

Mr Paddy Ugboh, Vice President of OFAAC, said in a statement “that the tensed political situation C M Y K

in the country arising from the Presidential and Gubernatorial elections has necessitated the need to postpone the festival and a new date will be communicated to the public,” The festival which is a four – day event that showcases Anioma dance arts, music, traditional wrestling, flutes, exhibition of historical artifacts/crafts, fashion /folklores, cuisine and raffle draw was billed to climax on Easter Monday April 6, 2015, has as its primary objective to preserve and promote the aesthetic beauty of Anioma culture, to enrich Delta and Nigeria’s cultural life by promoting cultural diversity, and to foster harmony and friendship among people in the State.

Mbajiorgu stressed the need for playwrights to be concerned with issues such as insurgency, climate change, ethnicity, racism etc.

At the second session titled “What the Director Wants/Hates in a Script, Tomoloju said a director wants a good play, but

not in the Victorian sense of a well-laid play.” According to the playwright and journalist, a good play address a certain moment with a sense of topicality. “it could be a play written two thousand years ago, but it addressed issues of the moment. “ he said.

Echoes from Nengi’s inner mind on canvass •Continued from page 60

outsider ’s perspective of something beautiful and something so internal.” In Who be You and Bodija Heires, works inspired by a mad woman she saw in Ibadan and was touched by their plight and wondered why they should be moving around the streets like that.

“I am very concerned about the number of mad people we have on the streets. I am using it to draw the attention of people to the plight of such people, its a personal experience.”

I Can Drive,is also based on personal experience . “I Just learnt how to drive and had an accident and a lot of men gathered around me and were shouting I can drive, I can drive, and I felt like having wings to fly away.”

Also speaking about the exhibition, Oliver Enwonwu, the curator and CEO of Ben Enwonwu Foundation said, “It is about recent works from Nengi Omoku, the Slade trained painter, the same school Late Prof Ben Enwonwu attended. She is doing very well, she is an artist who is not afraid to express her self. She has given us something different away from what you see in the Lagos contemporary scene. She is based in PH, but her work is essentially escaping into different spaces. She is also using her body as a metaphor as stimulus to transform. It is very interesting and we are proud to exhibit her.”

PAGE 62

S UNDAY Vanguard Vanguard,, MARCH 29, 2015

Emenike deserves respect — Fenerbahce coach

F

FIFA WWC:

•Emenike

NFF need to take us seriously, Falcons cry out

BY BEN EFE

T

HE Super Falcons have cried out for quality international friendly games against the back drop of the difficult task they will face at the FIFA Women World Cup billed for June in Canada.

The Falcons are drawn in group D of the tournament where they will square up against USA, Sweden and Australia who are in the top ten of the FIFA rankings.

Though Falcons captain, Evelyn Nwabuoku argued that rankings do not play football, she and her teammates will rather prepare well and do the country proud at the women soccer fiesta.

The Falcons won all their games at the African Women Championship last October in Namibia. Nwabuoku submitted that the World Cup is a different ball game.

“We are not bothered about the rankings of our opponents. Names don’t play football they are beatable, but only if we prepare our team. Those in authority need to take us seriously,” said the easy going captain.

The Falcons have only played one game after their all conquering performance at the African Women Championship. That game against Mali in the All African Games qualifier ended 1-1 in Bamako Last weekend. The second leg is billed for the second weekend of April.

Oba Cup: Edo sweeps the stakes

E

DO State emerged champions of this year’s edition of the U-13 boys and U18 girls YSFON organized Oba Cup championship.

In an entertaining encounter decided at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin City, Edo State male team came from a goal down to defeat their Ogun State counterparts 2-1 to emerge the winners of the 24th edition of the competition.

The State’s women team took inspiration from their male counterparts to defeat hard fighting Akwa Ibom State 1-0 to emerge champions and confirm the state’s rating as the leading team of the week-long tournament.

C M Y K

ENERBAHCE manager Ismail Kartal has urged supporters to show understanding with Emmanuel Emenike, in the wake of the striker attempting to get himself substituted last weekend.

With only four goals to his name this season, the Nigeria international is lacking confidence, and after missing a sitter against Besiktas, his own fans booed him. ‘’Emenike has seen war in Nigeria, the player has had a very difficult childhood. And that’s the reason he is full of emotions,’’ Ismail Kartal said at a press conference. ‘’He is a pretty good man, we have to show him more understanding. After what happened in the Besiktas match, I sat down and talked with him.’’

Coach Ismail Kartal added: ‘’Now his morale is better and began to laugh. We should note that Emenike is our contracted player. ‘’He is playing in the most important part of our game as a striker, and we cannot keep him away or out. ‘’However, we do not know what will happen in the future.’’

Emmanuel Emenike is not the first player to be booed by Fenerbahce supporters, with ex Spain international Daniel Güiza also suffering the same fate after having a bad game against Trabzonspor.

Perm Sec. moves to revive grassroots sports in Enugu KEEPING ABREAST...Super Falcons’ defender Onome Ebi and French player Marie-Laure Delie fight for the ball at the last world cup in Germany.

Star Football Superfans hit the airwaves A

FTER a successful #ShineOnNigeria campaign which was aimed at creating awareness on Nigeria’s participation in the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup, the Star Larger has introduced yet another reward platform for soccer fans in the country: Star Football Superfans.

The campaign is set to run in selected bars across the country as well as on the radio, online and Tv over the course of 14 weeks, it will reward football fans across Nigeria with over N28m in cash and other consolation prizes.

The programme is aimed at testing fans’ passion for and knowledge in the game.Edem Vindah, Nigerian Breweries Corporate Media and Brand PR Manager said, “The love that the fans have for their football and their Star is something that deserves to be

rewarded and it has also presented us with a good brand synergy as we have always been regular and passionate supporters of football in Nigeria.”

He added that this was another avenue for the brand to demonstrate its commitment to supporting

football and rewarding Nigerian football fans for their passion and loyalty.”

The campaign kicked off on the radio and at selected bars across Nigeria on Friday, March 6, 2015 and the online leg has also kicked off. The TV game show will premiere on April 2, 2015.

LR Senior Brand Manager Star, Ita Bassey, Star Superfans host, Mozez Praiz and Star Manager, Omotunde Adenusi at the launch of Star Superfans campaign in Lagos.

BY FRANCIS IGATA

N

EWLY sworn-in Permanent Secretary to the Enugu State Ministry of Youths and Sports,Mrs. Chinwe Anibeze has vowed to inject life into grassroots sporting activities as an avenue to harvest the state’s abundant sport talents. She said the new drive will also re-enact the state as a sports destination in the country and beyond.

Mrs. Anibeze who was on a familiarization visit to the State Sport Council and the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium told Sunday Sports Vanguard exclusively that she will bring her wealth of experience to bear in the revival of grassroots sports in the state to once again, place Enugu on the sport world map.

She said,”I have gone round to see the facilities for myself. The government has provided new sport equipment in the state.

“The usually lackadaisical attitude to sports in the state will be stopped.

“We will operate as a team because sport dwells on team work.

The experience I have garnered over the years will be deployed into sports development so that the state will win laurels in local and international tournaments.”

SUNDAY VANGUARD, MARCH 29, 2015 PAGE 63

Suarez: I’m not helping Messi to outshine Ronaldo B

ARCELONA striker Luis Suarez has debunked speculations claiming that him and his Barcelona teammates are doing everything in their power to ensure their “golden-boy” Leo Messi beats rival Ronaldo to La Liga’s Golden Boot come the end of the season.

Although Suarez and the Argentine maestro have developed a deadly understanding on the football pitch, he has denied that his own selflessness in front of the sticks has been orchestrated in order to benefit his teammate.

Answering the question put forward by German publication Kicker, Suarez replied: “That’s a crazy idea.

Messi told me after a few games: ‘I thought that you’d score and that’s why I didn’t move up the pitch. We apologise to each other when we have not passed the ball.”

C M Y K

“To be honest, attackers are selfish by nature, but when I see Messi, [Andres] Iniesta or Xavi in a better position, I pass the ball. And we don’t need to talk about Neymar’s class” “Sometimes we should make use of our shared potential even more. All of us want to score goals, but in the end it does not matter for the team who scored the goal.”

It seems that an apparent plot to secure the muchcoveted “Pichichi” award is not necessary as Messi is currently setting the pace at the top of La Liga’s topscorers table. As ever, it is

Fantastic Three... Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi lighting up Barcelona with top notch performance in the Spanish La Liga.

Henry urges French fans to go easy on Ibra

T

HIERRY Henry has told French football fans to stop complaining and enjoy Zlatan Ibrahimovic as long as the Swedish striker remains in Ligue 1.

The 33-year-old forward drew criticism for his foulmouthed outburst, during which he gave a scathing assessment of a referee’s performance in Paris Saint-Germain’s defeat by

Bordeaux and called France ‘a s*** country’.

But Henry, who was a team-mate with Ibrahimovic at Barcelona, thinks French fans should cut the Swede some slack.

You ain’t doing Valdes any good, del Bosque slams van Gaal

S

PANISH manager Vicente del Bosque has hit out at Louis van Gaal’s decision to bench Victor Valdes.

Del Bosque said it was a shame to see the 33-yearold sat on the sidelines.

He admits if it weren’t for Van Gaal’s decision to keep him out of the team, then he would have made the squad.

He told Spanish radio station Cadena Cope: “Yes. I know that he is training. I try to look whether he is in

the United’s bench and I can see that he is currently a substitute.

Vicente del Bosque says he doesn’t think Victor Valdes is enjoying his time on the sidelines “I wish him to play because he has always had a sensational attitude with Spain.

“I would like him to enjoy his job [rather than being on the bench] because as he gets older it’s important he gets game time.”

Hazards laments de Bruyne’s Chelsea exit

E

DEN Hazard admits he was disappointed that Chelsea allowed Kevin de Bruyne to leave Stamford Bridge.

The Belgian midfielder, who is still only 23, headed off to Germany to join Bundesliga club Wolfsburg after Jose Mourinho decided he was surplus to requirements.

And now his compatriot Hazard says he would have liked De Bruyne to have remained in England: “He is a great player.

Mourinho decided to let him go and not play him.

“It was not my decision, even though I know very well that he could play at Chelsea because he has tremendous qualities.

SUNDAY Vanguard, MARCH 29, 2015

Swedish soccer team saved by last minute flight change

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HE lives of a Swedish soccer team scheduled to board the ill-fated Germanwings flight on

Tuesday were spared due to a last-minute change in plans.

Dalkurd FF soccer

team from Borleange was all set to take Germanwings Airbus A320 out of Barcelona to

the German city of Duesseldorf early Tuesday morning, according to the Agence FrancePresse.

Eagles battle Bafana Bafana in Mbombela Kick-off is at 2:30.pm

By Ben Efe

C

ONFIDENCE is low in the rank and file of the Super Eagles after losing 1-0 to visiting Cranes of Uganda last Wednesday at the Akwa Ibom International Stadium in Uyo. But as they prepare to take on South Africa’s Bafana Bafana this afternoon in Mbombela in the Eastern part of South Africa, the Eagles and their coaches are hoping to grind out a result that will massage their bruised egos.

After winning the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013, the Super Eagles seem to have been doing a backward dance, a development which saw them missing out at the 2015 tournament in Equatorial Guinea.

Perhaps, it is the tell tale of the crisis of confidence between the Nigeria Football Federation and coach Stephen Keshi. The flagging fortunes of the team meant that the dark days are not yet over.

However, the out come of this not so friendly match against the Bafana Bafana will give Nigerian fans a peep into the future of the team.

“I just hope we can come out of this game with flying colours. I believe in the squad and with the coaches we have I think we can make it happen,” said striker John Ogu. “These are the kind of games we need because they will help to build the

team and the confidence that the team is lacking right now. I think if we keep playing these sort of games before the AFCON qualifiers, it will be good for us,”added the player The South Africans on the other hand are set to compound issues for the Super Eagles, as they are determined to reduce the deficit of losses to the Nigerian team. Coach Ephraim Shakes Mashaba almost led the Bafana Bafana to a famous defeat of the Super Eagles during the AFCON qualifiers in Uyo. The Eagles rallied round to cancel two first half goals.

Shakes Mashaba’s men will now look to build on that result when they face the Super Eagles.

The Super Eagles however, have history on their side, having lost just one of their 11 encounters against South Africa.

“There is history between the two nations and a great rivalry,” Mashaba said.

“We want to win that match at all cost and we need South Africans to come in their large numbers, we need your support South Africa.

“In our recent matches against Nigeria we drew in both matches.”

TOUGH CALL... Reneilwe Letsholonyane of South Africa ® and Ogenyi Onazi of SOUTH AFRICA V NIGERIA - PREVIOUS MEETINGS Nigeria battle for ball possession during the 2013 Nelson Mandela Challenge match between South Africa and Nigeria at Moses 1994 World Cup qualifier, 10/10/1992, Lagos – Nigeria 4-0 Mabhida Stadium on August 14, 2013 in South Africa Durban, South Africa. The Eagles beat 1994 World Cup qualifier, 16/01/1993, Johannesburg – South Bafana Bafana 2-0.

Africa 0-0 Nigeria 2000 Afcon second round, 10/02/2000, Lagos – South Africa 0-2 Nigeria WENTY five-year-old Free State “Nigeria is a big footballing na- 2004 Afcon first round, 31/01/2004, Monastir – Nigeria 4-0 Stars man, Daniel Cardoso says tion, but with the team we have South Africa he expects to see the Bafana Bafana now, the likes of Ayanda Patosi, 2004 Friendly, 17/11/2004, Johannesburg – South Africa 2-1 overwhelm the Super Eagles in to- Lebogang Phiri, Andile Jali who all day’s international friendly billed for play overseas, and I am confident Nigeria 2010 World Cup/Afcon qualifier, 01/06/2008, Abuja – Nigeria Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit. we will do well,” Cardoso said.

2-0 South Africa 2010 World Cup/Afcon qualifier, 06/09/2008, Port Elizabeth CROSS WORD PUZZLE – South Africa 0-1 Nigeria DOWN ACROSS 2013 Friendly, 14/08/2013, Durban – South Africa 0-2 Nigeria 1.

Sample (5) 1. House of Reps Speaker (8) 2. Niger state town (4) 2014 Chan first round, 19/01/2014, Cape Town – Nigeria 3-1 5. Assistant (4) 3. Observe (5) 7. Praise (5) South Africa 4. Lecture (6) 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)

We can beat Eagles — Bafana star

T

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)

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING

See solution on page 49

Group D Georgia Scotland Rep of Ireland

v v v

Germany Gibraltar Poland

Group F N Ireland Romania Hungary

v v v

Finland 6pm Faroe Islands 6pm Greece 8.45pm

Group I Albania Portugal

v v

Armenia Serbia

6pm 6pm 8.45 pm

6pm 8.45pm

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