BusinessDay 15 April 2018

BUSINESS DAY
BDSUNDAY
DMO lists N100bn Sukuk as
Agbo consumption on the rise ??
global issuance hits $98bn
despite alleged health
implications
p 34. p.36
p. 42-43 p.
Sunday 15 April 2018 Vol 1, No. 213 N300
Market & Commodities Monitor
Brent Oil
5yr Bond
$70.61
-0.27
13.24%
Gold
10yr Bond
US 1,339.69
-0.10
13.51%
Buhari’s declaration:
What hope for the opposition?
Cocoa
US 2,524.00
inside
20yr Bond
-0.18
13.34%
Water shortages,
traffic jams, dirty
environment haunt
Apapa residents
CHUKS OLUIGBO & OWEDE AGBAJILEKE, Abuja
Disregarding series of criticisms and
warnings by some prominent Nigerians
that he should shelve his second
term presidential ambition and honourably
return to his native Daura
in Katsina State at the expiration of his tenure on
May 29, 2019, President Muhammadu Buhari on
Monday told the National Executive Committee
(NEC) of his party, the All Progressives Congress
(APC), that he intends to seek re-election in 2019.
Buhari’s defeat at
the poll will depend
on two major
factors: presenting a
credible alternative
candidate and
making the electoral
process free, fair
and credible
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former military
President Ibrahim Babangida, Emeritus Catholic Archbishop
of Lagos Anthony Cardinal Okogie, Nobel Laureate
Wole Soyinka, Archbishop Emmanuel Chukwuma of
Enugu Anglican Diocese, and a host of other prominent
Nigerians, while acknowledging Buhari’s constitutional
right to go for a second term, had on separate occasions
specifically asked the president to perish the idea of
seeking re-election in 2019 in order to save the country
from destruction.
But making his intention to seek re-election known to
p.4
p. 8
2019 and Tinubu’s
new calculations
p. 14-15
‘Receiving from
God does not
depend on any
man’
L-R: Tony Okpanachi, MD, Developent Bank of Nigeria; Patience Oniha, DG, Debt Management Office; Bode Agusto, founder, Bode Agusto & Co; Nike Akande, former president,
Lagos Chamber of Commercce and Industry; Kyari Bukar, chairman, Nigerian Economic Summit Group; Sam Amuka, publisher, Vanguard Newspapers; Issa Aremu, general
secretary, NUTGTWN; Opeyemi Agbaje, CEO, RTC Advisory Service, and Muda Yusuf, director general, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, at the Vanguard economic
discourse with the theme ‘Economy in Rebound: Pitfalls, Trajectories and Resetting’ at Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos on Friday.
Geniuses from unlikely quarters
p. 28
IDP students in brilliant performance in JAMB, SSCE
Idris Momoh, Benin
They are youths caught in the web of
insurgency in the North East. They
were severed from their parents
and loved ones as members of the
Islamist sect, Boko Haram, descended on
anything in sight, killing, maiming and burning
their houses.
See full story on Pages 24-25
Relive ugly experiences in Borno
This simply throws up the ugly reality that
defines life in the North Eastern part of Nigeria
where, for inexplicable reasons, kindreds,
communities and towns have been brutally
dismembered by rampaging insurgents, lead-
P. 5

C002D5556 Sunday 15 March 2018
2 BDSUNDAY
PhotoNews
L-R: Ganiyu Koledoye, immediate past president, National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria; Tony Agenmonmen,
president/chairman of Council, NIMN; Felix Ohiwerei, founding father of the institute, and Olufemi Oyewole, 2nd
vice president, NIMN, during a courtesy visit of the institute to Mr. Ohiwerei in Lagos.
L-R Juliet Ehimuan, Country Manager, Google Nigeria; Michel Puchercos, MD/CCEO, and Folashade Ambrose-
Medebem, director of communications, public affairs and sustainable development, both of Lafarge Africa Plc.
at the launch of Lafarge Africa Plc’s Blog and YouTube Channel in Ikoyi,
L-R: Bamigbaiye-Elatuyi Omotola, Marketing Manager Home and Hygiene, RB West Africa; Babatunde Ipaye,
Ogun State Commissioner for Health; Yusuff Quudus, Director for Public Health, Ogun State Ministry of Health,
and Olamide Adeyinka Ogun State Malaria Programme Officer, during a courtesy visit by Reckitt Benckiser to
Ogun State Ministry of Health on malaria prevention
L-R: Ayo Oritsejafor, Guest Speaker; Ibidun Ighodalo; Ituah Ighodalo, senior pastor, Trinity House;. Tolu Ighodalo-
Ojie, and Dare Ajayi during the cutting of the birthday cake of Pastor Ituah during the Word & Power Conference
of Trinity House that took place recently.
L-R: Abdulazeez Ismail, Area sales manager; Samuel Akinwoye, Regional medical detailing Manager; Ololade
Jesufemi, junior brand manager, Three Crowns Milk; Omolara Banjoko, senior brand manager, Three Crowns Milk;
Abdulfatah Adebayo, Regional sales manager, and Ehis Emokhare, Media Manager, all of frieslandCampina wamco.
L-R: Justin Zhang, Chief Executive Officer, StarTimes Nigeria; Erasmus Morah, Country Director, The Joint UN
Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and Tunde Aina, Chief Operating Officer, StarTimes Nigeria, during a courtesy
call to eradicate HIV/AIDS completely in Nigeria and Africa at the UNAIDS office in Abuja recently.
L-R, Managing Director, Nigerian Bottling Company Limited, Mr. George Polymenakos; Winner of the Coca-Cola
‘Score A Trip To Russia 2018 Promo’, Benjamin Muo; Legal, Public Affairs and Communication Director, Nigerian
Bottling Company Limited, Mrs. Sade Morgan and Marketing Director, Nigerian Bottling Company, Sergio Vieira
during the ticket presentation to winners of the Coca-Cola Score A Trip To Russia Promo held in Lagos, recently.
L-R: Tony Okpanachi, Managing Director/CEO, Development Bank of Nigeria; Patience Oniha, Director General,
Debt Management Office; Bode Agusto, founder, Bode Agusto & Co/ keynote speaker; Kyari Bukar, chairman,
Nigerian Economic summit Group (NESG), and Sam Amuka, chairman/publisher, Vanguard Newspapers, at the
Vanguard economic discourse in Lagos yesterday.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
BD SUNDAY 3

C002D5556 Sunday 15 April 2018
4 BDSUNDAY
Cover
Buhari’s declaration: What hope for...
Continued from page
his party NEC on Monday, Buhari
said, “People have been asking
me to declare for re-election and
some have been asking me when I
am going to declare. I want to give
the NEC the honour to be the first
to hear it. I have decided to contest
the 2019 elections.”
While the president’s declaration
has put an end to months of speculation
regarding his political future,
pundits are already forecasting
what this means for the polity and
the opposition.
Although political campaigns are
due to begin from November 18 for
the February 16, 2019 presidential
election, according to the Independent
National Electoral Commission
(INEC) timetable, observers
say the race for the presidency
may have commenced in earnest
with Buhari’s declaration, pushing
governance to the backseat.
Political commentators contend
that Buhari’s emergence as standard
bearer of the ruling party in
the 2019 election is fait accompli.
They argue that the announcement
of his intention to run may
have put paid to the ambitions of
other prospective presidential
aspirants in the APC, including Senate
President Bukola Saraki, Aminu
Tambuwal, Sokoto State governor
and former Speaker of the House of
Representatives, as well as Rabiu
Kwankwaso, a former governor of
Kano State and senator representing
Kano Central.
The commentators hinge this
viewpoint on the belief that what
matters to political parties is winning
elections and as such, they
always try to put their best foot
forward. They believe that in spite
of the failures of the present administration
and the general discontent
in the country, when it comes to
chances of winning elections, Buhari
for now remains APC’s surest
bet. To them, therefore, the 2019
presidential battle is Buhari versus
the opposition.
In the meantime, some key figures
in the ruling APC are basking in
the euphoria of Buhari’s declaration
for second term, saying it signifies
the final nail in the coffin of the opposition
in the country.
Rochas Okorocha, Imo State
governor and chairman of the
Progressive Governors’ Forum,
believes the president’s declaration
would “reduce the noise of
the opposition and take care of the
idiosyncrasies of certain elements
in the system”.
Okorocha claimed that Buhari
has done well to deserve a second
tenure, expressing optimism that
the president would garner more
votes in 2019 than he did in 2015
because, according to him, most
Nigerians, including people of the
South-East, had seen that Buhari
meant well for the nation and the
citizenry. “The antenna of the opposition
in the country will finally
be lowered when the campaigns
begin and the party will be showing
Nigerians its achievements in the
states under its control and at the
federal level,” the governor said in a
statement signed by Sam Onwuemeodo,
his chief press secretary.
Calling Buhari’s bluff
But top shots in the major opposition
People’s Democratic Party
(PDP) as well as other political parties
claim they had always expected
that Buhari would declare for a
second term.
For instance, Ahmed Makarfi,
immediate past chairman of PDP
National Caretaker Committee,
said Buhari’s declaration of interest
to contest in the 2019 presidential
election was no news to Nigerians.
As far as the PDP was concerned, he
said, expectations had always been
that Buhari would run.
“For me, it should be news only if
the announcement had been that
he will not seek re-election. For the
PDP, our expectations have always
been that he will run; so, nothing
changes in our resolve to do the
needful. What the country needs
is mature, issues-based clean contest,”
Makarfi said.
Kola Ologbondiyan, PDP national
publicity secretary, while answering
questions on Channels TV’s Sunrise
Daily on Wednesday, claimed that
the mammoth crowd that attended
the PDP rallies in Jigawa and Katsina
States must have pushed the president
to make a sudden, desperate
declaration to run for a second term.
“In our political history, particularly
in the modern political history
since 1999 till date, President Muhammadu
Buhari is the first incumbent
president that will declare a
second-term interest one clear year
ahead of the election,” he said.
He, however, said the PDP was
not bothered whether or not Buhari
emerges as the APC candidate at
the primaries, saying the opposition
party was ever ready to reclaim
power from the APC.
Chekwas Okorie, national chairman,
United Progressives Party
(UPP) and the party’s presidential
candidate in the 2015 elections,
believes that given the socio-economic
condition of Nigerians,
beating Buhari in 2019 would be a
walkover.
For Yunusa Tanko, national chairman,
National Conscience Party
(NCP), Buhari’s early expression
of interest to seek re-election next
year would not stop the NCP from
trouncing him in 2019 as, according
to him, “We are fully prepared to
run against him.”
What opposition should do
Political analysts, however, say
rather call Buhari’s bluff without
putting any concrete measures on
ground to confront the sitting president,
the opposition parties should
focus on putting their houses in
order so as to be able to present a
formidable force that can not only
take on but also overcome the
Buhari challenge in 2019.
If he eventually gets his party’s
ticket, Buhari, who would officially
be 76 next year, is expected to slug
it out with candidates of the main
opposition PDP and 60 other political
parties.
The president’s declaration,
coming as suddenly as it did, the
analysts say, should put enormous
pressures on the opposition parties
to quickly go back to the drawing
board and come up with winning
strategies. They foresee difficult
times ahead for the PDP and other
parties in the opposition unless
they expedite action on forming
political understanding, alliances
or even mergers ahead of 2019.
They say the opposition can also
exploit the discontent in the land
Buhari
caused by insecurity (especially the
menace of armed herdsmen), the
half-hearted anti-corruption fight,
the poor state of the economy and
massive infrastructure deficit by
telling Nigerians how they would
do better.
There are also those who believe
that Buhari’s early declaration
of interest may be a blessing in
disguise for the opposition as having
early knowledge of the APC’s
flag-bearer puts the parties in a
good stead to know what they
are up against and so choose their
candidates wisely.
To many analysts, Buhari’s defeat
at the poll will depend on two
major factors: presenting a credible
alternative candidate and making
the electoral process free, fair and
credible.
Lesson notes for PDP
Political analysts have prescribed
three strategies for the
PDP to regain the confidence of
Nigerians ahead of the election.
They include shunning imposition
and impunity, picking a credible
presidential candidate and forming
an alliance with other political
parties to defeat the incumbent
president.
Currently, presidential aspirants
in the PDP include former
Vice President Atiku Abubakar,
Gombe State Governor Ibrahim
Dankwambo, former Jigawa State
Governor Sule Lamido, his Kano,
Sokoto and Kaduna counterparts
Ibrahim Shekarau, Attahiru Bafarawa
and Ahmed Makarfi, respectively,
as well as Ekiti State
Governor Ayo Fayose, who has
insisted on contesting despite that
the party has zoned the slot to the
North. Among the pack, Taiye Odewale,
a political analyst, believes
that only Atiku can give Buhari a
run for his money in the next presidential
election because, unlike
other contestants, the former vice
president already has massive political
structure across the country.
Odewale also dismissed
Obasanjo’s assertion that Nigerians
should reject the two main
political parties, insisting that as
it stands, only APC and PDP have
the structures to dominate the
Nigerian political space.
“Based on what is on ground,
there is no other party. The two
main parties that we have now are
the ruling APC and the main opposition
PDP. And now that Buhari
as a sitting president has declared
his intention to run for second
term, that means that the possibility
of any other person emerging
as candidate of the party is zero
because just like what Jonathan
and Obasanjo did when PDP was
in power, Buhari will get the ticket
of his party,” Odewale said in an
interview with BDSUNDAY.
“Only PDP will give Buhari the
required contest. And that is the
reason why the party needs to sit
down properly and calculate on
what type of person they can push
forward to give Buhari a run for his
incumbency factor.
“Of all the people that have
signified their intention in PDP, it
is only Atiku Abubakar I see as a
formidable challenger because he
had served as vice president for
eight years at the beginning of this
democracy. He is a well-known
political figure across the length
and breadth of this country. And
he is from the other zone of the
core North, the North-East. Buhari
is from the North-West. So, if you
pick somebody like Atiku from
North-East, it will weaken Buhari’s
strength in that area and also tackle
him in the North-Central axis while
South is all for Atiku’s taking. If they
[PDP] pick any other candidate, it
means they will give Buhari an easy
ride,” he said.
Odewale also disagreed with
former President Goodluck Jonathan
and ex-military President
Babangida, who advocated for
younger presidential candidate for
the main opposition party.
To him, at age 71, Atiku remains
vibrant and agile in addition to
having political structures across
the country, stressing that despite
being much younger, 56-year-old
Dankwambo is unpopular outside
Gombe State.
“If they say PDP should field a
young candidate, that should have
been good if you view the age factor.
But the young candidate I see
PDP bringing is Dankwambo, the
sitting governor of Gombe, not
even Tambuwal because he is from
the same North-West zone with
Buhari. The North-West will not
drop Buhari for any other person
from that zone.
“So, Dankwambo is from the
same zone with Atiku. But Dankwambo
outside Gombe is not
known elsewhere. It will create a
problem of marketing a product.
Atiku is already known. Yes, he is of
age but he is vibrant. He is not like a
Buhari that is old and incapacitated
health-wise. To me, Atiku is the best
bet for the party,” he said.
But some analysts have raised
some important questions that
may decide PDP’s fate in 2019. They
are asking whether Nigerians will
accept PDP’s apologies and give
it a second chance; how the party
will convince Nigerians that the
mistakes of 1999-2015 would not
be repeated; whether it would even
survive the politics of presidential
nomination; whether Nigerians
would prefer APC with its endless
excuses, and whether the citizens
are ready to try a ‘Third Force’ to
rescue the country from the present
political and socio-economic crises.
Whither SDP?
Before now, the news of the
Social Democratic Party (SDP) repositioning
itself had raised hopes
that Nigerians may at last have
a choice from the two dominant
political parties in the country, the
ruling APC and the major opposition
PDP.
In an open letter to President
Buhari in January, former President
Obasanjo had also mooted the idea
of forming a movement, a ‘Third
Force’, in the political circle “that
will drive Nigeria up and forward”
and lead Nigerians out of the present
excruciating situation.
The repositioning of SDP – particularly
the movement into the
party by Jerry Gana, a former Minister
of Information and National
Orientation, Tunde Adeniran, a
former Minister of Education and
one-time Nigerian Ambassador to
Germany, and Godsday Orubebe,
a former Minister of Niger Delta
Affairs – had seen the polity brimming
with hope that here, at last, is
the “nubile beauty” to be courted
by all and sundry ahead of the 2019
general elections.
There were also expectations
that apart from the People’s Redemption
Party (PRP) and People’s
Salvation Party (PSP) which
teamed up with the SDP to form a
formidable platform, more people
would join the SDP from other political
parties and platforms, with insinuations
that the Coalition for Nigeria
Movement (CNM), inspired
by former President Obasanjo, was
in talks with the party.
As it is, it appears the SDP has
run out of steam as no new thing
seems to be happening in the party,
leaving Nigerians to wonder what
has gone wrong.
Nigerians are also worried that
10 months to the elections, they
are yet to see any formidable candidate
who can defeat incumbent
President Buhari despite what appears
to be a consensus that Buhari
must be voted out in 2019. Many
are asking of the whereabouts of
groups like the Nigerian Intervention
Movement (NIM) and the
Coalition for Nigeria Movement
(CNM) being tipped as the ‘Third
Force’ now that Buhari has declared.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY
5
News
Osinbajo launches Abia tele-health initiative
…Foresees improved life expectancy in state
UDOKA AGWU, Umuahia
Yemi Osibanjo,
vice president,
has officially
launched the
Abia State telehealth
initiative and commended
the initiative which
he said would give people
access to affordable healthcare
and enhance universal
health coverage.
While launching the
programme at the International
Conference Centre,
Umuahia, the vice president
expressed the support of
the Federal Government to
the programme and others
geared towards improving
the lives of the people.
“This is a giant leap forward
in terms of universal
coverage for the people of
Abia State. That is why I’m
here today not just to witness
but to fully align with
the on-going determination
of Governor Ikpeazu to
make a positive mark in the
lives of Abians,” he said.
He described the project
as exciting “because it
is leveraging on available
technology- in this case, the
mobile phone to deliver affordable
healthcare to the
people of the state”.
“Abia State stands out
within and outside Nigeria
as a forward-looking,
people-centered state, one
that is open with new ideas
CCC unveils plan to assist Nigerian firms export
products to China, African countries
TUNDE ADENIYI, Abuja
China Chamber
of Commerce
(CCC) has unveiled
plans that
would aid exportation of
agricultural products produced
by Nigeria to China,
other African countries and
the world at large.
Ye Shuijin, CCC President
gave the assurance in
Abuja this while presenting
multi-million naira worth of
equipment including: Desktop
and Laptop Computers,
Printers, Projectors and Projector
Screens to Nigerian
Office for Trade Negotiations
(NOTN), in Abuja.
Shuijin who commended
Nigerian Government for
providing enabling investment
environment for Chinese
firms operating in the
country, explained that the
Chamber’s main objective
was to make their products
available for Nigerians to
Osinbajo
experience and create jobs
in Nigeria.
He observed that the Chinese
firms had benefited
greatly from the Nigeria and
China trade relationships for
many years, adding that most
Chinese firms in Nigeria has
operated for over 10 years
while some had successfully
operated for over 30 years.
The Chamber’s President
disclosed that China was
looking for opportunity to assist
local Nigerian companies
Ye Shuijin, CCC President
and initiatives. This is a commendable
initiative indeed
as it will cut the time spent
in search of healthcare,”
Osinbajo said.
Osinbajo stated that one
of the most readily available
forms of technology in Nigeria
today is mobile phones
and stated that with the telehealth
support also known
as dial a doctor initiative,
people can now through a
dedicated phone line access
medi-care and support from
doctors who can even communicate
in local languages.
Governor Okezie Ikpeazu
in his speech said that telehealth
was the future of
healthcare in Nigeria and further
explained that people
could now leverage on the
tele-density in Nigeria to
drive trade and commerce,
sales, distribution of goods
and services and also healthcare
delivery.
“With this initiative I am
confident that we are going
to do something about life
expectancy in Abia State in
a positive way because it is
my desire that by 2019 we
will drive life expectancy
in Abia State above the national
average. We can do it.
I think with your support, we
to produce and process agricultural
products for export
to china, other African countries
and the world at large.
“The Nigerian government
has provided an enabling
environment for Chinese
investors in the country
to succeed through good
investment environment and
policies. Nigeria and China
can effectively promote their
export capacity through their
trade policies.
“It is in appreciation of the
relationship that we have
thought it necessary to make
this visit and donations. We
appreciate and understand
the strategic importance of
the trade relations between
Nigeria and China,” he said.
The companies that undertook
the visit and donations
include the CGC Nigeria
Limited, CCECC Nigeria
Limited, Power China Nigeria
Ltd, China Harbour Nigeria
Ltd, Huwai Tech and Power
China Ltd.
In his remarks, Chiedu
can achieve it,” he said.
The governor maintained
that a lot of benefits come
with the initiative including
the maintenance of the
confidentiality of the patient.
“So today, you can sit in
the comfort of your bedroom
and get expert advice
from a medical practitioner
and prescriptions will be
sent to you through sms.
You can also be referred to
the nearest primary health
center which is visible to
the doctor in the call center,”
he said.
Earlier, the Minister of
Health, Isaac Adewole represented
by the Chief Medical
Director of the Federal
Medical Centre, Umuahia,
Chukwu Abali stated that the
initiative would broaden access
to healthcare of Abians
and promised to collaborate
with the state.
Also, the Commissioner
for Health, John Ahukanna
described the tele initiative
as a strategy to widen access
to healthcare, maintaining
that it would capture adolescents
and young ones and
wipe out self medication.
The chairman, Senate
committee on healthcare
and communicable diseases,
MAO Ohuabunwa applauded
the initiative which
according to him would save
lives and thanked Abia Governor
for having the will to
do it.
Osakwe, NOTN director
General noted that the
bilateral trade relationship
between Nigeria and
China would enable Nigeria
to accelerate growth
and to create jobs for all
Nigerians.
“The cooperation between
the two countries can
be deepened with the many
initiatives of the Chinese
government and some of the
institutions being set up.
Osakwe called on the
chamber to begin to develop
a global value chain that
would bring about a Chinese-
Nigerian company in the next
few years.
“I would like us to begin
to build value chain because
value chains are absolutely
important to Nigeria.
“China as one of the
world’s largest economy
has global reach and in some
major aspect should begin to
design and construct as many
value chains as possible,”
he said.
U.S. Consulate, FSD Academy partner to train
121 emerging entrepreneurs in Port Harcourt
SEYI JOHN SALAU
The United States
(U.S.) Consulate
General Lagos in
collaboration with
Field of Skills and Dreams
(FSD) Academy recently
concluded the second edition
of the Conference for
Emerging Entrepreneurs, a
scheme aimed at building
capacity of young entrepreneurs
held in Port Harcourt,
the Rivers State capital.
John Bray, U.S. Consul
General, in his welcome remarks
said the primary goal
of the U.S. Mission Nigeria
is to support Nigeria’s
economic development.
According to him, the U.S.
Department of State supports
entrepreneurs all over
the world through training
and mentoring, while also
working with governments
to create enabling environments
and entrepreneurial
cultures.
“There is growing evidence
that entrepreneurs
the world over are the
drivers of job growth. The
United States government
is firmly convinced that in
addition to creating jobs
and expanding economic
opportunities, entrepreneurship
contributes to political
stability and a vibrant
Geniuses from
unlikely ...
Continued from Page 1
ing to family dislocation and
disruption in social, economic
and academic activities in
an already impoverished and
backward region perpetually
in catch up race with the
rest of Nigeria.
But, by a stroke of luck
and divine intervention,
these youths were taken
away, to far away Edo State,
precisely to the Internally
Displaced Persons’ (IDPs)
camp in Ohogua. Today,
they have been able to complete
their secondary school
education and are ready to
proceed to the university.
Their scores in the recently
released 2018 Unified Tertiary
Matriculation Examination
results (UTME) by the
Joint Admission and Matriculation
Board (JAMB) are
a testimonial that there is,
indeed, something about the
environment which, the educationist
explains, moulds
and produces character.
These youths, to whom
fate has given a broad smile,
tell their story of travails,
their journey to the IDPs
camp, their brilliant performance
in their examinations
and their ambition. Turn to
pages---, read and do have a
feel of life on the other side.
civil society,” Bray said.
The Conference was
organised with a view to
equipping the entrepreneurs
with the requisite skills and
entrepreneurial know-how
to enhance their success in
the business world. The first
edition was held in Lagos in
March 2017.
One hundred and twenty
one (121) budding Nigerian
entrepreneurs participated
in the two-day workshop.
The budding entrepreneurs
selected from across Nigeria,
were trained on how to
transform their ideas into
practical business plans,
manage business risks, navigate
difficult moments, ways
to seek capital, and develop
partnerships to help their
businesses grow.
U.S. Consul General
was joined by Rivers State
Deputy Governor, Ipalibo
Harry Banigo, and Ndowa
Lale, Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Port Harcourt.
While some leading business
leaders including Tonye
Cole, Sahara Group Co-
Founder, Stella Okoli, CEO
Emzor Pharmaceutical, Iyin
Aboyeji, Andela Co-Founder,
Zizi Cardow, award-winning
designer and senior executives
of prominent commercial
banks mentored
and trained the participating
young entrepreneurs.
GTBank Food and
Drink Fair 2018 set
for April 29
SEYI JOHN SALAU
The Guarantee Trust
Bank (GTBank)
annual Food and
Drink fair has been
slated for 29 April to 1 May.
The third edition of the
GTBank Food and Drink
Fair will bring together small
businesses in Nigeria’s food
sector, more than a dozen
international chefs and food
experts, and thousands of
food lovers to create the
biggest food experience in
Africa.
The fair is designed
to celebrate Nigeria’s
vibrant food culture whilst
promoting enterprise in
the small business sector
of the food industry. The
3-day event is free for all to
attend and provides small
businesses with a free and
vibrant platform to connect
with a wider segment of
their target markets as well
as experts in their business
fields.
Segun Agbaje, MD/CEO
Guaranty Trust Bank plc,
while commenting on this
year’s edition of the fair said
GTBank had consistently
played a leading role in
Africa’s banking industry.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
6 BDSUNDAY
News
Tech4Dev, Microsoft collaborate to train
500,000 youth on digital skills
Josephine Okojie
Tech4dev and Microsoft
have partnered
to train over
500,000 youths on
digital skills through its Basic
Digital Education Initiative
(BDEI).
In a statement made available
to BusinessDay, Joel
Ogunsola, executive director,
Tech4Dev said that the
initiative is an experimental
learning program that is supported
by Microsoft Nigeria
to train young individuals
in primary, secondary and
tertiary institutions on foundational
digital skills.
Ogunsola noted that the
move have become imperative
in order to equip young
minds with the requisite skills
for the 21st century.
“We are making ample
investment in digital skills
education over the decade
through support from Microsoft
Philanthropy to train
the next generation of young
individuals looking to be part
of the fourth industrial revolution
as well as adults who
very much need the skills to
fully benefit from new opportunities
being presented
by the fourth industrial revolution,”
he said.
He noted that the initiative
was a result of Tech4Dev and
Microsoft’s mission to solve
the world’s biggest problems
through technology.
TV series urges society to show
sympathy to infertile women
The next episode of
the TV drama series,
Professor Johnbull,
sponsored by telecommunications
company,
Globacom, preaches tolerance
for women grappling
with infertility issues in their
marriages.
Women encountering conception
challenges in their
marriages are often derided
by their in-laws in Nigeria and
pressured into seeking orthodox
and unorthodox means
to surmount their challenge.
The episode, which goes
on air on Sunday, will look at
all the angles related to the issue
of infertility. The episode
is entitled Childless Wives
and features all the regular
stars, including Professor
Johnbull, played by Kanayo
O. Kanayo, his daughter,
Elizabeth, played by Queen
Okoye, and Olaniyi, played
by Yomi Fash-Lanso, among
others. The episode also features
some new faces, who
put up sterling performances.
Childless Wives explores
some of the emotional anguish
that women caught in
the infertility web go through.
Also speaking during the
training event, Akin Banuso,
general manager, Microsoft
Nigeria said, “in a world
where digital skills are fundamental
to success in so
many environments, leaving
people in the dark about this
major part of their world
amounts to an unacceptable
gap in their education. We
believe technology should
be an equalising force in the
world—inclusive, not divisive.”
“So, we are investing our
greatest assets—our technology,
grants, people, and
voice—to advance a more
equitable world where the
benefits of technology are
accessible to everyone,”
Banuso said. In his key
note speech, Olusegun
Mimiko, former governor
of Ondo State encouraged
the younger generation
to join the advocacy and
push for democratization
of education at all levels.
He further advocated for
more female participation
in tech fields.
“It’s a time of intellectual
domination. Women have
begun to dominate, and they
should get more involved,”
Mimiko said.
“Nigerians have already
missed out on the first second
and third revolution. The
fourth revolution has started
and has begun to influence
the way we live and relate
with each other,” he said.
It would be interesting to see
how Professor Johnbull will
handle the issue brought to
him in this regard. He also
has interesting nuggets for
viewers on the general issues
of love, relationships and
fertility.
Globacom said in a
statement issued from its
headquarters in Lagos that,
“Childless Wives goes beyond
the issue of infertility
to expose the reasons why
‘child-harvesting’ centres,
otherwise known as baby
factories, exist and the negative
roles of in-laws in marriages
that are challenged
by infertility”.
Catch the episode on
DSTV Africa Magic Family
and GOTV Channel 2 at 6
p.m. on Sunday with repeat
broadcast on Thursday at
9.30 p.m. on the TV channels,
It will also be broadcast on
NTA Network, NTA International
on DSTV channel
251 and NTA on StarTimes
at 8.30 p.m. on Tuesday and
Friday, while Anambra Broadcasting
Service will air it at
8.30 p.m. on Wednesday and
Saturday.
Shippers Council, Oyo govt, Chinese
investors collaborate N72bn dry port project
Akinremi Feyisipo, Ibadan
The Nigerian Shippers’
Council
has entered into
partnership with
the Oyo State
Government to establish a
$200million (N72billion)
modern dry port, as well as a
truck transit park in the state,
in conjunction with some
Chinese investors.
A Memorandum of Understanding
to develop the
Ibadan dry port project was
signed few days ago.
While, the proposed park
alone would gulp N4.8billion,
through the Public-Private-
Partnership (PPP).
When completed, the park
would have hotels, motels,
resident doctors, restaurants,
shopping mall, commercial
banks, among other
facilities for the convenience
of transporters.
The Executive Secretary/
Chief Executive Officer of
the council, Hassan Bello
who disclosed this during a
visit the Governor Abiola Ajimobi,
in Ibadan said because
of the strategic importance
of Ibadan, we have had inquiries
from a serious Chinese
investor for the project.
Bello, therefore, solicited
the release of 60,000 hectares
for the dry port and
another 35,000 hectares
along the Oyo-Ibadan road
for the proposed park, which,
he said, would improve the
economic development of
the state and the nation in
general. He said: “We are
here because Oyo State is
critical to development in
transportation in Nigeria.
Since 2006 the Federal Government
had taken a decision
to establish inland port in the
six geo-political zones of the
country, of which Oyo State
is important. We have others
in Abia, Jos, Kano, Maiduguri
and Funtua.
“What we are looking for
from the state government
is to have, along the railway
Boko Haram insurgency: Over 1,000 children
kidnapped in 4 years, says UNICEF
MICHEAL ANI with agency
More than 1,000
children have
been abducted
by the Boko
Haram terror group in northeastern
Nigeria since 2013,
the United Nation Children
Fund said in a Friday report
as the country prepares to
make the fourth anniversary
of the Chibok abductions on
April 14, 2014.
“Since 2013, more than
1000 children have been
abducted by Boko Haram
The Chibok abduction
sparked global outrage and
reignited the fight against the
ISIS-aligned terrorist group.
Some of the girls were finally
freed three years later,
following negotiation talks
between the Nigerian government
and Boko Haram.
But more than 100 of them
remain in captivity.
The pains also inflicted by
the Niger-delta, where oil
pipe lines were vandalized,
sending oil production to
a decade low of 1.2 million
barrel and making Africa’s
largest economy go into its
first recession since 25 years.
Also mentioning, the February
19th Dapchi attack in
Yobe State where some 110
school girls were kidnapped.
The recent attack on a
school in Dapchi in which
five girls lost their lives is
just the latest indication that
there are few safe spaces left
for children in the northeast.
Not even schools are spared
from violence.
“These repeated attacks
against children in schools
are unconscionable,” UNI-
CEF Representative in Nigeria
Mohamed Malick Fall said.
line that is currently ongoing,
a 60,000 hectares of land to
develop a modern dry port,
while the transport transit
park will require 35,000 hectares
of land.”
Enumerating the advantages
of the modern dry
port project, he said it would
provide job opportunity for
10,000 people, adding that
the truck transits park would
equally generate 25,000 jobs.
ack-Rich Tein Jr,. founder/president of Belemaoil, with F.John Bray, US Consul-General in Lagos, when the C-G
led a delegation to the head office of Belemaoil Nigeria Limited in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, recently.
in north-eastern Nigeria, including
276 girls taken from
their secondary school in the
town of Chibok in 2014,” the
statement said.
Nigeria over the last few
years has been hammered by
several insurgent attacks, the
most popular of the attack
that draws global outrage
and condemnation from international
agencies is the
incident that occur on the
1st of April 2014, when the
said Islamist group (Boko
Haram) kidnapped over 276
girls within the ages of 15-17
years in Chibok.
“Children have the right
to education and protection,
and the classroom must be
a place where they are safe
from harm.” he added.
The UN agency explained
that since the conflict started
in north-eastern Nigeria
nearly nine years ago, at
least 2,295 teachers have
been killed and more than
1,400 schools have been
destroyed. Most of these
schools have not reopened
because of extensive damage
or on-going insecurity.
The agency further acknowledged
that the Nigerian
authorities have made
a commitment to make
schools safer and more resilient
to attack, and promised
to stand with the country to
implement the Safe Schools
Declaration, by cooperating
more with the military force
and ensuring more protection
for schools and universities
from violence from the
dreaded Islamic group Boko
Haram.
“UNICEF is appealing for
an end to attacks on schools
and all grave violations of
children’s rights,” the statement
added.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY
7
News
Abia governor urges corps members to be
employers from acquired skills
UDOKA AGWU, Umuahia
Go v e r n o r
Okezie Ikpeazu
of Abia State
has enjoined
2034 Batch “A”
Stream 1 Corps members
deployed to the state to build
on the entrepreneurial skills
they have acquired during
their service to become future
employers of labour.
Ikpeazu stated this at
Umuahia Township Stadium
during the passing out parade
of 2034 corps members who
have successfully completed
their service.
“Your active participation
in the youth corps programme
during the one year
service has afforded most
Ikpeazu
of you the opportunity to
acquire various human capacity
building skills, through
the various skills acquisition
and entrepreneurship programmes
organised for you
by the scheme. I therefore,
urge you to build on what
you have learnt to become
future employers of labour,”
Ikpeazu said.
The governor, represented
by Ikechukwu Anyatonwu,
commissioner for
Youth Development and
Chairman, NYSC state Governing
Board, commended
the managers of the scheme
for their continued efforts at
cementing sustained bonds
among youths for systematic
building of a strong, united
and better nation.
He urged the corps members
not to be in a hurry to
leave the state for Abia is
home away from home.
“with your knowledge in
skills acquisition and Entrepreneurship
Development,
I encourage you to explore
the business environment
in Aba, (the Japan of Africa),
and assure you that you will
not regret it,” the Governor
enthused.
Speaking earlier, Francesca
Ifon, the State Coordinator
of NYSC, noted the members
passing out had performed
creditably and thus deserved
the honour given to them.
She said that their remarkable
achievements in their
places of Primary Assignment
as well as in areas of Community
Development Services
were eloquent testimonies.
The coordinator stated
that while some corps members
who distinguished themselves
during the service
would be given commendation
certificates, a few others
who contravened the rules
and regulations of NYSC
would be punished.
Reigners Bible Church collapse and Akwa Ibom government White Paper
ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo
Tragedy struck on a
Sunday morning in
Uyo as hundreds
of worshippers and
dignitaries gathered for the
“bishopric consecration”
of the General Overseer
and founder of the Reigners
Bible church who was
already an “apostle” but was
to be elevated to the enviable
rank of a bishop.
It was on December 10,
2016, the day many would
have wished never was
when the roof of the church
building which was still under
construction caved in
with the iron rods and fabricated
steel tumbling down
within a split second, killing
an undisclosed number of
worshipers who came for
the programme.
It was tragedy in the
“house of God” and it happened
on a day set aside for
worship. Governor Udom
Emmanuel with members
of state executive council
was among the dignitaries
but he was lucky to escape
unhurt but the commissioner
for information and
strategy, Charles Udoh who
had a broken skull was not
Community inaugurates 35-man vigilante squad
UDOKA AGWU, Umuahia
Uturu Community in
Isuikwuato Local
government Area
of Abia state has inaugurated
a 35-man Vigilante
squad of the community
to checkmate the activities
criminals.
Akaeme Emmanuel,
the president-general of
Uturu Development Association,
disclosed that
the reason for the inauguration
stemmed from the
fact that the community
hosts two tertiary institutions,
Abia State University
and Gregory University, a
petro chemical industry
so lucky. Ekerete Udoh,
the chief press secretary to
governor suffered a broken
angle and sought medical
attention abroad as a result
of the accident.
According to the state
government, 30 persons lost
their lives in the incident but
independent sources from
hospitals in the state claim
more than 50 people died.
To say that the entire city
was thrown into despondency
and a sorrowful mood
because what was expected
to be a joyous moment and
a celebration of a new rank
and position turned into
mourning with tears flowing
freely is to say the least.
According to eyewitnesses,
among those who died
were students from nearby
institutions of higher learning
who were invited to the
event while others who may
have attended the event
privately and lost their lives
have not been accounted
for.
The good news however,
is that at the time of the accident,
the Ibom multispecialty
hospital was up and
running with several consultants
from many parts of the
world running the health facility.
According to Dominic
Ukpong, consultants had to
be brought in from Teaching
hospitals across the country
to help in treating the injured
and in saving lives. Though
among others, noting that
with community hosting
people from all walks of life,
there was every tendency
that crimes such as armed
robbery, cultism, rape and
other social ills would be on
the increase.
He hinted that before now
the group did not register and
the squad did not carry gun
the governor was spared the
trauma of being killed when
the building collapsed, Ukpong
said he hurriedly came
back to the scene and was
directing the rescue operations
and directed construction
firms with equipment to
help in clearing the rods and
supervised the operation of
ambulance services.
“Credit must go to the
governor, though he is another
a medical person, he
was able to withstand the
sight of the tragic incident
and supervised the rescue
operations,” Ukpong
said.
The founder of the church,
Akan Weeks, a man in his
early forties who was arguably
at the centre of the incident
was said to have gone
ahead with the consecration
few days after at a different
location, though this cannot
be independent verified.
Soon after the incident,
the state government raised
a judicial commission of inquiry
to unravel the remote
and immediate causes of
the incident with allegations
that some officials of the
church were being shielded
by the state government, an
allegation it denied.
but other weapons to patrol
the entire community and its
environs.
John Akuche (Assistant
commissioner of Police), the
Area Commander in-charge
of Ohafia, while inaugurating
the squad reminded members
that the job they had
undertaken was a voluntary
one and also not a mean task.
Reps probe alleged unlawful detention of
President Jonathan’s security adviser, others
KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja
The House of Representatives
has
said it would investigate
allegations
of alleged
unlawful detention of some
Nigerians including former
National Security Adviser
(NSA), Sambo Dasuki and
Yunusa Adamu Dangwani,
a Kano State-based renowned
consultant Neurologist
by Department of
State Services (DSS).
Dasuki was arrested and
detained in the past two
years over alleged extra
budgetary spending worth
N643.8 billion and $2.2 billion
foreign component of
the arms procurement fund
under former President
Goodluck Jonathan.
The House resolution
was passed on response to
a motion titled: ‘Abuse of
the fundamental rights provisions
of Constitution of
the Federal Republic of Nigeria,
1999 (as amended)
by the DSS,’ sponsored by
Aliyu Madaki (APC-Kano).
In his lead debate, Madaki
alleged that Dangwani
who was arrested and detained
at the DSS headquarters
in Abuja, condemned
his denial to his family and
lawyer.
Chapman Happy Hour courts consumers
with “Refreshment Naija Style”
STEPHEN ONYEKWELU
Chapman Happy
Hour by Chivita is
gaining presence
in the minds of
consumers across Nigeria,
who now consider the drink
a necessary feature of daily
life, turning their every moment
into special occasions.
Its infusion of Nigerian
culture and style in a refreshing
mix resonates with
what consumers appreciate
as complementing their authentic
Naija experiences;
keep them satisfied and
coming back for more. Little
wonder the drink takes
pride in offering ultimate
“Refreshment Naija Style”.
Craved for its burst of refreshment,
Chapman Happy
Hour by Chivita comes
in handy packs which make
it convenient for consumers
with preference for a readily
available chapman drink.
Being an indigenous drinks,
it contains a blend of fruits
and offers a refreshing way
for consumers to enjoy their
favourite chapman drink.
Yewande Busayo, a boutique
owner, stated that she
was introduced to Chapman
Happy Hour by Chivita
“The House is disturbed
that the arrest and eventual
detention of Dangwani has
adversely affected his reputation
as a good citizen of
Nigeria and contravenes
Section 17 of the 1999 institution
which provides
thus: the state social order
is founded on ideals of freedom,
equality and justice.
“In furtherance of the
social order every citizen
shall have equality of rights,
obligations and opportunities
before the law. The
sanctity of human person
shall be recognised and
human dignity shall be
maintained and enhanced;
government actions shall
be humane,” he noted.
The Kano lawmaker also
decried the DSS failure to
charge Dangwani to court,
thereby offending his personal
liberty, contrary to
sections 35(4 & 5) and
36(5) of the 1999 constitution,
which presume him as
innocent until he is proven
guilty.
“The way men of the
DSS choose to treat the
arrest and detention of
Dr. Dangwani amounts to
constituting itself into an
institution operating under
a different law and institution
in clear violation of the
1999 constitution.
by a friend, and since then, it
has become her go-to drink
for refreshment.
“The fruity taste is excellent,
and its refreshment
value is incomparable.
Along with its whole new
level of convenience, Chapman
Hour by Chivita does
not only having me feeling
refreshed, but it also gives
me this feeling of being very
Nigerian,” she said.
Thomas Maduko, a brand
analyst, reiterated that even
though chapman drink is
a local Nigerian drink, not
many have openly projected
its indigenous origin and
association with Nigeria like
Chapman Happy Hour by
Chivita has done.
“By highlighting the chapman
drink’s close association
with Nigerian culture,
Chapman Happy Hour by
Chivita has keyed into an
important source of indigenous
refreshment to become
the toast of many
Nigerians,” he noted.
For Chi Limited’s Marketing
Director, Probal Bhattacharya,
Chapman Happy
Hour by Chivita is an indigenous
drink guaranteed
to provide Nigerians with
ultimate refreshment they
would love.

8
C002D5556 Sunday 15 April 2018
Metro
Water shortages, traffic jams, dirty
environment haunt Apapa residents
JOSHUA BASSEY, IFEOMA OKEKE &
DAVID IBEMERE
Residents of the Apapa
area of Lagos are groaning
on account of the
challenges they face due
to lack of water supply,
traffic jams and a dirty environment.
In this interview with
BDSUNDAY’s LANATU JOY SHEL-
TON, the residents say the Federal
Government should come to the
aid of the community before the
rains start. Come with me as we
go round Apapa to know some
of the challenges/problems of
the people and how to overcome
them.
GABRIEL
“Well I don’t want to be bias
but I don’t think they (government)
are doing very much, I can’t
tell if they have done something
new in Apapa, but from what we
can see, they haven’t done anything
new, though I don’t stay in
Apapa.”
GODWIN
“Apapa lacks good roads; the
traffic gridlock is too much. No
water at all; in fact, we have no
water in Apapa and there is excessive
heat, blocked drainages, no
regulation of traffic we are calling
on the government to please
do something about the water
problem that we have in Apapa.”
ESTHER
“Number one- bad roads,
people from Apapa are moving
to Ogun State. As you can see,
there are traffic jams everywhere,
the roads are bad, but the local
government chairman is trying.
There are accidents sometimes,
especially during holiday seasons
like Christmas. We have problem
of water shortages, especially
during dry season. Even in places
where we buy portable water,
we still do not get water there. In
short, we have a lot of problems
in Apapa.”
NAOMI
“We have bad roads; we have
the Water Corporation but they
are not working. We also have
lots of mad men in Apapa. It’s
really surprising but the number
of mad men in Apapa is alarming.
You know mad men can be very
harmful; we also have problem
of flooding, so if the local government
chairman can make provision
for improved drainage, it
Ahead of the forthcoming
governorship election in
Ekiti State and the 2019
general election, the Independent
National Electoral Commission
has resuscitated the State
Implementation Committee on
Voters’ Education and Publicity
(SICVEP) as part of efforts at
ensuring free, fair, credible, acceptable
and conclusive elections.
The committee is made of
representatives of the Federal
Ministry of Information, State
Ministry of Information, the Ekiti
State Office of the National Orientation
Agency, Ministry of Women
Affairs, the State Government
owned Broadcasting Service of
Ekiti State and the State Council
of the Nigeria Union of Journalists
(NUJ).
Speaking during the inaugural
meeting of the revived committee
in Ado Ekiti, the Resident
Electoral Commissioner (REC)
in the State, Professor Abdulwould
be good.”
EKENE
“The traffic jams are horrible,
now you have trailers parking
on the road. The places that
are bad are being worked on.
One good thing though is that
electricity supply has improved
significantly in Apapa. Another
challenge is that there are few
employment opportunities in
Apapa, the companies in Apapa
are for people that have graduated
from higher institutions
and if you are not yet a graduate,
they will not employ you.
For instance, I am a driver but
here in Apapa they don’t value
drivers which is making me unemployed.
Another thing is that
things are very expensive here,
unlike other parts of Lagos.”
DANIEL
The problem with Apapa Local
INEC resuscitates voter education,
publicity committee in Ekiti
Ganiyu Olayinka Raji stressed the
importance of passing accurate
information on guidelines for the
on-going voters’ registration and
other relevant voters’ education
towards ensuring the success of
the Governorship election this
year and the general election
scheduled for 2019.
The REC who spoke through
the Administrative Secretary of
the Commission in the State, Dr.
Omoleke Muslim expressed satisfaction
with the progress made in
the on-going voters registration
exercise, noting that the number
of the newly registered voters had
exceeded the number recorded
in the previous exercise by over
20percent.
He listed activities lined up for
the committee in preparation
for the elections to include organising
implementation meetings
with relevant stakeholders,
voters’ education exercise at
the grassroots level as well as
production and distribution of
information, education and communication
materials.
Professor Raji explained that
the focus of INEC was to boost
political awareness of the people
and make voters more conscious
of their rights adding that the
Commission would remain neutral
and leave no stone unturned
in ensuring a level playing field for
all contestants.
Cautioning politicians against
making inflammatory statements,
Raji called on journalists
to refrain from reporting stories
that were capable of heating up
the polity stressing the need for
them to check and crosscheck
their stories before going to press
to avoid reporting falsehood.
He appealed to all stakeholders
to act responsibly before,
during and after the Ekiti State
gubernatorial election scheduled
to hold on Saturday, July 14, 2018
and the 2019 general election
in order to achieve the desired
result.
Government is that it is a dirty environment.
Apapa is very dirty. The
government should do something
about it. Also, if the people can
individually clean their immediate
environments, it would help.
JOSEPHINE
“The traffic jams are a big
turn-off. I think the challenge in
Apapa Local Government is mainly
the traffic jams because of the
heavy tankers, heavy duty trucks
because of the two ports, Tincan
Island Port and Apapa Wharf.
Most of the containers are being
discharged from the ports so the
tankers bring about traffic jams
there.”
PRECIOUS
“The major challenge is the
road. The roads are in terrible condition
and the way tanker drivers’
park is horrible. They should have
designated parks that will not dis-
IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, Benin
rupt traffic. We have poor refuse
disposal in Apapa and it makes the
place an eyesore. Also, there is no
potable water in Apapa.
IDDO
I think the traffic gridlocks are
the major challenge I notice in
Apapa.
DELPHINE
“The traffic jams are the major
challenge and also the commercial
motorcyclists are very rough
so if they can organise the motorcyclists
and talk to them to behave
and ride their bikes in a better
manner it will be good.
BOSE
It’s just traffic; if you are coming
from a very far distance to
Apapa you will notice that the
traffic is really very, very bad.
WISDOM
The roads in Apapa are very
bad, so the government should do
something about it. Water is also
a big problem for people living in
Apapa. We don’t have water, we
suffer to get water.
SIMON
I don’t stay in Apapa, but when
I visit, I notice that the roads are
congested and the place is dusty
and full of fuel tankers.
PEACE
“One of the problems I have
noticed in Apapa is the mad men
around. You will be surprised at
the number of mad men moving
around. Atimes it amazes me
how I come across them all the
time, and also the environment
is rough and dirty, so if the local
government can do something
about that, I think it would be
good.”
Bridge academics partners Edo
women to fight human trafficking,
girl-child labour
The management of
Bridge International
Academics said it was
partnering with the Edo
State chapter of the Nigeria
Labour Congress Women
Committee (NLC-W C) on war
against human trafficking and
girl-child labour in the state.
The Vice- President, Policy
and Partnership, Bridge International
Academics, Adesuwa
Ifedi, made the disclosure at
the celebration of the 2018
International Women’s Day
organised for the Edo State
chapter of the Nigeria Labour
Congress- women committee
(NLC-WC) in Benin-City.
Ifedi, said the partnership
was to ensure that parents
as the first agent of socialisation
chain are sensitised on
the negative consequences of
human trafficking and child
labour.
Speaking at the event with
the theme ‘Press for Progress:
A Boost for Women as Partners
in Progress Economically
and Politically”, she said that
the organisation’s efforts was
geared towards empowering,
strengthening and helping
women through adequate
education, understand the
need to provide quality and
qualitative education to their
children
“We understand that the
role of women is critical to
the success of education in
the family. Women are really
the gatekeepers when it
comes to providing education
to children or making sure
children remain in schools.
Unfortunately, in Edo, we are
aware that the state has had
severe incidents of human
trafficking.”

Sunday 15 April 2018
9
C002D5556
News Feature
NLNG set to operate with zero record of tragedy
…Launches operation ‘Goal Zero’
…CEO says firm not ready to celebrate profit in calamity
IGNATIUS CHUKWU
The Nigeria Liquefied
Natural Gas (NLNG)
company, which
started operations
19 years ago, says it
is set to take its pride of place
as a global giant; a status it says
must include operating with zero
record of tragedy, death or injury.
To meet this lofty standard and
surpass global safety targets of
0.5 percent, the management of
the NLNG has launched what it
calls ‘Goal Zero’, a project that
would guarantee any form of
disaster, accident, death or other
incidents or injuries. Experts
say it is the kind of atmosphere
required to create confidence in
such a massive gas environment.
To kick-start the new goal, the
company said it was important
to be on same page with its immediate
publics, those who have
reason to be within the complex
and in its outlets; its workers,
contractors and community
workers. For this reason, a conference
was staged at the Hotel
Presidential recently, to unbundle
Goal Zero and understand
the new slogan- ‘See Something,
Do Something, Say Something’.
The managing director, Tony
Attah, who said he was not prepared
to run a company with
safety incidents, opened the
floor with reasons for the all-inclusive
nature of the conference,
saying in issues of safety, staff or
contractor or CEO, there is joint
responsibility, which is about
safety for people, both
“The year 2017 was a year
of mixed feelings. It opened in
a very bad way. So, we declared
that ‘never again’. Thus, we reset
the baseline on safety standards;
a commitment to keeping our
people safe. All of us signed that
commitment and it made a lot
of difference. It was therefore, a
year of clarity and consolidation
to be a better player. We may
ask, what do global players do
to keep their people safe? That
is what we committed to,” Attah
said.
Explaining the extent of sensitivity
of Safety in such a workplace,
Attah said: “Yes, 2017
was a fantastic year in terms of
performance. We recorded the
highest volume ever produced.
We however, did not celebrate
the feat because we did not
know who would go tell the wife
of the late Henry, the driver that
died in a car accident, that that
same year was best year. As
long as that one person did not
go home alive, we cannot call it
a good year.”
In an interview later, he ex-
Tony Attah
plained the performance thus:
“We had the highest performance
level ever in the life of
NLNG last year, producing 21
million tonnes from a 22 million
tonne-capacity plant. It was
a fantastic delivery, with the
support of our shareholders,
directors, our communities, gas
suppliers, and most importantly,
our own people. They made it
happen last year.”
Back in the conference hall,
he said the year 2018 would be
to commit to repeating the feat
of 2017 and celebrate it by committing
not to record any loss of
life or recording any injury. He
said each person must therefore,
ask the question; what do I do to
raise the game, to make a difference
in the company?
“Now to test how we take
control. Can we say our people
are safe and know it? That is the
reason we are here; to create
safety guarantees,” he said.
The CEO insisted that the
right to grow starts with safety.
“In this, we must grow with the
contractors. This is the essence
of Goal Zero. It is aimed to guarantee
injury- and incident-free future,
a place where people would
be proud to send their children
to. Some workers choose where
there is care for safety; care for
values. Can many people desire
their children to work in oil companies
the way they are today?”
He said the slogan required all
hands on deck to achieve the “No
injury, no incident” target.
As a strategy, the MD urged
the managers not to define what
the workers would say in the ‘Say
Something’ slogan but to create
the environment for people to
speak up. “It is not about aiming
for 99 percent perfection;
that one percent chance is everything,
it can make the difference,”
he emphasised.
Using the tragic incident of
January 12, 2017 that took a
life, he explained the new logic
thus: “When I sent that driver,
why didn’t I see that he was not
well; that his wife just gave birth
the previous night and so he had
a bad night? Why didn’t I ask,
had he driven 300 km before,
and was he in good shape? Why
didn’t anybody see it? At least,
five people would have seen it.
The safe way is the way.”
One of the officers, Ejike
Okoli, took the stage to educate
on the NLNG HSE Leadership
Charter and the eight commitments
that were made in 2017.
“Mandate for management to
go to site to spread the message.
The mandate was for 44 such
visits but records showed 49,
overshooting by five. The policy
has progressed from inspection
to engagement so management
could get involved in site issues,”
The custodians
of safety are the
HSE Department
Managers, but
they liaise with the
frontline staff and
technical managers
who design
operations
Okoli explained.
“Goal Zero being launched in
2018 is to do more; MD alone
promised to do 10 site inspections.
The new policy is to hold
staff accountable on safety issues
and to use HSE) (Health, Safety
and Environment) now as part
of evaluation of workers. Workers
at all levels are mandated to
show love and care. An incident
about a boy on fast that collapsed
and how his colleagues responded
with comprehensive care
showed that the message is sinking
fast. It takes interaction to gain
understanding (engagement).
Until safety consciousness gets
to the shore-floor, it won’t work.
An example of how to empower
frontline staff is when the MD ate
launch with the winners of safety
contest,” he said.
Another important lesson
on the day was the mandate
to follow through to the end in
every task that a manager was
supervising. He said the first
quarter of 2017 was marked
with death, incidents and piracy
attack, hence March summit that
led to new safety commitments.
“The custodians of safety are
the HSE Department Managers,
but they liaise with the frontline
staff and technical managers
who design operations,” he further
said.
On contractors and community
workers, he said more
than 80 percent of incidents occur
with this category. He gave
benchmarks showing that some
moments last year recorded up to
1.05 percent but that 2017 ended
with 0.04 percent. The top five
challenges he mentioned include
awareness that just one percent
failure can cause disaster. “So, we
process our product in the most
efficient and safe way. We cannot
afford a mistake.”
A panel including the MD and
other top managers in and outside
the NLNG was constituted,
during which time Attah said:
“Under my watch, there will be
no single incident. Now, can I
envision my company to accomplish
this? Vision is for one person
but action is for all. We must get
to a point where we can do business
where no man is hurt.”
Some CEOs of contracting
firms used the floor to propose
safety theories and practices.
One CEO said safety is a moral
obligation.
“In bidding for contracts, they
rate your company’s HSE compliance
status as one point but
when you get into the job, you
discover it is everything. So, my
company has the slogan; ‘If it is
not safe, don’t do it,’ but harped
on the need to empower the
workers to meet these lofty slogans,”
he said.
The MD of NSML, the company’s
shipping line, said: “Our
ships travel all over the world,
over 300 seafarers on board
at any time. This is a huge HSE
endeavour”.
The Deputy MD of NLNG,
Sadeeq Mai-Bornu, said the strategy
is to talk less but do more.
“This summit is part of doing.
CEOs are here, so begin with the
end in mind. Safety must be inherent
in our way of life (DNA).”
A contractor gave kudos to
the NLNG, saying: “The passion
here is high. Safety is priority in
our organisation. Our mandate
is to show care to all and safety
appraisal is our key. Costs are a
hindrance so one day summit is
the only way to get companies to
send their workers. People find it
difficult to embark on seven days
conferences.”
An expatriate CEO said the
NLNG sets the target which the
contractors followed. “We insist
that when there is an incident,
even if it was averted, it must
be reported to NLNG. Our firm
has won awards on HSE for five
consecutive years. It is good to
be thorough.”
Another CEO of a contracting
firm, added, “All incidents
were preventable. Here we say,
it’s God that saves. We even
have a mindset of expecting incidents
as a matter of right. We
must learn from somebody’s
incidents. Those who operate
in the air are very conscious and
try to get all factors right. Those
on land seem very lax. You must
report even near-incidents as a
matter of rule.”
The session was pierced by a
question read out by the facilitator
(Chidi) from a worker for
one of the contractors who said:
“MD, you at NLNG talk, do and
train your people well, but the
contractors do not train us. How
may you compel the contractors
at this conference to invest
in training?” The MD seemed
touched and urged the conference
experts and contractors to
help find an answer. The DMD
said there are inconsistent safety
standards in most companies
due to cost cutting approaches
and hunger for profit. He urged
them to insist on standards. “Balance
your desire for profit with
cost and safety,” he said.
The MD (Attah) who insisted
that people matter said it was
about care. It was made clear
that ‘salary is a contract, care is
a relationship’. The facilitator
urged CEOs to go out and see
what is happening in the workforce.
“If you go, you will see and
you will act. This is the key to success
in the workplace.”

10
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Feature
Investment promotion in Niger Delta: Belemaoil showcases
formula for eradication of violence to US delegation
IGNATIUS CHUKWU
The United State delegation
that visited Port Harcourt
listened carefully to
a business case for the
Niger Delta. The proposition
dwelt around the Belema Model
said to have so far recorded 100
percent success in eradication of
pipeline vandalism and other forms
of violence on oil assets in Oil Mining
License 55 (OML-55). The oil field was
sold to Belemaoil Nigeria Limited in
June 2016 by an American company,
Chevron, apparently due to deteriorating
violence in the oil region.
The American delegation was
led by the US Consul-General (CG)
in Lagos, F.John Bray, who seemed
impressed by the presentation by
Jack-Rich Tein Jr. founder/president
of Belemaoil. The CG however,
pointed to persistent electoral violence
soiling the image of the oil
city and urged the political class to
make a new case by allowing the
2019 elections to appear free, fair
and peaceful. Only on this ground
could the Consulate make a case for
Port Harcourt.
The Belema founder had built
his case for the oil region on the
Belema Model that was launched
in September 2017, which detailed
a new working system that would
make an oil host community to be
partner (not observer any more) in
developing and enjoying the wealth
of an oil field. It is a model that would
integrate the host communities in
the deployment of about $10billion
voted for operations in the oil region
every year.
The Consular-General was primarily
in Port Harcourt to flag off
the training of 121 Nigerian budding
entrepreneurs selected through vigorous
screening processes to get the
best business schemes. The training
held at the IPS in the University of
Port Harcourt. The CG then paid visits
to strategic locations and listened
to the business case made at Odili
Road headquarters of the Belemaoil.
Belemaoil Producing Limited
(BPL) is said to be Africa’s only
community-owned oil company. It
is indicated as a world-class indigenous
but independent exploration
and production (E&P) company
operating in the Niger Delta Region
of Nigeria with a host of strong partners
across the globe.
“We are a dynamic entrepreneurial
organisation with a portfolio of
world-class assets located in Nigeria.
Our activities span the full-cycle E&P
value chain of exploration, appraisal,
and development through to production.
Our success depends on our
ability to deliver long-term value for
all our stakeholders through a clear
and consistent strategy which recognises
that our responsibilities go
beyond our operations,” the founder
declared to an audience that included
top managers and investors.
Tein Jr displayed several operational
models and facilities that may
make Belemaoil one of the fastestgrowing
oil giants in Nigeria with
interests in refining, gas, marketing
and other oil-related ventures.
Belemaoil produces 12,000 bpd from
OML 55 at the moment while also
eyeing other oil fields that are up for
(L-R): Nancy Nwankwo, Rivers State Commissioner for Commerce; John Bray, consul-general of the US in
Lagos; Jack-Rich Tein Jr, founder/president of Belemaoil, and his wife, Elizabeth.
grabs as well as exploring for virgin
fields with huge gas reserves.
The Belema Model shows intricate
designs and schemes to
integrate the oil host communities
in oil operations as a way to restore
the once-cherished love and trust
between the oil industry and host
communities. The founder said the
presence of the US in Port Harcourt
would simply complete the rebuilding
process and cause a mass return
of investors to the Garden City, the
acclaimed hub of the Gulf of Guinea.
Explaining the model for peace
and prosperity in the Niger Delta
so as to make case for US presence
in the oil region, the founder talked
about creating wealth both for the
company and the communities.
He pointed to the employment of
3,000 youths by Belemaoil from the
communities; and award of 400
scholarships at once to indigenes
with beneficiaries going home same
day with their cheques.
He also talked about certified
water from water projects to places
that never saw good water in over
600 years of existence; roads built
by US-made bulldozers; and the
building of what he called the Technology
Centre to groom technically
sound youths.
On the medium and long term,
the Belema president mentioned
mouth-watering figures including
36,000 jobs to be created in three
years and 60,000 in 10 years with
plans to create $1.4billion value in
over 240,000 homes.
To achieve this, he said Belema
must increase value and production
to 2000 percent in the next 10 years
from the present 12,000 bpd from
OML 55 acquired from Chevron in
2013. He added that the company
would need to work with at least
240 vendors.
He talked about so far achieving
100 percent eradication of incidents
related to pipeline vandalism and
economic sabotage within operated
OML 55. He said the model builds
trust and confidence in operational
areas, restoring the love that oil
communities had for oil companies
in years gone by. He called it; “Restoration
of confidence, cooperation
and partnership with host communities
which guarantees economic
activities, creates jobs, empowers
our host communities and thereby
occasioning peace and stability
within the Niger Delta”.
He gave instances of Graduate
Trainee Scheme that has so far over
100 graduates currently on training
in different technical and engineering
fields. He said the model would
also protect and heal the environment,
an issue kicking up the highest
dust in the oil region.
He said that there was urgent
need to rescue the oil city and save
the bulging youth population to
avoid political instability in Africa’s
largest population. Tein Jr. said the
US has much to do to help some few
courageous investors like Belemaoil
pumping huge funds to prove that
Port Harcourt can rise again.
“Port-Harcourt is West
Africa’s economic hub for
oil and gas investment
which operates over
85 percent of Nigeria’s
economy. The city is also
the heart of the Niger-
Delta, which is Nigeria’s
treasure base. Therefore,
such US Commercial
presence will greatly
foster economic and
diplomatic cohesion
Placing a definite appeal, the oil
magnet said: “We cannot do it alone.
We appeal to the US to establish
presence here in the form of Business
Liaison Centre in Port Harcourt.
BPL appeals to the US Commercial
Department to establish a Business
Liaison Office (BLO) in Port-Harcourt
to foster strategic economic growth.
The establishment of such an office
would effectively coordinate the US-
Commercial Department activities
within the Niger-Delta.
“Port-Harcourt is West Africa’s
economic hub for oil and gas investment
which operates over 85
percent of Nigeria’s economy. The
city is also the heart of the Niger-
Delta, which is Nigeria’s treasure
base. Therefore, such US Commercial
presence will greatly foster
economic and diplomatic cohesion,”
he said.
On why collaboration with the US
Commercial Department was critical,
Tein Jr said it would strengthen
existing relationship with the United
State and create more value for mutual
benefits. He said these would
be through “Collaboration in such
areas as trainings and workshops,
yearly attendance of OTC conference,
etc, technical partnerships,
procurement of equipment, materials
and spare parts, acquisition of
state-of-the-art technology support
home economy, etc, other bilateral
relationships with the Rivers State
and the Federal Government.”
The Rivers State Commissioner
for Commerce and Industry, Nancy
Nwankwo, who added a push,
described the founder of Belemaoil
as a highly respected investor who
garnished his business process with
high dose of philanthropy. “He is
very passionate for local communities.
He has done so well in the
state,” Nwankwo said.
She further said that Governor
Nyesom Wike had so far done so
much in the area of security and
infrastructure to boost investments.
“The region was neglected for
long and it was about importation
of contractors and marginalisation
of the local people. Rivers State is
a business hub, blessed with so
much in terms of assets and natural
resources. Our hands are open for
investors,” she said.
In his response, the Consul-
General, Bray, urged the people and
government of Rivers State to work
on the image of the state in terms
of security to attract businesses.
He regretted that the state tended
to post the worst electoral violence
image during the 2015 elections
(which went into endless re-runs and
court disputes with more violence
each time).
He hinged any attempt to consider
the plea of the business group
and the state government on posting
a positive image of free, fair and
peaceful elections next year.
Bray said: “I can feel the enthusiasm
to boost the economy of Rivers
State. I spoke with the governor
yesterday and I could feel the strong
push for investments in Port Harcourt.
The issue is, how do we reduce
security issues so as to convince foreign
investors into the place?”
He commended Tein of Belemaoil
thus: “We can see you are lifting a
candle for others to see the way and
to follow”.
The founder had earlier led the
US Commercial Department officials
to new site for facilities under
construction at the end of Odili Road
where a jetty is also being built.
Tein Jr also led the CG and his
team to the seat of power in Port
Harcourt where Gov Nyesom Wike
made further calls for cementing
US/Rivers relationships and for collaborations.
It is expected that the
ground rules have been laid by the
visit of the CG’s team to Rivers State
and that the outcome of the 2019
elections would decide any further
outcome. The ball is now in the court
of the two rival political parties to
allow the return of investors to the
headquarters of the Gulf of Guinea.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
11
Feature
Perspective on Northern states’ high poverty index
…Deconstructing Boko Haram, herdsmen menace
DANIEL OBI
Economic empowerment
Last Sunday, Business-
Day Newspapers published
the story of Terry
Ogolor, a beneficiary of
job and wealth creation
programme in Delta State. With
entrepreneurial spirit already in
him, hitherto unemployed Ogolor
was successfully lured out of
planned crime, by the empowerment
programme.
Ogolor is not alone as other
3,277 youths have been trained
and benefited under the scheme.
Today, Ogolor is successful in his
fish farming enterprise, contributing
to his family and the state
economy. “Today, I am happy
fish farm owner at YAGEP Fish
Farm Cluster, Ugbokodo Okpe.
I can fend for myself, family and
friends”, he said in the report.
The programme was strategically
designed, stringently
planned and specifically tailored
to tackle the problem of youth
unemployment and produce lasting
and sustainable prosperity
across board.
Contrastingly, in the following
page of the same edition of BusinessDay
on Sunday, there was a
story and pictures of Boko Haram,
the Islamic sect that is terrorising
Nigeria, with base in the North
East of the country.
The report described Boko
Haram as one of the terror groups
with weird objectives which has
been dispensing anguish to human
beings. So far, the group
has killed several thousands of
Nigerians and non-Nigerians.
The group whose interest is not
economic empowerment for its
members or the region’s youth
has simply frustrated business,
farming and entrepreneurship in
the Northern region.
Apart from the deadly attacks
it has carried out so far, on April,
2014 it adopted about 276 female
students from Government
Secondary School in the town of
Chibok in Borno State. It recently
adopted several girls from Dapchi
School, a quiet community in
Yobe. This havoc has severely and
mentally obstructed the academic
activities of the students, who,
on their graduation supposed to
contribute meaningfully to their
states’ economic growth.
“In some parts of the North
East, academic programmes have
been disrupted and school system
altered as many schools have
been reduced to rubbles”. One
then wonders how development
can be achieved without education
of the people.
Unfortunately, Boko Haram
activities have displaced millions
of children, youth and parents
who supposed to engage in several
economic activities for their
families, states and the nation.
Its sister terror group, Fulani
herdsmen have continued and
expanded the trepidation on Nigerians,
especially farmers in the
North Central part of the country.
Two scenarios for empower-
Boko Haram
ment
The two published scenarios
painted above show the desperation
of youths in different Nigerian
regions seeking empowerment.
While some youths are forging
ahead with economic empowerment,
contributing to their state’s
economic healthiness, others are
busy making complex demands
and threatening lives, business
and property which have partly
assisted to deepen the poverty
level in those states.
While militancy could be linked
to unemployment, it is also a
function of the kind of education
provided the youth. For instance,
“Boko Haram at the onset appears
to have had its operational
bases located in the poorest parts
of Northern Nigeria. It is in such
places where people have been
denied the opportunity to go to
school as well as have meaningful
economic sources of livelihood
that recruitment is the easiest.
Boko Haram leaders are aware of
it and of course are maximising
the advantages of that obvious
truth. It was not any different from
the situation that prevailed during
the pre-amnesty militancy periods
in the Niger Delta. The long and
short of it is that with entrenched
poverty, illiteracy and unemployment,
we cannot eliminate the
menace of Boko Haram or similar
security threats,” says Olufemi
Awoyemi in Proshare Website.
Militancy anywhere assists to
impoverish the people and the
economy.
The moneybags and sponsors
of Boko Haram may also be using
the platform to enrich themselves
in the short term but the socioeconomic
damage in the long
term is humongous.
Recent data on high Northern
poverty level
It is therefore not surprising
that recent data from Oxford
University Poverty and Human
Development Initiative (OPHI),
re-emphasised that the Northern
states are worst in Nigeria’s subnational
poverty rates.
Despite having the opportunity
of producing highest number of
presidents in Nigeria’s history to
govern the country, the report
states that even with vast land
mass, the region largely posted
the worst performing in ‘multidimensional
poverty index data
bank’ in the period under review
(year-to-date, 2017), with six
northern states ranked as “worse
states.”
These worst states are Zamfara,
the worst state, with 92
percent poverty rate; Jigawa 88
percent, Bauchi 87 percent, Kebbi
86 percent, Katsina 82.2 percent,
and Gombe 77 percent.
Data from five other core
northern states: Kano, Sokoto,
Adamawa and Boko Haram-ravaged
Borno and Yobe, were not
available in the Oxford University
Poverty and Human Development
Initiative, Multidimensional Poverty
Index Data Bank.
In the same vein, Taraba State
(with 78percent), recently enmeshed
in herdsmen attacks,
Boko Haram at the onset appears
to have had its operational bases
located in the poorest parts of
Northern Nigeria. It is in such
places where people have been
denied the opportunity to go to
school as well as have meaningful
economic sources of livelihood
that recruitment is the easiest.
Boko Haram leaders are aware of
it and of course are maximising
the advantages of that obvious
truth.
along with Plateau (51.6percent)
in the North Central Zone were
also listed among Nigeria Country
Briefing’s “worse states” in subnational
poverty rates rankings.
However, data from herdsmen
harried Benue State were not
available.
The only exception among the
northern region is the Federal
Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, with
poverty rate of 24 percent, and
strike-traumatised Kogi State
with 26 percent, according to the
OPHI data.
Meanwhile, Ebonyi, a saltproducing
and a largely agrarian
state, majoring in rice production,
in the South-East region, is the
only ‘worst performed and poor
state’ in the entire southern states
of Nigeria.
The state, currently under the
leadership of David Umahi, elected
governor in 2015, was ranked
with 56 percent in the Nigerian
sub-national poverty rates.
The OPHI data posted states
in the southern region as largely
performing fairly well in poverty
eradication policies.
Lagos State, with a gross domestic
product (GDP) economy of
$136 billion, and by far, Nigeria’s
economic capital, which recently
emerged as Africa’s seventh
largest economy, bigger than
Cote d’Ivoire and Kenya, two of
the continent’s most promising
economies, is surveyed by OPHI
as the least poor state in Nigeria,
with only 8.5 percent ranking in
sub-national poverty rate.
Other states in the South West
zone are Ogun 27 percent, Oyo
29 percent, Osun 11 percent, and
Ondo 28 percent. Data from Ekiti
State were not available.
In the South-South zone, Edo
State came off with a promising
19 percent sub-national poverty
rate, while Rivers ranked with 21
percent and Bayelsa 29 percent.
For the South East zone, Imo,
a state currently governed by Rochas
Okorocha, is 20 percent, from
initial 15 percent in 2014-2015.
Data from Abia, Anambra and
Enugu states were not available.
Prominent stakeholders including
cerebral Emir of Kano,
Muhammadu Sanusi II, who rose
to the pinnacle by Western education,
has often said that the abhorrence
of Western education in
the name of practising Islam has
doomed northern part of Nigeria
into becoming the poorest region
in the country.
Speaking at 2017 Kaduna
State’s Investment and Economic
Summit, themed ‘Promoting
Investment Amidst Economic
Challenges’ Sanusi said Muslims
must imbibe and adopt western
education and stop using religion
and culture to set the region
backward.
New Focus
Today, Boko Haram which is
threatening business and deepening
the poverty in the Northern
region is riding on illiteracy, poverty
and to some extent sponsors
who are making money through
them. Efforts should be made
to reverse this in a mid-term
through conscientious efforts
by stakeholders in the region
but more importantly through
engaging them in productive activities
through such investment
in agriculture and solid mineral
mining in the region.
According to Awoyemi, the
states should embark on enhanced
social investment and
enforcement of mass education.
These will have more enduring
positive impacts in curtailing the
menace of Boko Haram or its
variants, which now include kidnapping
and outright criminality.
The vast majority of Nigerian
youth should be educated and
engaged in productive activities
especially in agriculture, mining
to grow the respective regions and
Nigeria’s economy. Lack of education
and militancy can only take
the states’ economy backward.

12
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Politics
We rely on the Nigerian people to say
‘never again’ to APC – Babatope
Ebenezer Babatope, a former minister of transport, and member, board of trustees (BoT), of the People’s Democratic Party
(PDP), in this interview with ZEBULON AGOMUO, Editor, spoke on the PDP’s plan to take over power from the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC) in 2019; why Nigerians must vote out APC; PDP’s determination to return Nigeria to path of
prosperity and the hypocrisy of corruption fight by the present government. Excerpts:
Beyond your reaction to the declaration
by the President on his second term ambition,
observers say that the development
may have placed a serious challenge on
the PDP. To what extent do you think
PDP is bothered about the development?
Again, do you think your party has a candidate
that can command mass appeal?
If you followed my response; I said
we rely on the Nigerian people to say
never again would we allow the APC
to return to power; we will never
again underestimate the power of the
Nigerian people. President Buhari has the
right in a democratic system to two terms.
For us in the PDP, we are not bothered
about the number of terms he wants to
stay. We are confident that with the help
of Nigerians we will defeat him in 2019.
The Nigerian people should join us to send
them out because the APC government
has failed. It has foisted poverty and hardship
on the people and has failed to redeem
all the promises it made to the Nigerian
people. So, Nigerians are the ones who will
ensure that APC does not return. Again, we
rely on the supreme grace of God. By the
power of the Almighty, APC will not return.
The PDP is going to be battle ready; already
we are battle ready to sack the APC. God
Almighty will lead us.
If you are talking about a candidate that
will match that of the APC, we have them.
Some of the aspirants have made their intentions
public while some are yet to do so;
but we know them. We have Alhaji Aliyu
Gusua, even though he has not declared
openly; I am aware of his ambition; we
have Atiku Abubakar, we have Sule Lamido;
we have Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo,
Gombe State governor; there is also Alhaji
Kwankwaso who will soon declare for the
PDP. The party will provide a level playing
field for the aspirants to go through the
process and emerge without issues. And
whosoever that emerges, will receive
the support of everybody. This is the new
spirit and our National Chairman, Uche
Secondus is serious about it and he wants
everyone in PDP to see him/herself as one.
There is no more division in the party. We
are going into the election as a united force.
Critics say that PDP’s response to the
President’s declaration was so mild and
unexpected of an opposition. They say
that the PDP should have made a bone
out of it and reel out reasons Buhari must
not be voted again, but your party missed
it. What went wrong?
PDP did not fail, but we have our strategies.
We do not give out our strategy. We will
soon come out with our strategy. It is too
early to make it public. We are not going
to reveal our strategy to them to know
where we are coming from and we don’t
want to be predictable. But one thing I assure
Nigerians is that we have learnt our
lesson. Unlike what happened in 2015, we
left President Goodluck Jonathan to fight
Babatope
his own battle, which is not right; this time;
we are all going to do the fighting together.
Don’t forget that our Chairman, Secondus
has openly apologised to the Nigerian
people that never again shall PDP take
them for granted. He told the Nigerian
people that we are sorry and that they
should forgive us. It was no pretence; it was
a genuine appeal to Nigerians to forgive us.
That apology was straight from our
heart and we are going to do things differently
this time around.
Critics also say that the opposition appears
dead in the face of obvious maladministration
in the country. They point
to the absence of shadow government,
which the leading opposition ought to
be providing. Why is it that the PDP has
allowed the APC to operate without any
form of vibrant opposition?
It is not true that we are not playing our
role as a vibrant opposition. We have our
style and we know what we are doing. The
leadership of the party is alive to its responsibility.
Now, concerning President Buhari’s
declaration, I have said earlier that he has
his constitutional right to contest again. We
have many aspirants now showing interest
for the ticket and we want to give them a
level-playing field for them to compete for
the ticket. Now, when we name our candidate
you will then sufficiently tell people
what we have and can boldly respond to
some of these things without putting the
chances of any aspirant in jeopardy. We
know what we are doing and our Chairman,
Secondus, has said it that the process
is going to be very free and fair.
Many Nigerians today believe that it is
not desirable for PDP to return to power
no matter how poorly the APC is doing.
For such people, any other party could be
tolerated, but not PDP. You hear people
say that both PDP and APC have failed,
and that they are looking to see a credible
alternative. What word do you have for
those who have this view?
My appeal to the Nigerian people is that
they should forget the past. We have apologised
as a party and promised never to take
the people for granted again. My appeal to
Nigerians is that we should not make the
mistake of returning the APC to power. It
will be a costly mistake that would destroy
this country. Voting the APC again is easily
giving themselves up for another four
years of misery, poverty and everything
that is negative. APC government has
foisted poverty on the people. It will be in
the interest of the Nigerian people to reject
the APC and give the PDP their votes. We
have learnt our lesson and we have asked
for forgiveness. We also appeal to fellow
Nigerians that they should remain calm. I
assure you that we will return the country
to the path of prosperity once again.
The APC has rolled out two lists of looters
and is also promising to come out with
another one that it claims with surprise
many Nigerians because of the calibre of
people whose names are there. What really
do you think about the lists or are you
among those that think it is an ambush to
cow members of the opposition?
How many people have been tried in the
court over corruption allegation in the
country? It is all about propaganda. Who
are those on that lists? Once you return
money, you are pardoned and become
one of their own, or once you move over
to their party they strike out your name.
They promised to fight corruption but
corruption lives in them. They claim they
are clean but we are all operating in the
same political market and we know who
is corrupt and who is not. They are just
deceiving themselves and some Nigerians
who do not understand their antics. They
even included the name of Uche Secondus
and said he is corrupt, can you imagine
that? Corrupt how? They know they are
just playing game and we know them also.
You talked about APC entrenching poverty
in the land; do you think that the PDP
has the capacity to return Nigeria to the
path of prosperity if it wins election in
2019?
We have more than capacity to make Nigerians
happy again. Nigerians can today
testify, having felt the impacts of the two
parties. Ours was a positive impact; today
they are getting negative impacts. We will
come back with greater strength. We are
ready. We are battle ready.
We know that the APC also has a few
fighters among them, but we are ready for
them. The man in Osun- Governor Aregbesola
is a fighter; Bukola Saraki is a fighter,
Asiwaju Bola Tinubu is a fighter, but we
are going to defeat them this time around.
APC appears to have powerful propaganda
machinery. They say that in politics
all is fair; Since Olisa Metu left as the publicity
secretary of your party, nobody is
giving the ruling party sleepless night by
way of verbal engagements the way the
party is doing to the PDP. Why is it so?
Does it mean PDP has been frightened
into submission?
Very soon you will give us a pat at the back
because we are preparing and coming out
with some programmes that would bring
to the front burner the inadequacies of the
ruling party and the Nigerian people will
see clearly that we know the weaknesses
of those ruling them. We are coming. We
are coming out with programmes that
will shock Nigerians and at the same time,
interest them. All that we are asking for is
that the media should also be fair and give
the opposition the necessary voice.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
13
Politics
2019: APC blasts PDP’s GDI for mobilising
Rivers’ people abroad for Wike
IGNATIUS CHUKWU
The All Progressives
Congress
(APC) in Rivers
State has
blasted the ruling
People’s Democratic
Party (PDP) for using its
wing known as the Grassroots
Democratic Initiative
(GDI) to persuade
Rivers in the Diaspora to
return Governor Nyesom
Wike. The party said it received
with rude shock
the latest plot by GDI to
waste and plunder the hard
scarce public funds of Rivers
State by embarking on
a project of mobilising the
indigenes of Rivers State
abroad to re-elect Wike.
The party stated that
for GDI to embark on this
act of the re-election of
Wike only confirmed the
group’s legendary acts
recalling that it was the
same group that was used
in 2014 to perpetuate insecurity
in Rivers State; used
to molest some northern
governors that came to
Rivers State in 2014 to
sympathise with the then
Governor of Rivers State,
Amaechi over his ordeals
in the hands of Wike and
also used to harass, beat
up, molest and dislodge
over 11 key PDP members
that wanted to contest
the 2015 governorship
election under the PDP
platform at the party’s national
secretariat at Abuja
in 2014.
The APC was sad that
a pastor and the convenor
named Egba B. H. Egba,
could say this: “Governor
Wike has brought relief
to Rivers State students
who are on scholarship
studying various courses
abroad”. The party asked,
“How could Wike have
brought relief to Rivers
State students that were
stranded after unilaterally
stopping the scholarship
scheme meant for their
studies abroad? It is unfortunate
that Pastor Egba
who is behind this latest
plot has succeeded in exposing
himself concerned
about his stomach and
ready to do anything to justify
his source of income”.
The party in a statement
circulated on Friday in Port
Harcourt by Eze Chukwuemeka
Eze, the Media Con-
Governor Wike
try in the third quarter of
2017 according to the latest
data released in Abuja
by the National Bureau
of Statistics. This implies
that for every 10 persons
in Rivers four are without
anything doing. Affirming
the position of the National
Bureau of Statistics the
party notes that under
Wike’s evil administration
no Rivers State Indigene
has been employed into
the Civil Service instead
those employed like the
13,200 Teachers employed
by Amaechi were sacked.
This is the character that
Pastor Egbe and his group
are campaigning for.
The party reiterated
that any group that embarked
upon the re-elec-
Amaechi, minister of Transportation
sultant to Davies Ibiamu
Ikanya, the state chairman
of Rivers APC further
stated that nobody who
loves Rivers State and her
future will take this group
serious in its wild goose
chase of re-electing Wike
come 2019.
The party asks, “How
on earth could Governor
Wike who ensured that
our civil servants and pensioners
are not paid their
entitlements when due but
prefers to give them loans,
could not provide any employment
to any Rivers
State son or daughter
throughout his three years
of misguided governance;
turned Rivers State into
Rivers of blood and Port
Harcourt from the garden
city status to Port Harcourt
city of garbage and dustbin;
ensured that all the
industries and facilities put
up by the administration of
Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi
Amaechi to reposition the
State as an emerging great
economic power in Africa
are either vandalised or
rendered redundant will be
re-elected if not to invite
disaster to the State.”
The party further stated
that under the administration
of Governor Wike,
Rivers state stands out
as the worst in areas of
unemployment with highest
unemployment rate of
41.82 percent in the countion
of Wike whose administration
in Rivers State
has brought more harm,
hardship and shame to
the state than any other
administration since the
creation of the State in
1967 should be considered
as a great enemy of Rivers
State.
“Based on these facts,
the party urged the entire
Rivers State indigenes to
unite and team up with
APC to salvage the State
from the hands of misguided
elements currently
destroying and ruining the
State come 2019.”
APC has quality aspirants
– Chukuwemeka Eze
The APC has however said
it considers itself as the
Wike did not stop at some of
the above crimes against Rivers
State, he ensured that all the
modern and model schools
constructed, completed, and
operational by the administration
of Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi are
kept under lock and key; and
to complete his destructive act
against the educational future of
our youths
beautiful bride and sole
platform through which
Rivers State will be liberated
from the shackles of
the demonic, bloodletting,
misrule and bad governance
currently the lots
of our people under the
watch of Governor Nyesom
Wike.
The party noted that
with the cream of seasoned
technocrats, political
leaders, bureaucrats
and some of the best brains
of Rivers State considering
the party as the only platform
to use to actualise
their dreams for better and
greater Rivers State the liberation
of the State is now
more feasible than ever.
The party not minding
the numerous high class
candidates desiring to fly
the flag of the party; she
pledges a level playing
ground to all her candidates
during the primaries.
Revealing how Wike
has allegedly ruined the
economy of Rivers State,
the party expressed sadness
that the Songhai farm
located at Bunu-Tai/Ban-
Ogoi in Tai Local Council
covering over 314 hectares
of land that was introduced
after studying the
Songhai Centre in Porto
Novo, Benin Republic, including
the Songhai Rivers
Initiative Farm (SRIF),
which is 20 times the size
of its prototype in Porto
Novo and the biggest agricultural
training project/
programme in the country,
has been vandalised and
put out of use by Wike’s
administration.
The party notes that
the Fish Farms at Buguma
Andoni, Ubima and Opobo
with total production capacity
of these farms at
5,000 tons per annum all
commissioned and operational
before Amaechi left
office in 2015 have been
rendered redundant by the
Wike’s administration.
As if the above harms
were not enough, the Banana
Plantation Development
Initiative aimed at
the cultivation, production
and export of banana
for commercial purposes
in partnership with San
Carlos Nig. Ltd with about
6,000,000 boxes of banana
produced annually
and marketed locally and
internationally with 2,000
hectares of land acquired
for the project at Khana
and Tai LGAs were all destroyed
by the Wike’s administration.
With all these diabolical
acts, Wike has destabilised
the goals of most of these
industries that include creating
employment opportunities
for the people of
Rivers State, promoting
enterprise development
especially amongst the
younger generation, promoting
research in new
agricultural techniques
and varieties, encouraging
skills transfer and adopting
appropriate technology by
local farmers, enhancing
agricultural production
and value addition, building
interest in commercial
farming, and facilitating
agro-tourism in the state.
Wike did not stop at
some of the above crimes
against Rivers State, he
ensured that all the modern
and model schools
constructed, completed,
and operational by the
administration of Chibuike
Rotimi Amaechi are kept
under lock and key; and to
complete his destructive
act against the educational
future of our youths, he
ordered the sacking of
all the 13,200 Teachers
employed by the administration
of Amaechi and
stopped all the scholarship
schemes both foreign and
local.

14
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Politics
2019 and Tinubu’s new calculations
ZEBULON AGOMUO
The election time-table has since
been released by the Independent
National Electoral Commission
(INEC). Perceived political
allies and foes are aligning and
realigning to actualise their political ambition
come 2019. What is happening on the
nation’s political turf, to the mere observers
can only be captured in the expression,
“The more you look the less you see.”
In politics, there are no sentiments.
Self interest is the determinant factor.
This is why many astute politicians take
decisions that leave keen watchers
tongue-tied. One of such hard decisions
this time around is the determination of
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a former governor
of Lagos State and national leader of the
ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)
to throw his weight behind President
Muhammadu Buhari’s return bid. While
many Nigerians are asking “why”, the
Jagaban is fixated.
Ordinarily, many observers had expected
that Tinubu would give the President
cold shoulders this time around, but
the reverse appears to be the case.
The permutation
Those very close to Tinubu say he is supporting
Buhari with his eyes wide open. It
is said that the former governor of Lagos
State decided to take that route because it
would be more beneficial to allow Buhari
complete four more years and leave the
stage than to allow a fresh person from
the north to come in and spend eight
years, which could affect the chances of
the south.
A source said: “Many people do not
seem to understand where Asiwaju is
coming from. He has decided to give
his full support once again to President
Buhari because he is looking at a bigger
picture. However abysmal Buhari may
have performed, it is better to tolerate him
for additional four years than allowing another
northerner to do fresh eight years.
If Buhari wins in 2019, he will only do four
years and go home; then a southerner will
come up. Don’t forget that Tinubu still has
an eye on the presidency.”
The source further said: “Asiwaju is
not a neophyte in politics. He weighs his
options and makes moves that he knows
he will not regret. There are ‘bad bellies’
who are not comfortable with his profile
and they want to badmouth him before
the President. But they have been found
to be liars and featherweight politicians.
They have not got the political sagacity
to galvanise a support base that can give
the President victory next time around.
“They have done a lot to bite the finger
that fed them. Without Tinubu, many
of them wouldn’t be in politics let alone
amounting to anything in the country. I
want to tell you as a matter of fact that Asiwaju
remains as relevant to the electoral
success of President Buhari as he was in
2015, and the President knows it and he
would decide to toy with his relationship
with Asiwaju to his own hurt. Politics is
not all about trailer-load of money. If you
don’t know the strategy, you go home in
regret after an election because you find
out that after spending the money you still
did not make any impact. Asiwaju knows
how to wisely deploy experience, men
????????????????
and money to achieve success. That is
why the President must court his friendship,
at least for now.”
In an exclusive interview recently
with Ayo Opadokun, a former secretary
of National Democratic Coalition (NA-
DECO) and the convener of the Coalition
of Democrats for Electoral Reforms,
(CODER), told BDSUNDAY that Tinubu
“knows what he is doing.”
Opadoku believes that the APC leader
must have read the signs very well and
has a clear compass of where he is going.
Asked why Tinubu would support Buhari
again in the midst of alleged failure of
his administration on governance, and if
such an endorsement did not amount to
Asiwaju ‘dancing on the grave of Nigerians
who have died on account of anti-people
policies of the Buhari administration’,
Opadoku retorted, “Asiwaju is playing
politics. Leave him alone, he is playing
politics. Asiwaju is playing politics.”
There was a rough time
Recall that the relationship between
Buhari and Tinubu had been everything
As if that was also not
demoralising enough, the
seemingly “who are you”
attitude of John Odigie-
Oyegun towards Tinubu
compounded the man’s
alienation, Odigie-Oyegun
was installed by Tinubu
as the national chairman
of the APC, but a huge
gulf appears to be existing
between them
but rosy until late last year. Shortly after
the inauguration of the Buhari administration
in 2015, the President went solo,
abandoning those who made his victory
possible. And when he was being advised
to constitute his cabinet, he was quoted
as saying that he was not comfortable
working with ministers, but would rather
work with civil servants. He was also said
to have described ministers as “noise
makers”.
Then Buhari began to ride roughshod,
picking all manner of people from his
native state of Katsina and his close associates,
to work with, leaving in the cold
those who spent their time and resources
to enthrone him in Aso Rock.
At the same time, Tinubu had also
lost out at the National Assembly as his
calculation of foisting a leadership there
was punctured by the witty moves of
Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, Senate
president and House of Representatives
speaker, respectively. The bicameral legislature
was totally fenced off from the
Asiwaju meddlesomeness.
As if that was also not demoralising
enough, the seemingly “who are you”
attitude of John Odigie-Oyegun towards
Tinubu compounded the man’s alienation.
Odigie-Oyegun was installed by Tinubu as
the national chairman of the APC, but a
huge gulf appears to be existing between
them.
For the above reasons, the Jagaban
became an unhappy man.
Aisha Buhari sensed the ugly state of
affairs and spoke out and up against the
injustice. She noted that those who never
sowed into the party were the ones reaping
heavily, whereas those who laboured
have been pushed away in harvest time.
The First Lady was particular about
the treatment against Tinubu, who she
had confessed was instrumental to the
success of her husband in 2015.
“My husband, General Muhammadu
Buhari has been contesting presidential
elections for over a decade now, but this
particular election is unique because our
leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu jettisoned his
personal interest for the sake of Nigeria,”
she said.
After Aisha’s observation, an analyst
was quoted as saying that “Asiwaju as I
see things today is on his own. The President
has since surrounded himself with
his brothers. But it is not unexpected. It
is only those who refused to believe the
history that doubted what the president
is capable of doing when in office. Before
the elections, many people said and wrote
so many things about the likelihood of a
severance of relationship between the
two party chieftains. Today, such predictions
as it were, are coming to pass.”
The analyst, who spoke on condition
of anonymity, further said: “Recall that in
order to be part of government, Tinubu
had wanted to field himself as the vice
president, a move that was shot down by
many interests. When that dream caved
in, Yemi Osinbajo was fielded instead.”
Tinubu until recently had been left in
the lurch. He was neither being consulted
nor intimated with government’s plans.
Loyalists of Tinubu had listed some
hostile actions against the former governor.
Some of the issues raised include the
exclusion of Tinubu’s candidates from
Buhari’s final ministerial list, the alleged
gang-up against his candidate, James
Faleke, in the Kogi governorship election,
who was the late Audu Abubakar’s running
mate, and the alleged fraud against
Olusegun Abraham, his candidate, in the
Ondo governorship primary.
It was said that Tinubu lost out during
the appointment of political office holders,
members of the Federal Executive
Council inclusive. This, according to observers,
was part of the Buhari administration’s
plot to build a new power base,
detached from Tinubu’s stranglehold.
In December 2016, Cornelius Adebayo,
a former minister of Communications
and Works, who was also governor
of Kwara State in 1983, alluded to the
impasse between Tinubu and Buhari, saying,
“We cannot avoid having differences
of ideas, opinions or approach to issues
or governance. In any party, any member
may have his own different view. But differences
within party membership are
not strange. The APC is a coalition of independently
existing parties, before they
coalesced into one. So, it is not strange
that there are differences in opinion and
approach. What they (Buhari and Tinubu)
should try to do now is to harmonise their
positions and do what is best for Nigeria.”
While in Akure, Ondo State in November
2017, Tinubu had declared that there
was no automatic ticket for Buhari in
2019. At that time, Tinubu’s next movement
with APC and Buhari was unknown.
He had begun to seek out old friends
and acquaintances in the Afenifere, pan-
Yoruba socio-cultural group. He went to
greet the leader of the group, Pa. Reuben
Fasonranti.
He came heavily on some APC governors
who had endorsed President
Buhari for second term, saying that whoever
would represent the party must be
selected through a transparent primary
election.
He had insisted that the party would
not violate its law to grant Buhari automatic
ticket.
Condemning governors who had
already publicly endorsed President Buhari
for 2019, Tinubu said the governors
lacked the power to do so, as such action

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
15
Politics
contravened the APC constitution.
“No governor can appropriate the
power of endorsement to themselves,”
he said.
The renewed love
Before the renewed love between Buhari
and Tinubu, a source had said: “We
won’t be surprised if the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission wakes up
tomorrow to say they are probing Tinubu
or his associates. They may even send the
Department of State Service after him
because that is the step the Buhari government
has taken against all their perceived
enemies. Asiwaju knows that they may
come for him.”
But on October 30, 2017 the President
met with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa.
The meeting sparked controversy among
Nigerians, with many saying that it is just
a ploy to curry Tinubu’s favour as election
year is drawing near and the credibility of
the party is waning.
Tinubu announced to the whole world,
“I just met with the President. Our discussion
was fruitful, productive and it was
about the country and leadership as a
whole.”
Since after the October rapprochement,
things appear to be going for both
party men.
In an apparent celebration of a successful
fence-mending, Tinubu was among
those on the entourage of President Buhari
to the 5th European Union-African
Union (EU-AU) Summit in Abidjan, Côte
d’Ivoire late last year.
Again, in the heat of that celebration,
the President, openly acknowledged
Tinubu as “our leader.”
Recall that Tinubu severally denied
openly the friction between himself and
the President. He also refuted allegations
that a cabal existed in the administration
which hijacked power and shoved him
aside despite his huge efforts in helping
the party come to power, saying that he
has confidence in the leadership of the
President.
“I have confidence in this President;
there is no doubt about that. We worked
hard to bring about the government, there
are certain things that are unpredictable
and those are things that can lean itself to
gossips, insinuations and all of that.
“But once you create leadership and it
is functioning, you don’t have to babysit
that leadership unless there is a loss of
confidence and I don’t have that,” he
said.
But despite the picture Tinubu painted
of a robust relationship between Aso Villa
and Bourdillon (Asiwaju’s residence in
Ikoyi, Lagos), observers say that the alarm
raised by Aisha Buhari, the First Lady, that
a cabal may have hijacked power, cannot
be a myth.
For close observers, Tinubu was just
playing the normal politics of not washing
the party’s dirty linen in public.
A chieftain of the party in Osun State
was quoted as saying that “This is the
beginning of the end of the APC. The
party will shatter into smithereens. We are
ready for them. They are going nowhere.”
Desperate moves
BDSUNDAY gathered that when it
dawned on President Buhari that he would
be needing Tinubu again to achieve his
re-election ambition, he began to send
emissaries to Bourdillon.
Today, the former Lagos State governor
has become a beautiful bride to be
courted once again.
In what analysts describe as desperation
on the part of the President, some of
his recent pronouncements could be said
to be pro-Tinubu. For instance, contrary to
the endorsement by the party’s National
Executive Committee (NEC) of a oneyear
extension of the Odigie-Oyegun-led
National Working Committee (NWC),
Buhari reversed it, ostensibly to placate
Tinubu.
Although he had earlier supported the
extension, President Buhari made a volte
face, saying it was an illegal as it contravenes
a section of the party’s constitution.
“On my own part, I have taken time to
review and seek advice on the resolution
and what I found is that it contravenes
both our party’s constitution and the
constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria,” he said.
Tinubu had clapped, saying that “President
Buhari’s action saves the party from
a serious legal turmoil. If the elongations
were deemed illegal, then all subsequent
party actions, including the nomination of
all of our candidates for elective offices,
might also be of questionable legality.
“Such a predicament would constitute
an unnecessary and a mortal blow
to the party and its role in promoting
progressive governance in Nigeria,” the
national leader submitted, in reaction to
the President’s decision on the tenure
extension.
Three weeks ago, the President moved
his seat from Abuja and relocated to
Lagos just to please Tinubu. He was the
chairman of the 10th Colloquium to commemorate
the 66th birthday of Asiwaju.
The belief out there is that the President
must have used the occasion of the visit
to sandpaper some rough edges of their
relationship as he spent extra day after
the event.
Growing the economy, improving
governance, and integrating the nation
Continued from back page
clearly the wrong type of value to
impart in our young people.
What needs to be done?
* So we need to step back, agree on what
the centre must do and what can and
should be devolved to the lower tiers of
government. We must devolve powers
and responsibilities to the federating
states. Much of what is currently in the Exclusive
Legislative List need to be moved
to the concurrent List. We don’t need federal
roads, federal hospitals, and federal
schools. They should be transferred to
the states along with the funds expended
on them. At best the federal government
may establish regional centres of excellence
in medicine and research in each of
the geo-political zones, which can act as
models for state governments.
The federal government should
hands-off the administration of local
governments. States should have the
power to create as many local governments
as they wish or to not create any.
With the devolution of power to state
governments, people in each state would
know who to hold responsible if their
roads are not fixed and if their hospitals
have no medication.
And the devolution of power to states
must extend to political parties. Out political
parties should not behave in a unitary
manner and expect a robust democratic
federal system for Nigeria. Having the party
headquarters in Abuja dictate to state
(and even local government) branches
even on purely local matters is not healthy
for democracy and federalism. Such highhandedness
promotes corruption and
impedes attention to minority interests
and local peculiarities.
* We need to also follow the letter and
spirit of such existing mechanisms as federal
character and other affirmative action
policies to help manage distributive conflicts
until such a time when we do enough
to enhance production in order to reduce
the scarcity that drives our conflicts over
distribution. Inevitably in federal systems,
component units will bicker over the distribution
of resources, including revenues,
location of investments and other opportunities.
We need to acknowledge that
much of our conflicts over distribution are
driven by scarcity. That is why I strongly
believe that our efforts at redistributive
justice must be accompanied by efforts
and reforms to improve the productive
capacity of our country. We need to remove
all impediments to and provide all
necessary incentives for the emergence
of a truly productive economy. We must
invest in infrastructure, education and
innovation, and health care. And these
will be more difficult if we maintain the
current “unitarised federal” structure and
the overblown government bureaucracy.
Rather than relying on revenues from oil
we should create a really private-sector
led thriving economy that creates enormous
jobs, reduces poverty, and creates
wealth commensurate with our potentials.
When our economy starts creating
so many jobs that we will have a hard
time filling them, employers will pay less
attention to the place of origin of the applicant.
The willingness and ability to do
the job will become paramount. When
we have enough university spaces that
our universities compete for students to
fill those spaces, they will pay little attention
to place of origin of the prospective
students.
* Transparency in policy making and
implementation are also critical. Our
distributive system needs to be fairer and
seen to be so by the vast majority of our
people. If we promote merit even in the
context of federal character (best from
each area) conflicts will reduce.
* In determining access to public resources
and services, our emphasis should be
on place of residence rather than place
of origin. The cause of national unity and
integration will be better served when
we encourage mobility of persons across
the country as opposed to encouraging
people to stay in their places of “origin.”
Obviously the use of place of residence
rather than place of origin will be easier to
sell under a very productive and growing
economy rather than one characterised
by low productivity and contraction.
* It will also help if we improve governance.
A well-governed people tend to
worry less about where their leaders
come from. While citizens may maintain
their identities, these do not define their
attitude to the state or leaders per se.
And the most sustainable way to ensure
good governance is by improving our democracy
and electoral system so that the
people’s choices are usually elected. Thus
we must ensure internal party democracy,
reduce the role of money and godfathers
in our elections, reduce the use of
state resources for electoral advantage
by incumbents, and strengthen the independence
of our electoral umpire.
* There is also the need for political
majorities to be more sensitive and accommodating
to the interests of the minorities.
The self-restraint of majorities
is critical for the maintenance of peace
and harmony. Nigeria’s self-restraint
in the ECOWAS and AU, despite her
overwhelming power, population and
resources, is, in my view, a secret to the
endurance of those organisations. Nigeria’s
political majorities can do the same
here in our country to help ensure peace
and harmony.
If we restructure our federation, make
compromises, and govern better, we
will have a greater chance of transforming
our diversity into a national asset.
And enduring changes to our structure
and redistributive systems can only
come about through negotiations and
compromises by leaders of our diverse
groups and zones. With a spirit of give
and take, the capacity to empathise, to
walk in the other’s shoes, compromises
will be easier.
I wish your fruitful deliberations at
this symposium, and I thank you for your
attention.

2019 Watch
Buhari
and his
controversial
ambition 17
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
16
Emmanuel promises more
projects in Akwa Ibom
…As new SSG is received by Oro nation
ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo
Governor Udom Emmanuel
of Akwa
Ibom State has given
the assurance that
with the necessary
support, his administration would
achieve more in providing the
people with basic social amenities.
Governor Emmanuel gave the
assurance while addressing the
people at a grand reception organised
by Oro Union for the Secretary
to the Government of Akwa Ibom
State, Emmanuel Ekwuwem and
the President General of the Union,
Janet Amba.
Speaking at the Oron stadium,
he said the state government is
working assiduously with the SSG
whom he referred to as being very
passionate about the development
of Akwa Ibom State to bring projects
to all parts of the state.
“Today, Oro Nation has made
Akwa Ibom proud. People have
come out today to honour the SSG
and the First Female President
General in a reception with a remarkable
difference which is what
I have seen here today.”
Emmanuel thanked the Elders
and stakeholders for supporting
a woman to emerge as the first
female President General of Oro
Union and noted that it was a representation
of gender equity and
called for cooperation with the
President General from the people
and assured of similar support
from Government to enable her to
achieve set goals.
The State Governor commended
Oro youths for being peaceful
and supportive of the ongoing
projects execution in their localities,
unlike the situation in other
sections of the state and promised
to give employment, development,
and empowerment to make them
become responsible men in the
society.
According to the Governor, “I
Buhari is an economic and security asset to Nigeria - NDDC Commissioner
MIKE ABANG, Calabar
Udom Emmanuel
Slyvester Nsa, commissioner
for Niger-Delta
Development Commission
(NDDC) representing
Cross River State, has described
President Muhammadu
Buhari as an economic and security
asset to the nation ahead
of the 2019 general election.
Nsa, who is also a chieftain
of the All Progressives Progress
(APC), said this during a telephone
interview with our correspondent
in Calabar
while reacting to the President’s
declaration to seek a
second term in office.
“Buhari is a corruption fighting
activist and the people who
are fighting him are the same
people who brought the nation
to its knees; they are the same
people who are perpetuating
insecurity in the land,” he said.
“We are happy the President
has declared to run in 2019
don’t know how many of us know
that Oro Nation is known for producing
highly cerebral, proficient
and motivated as well as professionally
successful public officers
in this country?”
He said prioritising education,
was a deliberate policy by his
administration to ensure that the
people were made to be proud
again of that sub sector. Governor
Emmanuel referred to the SSG as
another quintessential Oro Son
whose elevation should not be
seen as an appointment but as a
collaboration and partnership to
build a strong economy for Akwa
Ibom State.
On the provision of Infrastructure,
he said that Government
constructing a dual carriage way
from the airport junction to join
the East-West road in order to boost
economic activities in the coastal
Oro community.
The Governor announced that
the construction firm which abandoned
the projects out of frustration
arising from obstruction from
some restive youths had decided to
return to site after a meeting with
the State Government.
He urged the people to desist
from making unrealistic demands
for payment of compensation for
trees and other plants on the road,
saying they should be ready to
make sacrifices if they must attract
developments.
The governor recalled some of
the intervention works successfully
undertaken by his administration
in Oro Nation shortly on assumption
of office in 2015 and promised
to visit the area soon for inauguration
of more projects.
“As we set out for industrialisation,
we must promote small and
medium scale enterprises. By next
year, I want to envelop the whole of
this state with electricity because I
know so many of you pay so much,’’
he said.
Part of the efforts, the Governor
which is the voice of majority of
our people especially the APC
family, it is a plus for us,” he
further said.
Nsa, who was a former deputy
governorship candidate to Odey
Ochcha in the 2015 general election
under the APC, said the
opposition party- the People’s
Democratic Party (PDP) was
afraid of Buhari fanatical followership
across the country.
He contended that those
saying Buhari is too old should
said, was the building of a power
substation at Eket to be followed by
another in Oron.
He offered to assist in the building
of a warehouse for Akpakib Oro
Seafood Farer Association in Oron
and resurfacing of one of the roads
in the areas.
He also announced plans to
ensure flood control facilities in the
main town by constructing most
internal roads and fixing street
lights by December this year.
Responding, the Secretary to
the State Government, expressed
appreciation to the people for organising
the event and thanked the
Governor who had earlier found
some of them fit to be part of his administration
to move the frontiers
of economic development forward.
The SSG made reference to the
Nigerian Economy going through
stress due to dependency on Oil
as the main revenue earner and
called on the people to emulate the
Governor who is working tirelessly
to diversify into industrialisation
and agriculture
“The essence of this celebration
for me and my sister is for us to
know that the time has come for a
complete shift in the way we used
to do things for everyone to be
gainfully employed.”
The President General of Oro
Union, Janet Amba, also thanked
Governor Emmanuel and Wife,
Martha, other dignitaries and the
Oro people for celebrating them
and expressed joy for ensuring
unity among her people since assumption
of office. Amba who said
her mission is to render service,
unite the people appealed for
support from Government to build
a warehouse for a set of business
people in the area.
Also speaking, former Deputy
Governor of the state, Etim Okpoyo,
expressed joy that after 22
years, Governor Emmanuel has
appointed another Oro indigene
as the SSG and thanked the State
him and his Wife for the gesture.
bring up their candidate to face
the president in 2019.
“We know that PDP wanted
APC to drop Bahari and bring a
candidate they can easily beat
at the polls,” Nsa said, adding
that without the emergence of
President Buhari in 2015 the
insecurity situation in the country
would have worsened to the
level beyond control.
He urged Nigerians to give the
President maximum support to
move the nation forward.
Edo LG, Etsako
Central, presents
N3.4bn budget
IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, Benin
The executive chairman
of Etsako Central Local
Government Area, Akhigbe
John-Osi has presented
a budget estimate of N3, 455,
582, 255, 92 billion for the 2018
fiscal year to members of the
council’s legislative arm.
The budget christened,
‘Budget of Growth’, is made
up of recurrent expenditure of
N1,634 214,506,09 billion and
N1 821,367,749 83 billion for
capital expenditure.
Akhigbe said the budget
would be funded through internally
generated revenue of
N273,629 million representing
7.92 percent, share of statutory
allocation of N1,608,370,836,10
billion representing 46.54 percent,
10 percent share of State
IGR of N240million representing
5.9 percent.
Other sources include, Value
Added Tax (VAT) of N250 million
representing 7,23 percent, excess
crude/NLNG of N224 million
representing 6.48 percent,
SURE-P/Paris Club Refund of
N555,008,714,68 million representing
16.06 percent, grant/
aid of N273,737,539,33 million
representing 7.92 percent and
opening balance from the previous
year of N66,836,165,81
million representing 1 93 percent.
Akhigbe, who said the budget
was geared towards delivering
on his electioneering promises
to the people of the local
government, noted that it was
focused on the promotion of
primary education, healthcare
services, environmental sanitation/beautification,
water
supply, good roads network,,
welfares, socio-economic empowerment,
youth development
among others.
He also added that it was in
consonance with the policy
thrust handed down to the
council chairmen by the executive
governor of the state
Godwin Obaseki.
He however gave the breakdown
of the sectoral allocation
of the budget to include,
the Economic sector,
N1,160,350 billion representing
63.71 percent, Social sector,
N535,917,749,83 million representing
29.42 percent, regional
development, N81,300 million
representing 4.46 percent and
administrative, N43,800 million
representing 2.40 percent.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
2019 Watch Presidency
17
ZEBULON AGOMUO
The declaration last Monday by
President Muhammadu Buhari
to seek a second term did not
come to many people as a surprise.
Before the National Executive Committee
(NEC) meeting of the All Progressives
Congress (APC) where the President
declared his intention, his body language
had said it all.
By the constitution of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria, and the constitution of his party,
President Buhari has committed no offence.
He is entitled to seek re-election.
Buhari was sworn in on May 29, 2015 after
an electoral victory at the presidential election
held on March 28, 2015.
The declaration may have cowed some
other members of the party who may be
nursing presidential ambition as anyone who
insists on contesting the ticket with him on the
party’s platform may be running a lost battle
and futile mission.
Buhari, a 75-year old former military leader,
was overwhelmingly voted into power following
a loss of confidence by the Nigerian
electorate of the Goodluck Jonathan administration
who was of the People’s Democratic
Party (PDP).
Buhari was sold to the voting population
of Nigeria as a man of integrity and austere
person whose sole interest in seeking the
highest political office was to serve selflessly
and right all perceived wrongs.
Before clinching the position in 2015, Buhari
had contested for the seat three times
and had declared that he would never ever
again do so.
The man Buhari
Muhammadu Buhari was born on 17
December 1942, is the President of
Nigeria, in office since 2015. He is a
retired major general in the Nigerian
Army and previously served as the nation’s head of
state from 31 December 1983 to 27 August 1985,
after taking power in a military coup d’état. The
term Buharism is ascribed to the Buhari military
government.
He unsuccessfully ran for the office of president
of Nigeria in the 2003, 2007 and 2011 general elections.
In December 2014, he emerged as the presidential
candidate of the All Progressives Congress
for the March 2015 general elections. Buhari won
the election, defeating the incumbent President
Goodluck Jonathan. This marked the first time in
the history of Nigeria that an incumbent president
lost to an opposition candidate in a general election.
He was sworn in on 29 May 2015.
Buhari has stated that he takes responsibility for
anything over which he presided during his military
rule, and that he cannot change the past. He has
described himself as a “converted democrat”.
Early life
Buhari was born to a Fulani family in Daura, Katsina
State, to his father Hardo Adamu, a Fulani chief,
and mother Zulaihat. He is the twenty-third child
of his father. Buhari was raised by his mother, after
his father died when he was about four years old.
He attended primary school in Daura and
Mai’adua before proceeding to Katsina Model
School in 1953, and to Katsina Provincial Secondary
School (now Government College Katsina)
from 1956 to 1961.
Early military career
Buhari joined the Nigerian Army by enrolling at
age 19 with the Nigerian Military Training College
(NMTC) in 1961. In February 1964, the college
was upgraded to an officer commissioning unit of
the Nigerian Army and renamed the Nigerian Defence
Academy (NDA) (prior to 1964, the Nigerian
government sent cadets who had completed
their NMTC preliminary training to mostly Commonwealth
military academies for officer cadet
President Muhammadu Buhari
In February 2011 he vowed he would serve
for only once if he won that year’s election. He
told the media at that time that his decision
was based on his age.
“I am not getting younger. If I succeed and
do one term, I will be 73 years old,” he said.
At that time he said his main focus would
be security and infrastructure- mainly power.
training). From 1962 to 1963, Buhari underwent
officer cadet training at Mons Officer Cadet School
in Aldershot in England.
In January 1963, at age 21, Buhari was commissioned
a second lieutenant and appointed Platoon
Commander of the Second Infantry Battalion
in Abeokuta, Nigeria. From November 1963 to
January 1964, Buhari attended the Platoon Commanders’
Course at the Nigerian Military Training
College, Kaduna. In 1964, he facilitated his military
training by attending the Mechanical Transport Officer’s
Course at the Army Mechanical Transport
School in Borden, United Kingdom.
From 1965 to 1967, Buhari served as commander
of the Second Infantry Battalion and appointed
brigade major, Second Sector, First Infantry
Division, April 1967 to July 1967.
Northern counter-coup of 28 July 1966
In July 1966 Lieutenant Muhammadu Buhari was
one of the participants in the “July Rematch” or
so called “Counter-Coup”, led by Lt-Col Murtala
Muhammed, that overthrew and assassinated Nigeria’s
first self-appointed military Head of State
General Aguiyi Ironsi, who had assumed leadership
of the Nigerian government after a failed coup
attempt on 15 January 1966, which overthrew
the elected parliamentary government of Nigeria
(also known as first republic). Other participants
in the coup on 28 July 1966 included 2nd Lieutenant
Sani Abacha, Lieutenant Ibrahim Babangida,
Major Theophilus Danjuma, Lieutenant Ibrahim
Bako among others. The coup was a reaction to
the January coup where a group of mostly Igbo officers
led by Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu
overthrew the democratically elected government
of Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. Many
Northern soldiers were aggrieved by the murder of
senior politicians, Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa
Balewa, northern regional premier, Ahmadu Bello,
and four senior officers from northern Nigeria:
Brigadier Zakariya Maimalari, Colonel Kur Mohammed,
Lt-Cols Abogo Largema and James Pam.
The counter-coup was very bloody leading to the
murder of mostly Igbo officers. Among the casualties
were the first military head of state General
Buhari and his controversial ambition
It is now seven years when the President
made the statement and at 75 and with failing
health he is still eager to continue with his job
for the next four years starting from May 29,
2019, despite the hue and cry attending his
declared ambition.
Twenty days after his inauguration, precisely
17 June 2015, Buhari told Nigerians
Aguiyi Ironsi and Lt Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi, the
military governor of the Western Region.
Civil war
Buhari was assigned to the 1st Division under the
command of Lt. Col Mohammed Shuwa, the
division had temporarily moved from Kaduna to
Makurdi at the onset of the Nigerian Civil War.
The 1st division was divided into sectors and then
battalions with Shuwa assisted by sector commanders
Martin Adamu and Sule Apollo who was
later replaced by Theophilus Danjuma. Buhari’s
initial assignment was Adjutant at Company Commander
2 battalion unit, Second Sector Infantry
of the 1st Division. The 2 battalion was one of the
units that participated in the first actions of the war,
they started from Gakem near Afikpo and moved
towards Ogoja with support from Gado Nasko’s
artillery squad.
They reached and captured Ogoja within a
week with the intention of advancing through the
flanks to Enugu, the rebel capital. Buhari was briefly
the 2 battalion’s Commander and led the battalion
to Afikpo to link with the 3rd Marine Commando
and advance towards Enugu through Nkalagu and
Abakaliki. However, before the move to Enugu, he
was posted to Nsukka as Brigade Major of the 3rd
Infantry Brigade under Joshua Gin who would later
become battle fatigued and replaced by Isa Bukar.
Buhari stayed with the infantry for a few months
as the Nigerian army began to adjust tactics learnt
from early battle experiences. Instead of swift
advances, the new tactics involved securing and
holding on to the lines of communications and
using captured towns as training ground to train
new recruits brought in from the army depots in
Abeokuta and Zaria. In 1968, he was posted to
the 4 Sector also called the Awka sector which
was charged to take over the capture of Onitsha
from Division 2. The sector’s operations was
within the Awka-Abagana-Onitsha region which
was important to Biafran forces because it was a
major source of food supply. It was in the sector that
Buhari’s group suffered a lot of casualties trying to
protect food supplies route of the rebels along Oji
River and Abagana.
in South Africa, after taking part in the 25th
Assembly of Heads of State and Government
of the African Union in Johannesburg, that his
performance would be limited by old age.
“I wish I became Head of State when I was
a governor, just a few years as a young man.
Now at 72, there is a limit to what I can do,”
he said.
Now, he is 75 and knowing his performance
is below par as a result of age, he decided to
declare for another four years when he would
more or less be a liability to the country. Critics
believe that Buhari has been the costliest
president. The country has continued to bear
huge expenses of his treatment.
“If you ask me, I don’t think the decision to
go for a second term is his idea. I think there
are people pushing him but my quarrel with
him is that he should be principled enough to
say No. Where then is the vaunted integrity, a
dummy that was sold to Nigerians in 2015?”
a pundit said.
Following his declaration, the Presidency,
knowing that the integrity of Buhari may be
at risk, came up with a defence that his “one
term” stand in 2011 no long applied.
Buhari administration has been a huge burden
on Nigerians. Since he came to power, the
economy has been at its worst. This is manifested
in the massive job losses across the
country, companies closing shop, businesses
struggling to survive and general poverty in
the land to the extent that many families today
have no means of their daily bread.
But these were the same reasons Buhari
said he wanted to come to contest the Presidency
in 2011 to address- to prevent a situation
where people cannot afford three square
meals a day.
Why declaration evokes anger
Since he declared his ambition, variegated reactions
have continued to trail it. While many
of his party men and women say the President
was the best candidate for the broom party
and should be returned to complete his “good
work”, a host of other Nigerians believe the
President does not merit a day in the saddle
after May 29, 2019.
Critics argue that President Buhari deserves
no re-election for another harrowing
four years. They point to the worsening security
situation in the country, harsh economic
policies, wanton killings across the country
by herdsmen, the refusal of the administration
to stem the tide of the needless massacres,
seemingly deliberate policy to put some sections
of the country down to the advantage of
others; the hate utterances from government
and by government and the fear that another
four years would be akin to hell in Nigeria.
The thinking is that President Buhari would
be more brutal in the next tenure than he is
now since he knows there is nothing any more
at stake for him. Some critics foresee a situation
where the herdsmen issue would assume
a more dreadful dimension and the machinery
of government completely hijacked by the
President’s men without any regard whatsoever
for any other Nigerian.
These fears are not unfounded going by
the awful experience of Nigerians in the last
3 years.
The thinking is: if a government that came
to power on the crest of Change mantra
could be so brutal in its first term, it could
run Nigerians down into the abyss if it wins a
second term.
Segun Anjorin, a Systems analyst, said:
“For me, there is no basis to return Buhari to
power. If you are talking about corruption,
it is also widespread in the current administration.
How can a failed government
be returned to power? Going by what has
been seen now, if Buhari returns it will be
hellish and I think this is why his declaration
is generating serious negative responses.
I think, for Nigerians, it should be a case of
once bitten, twice shy”

18
C002D5556 Sunday 15 April 2018
AssemblyWatch
From the Red Chamber
With
OWEDE AGBAJILEKE
Last week, I examined
the cold war
between Pro-Buhari
and Pro-Saraki
senators over the
proposed amendments to
the Electoral Act Bill upon
resumption from Easter
break.
Although I submitted
that the Senate may not be
in a hurry to consider the
four reports of the Samuel
Anyanwu-led Committee on
Ethics, Privileges and Public
Petitions against Pro-Buhari
senators, it turned out that
President Muhammadu Buhari’s
second term declaration
altered the game plan
of Saraki’s loyalists who
would crush any obstacle
on their way.
French statesman and
military leader, Napoléon
Bonaparte, once said, “Never
interrupt your enemy
Omo-Agege: The need to pick one’s battle wisely
when he is making a mistake”.
For loyalists of Saraki,
they simply allowed the
‘sins’ of Pro-Buhari senators
to accumulate and referred
same to its disciplinary committee.
At the moment,
there are three other reports
against Pro-Buhari
senators yet to be submitted
in this regard.
This was the lot of an
All Progressives Congress
Senator representing Delta
Central in the National Assembly,
Ovie Omo-Agege,
upon Senate’s resumption
from Easter last week. The
Pro-Buhari senator was
suspended for 90 legislative
days over his comment
that the amendments to
the Electoral Act to reorder
the sequence of elections
was targeted at President
Buhari.
With just three legislative
sittings in a week - Tuesday,
Wednesday and Thursday -
and exclusion of public holidays
and about two months
annual recess, this means
the embattled lawmaker
may not resume until after
the general elections in the
first quarter of 2019.
Unfortunately, other senators
loyal to Buhari who
had earlier promised to
stand by Omo-Agege chickened
out, as Chairman of
the Parliamentary Support
Group (Senate) for President
Muhammadu Buhari,
Abdullahi Adamu, walked
out of the chamber, thus
reneging on the assurances
of the group that they would
all insist that they all be suspended.
Like I submitted on this
platform last week, this is a
battle for political survival
for Saraki. Should Pro-Buhari
senators succeed in galvanising
support amongst
their colleagues to stop
moves to override the president’s
veto, then he should
kiss the nation’s Number
Three position goodbye as
this would serve as a launch
pad to impeach him.
Unfortunately, Omo-
Agege failed to learn from
the experiences of the immediate
past Senate Majority
Leader, Ali Ndume, who
was suspended in March
last year for six months.
He failed to realise that
despite being an apologist
of the President, that did not
deter his colleagues in the
upper legislative chamber
from suspending Ndume.
In 2002, the Anyim Pius
Anyim-led Senate clamped
an indefinite suspension on
Francis Arthur Nzeribe to
‘protect’ the institution of
the chamber.
The Delta Central lawmaker
also did not realise
that Buhari is not a General
that would stick his neck
for his staunch supporters.
Ask Ndume and the
former chairman of the
House of Representatives
Committee on Appropriation,
Abdulmumin Jibrin,
who were suspended by
both legislative chambers
while he (Buhari) looked
the other way.
Unlike Buhari, Saraki has
never abandoned his loyal
lawmakers. For instance,
he accompanied one of his
strongest loyalists, Dino
Melaye, to Lokoja recently
and provided security cover
for him after the police declared
him wanted.
Omo-Agege’s biggest
mistake was apologising
to his colleagues in plenary
and proceeding to court
thereafter to restrain the
Senate from taking disciplinary
action against him.
As a first-timer in the
Senate, he cannot claim
to love Buhari more than
Northern senators. His decision
to take the matter
to court having tendered
unreserved apology made
matters worse.
The 59 senators he listed
as being opposed to the
Electoral Act could not come
to his rescue. At the end, he
became the fall guy.
As the court adjudicates
on the matter, one major
lesson to be drawn from
the lawmaker’s encounter
is the need for one to learn
to pick one’s battle. Besides
belonging to a faction of
All Progressives Congress
(APC) in Delta State, the
embattled lawmaker’s association
with the controversial
Parliamentary Support
Group (Senate) for President
Muhammadu Buhari,
pitched him against most
APC senators, considering
the fact that he recently
defected to the governing
party from Labour Party
(LP).
With one of the foot soldiers
already down, there
are strong indications that
the Samuel Anyanwu-led
panel will now beam its
searchlight on Adamu to
serve as deterrent to other
senators.
As the 2019 elections
approach, more of these
politically-motivated battles
between the two groups will
come to the front burner, as
governance is relegated to
the back stage
Much ado about Electoral Act vis-à-vis non-usage of electronic voting, Abachagate
From the Green House
With
All eyes are on the National
Assembly to commence the
legislative process in motion
on the controversial Electoral
Act, 2018, which President Muhammadu
Buhari declined assent to
barely a month ago. Going through
the content of the re-gazetted bill, I observed
that some germane legislative
contents that would give credibility
to engender public trust. Part of the
new innovations in the bill include
the legislative framework for the
use of ‘Smart card’ otherwise called
‘Electronic voting’, electronic register
of election results to be known as
National Electronic Register of Election
Results which shall be a distinct
database or repository of polling
unit by polling results, including collated
election results of each election
conducted by INEC. The amendment
included sections 52(2) of the Principal
Act: “The Commission shall adopt
electronic voting in all elections or
any other method of voting as may
be determined by the Commission
from time to time.” This include accreditation
of voters. Likewise, the
proposed amendment to section
65A(1 & 2) and 67.
I described the bill as revolutionary,
because considering certain
provisions relating to section 78 for
penalties (between N1 million and N5
million or/and six months imprisonment)
against political association,
its executive members and principal
officers who provide misleading information
to the Commission.
I actually became very inquisitive
and agitated when I read the headline
of the news credited to the INEC
chairman, ruling out the use of electronic
voting in 2019. I wouldn’t know
the rationale that led to taking such
volatile decision by the Commission
which ought to be proactive and innovative,
but drastically took Nigeria
back to the electioneering dark age!
Of course, the pronouncement
has started generating tension within
the polity, including the allegation
raised by Human Rights Writers Association
of Nigeria (HURIWA) leveled
against the Presidency of pressuring
INEC not to use the electronic
machine.
While I have no doubt that the bill
was conceived in good faith, certain
provisions of the bill will help in checkmating
insider abuse by some staff of
the Commission, as seen in the last
general elections, and the ongoing
probe which led to the suspension of
205 staff allegedly involved in bribery
scandal. According to the proposed
amendment to section 8 of the
Electoral Act, Principal Act, 2010, “a
member who being a member of a
political party, misrepresent himself
by not disclosing his membership, affiliation,
or connection to any political
party in order to secure an appointment
with the Commission in any
capacity, commits an offence and is
liable on conviction to imprisonment
for a term of at least five years or a
fine of at least N5 million or both.”
All of these are compelling reasons
for the President to asset the
bill. So for the House and indeed
national Assembly to pull the trigger
of securing the future of elections
in the country is not too much to
pay the price and its constitutional
powers/arsenal this time around. If
the Legislature gets it wrong, it may
spell doom for the democratic rule
in Nigeria.
Aside creating ample opportunity
for massive rigging across
the country, ruling out the use of
electronic voting will also give room
for under-age voting and other vices
especially in some localities where
security agencies have minimal presence.
Never forget less than 400,000
policemen and political thugs and
electorates resorting to self-help.
All of these should be put to the
fore by the members of the House
of Representatives in taking decision
when the bill eventually comes to the
floor. Never forget that the time is not
on the side of the National Assembly,
considering the timeline provided for
in some of the amendments.
Meanwhile, one of the critical resolutions
passed by the House before
it adjourned plenary till Tuesday, 17th
April, 2018 was on the need to investigate
the proposed payment of $17
million to Lawyers engaged by the
Attorney General of the Federation
for recovery of ‘Abacha Loot.’ According
to the promoter of the motion,
Mark Gbillah (APC-Benue), Enrico
Monfrini, a Swiss Lawyer who was
engaged by the Nigerian Government
since 1999 to work on recovery
of the Abacha Loot for which the sum
of $321 million was a part, had finished
the Luxembourg leg of the job
since 2014 when Mohammed Bello
Adoke was the Attorney-General of
the Federation. Gbillah observed
that the Swiss lawyer had since been
paid by the Federal Government for
his legal services for the recovery of
the money which was then domiciled
with the Attorney-General of Switzerland
pending the signing of an
MoU with Nigeria to avoid the issues
of accountability around previous
recoveries. At present, all that was
left was the signing of the MoU which
is a government-to- government
communication for the money to be
repatriated to Nigeria. It was however
surprising, when Nigeria’s Minister of
Justice and Attorney-General of the
Federation, curiously engaged the
services of another set of Nigerian
Lawyers in 2016, namely, Oladipo
Okpeseyi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria
(SAN), and Temitope Adebayo
for a fee of $16.9 Million (about N6
Billion), without due process, accoding
to the lawmaker. Tracing the relationship
of the two layers engaged
by the AGF, Gbillah noted that both
Lawyers had worked for President
Muhammadu Buhari’s Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC), a legacy
party of the All Progressive Congress
(APC) when Malami was the legal
adviser of CPC. This and many more
questions are expected to be looked
into by the Ad-hoc Committee to be
KEHINDE AKINTOLA
announced in the next legislative
day. The terms of reference for the
Ad-hoc committee include: “investigate
the circumstances surrounding
the engagement of Nigerian lawyers,
namely - Oladipo Okpeseyi, (SAN),
and Temitope Adebayo for a fee of
$16.9 million (about N6 billion), when
the actual work had been concluded
by Mr Enrico Monfrini, and was paid
by the Nigerian government for the
recovery of the sum of $321 million
part of the Abacha loot from Luxembourg,
and whether due process was
followed and to report back within six
weeks for further legislative action.
On the other hand, the House
urged President Muhammadu Buhari,
to suspend the payment of the
said fee of $16.9 million (about N6
billion) or any part thereof pending
investigation on the matter.

Sunday 15 April 2018
Minimum wage: Lagos, not FG will
decide for its workers - Official
…decries lopsided federal structure
JOSHUA BASSEY
As debate continues
on what should be
the appropriate national
minimum
wage for Nigerian
workers, with the organised
labour throwing up different
figures, a commissioner in
Lagos, Akintola Benson Oke,
has submitted that the state
government, not federal, will
decide for its workers.
The Nigeria Labour Congress
(NLC) and Trade Union
Congress of Nigeria, (TUC)
in 2016 jointly submitted a
proposal of N56,000 to the
Federal Government as minimum.
Recently, however, the
two labour centres withdrew
the figure and made a fresh
demand of N66,500 while their
counterparts in United Labour
Congress (ULC) are insisting
on N96,000 per month as appropriate
national minimum
wage for Nigerian workers.
The Federal Government in
November 2017 inaugurated a
30-member tripartite committee
headed by Ama Pepple, a
former Head of Service and
Minister of Housing. The committee
comprising labour,
private sector representatives
and government was tasked
with discussing the labour’s
demand and arriving at what
will be a new national minimum
wage.
Nigeria currently pays
N18,000 minimum wage, a sum
that stakeholders across sectors
Kofoworola Awobamise, permanent secretary, Ministry of information and Strategy; Kehinde Bamigbetan,
commissioner, Ministry of Information and Strategy; Idowu Ajanaku, special adviser to the
governor on Information; Abayomi Onayele, director-general, Lagos State Records and Archive Bureau,
during the 2018 Ministerial Press Briefing at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa, Ikeja.
of the economic believe is inadequate,
and one of the lowest in
the world. The minimum wage
was signed into effect in 2011
by former President Goodluck
Jonathan and meant for a review
after five years.
The NLC and TUC in withdrawing
their initial demand
of N56,000 said it was necessitated
by the current economic
realities whereby workers in the
country have become poorer in
the face of inflation and depreciating
value of the naira which
have combined to raise the cost
of living in the country.
Peter Ozo-Eson, the general
secretary of the NLC, said
the union submitted the fresh
demand at the last meeting
of the tripartite committee on
March 27.
According to Ozo-Eson, we
have taken a position since we
made the initial demand on the
government which is almost
two years back.
“When we got to the tripartite
committee and the committee
called on all stakeholders to
submit a memorandum.
“In responding to the request
for a memorandum, we
then use current economic indices
to make a fresh demand.
So, what we place and what
we demand is an outcome of
analysis we carried out.
“We did the analysis using
the current economic table and
data of the nation and of course
that came to something different.
We are going to maintain
what is in the memorandum
that we have submitted to the
tripartite committee.”
Noting that the fresh demand
was a joint memorandum
by the NLC and TUC,
Ozo-Eson declared: “We have
made the presentation to the
committee and we have defended
it. We have also taken
into account changes between
the first demand and the current
position.”
However, responding to a
question on the possibility of
Lagos paying a higher minimum
wage, Benson Akintola
Oke, the state commissioner
for establishments, training
and pensions, said it was within
the purview of Governor
Akinwunmi Ambode-led state
government to decide what to
pay workers in the state public
service.
C002D5556
19
Inside Lagos
Lagos to establish community
poultry farm in Isheri
A
200 capacity community
poultry facility
is being established
at Isheri by the Lagos State
government as part of the
measures to upscale the production
of poultry products
in the drive for food security
in the state.
Muslim Folami, the commissioner
for local government
and community affairs
disclosed this on Thursday,
during a media briefing to
mark the third anniversary
of the Governor Akinwunmi
Ambode-led administration.
The government came into
office in May 2015.
According to Folami, the
poultry farm will commence
operations in the second
quarter of this year, ending
June 2018. He said this was
also in the efforts to positively
engage the locals and create
job opportunities for farmers
in the Isheri community.
Folami said already, the
Vegetable Farm in Isheri
which was mainly an open
field system had been upgraded
to a Green House
system to produce ‘fruity
vegetable’ particularly Habanero
pepper starting from the
second quarter of the year.
On effort to upscale fish
production, the commissioner
said a locally formulated
sinking feeds was being
produced at Lagoon Replenishment
Centre/Hatchery
located in Badagry, for sales
to fish farmers in communities
around Badagry while a
commercial fish hatchery has
also been proposed for the
Centre to support local fish
farmers in the area.
Meanwhile, Folami has
advised residents of the state
to desist from locking down
their streets with iron gates,
warning that the government
would not hesitate to apply
the full weight of the law
against defaulters.
“There is a law in Lagos
State against indiscriminate
installation of street gates.
We are not saying you should
not have gates in your streets
but those gates should be
manned 24 hours.
“The reason we are opposed
to the practice of keeping
gates perpetually locked
is that there may be emergencies,
there may be fire
outbreak. A pregnant woman
can fall into labour anytime
and would want to go to the
hospital. If you lock the gates
what happens? We have had
cases where some pregnant
women died because the
gates were closed.
“There were so many incidents
of fire outbreak and the
streets could not be accessed
to put out the fire. We will not
fold our hands and allow such
things to happen. Henceforth,
anyone found guilty would be
punished,” Folami said.
Folami, who restated the
commitment of the state to
the development of the grassroots,
called for the support of
the citizens to fast-track the
process.
Consumers’ rights abuse:
LASCOPA steps in
...offers free services to aggrieved persons
Amid increasing
cases of product
adulteration and
associated health
hazards, the Lagos State Consumer
Protection Agency
(LASCOPA) says its doors
are opened to customers and
consumers whose rights may
have been abused or violated
in any way.
The agency says complaints
bordering on fake
or adulterated product and
below expectation services
which had been paid for, can
be forwarded to its office in
order to help aggrieved customers
and consumers seek
redress.
Kemi Olugbode, the general
manager of LASCOPA
who spoke with reporters
in Ikeja, said the agency recently
established by the state
government, according to its
enabling law, has the mandate
to protect consumers of
goods and services against
any act of infringement on
their rights.
According to Olugbode,
“our doors are widely opened
to receive complaints from
any consumer irrespective of
their sex, tribe, religious or
political affiliations.”
Urging the general public
to take advantage of the free
services of her agency, the
GM assured that all forwarded
cases would be thoroughly
investigated and attended to.
She noted that LASCOPA
would explore every available
option to ensure that all complaints
from consumers are
resolved amicably without
necessary initiating a court
process.
Speaking on the process
resolution, Olugbode said
that upon the receipt of complaints
from any aggrieved
consumer, the Complaint
and Mediation Section of
LASCOPA would write the
respondent, to reply to the
allegation against them.
She said that the agency
usually requested the respondents
to reply within 14
or 21 working days of receipt
of a letter from LASCOPA depending
on the circumstances
of the matter. Mediation
process would commence to
ensure a peaceful resolution
of all consumers’ complaints
as soon as the respondent
honours the invitation letter
from the agency.
The GM said that it was
only when all available mediation
process had been
explored and the complaint
not satisfactorily resolved
that the option of litigation
could be considered.
She said the agency had so
far been able to amicably resolve
a number of consumers’
complaints to their satisfaction
free of charge.
Oshodi demolition: Hope rises for property owners
Owners of property
that had to give
way for the ongoing
construction of
Oshodi Transport Interchange
and expansion of the Murtala
Mohammed International
Airport (MMIA) road can look
forward to a relief, as the state
government says their compensation
will soon be paid.
There is, however, a proviso,
as the state governor,
Akinwunmi Ambode hinted
that those with relevant and
valid documents may benefit
from the payment. It was gathered
that the compensation
may cost the state government
a whopping N1billion.
Ambode undertook a tour
of the project and other construction
sites on Thursday
after which he appealed to
those involved to be patient
with the government.
He said: “We will soon
commence the payment of
compensation to all the people
that we have in one way
or the other demolished their
properties. And once their papers
are complete, they will be
compensated for paying the
price for the benefit of Lagos
residence and Nigerians.
“I want to also appeal to
Lagos residents to bear with
us. We recognise the inconveniences
and hardship being
experienced on this road due
to the ongoing construction.
“As much as possible, we
are trying to reduce the impact
of traffic on residents and road
users, believing that it is in the
overall interest of all that we
should have a standard road
that leads to our international
airport.
“This road will be delivered
as a Christmas gift and
we should be able to use it
with the Oshodi Transport
Interchange and make a major
facelift in this axis.”
Ambode said specifically
that the Oshodi Transport
Interchange was about the
recovery of access roads with
tunnel, skywalk, park and
ride facility, mall, hotels, and
five expanded lanes for easy
networking of roads in and out
of Oshodi area.”
Thomas Cunningham, the
contractor handling another
project being embarked upon
by the state government, the
Iyana-Oworo Lagoon Reclamation,
said they were at 95
per cent reclamation stage as
we have reclaimed 30 hectares.
He said that by the end
of July, they would have reclaimed
the remaining 20
hectares.
At the Bariga-Ilaje link
road construction where jetties
will be situated for water
transportation, the contractor
said work was at 65 per
cent completion stage, with a
mini bus terminal where passengers
would alight to take
jetties to Apapa, CMS, Ikorodu
and Epe.
Ambode, who expressed
satisfaction with the work
done, said that the 50-hectare
land space would not be sold
for residential but for transportation
and entertainment
hub with clubs, bars, hotels,
boutique and transportation
with jetties among others.
On the Ilaje road construction,
he said that the project
would be delivered by July,
adding that a Primary Healthcare
Centre would also be
constructed to cater for the
highly populated area. The
governor also inspected the
construction work at the Lagos
State Model School, Sabo,
Yaba which had 36 classroom
and nine laboratories.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
20
Comment
comment is free
Send 800word comments to comment@businessdayonline.com
PUBLISHER/CEO
Frank Aigbogun
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Prof. Onwuchekwa Jemie
EDITOR
Zebulon Agomuo
DEPUTY EDITOR
John Osadolor, Abuja
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Chuks Oluigbo
NEWS EDITOR
Patrick Atuanya
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
SALES AND MARKETING
Kola Garuba
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS
Fabian Akagha
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DIGITAL SERVICES
Oghenevwoke Ighure
ADVERT MANAGER
Adeola Ajewole
MANAGER, SYSTEMS & CONTROL
Emeka Ifeanyi
HEAD OF SALES, CONFERENCES
Rerhe Idonije
SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER
Patrick Ijegbai
CIRCULATION MANAGER
John Okpaire
GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (North)
Bashir Ibrahim Hassan
GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (South)
Ignatius Chukwu
HEAD, HUMAN RESOURCES
Adeola Obisesan
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Dick Kramer - Chairman
Imo Itsueli
Mohammed Hayatudeen
Albert Alos
Funke Osibodu
Afolabi Oladele
Dayo Lawuyi
Vincent Maduka
Wole Obayomi
Maneesh Garg
Keith Richards
Opeyemi Agbaje
Amina Oyagbola
Bolanle Onagoruwa
Fola Laoye
Chuka Mordi
Sim Shagaya
Mezuo Nwuneli
Emeka Emuwa
Charles Anudu
Tunji Adegbesan
Eyo Ekpo
NEWS ROOM
08022238495
} Lagos
08034009034
08033160837 Abuja
ADVERTISING
01-2799110
08116759801
08082496194
ENQUIRIES
TAYO OGUNBIYI
Ogunbiyi is of the Lagos State
Ministry of Information & Strategy,
Alausa, Ikeja
The 11th edition of the
Lagos state government
Quarterly Town
Hall Meetings berths
in Apapa on Tuesday,
April 17. Since its inauguration in
May 2015, it has become traditional
for the state government
to periodically render account of
its stewardship as well as interact
with Lagos residents on diverse
issues of governance. The Town
Hall Meeting, which quarterly
alternates across the State’s three
Senatorial Districts, is in fulfillment
of Governor Ambode’s resolve to
run an all inclusive government in
which “no one or segment of the
society, irrespective of colour, race,
faith, status, ability or disability is
left behind”.
The forum provides a steady
platform for Lagos residents as
well as other key stakeholders to
be part of decision making process
in the state. This, of course, is the
whole essence of democracy. For
any democratic system to be truly
about the people, it is imperative
that every democratically elected
government constantly relates
with the citizens on key issues
of governance. Without a doubt,
the people remain the bedrock of
democracy and as such it is critical
As Ambode go goes to Apapa
that their views on government
policies and programmes are carefully
and systematically sought
from time to time. This way, it will
be easy to evolve strategic means
to determine ways of improving
the quality of the citizenry’s social
life.
Since inception of the Quarterly
Town Hall Meetings, opinions of
various stakeholders as well as resolutions
reached have been quite
helpful in assisting government to
prioritize its developmental plans
across various sectors of the state.
For instance, at the maiden edition
held at Abesan Mini Stadium in
Ayobo-Ipaja, residents clamoured
for a lasting solution to traffic grid
along Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway
as well as rehabilitation of the
Ayobo-Ipaja Road. In his response,
Governor Ambode promised that
a Flyover Bridge would be constructed
at Abule-Egba to ease
traffic along the axis while the
Ayobo-Ipaja Road would be rehabilitated
within three months. Both
promises have since been fulfilled.
Besides helping government to
prioritize its activities, the Town
Hall Meetings equally offers opportunity
for the people to be
briefed about various policies and
activities of government on a quarterly
basis. This is quite important
because where access to official
information is lacking, the citizenry
are bound to take rumours,
misconceptions, falsehoods and
half-truths as the gospel truth,
especially in this era of unbridled
social media phenomenon.
Therefore, at Apapa, Lagos
residents will have the prospect of
hearing directly from the Governor
about several decisive issues that
might be of immense concern to
them. Similarly, Governor Ambode
will equally have the opportunity
of informing the people about the
several strides of his administration
since the first quarter of this
year.
The Akinwunmi Ambode administration
is, no doubt, giving a
boost to infrastructure development
in the state. For instance, residents
of Alimosho were recently
given a rare Easther treat when
21 roads and three bridges connecting
the state with Ogun State
were recently commissioned.
Also, a modern Bus Terminal was
recently commissioned at Ikeja
by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Presently, work is also on-going
on the Pen Cinema /Agunbiade
Flyover which is aimed at reducing
traffic grid lock within the corridor.
Similarly, the redevelopment of the
Lagos Airport Road into a 10 lane
international standard highway
is on course while work is equally
progressing on the Oshodi Transport
Interchange which when
completed is bound to change the
face of public transportation in the
entire country.
Other key capital projects in
this year’s budget include the alternative
routes through Oke-Ira in
Eti-Osa to Epe-Lekki Expressway;
the 8km Regional Road to serve
as alternative route to connect
Victoria Garden City (VGC) with
Freedom Road in Lekki Phase I
and the BRT Lane from Oshodi to
Abule-Egba, to mention but a few.
Taking this particular edition of
the Town Hall Meeting to Apapa is
quite significant. Apapa is very strategic
to the economy of Nigeria,
being a major gateway to the country’s
sea ports. The major share of
government’s revenue comes from
both the Apapa and Tin Can Island
Ports. More than 75 per cent of the
goods that are imported into the
country come through the ports
in Lagos and the major ports in the
country are based in Apapa. Without
a doubt, Apapa is undoubtedly
vital to the prosperity of Nigeria. It
is, therefore, expected that major
stakeholders in the axis would use
the opportunity of the forum to
come up with creative ideas that
could further help in optimizing
the enormous economic potentials
of Apapa.
Harvey Firestone, foremost
American Business man says:
“Capital isn’t so important in business.
Experience isn’t so important.
What is important is idea. If you
have ideas, you have the main asset
you need, and there isn’t any
limit to what you can do with your
business and your life.” It is hoped
that the Town Hall Meeting at
Apapa will come up with several
innovative ideas that will further
enhance sustainable growth and
development in the state.
Ogunbiyi is of the Lagos State Ministry
of Information and Strategy,
Alausa, Ikeja
SUBSCRIPTIONS
01-2799101
07032496069
07054563299
www.businessdayonline.com
The Brook,
6 Point Road, GRA, Apapa, Lagos,
Nigeria.
01-2799100
LEGAL ADVISERS
The Law Union
MISSION
STATEMENT
To be a diversified
provider of superior
business, financial and
management intelligence
across platforms accessible
to our customers
anywhere in the world.
OUR CORE VALUES
BusinessDay avidly thrives on the mainstay of our core values of being The Fourth Estate, Credible, Independent,
Entrepreneurial and Purpose-Driven.
• The Fourth Estate: We take pride in being guarantors of liberal economic thought
• Credible: We believe in the principle of being objective, fair and fact-based
• Independent: Our quest for liberal economic thought means that we are independent of private and public interests.
• Entrepreneurial: We constantly search for new opportunities, maintaining the highest ethical standards in all we do
• Purpose-Driven: We are committed to assembling a team of highly talented and motivated people that share
our vision, while treating them with respect and fairness.
www.businessdayonline.com

Sunday 15 April 2018
comment is free
Send 800word comments to comment@businessdayonline.com
C002D5556
21
Comment
That Imo State is in dire of
need of rescue is not in
contention. Last week, this
column established that
the major setback to the
development of the state since its
creation in 1976, but especially since
1999, has been incompetent, visionless
leadership and the domination of
its politics by people of questionable
character and competence, people
with no track record of achievement,
people without verifiable means of
livelihood and whose daily survival
now depends entirely on how close
they are to the magnetic field of political
power.
As the 2019 elections draw close,
the state, overdue for a turnaround, is
in desperate search of a turnaround
manager, someone with track record,
competence and character who will
set it on the path of sustainable, inclusive
and diversified development.
So far, over 30 aspirants have indicated
interest to be governor of Imo
State in 2019. As it often happens, the
pretenders shall in time be separated
from the serious contenders. But
even now, a few of the aspirants are
already showing a lot of promise.
One such aspirant is Chidi Okoro, a
University of Nigeria, Nsukka-trained
pharmacist who holds MBA from
University of Lagos and Executive
One common and usual
refrain among loyalists
and supporters of Nigerian
leaders in the past
decade is that the particular leader
in question ‘means well for the country’.
The issue of meaning well is
often brought in to counter accusations
of non- performance against
such leaders.
Thus, when opponents of a sitting
President demand for his ouster,
usually in the next election as punishment
for poor performance or
under performance, among the
points put forward by supporters of
the non-performing leader is to say
that he means well for the nation,
and should therefore, be spared even
when in the opinion of the opposition
and other discerning citizens that
the leader has not done well! One
common and familiar scapegoat for
the poor performance of the leader
is his aides!
The average Nigerian, good
natured as always would blame
the aides of the President or those
around him and never the man himself
as the reason for his poor outing.
The question arises, ‘’who selected
these aides?” In the event that the
aides were selected for him, should
the Leader or President not periodically
review what his aides do and call
them to order where they are found
wanting?
The case above is the same with
President Muhammadu Buhari
Masters Degree in Positive Leadership
and Strategy from IE Business
School, Madrid, Spain.
Okoro, a successful private sector
business manager, has had outstanding
experience spanning various
industry sectors such as consumer,
pharmaceutical, healthcare and
telecom. He has held senior management
positions in Promasidor,
MTN, Reckitt Benckiser and Emzor
Pharmaceutical and has served as
managing director/CEO, GlaxoSmithKline
Nigeria, managing director
of Africa Region for Suntory, and
most recently, managing director/
CEO, UAC Foods Limited. He is
the founder of Southern Business
Academy, a not-for-profit platform
through which he has contributed to
social change in Nigeria.
The first thing that strikes you
about this man of excellence is his
passion for a greater Imo. It is this passion
that led him, alongside a group
called Imo Arise Network, to embark
on an extensive research on Imo
State with the aim of ascertaining
the crux of the developmental problems
facing the state. That extensive
research has yielded huge dividend
as Okoro reels out statistics on Imo
with military precision – in a country
where dearth of data adversely affects
development planning.
Chidi Okoro and the promise of a greater Imo
Does President Buhari really love Nigeria?
MUSA MOHAMMED ZANGO
Zango wrote from Bauchi.
Panorama
with CHUKS OLUIGBO
chuks.oluigbo@businessdayonline.com (08116759816)
whose term will be up in May 2019,
but whose ardent supporters are
already losing sleep about his fate
come February 2019 when the 2019
elections would take place.
To say that a terrible fever has
gripped the pro- Buhari camp and
the ruling All Progressives Congress
(APC) party, is an understatement.
In fact, it is right to say that the nation
is under siege because of the
ambition of this former military Head
of State and retired and tired Major-
General and his supporters who are
so keen on his re- election whether
or not he has performed in the past
three and half years.
Nigerians can go as far as the
ridiculous in their support for politicians
notably incumbent Heads
of States in whose government
they have interest. Recently, the
Governor of Kaduna State, a state
that has had a very bitter taste
of the generalised insecurity and
killings in the country which has
defined the Buhari Presidency, led
a high-powered delegation of APC
governors to the Presidential Villa to
express support for the second term
ambition of President Muhammadu
Buhari at a time that there should
be national mourning on account of
the massacre by Fulani herdsmen
of hundreds of Men, women and
children of Benue origin. The unfortunate
people were killed in their
sleep and their villages sacked by the
marauding herdsmen who are now a
security threat to the entire country.
Second to add insult to injury, the lying
and propaganda ruling party, the
APC, has been working hard to prod
“Unemployment/underemployment
is at 34 percent. Youth unemployment
is 58 percent. Every year
we churn out about 50,000 people
ready to work, only about 15,000 get
jobs, so you have 35,000 overhang,
meaning that in another 10 years you
will probably have 500,000 people in
the job market. At the moment we do
have about 300,000 people seeking
jobs in Imo State,” Okoro tells me in
an interview in Lagos.
“There are less than 1,000 doctors
in Imo State. Doctor/patient ratio is
about 1:6,000, whereas World Health
Organisation (WHO) recommends
one doctor to 600 patients. So, we
already have a big problem. Imo has
100 registered pharmacy outlets and
about 4,000 patent medicine outlets.
So, the state is way underserved when
you look at the population of 5.4 million,”
he says.
“Imo IGR today is about N6 billion
per annum, so we make roughly
N500 million every month. Imo is
transforming from a civil service,
agro state to a commercial state with
many hotels; it can transform to become
hospitality, entertainment and
conferencing state to unlock value.
The challenge Imo has is productivity,
people have no jobs. Average
salary across the hotels is way below
N20,000 per head, so with that consumption
is very low,” he adds.
Okoro tells me Imo State has a
landmass of about 5,000 sq. km, with
400 clusters and about 13 exits and
entrances. He says Imo has five higher
institutions, literacy rate in the state is
89 percent, the state has 97 percent
school enrolment, which drops to
about 93 percent as it progresses to
secondary education, and every year
its non-performing and lacklustre
Buhari to go for a second term, thus
giving the impression that the APC,
after the exist of that nationalist and
gentleman, Atiku Abubakar, is lacking
in quality persons who can contest
the Presidency on that platform.
It should be noted that the Kaduna
State governor, Nasir El- Rufai
and the other selfish and poor performing
governors of the APC, took
this bizarre and unprecedented step
even when President Buhari had not
declared his interest in the race as
he was trying to come to grips with
the security and economic mess the
country has become under his watch!
It would seem that the governor
who took this insensitive step, and
those in his entourage live in the
moon unlike majority of Nigerians
who hold the view that the incumbent
has done his best but that the
country needs someone who can
do better. In fairness to him, President
Buhari is a tough disciplinarian
and anti-corruption personality and
gentleman who knows his limitations.
He came not prepared for the
exalted office of President but was
favoured by providence, and the
coalition of strange bed-fellows in the
APC moulded into a political party
by former Lagos State Governor,
Bola Tinubu, with the assistance of
other notable political leaders. Buhari
was also helped to power by his
now-estranged benefactor, former
President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Recently, his controversial benefactor
parted ways with him on
the grounds that he (Obasanjo) is
opposed to President Buhari’s ambiabout
100,000 Imo children register
for UTME, and 140,000 register for
WAEC.
So, this man clearly understands
the state he wants to govern and
what the key issues are. Armed with
this information, he is also clear about
what he wants to do in the areas
of healthcare, education, security,
agriculture, employment creation,
provision of nonexistent public utilities,
unfinished and abandoned
projects littering the entire state,
how he would settle the backlog of
debts owed by the state, how to raise
Internally Generated Revenue without
inflicting more suffering on an
already-impoverished Imo citizenry,
how to engender rural development
by making the local governments
functional again, among others.
He promises to drive healthcare
access from about 24 percent now
to about 50 percent over a period
of 24 months. He says he will “deliver
targeted free education where
necessary, but more about affordable
quality education will be the
strategy”, adding, “Our desire is
to achieve 100 percent education
enrolment and get Imo back to
number one position in WAEC pass
rate within 36 months.”
He mentions that Imo State’s current
debt is roughly N80 billion, which,
he believes, is not unsustainable and
some of them can be restructured in
such a way that the backlog can be
paid. “If we do that, we motivate the
staff to go back to work, contractors
get back on site and start paying
people, and the economy begins to
thrive again,” he adds.
When he formally declared his
intention to vie for the governorship
tion to seek another term in office.
In fact, former President Obasanjo
in a recent public letter to Buhari accused
him of non-performance and
nepotism as well as of poor health
and marginal appreciation of the
demands of governance in a plural
society like ours. Obasanjo pointedly
told Buhari not to seek re-election
so as not to sentence Nigerians already
reeling from his tribalistic and
unimaginative government from
another four years of misrule, mismanagement,
poverty, hardship and
wanton massacre of defenceless
Nigerians across the country.
There are many Nigerians both
inside and outside the country
who are of the view that the country
needs new set of leaders and
that the present administration
has failed abysmally in the area of
protection of lives and property.
President Muhammadu Buhari has
clearly presented himself as a weak
Commander-in- Chief who cannot
get the nation’s security forces,
despite huge budgetary allocation
available to them in the last three
years, tosignificantly overcome a
terrorist insurgency in the North
east region of Nigeria,and a herdsmen
killing spree in all parts of the
country which is now threatening
the entire country.
It would seem also that the elderly
man that he is, President Buhari
knows that he would only declare
interest in the 2019 polls against
the wish of majority of Nigerians, at
the nation’s peril. It was perhaps for
this reason that his declaration last
Monday that he would contest again
We cherish readers’ reactions to stories and articles published in BusinessDay. All such reactions, which must not be
more than 250 words,
ticket of the All Progressives Grand
Alliance (APGA) on April 3, the author
of ‘Another Perspective: Challenging
Dominant Logic’ said he is in the
race “because of our pensioners, our
civil servants who are owed several
months of salaries, our traders whose
shops have been demolished”.
“Through my five years research,
I identified Imo problems and solutions.
A governor of Imo State has
about a thousand positions to fill. I
will use that opportunity to create
500,000 jobs in four years,” he said.
Okoro never stops emphasising
that he possesses a superior blueprint,
“an alternative reality that
is well-informed, fact-driven, factbased,
something that will transform
the lives of the people of Imo
State”, “deliver dividends of democracy
and deliver sustainable development
in a better structured way”.
While keeping faith in the ability of
his party, APGA, to follow the path of
equity, justice and fairness and pick “a
superior candidate that can lead them
to victory”, Okoro is not losing sight
of the fact that in a democracy, true
power lies with the people.
And, importantly, he is clear
about what distinguishes him from
other aspirants. He mentions track
record, competence, and character.
He speaks about his experience,
which goes beyond Imo State or
Nigeria. He speaks about his ability
to execute the plan, ability to
prioritise and prioritise effectively,
and he speaks about a firm blueprint
“that will lift Imo State from
where it is today and prepare it for
a great future”.
In the interest of a greater Imo, one
can only wish him best of luck.
has come to shock angry Nigerians.
It must dawn on the President
that the nation he often has claimed
he loves, and which his ardent supporters
say he means well for would
be in mortal danger if he were to
shun the dictates of wise counsel
and plunge into the potentially boiling
2019 elections. As one prominent
lawyer from Plateau State put it in
a recent interview with a national
newspaper, “if Buhari contests and
wins the 2019 polls, there will be
chaos, and if he loses; there will be
trouble”. The erudite lawyer then advised
the President, to thank God and
go home after his term ends in 2019!
However, the way things stand,
President Muhammadu Buhari has
elected to reject wise counsel. He
seems to be enjoying the death sentence
he has passed on Nigerians by
the complex and unsuccessful economic
policies of his administration in
the last three years which has yielded
more job losses, crimes and business
closures than any government in our
recent history.
Thus, his declaration of interest
to contest the 2019 polls at a meeting
of his party, the All Progressives
Congress (APC) on the 9th of April,
2018 in Abuja is a bad omen and a sign
of more difficult days ahead for the
people of Nigeria, if effort is not made
by Nigerians to hand him a clear rejection
through a resounding defeat. The
People’s Democratic Party (PDP)
and other opposition parties should
sink their differences and come together
under a detribalised Nigerian
and visionary like Atiku and bring to
an end, the Buhari dictatorship.

22
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Analysis
OSARO EGHOBAMIEN
Eghobamien, a senior advocate of Nigeria, is
managing partner at Perchstone & Graeys.
President Buhari’s declaration of
his intention to seek re-election
in 2019 comes against the backdrop
of former President Olusegun
Obasanjo’s contentious advice
to join octogenarians and leave the field
for “younger aspirants”. President Buhari’s
boldness and stern conviction presents
various permutations as well as stretches
the limits of democracy in a fledgling
economy. Often, the material necessary to
make informed decisions is misunderstood,
misinterpreted and sometimes ignored by
the electorate. Consequently, the question
as to who becomes Nigeria’s president assumes
some complexities, and the role of
the professional requires more penetrating
focus.
It would be recalled that in his characteristically
colourful and anecdotal manner,
Chief Obasanjo delivered a “balanced
scorecard” of sorts, of the Buhari-led administration,
in a Special Press Statement
released to the media sometime earlier this
year. Permit me to draw your attention to a
passage in the statement, where the elder
statesman remarked: “We have only one
choice left to take us out of Egypt, to the
Promised Land. And that is the coalition of
the concerned and the willing – ready for
positive and drastic change, progress and
involvement… If leadership fails, citizens
must not fail…”
The former President appeared to have
eloquently captured the nation’s insight in
his analysis of the administration’s efforts
at governance these past three odd years.
Although it must be admitted that Alhaji
Lai Mohamed (Nigeria’s Minister of Information
& Culture) equally drew attention
to some of the positive economic gains
recorded by this administration. As often
with reactionary posture or statements
however, it carried little or no weight in the
face of the ex-President’s volcanic criticisms.
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s call for
citizens to act in the face of failing leadership
is worth introspection by all, particularly
professionals and non-career politicians.
Acting, in this context, implies supporting
dynamic, and visionary professional
leadership outside of the usual political
circles, and strategically working to put
such leadership into positions of power.
To paraphrase a statement credited to one
of Nigeria’s greatest political and cultural
icons, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, at the turn
of Nigeria’s independence: “…a nation
cannot go on, when there are competent
people around, to have incompetent people
in charge”.
The present administration is by no
means utterly incompetent, but it has
however been exceptionally slow in many
respects; yet recording some successes
along the way. It has slowly, but doggedly,
pulled the nation out of recession. Again, it
is not correct that whatever achievements
it has recorded are attributable to increase
in oil prices. Negotiating a fragile peace in
A call to action: The role of the professional in
Nigerian politics and national development
the Niger-Delta, and the slow diversification
of a monolithic economy from oil to agriculture,
is worth extolling. These accomplishments
must however be weighed against
the herdsmen crises and general insecurity.
Obasanjo’s advice in connection with these
crises must be taken seriously.
That said, a reflection on the 2015 general
election and its outcome within the
context of the present discussion, leaves
one with some optimism, even though
cautious. The ascendancy of non-career
politicians (as we know it in Nigeria) in the
person of Buhari (to a lesser extent) and
Osinbajo has taught us that political victory
is possible against all odds. Both men campaigned
on the mantra of change, but more
importantly, backed it with their personal
integrity. Nigerians threw their weight behind
the duo. While many will argue that all
the goodwill may have since been frittered
away, I sincerely believe it can be regained.
For the first time, non-career politicians
are at the helm of governance. To my mind,
this sets the stage for other men and women
of character, with the benefit of youth;
experience and dynamism, to some-day
soon, rule this nation. Perhaps not in 2019,
but in 2023. I am speaking of a possible
presidential candidacy of the likes of Peter
Obi, Babatunde Fashola, Kingsley Moghalu,
Godwin Obaseki, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and
of course Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.
Even better still, a race between two or
more of such candidates, would present a
most desirable dilemma. Further down the
line (eight years thereafter), the emergence
of Northern candidates of similar extraction,
such as Engineer Suleiman Adamu,
the current Minister of Water Resources,
is envisaged.
The point being made here is that this
present administration has set a platform
for professionals with integrity, to get
involved and define the pathway of the
country.
The operative word here is integrity,
however, the perennial challenge has been
the modality for the determination of
integrity. As I proposed in a speech given
at the Rotary Club, all aspirants to public
office must have established worthy antecedents,
verifiable by non-governmental
organizations, such as the Convention on
Business Integrity (CBI). Verification may
be conducted by way of interviews with
schoolmates, colleagues and members of
the aspirant’s community. Having said that,
there must be some level of intrusion into
the person lives of the aspirants seeking
public office. Lin Kuan Yew wrote that a man
who has succeeded in leading or participating
actively in a voluntary organization by
mere persuasion and strength of character,
invariably performs exceedingly well when
backed up by state authority, in the event
that he or she assumes public office. He was
unapologetic in his intrusive nature in the
lives of Singaporeans when he said:
“I am often accused of interfering in the
private lives of citizens. Yes, if I did not, had
I not done that, we wouldn’t be here today.
And I say without the slightest remorse, that
we wouldn’t be here, we would not have
made economic progress, if we had not
intervened on very personal matters - who
your neighbour is, how you live, the noise
you make, how you spit, or what language
you use. We decide what is right. Never
mind what the people think.”
CBI and organizations of that nature can
perform that verification exercise effortlessly.
They have a sophisticated formula
of reaching conclusions about character
and the behavioral pattern that is likely to
emerge once a person is in a position of public
trust, drawing from verifiable pedigrees.
Regrettably, the Government institutions
that should ordinarily perform this role
are seriously compromised. In essence, an
aspirant’s pedigree and character must be
verifiable.
Having declared his intention to contest
the 2019 general elections, it is doubtful
that there could be any viable opposition
to President Buhari’s ticket. First, by the
‘gentlemen’s agreement’ that seems to
hold an otherwise fractious nation together,
the Northern region is expected to lay hold
to the seat of power for another term,
come 2019. Second, no other Northerner,
whether within or outside the All Progressives
Congress (“APC”), possesses the
political clout, to unseat or even seriously
rattle President Buhari’s bid for re-election.
This is understandable. It took the sitting
Lee Kuan Yew wrote that
a man who has succeeded
in leading or participating
actively in a voluntary
organization by mere
persuasion and strength of
character invariably performs
exceedingly well when backed
up by state authority
President thirteen years to build his political
base into its current monolithic proportions.
It will be a very slim chance indeed to unseat
him. This puts the premise of former President
Obasanjo’s letter into sharper focus.
It was essentially a roundabout plea to the
President not to run, simply because it is
unlikely that his candidacy can be defeated.
Following the President’s decision to
contest the next general election, it would
make sense to pick as a running mate, his
present Vice, who seems to have won
the hearts and minds of many Nigerians.
However, there is no guarantee that he
would pick Professor Osinbajo SAN as
his running mate once again. Nothing is
certain in politics. Even though his Vice
clearly demonstrated sterling qualities in
strategizing and effectively implementing
policies of government, he may be perceived
as lacking a political base that could
assist President Buhari in a keenly contested
presidential race. If this happens, I see Professor
Osinbajo as simply walking away, and
that might be the end of his political career.
The alternative, for the VP to challenge his
boss, is unimaginable. The Vice-President,
being a man of faith, character and loyalty,
will never contemplate running against his
boss. Insiders maintain that the relationship
between both men is as cordial and trusting
as can be.
The logical next step for men like Professor
Osinbajo, Kingsley Moghalu, and other
professionals who would rule this nation,
would be to put machinery in motion to
contest the 2023 election. It is certainly
not in the interest of most politicians to see
candidates like these, elected to the office
of President. But rather than a clarion call for
non-specific political intervention to unseat
the current President in 2019, I believe that
a more attainable and worthy objective
would be to work to ensure that an honourable
professional, a non-career politician,
is elected to the office of President in
2023. Nation-building is a marathon, not a
sprint. In the absence of a strong political
base, what are the chances of any professional
having a successful outing at the 2019
general elections? Slim to none. Professor
Osinbajo, currently the closest professional
to the seat of power, has intentionally and
systematically insulated himself from
the politics of governance, concentrating
instead on delivering a service. Any professional
seeking at this stage to build the type
of political base that can unseat a popular, if
controversial, sitting President, this close to
a general election, would have a tall order to
fill indeed. Even with the support of the political
elite (many of whom are themselves
desirous of occupying the exalted office), it
will be next to impossible to secure victory
in the next elections without first being a
household name, with massive support
across all geo-political zones.
Professionals with some decorum of
integrity have mostly, albeit to varying
degrees, performed exceptionally well in
politics. They have certainly always been
miles ahead of the average politician. The
likes of Ambrose Alli, Alex Ekwueme, Babatunde
Fashola and Donald Duke readily
come to mind. What the professionals have
however failed to realise when in power is
that they have a silent base of likeminded
professionals across the country, whom
they can mobilize to begin to build political
clout, when angling for leverage with politicians
and the rest of the electorate. Therefore,
rather than joining the bandwagon of
criticising the failures of this administration,
it is time for professionals to act, and throw
their weight behind a candidate who represents
the very best of us. As already alluded,
a contest between two or more seasoned,
respected and dynamic professionals, can
only enrich and elevate the level of political
engagement, from tribal and emotionally
driven politics, to policy-based discourse on
a national platform. While I may personally
choose to support the professional who
has been tested at the highest level, it will
really be left to the individual to side with
whomever he believes is poised to actualize
the policies that will take the country out
of the current doldrums, to the next level.
The political elite have since realised that
there seems to be no alternative to President
Buhari in 2019. It would however be
prudent to remedy the charges of nepotism,
dereliction of duty in relation to the issue
of Fulani herdsmen and the general state
of insecurity.
Rather than continue to simply criticize
the administration and move on, our strategic
role as professionals, must be to support
and guide the present administration
to achieve the mandate upon which it was
originally elected. The support and guidance
must be with a caveat; that when the time
comes, President Buhari and the Northern
elite will support one of our own to the
presidency in 2023. It is unrealistic to expect
such compromise without professionals
offering something in return. That will come
in the form of an organised critical mass of
professionals (electoral votes) in return for
the politicians “gesture.” If we do have the
numbers, the partisan politicians will have
no choice but to heed our request.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
23
For the Records
Challenges of health care delivery for all ages in Nigeria (4)
Being the fourth part of
text of a paper presented
at the 19th Bassey
Andah Memorial Lecture
by Michael C. Asuzu,
professor of Public Health &
Community Medicine, College of
Medicine, University of Ibadan;
consultant, Clinical Epidemiologist,
Community & Occupational
Physician, UCH, Ibadan; director,
Ibarapa Community & Primary
Health Care Programme, UI/
UCH, Ibadan; president, Society
for Public Health Professionals of
Nigeria (SPHPN).
The lesson from these best
practices for those who have
not had a firsthand experience
of them can be summarised as
follows:
1. For each of the three levels
of the national health system to
properly and sustainable perform
its function at a mutually
challengeable way, each must
be headed by medical doctors
as the apex of the health professions.
Some of the subdivisions
or districts within these LGAs
and their physical facilities would
also be best to be run by medical
or dental officers up to the
senior medical officer cadre, as
far as these can be found, for
the best performance of these
services. This must be the clear
objective of the governments;
the extent to which this is achievable
depending on the prevailing
circumstances.
2. For true community health
care to be achieved at the LGA
level, the LGAs need to be divided
STATUTORILY into community
nursing and midwifery districts
and zones; as the principal producers
of community health care.
3. Auxiliary community and
general practice physicians as
well as auxiliary community nurses
(BUT NEVER OF MIDWIVES
BUT ONLY COMPETENT
BIRTH ATTENDANTS IN THAT
REGARD)4 should be found and
trained WITH THE FULL COM-
MUNITY PARTICIPATION BUT
FOR ONLY THOSE CLEARLY
LIMITED AND KNOWABLE
COMMUNITIES AND FACILI-
TIES WHERE THESE PROFES-
SIONAL COMMUNITY PHYSI-
CIAS AND NURSES MAY NOT
BE FOUND.
4. The starting point for any
genuine community health work
is with the de-jure census for
the determination of the total
denominator populations of all
the sections of the communities
for all the statutory community
health services – the total population,
total males and females,
infants, pre-school aged children,
school-aged children (in school
and out of school), women of reproductive
ages, the elderly and
all the categories of the chronically
ill and disabled. The determination
of all the chronically ill
and disabled members of such
communities allows for the creation
of the at-risk register for all
these people, the prescription of
their life-long health care plan by
competent physicians and their
home-based community rounds
Michael Asuzu
by the community nurse-midwife
on 3 of the 5 working days of the
week. These rounds are to ensure
that the chronically ill subjects
are living at the maximum level of
their health possible at the given
time. By this, they would be taking
their medication, if so prescribed,
keeping all the prescribed behavioural
modifications by self and
family and keeping to their health
facility follow-up appointments
as may be prescribed. A family
member is usually trained to provide
the auxiliary nursing services
of such family member, including
the custody of their drugs
and ensured observed intake
thereof. During these community
rounds by the community nursemidwife,
any other health behavioural
inadequacies observed, by
anybody and in any place in the
community, are counseled on for
those concerned. This will include
pregnant women who had not
registered in time for ante-natal
care, any environmental health
violations, forced feeding of children,
etc.
5. It is only by this thorough
professional community health
care, especially the community
nursing and midwifery care, that
any persons, families, communities,
local governments, states
and nations are or will be able
to attain health-for-all. It is not
impossible for any country or
state to set the policy, produce
the strategic framework and
implementation guidelines to
do this – ONLY IF THEY WILL
SIMPLY STOP PLAYING DIRTY
POLITICS WITH THEIR PEO-
PLE and so, provide the needed
political will to do so. Virtually
all the states in the southern and
lower north-central states of this
country can surely do this, if their
citizens rise up and hold their governments
to it. All the other states
can do the same, only that they
will make more use of the auxiliary
medical and nursing officers
than any of these other states to
do so. Foreign partners are not
the ones to teach them how to do
this; nor will these be achievable
by the vertical public (and some
so-called community) health
programmes (foreign and local)
that has become the real shame
of our national health services.
The big efforts that had been
made to improve our health
systems, or even to establish
PHC,will now be listed below
and followed with what was their
problems and limitations; based
on the world’s best practices in
these regards. We will then outline
what we believe should be
put in place at policy, legislation
and their strategic frameworks
and implementation guidelines,
if we are going to meaningfully
pursue the PHC and HFA agenda
of the modern world’s health
community.
At the local government level
The already established provisions:
1. Every LGA health service is
to be called PHC (not “medicine
and health”, as before);and run
as the primary responsibility of
the local government.
2. All the component services
of PHC are to be provided there;
with the assistance of some senior
staff that may be posted to
assist them by the state government
to do so.
3. The principal officers meant
to provide these services are
the community health officers
(CHOs) and the community
health extension officers
(CHEWs); who were initially to
work as such auxiliaries, but later
changed both in name and implementation
to be otherwise.
The persisting problems
1. The principal health professionals
(the community medical
and nursing-midwifery officers,
specialist or otherwise) who
run community health services
in the best practices around the
world, are not properly provided
for nor even emphasized in these
services; at least as the ideal to
aspire to. Hence, PHC in Nigeria
continues to be seen as well as
run as the inferior health services
for the unimportant people of the
country: “free but not available”,
“to be provided or actually posted
there but absent”; for both health
workers and services
2. The most functional unit of
the provision of PHC – the community
nurse-midwives and their
nursing zones and districts – have
never been acceptably discussed
in the country; nor the staff and
modalities of their practices. The
closest to this is the “political
ward-based PHC” but I do not
know anywhere that it is working
as in the practices whose
results are shown in Tables 2 and
3 above.
3. The CHOs and CHEWs,
who in the best world’s practices,
their numbers are clearly determinable,
and their candidates
are identified and selected for
training through full community
involvement, trained as auxiliary
community medical and nursing
officers,respectively,and made to
function as such, is otherwise in
Nigeria. Thus, they would rather
run the services largely as parallel
health services to the normal
world orthodox health services;
with no responsibility to ANY
communities that they serve,
independent of any community
medical and nursing services and
with no avenues for their healthy
up-grade training to the full community
nurses (or eventually
nurse-midwives) or medical officers
as may be possible for some
of them.
4. The selection of the CHOs
and CHEWs (as the community
health practice auxiliaries that
they are) through community
participation, and for the clearly
noted communities only, that
clearly need such personnel20,
has never been the case in Nigeria.
So, we neither know how
many of such workers are needed,
nor the communities that
they are being trained for. Unlike
in the best practices where these
workers are selected, trained
and posted only to the places
where the needed community
physicians or nurses MAY NOT
BE FOUND, we train them at
random and non-stop in the
country. We also have developed
no healthy avenues for those
of them who understand what
professional community health
work is, and wishing to be properly
absorbed into it have made
up their erstwhile previously
inadequate general education
for it, to go ahead to do so. Thus,
these avalanche of people are
ending up either unemployed,
unemployable, freely leaving
these government services and/
or setting up their own private
but unpredictable practices or
organising very unprecedented
training programmes for their
already somehow obviously
accepted alternative but yet
unclear health systems in the
country of their own. At the 1st
National conference on human
resources for health in 2011,
the statistics provided from
the Planning, Research and Statistics
Division of the Federal
Ministry of Health21 showed
that over 47,000 CHEWs had
been trained in the country, only
some 11,000 of which are trace-
able as to what they were doing
in the public health services! As
for the CHOs, the number was
over 17,000 trained, only some
6,000 of which were traceable in
any public health services in the
country. Yet our health indices
are not improving any significantly;
and we are still producing
these officers, even with greater
speed and in greater numbers;
when they are not retained in the
public health services nor even
traceable thereafter!
5. The other complementary
health workers –laboratory
technologists, radiographers or
medical imaging technologists,
environmental inspection officers,
public health nutritionists,
community pharmacists or pharmacy
technicians, community
dental officers or at least their appropriate
auxiliaries, community
rehabilitative assistants (CRAs),
etc – are not properly identified
nor trained and deployed to work
as in those best world practices
here.
6. In the few cases where such
physicians or nurse/midwives
are found, willing to work in
the community/PHC services,
there are no proper structural
systems organizations, provisions
for their proper training
or at least orientation, nor the
provision to them of even the
minimum tools for these statutory
community health work.
These include, most especially,
the proper organization of the
LGA services for the community
medical and nursing services (for
example, the medical districts/
sub-districts and zones or of the
nursing-midwifery ones),general
conditions of service to be able to
live and/or work in these difficult
situations by these officers, good
and well maintained transport
systems for their supportive extension
services to all the officers
and physical health units of the
LGA by the medical officers of
health or their delegate. Others
are ambulances (at least one
per LGA) for the transportation
of needful patients within and
outside the LGA and promptly
paid transport allowances for
the community nurse/midwives
for their community rounds and
related services, the very basis of
achieving HFA!
7. Because of the failure to provide
for specialist or otherwise
properly orientated community
medical officers (or some reasonable
extensions of it) for the
PHC services, the practice of
inter-sectoral cooperation and
coordination with all the other
health-related agencies for the
attainment of HFA in the LGA
remains an impossibility. These
agencies include public works
(especially with the sanitary/LG)
engineer, agriculture, education,
information, security (police),
and the traditional, socio-cultural
and civil leaderships; at the very
least.
*Countries with district or zonal
community nursing and midwifery
services

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
25
24
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Focus
Geniuses from unlikely quarters
…IDP students in brilliant performance in JAMB, WASC
…Relive ugly experiences in Borno
Markus Ali, Yahya Danjuma, Yohanna Benjamin and Filimon Ayuba were among the 59 out of the 63 student-inmates of Ohogua Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) secondary school that scored above 200 in the recently released 2018 Unified Tertiary
Matriculation Examination (UTME) by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB). While Markus Ali, 20, scored 277, Yahya Danjuma, aged 18, scored 293, Yohanna Benjamin, aged 18, scored 275 and Filimon Ayuba scored 294.
Filimon Ayuba, currently a Biochemistry student in the University of Benin as a result of the 2017 JAMB results, wrote the last UTME examination to enable him secure admission to study a course of his first choice which is medicine and surgery in the institution.
In these separate interviews with the students by IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, they spoke about life in the camp, secret behind their performances, how Boko Haram insurgents invaded their various communities, among others. Excerpts:
‘I hawked pure water in Abuja after escape from Boko Haram’ I was out of school for over a year due to
What is your score in the 2018 JAMB?
Boko Haram insurgency- scored 275 in JAMB
First of all my name is Markus Ali, aged
20. I am from Jibrilli village in Gwoza
Local Government Area of Borno
State. I scored 277 in the last JAMB.
I scored 84 in Physics, 72 in Chemistry,
69 in Biology and 52 in English Language
and I applied to study medicine and surgery at
the University of Benin.
Why do you choose UNIBEN?
I chose UNIBEN because of the closeness to
the Christian International Mission Centre
venue of the Internally Displaced Persons
(IDPs) camp at Ohogua in Ovia North-East
Local Government Area of Edo State.
Why do you want to study medicine?
My love for medicine is based on my ability
in science subjects, and also with the desire
to help the needy like me in health-related
problems.
What is the name of your former school in
Borno States?
I attended Jibrilli Primary School, Jubrilli in
Gwoza Local Government Area and Junior
Secondary School, Michika in Adamawa State.
I now started from JSS 111 at the Ohogua IDPs
camp in Benin-City.
Is there any remarkable difference between
your former schools in Borno and Adamawa
State and the one located at the IDPs camp
at Ohogua?
Before coming to the Ohogua camp, I knew
little or nothing in English Language subject.
When I came to the camp I had the belief that
I will not pass the Junior School Certificate
Examination but when I stated schooling and
attended classes I wrote the examination and
I passed. Also, I had not written my Primary
School First leaving Certificate Examination
before I left my village. The reason was that at
the time Boko Haram invaded our community,
I was in the school, my parents ran to Cameroon
while l am in Nigeria. Till now, I have not
seen them as a result I was not able to meet up
with my primary school leaving certificate examination.
But now, the Overseer of Christian
International Mission Centre, and the operator
of Ohogua IDPs, Solomon Folorunsho enrolled
us for the primary school certificate examination
so that we will have the certificate. I also
passed the examination.
I also wrote General Certificate of Examination
(GCE) when I was in SS11 when I got
seven credits in the examination, and finally in
2017 I was among those that sat for the West
African Senior School Certificate and I got
credits in all the subjects I enrolled for including
those I was not able to credit in GCE.
Markus Ali
With this there is a big different between
my former schools in Borno and Adamawa
states and the one at the IDPs’ camp here in
Benin-City.
Can you still remember how the crisis in Borno
caused you to take refuge in this camp?
The crisis started when Boko Haram attacked
communities and other villages close to ours.
When they started and also due to the closure
of all schools in the state, I told my parents
that I was leaving the state to attend another
school in Adamawa State. They immediately
sent me to Michika Local Government Area. I
was in Michika when they attacked my village,
I have the belief that
one day my parents
who have been
hoping and feeling
about me we will
reunite peacefully
and happily
killed some people while my parents and others
ran to Cameroun but I only heard that my
junior brother died in the process of running.
I was in school when the incident happened.
Within that period, I had the intention of
relocating to another local government area
in the same Adamawa state but through the
grace of God, when they attacked the school
I escaped unhurt. Still, in the new community
I went to, they attacked the place and by the
grace of God I again escaped and was saved.
I again moved to another local government
area in the same state. I was in my relative’s
farm in the village, when the Boko Haram
attacked the community. And by the grace
of God, I was again saved. When I came out
there was no hope for schooling and my uncle
said I should go to Abuja to start selling table
water. I was selling table water in the streets.
It was in the course of selling the table water
in Abuja that one of my uncles called me that
there is IDPs camp at Ohogua in Edo State. It
was from Abuja that I came to the camp and
by the grace of God I am now schooling here
and very healthy.
I always call my family on phone from the
camp here. I am happy that I am alive and that
one day I will meet my parents and relations.
They are still in Cameroun and always in touch
with them.
What is your message to the state, federal
government as well as well-meaning Nigerians
on the need to come to the aid of the
camp to improve on the infrastructure, welfare
and other needs?
I sincerely appeal to government and other
well- meaning Nigerians to come to our help.
Things have been tough for us. We need more
help in terms of education as we are preparing
to write post-UTME for admission; we need
help, more books, among others. Other needs
in the camp are food, clothes among others. So
we call on government for more help.
After achieving your educational dreams of
becoming s medical practitioner, will you like
to go back to your community?
If God helps me and also by His grace, and by
fervent prayers I have intention that if I am
successful I will go back to my community
to see how things have changed and by the
special grace of God, I have the belief that one
day my parents who have been hoping and
feeling about me we will reunite peacefully
and happily.
Are you missing them?
Physically I am missing them but spiritually I
am not because now that I am alive and they
too are alive, my hope is that one day we will
meet.
I am from Ngoshe village in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State. I scored 275 in the last 2018 JAMB.
What will you attribute your superlative performance
in the JAMB to?
The performance was due to the hard
work as a result of my reading and also
by prayers. That is how God helped me to
score that mark. Unfortunately, I couldn’t
finish answering all the questions in English Language
before the time was up. I only answered
about 15 questions and I only got 31 marks.
What was your score in the exam?
I scored 31 in English Language, Chemistry 76,
Mathematics 83 and Physics 81. I applied to study
Electrical and Electronics Engineering at the University
of Benin (UNIBEN).
How is life in the Ohogua IDPs camp?
I am very happy that the overseer of the church and
the operator of the camp provided a place for us for
safety because when I was in Borno State I was not
getting the kind of word of God like we are having
here. In the camp we have good standard of education
and we are being built spiritually.
I was attending Central Government Primary
School, Ngoshe in Gwoza Local Government Area
of Borno. After Boko Haram displaced us from our
community I stayed away from school for over a
year before I heard of this camp in Benin that is
caring for people that are displaced by the Boko
Haram insurgents and those that lost their parents.
That is how I came here and I started my SS1 from
here to now SSS 111.
Yohanna Benjamin
I chose to study
electrical and
electronics engineering
to contribute to the
power and energy
development in the
country as well as in my
community
How did Boko Haram chase you people away from
your community?
I was at home when Boko Haram came in large number,
burnt most of the houses, killed many people
and stole cars and motorcycles.
What has been your experience in the camp?
The camp has built my spiritual life, teaching the
word of God and even education. We have many
qualified teachers even Master degree holders in
the school compared to Secondary school certificate
holders in Gwoza.
What is your appeal to the general public and Nigerians
for the development of the camp?
I want Nigerians to assist us with textbooks, educational
materials, foodstuffs, medicine, science
laboratory equipment, among others.
Why do you want to study Electrical and Electronics?
I chose to study electrical and electronics engineering
to contribute to the power and energy development
in the country as well as in my community.
You remember when Boko Haram came to your
community. How did it happen?
It was very terrible. On that day, I saw some of them
that carried gun. Thank God for helping us to escape
to the bush. In the bush, I saw many bullets flying
but I thank God again for protecting me and others.
Many of the people in the village escape through the
bush, slept in the bush and some never came back
home until now.
Hard work, prayers pillars of my success - Scored 293 in JAMB
I am Yahaya Danjuma, 18 years old and from Agapalawa in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.
I attended Agapalawa Primary School, in Gwoza Local Government and from there to Comprehensive Secondary School, Kwarhi in Adamawa State.
You were among the Internally Displaced
Persons at International Christian Mission
Centre who writes the Joint Admission
Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination.
What was your score?
I scored 293 in JAMB.
As an IDP, how were you able to achieve
such grade?
First, I will start with the background of my
school. In all the examinations we did not
indulge in examination malpractices and that
was what helped me to be able to pass my
WASC and NECO with good grades and also
get the 293 in my JAMB examination. I did not
depend on anybody; I only depend on my God
and books. And because of that I prepare very
well and achieve success in all my examinations.
Our guardian taught us to depend on
God, hard work and ourselves. That aided me
in my preparation and with God on my side, I
made good grade in JAMB.
What was your subject for the JAMB and the
various scores in each of the subjects?
I sat for English Language, and scored 65, Biology
73, Physics 77 and Chemistry 79.
What do you want to study?
I applied to study Medicine and Surgery at the
University of Benin, Edo State.
What has been your experience in the school
at the camp?
My experience is that of good and bad because
of the way I came to the camp but God has
been helping us and people have been bringing
textbooks and other writing materials though
not enough for us all. So God has helped us,
the people have helped us and because of that
we are doing well in school today. The experience
is good because despite the hard way of
coming down to this place, I have gotten my
education right and on the verge of entering
the university.
You were attending school in Borno State
before Boko Haram insurgency, how will
you describe your experience there and
here at IDP?
I was attending Agapalawa Primary School
and Universal Basic Education, a government
secondary school in Borno State. The teaching
I received there was quite different from the
one here. In Borno, though we had teachers but
they are not as trained as the ones here. Most
of them are holders of National Certificate
of Education (NCE) but when I came here I
Yahya Danjuma
met teachers with BSC and Master Degree.
Also, in my former school, I was not reading
well because we believe in external help but
when I arrived here, I learn how to depend
on myself and resort to hard work. That was
my experience here which is better than my
former school.
Can you share your experience on how you
escape Boko Haram in Borno to this camp?
It was the grace of God that we were able to
leave our Community Agapalawa in Borno
State to this camp. I see the journey as God’s
destiny in my life. The Boko Haram disguise
as military officers when they entered our village.
They were wearing army uniform and we
thought they were military officers who came
to our rescue, so the community surrendered
to them but soon after that they started killing
people and burning down houses, our house
was burnt down. I was in school when my
father came to meet me and told me that we
When I came here and
saw what our Pastor
was doing by helping
others, I decided that
the only way I can help
others, especially my
people is by becoming a
medical doctor
were homeless as Boko Haram has destroyed
everything that we have. My father only escaped
with the clothe he was putting on. As
we were moving from one place to the other
in search of a safe haven, where I can continue
my schooling because I was already in JSS 3, my
father heard of this IDPs’ camp in Edo and we
decided to try the camp in 2015. That was how
I came to this camp and I thank God for leading
me to this place because of the education.
How has the camp impacted your life?
It has really impacted my life physically, spiritually
and academically. I can see that my life is
improving well. I have made my papers and
preparing to gain admission into the university.
Also, at the camp when I am sick, I can easily
access healthcare here unlike in our place. So
the camp has really impacted my life positively.
Why do you want to study Medicine and
Surgery?
When I came here and saw what our Pastor
was doing by helping others, I decided that
the only way I can help others, especially my
people is by becoming a medical doctor. In our
side, there are no many hospitals, so I believe
that when I become a medical doctor I would
be able to help and impact on the life of others
the same way our Pastor has impacted ours.
What is your appeal to government, organisations
and individuals as regards the education
of inmates?
The population of the camp has increased this
year and because of this, textbooks and other
instructional materials are not enough so I appeal
to them to provide instructional aids to the
camp so that other students can also acquire
good education.
Any plan of going back home soon?
I will go back but I want to achieve what God
has destined in my life. Since it was God’s plan
for me to come here, I believe it is also God’s
plan for me to go back home.
What is your appeal to the Federal Government
on Boko Haram?
I want the government to eradicate Boko Haram
insurgency so that we can all go back home;
and also enable students who are out of school
to go back to school because education is the
best legacy any government or parent can
bequeath to its citizens or children. Also the
Federal Government should establish schools
in the camps so that other IDPs can also have
the opportunity to attend school like us.

26
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Perspective
Ekiti 2018: Still on why Fayemi should not run
SEGUN DIPE
The first duty of a man
is to think for himself”
-José Martí
In his classic, A Testament
of Hope: The
Essential Writings and Speeches,
Martin Luther King Jr. writes:
“There comes a time when one
must take a position that is neither
safe, nor politic, nor popular,
but he must take it because
conscience tells him it is right.”
The above buttresses the
points I am going to make here
regarding the controversies
surrounding whether or not Dr.
John Kayode Fayemi, immediate
past governor of Ekiti State and
currently the Minister of Solid
Minerals, should throw himself
into the ring to vie for the governorship
slot in the coming
election in the state.
Each time I write, I never
doubted the quality and competency
of Fayemi to govern
Ekiti State again and again, and
that is never reflected in my
arguments. And this is not any
different. I write this as someone
who admires Fayemi and thinks
he has had a distinguished career
in the Nigerian politics. He
was certainly my choice in 2011.
I also believe he has done an
excellent job.
But I have been particularly
concerned about the timing. I
see Fayemi as deeply soaked in
hostilities this time around and a
lot of arrows darted towards him
and his ambition to govern Ekiti
again. And I see Fayemi as too
suave and too strategic but too
naïve to face the attack. I therefore,
strongly wish he doesn’t
swim against the tide this time.
With disquieting attention,
I have read a lot of pro-Fayemi
declaration articles, luring him
to declare and run for the election.
While the intention here is
not to dwell on the vituperous
nature of those articles, I must
confess however, that they all
lack the required conviction. I
find all of them to be off the cuff.
Each of the articles reads like
the Ahitophelian counselling. It
reeks of the fabled “Erin ka re’le
ko wa joba…”
Let me digress a bit here
and tell the story of the biblical
Ahitophel. He was a counselor
of King David and a man greatly
renowned for his sagacity. During
Absalom’s revolt he deserted
David (Psalm 41:9; 55:12–14) and
supported Absalom (2 Samuel
15:12). Ahitophel had recommended
to Absalom’s army an
immediate attack on David’s
camp at a point where David
was weary and vulnerable (2
Samuel 17:1-2), whereas Hushai
suggested that “the advice that
Ahithophel has given is not good
at this time” (2 Samuel 17:7)
and recommended delay while
a larger army was assembled to
counter David’s alleged strength
(2 Samuel 17:11-13). Perversely,
“for the LORD had purposed
to defeat the good advice of
Ahithophel” (2 Samuel 17:14),
Hushai’s advice was accepted.
Fayemi
Seeing that his good advice
against David had not been followed
due to Hushai’s influence,
Ahithophel then left the camp of
Absalom at once. He returned to
Giloh, his native place, and after
arranging his worldly affairs,
hanged himself, and was buried
in the sepulcher of his fathers (2
Samuel 17:23).
You see, when a man suddenly
starts bragging to his wife,
trying to prove to her that he is
the husband, then, something
serious is amiss and his claim to
that husband position has suffered
some mishap. Otherwise,
why should a person come out
to write an article like Fayemi and
the rest of us, or Who is afraid of
Fayemi? Why should Fayemi’s
wife be the one to be running
from pillar to post, begging the
people Fayemi once led to allow
him to run? Why should a Fayemi
(not a Dino Melaye) be uttering
a statement like Ajekun Iya ni o
je? These are murkier answers
to our probing questions on
how Fayemi intends to navigate
the landmines without getting
trapped.
One of them even wrote: “For
the APC faithful in Ekiti state,
before you work against JKF,
always ask yourself these three
questions: Why am l doing it?
What will the result be? and Will
I be fulfilled? Only when you
think deeply and find satisfactory
answers to these questions, go
ahead.”
Just because someone asks
Fayemi to run does not mean
he has Fayemi’s best interest at
heart, and not his, and just because
someone like me asks Fayemi
not to run doesn’t mean that
I hate Fayemi. I have no reason
to. And, we, his people, should
not feel pressured to prove our
love to him, at the expense of the
love for the party.
Fayemi and the gang think
they are always right and the
rest of us who oppose his ambition,
this time around, are
always wrong. They think they
know Ekiti more than us and
they know what the people want
better than the rest of us. They
also think the only Messiah Ekiti
needs after a Fayose is a Fayemi.
Running for office for the
right reasons is critical, not only
to gain support but also to win.
The questions agitating the
minds of some of us include,
but not limited to the following:
what other factor can be pushing
Fayemi to run other than to finish
what he called an Unfinished
Business? Why can’t he pull up
one of the people he had mentored
and back him/her up with
all the resources at his disposal?
For the APC faithful
in Ekiti state, before
you work against
JKF, always ask
yourself these three
questions: Why am
l doing it? What will
the result be? and
Will I be fulfilled?
Only when you think
deeply and find
satisfactory answers
to these questions,
go ahead
What is he finding so attractive in
the state pilloried by Fayose that
he is ready to spend all his life
savings to want to return to the
seat? How will he take a defeat at
the primaries? Will he still remain
a party leader? How will he take
another defeat by Fayose at the
election proper? What will he
be doing differently should he
eventually get there?
We now live in an extraordinary
moment for democratic government,
where confidence in the honesty
of political leaders is seemingly
at an all-time low. By announcing
that he will seek a second term in
the coming election, Fayemi has
reduced his status from that of a
leader of the party in Ekiti, to that
of an aspirant, like others. And he
should not think he would be accorded
the same respect he was
being accorded years ago or would
have been accorded if he had not
thrown himself into the ring.
Fact of the matter is that
revenge against the incumbent,
because “he did something to
me so I’m going to beat him”
is not a good reason to begin
running for office. Revenge is a
horrible reason to run, no matter
how bad the opponent is. Make
sure there are other motivations
that drive you. And this,
we haven’t seen in the Fayemi
renewed ambition. He should
also not run because he thinks
he can win, having, in his words,
installed all the excos there from
the ward to the state level. It is
important that he should have a
chance of success and carry all
of us along ab initio. But having
to run because he thinks he has
an upper hand to force-feed
everyone to win, is an invitation
to failure.
Fayemi should realise that 2018
is not 2011. Then, he was a dyed-inthe-wool
Tinubu protégé. Today, he
has fallen out of favour with Tinubu,
while Tinubu has suddenly renewed
his political strength. Or can anyone
tell us when Fayemi last attended
any of Tinubu’s functions? During
his days as a governor, Fayemi
would play a key role in organising
the Bola Tinubu colloquium, which
friends and loyalists of the national
leader of the All Progressives Congress
(APC) put together annually.
But not in the last two years. He has
been consistently absent at every of
Tinubu’s events.
Whether or not that represents
a problem is a different matter. The
obligations of being a Tinubu friend
or loyalist are not comparable to
being a governor of Ekiti State after
a rough rider like Fayose in terms
of the demands placed on the office
holder. There is no reason to
think that someone not backed by
a Tinubu or any of the party leaders
in the Southwest could not carry out
the duties required of them. But this
matters a lot in determining who
flies the flag of the progressives.
Be it now or in the time of Awo, it
is held that if you are too big to follow,
then you are too small to lead.
Loyalty matters a lot.
Of course, one does not need
to be a legal expert to see that a
Fayemi candidacy will cause a great
sore and it will attract a lot of legal
maggots towards APC. So, why
must we take this risky path that
will greatly bruise the party and
reduce its potency towards the July
15 governorship election? We will
then be left with little or no room,
should a speedy trial be allowed and
Fayemi fails to convince the court
as to why he willfully disregarded
the law passed by the lawmakers
during his time as a governor. I am
not also sure that the angst of the
people, for no apparent reason, has
subsided against Fayemi.
And do we still have the same
strength to cross all the legal
hurdles we crossed between
2011 and 2014, at a highly prohibitive
cost? Then we were the
complainant, now we are likely
to be the defendant. After three
and a half years fighting through
the legal system the appeal court
sitting in Kwara State eventually
on 15 October 2010 declared Fayemi
the duly elected Governor
of Ekiti State, marking the end
of Olusegun Oni’s administration
as the then governor of
the state. Has the camp of Oni
forgotten this?
From the national level, is the
party any ready to back us up
to fight a war of blame, where
we will be pelted with mudsling
and our white and transparent
clothes become soiled?
Why should it be Ekiti again?
Who is going to commit his resources
this time around? Where
are those strong warriors who
fought side-by-side Fayemi in the
trench for the three and a half
years? Is the former governor
and minister of Solid Mineral’s
ambition that vital to our success
at the polls to want to lose
another set of arms and limbs?
Ibere ogun la nmo, enikan kii
mo ipari ogun…
Dipe, journalist and political
analyst, writes from Ado-Ekiti

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
27
Perspective
Educational trust and lasting legacy for
children, the Stanbic IBTC example
BINTA MAX-GBINIJE
The desire of all parents is to give
their children the best in life: the
best upbringing, education, exposure,
life experiences, and so on. Of
these, however, perhaps the greatest
legacy a parent can bequeath to a child is
sound and qualitative education. Education
gives a child a sound footing in life, which
explains why as parents we continue to seek
out the best education opportunities for our
children worldwide. From neighbouring Benin
Republic, South Africa to far away Japan,
Australia, and even Iceland, Nigerians pay
billions of dollars to ensure their children are
properly educated.
Qualitative education, unfortunately,
does not come cheap. The average tuition in
Nigeria, excluding feeding, boarding, books,
and others, to train a child through 12 years
of schooling (primary and secondary schooling)
in an average private school is about
N12 million and about N5 million through
university. These figures, it must be said,
are conservative and they continue to rise to
reflect inflation. Financing foreign education
is far pricier. The total yearly average cost of
studying in a UK university, for instance, is
roughly N8 million. This comes to N24 million
for the three years it takes to earn a degree
in that country.
For parents who cannot afford foreign
education for their children, the situation in
local schools is not much different as school
and other sundry fees continue to rise faster
than family income, in line with inflation
and other macroeconomic factors. Due to
regular disruptions in academic calendar of
public schools in the country from strikes and
protests, and the perception of low quality,
private schools are preferred by parents.
Quality education for children, even for
the wealthy or comfortable, could sometimes
be daunting. And the reality for many other
parents is that their desire for the best education
for their children is often unmatched
by their financial power. This mismatch is
often a painful challenge. However, with
proper planning and smart investments
in educational trusts, training our children
in the best schools anywhere in the world,
even for the average-income family can be
achieved. Unfortunately, many of us still do
not appreciate the astonishing power a Trust
has to help smoothen the rough financial
edges and make the attainment of family
goals and aspirations, including qualitative
education for our children, almost painless
and seamless.
To give a proper perspective, let us examine
Trust. Trust is an arrangement between
two persons/entities whereby one entity
agrees to hold assets for the benefit of other
person(s) who may include the person with
which the arrangement was entered into.
The initiator of the Trust is called the ‘Settlor’
or ‘Grantor’, the entity agreeing to hold the
assets for the benefit of another is called
the ‘Trustee’ and the person for whose
benefit the asset is being held is called the
‘Beneficiary’. Put differently, a Trust is an arrangement
whereby assets are transferred
by an individual or a corporate, known as the
‘settlor’, to a trustee, to be held by the trustee
for the benefit of certain beneficiaries. A Trust
is an estate planning tool which helps an
individual plan his estate in such a way as to
protect his or her wealth and eventually pass
it on in a smooth inter-generational transfer.
A parent may have the wherewithal to
adequately provide quality education for the
Boko Haram
Binta
child but the unfortunate incident of death
with no planning in place may sometimes
scuttle even the best of intentions. An Educational
Trust comes in handy in such situations.
A typical example of an education trust
is the Stanbic IBTC Educational Trust called
SET, which is specifically designed to address
such and many other needs. For instance,
SET translates intentions to concrete actions
by ensuring continuity of the educational
trust objectives, which include uninterrupted
schooling and qualitative education for the
beneficiary through an education protection
plan. Such a plan includes ensuring the Trust
is well funded by the settlor and making direct
payments to the beneficiary’s school by
Stanbic IBTC Trustees to negate diversion of
funds in any form.
If you ever wondered how some families
remain perpetually wealthy generations after
the original creator of the wealth – unfortunately,
it is hard to find many examples in
Nigeria – look no further than Trust. The Rockefeller
family in the US is a famous example
of how Trust can help create, preserve and
protect wealth. The Rockefeller progenitor,
John D. Rockefeller, became the first American
billionaire in 1914. Several generations
later and over 104 years after the first billion,
the Rockefeller family is still in the billionaire
bracket today, according to Forbes’ American
Wealthiest families, thanks to a number of
Trust Funds John D. Rockefeller Jr. established
for his children in 1934.
The late pop-star, Michael Jackson, was
reported to have left almost half of his assets
in a Trust for his three children. Jackson’s assets,
estimated to be worth billions of dollars,
are held in a Trust. His reported $400 million
debt at death could not be deducted from the
assets in his Trust. That is one of the beauties
of a Trust; it can only be used for the purpose
it was meant for. So, an Educational Trust for a
child can only be used by the trustees for the
child’s education and nothing else.
An Educational Trust like SET is also a particularly
useful estate planning tool every parent
needs to sign up for. While we all hope to
live to be very old and in good health, some-
times people inexplicably suffer ill health or
death suddenly strikes. When such happens,
the Educational Trust immediately kicks in
to ensure that the child does not miss a day
of schooling in the event the parent is incapacitated
or gone. Trust kicks in immediately
because unlike Wills Trust assets do not go
through the probate process/courts, which
could be cumbersome and time consuming.
And what is the role of a trustee in the
process and beyond? A trustee has the
competence to assess individual situations
and then determine how best to structure
an Educational Trust or a General Trust in a
way to benefit the settlor and his loved ones,
particularly the children, while the settlor is
alive as well as when he is gone.
To establish a General Trust or an Edu-
Unfortunately, many of us
still do not appreciate the
astonishing power a Trust has
to help smoothen the rough
financial edges and make the
attainment of family goals and
aspirations, including qualitative
education for our children,
almost painless and seamless
cational Trust for a child, a parent/guardian
needs to take stock of his or her assets and
then determine which asset(s) will be put in
the Trust. One can then approach a trustee,
a corporate organisation. Interestingly, Trust
is not new in the country; informally, trusteeship
is an old practice among various ethnic
groups in Nigeria.
For instance, it is common practice for
a man with young children to put his property
in the care of a trusted friend or family
member for onward transfer to his children,
in the event he dies before the children come
of age. This is Trusteeship. However, while a
corporate trustee basically performs a similar
role, trusteeship services provided by legal
entities such as Stanbic IBTC Trustees adhere
to strict corporate governance rules and
practices. It is usually advised that a corporate
entity like Stanbic IBTC Trustees be engaged
to establish the Trust because it has competent
professionals who are experienced and
knowledgeable in these matters, and they
are regulated by a government agency, the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),
and a self-regulating organisation, the Association
of Corporate Trustees, to ensure
ethical practices. Another unique benefit of
SET is that it is covered by insurance via an
education protection plan, to cover death or
incapacitation of the settler.
Estate planning is a very important matter
and one which people are highly encouraged
to attend to. Awareness is gradually catching
on, particularly with global and national
events such as air crashes and the like. These
events bring the issue of our mortality to mind
as people are reminded that death is inevitable
and no respecter of persons. Though
slow going, people are realising the benefits
and importance of trusteeship services; with
more people buying into the idea and consequently
doing the right thing.
An important aspect of Trust, however, is
funding and or the asset transfer. The Trust is
expected to own something so having done
the necessary background work, documentations
and having obtained all the proper
sign-offs, it is very important that the settlor
transfers assets to the Trust because if a Trust
is unfunded or does not hold any assets, it is
not an executable legal entity. It is like opening
a bank account to save money and yet
the account remains empty as funds are not
being deposited.
Too many people struggle to do the hard
work but end up not activating the Trust
by transferring assets to it. A settlor must
determine how the Trust will be funded and
then it is imperative that he transfers the
most significant assets into the Trust as soon
as he can.
If we truly desire that our children should
have the best education, preferably from Ivy
League schools, to give them the best chance
at succeeding in life, then what we do now
will determine that. It is a simple process of
determining the cost of such education now,
factoring in inflation for when the children will
be ready for university education and putting
the funding or asset equivalent in a Trust if
you have such available, and if not readily
available, the settlor can consistently fund the
Trust as the years go by. A SET calculator will
be useful in helping you know how much will
be needed to train the child through school.
Not many approved the lifestyle of Michael
Jackson but it is hard to fault his love and
dedication to his children when we consider
that he was smart enough to think beyond
the immediate by establishing a Trust that
will help guarantee a level of comfort and
financial stability for his children. Many of us
tend to be too focused on the here and now
that we sometimes inadvertently jeopardise
the future of the very children we claim to
love. You certainly don’t want to jeopardise
the future of your children by leaving it to
chance. Now is the time to do the smart and
responsible thing by initiating the Educational
Trust process.
Binta Max-Gbinije is the chief executive of
Stanbic IBTC Trustees Limited, a member of
the Stanbic IBTC Group.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
28BDSUNDAY
TheWorshippers
‘Receiving from God does not depend on any man’
The Church of God Mission International, Lagos-West holds its zonal conference April 26-28, 2018 with the theme ‘Empowered to
Succeed: Vision 100%’. Ahead of the conference, Reverend Charles Shedrack, pastor of the Maza-Maza Province of the church, speaks
with SEYI JOHN SALAU on the church’s 100 percent vision to evangelise and reach out to its neighborhood.
The church’s zonal conference
comes up in the last week
of April. Could you speak to
the theme of the conference
‘Empowered to Succeed’?
Empowered to Succeed’
is the global
vision of Church
of God Mission as
enunciated by our
Archbishop; she was led by the
Holy Spirit to make that declaration
and we believe it is a year
where we are empowered to
succeed. The empowerment is
not coming now, we have been
empowered already; Jesus has
empowered us. As he said on the
cross, “It is finished,” but sometimes
what denies us of enjoying
that privilege is ignorance.
A man leaves $1 million for
his son in the bank and the son
does not know how to access
the money, and he struggles for
bread with everybody while he
has $1 million somewhere in the
bank idle. But the day somebody
comes to him and says, “Who are
you? Are you not this man’s son?
This is what you will do to access
your money in the bank. Get
your birth certificate and other
documents,” that day he gets
knowledge and that knowledge
delivers him from poverty to
access what is already his. Such
declaration helps those of us that
are still low in faith and may not
know the scripture so much, and
maybe have gone through much
trouble in life that their faith is
beginning to wane, to build their
faith. It reminds us that we have
been empowered by the blood
of Jesus on the cross of Calvary;
all I need do is to rise in faith, do
a meaningful job, business or
career and succeed, and out of it
God can bless me.
The other aspect of it – Vision
100% – is our local vision as a
church; it is like having a vision
in the vision. We are running
with the global vision of our
Archbishop, but as a local church
we have our own challenges and
Shedrack
so, our own local vision is called
‘Vision 100%’ because we want
to reach out to our community.
We want to go out there and let
them know that Jesus is Lord. It
is 100% Jesus, 100% evangelism,
100% outreach, and we are at the
stage of preparing the church
to buy into the vision. We have
divided the church into groups of
17 squads; they have their leaders,
assistants, and secretaries
according to where we live to go
out there and tell the neighbourhood
about the love of Jesus. We
want to tell those who do not
have a place of worship that they
can come worship with us, or if
you are going far away to worship,
why go far away when there
is a church here close by to you?
That takes me to the issue
of faith, creed, and believing
in Christendom. At what point
do we draw the line between
Christianity and idol worship?
Of course, sometimes abuse
I think as Christians we should
read the bible. The bible is simple,
it is written in English and as long
as you can understand the English
language, you can understand the
bible. You do not need too much
of education to understand the
bible
is inevitable in whatever human
beings do because of certain
excesses. Even when you look
back, Jesus also used certain
symbols. For instance, he spat
on the ground, took some sand,
mixed it and rubbed on somebody’s
eyes and the person regained
his sight. Elijah in bible
– an axe fell into the river, he told
somebody to cut a stem of a tree
and put it at the spot where it
fell, and the item floated. In the
book of John, the bible told us
that if any is sick, let them call the
elders and let them take the oil;
the anointing oil and the prayer
of faith will heal the sick.
It is not the anointing oil that
heals, it is the prayer of faith that
heals, but as I said, abuse is inevitable.
There is so much abuse in
the body of Christ today when
it comes to the use of all these
symbols, but the Christians of
today should realise that with
or without the symbol you can
be healed. Jesus did not make it
a regular practice to heal people
with spittle and sand; Elijah did
not make it a regular practice to
heal people by cutting of sticks;
the early disciples did not make
it a regular practice to sell anointing
oil and holy water. Yes, we
have anointed people with oil
and seen them get healed; we
have even given people water to
drink and seen miracles happen,
but the first thing you notice is
that we pray over the objects,
and so it is not the water and the
oil – it is the prayer of faith that
does the healing.
But sometimes it is difficult
for people to believe. I must
throw a balance here not to criticize
what is happening but I think
that sometimes people’s faith is
still not big. People exhibit small
faith – when they see a symbol,
maybe anointing oil, they believe
not because they believe in the
anointing oil but they believe
that through that anointing oil
miracle will happen.
But most still place emphasis
on the symbols. Not that they
believe the anointing oil is the
miracle worker; they know Jesus
is the miracle worker but
through the anointing oil – maybe
they have seen their pastor
anoint somebody that was sick,
prayed for him and the person
became healed. So, that means
anointing oil can heal, it helps
to lift their faith. So, no matter
what, it is the faith that has been
lifted that brings the miracle but
there is a lot of ignorance. Some
of my colleagues who are pastors
have abused this privilege,
and I say here it is not about the
oil, water, cane or whatsoever
it is; there is extremity to these
things and I must confess that
some of them are manipulative.
But God will bring to judgment
some of these people who
are intentionally manipulating
the ignorance or the naivety of
the worshippers. But generally
speaking, there is a place for the
anointing oil, there is a place for
symbols, but they do not take the
place of prayer and faith, and it is
not those symbols that bring the
miracles, it is faith in Christ that
brings the miracles.
The scripture talks about
the prayer of faith healing the
sick; how come most believers
still look to other persons in the
church for prayers and other
things?
I think as Christians we should
read the bible. The bible is simple,
it is written in English and as
long as you can understand the
English language, you can understand
the bible. You do not
need too much of education to
understand the bible. There is no
other name by which we might
be saved but by the name of Jesus,
but sometimes people want
to hinge their faith on something
they can see as a means of aiding
their faith to believe more.
When you have a personality
that is strong and have affected
your life so much, sometimes
you believe in him so much, you
believe in his word so much but
that does not mean the person
does not believe in Jesus. He
believes in Jesus but somehow
he sees somebody that is like a
father figure to him that helps
him believe more. So, you see
how God is helping the man, how
God is using the man and maybe
how God is working through the
man and you wish you can be like
him because if you be like him,
you can be more like Jesus. So,
I do not think people put their
faith in man; they put their faith
in Christ but somehow for some
of us as Christians, even for some
of us as pastors, we also have our
mentors.
So, it is not just the congregation
that is guilty of this, even
we pastors are also guilty. But,
it’s more of respect, honour for
somebody through whom God
has blessed my life, without
whom I would not be where I am.
I believe in Jesus but I love this
man and I am excited about him
as a father, mentor, and I reverence
him. However, our faith is
in Christ.
But then people should not
make the mistake of thinking
that without Pastor A or Bishop B
or Archbishop Z, I cannot receive
from God. With or without any
man anybody can receive from
God, but of course, if you have
somebody you love, cherish because
of the role he has played in
your life, no problem, go ahead
and cherish him, honour him, but
never take your eyes away from
the cross.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY
29
Inspirations
FUNSO JOHNSON ODESOLA
Crossroads of suffering
WHe is able to succour them
that are tempted (Hebrews
2:18). The picture here is that of a
stronger deliverer running to the
rescue of the weak “He is able to
run up to the aid of those who are tempted.” Not
only does he lend his ear – he gives his hand. Not only
does he see their distress. He runs to relieve it. He
is more than a match for the most aggressive battalions.
The very sight of his advance is a sure sign
of victory. The very gaze of His eyes is the promise
of deliverance.
“Those who are being tempted.” It is an accurate
description of all disciples. It expresses a fact of
Christian experience which is at once universal and
definite. Even those who feel themselves immune
from temptation are but showing their tempted
condition by such presumption! From the earliest
moment to the latest hour of conscious experience
we are warring against unseen foes. From the cradle
to the grave we are aware of the fingers that try to
touch us in the dark.
Temptation in itself is not wrong; let us find
comfort in this fact. The marks of violent temptation
are not the marks of declension; they are marks of
sensitiveness. The nearer to God the more aggressive
the enemy becomes. The more consecrated
the attitude the more bitter the persecution.
Many young disciples are disappointed because
they have more trouble from Satan than before
they were converted. Quite a number of them
were surprised why these should be so. It is not at all
abnormal, it is normal phase of experience. Before
conversion the spiritual nature was dull, sleepy, and
dead. Sin hard no sting, temptation no struggle; no
battle. But after conversion the spiritual nature is
quickened; the soul is alive; the mind is spiritually
The preface of triumph (4)
alert. Not only is sin revealed, but danger of sinfulness
is manifested. Life now becomes a battle
field, where conflict has to be waged. What hitherto
stood on natural ground, friendly ground, now
stands as an avowed enemy; temptation becomes
perpetual warfare. It is not the man who is aware of
his proneness to temptation that is warned, but the
man who feels secure from invasion; “Let him that
thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” Watch
and pray that ye enter into temptation.
In every age the people of God have been subjected
to temptation and trial. Was not Abraham
thus tried when he was commanded to take his only
son Isaac and offer him a burnt -offering? Was not
Jacob thus tried when Joseph was torn from him,
and not only Simeon was detained, but Benjamin
demanded? Wee not the apostles tried when, in
doing their masters will, they encountered the fury
of Satan and the rage of a pagan world, being always
“delivered unto death for Jesus sake?”
Yet great and gracious as these triumphs may
see, we are hashed as we read of our Lord Jesus
Christ – “He himself hath suffered, being tempted.”
He who knew no sin was tempted! He who was the
son of God passed through the stress and strain of
our common battle; he suffered being tempted.
“Wherefore it behooved him in all things to
be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a
merciful and faithful priest in all things pertaining to
God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people,
for in that he himself hath suffered being tempted,
he is able to run up to the aid of those who are being
tempted.” (Hebrews 2:7-18) EMPHASIS MINE
“In things pertaining to God.” He made atonement
for sin. He did so by virtue of his merits; He
was a lamb without blemish and without sport; he
knew no sin; he was holy, harmless and undefiled.
He removed the barrier between the sinner and
God; the “veil was rent in twain from the top to the
bottom”. He is become the new and living way.
He is related to me by virtue of his humanity.
Not only did he taste death for every creature; he
tested human life as well. “As God knows what is in
us; but as man he feels it also.” Let us not be reluctant
to speak of humanity. He became man- without
sin, and knew the pain of suffering, and the stress
of trial and temptation. From these facts arise His
matchless sympathy is based. He knows the road
along which we have top travel, for he has trodden
it himself. His tender sympathy is based on knowledge.
He knows the enemy we have to fight. “Like
unto his brethren”- the glory of that conception put
a new dignity into the battle and a new courage into
feeble hearts.
Whenever we speak of the suffering of Christ.
We always seem to have in mind the last scenes; the
agony in the garden, the judgment of the palace, and
the death on the cross. Was not mark of blood ever
upon Him? Can we limit his suffering to the last few
days before his death? In taking our nature did he
not suffer pains we can never describe?
Remember he was unuttererably holy. He was
without sin; he was perfect love incarnate. Yet he
came into daily contact with rough, coarse, unhallowed
souls, whose very presence near him must
have wounded His spirit. The daily experience of
mis-understanding, of physical hunger, of weakness
and fatigue, of criminal neglect, of hateful neglect,
of hateful enmity, was not all this suffering of the
most acute kind?
When we speak of Him “being tempted,” shall
we limit that phrase to the interview He had with
he Arch-enemy? Was not the whole of His life
subjected to trial and temptation? Let us grasp
blessed truth that our Lord, in order that he might
be a merciful and faithful High priest to secure- his
people, suffered, being tempted. From this truth the
following things emerge.
A precious fellowship
I may share with the Lord a holy companionship.
He took upon himself my nature, fought my
battle, and lived my life, suffered as I shall never be
able to. He knows what temptation means, for he
himself has been tempted, he is not some interested
on- looker who stands on a distance and watches
with curious eyes the result of the conflict. He is
a merciful and faithful high priest. He intercedes
continuously on my behalf. In the hour of conflict
he is ready to run up to my rescue. He can deliver
me with a great deliverance. The sense of oneness
with Christ will at once produce a firm determination
to fight the foe. He fought the same enemy that
I am fighting, and the very fact that he knows all the
subtle trickery of the devil guarantees my victory as
I enter into the conflict.
A trustful attitude
I am called upon to live in a state of continuous
dependence upon him. He is willing to impact the
succor and strength required, but I must be prepared
to receive it. He is willing to undertake for
me, but am I willing that he should? Do we really
believe experimentally that the Lord is able to give
us victory over acute temptation? The answer to
this question depends largely upon our attitude
to daily dependence. Only as we are daily living in
a state of trustful dependence can we experience
the power of the Saviour to give deliverance in the
hour of temptation.
The attitude of daily receptively may involve a
great renunciation. There may be in us a handicap
which must be removed; nor even a missing of the
mark, but a weight hindrance, a clog, may be some
things that makes the victory seen remote.
Christ ministry of suffering can only operate as
we are scrupulously obedient and honest. We are
called upon to present our bodies a living sacrifice:
we are commissioned to walk in the light; we are
told to lay aside every weight and the sin which is
closely things to us, that we may run with patience
the race that is set before us.
Are you tired in your daily life? Does every one
misinterpret you? Are you well intentioned actions
universally misconstrued? He knows, for he was
misunderstood from cradle to the grave; his perfect
sympathy reaches out to you in your great need, and
if you cry out He will run to your aid.
Are you tired through loneliness of your lot?
No man so lonely as he was! He was ever lonely
for although He had friends, few understood Him;
few were heart companions for Him. Will you cry
to Him? He will reveal to you the sacred ministry
of his suffering.
Pastor J.F. Odesola (PhD, LLM),
Assistant General Overseer (Admin/Personnel)
& Pastor-in-Charge Region 1,
The Redeemed Christian Church of God,
Redemption Camp,
Nigeria.
Facebook.com/PastorJFOdesola
Twitter.com/PastorJFOdesola
Youtube.com/PastorJFOdesola
ng.Linkedin.com/in/PastorJFOdesola
IRUOFAGHA JAMES
There’s a right way to both connect and
disconnect. And every disconnection
comes with a particular level of pain.
For instance, if you have to leave your church
because you are relocating to another country
(in this case, God would have spoken to both
parties involved because in the case of things
that affect divine connections He never speaks
to just one person), but if someone decides
on his/her own to leave and chooses to frame
it as God having instructed him/her to do so
without God having confirmed this to the other
party, then you’ve broken the connection in a
wrong way.
It is also when most people have decided to
break a divine connection that they now want
to speak to the other person to explain their
decision, this is not right. God doesn’t give you
the option of altering the terms and nature of a
divine connection, if you are having problems
in the relationship the right thing to do is to sit
with the other person and talk it out and not for
you to walk out and break the connection. A
person like this is deemed to be unfaithful and
ends up becoming someone nobody wants to
be connected to.
Looking at marriages as a form of divine
connection, you won’t find a marriage that is
The power of divine connections (4)
without its own share of trouble and conflicts,
but these problems are meant to be worked
on and resolved through communication,
patience and perseverance and not by walking
out when things get tough. That’s how marriages
(and by extension, divine connections
are preserved).
Man was designed and shaped to live in
a community, husband – wife, father – son,
employer – employee, friends, neighbourhood;
even on the bad side you have cults, gangs and
prisons: these are all forms of relationship/connections.
Whether positive or negative, people
live in communities and not independently
of every other person. That’s how man was
created, but the devil is trying to stop people
from connecting to others and ensure they
live in isolation.
The American Medical Association recently
declared that loneliness/social disconnect is
not just a psychological ailment, but a medical
one as well; one which the Association says is
worse than heart disease, obesity and smoking.
This means loneliness will make one
physically sick.
Eph. 4:11
Jesus gave the five-fold gifts of ministry to
us, but even those who function in any aspect
of these ministries ought to have someone he/
she submits to (Gal. 2:1)
Ps. 92:12-14
“12The righteous shall flourish like the
palm tree, he shall grow like cedars in Lebanon.
13Those who are planted in the house of God
shall flourish in the courts of our God. 14They
shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh
and flourishing”
The righteous person has a God-ordained
place to flourish. Imagine what would happen
if the righteous moves away from the place
that God has ordained for him to flourish in.
There are two things that are necessary for
us to be what we want to be:
1. You have to be planted
2. There is a right place to be planted
For you to flourish, you need to trust the
wisdom of the Master planter/gardener. You
can’t plant yourself, only God can plant you; so
trust in His wisdom.
There’s a difference between being planted
and just growing. Planting connotes a sense of
purpose, it is deliberate. But growing happens
by chance and it isn’t regulated by anyone. It
also has a large measure of risk in that a plant
that grew where it wasn’t planted can be uprooted
at any point in time.
Going further from being planted, there is a
particular place above every other place where
a person will thrive best. Like the Cedar is native
to and thrives best in Lebanon (as quoted
in the passage we just read – Ps. 92:12-14), so
a person will thrive best in the place that God
has ordained for him/her to be planted. Don’t
let anything whatsoever uproot you from the
place God has planted you.
There are certain conditions God has made
to favour each of His creations, there’s a thing
as the proper connections to the right soil/
place
Those who are planted have a sense of
divine connection. They know that’s the place
that God has planted them, they are members
and not just attendees. Connected people
don’t truly ever leave, even if they are physically
removed from the church by legitimate
reasons, they will stay in touch and keep tab
on whatever is going on there. Members have
a sense of responsibility, commitment and then
a sense of divine connection.
Divine connections shouldn’t be taken
trivially and/or broken indiscriminately. Even
when disagreements and conflicts occur, they
should be worked on and worked out, because
you know if you are to leave that relationship
where you’re planted and connected you are
on the way to destroying yourself.
Just like you have it in marriage, if one disconnects
himself from a divine-ordained relationship
(like a Church) at will and enters into
other relationships trivially, he’s an adulterer.
Adam (Man) fell because he didn’t know
how to treat divine things as divine. We saw
this with Achan (Joshua 7) as well; he touched
what God said no one should touch, and he
treated the divine instruction with levity. We
see this happening in the Church with people
disconnecting from church at will.
Truly committed people who are members
of the church (those who have a sense of divine
planting), take up the challenge of building
their church.
Dr. Iruofagha James is the founding pastor,
Glory Christian Ministries, Odo-Olowo Street,
Apapa/Oshodi Expressway, Ijeshatedo,
Lagos. www.isjames.org Tel: 08060599144

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
30BDSUNDAY
SundayBusiness
Spiritonomics
Core - elation
Debo Atiba
www.spiritonomics.org
In unraveling diverse mysteries
that make for success, we
must never forget the ones
that make for failure also. Behind
every winning business
venture or any other pursuit of life,
is a mindset of success. This goes
to also show that in God’s design,
success has been inculcated into
our DNA. Our life-long quest for
success and relevance is traceable
to God’s design in us.
If this is a common denominator
between man and God, then we
must examine the root of failure.
Why do men fail? Men do not fail
because of what they experience;
rather they fail because of what
they THINK. Every action in life is
preceded by THOUGHTS. In the
realm of the spirit, THOUGHTS
are things whether you believe it
or not. However, in the physical
realm, things do not appear to have
originated from the Spirit.
Every object you see, feel or
touch in life are products of a man’s
thought. Likewise, when you study
any successful man you see that
their thoughts made them. The Bible
says that ‘’as a man thinks in his heart
so is he”. For this to emanate from
God it means it is really BIG! Every
time we remember that no action
is taken except they are thought-up,
it actually shows the power that our
thoughts wield. This means going
forward or backward in life are all
products of the thoughts in our lives.
When we talk about obstacles, they
are not necessarily tangible BAR-
RIERS or road BLOCKS put across
our paths rather, most times they
are all inside us. Until we recognize
the power that our thoughts have
over the outcome of our lives, we
would not treat it with respect and
give it the honor that it deserves. We
must settle it in ourselves that every
single transaction we execute in life
must have been first of all processed
in our thoughts.
“But I don’t have control over
the thoughts on my mind!!!!” you
shout. Well, I can only agree with
you if you are dead or completely
insane. A madman has largely lost
control over the thoughts of his
mind that is why he is considered
to be mad. In fact, if you follow
him closely, you would even discover
he has moments of sanity.
However, I am sure you fall into
none of the two categories. So
congrats, “YOU HAVE CONTROL
OVER YOUR MIND”. That means
you have the power to CHOOSE
between GOOD THOUGHTS
and NEGATIVE THOUGHTS. So
how do we recognize NEGATIVE
THOUGHTS? Every thought that
does not make for encouragement,
joy, peace, love, excitement or progress
are NEGATIVE THOUGHTS.
It is your thought that tells you, you
cannot do it when no man is there.
Your thought tells you that people
like you don’t succeed and you
agree with it. Your thought tells you,
you are not likable and ugly. People
have thought these ways, accepted
these as truths and patterned their
lives in alignment.
Looking back in your life, you
must have had this experience one
way or the other, or at one time or
the other. Although thoughts appear
spontaneous and it looks as
though we have no control over
them, the truth is that they have
an origin or source. We just do not
think blank thoughts. The thoughts
of our hearts are a product of the
information we allow into our mind.
The information we expose ourselves
to, determine our thoughts
to a large extent and consequently
the outcome of our lives.
The entertainment world is very
good at programming us to their
own advantage. The decision to buy
what we buy is deliberately fed into
our minds and we process them as
our thoughts. For you to succeed at
whatever endeavor, your thought
must be rigid in the truth that has
been fed into your life, otherwise,
you are a loser. The best information
that you need for the deprogramming
and reprogramming of your
life is the thought of God spelled
out in the word of God. Contrary
to what anyone has to say, this is the
only TRUTH that has never lacked
result. In there, the possibilities that
your life possess are unveiled to you
and the power to carry them out
are released into you. Having been
armed with the knowledge of the
origin of our thoughts, we can easily
eliminate the stumbling thoughts
and build the good thoughts. As the
second quarter of the year is just
starting, we must be deliberate at
selecting the information that we
would allow into our minds, otherwise,
wrong information becomes
NEGATIVE THOUGHTS which do
not make for ELATION in life. The
“CORE” of our being pants after
this so much that our inability to
experience progress reduces us to
a shadow of God’s original design.
The children of Israel could not
enter Canaan land all because of
wrong information disseminated
in their hearing. This year we must
take up our responsibility of seeking
out right information that looks
like where we are going and ingest
them. The bible says that we must
guard our hearts with all diligence
for out of it are the issues of life. It
takes quite some effort to do this
but it is worth it. Get the right books
and tapes, be in the right company
and listen to the right information.
This does not just happen by chance,
you have to be intentional about it,
draw out a program daily or weekly
to address this and your life would
definitely not remain the same
again.
Remain blessed.
Looking to buy property from abroad,
TAGEXPO has you covered
ISAAC ANYAOGU
Th e team at ‘The
Anirejuoritse Group’
Nigeria Limited (T.A.G) has
fully activated this year’s
edition of its annual Real Estate
Expo (TAGEXPO) organized to
guide Nigerians in the Diaspora to
credible Real Estate developers
with property investment that suit
their budgets and needs.
Every year, TAGEXPO takes
interested real estate developers
from Nigeria to the United Kingdom
and the United States to showcase
their property in a fair where they
convince Nigerians abroad to
procure property in the country
for investment or occupancy. They
can leverage on the weak naira to
buy properties ranging from up
N9million to about N200million.
This year, the organisers are
adding a new twist in the form of a
Special Purpose Vehicle that allows
up to five people pay for a single
property and own blocks.
“For every property, we would
get people who will come together,
say it is N60m, we can sell it to five
different people and then each
person can buy a block, or one
fifth of that property that ensures
that no matter who attends the
event, more people will buy the
property. We create an SPV and
the SPV now owns the property,
with the names of the buyers, this
is strictly for investment purpose,
not owner occupier scheme,”
says Michael Ejoh, the convener
and chief marketing officer of
T.A.G. Nigeria at a stakeholders’
breakfast meeting, in Lagos, on
Opeoluwa Osho, managing director Kreativ Management Concepts & Finance, a
partner to the TAGEXPO 2018; Tayo Odunsi CEO Northcourt Real Estate Limited;
Michael Ejoh CIPS, chief marketing officer TAG Nigeria Limited; Francesca
Dyegh, country manager Echostone Nigeria Limited; Chima Ugonna, Marketing
Executive Air France KLM at the TAGEXPO 2018 Real Estate Stakeholders
Breakfast Session held recently.
April 12.
The organisers say the
TAGEXPO is open to real estate
developers in Nigeria, all financial
institutions with facilities for loans
and other real estate acquisition
services, Insurance companies,
mortgage firms, and Nigerians in
the Diaspora.
The idea for the expo was borne
out of careful feasibility studies,
which provide participants with
a robust database of Nigerian
professionals living abroad who
either want to return home or are
seeking Real Estate investment
opportunities in Nigeria. TAG
says it has been invited to take a
stand at the Offshore Technology
Conference (OTC) holding in
Houston, United States to hold oneleg
of the fair.
“The continued theme for the
TAGEXPO is to “Meet, Invest,
Secure” – encompassing the
core responsibilities on Real
Estate purchase to connecting
and negotiating, making a
commitment and insuring your
commitment. This year we are
looking to go bigger than we have
in the past two years, so much has
been learnt on this journey and
we hope to incorporate all the
lessons to produce an even more
engaging event for developers and
attendees. We are also including
properties from eastern parts of
Nigeria as we have had inquiries
about properties from there
“We have designed the
TAGEXPO to be an all- day, family
event. We believe that if you are
buying a property you are not only
buying for yourself. We encourage
people to come with their families
and talk directly to the developers.
Three Crowns new creamer offers
great quality at affordable price
Angel James
Nigeria’s leading low
cholesterol milk, Three
Crowns recently
launched the first
locally-produced evaporated
creamer in the Nigerian market.
Three Crowns Creamer offers
a great quality product for every
Nigerian consumer who seeks
an affordable and alternative milk
product for their daily meals.
FrieslandCampina WAMCO,
makers of Three Crowns milk,
has been in Nigeria for over 60
years and believes that milk is
an essential nutrient for every
individual.
At the unveiling of the Three
Crowns Creamer in Lagos,
Ben Langat, managing director,
FrieslandCampina WAMCO,
said he was confident that the
company has provided a nutrition
solution for consumers.
A s s u r i n g t h a t
“FrieslandCampina WAMCO
will continue to ensure that
every Nigerian mother has Three
Crowns for her home”, Langat
said that Three Crowns has been
at the forefront of nourishing and
providing quality dairy nutrition
for mothers and their families
and that it was the first brand to
show care for the mothers and
acknowledge the important role
they play in the family.
“Three Crowns has been
creating healthy and happy
families for three decades,
putting mums first and creating
a formidable bond within our
homes. Three Crowns believes
that when a mother of the home
is happy and healthy, by extension
the community and the nation
will also be happy and healthy,”
Langat said.
“The brand recognizes that
when mothers, socially believed
to be our primary caretakers, are
also being taken care of, it directly
and positively impacts the care
they give to their families,” he said.
Omolara Bolajoko, brand
manager, Frieslandcampina
WAMCO, said one of the reasons
for providing the creamer milk,
seeing the state of the economy,
was to satisfy Nigerian consumers
who are still on fixed salaries and
would not want to spend much to
be able afford the creamer, tasty,
sweet milk.
“We still have some consumers
who do not use the regular Three
Crowns products but with the
new Three Crowns Creamer, we
know a lot of people will afford
this,” she said.
Adewale Arikawe, sales
director, FrieslandCampino
WAMCO, stated that Three
Crowns now offers majority of
Nigerians more affordable access
to a rich, tasty new creamer at just
N120 per tin.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY 31
SundayBusiness
NHF: Will contributors’ bread be better
buttered at housing loan board?
The National Housing
Fund (NHF) was set up
25 years ago as a child of
circumstance by an Act
which spelt out its functions
and operations as a means of
facilitating access to housing loans
by workers, mostly those in the
formal sector of the economy.
The Act compels workers to
contribute two and half per cent of
their monthly salaries to the fund
and also empowers employers to
deduct the contributions at source.
Although the Act covers workers
in both public and private sectors,
mostly federal public servants have
been contributing faithfully.
The fund, which guarantees contributors
access to housing loan for
buying, building or renovating existing
houses after contributing for
just six months at 6 percent interest
rate, is statutorily managed by the
Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria
(FMBN)—Nigeria’s secondary
mortgage institution.
The FMBN’s status as a secondary
mortgage institution poses a
challenge to the operations of the
fund because it restricts the bank
from dealing with individual contributors
to the fund. This has been
identified as a major problem that
needs to be resolved quickly.
Besides lack of access to loans,
there is also problem of FMBN’s
failure to give individual contributors
details of their statement of
Account every year as the law
demands it to do.
In a number of ways, FMBN has
failed to live up to its responsibility in
the management of the fund. Since
the year, 2000, labour unions have
been kicking against continued
contribution by workers to the NHF
on the ground that there was no
guaranteed benefit.
Labour alleges that as at 2006,
about 1.8 million workers were
registered from 17,132 employers
that subscribed to the NHF scheme,
with a contribution of about N6
billion, adding that less than N280
million was disbursed to a handful
of 446 contributors as loans.
Furthermore, about N20 billion
was said to have been contributed
by workers to the fund between its
inception and 2006. The law governing
the fund has left the Federal
Government Staff Housing Loan
Board (FGSHLB), which has been
operating a social welfare scheme
for providing houses for federal
government workers since 1924
in the cold.
Recently, the House of Representatives
dusted the Act setting up the
FGSHLB with a view to amending
44 years after its last amendment.
The public hearing conducted by
the House Committee on Public
Service Matters, provided a platform
for workers to ventilate their
anger and frustration with NHF
scheme and to call for the transfer
of their contributions to the housing
loan board.
Under the proposed amendment
of the FGSHLB Act, Section 8 of
the new Act is proposing that 50
per cent of Federal Public Service
contributions to the NHF should
be channeled to the Loans Board
to guarantee contributors’ access
to the fund.
Emmanuel Omonowa, director,
Legal Services, in Office of the Head
of Service of the Federation, noted
at the public hearing that contributions
to the NHF scheme was being
made by Federal Government
employees alone, suggesting that
50 per cent should be ordered in the
Act, to be amended, to be paid to the
loans board.
“Why do we say so? Number one,
for anybody to retire from the public
service today, he must be requested
to bring a certificate from the loans
board to be sure that he does not
owe. Therefore, if these are the
people contributing and they must
come to the board to obtain a certificate
to show that they do not owe,
why not put their contribution here
so that when they come for their
certificate, if they have not obtained
any loan, their contributions should
be put together and given to them,”
he said.
This, he hoped, would boost the
confidence of the public that a system
was in place unlike what is on
ground where deductions are made
at source from workers’ salaries but
that money put together is given
to primary mortgage institutions
(PMIs) to build houses that civil
servants cannot buy.
“The contributors who should
be helped to put money together
to own houses, cannot own the
houses and they cannot get their
Talking Mortgage
with
CHUKA UROKO
(08037156969, chukuroko@yahoo.com)
contribution back. This ought not to
continue so that we do not have our
senior citizens retiring with heart
attack”, he submitted.
A representative of the FMBN
pointed out that the NHF Act, which
empowers the bank to manage the
affairs of the fund was open to all
contributors to the fund, adding
that civil servants and public sector
officials have been benefitting from
the fund.
“We reckon that the Act provided
for the monies collected from the
fund be channeled through the
PMIs for on-lending to contributors
and we have our problems there.
We have been seeking to amend
our own Act and then the NHF Act,
to meet the realities of the time”,
he assured.
But the workers disagreed,
stressing, “What we are saying,
precisely, is that housing is very
important to human existence. The
NHF, who contributes to it? The Act
says two and half percent of salaries
of workers, and housing is on the
Concurrent List.
The kicked against the idea
of using money contributed by
workers to fund mortgage owners
or mortgage system, in which the
workers, themselves, cannot pay
the terms. “That is the critical issue.
The FGSHLB exist wholly for
federal public employees; as a result,
the bulk of their contribution
should go there. That is equity.
But to take the contributions of
poor workers and fund mortgage
institutions, who in most cases,
provide housing schemes for the
rich is unacceptable”, the workers
emphasized.
Apebo Joshua, a representative
of Senior Civil Servants Association
of Nigeria, also demanded
that the contribution of public
servants should be transferred to
the FGSHLB because, according
to him, “we do not benefit from our
contributions to the NHF, being
managed by the FMBN”.
Continuing, he said, “even if the
FMBN gives private developers
money to build houses, they would
build houses that are not affordable
to civil servants. If, for instance,
a developer charges N4 million
for a house; a civil servant who
desire to own such a house would
be required to pay 10 per cent of
the sum, amounting to N400,000.
How much is minimum wage? Just
N18,000.
Vodacom deploys Intelsat 35e Satellite
to boost internet connectivity in Nigeria
AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE
Vodacom Business Nigeria
and Intelsat S.A. have announced
an agreement to
expand Vodacom’s broadband
connectivity in Nigeria. The
agreement was aimed at providing
an improved satellite services to the
former’s local enterprise customers.
The strategic agreement was
signed at the Satellite 2018 event
which took place in Washington
D.C, United States of America recently.
The agreement now makes
Vodacom Business Nigeria the
first telecommunications provider
in Nigeria to lease capacity on the
Intelsat 35e Satellite.
Research has it that as satellite
coverage increases globally, enterprise
businesses are no longer
limited to operating from just one
location because of the high speed
broadband requires for business
operation. However, this agreement
with Intelsat S.A, which is the operator
of the World’s first Globalized
Network and leader in integrated
satellite solutions, Vodacom Business
Nigeria will deploy the Intelsat
EpicNG satellite services, which is
a next generation of satellite technology;
to enable its customers
operate from anywhere in Nigeria.
Brian Jakins, Intelsat’s regional
vice president, Africa Sales, said
that Intelsat EpicNG enables higher
data rate applications and smaller
terminals that give enterprises the
avenue to expand into new regions
and take advantage of business
opportunities regardless of where
they occur.
He further noted that with the
improved performance delivered
by Intelsat EpicNG, Vodacom Business
Nigeria’s customers will utilise
the satellite services on Intelsat
35e to deliver fast, high quality and
resilient broadband connectivity to
the banking, oil and gas, and other
sectors across West Africa.
L-R: Hans Geldenhuys, managing sales director, Intelsat Africa and Lanre Kolade,
managing director, Vodacom Business Nigeria during the signing of an agreement
to deploy next generation Intelsat 35e Satellite in Nigeria at the just concluded
Satellite 2018 event held in Washington, D.C.
Wakanow launches ‘Travel Now Pay Later’
Scheme for 2018 Russia World Cup
Obinna EmelIKE
As part of the comprehensive
drive to significantly
boost the capability of
the Nigerian traveling
public, Wakanow has designed
a new travel payment scheme,
‘Travel Now Pay Later’ that would
alleviate the strain of outright payment
for travel packages on her
customers by allowing them pay in
convenient installments even after
their travel date.
With a minimum down payment
of 25 percent, intending travelers
who wish to take advantage of the
Wakanow Travel Now Pay Later
Scheme can enjoy the flexibility and
convenience of spreading the balance
payment for their travel package
for as long as nine months even
after their travel dates. The product
offers Wakanow customers soft
loans at a very marginal interest rate
within a 24-hour turnaround time.
According to a statement by
Obinna Ekezie, managing director,
Wakanow, these new offerings accentuate
Wakanow’s commitment
to boost the financial capacity of Nigerians
to afford air travel and benefit
from the innumerable benefits of
travel and leisure. He also said that
as a company with keen interest in
sports, it was ideal for Wakanow
to launch the product exclusively
to encourage the live participation
of Nigerian football lovers at the
forthcoming World Cup.
“Generally, flights in Africa are far
more expensive compared to what
is obtainable in Europe and other
advanced economies. The absence
of open skies across Africa’s biggest
economies and convoluted
routes make travel cost expensive,
inhibit trade and result in lower passenger
demand. We believe that by
making travel cheaper and more
affordable, we will be empowering
more Nigerians to afford air travel”,
Ekezie said.
The Wakanow Travel Now Pay
Later scheme is designed in partnership
with RenMoney.
Wakanow is Africa’s largest Online
Travel Agency with commercial
operations in Nigeria, Ghana,
Kenya and the UK. The company
is currently undertaking a large expansion
project which will result in
stronger footprint across Africa, the
UK and USA. Wakanow currently
processes over 15,000 bookings in
Nigeria monthly as the demand for
African travel continues to grow.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
32BDSUNDAY
SundayBusiness
Food &
Beverages
With
Ayo Oyoze Baje
Long before Hippocrates
(460 BC - 370 BC), the
popular Greek known as
the father of medicine came
up with the quote: “Let food be
thy medicine and medicine be thy
food” theHoly Bible had made references
to the medicinal properties
of foods and herbs. They represent
health and longevity from Almighty
God. Therefore, the importance of
diet and of preparing and eating
food was oftentimes seen as a
spiritual act.
The focus in those days were on
fresh, natural foods called the field
plants or “plants of the field”.These
consist of herbs, roots and green,
leafy vegetables such as tomatoes,
corn and beans. According to the
book of Leviticus, clean meat is
Power of the healing foods
defined as the meat of every animal
that has the hoof cloven in two and
chews the cud. Examples of clean
meat include the ox (cattle), buffalo,
sheep, goat, deer, gazelle, antelope
and mountain sheep.
As for seafood, everything with
fins and scales are allowed, but
whatever doesn’t have fins such
as shellfish is prohibited. For birds,
everything is allowed except eagles,
vultures, kites, ravens, ostriches,
seagulls and owls.
Unfortunately, modern lifestyle
has veered towards processed
foods much of which are fried,
fatty, canned, with additives such
as sweeteners, flours and food
preservatives some of which have
serious side effects.
Efforts are on by nutritionists
and food scientists to promote
foods that are healing and healthy.
Emphasis is therefore, shifting
to healing foods such as apples,
bananas, oranges, pineapple, tomatoes
and lemon (all fruits). Others
include beans, cashew nuts, carrots,
cocoa, olive oil, coconut oil and cod
liver oil. Plant materials such as herbal
tea and green tea are also highly
recommended. As for sources of
healthy foods from animals, raw
goat milk, turkey meat and one egg
per day are all recommended.
In fact, so important are healing
foods that one Dr. Axe Fans has
come up with the Healing Foods
diet. He boasts that it is not just a diet
but a tool that will launch you into
a total health transformation. This
diet was designed to help anyone
triumph over diseases like: diabetes,
obesity, heart disease, autism, digestive
disorders, fatigue, depression,
hormone imbalance, and cancer
prevention.
So, what are the scientific explanations
for their efficacy and
functions? The first is that they
decrease Inflammation. According
to Fans most diseases today are
due to inflammation. Inflammation
damages your cells and arterials
walls and causes High Blood Pressure,
High Cholesterol, Arthritis,
and digestive disorders like Crohn’s
disease to name a few. By reducing
inflammation your body is better
able to heal from any disease.
Secondly, they alkalise the body.
Your body should have an average
pH of 7.36. A can of soda literally
has a pH of 2.5 and it would take
approximately 30 glasses of water
just to balance things out. Green
vegetable juices like wheat grass
and spinach help restore the body’s
proper pH. All diseases including
infections, osteoporosis and cancerthrive
in an acidic environment.
By alkalizing your body your cells
can heal and regenerate at the highest
level.
Thirdly, they lower blood glucose
.One of the primary causes
of diabetes and weight gain are
burnt out and insulin receptors.
By lowering blood glucose levels,
insulin receptors can heal and your
body can begin to produce normal
amounts of insulin to heal diabetes
and leptin for weight loss.
Another powerful reason is that
they eliminate toxins. Toxicity has
become epidemic in our society
today and is a major cause of our
increase in hormonal imbalance
and autoimmune diseases. The diet
helps problems like female disorders,
infertility, hypothyroidism and
headaches by balancing hormones
and helps in reversal of autoimmune
diseases like fibromyalgia, chronic
fatigue, alzheimer’s, and autism.
So good also that they optimize
nutrients. Many of today’s illnesses
are due to nutritional deficiencies.
Most of the foods we eat today are
processed and stripped of all vitamins,
minerals, anti-oxidants and
enzymes. This diet slows the aging
process, improves mental capacity,
and increases energy levels.
The Healing Foods Diet consists
of eating equal amounts (33%
each) of clean protein sources,
healthy fats, and low glycemic carbohydrates
in the forms of fruits and
vegetables.
The steps to take include removing
the bad fats and replace them
with good fats.Bad fats such as
hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated
oils, trans fats, soybean oil,
canola oil and vegetable oils cause
heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer,
chronic fatigue, and neurotoxic
syndrome. Bad fats create chronic
inflammation throughout the body
inducing disease. Good fats are
essential to hormone production,
cancer prevention, brain development,
weight loss, cellular healing,
and anti-inflammation.
The next step is to change the
meats that you eat.There are hundreds
of studies that link commercial
meats with cancer and heart
disease. The grain fed to animals
that were created to eat grass
changes fatty acid ratios (too much
omega-6, not enough omega-3)
and denatures good fats, leading to
modern day disease.
Dr. Fans insists that the bioaccumulation
of commercial pesticides,
herbicides, antibiotics, and hormones
in meats are causing a toxic
onslaught, which leads to many
cancers, neurological disorders and
chronic illness. Grass fed and free
range meats offer many fatty acids
missing in the Standard American
Diet (SAD) such as: aracodonic
acid, congegated linoleic acid, and
Omega- 3 fatty acids.
Also, consciously remove all
refined sugars and grains from
your diet.
These include white rice, white
pasta, and white bread. 1/3 sugar
comes from soft drinks, 2/3 from
hidden sources including: lunch
meats, pizza, sauces, breads, soups,
crackers, fruit drinks, canned foods,
yogurt, ketchup, mayonnaise. High
glycemic or refined sugars cause
elevated glucose, which elevates
insulin leading to premature aging
and degenerative diseases such
as type II diabetes, heart disease
(inflammation of the arteries), and
cancer.
Sugar is an anti-nutrient offering
insignificant amounts of vitamins
and minerals and robbing your body
of precious nutrient stores.
Baje is Nigerian first Food
Technologist in the media
Ideas
Nwaodu Lawrence
Chukwuemeka
IDEAS Exchange
Consulting, Lagos.
email - nwaodu.
lawrence@hotmail.co.uk
Cell: 07066375847.
What’s more, work
and leisure are becoming
increasingly
difficult to
disentangle. A
study conducted at the Harvard
Business School has shown that,
thanks to modern technology, managers
and professionals in Europe,
Asia, and North America now spend
80–90 hours per week “either working,
or ‘monitoring’ work and remaining
accessible.” And according
to British research, the smartphone
has the average employee working
460 more hours per year – nearly
three weeks.
It’s safe to say the predictions
of the great minds didn’t exactly
come true. We are long past due
for Keynes’ prophecy. Around the
year 2000, countries like France, the
Netherlands, and the United States
were already five times as wealthy
as in 1930. Yet as we hurtle into the
21st century, our biggest challenges
are not leisure and boredom, but
stress and uncertainty.
Is there anything that working less does not solve? (2)
…Working less, the solution to just about everything
The solution to (almost) everything
Recently, a friend asked me: What
does working less actually solve?
I had rather turn the question
around: Is there anything that
working less does not solve?
Stress? Countless studies have
shown that people who work less
are more satisfied with their lives.
In a recent poll conducted among
working women, German researchers
even quantified the “perfect
day.” The largest share of minutes
(106) would go toward “intimate
relationships.” At the bottom of the
list were “work” (36), and “commuting”
(33). The researchers dryly
noted that, “in order to maximize
well-being it is likely that working
and consuming (which increases
GDP) might play a smaller role in
people’s daily activities compared
to now.”
Accidents? Overtime is deadly.
Long workdays lead to more errors:
Tired surgeons are more prone to
slip-ups, and soldiers who get too
little shuteye are more prone to
miss targets. From Chernobyl to
the Space Shuttle Challenger, overworked
managers often prove to
have played a fatal role in disasters.
It’s no coincidence that the financial
sector, which triggered the biggest
disaster of the last decade, is absolutely
drowning in overtime.
Climate change? A worldwide
shift to a shorter workweek could
cut the CO2 emitted this century
by half. Countries with a shorter
workweek have a smaller ecological
footprint. Consuming less starts
with working less – or, better yet
– with consuming our prosperity in
the form of leisure.
Unemployment? Obviously,
you can’t simply chop a job up into
smaller pieces. The labor market
isn’t a game of musical chairs in
which anyone can fit into any seat
and all we need to do is dole out
places. Nevertheless, researchers
at the International Labour Organization
have concluded that work
sharing – in which two part-time
employees share a workload traditionally
assigned to one full-time
worker – went a long way toward
resolving the last crisis. Particularly
in times of recession with spiking
unemployment and production
exceeding demand, sharing jobs can
help to soften the blow.
Emancipation of women?
Countries with short workweeks
consistently top gender equality
rankings. The central issue is
achieving a more equitable distribution
of work. Not until men do
their fair share of cooking, cleaning,
and other domestic labor will
women be free to fully participate
in the broader economy. In other
words, the emancipation of women
is a men’s issue. These changes,
however, are not only dependent
on the choices of individual men;
legislation has an important role
to play. Nowhere is the time gap
between men and women smaller
than in Sweden, a country with a
truly decent system in place for
childcare and paternity leave.
Aging population? An increasing
share of the older population wants
to continue working even after
hitting retirement age. But where
thirty somethings are drowning in
work, family responsibilities, and
mortgages, seniors struggle to get
hired, even though working is excellent
for their health. So, besides
distributing jobs more equally between
the sexes, we also have to
share them across the generations.
Young workers who are just now
entering the labor market may well
continue working into their eighties.
In exchange, they could put in not 40
hours, but perhaps 30 or even 20 per
week. “In the 20th century we had a
redistribution of wealth,” one leading
demographer has observed. “In
this century, the great redistribution
will be in terms of working hours.”
Inequality? The countries with
the biggest disparities in wealth are
precisely those with the longest
workweeks. While the poor are
working longer and longer hours
just to get by, the rich are finding it
ever more “expensive” to take time
off as their hourly rates rise.
In the 19th century, it was typical
for wealthy people to flatly refuse
to roll up their sleeves. Work was
for peasants. The more someone
worked, the poorer they were.
Since then, social mores have
flipped. Nowadays, excessive work
and pressure are status symbols.
Moaning about too much work is
often just a veiled attempt to come
across as important and interesting.
Time to oneself is sooner equated
with unemployment and laziness,
certainly in countries where the
wealth gap has widened.
It doesn’t have to be this way. We
have the ability to cut a big chunk off
our working week. Not only would
it make all of society a whole lot
healthier, it would also put an end
to untold piles of pointless and even
downright harmful tasks (a recent
poll found that as many as 37% of
British workers think they have a
“bullshit job”). A universal basic
income would be the best way to
give everyone the opportunity
to do more unpaid but incredibly
important work, such as caring for
children and the elderly.
The good life
When I told people, in the course
of writing, that I was addressing
the biggest challenge of the
century, their interest was immediately
piqued. Was I writing
on terrorism? Climate change?
World War III?
Their disappointment was palpable
when I launched into the subject
of leisure. “Wouldn’t everybody just
be glued to the TV all the time?”
I was reminded of the dour
priests and salesmen of the 19th
century who believed that the plebs
wouldn’t be able to handle getting
the vote, or a decent wage, or, least
of all, leisure, and who backed the
70-hour workweek as an efficacious
instrument in the fight against
liquor. But the irony is that it was precisely
in overworked, industrialized
cities that more and more people
sought refuge in the bottle.
Now we are living in a different
era, but the story is the same: In
overworked countries like Japan,
Turkey, and, of course, the United
States, people watch an absurd
amount of television. Up to five
hours a day in the U.S., which adds
up to nine years over a lifetime.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
33
SundayBusiness
World Consumer Rights Day 2018: Making online
marketplaces safer for consumers
SOLA SALAKO-AJULO
Salako-Ajulo, consumer rights and
protection advocate, is president/founder,
Consumer Advocacy Foundation of
Nigeria (CAFON).
As the world celebrated another
World Consumer Rights Day
(WCRD) on March 15, 2018, global
focus was on the fast evolving,
ubiquitous marketplace enabled
by the internet. The theme set for the 2018
celebration by Consumers International (CI),
the global consumer protection watchdog,
was “Making Digital Marketplaces Fairer”
in recognition of the growing challenges of
protecting consumers in a new market that
transcends physical borders, ignores geographical
boundaries and confirms the ageold
maxim that the world has truly become
a global village.
In less than twenty years, the conventional
definition of markets has evolved from physically
defined and geographically identified
spaces of commercial activity to multiple intangible,
boundless and real time e-locations
enabled by the internet. Whereas subsisting
consumer protection laws and guidelines
attempt to protect consumers within physical
locations and the sovereignty of national
policies, research shows that up to 12 percent
of all global commercial transactions now
take place on the internet; intra and inter
countries, between multiple currencies and
with little or no physical contact between the
seller or service provider on the one hand and
the consumer at the receiving end.
E-commerce, enabled by electronic financial
instruments, has thus become our
progressive reality. According to Babatunde
Irukera, director general, Consumer Protection
Council, in a Facebook post, a recent
research by the Council show 67 percent of
consumers between ages 18-40 now shop
online; showing how important online markets
are to commercial activity in Nigeria. As to
be expected, the issues of exploitation, unfair
trade practices and sub-standard products
and services, which gave rise to the need for
government to protect consumers in conventional
markets, now occur at breathtakingly
alarming rates online.
Consumer protection regulators appear to
be playing catch-up as the issues transcend
the capacity of existing laws and regulations.
More so, the challenges consumers face in
the new marketplaces online are sometimes
new, thus existing laws are inapplicable to
check the excesses of most merchants in this
nascent frontier. Consumers daily fall victim
to issues like lack of redress, misleading advertisement,
outright frauds and scams and
poor customer care with little or no regulation
or intervention from regulatory agencies.
Though a few of the organized formal
merchants online have shown initiative by
establishing their own consumer protection
structures to build confidence in their store,
they are not directly supervised by any particular
agency of government.
The first issue raised by the global watchdog
is the lack of fair access to the internet
for millions of consumers around the world.
Whereas the internet is fast becoming an
essential commodity in developed countries,
nations like Nigeria are still struggling
to make the internet adequately available
for the majority of consumers. Even when
consumers pay for data access, they rarely
get value for money, thus they are unable
to maximize the full benefits of the online
marketplace, and the few who do pay dearly
for the privilege.
This challenge of access becomes even
more critical as essential services like governance,
utilities and financial services are
now being digitized globally. Consumers
now need the internet to apply for a driver’s
licence or national identity card, pay their
taxes and access banking and other financial
services. E-marketplaces must therefore be
made more accessible, affordable and safe
for every consumer in Nigeria.
Another critical issue is the menace of
fraudulent transactions at e-marketplaces.
The fact that businesses take place without
any physical contact between the seller and
the consumer creates a cover of anonymity
which unscrupulous merchants hide under
to exploit consumers through misleading
advertisements, fake products or services,
scams and poor after sales support. Due to
this, most consumers find it difficult to trust
e-transactions or their providers. CI research
shows 49 percent of internet users in Nigeria
claim they are wary of e-transactions because
of the trust issue.
Consumer distrust of e-markets arises
from the apparent lack of regulation or
adequate legislation to police marketplaces
online. Government seems to be taking its
time to catch up with the digital economy, as
it appears to lack the capacity to fully regulate
and monitor the digital marketplace. One of
the challenges to regulation is the ubiquitous
nature of the platform and the multiple
sectors involved. While a comprehensive
legislation might take years to materialize,
government needs to explore options that
can immediately improve the standard and
safety of online transactions for consumers.
Some options regulators could consider
include increased consumer education to empower
the consumer with better information
on the risks of e-transactions, how to identify
scams and frauds and how to insist on redress
if their rights are violated. Government can
also work with sectors to encourage peer-topeer
checks or self-regulation. When online
markets agree to sign up to a code of conduct
relevant to a specific sector on standards
and consumer protection principles, digital
markets in such a sector become safer for the
consumer which builds trust and improves
Consumers now need
the internet to apply
for a driver’s licence or
national identity card,
pay their taxes and
access banking and
other financial services.
E-marketplaces must
therefore be made more
accessible, affordable
and safe for every
consumer in Nigeria
consumer patronage.
A good example of sector self-regulation
is the Smart Campaign, a global effort to
unite microfinance institutions around
the goal to protect customers as a driving
force in that industry. The Smart Campaign
has developed a series of Client Protection
Principles which participating microfinance
institutions can implement to build strong,
lasting relationships based on trust. Once an
institution subscribes to these principles, the
Smart Campaign compliance team will visit
to inspect and verify its compliance before
issuing such an institution a certificate. Consumers
can then look out for that certification
as proof of the institution’s ethical and
consumer protection credentials thus safe
for business. The Smart Campaign Principles
include appropriate product design; prevention
of over-indebtedness; transparency;
responsible pricing; fair and respectful treatment
of customers; privacy of customer data
and a mechanism for complaint resolution.
The Smart Campaign Principles could be
adopted by financial digital marketplaces, as
there has been a significant rise in online microfinance
merchants who offer consumers
alternative banking and microfinance services
on the internet. While their platforms
provide much-needed choice options to
conventional banking, most consumers are
wary to patronize their services because of
a lack of trust.
If such microfinance service providers
strive to earn a Smart Campaign certification,
for instance, consumer confidence will improve
because of the perceived regulation,
which in turn should increase patronage.
Government needs to encourage independent
and credible sector self-regulating institutions
like the Smart Campaign to improve
consumer confidence in digital marketplaces.
Imagine if one of such is established for
online stores to guide acceptable practices
for e-transactions! Consumer confidence will
soar which will directly impact patronage on
those digital marketplaces, improving the
economy.
Another aspect of digital marketplace
is the informal platforms of personalized
selling. Many individuals offer goods and
services for sale on person-to-person platforms
like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook
and so on. This form of e-commerce is more
challenging to regulate because it is a private
transaction between two individuals, yet the
rate of fraud and scams is higher in these
instances.
Consumer protection in this situation
must focus on consumer enlightenment
and education so the consumer can make
informed choices on whether to take the risk
of buying goods and services from individuals
without means of tracking. Government
could also explore the possibility of putting
checks and balances on the payment
platforms for these transactions, which are
mostly internet-based. A regulation that
empowers a bank to take action if an account
is used for online selling fraud could help to
monitor these person-to-person transactions
in order to shut them down once they
are proven to be fraudulent or a scam.
While these issues are definitely not exhaustive,
they show the enormity of action
required to keep consumers safe as they
conduct commercial transactions on digital
platforms. There are issues of protecting
consumer personal data from abuse, ensuring
redress in cases of consumer dissatisfaction
and peculiar challenges that a dynamic
economic platform would face as it evolves
into a mainstream accepted marketplace in
Nigeria’s economy.
As Irukera of CPC rightly pointed out, distrust
of digital marketplaces is not just about
consumer protection, it has implications
for national survival as it stifles economic
growth. Nigeria must thus take bold steps
to deepen the conversation on making
digital marketplaces safer beyond the World
Consumer Rights Day celebrations as the
digital marketplace holds more promise for
employment and economic emancipation for
the Nigerian youth population, apart from
being a vital key to the globalization of local
products and services.

34
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Equity Market
DMO lists N100bn Sukuk as
global issuance hits $98bn
...UK targets Sukuk market in 2019
Stories by TELIAT SULE
The deepening of the
nation’s capital market
and promotion
of financial inclusion
got a boost last week
Tuesday April 10 with the listing
of N100 billion Ijarah Sukuk on
the floor of the Nigerian Stock
Exchange (NSE) and FMDQ by
the Debt Management Office
(DMO). The move is seen by analysts
as a way to bring on board
ethical investors without infringing
on the Islamic law which
frowns at interest payment.
The N100 billion 7-year Federal
Government Ijarah Sukuk has a
rental rate of 16.47 percent. The
proceeds will be used to further
support the construction and
rehabilitation of 25 roads in the
six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.
And according to the earlier press
release by federal government
ministries, each of the 6 geopolitical
zones got N16.67 for road
construction and rehabilitation.
Five roads were selected in the
north central region; 4 each in the
north east and north west; 4 in the
south east, 5 in the south-south
and 3 in the south west.
“The Sukuk will encourage financial
inclusion by providing an
avenue for non-interest investors
to participate in the fixed income
market. In addition, the Sukuk
provides an opportunity to further
develop the savings culture
in Nigeria, particularly among
individuals and other retail investors”,
Patience Oniha, Director
General, the Debt Management
Office (DMO), said.
“Today’s listing has strong implications
for emerging and frontier
markets which continually
seek to unlock dormant pools of
capital needed for economic
growth and development, particularly
as these economies have
larger infrastructural deficits and
Guinea Insurance posts 518 percent increase in PAT
... as FY17 total income hits N470m
Guinea Insurance last week
joined the list of companies
that ended the
2017 financial year in
profitability following 518.2 percent
increase in profit after tax (PAT)
which rose to N251.03 million as
against N40.6 million made in same
period in 2016.
Gross premium was up 6.7 percent
to N967.14 million in 2017 up from
relatively stronger demographics
in favour of Islamic Finance,
than developed markets”, Oscar
Onyema, CEO NSE said at the
occasion.
While the essence of the listing
is to enhance liquidity and transparency,
an analyst is of the opinion
that liquidity objective may
not be achieved now considering
that interest rates have fallen.
“The essence of the listing is to
boost the liquidity of the instrument
and enhance transparency.
But we are of the opinion that
investors will hold on to the Sukuk
till maturity due to fall in interest
rates”, Kayode Tinuoye, head research
department at the United
Capital, said.
According to S & P Global Ratings,
Sukuk issuance in 2017 rose
by 45.3 percent to $97.9 billion
up from $67.4 billion in 2016. The
upsurge was driven by liquidity
positions of the countries in the
Gulf as production cut agreed by
the Organisation of Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) in
coordination with Russia, ensured
that the prices of crude oil at the
international market sustain its
upward trend. Forty-six percent
of the Sukuk primary investors are
from the Middle East, 18 percent
from Europe, 10 percent from the
United States, 25 percent from
Asia while the balance are from
other countries.
“Jumbo local and foreign cur-
N906.7 million made same period in
2016. Underwriting profit rose by
10.5 percent to N501.1 million from
N453.4 million realised same period
in 2016.
Profit after tax for the period increased
from N40.6 million in 2016
to N251.03 million in 2017, representing
an increase of 518.2 percent.
Other income for the period jumped
by 10,518 percent to N220.22 million
from N2.07 million in comparable
period in 2016. That brought
the total comprehensive income for
the insurance firm to N471.3 million
as against N42.7 million in 2016.
So far, Continental Re-Insurance,
AXA Mansard, NEM Insurance,
Law Union and Rock Insurance and
Regency Alliance Insurance are the
only insurance companies that have
declared their dividends for sharerency
issuance by some GCC
countries drove the Sukuk market
higher in 2017. Of specific note,
the $9 billion Sukuk issued by Saudi
Arabia was the largest issued
globally to date. The market also
continued to attract some Islamic
finance non-core countries, with
Hong Kong tapping the market
for the third time and the first issuance
of a Sukuk in Nigeria.
“We expect this trend to continue
as Morocco and Tunisia plan
to tap the market in 2018 and the
U.K. announced its intention to go
to the market again in 2019 upon
the maturity of the Sukuk it issued
in 2014”, S & P Global Ratings said
through a report on the Sukuk
Market Outlook for 2018.
holders. For the financial year 2017,
Continental Re declared 14 kobo
dividend per share with April 16,
2018 as the closure date while payment
will be made on April 26, 2018.
AXA Mansard declared 6 kobo
dividend per share whose register of
members will close on April 24,2018
and the payment date is May 10,
2018. Similarly, Law Union & Rock
will pay shareholders whose names
All Share Index rises
0.21 percent as equities
gain N31billion
... NAHCO declares N0.25
dividend per share
The All Share Index (ASI)
of the Nigerian Stock
Exchange (NSE) rose by
0.21 percent week on
week to close at 40,928.70 points,
which translated to 87.56 points
increase over 40,841.14 points on
April 6,2018. Year to date, the ASI
closed on last week Friday at 7.02
percent. In the same manner the
market capitalisation of the listed
equities added N30.8 billion to
N14.753 trillion recorded on April
6 to close last Friday at N14.784
trillion, representing 0.21 percent
week on week gain and 8.63 percent
increase year to date.
The sectoral indices that outperformed
the ASI include the NSE
Premium Index, the NSE Industrial
Index and the NSE Pension Index.
The NSE premium Index appreciated
by 14.44 percent year to date
as it closed last Friday at 2,934.48
points as against 2,564.13 points
on the last trading day in December
2017.
Furthermore, the NSE Industrial
Index rose by 10.02 percent
year to date to close last week at
2,173.54 points compared with
1,975.59 points on the last trading
day in December 2017. In the same
manner, the NSE Pension Index
increased by 13.55 percent year to
date to end last week at 1,566.74
points in contrast to 1,379.74
points on December 29,2017.
Last week, the NSE announced
it would migrate Access Bank,
Lafarge, Seplat and United Bank
for Africa (UBA) to the premium
board effective April 16, 2018.
“Access Bank Plc, Lafarge Africa
Plc, Seplat Petroleum Development
Company Plc and United
Bank for Africa Plc have all passed
the Corporate Governance Rating
System (CGRS) and have market
capitalisation of N347.12bn,
N378.60bn, N391.37bn and
N374.48bn respectively. They
will join Dangote Cement Plc,
FBN Holdings Plc, and Zenith
International Bank Plc who were
migrated to the Premium Board
in 2015, bringing the total number
of companies on the Board
to seven”, NSE announced on its
official website.
appear on the register of members
as at April 24, 2018 a total of 4 kobo
dividend per share. Payment date is
May 5, 2018.
Regency Alliance Insurance has
declared 3 kobo dividend per share
which will be paid to shareholders
whose names appear in the register
of members as at the close of business
on Friday 27, 2018. The payment
date is May 25, 2018.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY
35
BrandsOnSunday
SPOTLIGHTING BRAND VALUE
LG says right of consumer to
healthy living not negotiable
…Introduces more consumer-centric products
DANIEL OBI
The right of an individual
to a more healthy living
is not negotiable; as such
brands should skew their
production line towards
promoting healthy products and
environment for consumers, LG,
global operator and technology
innovator in consumer electronics,
mobile communications and home
appliances has said. The company
said it is championing the cause of
advocating for innovative solutions
that are tailored towards modern
lifestyle imbibed with healthy living.
It is no longer news that LG has a
track record of introducing products
designed specifically to help
consumers stay healthy.
“With the demand of work,
raising a family and other obstacles
consumers are faced with on a
daily basis, it is just too much of a
burden for most people to count
down on their calorie level, make
healthy food choices and get to the
gym a couple of times a week. The
era we are in is the golden age of
technology, where consumers can
maintain healthy lifestyle without
nursing any fear. Elec-tronics giant,
LG Electronics has created devices
and services to help simplify consumers’
everyday living, and that
includes numerous technologies
that can help achieve health living”.
According to the company in a
statement, LG’s lineup of products
like the Puricare air purifiers and
humidifiers are designed to provide
user-centric solutions that improve
consumer health and satisfaction.
It said the puricare air purifier is
certified by Asthma and Allergy
Foundation of America (AAFA) and
has the ability to remove 99.97% of
airborne particles including those as
small as 0.3 microns
Managing Director, LG Electronics
West Africa operations,
Taeick Son said in the statement:
“Staying healthy goes a long way
to improve consumers’ productivity
at work and at home which is
very important to us as a company.
For us the next step in the expansion
of health benefits will be the
addition of smart technology to
everyday appliances, and LG is
incredibly poised to succeed as the
market evolves. When multiple
products combine they form a
safety net that protects users on
multi-ple levels, compounding
the individual benefits of each
technology- making it easier for
users to stay healthy”.
However, the ranges of smart
kitchen solutions from LG product
lineups are ideal for all categories
of chefs irrespective of level be it a
professional or amateur to experiment
with. The Lightwave Oven
technology presents a lot more
flexibility in terms of heating up
foods in multiple ways to achieve
much healthier cooking experience
seamlessly. Not to talk of the LG
advanced refrigerator designed
specifically to minimize air loss and
utilize adaptable compartments to
prolong the lifespan of items stored
inside. The refrigerator are designed
to preserve food for a longer period
of time and help the kitchen stay
healthy and refreshed, it said.
Taeick Son further said that
LG has continued to maintain the
lead in designing vacuum clean-
ers with modern technology to
perform cleaning exercise with
little or no supervision which is quite
re-markable. LG’s robotic-driven
smart home philosophy is aimed at
lowering the barrier of entry often
associated with complex smart
home ecosystem. “Remarkably,
CLOiworks in conjunction with the
company’s range of health-centric
products simplifies housework
processes. For instance, LG robotic
vacuums Hom-Bot makes it extremely
easy for users to clean their
homes while away, making it possible
for users to maintain a clean
and healthy environment always.
In particular, LG A9 is the most
ergonomic cleaning solution you
can find around. Interestingly, its
advanced wireless vacuum feature
glides smoothly across the floor to
ensure that cleaning is done without
any form of stress on the user.
This obviously would contribute to
cleaner and healthier habitation”
The advancement in innovative
healthy technology is promoting a
hassle free world with innovators
such as LG championing it with
its ever innovative core technologies.
The standardization and innovation
of modern technology has
made it possible for consumers to
now see healthy living as not just
systemic but as a way of life worthy
of embracing, all thanks to LG
Electronics.
Indeed, the world will be a better
place if only companies would emulates
what innovative companies
such as LG Electronics is doing in ensure
that in the process of production,
the health of the consumers in
now factored in to achieve a healthy
and greener environment for all.
Guinness
Nigeria signs
MoU with
Wecyclers
on waste
management
Guinness Nigeria Plc, the
foremost beverage alcohol
company in Nigeria
has partnered Wecyclers,
a social enterprise that promotes
environmental sustainability, socioeconomic
development, and community
health to support Guinness’
waste management agenda. The
partnership is expected to, among
other things, help support the implementation
of Guinness Nigeria’s
4R waste management strategy,
covering Reduction, Reuse, Recovery
and Recycling, while addressing
increasing local and global concerns
around the environmental issues of
waste disposal.
Peter Ndegwa, Managing Director/CEO,
Guinness Nigeria Plc,
said in a statement that the partnership
with Wecyclers is in line with
Guinness Nigeria’s commitment
to reduce its environmental impact
across its operations and throughout
its supply chain. He added that
it is also in line with the Nigeria’s
Extended Producer Responsibility
(EPR) policy approach under which
producers are given a significant responsibility
for the treatment or disposal
of post-consumer products.
“This partnership with Wecyclers
is in line with our commitment to
reduce our environmental footprint
as well as join the global movement
to advance sustainable development.
Every year, at Guinness, we
set ourselves stretched targets that
will guide us as we work to reduce
our impact on the environment. We
also strive to increase our positive
social impact by delivering transformational
social investments in
communities where we operate,”
Ndegwa said.
MTN Nigeria, one of Africa’s
largest provider
of communications
services, connecting
over 53 million people in communities
across the country has in partnership
with Twinpine, a Terragon
company with specialties in mobile
marketing, unveiled an upgraded
version of MTN Mobile Advertising.
Launched recently at a stakeholders’
gathering, the enhanced version
of Mobile Advertising with selfservice
capability is a smart means
of optimizing advertising budget,
allowing brands and businesses to
reach their profiled target audiences
with ease. Witnessing the launch
were industry giants who were
presented with a live demo of MTN
Mobile Advertising and how the platform
guarantees cost efficiencies
while reaching the target audience.
Speaking at the launch, Chief
Enterprise Business Officer, MTN
Nigeria, Lynda Saint-Nwafor in a
MTN, Twinpine enter into partnership to
revolutionize mobile advertising in Nigeria
statement stated that, “MTN as a
brand aims to help its customers
get the best of their business using
the services that we provide. We are
particularly proud of our Mobile Advertising
as it offers much more than
receiving an SMS on your phone.
MTN Mobile Advertising involves
a wide array of channels like USSD,
End-of-Call Notification, Balance
Enquiry and Recharge Notification.
With MTN Mobile Advertising,
you have clear reach, targeting
real-time engagement, real-time
audience, permission marketing,
lasting conversations and a door
to a world of opportunities. We
believe our customers will get the
best of the platform and will be just
as impressed as we are.”
MTN Mobile Ads is a complementary
channel for advertising
that makes integrated marketing
communication plans more comprehensive
and airtight. As most
digital platforms, MTN Mobile Ads
is measurable and can be tracked
and the reports developed from
the platform will show trends and
extensive dynamics of targeted
consumers, the statement said.
The platform prides itself in being
overtly exact when targeting
audiences along the lines of age,
gender, location, spend, device type
and operating system amongst
other metrics to better the business’
Return on Investment (ROI). This
solidifies the customers’ confidence
in the fact that their actual target
market, audience and group are
being reached.
Commenting on how MTN
Mobile Ads connects businesses
with their target audiences, Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) Terragon
Group, Elochukwu Umeh in the
statement said, “The new version
of our Mobile Ads platform delivers
superior results on mobile for
consumer goods, financial services
and SMEs. The direct channel offers
participating customers and businesses
an opportunity to connect
with their target audience in their
mobile journey from discovery to
conversion.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
36BDSUNDAY
Consumer Watch
Agbo consumption on the rise
despite alleged health implications
NGOZI OKPALAKUNNE
Consumption of
agbo, a herbal
mixture, has become
habitual
among some consumers
in Lagos that a day hardly
passes without them drinking
it. It is also observed that
the number of agbo sellers
has increased. Take for
instance, if you stroll along
many streets in Lagos, you
will likely see many agbo
joints as well as those hawking
the mixtures.
The increase in the number
of buyers may not be
unconnected with the campaign
that people should
return back to nature.
It could also be as a result
of increase in the prices
of orthodox drugs which include
anti-malaria; typhoid;
pain relieving drugs, among
others.
According to a report
on herbal mixtures by the
World Health Organisation
(WHO), traditional herbal
medicines are naturally occurring
plant-derived substances
with minimal or no
industrial processing that
have been used to treat
illnesses within local or regional
healing practices.
The above is an indication
that WHO recognizes
the effectiveness of herbal-based
medicines, but
only when aptly prepared,
under the right circumstance
and with required
standard.
A survey by Consumer
Watch on agbo consump-
Tasty Coconut Rice
Ingredients
• Rice
• Coconut milk
• Diced tomatoes
• Habanero peppers
• Green pepper (diced)
• Onion (diced)
• Vegetable oil
• Salt
• Black pepper
Directions
. Boil the rice in water for
about 10-15 minutes and
drain with a sieve.
. Heat the vegetable oil in a
cooking pot.
. Add the onions and stir
with black pepper for one
minute.
. Add diced tomatoes, habaneros,
and coconut milk
with the salt and cover
to cook for about 5 minutes
(or when the mixture
comes to a boil).
. Add the rice and stir and
cover for about 7 minutes
tion among consumers in
Lagos revealed that many
lower class consumers prefer
herbal medicines to
orthodox in the treatment
of ailments such as malaria;
typhoid fever; pains; arthritis;
rheumatism, among
others.
However, for whatever
cause and with the current
arbitrary sales of this stimulating
drink, it is attracting
more and more patrons
from other classes in the society.
In an interview with
Consumer Watch, a primary
school teacher, Monica
Michael said she and the
children have been taking
agbo in the last three years
for the treatment of malaria
and typhoid fever and
added that the perceived
(or when the rice is almost
dry).
. Add the green peppers
and let simmer until the
rice has absorbed all the
juices.
. Garnish with diced carrot
if you wish.
efficacy of the herbal brew
in addition to high cost of
orthodox medicines made
her to take such decision.
“Before now, l didn’t take
agbo and my children didn’t
as well, but when l realised
the effectiveness of the
mixture and its affordability,
l switched over to it and
ever since then, l don’t often
suffer malaria; typhoid
and waste pain; the same
thing with my children, they
hardly fall sick because we
take it from time to time .
“I don’t buy from the
hawkers on the street,
rather l buy herbs from the
herbalist and prepare it for
the entire family; so far, it
has worked very well for
us,” she said.
Lola Alawode, another
user of the brew, said
that she takes agbo first
thing in the morning before
breakfast, adding that it has
helped to regulate her sugar
level.
“l always take agbo jedi,
that is a brand of the concoction
that crashes sugar
in the body system and it
strengthens me also,” she
said. But Christiana Chukwudinma
revealed that she
has not tasted agbo and will
not, explaining that it has no
dosage and therefore could
be detrimental to her health.
“I am skeptical about
the mixture; it does not
have measurement unlike
orthodox medicines. I am
careful about what enters
my mouth. Besides, some
of the herbalists are fetish.
Whenever l am sick, l do
not want anything that will
compound my problem.
So, the only option whenever
l take ill is to visit the
clinic, whatever drugs they
prescribe for me l will get
the drugs and take them in
good religiously and within
a short time l will recover
from the ailment,” she said.
An interaction with some
agbo sellers revealed that
the herbs can either be
mixed with alcohol or water.
A seller around Surulere, Lagos,
who identified herself
as Mama Tosin, explained
that most of her customers
prefer herbs mixed with
alcohol as alcohol seems to
stay longer in the body than
water.
However, some consumers
do not take agbo
because it does not have
prescribed amount unlike
the orthodox medicine.
Another agbo seller said:
“We measure and sell to our
customers and many prefer
herbs mixed with alcohol
except few who do not take
alcohol based on their religious
belief, they can buy
the one mixed with water.”
On the danger or otherwise
of use of agbo, a
medical practitioner who
spoke on condition of anonymity,
condemned the use
of agbo in the treatment of
any ailment, adding that it is
detrimental to health.
He attributed the increased
cases of Chronic
Kidney Disease (CKD), and
liver problems to consumption
of agbo.
“Agbo does not come
in grams like the orthodox
drugs, you can imagine
when one continues to take
hard mixtures that do not
have measurement, it will
certainly destroy organs in
the body,” he noted.
Femi Aluko, a medical
doctor with Imperial
Hospital Lagos, described
agbo as effective remedy
for chronic diseases like
asthma, hypertension, and
tuberculosis, among others.
“When you meet the
right herbalist, he will give
you the right prescription
and if you can comply with
the rules and regulations, it
works very well,” he said.
According to him, “herbalists
are now becoming
more refined unlike before
when agbo was not well
prepared. As a medical doctor,
l will not discourage any
patient from drinking agbo;
l will advise that patients
should meet the right herbalist
and not hawkers who
may want to compromise
the quality by adulterating it
with other substances that
might not be healthy.”
Eazy Coox redefines cooking with food condiments
As part of its contribution
to nutritional
development and
provision of a new
cooking experience, Eazy
Coox recently introduced
four essential ready-to-use
ingredients. The food condiments
come in sealed glass
jars of chopped garlic, chopped
ginger, chopped scotch bonnet
and chopped habanero chilli;
all in 190g size packages.
Eazy Coox’s mission is to
help several upwardly mobile
individuals, modern day
women and families solve
their cooking challenges with
the provision of ready to use
condiments. The products
which come in glass jars are
peeled, chopped and preserved
in either white wine
vinegar or olive oil for an easy
to use experience.
During a chat with the
founder of Eazy Coox, Bolanle
Akinyemi said: “Upon
return from the United Kingdom,
I searched for a substitute
to the bottles of chopped
garlic and ginger I used to
bring back. Given that we are
blessed in abundance with
garlic and ginger with a higher
nutritional value, we decided
to support the buy-Nigeria
policy by providing ready-touse
food condiments in a way
that will compete with those
I used to bring back home.”
Eazy Coox was established
in 2014 with the vision
to provide the most convenient
food condiments to
consumers in Africa. The
company believes cooking
should be fun, exciting and
above all easy, creating an
adventure with flavors that
explore different tastes of
the world.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
37
Arts
The intrigue of the Stretched Terrains
…as Lufthansa, Brussels airlines support West African artists in Dak’Art, residency tour in mobile museum
OBINNA EMELIKE
On April 11, 2018,
a group of artists
began a six-week
journey from Lagos,
Nigeria to
Dakar, Senegal with a Lufthansa
and Brussels Airlines branded,
converted public transport
bus, called the Molue Mobile
Museum of Contemporary Art.
The branded and converted
public transport bus is housing
the “Stretched Terrains
– The Mobile Museum on its
Way to Dak’Art”, a residency
programme for young artists
from Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory
Coast, Senegal and Germany
on the move spanning several
countries in West Africa, which
is supported by Lufthansa and
Brussels Airlines.
As well, the “Stretched Terrains
– The Mobile Museum
on its Way to Dak’Art” project
is one of the many art development
and exchange programmes
of the Goethe Institut;
the German cultural mission
across the world.
Explaining the rationale for
the unique residency project,
Robin Sohdi, general manager,
Lufthansa, Nigeria and Equatorial
Guinea, says, “‘Stretched
Terrains’ is a great platform to
show the strengths of Lufthansa
and Brussels Airlines in West
Africa working closely together
and supporting the development
of young African talents”.
Robin Sohdi, Lufthansa Regional manager sales, Friederike Möschel, director Goethe-Institut Nigeria, Monsuru Alashe,
Nigerian artist, Gabriel Goller, German artist, Emeka Udemba, curator of the ‘Stretched Terrains’ art project before departure
of the Molue Mobile Museum road trip with resident artists to DaK’Art in Senegal, one of the continent’s most important
biennals for contemporary African art at the Goethe Institute in Lagos on Monday.
The artists who are going
for a residency tour will cross
through Benin, Togo, Ghana,
the Ivory Coast and Mali, with a
planned arrival in Dakar, Senegal
at the beginning of May for the
opening of the13th International
Biennial Dak’Art” exhibition.
They will be greeted at every
stop by the Lufthansa, Brussels
Airlines and Goethe-Institut
teams. Furthermore, they will
display their artwork at each
destination they stop at. As
well, when they get to Senegal,
the artists will stay for the
Dak’Art” exhibition until May 7,
2018, when they will start their
journey back to Lagos. On their
way back, they will make stops
again at all the previous Goethe-
Institut locations they visited on
the way to the exhibition, and
hope to arrive in Lagos on May
25, 2018.
During their journey, the artists
will examine diverse public
spaces as communication zones
of social, economic and political
interaction. The project embraces
the diversity of practices
and perspectives of the participating
artists, who will discuss
and exchange their artistic interactions
as they travel almost
10,000 kilometers on a road
trip. The artwork, which will be
created in Dakar and during the
journey, will be presented and
discussed along the way back to
Nigeria at the Goethe-Institutes
and cultural centers at Dakar,
Bamako, Abidjan, Accra, Lomé
and Lagos.
Emeka Udemba, a Nigerian
artist who lives in Germany, is
the curator of the project. The
whole journey can be followed
on the weblog, Stretched Terrains,
and on social media
with the hashtag #Stretched-
Terrains. “Stretched Terrains
– The Mobile Museum on the
Way to Dak’Art” is a project
by Goethe-Institut Nigeria,
supported by Lufthansa and
Brussels Airlines.
Brussels Airlines is renowned
for its Africa-expertise and is
now fully integrated in the Lufthansa
Group. While Lufthansa
is Europe’s only 5 Star airline,
and founder of Star Alliance,
the largest airline network in
the world.
Lufthansa Group operates
240 weekly flights to 42 destinations
in 28 African countries.
Unmasked still runs at the Wheatbaker
Since March 11, 2018 the
public areas and open
spaces at the Wheatbaker
Hotel, Ikoyi, have
been wearing more glamorous
looks with the many artworks
on display.
The artworks, which have
added to the beauty of the boutique
hotel, are courtesy seven
female artists from across the
world who are participating in
the ongoing exhibition tagged
‘Unmasked’.
The artists include; Djakou
Kassi Nathalie, Koromone Yobaere
Koroye, Nengi Omuku,
Nyancho Nwanri, Queen Nwaneri,
Reha Shishodia and Somi
Nwandu.
The all-female exhibition explores
the link between our
thought world vis-a-vis the pressures
women face in society. It
looks at how women break down
societal constructs, what it takes
to be a woman and how women
present their true selves.
The art explores the concept
of the female mental health and
multi-layered self. It will reveal
and inspire women to tear down
facades often put up to survive
and be found acceptable in a
world that would rather behold
the mask rather than the flawed,
truthful self beneath the surface.
In the exhibition, what is behind
the mask will be revealed
boldly, unapologetically, as women
stand up and out for who they
really are.
Taking a look at one of the
works, particularly Reha Shisho-
dia, the Mumbai, India-based
visual artist depicts the spirit of
woman through her series of
“Tryst of Inertia”.
The undeterred spirit of a
woman, according to her, is the
core of her inner beauty. She
remains unperturbed by her
circumstances and the inertia
caused by the mundane things
of life increases her resilience.
Her tryst with life and everything
that it has to offer becomes the
quintessential factor of her existence.
She not only becomes
a woman of substance but becomes
the epitome of grace
beauty and strength transcending
her call of duty.
The Unmasked runs till May
4, 2018 and is supported by The
Wheatbaker and Louis Guntrum.

38
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Arts
NCAC boss lauds Edo govt for
introducing culture clubs in schools
OBINNA EMELIKE
Ol u s e g u n
Runsewe, director
general,
National
Council for
Arts and Culture (NCAC)
has commended Edo State
Government for introducing
culture clubs in public
schools in the state.
Noting that the initiative
would go a long way in
stimulating the interest of
the youths in the rich cultural
heritage of the state
and Nigeria at large, the DG
said the move by Godwin
Obaseki, governor of Edo
State, was not surprising in
view of the cultural antecedents
of the state.
Runsewe pointed out
that Edo State has a rich
cultural history and tradition,
which are as old as the
ancient Benin Kingdom and
are reflected in the various
art forms such as sculptures,
paintings, bronze
works, dances, oral tradition,
among others.
Olusegun Runsewe, DG, NCAC
The NCAC boss stated
that most of the vices in
Nigerian society today are
largely due to the deterioration
of our traditional value
system, occasioned by the
undue influence of foreign
cultural values.
He said that for Nigeria
to make significant progress,
the citizens must return
to the value system,
adding that the best starting
point is to consciously
socialise children in the core
national values, using the
family, the school and other
agents of socialisation.
“I have been stressing
the need for us to revive
cultural education in the
schools curricula and I presented
a Council Memo on
this during the 2017 National
Council for Culture and
Tourism in Jigawa”, he said.
Expressing delight that
the Edo State governor has
given practical expression
to the call, he enjoined other
state governors to join the
campaign to revive Nigeria’s
fast deteriorating cultural
values.
Runsewe stated that
the NCAC under his leadership
would work with
the states to ensure that
Cultural Clubs are not only
fully established but are
also functional in all schools
nationwide.
He added that the Council
is engaging Nigerian
youths on cultural revival
through such programmes
like National Culture Quiz
Competition for Secondary
Schools, Children’s Component
of the National Festival
for Arts and Culture (NAF-
EST).
All these, he said, are
geared towards inculcating
in the youth, the appreciation
of Nigerian Arts and Culture
as well as building in them,
innovative skills, healthy
competition and inter-cultural
exchanges that would
foster national peace, unity
and development.
“When the youths are
properly groomed to internalize
the attributes of
our traditional values like
love of neighbour, community
spirit, personal integrity,
hard-work, discipline and
honesty, they will grow up
to be responsible adults that
can contribute meaningfully
to national development”.
Runsewe concluded.
Johnnie, Jazz, Whisky returns
to Lagos with Adekunle Gold
Johnnie, Jazz & Whisky,
Nigeria’s biggest and
brightest afro-jazz music
platform, reemerged
recently for another lush experience
at Cubana Lounge
in downtown Victoria Island,
Lagos. Staying true to its
promise of a night where
flavour is king and afro-jazz
is the beat, Johnnie Walker
Black Label turned on the
style having positioned the
unique event as a formidable
force on the music scene.
Guests turned out in their
droves as the gentlemen and
ladies alike looked stunning
in showstopper all-black
outfits.
Johnnie Walker Black
Label is the world’s most
awarded deluxe whisky
setting the benchmark
for over 100 years and
this event was all about
showcasing its status as
the ‘Everest of Whiskies’.
Guests were treated to
a wide variety of exotic
cocktails carefully crafted
by a team of expert mixologists
led by champion
bartender, Kelvin Oduntan,
who also offered some
whisky education to the
whisky enthusiasts.
As guests ‘nosed’ Johnnie
Walker Black Label to
discern its flavour notes,
curated spoken word performances
echoed followed
by a soulful musical performance
by TemmieOvwasa.
With an effortless blend of
poetry and panache, her rendition
prompted rapturous
cheers of excitement from
an eager audience.
Adekunle Gold’s band,
79th Element, had been serenading
the audience with
afro-jazz covers of popular
hits but nothing could
have prepared the guests for
what was to come. Adekunle
Gold performed nonstop
with the mastery that only
comes with years of skill
and preparation. By the end
of his performance, the ‘Ire’
crooner was in the midst
of an adulating crowd who
had become one with their
entertainer.
Through Johnnie, Jazz
& Whisky, Johnnie Walker
Black Label keeps walking
the journey that will see afrojazz
at the pinnacle of global
music entertainment.
NFC announces date for 2018 ZUMA Film Festival
With theme, Archiving
For
Creativity, the
Nigerian Film
Corporation (NFC), has announced
that the yearly film
festival ZUFF will take place
from December 1-7, 2018 in
Abuja, the nation’s capital and
traditional host city.
While announcing the
date, Chidia Maduekwe,
managing director, NFC/
chairman, Organising Committee
of ZUFF, disclosed
that all that needs to be put
in place to ensure a successful
international film festival
have been effected, adding
that ZUFF 2018 will be used
to further show Nigerians
and stakeholders in the industry
that Nigerian film
can compete with others
globally.
The NFC boss is also
hopeful that as part of the
strategies put in place for the
festival, key partnerships and
collaborations with relevant
agencies including government,
organisations and private
individuals would be
retained and expanded. “This
9tth in the series will again
provide the platform to sustain
the recognition of Nigerian
film makers who have or
are adding the needed value
in the development of the art
and business of filmmaking”,
he said.
Maduekwe pointed out
that this year’s theme will
reignite in the consciousness
of the filmmakers and other
stakeholders the important
role of films — audio visual archiving
of creative works and
its posterity values. According
to him, it is a paradigm
shift to protect and preserve
several thousands of films
that have been produced in
Nigeria, in the past decades.
He stressed that different
pieces collections of audiovisual
and film materials are
being lost due to non-preservation.
“In some ways, ZUFF
2018 is set to redefine the
need and potentials of audio
visual archiving in Nigeria,
and NFC through this festival
seeks to bring to the front
burner the need to preserve
Nigeria’s memory for future
generations,” he said.
Entries are expected for
the following categories: Best
Cinematography, Best Script,
Best Animation, Best Actress,
Best Actor, Best Documentary,
Best Foreign Film, Best
Student Film, Best Picture and
Best Indigenous Film.
Entry for ZUMA Film Festival
opened March 1, 2018
and would close on September
30, 2018. Entry forms
can be downloaded from the
festival and NFC websites:
www.zumafilmfest.gov.ng;
www.nigerianfilms.gov.ng.

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY 39
Book Review
Book title: Deep Secrets
Author: Nnamdi Agbakoba
Imprint: Lagos, Lampstand Books, 2015
Reviewer: Chuks Oluigbo
Nnamdi Agbakoba’s ‘Deep
Secrets’ is an outright discouragement
of social vices
among youths. It specifically
tackles the twin evils
of student cultism and examination
malpractices that have almost become
a norm in Nigerian higher institutions
and even secondary schools. These twin
evils have had adverse impact on mostly
vulnerable youths who are involved in
antisocial behaviour.
‘Deep Secrets’ is the story of Okechukwu
Obiefuna, a freshman Law student in
a Nigerian university, who is lured into
cultism by Justin Agorum Ike, an older
student in the same department whom
he had come to love and trust.
Okechukwu’s life begins to fall apart
after a cult clash that claims Justin’s life.
Unable to get a hold on himself, he opts for
suicide. Not even the preaching, counselling
and exhortation from his godfather,
George Obanye, can change his mind.
Narrated from the first person point of
view and embellished with a high dose of
irony and suspense, the book opens with
George Obanye, Chief Accountant for the
Bank of Commerce and Industry, closing
early from the office and pondering on
the internal memo he had just received
requesting him to “kindly see the managing
director for an urgent meeting”.
While struggling through the excruciating
Lagos traffic, his phone rings and it is
his godson Okechukwu announcing that
he is in trouble.
It is at this point that we get a hint into
Okechukwu’s personality and lifestyle.
On hearing the destabilising news that
Okechukwu is at Ikeja Police Station, arrested
alongside over 40 other students
after a riot in school, George says, “Okey
was a godson I wish I never had. All he had
to offer was trouble of all sorts and exams
he had to re-take again and again before
passing. He was a thorn in everybody’s
flesh.”
We also learn from George that it is
not the “first, second or third time” that
Okechukwu has been arrested as he has
become “a regular customer at numerous
police stations” owing to his violent and
unruly behaviour, despite his father being
a high-ranking police commissioner.
George succeeds in getting Okechukwu
out of the police cell and takes
him home. Okechukwu, who feels his
life has been shattered, contemplates
suicide. However, through a combination
of persuasion, threats, counseling,
exhortation and preaching laced with
elaborate quotes from the Holy Books,
George is able to calm him down and get
him to confess to all his iniquities.
“Uncle, this whole thing started two
days after I arrived on campus,” Okechukwu
begins and goes ahead to give
a blow-by-blow account of how he was
initiated into the world of student cultism
at a midnight party that was held “in a
very awkward place, deep in a thick forest
somewhere quite close to the campus”,
how he drank raw human blood, how he
was beaten and tortured by older members
of the cult to test his bravery, how he
became stone-hearted after undergoing
that process, and how the cult killed 14
people.
Hearing this sordid tale, George does
not mince words in administering the
repercussions of cultism. He tells Okechukwu,
“You see this cult thing is like
a boomerang. Whatever evil you and
your co-cult members have inflicted on
mankind will eventually come back to
haunt you.”
When Okechukwu tries to absolve
himself of the killing of 14 innocent people
by his cult, George tells him point-blank,
“No, you are a part of the killings and that
is why the blood of the people you have
killed is coming back to haunt you and now
you want to kill yourself. It is a boomerang
syndrome. Evil begets evil. Whatever a
man sows that will he reap.”
George further tells him that so long as
he and his co-cult members have drunk
each other’s blood and made vows and
oaths to each other, they have bound
themselves to each other in the spiritual
realm.
“Therefore, whatever evil your co-cult
members may have committed, you are
also guilty of the same evil,” he says.
George also succeeds in unravelling
to Okechukwu the reason behind his
academic problems in the university –
“You are a so-called Law student but you
cheated to pass English Literature, English
Language and History. I have all the facts.
So, why are you surprised that you are
having problems in passing any of your
university tests and exams?”
On the need for hard work as against
looking for a shortcut to success, George
admonishes, “Nothing in life is easy... Life
is not a bed of roses; you must work hard
to attain success.”
To drive home his points, George
shares some of his poems with Okechukwu
and also reads him a couple of
short stories. But unknown to George,
Okechukwu is not persuaded.
George sleeps off on the sofa while
watching a movie and Okechukwu seizes
the opportunity. He drops a second suicide
note and zooms off, saying in the
note, “I do not want any burial ceremony.
I want to be thrown away or cremated
and my ashes thrown away for I am
worthless.”
When George wakes up and finds the
note, he quickly locates the address that
Okechukwu had left in the note. Sadly, he
is a tad too late as Okechukwu is already
dead – or so he thinks.
In a sudden twist, the tide turns against
George. Before he can report Okechukwu’s
suicide to the police, he is accused
of murdering Okechukwu and is arrested
and thrown into the police cell.
Fate, however, smiles on him as Okechukwu
survives his suicide attempt and
surfaces in court the day George’s case is
to be decided.
Dr. Rufus Ola, who treated Okechukwu
for an overdose of sleeping
pills, explains what happened – “Okechukwu
was never dead, he was only
in a deep coma induced by the sleeping
pills. He was easily revived to full
health by twelve noon on Saturday at
the St. Patrick’s Specialist Hospital by
inducing vomiting and administering
high doses of a medication to reverse
the effects of the tablets he took. He
was admitted one or two hours after he
ingested the pills, but by that time his
loving godfather had been arrested for
alleged murder. Unknowing to family
members, it was not until late on Sunday
that information reached us that his
godfather Uncle George was arrested
for a murder that never existed. Okey
attempted suicide but he was lucky, we
were able to save his life.”
Following this revelation, the presiding
judge strikes out and dismisses the case.
To crown it all, George receives a promotion
letter from his office elevating him to
the position of National Chief Accountant
and Regional Head for West and South
Africa in Johannesburg.
On the same day and in the same court
that George’s case is to be heard, five boys
arrested in connection with Justin’s death
are found guilty and handed different
prison sentences. In delivering her judgment,
the presiding judge makes it clear
that the judgment “is designed to send a
clear message to all cultists lurking in our
institutions of higher learning that the
state is going to leave no stone unturned
to deliver speedy judgment for youths
who participate in terrorist activities in
whatever shape, form or manner”.
On his part, Okechukwu apologises
to his father and promises to “be a good
boy from now”. And in what one may
regard as an epilogue, the author adds,
“Okechukwu made well his promise
to drop all cult activities and resort to
hard work. He cancelled all plans of
defacing his body with all kinds of tattoos
of snakes and scorpions. Violence
became a thing of the past and guzzling
beer and hard drink was stopped also
and he ditched smoking. He put hard
work before him by hitting his books
with a vengeance. He never missed
inspirational gatherings in the church
or mosque when inspirational speakers
were invited. Okey finally graduated
from university with honours and now
works for one of the most prestigious
law firms in the country.”
The message of ‘Deep Secrets’ is clear
– student and youth cultism, examination
malpractice and cheating, police brutality,
terrorism, youth restiveness and violence
are evil and should not be tolerated while
peace, religious tolerance, hard work,
family bonding and efficient judicial system
are good and should be encouraged.
Dedicated to “all victims of terrorism,
cultism, and violence” and “to all those
who have lost loved ones”, the book is
written to serve as a counter-terrorism
and counter-cultism therapy “proposed
to be dispensed and administered through
the academic system”.
To buttress this point, Dr. Mrs. Benedict
Okwudili Ikegulu, director, Book Development
Center, Nigeria Education Research
and Development Council (NERDC),
Abuja, writes in the Foreword that books
like ‘Deep Secrets’ or “similar counterterrorism
or counter-cultism literature”
can be invaluable in checking “the deplorable
activities of university cultists or
terrorists” that “have been a crucial social
cancer not only in Nigeria but worldwide”.
To justify the book’s raison d’etre, the
author rightly says in the Preface that
even though it would appear there is a
reduction in student cultism in Nigeria,
“this is not the time to become complacent,
because if the scourge returns, it
will be seven times as bad as previously
experienced”.
The beauty of the book lies for the most
part in its conversational approach and
accessible language, which makes it easy
to read and assimilate. The downside,
however, is that it is ridden with avoidable
grammatical and spelling errors.
Subsequent issues will benefit from better
editing.

40
C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
Life&Living
Controversies over the issue of wedding rings
BUNMI BAILEY
Once married, age
old tradition dictates
that couples signify
the nuptial commitment
by wearing a
wedding ring on the third finger of
their left hand. This is believed to be
a show of conjugal happiness, love
and respect to a spouse.
A survey carried out by BDsunday
however reveals that this age
long practice is gradually fading
away especially amongst men in
Nigeria.
Most married men defended
their decisions of not putting on their
wedding ring, noting that it is not by
law but by choice.
“It mostly depends on their
choice whether to wear it or not
but in Islam it is a must to wear it
because you are swearing your love
with the ring for your wife in front of
God and man so it will be a taboo to
remove it,” Danjuma Muhammed , a
businessman said.
Olawale Labiyi, a wedding photographer
said that most men that
don’t wear it just want to still have
fun and fool girls around and that for
him he can never imagine removing
his own ring.
It seems as though the significance
or value of wedding rings/
bands is fading even in western
countries from where it originated.
A number of notable men, including
Donald trump, Prince William,
Jay z and couples like Will Smith and
Jada Pinkette have abandoned the
tradition of wearing wedding rings,
according to reports on New York
Times.
Wedding rings today are a billion
dollar sentiment of love, but no one
can really say for sure when this age
old tradition actually started. Some
believe that the oldest recorded exchange
of wedding rings comes from
ancient Egypt, about 4800 years ago.
The circle was the symbol of
eternity, with no beginning or end,
not only to the Egyptians, but many
other ancient cultures. The hole in
the center of the ring also had significance.
It wasn’t just considered a
space, but rather a gateway, or door;
leading to things and events both
known and unknown.
To give a woman a ring signifies
never-ending and immortal love.
Some married men attribute
their reasons to it being misplaced
and no funds to replace it.
“Maybe most of them misplaced
their own rings like me. I lost my own
ring long ago and I don’t have money
to afford another one but my wife
has her own ring on her finger and
if she misplaces her own I would go
out of my way to buy her another
one”, Stephen Nejo, a banker said in
a phone interview.
Women are not left out in the
tread as some of them are seen to
also not wear their rings.
“Are churches even using rings
now, some churches are no longer
using rings they are using bibles now.
Most of these married men use the
ring as a camouflage to show how
responsible they are but are they
faithful? And some married men that
have baby mamas don’t also wear
their rings. I think it is also their personal
decision whether to wear it or
not”, Olajumoke Ajayi, a banker said
“Some married women too are
not wearing their rings, even I am
not wearing it currently because
the jewel on my ring removed and I
cannot get another one now unless
I travel because I don’t trust the
goldsmith in this country they might
end up spoiling it for me and my ring
is very precious to me”, Olajumoke
further said.
There are some jobs that make
wearing a wedding ring or any form
of jewelry uncomfortable and dangerous;
for example medical doctors
before treating patients, remove any
form of jewelry.
“Some find it uncomfortable
because of the job they do and
also not to hurt patients when they
are examining and treating them”,
Olaniyi Olatunde, a doctor at Araba
specialist hospital said.
According to Pelumi Oladapo,
a tailor, most born again Christians
wears their rings because biblically
it is a sign of love, respect and authority
but all those men that don’t
wear it, to me, are not born again and
they just remove it so that people
would think that they are single and
available.
How ‘Komole Collection’ by Deola Sagoe is
changing the face of bridal wear in Nigeria
IFEOMA OKEKE
With over 12 years of
fashion research, development
and haute
couture, the House
of Deola presents a masterpiece
of unparalleled craftsmanship ‘The
Komole Collection’.
The Komole range presents an
assemblage of designs for bridal
wear, drawing upon the mood and
romance evoked by royalty and regal
weddings through the ages.
With impeccable attention to
detail, the rich fabrics of the Komole
Collection combines Nigeria’s traditionally
weaved cloth-’Aso-oke’
with laser cut techniques to create
unique motifs.
Woven from multi-tone metallic
yarns to mimic jewel hues, the outfits
ingeniously grace the wearer with
radiant opulence, thereby exuding
an ethereal appeal.
Although Identical, no two Komole
pieces are the same as every
piece is made with its own elegantly
crafted motif.
“I imagine a Komole bride. She is
independent and in charge, but still
demure and gentle like the current
Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton.
She honors everyone that looks
at her with her way and that wow
Komole creation!. She is the new
light in all their lives!,” Deola Sagoe,
CEO House of Deola said.
Dress to suit YOU!
JUMOKE AKIYODE
We all know that everything
comes in different shapes
and sizes. And yes that
includes the human body
*surprise surprise* LOL. But on a serious
note, it is very surprising that even
in this day and age, with the advent of
uncountable fashion awareness shows
like Gok’s fashion fix, what not to wear
and the likes, women still find it incredibly
difficult to get clothes that suit their
body shape and size. Or should I say
most women do not even have a clue as
to what shape they are even if they look
into the mirror every day. Come on girls,
it’s really not that difficult to discover
what shape you are.
Well, I’m here to help ease your
stress with finding your perfect fit. So
let’s put a smile on your face now.
Two of Britain’s most popular fashion
advisors, presenters and authors, Trinny
Woodhall and Susannah Constantine
have identified 12 different human body
shapes in their new book titled ‘The body
shape bible’. In addition to the basic apple,
pear and hourglass shapes that most of
us have heard about. These two fashion
icons have added the skittle, vase cornet,
lollipop, column, bell, goblet, cello and
brick shapes.
Don’t get all confused now. I’ll take
some time out to explain the body
shapes which most women fit into.
Apple: Women with this body shape
tend to carry more weight around the
mid section of their bodies and do not
have a well defined waist. However,
most of you have fabulous legs and/
boobs so instead of covering up all your
goodies, concentrate on showing off
the best bits by wearing empire line and
longer length tops. These will flatter
your figure and take all the attention off
your waist and draw people’s attention
upwards.
Avoid short, box shaped jackets
and pleated skirts. They wouldn’t do
you justice.
Pear: These women are bottom
heavy and bigger around the hips, thighs
or bottom and smaller at the top. Try
balancing out your curvy bottom half
with bold bright coloured tops or shirts
with large collars, sleeves or lapels.
Make sure you avoid wearing pencil,
tube and fishtail skirts as these will only
emphasise your hips and bum, especially
if they are tight fitted.
Hour glass: Curvy hour glass women
posses full bust and bottom and go in
smaller in the middle with smaller waist.
Remember not to drown your sexy
shape in too baggy clothes. Wear wrap
dresses, waist cinching belts and flared
trousers/jeans to flatter your shape.
Shapeless baggy jumpers or tops are a
complete NO NO.

Sunday 15 April 2018
C002D5556
41
Women’sWorld
Diane Ezeh Aruah: 25-year old mother,
lecturer, author living her dream
Twenty-five-year-old Diane Ezeh Aruah is a lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication, University of Nigeria
Nsukka. Aruah, who is married with a son, obtained her Bachelor of Arts and Masters in Mass Communication in the
same university. She has successfully authored a book and will author another soon. In this interview with Ifeoma
Okeke, Aruah talks about her passion and life as an author and a lecturer at a renowned university. Excerpts.
What has the experience been
like for you as an author and a
lecturer at the age of 25?
It has been a dream come
true for me because being a
writer and a teacher is what
I had always wanted to be
since I knew my name. By
the time I was 10, I had read all my
elder brother’s and mum’s novels.
My mum saw my passion and
bought me many novels. I basically
spent all my savings buying
story books. Till today, writing
stories and teaching younger
students bring joy to my soul. It
is my life. There is nothing else I
would do.
What are your passions and
skills?
My most cherished passion is the
gift of observation and research.
I love to ask questions a lot and
use my findings to teach and encourage
younger ones through
speaking and writing. People’s
stories excite me, whether tragic
or comedy. I recognize the importance
of using stories to teach and
that has changed my life in many
ways. I remember a character in a
novel I read when I was little. The
protagonist was a girl who always
told the truth even when people
laughed at her. At the end, she got
very much rewarded for it. After
reading that novel, I made up my
mind to always speak the truth
regardless the consequences.
Stories motivate, teach, entertain
and inspire.
How do you manage playing the
role of a mother, a lecturer and
an author?
Honestly, being a mother and a
working class can be very difficult
to manage. Why? Because there
is no one who can take care of
your baby the way you would.
You cannot trust anyone. Nannies,
Creche, even your siblings,
Diane Ezeh Aruah
especially if you have a baby who
has to be force fed before he eats.
It takes patient and extra hard
work to achieve both. It also takes
appropriate planning, maturity
and courage. Most importantly,
it takes the grace of God. It is only
God that can give you the inner
strength to wake up by 4am every
morning, cook for your husband
and baby, wash clothes, go to
work and come back tired, only
to face other duties. But, if you
have loving people around you
who are always willing to help,
things get easier.
Plus size? Do not shy away from runway trends!
What are your dreams in the
next ten years?
I see myself impacting life
(Smiles), feeling fulfilled. I really
want to help people through my
stories and research. I also hope
to have a larger family and live
in a better world. I hope to have
more than 500 publications including
journal articles, books and
articles. I hope to have attended
many international conferences
and travelled to at least ten countries.
I hope to have blogs and
social media pages where people
visit to find solace and fulfilment. I
hope to be known for good things.
How far has your book sold?
I have sold more than 5000 copies
of my books across the country. I
plan to have a larger readership
soon because I am in the process
of going online. It is no longer
news that we live in a digital
world and every wise person
should make use of that great
opportunity.
Can you tell us about the books
you have authored and the messages
you have passed across
through them?
I currently have 50 short stories,
two unpublished novels and
one published novel titled “The
First Time”. The First Time is my
most successful and significant
work because it is related to the
experience of many young ladies
in my hometown Nsukka, where
girls of 16-20 are being pressured
to get married, even when they
are yet to come out of secondary
school. The mindset of many
parents over here is that a woman
must be married before 25, else
be considered old, used and unmarriageable.
Less of women
have dreams and are hardly empowered.
There seems to be a
competition amongst young girls
over who gets married first or
who have more kids. It pains my
heart when I see many potential
and intelligent girls get married
to men who are very much older
than them, men who would never
encourage their dreams. I believe
there is a lot of work to do to
change the mind-set of many Nigerian
girls towards marriage and
The First Time is a very important
step in achieving that goal.
The title of my second book
which I am about to publish is
‘Cold Hands.’ The story is about
a 28 year old successful female
gynaecologist who refused to
get married because of what her
female patients pass through in
the hands of men.
Who are your role models and
how have they impacted your
career?
My biggest roles models are my
parents and my husband. My
husband is like my footpath; he
makes the most difficult task look
so easy. When I’m down, he lifts
up my spirit. My mum on the other
hand is my star. The first time I
entered class was the best teaching
moment of my time because
of the way my mum prepared me.
She made me feel very confident,
and believed I could do anything.
She was the first editor of my
novel. She pushes me to achieve
my dreams; she made me believe
age is just a number. Her trust in
my capabilities amazes me. My
dad, on the other hand provides
lots of opportunities for me to
grow. He is a generous provider
and I thank him for always being
there. In my next world, they
would still be my models.
What is your advice for young
ladies struggling to have a family
and still run a successful career?
I want women to get rid the mindset
that marriage is the ultimate.
Yes, it is very important but we
should never have to feel pressured.
We should get married
because we found someone
to share our lives with, and not
because the society expects
us to. I also want them to know
that building their dreams is as
important as the air we breathe.
An independent woman exhumes
respect, honour and friendship
in the face of her husband. She is
the pride of her society and her
family.
JUMOKE AKIYODE
As ladies, we all want
to get with the latest
trends in fashion. But
unfortunately, not all
season’s trends and everything
on the run way is suitable for everyone,
or so we think.
It is more difficult for plus size
ladies to just throw own whatever
they see in high street shops but
of course that is not to say that
plus size ladies cannot be fashionable
or trendy. They sure can
keep up with the latest trends
but they must make sure that
whatever outfits they choose to
wear is comfortable and flatters
their figure.
It is important to note that
there is no hard and fast rule to
what a big person can and cannot
wear. In fact, fashion experts have
proven with time that whatever
can be worn by a size 4 lady can
also be worn by somebody who
is a size 16, just in different ways,
styles and probably colour, to
make it suit the figure better.
Cold shoulder tops are in vogue
now and everywhere you turn to,
you see someone wearing one.
This style is perfectly suitable for
fuller figured women as it shows a
little bit of skin but not too much to
make it look off putting . Just make
sure that the fabric is not too clingy
that it shows all the fat rolls and
the pattern is not too bold, that it
makes you look even bigger than
you actually.
A lot of people actually believe
that button down shirts are unflattering
for plus size women. However,
Nicole Brewer, an international
fashion stylist says; “Button-down
shirts complement curves,”
“Look for one that has stretch
and design details that create
shape, like darts, ruching, and
wrapping.” For an even more
slenderizing silhouette, “layer
the shirt under a blazer, jacket,
or cardigan—it will shrink the appearance
of your midsection and
elongate you,” says Brewer.
Fashion experts have said that
the key to a flattering garment
comes down to fit and not colour.
So, just because you’re plus size
does not mean you should drown
yourself in black or dark colours
so that you can ‘look slimmer’, just
make sure that whatever colour
you’re wearing compliments you
skin tone.
Never shy away from new
trends because you think it was
made for skinny people. Plus size
ladies should always remember
that; ‘If it floats your boat, by all
means go for it’. The trick is to
adapt a trend in a way that works
for your shape.
If you really want to wear a
crop top because that’s what is
in season, then opt for one that’s
cut longer and pair it with a highwaisted
pencil skirt or trousers.
Are you dying to colour block
your outfit? Wearing multi-toned
pieces can be slimming if the vertical
panels and darker shades are
positioned on the areas that you
want to downplay. Even hard-topull-off
harem pants get the green
light. “Find a pair with stretch and
draping,” says Brewer.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
42BDSUNDAY
Things To Do In Lagos This Sunday
There’s never a weekend where nothing
happens in this fun city of Lagos. So if you
have no idea what or how to unwind today,
here are a few ideas:
Visit the beach – Tarkwa Bay
The artificial sheltered beach is located
near the Lagos harbour in Nigeria. Due to its
island status, it is only accessible by boat
or water taxis from either Ikoyi or Victoria
Island.
Smart Zone Dubai|Lagos Workshop
Date: Sunday, April 15, 2018.
Time: 1 PM.
Venue: Four Points by Sheraton, Lagos.
Alexx Ekubo at Naked Waters
Date: Sunday, April 15th, 2018
Time: 10.00 pm
Venue Rooken Villa, 21 Fatai Idowu Arobieke
Street, Off Admiralty Way, Lekki,
Lagos.
Fela and The Kalakuta Queens
Venue – Terra Kulture Arena, Victoria Island Lagos
Time – 3pm and 7pm

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY 43
Top 3 Most Eligible Bachelors In Lagos (2018)
These men have not found their better halves yet,
so you might just be the lucky girl. Don’t worry,
Don Jazzy has become the chief executive officer
of the Bachelors club, so his name is not on this list.
Uncle has just refused to look my way and marry me
already...lol....
Well checkout my top 3 most eligible bachelors to
drool over this year.
First on my list is Paddy Adenuga. Forget the fact
that Paddy is the son of multi billionaire Mike Adenuga,
the guy is cute inside and outside. He’s real
to his roots. Loves the good things of life. Isn’t entirely
freaked out about the flashy girls or Island slay
2
has other amazing talents - like singing, cooking and staying sexy.
Lynxxx might look like he’s been off the radar for something, but we
know he’s still single and minding his business.
A man like Lynxxx, won’t just make you stay in love all your life, he
will pull you closer to the Lord.
Don’t worry about all the other names I didn’t mention, those men
have just been on the list for way too long eg Alex Ekubo, Uti Nwachukwu,
Debola Lagos, Olaotan Coker.
1
queens, or Lekki cats, he just likes his woman to be
simple. Not to say that team natural has won his heart
oooo.
I call Paddy the two-toned lip Prince who uses his
brain as his greatest asset.
Second on my list is Tolu Erogbogbo, popularly know
as Chef Eros. If you love the sweet things of life, you
will agree with me that Cookie Jar should be one of
your go to places.
Tolu has used his skills in the kitchen to capture the
hearts of many ladies (which by the way forms a better
demographic of his clientele).
He is not just skilled in the kitchen, man can command
an army with his distinct voice and he sure
gives The Rock a run for his body...lol...
And last but certainly not the least is Lynxxx. This man
is FINE for Africa. Don’t just fall for his good looks, he
The market place with cookie jar founder chef Tolu Eros
How long ago did you start baking?
That would be 6 years ago (2012-2018).
What the history of Cookie Jar?
Cookie Jar started as a dream. In December
2011, I started dreaming about cookies and
then in 2012 we had the occupy Nigeria
strike, I tried out the cookies, it made sense,
tasted great, I got really good feedback. By
February, Valentine’s period, we sold over
half a million naira worth of cookies and that
was how Cookie Jar started.
Has the business always been profitable?
The business has not always been profitable.
We went through a though time in 2016,
2017 and that was as a result of spreading
myself too thin. We expanded too fast and
didn’t have the right structures in place to
be able to take on the expansion. As a result,
cash flow was really tight.
What was responsible for Cookie Jar’s
wide acceptance?
The quality of the products that we put out
and the creativity behind all the products.
Also the kind of people that were attracted
to the brand, including celebrities and social
media influencers, were a huge part of growing
the brand. But the secret was really in the
pudding itself, which was the taste.
How do you deal with competition?
Onlooking! I keep my eye on the ball, I do
not at any point in time focus on what the
competition is doing. I am more focused on
what I’m doing and ensure that I’m doing it
to the best of my ability.
What gender makes up a better part of
clientele?
Clientele in terms of my demographics,
about 75-80% of them are female and 20-
25% of them are male. But you find out that
even a lot of the male clients are actually
buying for the females, so approximately
maybe 90% of them are females. But I like to
think it’s growing because guys are becoming
more and more interested in sweet
things.
Asides baking do you love cooking?
Cooking has always been the number 1.
1
As a matter of fact it started from
cooking. So asides from baking, I
definitely love cooking. My first
everything was cooking. I only tried
baking in 2012. But before that, in
2009, I had my first restaurant and
that was just strictly cooking. So yes I
do love cooking.
Do you manage other businesses?
Yes I do manage other businesses. In
total we have 5 businesses under the
group – there’s Cookie Jar, Eros and
Gourmet catering, Breakfast In Eros,
Puff Puff Boutique, Studio 1 Kitchen
and some more coming soon.
How do you split your time?
It’s pretty difficult sliptting the time
to be honest, but what tends to happen
is I structure my day and I give
all my businesses as much time as
they deserve. Some ofcourse require
more time, depending on how busy
they are. At the moment, Eros and
Gourmet is getting a lot of attention,
but Cookie Jar is somewhat second
to none.
Also I have the right people in the
right position, who manage the business
and keep an eye out there for
me, even though I need to pay a lot of
attention to the business to ensure
that everything is running smoothly.
Where do you see Cookie Jar in 5
years?
To be honest, in 5 years I see Cookie
Jar as a franchised business. I’m not
entirely sure if that’s going to pan
out, because I keep saying it and
pulling back; simply because I feel
like Nigeria is not ready yet. But I
definitely see Cookie Jar in different
locations across Nigeria and across
other countries in the world.
It goes past just Cookie Jar though.
As a group in general we are aiming
to push into the international market
and cater to their needs.
Sex For Pass! The awkward conversation
between an OAU professor and a female student
A professor from Obafemi
Awolowo University (OAU),
Ile-Ife, Richard Akindele, was
effortlessly recorded demanding
sex from a student to make
her pass. In a phone call made
to the professor by the student,
the professor asked that the
student have sex with him 5
times for him to upgrade her
score from 33 to a pass mark,
which clearly wasn’t going to
be an A or B.
What’s worse for him is that
he’s a pastor in an Anglican
church in Ife, and most of his
members are still in shock from
the now viral phone call.
The school has set up a disciplinary
committee for this
incident that happened last
year. The panel has been set up
and query has been given to the
man; but they need somebody
to come up that she was the
one that was sexually harassed,
before further actions can be
taken.
It’s really embarrassing for this
man’s family and his wife is of
the belief that it’s the Devil’s
making. How many things can
one possibly blame the devil
for?
For more information, check out www.therealgist.com
3

44
C002D5556 Sunday 15 April 2018
Travel
NATOP ushers in a new dawn
…as new president emerges, promises more visibility
OBINNA EMELIKE
No doubt, the past two
years have been good
for the National Association
of Tour Operators
(NATOP).
The period witnessed two successful
Annual General Meetings
(AGM), in Calabar and Lagos amid
other activities that have combined to
raise the profile and visibility of the association
after a long lull of inactivity
in the national tourism scene.
Within the two years period, the
association had strong partnerships
with public and private sectors,
organised scores of roadshows,
celebrated World Tourism Day, attended
trade exhibitions, trained
members, among others.
But the biggest of the feats is the
membership drive, which has seen
an association of 15 members about
two years ago, grow into a national
association with members across
the country.
Besides inaugurating the FCT
chapter with the South Eastern and
South South chapters coming up
soon, the association has also reintegrated
and reinforced its membership
with the Federation of Tourism
Association of Nigeria (FTAN) and
other associations.
Well, a great deal of credit goes to
Nkereuwem Onung, the immediate
past president of the association and
his executive who worked tirelessly to
ensure that the association gained
relevance in the national tourism
scene.
It was on the above ground that
the 2018 NATOP elective AGM was
2nd (from left) Bilkisu Abdul, president, NATOP, Rabo Saleh, president, FTAN, presenting an award of excellence
to Simon Laloang, governor, Plateau State, which was received by Yakubu Dati, the commissioner for Information
at the recently concluded NATOP AGM in Jos.
imperative in order to elect the right
people to further lift the association
higher from the point of relevance
the immediate past executive has
left it.
As expected the AGM, which held
in Jos, the Plateau State capital on
April 9, 2018 had some intrigues.
Before the election there was tension
as some members who wanted
to contest accused the Executives of
setting up the Abuja chapter in March
to recruit members to vote at the
AGM for a preferred candidate who
was the general secretary.
To resolve the issue the president
followed the Constitution and asked
all new members who were less
than two years old to leave the hall.
This included all but two of the Abuja
chapter members.
The President stepped aside and
the Board of Trustees conducted
the elections among the verified
members.
At the end of the tension packed
election, Bilkisu Abdul of BBOG Travels,
an Abuja-based tour operator,
was elected the National President
while Ime Udo, a Lagos-based tour
operator, was elected the Vice President.
A new BOT was also constituted
at the AGM. The members include;
Kabiru Malan, former NANTA president,
Fatima Garbati, former president
of NATOP, Jemi Alade, pioneer
tour operator, Gabe Onah, chairman,
Carnival Calabar Commission,
Nkereuwem Onung, immediate past
president, NATOP, Josephine Anenih
and Ikechi Uko, a travel expert.
In her acceptance speech, Bilkisu
extended a hand of fellowship to the
two candidates she had defeated in
the elections and promised to work
with all members to make gain more
visibility for the association at the
national tourism scene.
Earlier in his speech, Onung asked
the federal and state governments to
place more premium on marketing
destination Nigeria.
“We need to emphasize more on
domestic assets and develop them.
Marketing at International Trade
Shows should resume. Tourism is
a federal Government matter and
Government needs to walk the talk”,
he noted.
He also advised the new executives
to ensure that NATOP remains a
national association by inaugurating
other regions after Abuja chapter.
“I advise the incoming executive
to take training of members seriously
in view of the influx of hospitality
practitioners and travel agents into
NATOP”, he concluded.
As well, Plateau State government,
the host, commende NATOP
for choosing the state as its firstever
host in the northern part of the
country.
In his speech at the event, Simon
Bako Lalong, governor of Plateau
State, who was represented by Sonni
Tyoden, his deputy, assured the tour
operators present that his state is
making efforts at developing tourist
sites and also providing conducive
environment for the promotion of
tourism.
He explained that upon assumption
of office about three years ago,
his administration unveiled a five
policy trust governance intervention
agenda.“The first item on this
agenda is peace, security and good
governance. And the fifth is the provision
of greater infrastructure and
the development of a sustainable
environment. The security of lives and
property in an environment of peace
as a primary concern of government
is the fulcrum upon which we desire
to promote the attainment of a sustainable
environment”.
The AGM, which held on the
theme: ‘Security Challenges and Promotion
of Tourism in Nigeria’ with a
paper presentation on the theme by
Ona Ekhomu, also witnessed many
cultural performances by cultural
troupes across the state and a tour of
some tourism attractions in the state
by the delegates.
Ambode commends Ministry of Culture, promises
support in hosting UNWTO/CAF meeting
The governor of Lagos State,
Akinwunmi Ambode, has commended
the Minister of Information
and Culture, Lai Mohammed,
for his efforts to reposition
culture and tourism in the country.
The governor made the commendation
when the Minister paid him a
courtesy visit in Lagos on Thursday,
in connection with Nigeria’s hosting
of the 61st Meeting of the United Nations
World Tourism Organization/
Commission for Africa (UNWTO/CAF)
in Abuja from June 4-6, 2018.
“I will like to welcome the Minister
of Information and Culture back home
to the Centre of Excellence. It is always
a delight to welcome people like him.
He has been very impactful in the last
three years in the Ministry of Information
and Culture,” he said.
Ambode assured that the Lagos
State government will support the
Federal Government in order to
ensure a successful hosting of the
global event, adding: “We are happy
to associate with President Muhammadu
Buhari and the Minister of
Information and culture in their efforts
to reposition tourism and diversifying
the nation’s economy.”
Earlier, the Minister had said he
was in Lagos as part of his nation-wide
promotional tour for the 61st edition
of the UNWTO/CAF Meeting.
From Right: The Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode; Minister of Information
and Culture, Lai Mohammed, and the Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism,
Arts and Culture, Steve Ayorinde, during the courtesy visit by the Minister at Alausa,
Lagos on Thursday to promote the forthcoming 61st UNWTO/CAF Meeting in Abuja
“We started the tour in Abuja on
Tuesday with a visit to the Minister of
the Federal Capital Territory, because
he is the Minister of the meeting’s
host city. This is the second stop on
the promotional tour that will take us
across the country. Lagos, the economic
nerve centre of Nigeria, is also
a foremost tourist city. It is therefore
not a surprise that it is our next port
of call after Abuja, which will host the
UNWTO/CAF Meeting,” he said.
Mohammed said the Meeting
is a great opportunity to promote
Nigeria’s tourism industry and to
showcase the country to the world,
especially in the area of its culture
and tourism, adding: “And of course,
we have a lot to showcase; our tourist
attractions, our rich culture, and
our music and films, which have
taken the world by storm”.
He said Lagos State is crucial to
the success of the Meeting, especially
because the state will host the Technical
Visit programme of the Meeting
“A major part of the programme
is what is referred to as the Technical
Visit. For this, we have chosen the Eko
Atlantic City as the destination. The
choice is not an accident. It is designed
to showcase to the world a city that
promises to be a tourist haven, with
the largest shopping mall in sub-
Saharan Africa,” the Minister said.
All eyes on Lagos Tourism Summit,
as former Ghanaian president
presents keynote address
Activities lined up for the
forthcoming Lagos Tourism
Summit is fast gathering momentum
as John ‎ Mahama,
ex-president of Ghana, is set to arrive
the country for the Tourism Summit
‎holding on April 16, 2018 at the Eko Hotel
and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos .
Mahama is expected to deliver
the keynote address at the summit,
which holds on the theme: ‎Destination
Lagos: Towards A Sustainable
Tourism-Driven Economy”, and will
also feature ‎paper presentations by
renowned stakeholders in the tourism
business and a panel discussion.
Speaking during a press briefing
on the summit in Lagos recently, Steve
Ayorinde, Lagos State Commissioner
for Tourism, Art and Culture, noted
that ‎the forthcoming Lagos Tourism
Summit is a bold step embarked upon
by the Governor Akinwumi Ambode’s
administration to demonstrate its
commitment towards making Lagos,
the foremost tourism destination in
Africa‎.
He explained that ‎the idea of the
Lagos Tourism Summit is part of the
inclusive agenda to allow all stakeholders
contribute to the ongoing tourism
masterplan being put together by
Messrs Earnst and Young on behalf of
the Lagos State Government.‎
Ayorinde maintained that ‎the
present administration has pursued
vigorously his project T.H.E.S.E agenda
which seeks to invest in human capital
and infrastructure to encourage
creativity and promotion of genius
minds in arts, entertainment, culture
and tourism.‎
He stated that the gathering will
provide a rare opportunity to engage
stakeholders, professionals, leading
academics and scholars, researchers
in the tourism, culture, arts and
entertainment industry, local and
foreign media practitioners to debate,
exchange ideas, deliberate and chart a
way forward for Lagos tourism.
“The idea of the summit is not to
find another talk shop but to list out in
specific terms the interventions that
are needed in producing a masterplan
that assist in shaping the tourism
sector in Lagos State in the next 15
to 20 years.
And so you will find the four sessions
at the summit as well as the
exhibition hall dwell around the pillars
that the proposed Tourism Masterplan,
namely:‎ Culture and Heritage, ‎
Film Art and Entertainment, ‎Business
and MICE, Beach and Leisure, ‎Nature
and Adventure and Medical and
Wellness.” ‎

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY 45
Travel
Arik has increased fleet to 15, flies
5000 passengers daily – AMCON
Stories by IFEOMA OKEKE
The Assets Management
Corporation of Nigeria
(AMCON), the receiver
manager of Arik Air
has disclosed that the
airline has increased fleet size from
six to 15 operational aircraft and
increased number of passengers
from 1,400 to 5000 daily.
Speaking at a training forum
organised on Wednesday for its
travel agents in Lagos, Roy Ilegbodu,
CEO of Arik Air, said since
AMCON took over management
of the airline it has been able to
stabilise its operations and have
resuscitated its current operational
aircraft.
“We are currently on 15 aircraft
now. That we have 15 does not
mean that they all operate at the
same time. The planes are always
going for maintenance that is why
we run between 10 and 12 at any
point in time,” Ilegbodu added.
The CEO who was represented
by Omokide Kamilu, the chief commercial
officer and head receivership
support of AMCOM, said that
many Nigerians wants the airline
to open international routes but
it has chosen to plan probably to
avoid getting its hands burnt in the
process.
“One of the things we realise
Lufthansa, Brussels airlines support West African artists residency tour
Lufthansa and Brussels
Airlines are supporting
“Stretched Terrains – The
Mobile Museum on its
Way to Dak’Art”, a residency
program for young artists from
Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal
and Germany on the move
spanning several countries in
West Africa.
is that you should not go into international
route without proper
planning and that it should be well
resourced and possible; we should
get your partnerships right before
going to international routes.
“If we must go to international
routes, it has to be with the right
aircraft in terms of fuel efficiency,
seat capacity and fall back so that
when a planes are down for Aircraft
on Ground (AOG), there is
a support system which enables
you recover your service quickly.
If we don’t have all of these things
well arranged and go to the international
route, we will burn our
fingers. To this extent, going to the
international route is a decision to
be carefully made,” he said.
On plans to acquire aircraft for
short haul operations, Kamilu said
AMCON is not getting into aviation
business, as its job in Arik is to
first stabilise the airline so it can be
in a position to repay its loans.
“We see ourselves as enablers.
The aviation industry is important
to the Nigerian economy and Arik
and Aero are big that is why you see
a lot of direct AMCON interests in
those companies, otherwise, we
wouldn’t be. Our job is to recover
our money and in doing that we
also want Nigerian people to get
some benefits by stabilising the
airline,” he added.
Speaking on possibility to offset
“Stretched Terrains’ is a great
platform to show the strengths
of Lufthansa and Brussels Airlines
in West Africa working closely
together and supporting the development
of young African talents”,
says Robin Sohdi, Lufthansa General
Manager Nigeria and Equatorial
Guinea.
On April 11, 2018, which started
the loans, Kamilu said it is possible
depending on the circumstances.
According to him, “AMCON did
not just jump into Arik. We bought
these loans in 2011 and 2012 and
after buying the loans, we gave
Arik N20billion, additional lending
to help them rejuvenate. So, talking
about putting Arik in a position
to pay its debt, we did that several
years before we decided to appoint
a receiver manager to intervene.
So where we are now is a different
recovery level.
“The initial recovery level was
pursuing to build capacity and let
them repay but where we are now
is build capacity and exist. How you
exist can take different forms and
we have people in AMCON that
are working on that.”
Meanwhile, travel agents who
spoke to journalists commended
from Lagos, the artist group began
a six-week journey with a Lufthansa
and Brussels Airlines branded,
converted public transport bus,
called the Molue Mobile Museum
of Contemporary Art.
They will cross through Benin,
Togo, Ghana, the Ivory Coast
and Mali, with a planned arrival in
Dakar, Senegal at the beginning of
Emeka Udemba, curator of the ‘Stretched Terrains’ art project, Friederike Möschel, director Goethe-Institut Lagos and Robin
Sohdi, Lufthansa general manager sales Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea, before departure of the Molue Mobile Museum
road trip with resident artists to DaK’Art in Senegal, one of the continent’s most important biennals for contemporary
African art at the Goethe Institute in Lagos.
AMCOM, stressing that the airline
has fully regained air passengers’
confidence unlike before.
Phillip Adeleke of Bon Voyage
Travels said that, with innovations
AMCOM has put in place, confidence
and that air passengers have
developed interest once again in
the airline.
Margaret Ekerete another travel
agent and Arik Air trade partner
pointed out that AMCOM has
transformed Arik for good.
Pointing the current platform
the airline is using as a right step in
the right direction, the travel agent
said “I think the platform Arik is
using is very good. Our airlines and
agents find it very convenient. In a
general term, I am very happy Arik
Air is back in the air, resuming all
its major operations with buoyant
plans going forward.”
May, right in time for the opening
of the13th International Biennial
Dak’Art” exhibition.
The artists will be greeted at
every stop by the Lufthansa, Brussels
Airlines and Goethe-Institute
teams. Furthermore, they will display
their artwork at each destination
they stop at. Once they reach
Senegal, the artists will stay for the
Dak’Art” exhibition until May 07,
when they will start their journey
back to Lagos.
On their way back, they will
make stops again at all the previous
Goethe-Institut locations they
visited on the way to the exhibition,
planning to arrive in Lagos on
May 25.
During their journey, the artists
examine diverse public spaces as
communication zones of social,
economic and political interaction.
The project embraces the diversity
of practices and perspectives
of the participating artists, who will
discuss and exchange their artistic
interactions as they travel almost
10,000-kilometers on a road trip.
The artwork, which will be
created in Dakar and during the
journey, will be presented and discussed
along the way back to Nigeria
at the Goethe-Institutes and
cultural centers at Dakar, Bamako,
Abidjan, Accra, Lomé and Lagos.
The Nigerian artist Emeka
Udemba, who is living in Germany,
is the curator of the project.
Dana Air named official
airline of wives of Africa
presidents’ summit
Dana Air has been named
the official airline of the
maiden edition of the
Coalition of Wives of
Presidents and Vice Presidents in
Africa for Peace (COWAP) Summit
for Peace and Development,
scheduled to hold from 21st to
22nd of April at Sheraton Hotel,
Abuja.
Themed: African Women Summit
for Peace and Development
in Africa, the coalition is a project
put together by Engage, Empower,
Educate Initiative, an NGO which
aims to harness the enormous capacity
and goodwill of both sitting
and past wives of Presidents and
Vice Presidents in Africa towards
four thematic points which aligns
with the Sustainable Development
Goals: Peace in Africa, Girl-child
education, Ending hunger and
poverty in Nigeria.
Speaking on the choice of Dana
Air as official airline of the Summit,
Kingsley Ezenwa, the airline’s Media
and Communications Manager
said, “We are proud to have been
selected as the official airline of
such a huge summit coming up this
month in Abuja.
“This is testament to the fact
that Africa appreciates and understands
our efforts towards strategically
connecting Nigerian cities to
Africa, and providing safe, reliable
and affordable air transport. We
welcome this rare opportunity to
showcase our award-wining service
to all the delegates and Africa
at large.’’
Wakanow launches
‘Travel Now Pay Later’
Scheme for 2018
Russia World Cup
As part of the comprehensive
drive to significantly
boost the capability of the
Nigerian traveling public,
Wakanow has designed a new
travel payment scheme, ‘Travel
Now Pay Later’ that would alleviate
the strain of outright payment for
travel packages on her customers
by allowing them pay in convenient
instalments even after their travel
date.
With a minimum down payment
of 25%, intending travellers
who wish to take advantage of the
Wakanow Travel Now Paly Later
Scheme can enjoy the flexibility and
convenience of spreading the balance
payment for their travel package
for as long as 9 months even
after their travel dates. The product
offers Wakanow customers soft
loans at a very marginal interest rate
within a 24-hour turnaround time.
According to a statement by
Obinna Ekezie, the Managing Director
of Wakanow, these new
offerings accentuate Wakanow’s
commitment to boost the financial
capacity of Nigerians to afford
air travel and benefit from the innumerable
benefits of travel and
leisure. As a company with keen
interest in sports, it was ideal to
launch the product exclusively to
encourage the live participation
of Nigerian football lovers at the
forthcoming World Cup.

C002D5556
Sunday 15 April 2018
46BDSUNDAY
Health&Science
Merck Foundation announce call for Merck
hypertension, diabetes awards 2018
ANTHONIA OBOKOH
With Wired Report
Merck Foundation
the Philanthropic
arm of Merck
KGaA Germany
has announced
the call for application for Merck
Diabetes and Hypertension
awards 2018, across the African
and Asian Universities through
its Merck Capacity Advancement
Program with the aim to
building a platform for diabetes
and hypertension experts across
the globe.
Merck is a leading science and
technology company in healthcare,
life science and performance
materials.
The theme for Merck Diabetes
Award 2018 is ‘Every day is
a Diabetes Day,’ and the theme
for Merck Hypertension Award
is ‘What a Healthy Heart Needs.’
The CEO of Merck Foundation,
Rasha Kelej said, I am very
proud to see our newly established
platform of Diabetes and
Hypertension Experts has grown
in one year.
“This encourages us to continue
and expand 2018 Merck Diabetes
and Hypertension Awards
to universities in more countries
in Africa and Asia such as Senegal,
Cameroon, Gabon, Guinea,
Niger, Philippines, Thailand, and
Vietnam to join our mission to improve
access to quality Diabetes
and hypertension care in the two
continents,”
She further added, “All Merck
Diabetes and Hypertension
awards winners have Joined Merck
Foundation Alumni with our
oncology and Fertility scholars
and fellows from different countries
to exchange experience and
knowledge and network, this is a
very important initiative for us. I
personally oversee this platform
to ensure success of its interaction
and sustainability. “
Merck Diabetes and Hypertension
Awards 2018 will be
rolled out in many African and
Asian Universities in more than
30 countries, as a part of Merck
Foundation’s commitment to
build Diabetes and Hypertension
healthcare capacity and
improving access to quality and
sustainable healthcare solutions
in developing countries.
All medical postgraduates and
final year undergraduates are
invited to apply for the awards.
The participants need to submit
a one-page concept paper about:
How to improve the awareness
about Diabetes Early Detection
and Hypertension Control and
Prevention in your country.
How to encourage your society,
scientific community, local
authorities, media and relevant
stakeholders to Think and Act on
Diabetes Every Day and Think and
act on Hypertension Every Day.
The scientific committee will
review the submissions, and the
winners of Merck Diabetes and
Hypertension awards will receive
on-line one-year postgraduate
online diploma in Diabetes Management
and Preventive Cardiovascular
Medicine from the
University of South Wales, UK.
The deadline for the submission
is 31st July 2018.
For French speaking countries,
the winners will receive
on- line three month Diabetes
foundation diploma in French
and accredited by Royal colleague
of General Practitioners,
UK.
Merck Foundation healthcare
and research online community
helps to exchange experience
and information with other
healthcare providers, researchers,
students, policy makers and
community members in Africa
and beyond
The Merck Foundation, established
in 2017, is a philanthropic
organisation that aims to improve
the health and wellbeing
of people and advance their lives
through science and technology.
Ogun boosts primary healthcare, distributes 500 clinical equipment to PHCs
RAZAQ AYINLA, Abeokuta
Prompted by mission to revamp
Primary Healthcare
Centres (PHCs) and boost
their services to the people at
the grassroots level, Ogun state
government has distributed 500
clinical equipment to some primary
healthcare centres across 20 local
government areas and 37 local
council development areas in the
state.
The distribution of examination
and delivery beds, incubators,
stethoscopes, baby weighing
scales, among others was part of
Save One Million Lives Initiatives
of State government in conjunction
with the World Bank and World
Health Organisation (WHO)
which was established to boost
primary healthcare delivery in
order to effectively offer residents
quality healthcare.
Speaking at the distribution of
clinical equipment to heads of selected
primary healthcare centres
across the state held at Oke-Mosan
in Abeokuta during the week, Governor
Ibikunle Amosun declared
that the initiative and distribution
of clinical equipment were timely
as the gesture would go a long way
in boosting health sector, especially
primary healthcare delivery.
The governor, who was represented
by the Deputy Governor,
Yetunde Onanuga, urged health
workers to be diligent at their
duty post and also to maintain
and use the equipment distributed
to them adequately to serve
Ogun state citizens, saying the
institution of community-based
health insurance scheme known
as Araya; renovation of state cold
store for preservation of vaccines;
renovation of primary healthcare
centres, among others, were parts
of contributions to health sector in
the state.
He said, “While the State gov-
ernment will continue to play its
constitutional role of providing
quality health care service delivery,
I wish to implore all our health
workers to be alive to their duties.
In particular, they are enjoined to
make good use of the equipment
being distributed and to adequately
maintain the equipment to serve
the good people of the state.”
He also charged citizens on partnering
with the State government
in the provision of healthcare service
through the payment of their
taxes as and when due, adding: “It
is also pertinent to also request the
good people of the state to partner
with the state in the provision of
qualitative and affordable healthcare
services by paying their taxes
as and when due.”
Earlier, Babatunde Ipaye, Commissioner
for Health, said, “I want to
implore my colleagues particularly
the medical officers on health from
our Local Government Areas and
LCDAs that we must make sure
that the equipment is judiciously
used, because a normal delivery
will save hundreds and thousands
of lives.
“If we are able to take blood
pressure accurately, we will be
able to save several walking corpse
across our Local Government
Areas. The equipment may look
so small in sizes but they are very
mighty when it comes to saving
lives.”

Sunday 15 April 2018 C002D5556
BDSUNDAY 47
Sports
Ongoing reconstruction work at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin City, Edo State.
Edo govt. intensifies work at Samuel
Ogbemudia Stadium
Stories by ANTHONY NLEBEM
The Edo State government
has intensified
work on
the revamp of the
Samuel Ogbemudia
Stadium to meet international
standard as part of the
overall reform of the sports
sector in the state.
According to the Edo
State Governor, Godwin
Obaseki, the walls are being
reinforced with concrete
pillars and all the roads and
drainage system in the area
hosting the stadium are undergoing
reconstruction.
“Edo people deserve a
world class stadium. Our
West Africa set for ICC World T20 qualifier
As the next ICC World
T20 event draws
nearer, the pathway
for Africa to that showpiece
International Cricket
Council event begins in earnest
on Nigerian soil, with
the start of the ICC World
T20 Africa qualifier A in Lagos,
from 14-21 April, 2018
The festive Tafawa Balewa
Square Cricket Oval
will play host to three African
nations; Sierra Leone,
Ghana, The Gambia and
hosts Nigeria over the next
week, with each team playing
six matches. The visiting
squads arrived in Lagos
with plenty of optimism.
Patricia C. Kambarami,
ICC Development Manager
for Africa, said ahead of
the start of the tournament,
“We are delighted that
the qualifiers for the ICC
World T20, 2020, are kicking
off in Africa. The Nigerian
Cricket Federation has
worked extremely hard to
putting the event on, and
we wish the best of luck to
all competing teams”
The action kicks off on
Saturday, with the tournament
opener pitting the
hosts against Sierra Leone
in the morning clash. The
contribution to sports globally
is common knowledge
both in the number and
quality of athletes Edo
State has produced for the
world stage. We also want
to provide standard playing
fields for our young ones
whose turn it is to replicate
the success stories of yesteryear,”
Obaseki said.
He maintained, “Sports
is a huge industry with allied
businesses that can
take most of our idle youths
away from the streets. We
want to produce more
Victor Moses, Julius Aghahowa,
Austin Eguavoen,
Osazee Odemwingie and
Odion Ighalo.”
He said part of the reforms
of the state’s sports
sector includes the rebranding
of Bendel Insurance
and the club’s restructuring
to ensure that the
club can overcome funding,
administrative and other
challenges.
The 20 mini-stadia that
will be spread across the
state will serve as talent
grooming and skills honing
ground for youths in the 18
local government areas.
On completion, the
Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium’s
tartan tracks and the
offices will be modernised
while the synthetic grass
in the pitch would be re-
L-R: Emeka Igwilo, General Manager, Nigeria Cricket Federation
(NCF); Professor Adam Yahaya Ukwenya, President, Nigeria
Cricket Federation and Kuben Pillay, International Cricket Council
representative at the Press Conference to herald the ICC T20
Sub-regional qualifier for Africa Zone ‘A’ held in Lagos, Friday
April 13, 2018.
FIXTURES:
Saturday 14th April
9:30am Nigeria vs Sierra Leone
1:50pm Ghana vs The Gambia
Sunday 15th April
9:30am Gambia vs Nigeria
1:50pm Sierra Leone vs Ghana
Monday 16th April Reserve Day
Tuesday 17th April
9 30am Gambia vs Sierra Leone
1:50pm Nigeria vs Ghana
placed with natural grass.
The gymnasium and the
lawn tennis courts would
also be upgraded to international
standard.
There will be a roof over
the entire stand of the stadium.
The trusses that will
support the roof are being
erected already.
The swimming pool is
part of the project but it
will be done in the second
phase. The entire renovation
work will be completed
by October.
Bendel Insurance of Benin
will now play its home
matches at the University
of Benin football field as a
result.
afternoons match will see
Ghana and The Gambia
lock horns. In Sunday’s action,
The Gambia play Nigeria
in the first game, before
Sierra Leone and Ghana do
battle in the afternoon.
There is a lot to play for
over the next week, as the
top two teams from the
tournament will win passage
to the ICC World T20
Africa Qualifier to be held
in 2019.
The fixtures and more
information for the tournament
can be accessed here,
https://www.icc-cricket.
com/world-t20/
Wednesday 18th April
9:30am Gambia vs Ghana
1:50pm Sierra Leone vs Nigeria
Thursday 19th April Rest Day
Friday 20th April
9:30am Ghana vs Sierra Leone
1:50pm Nigeria vs Gambia
Saturday 21st April
9:30am Sierra Leone vs Gambia
1:50pm Ghana vs Nigeria
Bundesliga: Schalke vs Dortmund
derby Live on StarTimes Nigeria
With the crowning
of Bayern Munich
as champions last
weekend in Augsburg, live
Bundesliga action resumes
this weekend on leading
Pay Tv operator, StarTimes
Nigeria, with a mouthwatering
derby clash between
Schalke and Dortmund on
Sunday by 5:30 PM African
Time on StarTimes (Channel
254 and 245).
Dortmund and Schalke
treated the world to one
of the greatest matches in
Bundesliga history when
the Royal Blues completed
one of sport’s greatest ever
comebacks after being 4-0
down at half-time at the
Signal Iduna Park.
The archrivals meet for
another Revierderby at the
Veltins-Arena with the winner
having one hand on second
place.
Fans will flock to the
Veltins-Arena on Sunday,
take to their favourite bar
stool or ease back into the
lazy-boy at home to watch
all the drama live and exclusively
on StarTimes across
the African continent in
anticipation of more electric
entertainment between
these two massive rivals.
The numbers from the
reverse fixtures held last
November are formidable,
the emotions produced
among players and fans
both frenzied and fraught
with fear, depending on
which set of colours you
identified with.
And the stakes are very,
very high. They may only
be playing to finish second,
but you can bet both
of these teams will battle
to the bitter end in order
to achieve that runnersup
spot at each other’s
expense.
Schalke hold a one-point
advantage; so know the
significance of what a win
would do for them. Indeed,
a fifth consecutive draw
between these sides would
suffice to keep Domenico
Tedesco’s charges ahead.
Facing the team with the
second best defensive record
in this season’s Bundesliga,
Dortmund can counter
that by pulling out their Marco
Reus card, the 28-yearold
is always a threat in this
fixture, having scored six
times in 12 Revierderbies.
Dortmund will be banking
on Belgian striker;
Mtchy Batshuayi to score
the goals which they hope
will lift them to victory
against their eternal rivals.
In other games holding
this Saturday, and which
StarTimes will show live to
its customer , Leverkusen
host Eintracht Frankfurt,
Hertha Berlin confront
Cologne, Hoffenheim
tackle Hamburg, Stuttgart
entertain Hannover
while champions , Bayern
Munuich will have the opportunity
to present the
Bundesliga crown to the
fans when they host Borussia
Moenchengladbach at
the Allianz Arena.
Brands and Marketing
Director at StarTimes, Qasim
Elegbede reinstate the
company’s commitment on
the continuous broadcast of
the Bundesliga games.
“The satisfaction of our
subscribers is our greatest
joy, we are always on our
feet to sustain the good
standard we have built over
the years. We are currently
working so hard to give our
subscribers the opportunity
to experience more exciting
football experience with the
World Cup forthcoming in
the comfort of their homes”
“As part of our promise
to deliver affordable entertainment
to every African
home, we will ensure that
watching the World Cup
live and in HD no longer
puts a hole in the pocket
of Nigerians as it has been
over the years”
He added, “All our bouquets
will be showing the
World Cup for the general
entertainment of our subscribers.
Non StarTimes
subscribers will not be left
out of the World Cup frenzy
as all 64 matches are also
available live and in HD on
the StarTimes mobile app
available for download from
the app store”
StarTimes is a leading
digital-TV operator in Africa,
covering the entire
continent’s population with
a massive distribution network
of 200 branded halls,
3,000 convenience stores
and 5,000 distributors.

BDSUNDAY
Growing the economy, improving
governance, and integrating the nation
There’s no doubt that we are facing serious
challenges as a nation, including
building an economy that creates vast
opportunities for our citizens and giving
each of our diverse peoples a sense
of fairness in the distribution of opportunities
across the country and creating in them a sense
of unity and oneness.
Over the years, political and civic leaders have
stressed the inviolability of Nigeria as one united
country and called on our citizens to show a sense
of unity and patriotism. Unfortunately, as leaders,
we have not done enough to encourage the
behaviour and values we expect of our citizens.
We have not always matched our rhetoric with
our actual behaviour.
Thus, it has been difficult for us to achieve
national integration and development. I will
identify objective or structural and subjective or
non-structural factors responsible for this:
Objective/Structural Factors: The Structural/
objective factors include our multi-ethnic/multireligious
nature, with regional differences and
imbalances with respect to population, natural
resource endowment, land mass, topography,
etc. Our governments are also dependent on
revenues from oil derived from a small patch
of the country, mainly three states. We are also
characterised by differential location of economic
and political power or dominance, among our
groups/regions. This diversity is in itself not a
problem. Indeed it can be a source of strength
if we are organised in a way that each section
or group contributes its special endowments to
the whole. The issue is our subjective responses
to our diversity. Those responses have profound
impact on nation-building processes, especially
our perception of our relationships with one
another. I also have to point out that while our
dependence on oil is now a structural fact, it is not
natural; it resulted from conscious government
policies and practices which can be reversed. And
we have excessive centralisation and concentration
of power and resources at the federal level
relative to the states.
Non-Structural/Subjective: These are what
we do, can do or fail to do to improve our society
and realize our national goals. These include
quality of governance: what the government
does or fails to do as well as the practices and
pronouncements of political and civic leaders,
which profoundly shape political discourse and
the relationships among citizens.
Let’s take a closer look. We are a diverse, multiethnic
and multi-religious society with three
NEW YOU CAN TRUST I SUNDAY 15 APRIL 2018
dominant groups in three geographic regions
each with many minority groups. None of the
three major groups and neither of the two main
religions has overall dominance in the country.
Another dimension of our diversity is that the
government’s revenue base (oil) is located within
a minority section of the country while political
power is broadly located elsewhere – with the
majority group(s). Although these two features
can make for a harmonious relationship among
the component groups, by locating different
forms of power in different groups/regions, they
have largely been a recipe for conflict in Nigeria.
Another aspect of our diversity, which contributes
to conflicts, is the uneven development
among the regions/zones, which had been there
since our political independence. There is also
what I regard as the excessive centralisation of
power and concentration of resources in the federal
government relative to the federating states.
This resulted from a subjective response to the
inherited structure that I have described above
and the political crisis that flowed from our poor
management of same. And it became a cause of
our dependence on oil revenues.
Our leaders at independence, after vigorous
debates and negotiations, decided, rightly in my
view, that a federal system is better suited for
our situation. A federal system allows for shared
national goals and policies but also allows federating
states the autonomy to pursue peculiar
priorities. A federal system is also best suited
for the protection of the interests of minorities,
especially with the creation of states that allowed
many numerically large minorities to have more
political influence.
At independence we had three (later four)
regions with adequate autonomy and powers to
develop at their own paces. When the regional
leaders tried to extend their influence outside
their region of dominance, especially in ways that
were less than democratic, it created a political
crisis that helped precipitate the military’s seizure
of power. Military command and control structure
and the crisis and civil war led to centralisation
and concentration of power and resources in
the centre at the expense of the federating states,
which had then been carved out of the regions. Oil
revenues underwrote the process, ensuring little
resistance. That’s how we came to have “unitary
federalism.”
Our “unitary federalism” has also been characterised
by too much government involvement
in economic and other activities. We now have
federal roads, schools, and hospitals, in addition
A federal system
is also
best suited
for the protection
of the
interests of
minorities,
especially
with the
creation of
states that allowed
many
numerically
large minorities
to have
more political
influence
ATIKU ABUBAKAR
Abubakar is a former vice president of
Nigeria and PDP chieftain.
to business investments that the Federal Government
embarked upon. With unprecedented
inflow of oil revenues the expansion of government
didn’t seem to be a problem. The state became
the means to wealth. Politics became a zero
sum game. But soon government overreached
itself and when oil prices collapsed, the folly of
our ways became very obvious. The collapse
of our infrastructure and the fiscal crises across
the country are pointers to this. It is now so bad
that all but a handful of states cannot pay their
workers unless they collect monthly revenue
allocations from Abuja. And people have come
to depend on the governments just as the governments
are dependent on oil revenues.
Consequently, there has been a crowding out
of the private sector, with excessive dependence
of people on the government for jobs and other
opportunities in addition to social services. The
result, therefore, is huge unmet expectations.
The government’s inability to meet these expectations
heightens inter-group tensions, which
contribute to political instability and insecurity,
and scare investors.
Our governments over the years, in response
to some of the crisis thrown up by these objective
structures have tried a number of policies and
measures. These include states creation, federal
character, NYSC, and changes to revenue allocation
formula, which moved more resources to the
centre at the expense of the federating states and
later moved a little bit more back to the states.
Contradictorily the government has also encouraged
the distinction between indigenes and
settlers, emphasizing place of origin rather than
place of residence in the allocation of opportunities
such as jobs and school admissions. This is
Continues on page 15
Being presentation by Atiku Abubakar, GCON,
former vice president, Federal Republic of Nigeria,
at a symposium on ‘Federalism, Diversity
and Nation-Building – Tackling the Challenges of
Integration in Nigeria’, organised by the Institute
of Governance and Social Research, at the Ladi
Kwali Hall, Sheraton Hotel, Abuja.
Off the Cuff
Killer-herdsmen as Gadaffi’s hit men?
President Muhammadu Buhari is noted
for releasing bombshells anytime he
is outside the shores of Nigeria. It was
outside the country he said ministers were
noise makers; it was outside he talked about
his wife belonging to the other room and inner
room; he also, while outside the country
revealed his administration’s policy of exclusion
and partiality when he said some sections
of the country that gave him 97percent
would get a lion share while those that gave
him 5percent would receive peanut.
This time around, he did not disappoint.
He told a man of God in far away London,
a person of no mean personality, the Archbishop
of Canterbury himself, Justin Welby,
that the Fulani herdsmen that have been
drinking the blood of Nigerians were gunmen
trained by the late Libyan president,
Muammar Gadaffi.
Our dear President was quoted as saying:
“They were trained and armed by Muammar
Gadaffi of Libya. When he was killed, the gun-
men escaped with their arms.”
He also claimed that “irresponsible politics”
had been brought into the farmers/herders’
crisis.
So, having known that the marauding herdsmen
were not Nigerians yet government treats
them like egg; why has his administration not
clamp down on them? Why has government
continued to pamper them to the point that
despite the widespread killings, no herdsman
has been convicted and appropriate punishment
meted out on account of their intolerable
orgy of violence and wanton killing across the
country? If they were Libyan nationals, who
are the owners of the cattle they rear? Why
does the Nigerian government allow foreigners
unfettered access into the country and they
come here to constitute a huge nuisance? Why
does the President lambast communities that
refused to give their land for grazing? And why
is it that despite his assurances of ending the
needless killings, the herdsmen have continued
to wreak havoc all over the place?
A critic had recently flayed government’s
handling of the herdsmen
issue, saying, “I even wonder why the
Nigerian presidency has led itself to
be so own interior (internal distrusted
when his own minister of defence, his
affairs) and the Inspector-General of
Police claimed that the events in Taraba,
Benue, Nasarawa and Adamawa
were communal clashes. Ordinarily,
if there is sense of justice, equity and
fairness; in this age, if there was nothing
behind it; if there was nothing more
to it; if there were no personal interests
residing in the Nigerian security and
intelligence and the presidency, all
those ones ought to have been retired
immediately to assure Nigerians that
we are still together.”
We must learn to speak truth to
every situation no matter whose ox is
gored. Great men are known by their
words. Enough please.
Quick Takes
$2.5bn
It is expected that Nigeria’s
debt service cost and
refinancing risks will rise with
issuance of the above amount
of Eurobond in the first quarter
according to Fitch Ratings.
Minimum wage,
maximum trouble
As government and the
Nigeria Labour Congress
(NLC) continue the ding
dong game over minimum
wage, civil servants across
the country have continued
to contend with maximum
trouble. Many states are not
even able to pay the peanut-
N18,000- for the least
worker, Labour is seeking
N66,500, which is additional
N10,500 from the earlier
proposed N56,000. Great!
Published by BusinessDAY Media Ltd., The Brook, 6 Point Road, GRA, Apapa, Lagos. Ghana Office: Zion House, Shiashie, OIC-Galaxy Road, East Legon, Accra.
Tel:+ 233 243226596, +233244856806: email: bdsundayletter@businessdayonline.com Advert Hotline: 08116759801, 08082496194. Subscriptions 01-2950687, 07045792677. Newsroom: 08054691823
Editor: Zebulon Agomuo, All correspondence to BusinessDAY Media Ltd., Box 1002, Festac Lagos. ISSN 1595 - 8590.