30112018 - BOKO HARAM: We're still under siege, Shehu of Borno tells Buhari

C 

M 

Y 

K 

2019: Sign 

Electoral Act 

Amendment 

now, Atiku tells 

A’IBOM ASSEMBLY CRISIS: 

Akpabio, Speaker bicker over Drama, as 

alleged assassination plot ‘2 speakers’ 15 

8 •as Police vacate Assembly complex 12 fight over seat 

Eurobond: External reserves record first increase in 4 months 

Buhari 

ANAMBRA 

ASSEMBLY CRISIS: 

19 

** 

VOL. 26: NO. 63692 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

BOKO HARAM: 

We're still under siege, 

STORY ON 

PAGE 8 

Shehu of Borno tells Buhari 

•Dismisses claims of terror war yielding positive results 

LAKE CHAD BASIN SECURITY 

Group 

sues 

FIRS 

14 

over 

Atiku’s 

tax 

receipts 

From left, President of Niger Republic, Mahamadou Issoufou, President Muhammadu Buhari, Chadian President, Idris Deby and 

Prime Minister of Cameroon, Philemon Yang, during the presentation of communique at the end of the Extraordinary Summit of the 

Heads of State and Government of the Lake Chad Basin on Security in N’Djamena, Chad, yesterday. STATE HOUSE PHOTO. 

TOMORROW’S DEADLINE FOR CANDIDATES' WITHDRAWALS: 

Confusion in Okorocha, Amosun’s camps 

Osinbajo camp 

sets post-Buhari 

era targets 

8 

2019: Buhari, APC 

unperturbed by U.S plan 

to restore Atiku’s visa, 

but...— Lai Mohammed 48 

COLUMNISTS DONU 17 AZU 36 OWEI LAKEMFA 31 

Nigeria to overtake 

India as world capital 

for under-five deaths 

—World Bank 8 

5 

SEE 

INSIDE 

Naira down to 

N369/$ in 

parallel 

market 48 

Mr & Mrs

2 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018—3


vanguardnews @vanguardnews @vanguardnews 

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 — 5 

POCKET CARTOON 

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State (3rd left) with the Chairman, All 

Progressives Congress, APC, Reconciliation Committee for South-East, 

Governor Abdullahi Ganduje (1st right); Senator Godswill Akpabio (2nd left); 

Mrs. Ify Ugo Okoye (2nd right); Alhaji Umaru Dembo (3rd right), Alhaji 

Nasiru Aliko Koki (2nd left) and others, when members of the committee 

visited Governor Okorocha at the Government House, Owerri yesterday. 

Confusion in Okorocha, 

Amosun’s camps 

By Emmanuel 

Aziken, Political 

Editor & Daud 

Olatunji 

ABUJA—Ahead 

of tomorrow’s 

deadline for the 

voluntary withdrawal of 

candidates for 

governorship and state 

legislative elections, 

there was tumult in the 

camps of two All 

Progressives Congress, 

APC, governors denied 

footing in their state 

chapters of the party. 

While Governor 

Ibikunle Amosun of 

Ogun State was making 

moves to ensure unity in 

his camp, there was 

confusion in the camp of 

Governor Rochas 

Okorocha of Imo State 

over the strong 

resistance to his 

approach by the 

Democratic Peoples 

Party, DPP. 

The DPP in Imo State, 

Vanguard gathered, had 

offered Okorocha’s sonin-law, 

Uche Nwosu, its 

governorship ticket. The 

party was, however, 

strongly laying down 

what it described as 

frustrating demands. 

Meanwhile, the 

determination of 

Governor Amosun’s 

protégées to find 

alternative platforms was 

actualised in the House 

of Representatives and 

the Ogun State House of 

Assembly as some of his 

allies switched parties to 

the Allied Peoples 

Movement, APM. 

APC leader in the 

House 

of 

Representatives, Femi 

Gbajabiamila, made a 

dramatic effort to stop 

Amosun’s preferred 

governorship candidate, 

Adekunle Akinlade, from 

defecting but his effort was 

rebuffed by Speaker 

Yakubu Dogara. 

The guideline of the 

Independent National 

Electoral Commission, 

INEC, gives tomorrow, 

December 1, as the last date 

for any candidate to 

withdraw from the election. 

With many of his 

preferred aspirants denied 

the platform of the APC, 

and notably, Nwosu as 

governorship candidate, 

Okorocha and his 

associates were said to have 

resolved to move into the 

DPP. 

However, that option was 

as at press time yesterday, 

facing challenges following 

strong conditions given to 

the incoming candidates. 

While the Okorocha camp 

was being offered the 

governorship slot, it was 

gathered that the DPP was 

not willing to provide more 

than 50 per cent of the 

House of Assembly seats to 

the Okorocha camp. 

The DPP in Imo State, is 

also said to be unwilling to 

give up the structure for 

Nwosu to take over. 

The Okorocha camp was 

also said to be 

apprehensive over the 

claim that some allies of 

Okorocha, who were 

offered party tickets by the 

Adams Oshiomhole-led 

national leadership, were 

refusing to give up their 

APC tickets for the DPP as 

canvassed by the Okorocha 

group. 

APC peace meeting 

Meanwhile, Governor 

Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano 

State has said that 

Okorocha would not defect 

from the party and would 

support the re-election of 

President Muhammadu 

Buhari. 

The governor spoke when 

he led the APC South-East 

Reconciliation Committee 

to meet with Okorocha at 

Government House, 

Owerri. 

“We are here for peace 

and reconciliation, and we 

have had an indoor 

meeting with the governor 

of Imo State, and he 

assured us that he would 

not leave APC and he is not 

leaving APC. 

“He will work for 

Muhammadu Buhari as 

the President of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria come 

2019, and we shall continue 

the dialogue between now 

and some few hours. 

“We are happy so far 

because we have achieved 

a lot. We are happy so far 

because he has assured us 

that he is not leaving the 

party. He is contesting for 

Senate in the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria, and 

hopefully, we shall achieve 

the peace we are looking 

for,’’ Governor Ganduje 

said. 

I’m not leaving APC 

— Okorocha 

In his brief remark, 

Governor Okorocha said 

the crisis in Imo APC would 

have been avoided if the 

right actions had been 

taken. 

He stated: “There have 

been so many rumours 

making the rounds that I 

was leaving APC. Like I told 

you, I am not leaving APC, 

I will remain in APC, and 

President Buhari is my 

Presidential candidate. 

‘’Other things will be as 

the committee may discuss. 

I am just a person; I am not 

everybody. I am just one 

man. I can only speak for 

myself; every other 

candidate has the right to 

speak for him or herself. 

As it is now, I assure you 

that I am in APC and will 

remain in APC.” 

A similar scenario was 

also playing out in Ogun 

State as some political 

associates of Governor 

Amosun were also said to 

be thinking twice about 

defecting to the APM 

which the governor’s 

associates are using to 

perfect their electoral 

aspirations. 

Amosun’s loyalists, it 

was learned, were also 

divided into two 

factions. It was gathered 

that while some vowed to 

defect alongside Akinlade 

to APM, others were said 

to have pledged to remain 

in the APC, irrespective of 

the circumstances. 

The governor, it was 

learned, was weighing his 

options on the issue. 

At press time yesterday, 

political observers were 

waiting for a formal 

declaration by the 

governor’s associates for 

Continues on Page 51 

Proposed arming of FRSC officials (3) 

By Ebun Sessou, Yinka Latona, & 

Tade Oluwapelumi 

THE Federal Road 

S a f e t y 

Corps,FRSC, was set 

up by the Federal Government 

to perform certain 

duties. If the government 

wants to give 

them arms, I think it has 

to train them so that 

they can use the arms 

effectively. The government 

should not make 

the mistake of arming 

them without training 

them on how and when 

to use firearms. 

Mr. Kingsley Obinna, 

Businessman 

THE duty of FRSC 

officials is to ensure 

the safety of Nigerian 

roads by responding to 

emergency and controlling 

the flow of traffic. It 

comes with many responsibilities 

that should be 

carried out without the distraction 

that could come 

when they are armed. 

Mr. Ikechukwu Oyoyo, 

Transporter 

EQUIPPING the road 

safety is not a bad 

idea, but if the FRSC officials 

could be disciplined 

like military personnel it 

will be good. The reason 

is that Nigerians obey 

when there is use of force. 

Nigerians are willful sinners. 

If the FRSC officials 

are armed, people would 

begin to obey traffic laws. 

If the FRSC will use the 

arms well, there won’t be 

any cause for alarm. 

Mr. Chike Duru, Trader 

I 

think the govern 

ment has good intentions, 

but that is not 

what the FRSC needs. I 

would advice the government 

to constitute a 

panel to look into the 

areas the FRSC is not 

functioning well, with a 

view to coming up with 

solutions. I am not in 

doubt that the things the 

FRSC need to carry out 

its functions satisfactorily 

are not guns. Mr. Japhet 

Omene, Analyst 

I 

want to advice our gov 

ernment to stop chasing 

shadows. If they want 

to arm the FRSC, we need 

to be given reasons for the 

move. Instead of doing it 

without the input of road 

users, the federal government 

should organise town 

hall meetings to be able to 

know what Nigerians think 

about it. If people decide 

to support the government, 

the proposal should be implemented. 

Mr. Rotimi Michael 

Businessman 

IF doing so would re 

position the FRSC, 

the authorities should go 

ahead. But it should 

only be done after considering 

the disadvantages 

and advantages. 

We are all interested in 

anything that would 

make our roads safe. 

When the roads are safe 

it would have a multiplier 

effect on the economy. 

Mr. Morka Chukwuka, 

Businessman

6—Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

12-yr-old 

girl 

beheaded 

in Delta 

By Paul Olayemi 

OGHARA—THERE was 

outrage, yesterday, in 

Oghara, Delta State, 

following the murder of a 

minor, Egwono Adams, 

whose head was hacked off 

her body. 

The deceased, aged 12, 

was said to have been 

accosted by her killers in the 

early hours of yesterday at 

Scott Road, close to 

Okwemeva Junction in 

Ogharaefe, where sources 

said they heard her 

screaming that early 

morning before she 

suddenly went quiet. 

A source said residents of 

the area on hearing her 

scream, were scared to 

come out, only to wake up 

yesterday morning to see 

her head severed off her 

body. 

The source added “The 

incident happened at about 

5 am, few poles away from 

the Council Secretariat. 

Only God knows where she 

was coming from but people 

around here said they 

heard her shouting that 

they should open the door 

for her, that some persons 

were after her until she 

went quiet. When we woke, 

we saw this” (pointing to 

the corpse). 

A source at the Sapele 

Police Area Command, who 

craved anonymity, 

confirmed the killing, 

adding that the police are 

on the trail of the suspects. 

The source said the police 

have arrested a woman, 

who aided her husband that 

was a suspect, to escape. 

“He is a suspect and we 

have information about 

him, that he is fond of 

threatening people with 

cutlass and even beheaded 

a goat yesterday, but we 

were closing on him when 

his wife led him through the 

back door to escape, so we 

held her and after some 

time, let her go” 

Residents, angry over the 

continued killings in the 

community, with Egwono's 

said to be the third in six 

weeks, have called on the 

Commissioner of Police, 

Mohammad Mustafa, and 

the Delta State government 

to tighten security in the 

area, pointing accusing 

fingers at community 

leaders and security chiefs 

for collecting money from 

these Yahoo boys whom 

they believe are behind the 

killing. 


Leader of Yahoo Plus gang that kidnapped, 

killed DELSU student slumps, dies 

•...as accomplice says Elozino is their 5th victim 

By Emma Amaize 

& Festus Ahon 

THE ringleader of the Yahoo 

Plus gang that abducted and 

murdered a 300-level student of 

Delta State University, DELSU, 

Abraka, Elozino Ogege, has 

reportedly slumped and died. 

It was gathered that he slumped 

and died when he was trapped by 

police detectives at a hideout in 

Abraka. But four other suspects, 

including a herbalist, two private 

security guards are in police 

custody at the Police Headquarters, 

Asaba, Delta State. 

Delta State Police Command’s 

Public Relations Officer, PPRO, 

DSP Andrew Aniamaka, confirmed 

the death of the suspect, yesterday. 

While two other suspects, Onos, 

a private security guard and 

Desmond, internet fraudster, who 

spoke to our reporter, admitted 

participating in the crime, the 

herbalist and the private security 

supervisor spoke tongue in cheek. 

DSP Aniamaka disclosed that 

“the mastermind known to be a 

fraudster, just returned from 

Ghana; we made efforts to pick 

him, but it was not easy. Between 

By Monsuru 

Olowoopejo 

THE Nigerian Police’s F-SARS 

officer, Olukunle Olonade, who 

killed an officer of the Lagos State 

Traffic Management Authority, 

LASTMA, Rotimi Adeyemi, at 

Iyana-Ipaja axis, Wednesday, will 

be tried posthumously and 

dismissed if found guilty. 

It was gathered that the police 

officer was beaten to stupor by the 

angry mob, who mistook him for a 

robber, after shooting the LASTMA 

officer that flagged him down for a 

traffic offence. 

the Thursday that the incident 

happened and Saturday, we 

have got most of the suspects. 

“Yes, one of them slumped; in 

fact, the mastermind knowing 

that we have got him slumped 

and gave up the ghost. 

“Quickly, the second fraudster, 

Desmond, was caught and he 

told us he had been engaged in 

four previous cases. He identified 

the herbalist that receive the body 

parts of female victims for ritual 

purposes,” he said. 

Confession 

Remorseful Desmond affirmed 

that Elozino’s murder made it the 

fifth life he had taken for ritual 

purposes. 

According to him, “each time 

we kill, we removed the vital 

organs like the eyes, the heart 

and the breasts of the victims, 

normally females, and take to the 

herbalist, who usually would ask 

us to come back.” 

He added that the herbalist 

used to burn the hearts and 

pound them to make powdery 

substance out of them. It is the 

powder that he gives to them, 

which they apply before 

Though he was reportedly 

rescued from the scene by Police 

officers deployed to Iyana-Ipaja, 

he reportedly died while being 

rushed to the hospital. 

But yesterday, the Police Public 

Relation Officer, PPRO, Chike 

Oti, in a statement, said the 

Commissioner of Police, Imohimi 

Edgal, has directed that the late 

officer be tried posthumously and 

dismissed if found guilty. 

According to the statement: 

“the driver of a Toyota 

Highlander SUV, with 

registration number LSR 277 BJ, 

later identified as Police 

speaking to their victims to 

make money from them. “Any 

big woman we approach 

obliges us and provides 

money for us” 

However, the herbalist 

denied the allegation as he 

continued to call on God as 

witness that he was speaking 

the truth. He said Elozino’s 

organs were the first he 

received from the Yahoo Plus 

customers, but Desmond 

insisted they took the body 

parts to him after killing their 

victims. 

The security guard, Onos, 

who had offered to assist the 

victim to get accommodation 

and was in possession of 

Elozino’s phone with which 

the police tracked him, 

confessed he was posted into 

the school by his supervisor 

for the purpose of carrying out 

such missions when contacted, 

but the supervisor, Nwaosisi, 

denied the allegation. 

Nwaosisi said he was 

among those that chased 

Onos when the Police came 

after him in the school. 

“When all these were 

Late F-SARS operative faces posthumous 

trial, dismissal over LASTMA officer’s murder 

Inspector Olukunle Olonade 

attached to FSARS Ikeja, 

while driving along Iyana- 

Ipaja Road, was accosted for 

driving against traffic by a 

LASTMA official, one Rotimi 

Adeyemi, aged 46 years, at 

Iyana-Ipaja roundabout. 

“The two men vehemently 

argued with each other. 

However, during the 

altercation, the said Inspector 

Olukunle Olonade allegedly 

shot the LASTMA officer to 

death. 

“The irate mob, who thought 

the shooter was an armed 

NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

happening, Onos threatened to 

implicate me for assisting the 

police to arrest him. When the 

police caught him, they discovered 

two phones which he claimed I 

sold to him. That was my 

involvement. “ 

Protest 

Meanwhile, Civil Society 

Organisations, CSOs, yesterday 

thronged the streets of Asaba, the 

Delta State capital to protest the 

gruesome murder of Elozino 

Ogege by suspected yahoo boys. 

The CSOs stormed the State 

Police Command, Ministry of 

Women Affairs and the office of 

the Secretary to the State 

Government, after matching 

through the streets of Asaba 

metropolis chanting songs of 

disenchantment. 

Speaking on behalf of the 

protesters, Mrs Caroline 

Usikpedo condemned the murder 

of 22-year-old Elozino, lamenting 

that “the society we live in today, 

especially some of our institutions 

of higher learning and local 

communities, are harbouring 

criminals and ritualists in the 

guise of Yahoo business. 

WORLD AIDS DAY: A cross section of the audience at the 2018 World AIDS Day organised by the National Agency 

for the Controll of AIDS at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: Abayomi Adeshida. 

hoodlum because he was in mufti, 

descended on him and beat him 

to stupor. 

“Although he was later rescued 

by teams of policemen drafted to 

the scene, he gave up the ghost 

while being rushed to the hospital 

for treatment. 

“The serial number of the pistol 

recovered at the scene was 

checked in the system and it 

revealed the bearer as Inspector 

Olukunle Olonade attached to 

FSARS Ikeja. 

“Corpses of the deceased have 

been evacuated to the morgue for 

autopsy.”

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018—7 

By Esther Onyegbula 

ONE of the seven notorious 

kidnappers of an Assistant 

Comptroller of Customs, Justina 

Tanko, arrested by operatives of 

Inspector General of Police’s 

Intelligence Response Team IRT 

has disclosed how they disposed 

of the body of a victim in the river 

after collecting ransom. 

The seven suspects arrested by 

IRT operatives led by DCP. Abba 

Kyari includes Zigabari Voonu, 

Maxwell Barindom, Dele 

Kunewo-Liaga, Tordi Barinaa, 

Godspower Keenom alias 

Immortal, Justice Afangide and 

Oludofin Yakubu. 

It was learned that the 

notorious gang usually cause 

the disappearance of their 

hostages after collecting ransom 

from some of the victims’ 

relatives. 

23-year-old Godspower 

Keenom aka Immortal, who 

confessed being an active 

member of the group, said “I 

have participated in numerous 

vanguardnews 

heinous crimes including the 

kidnap of one Chibuike 

Ezewuno, who we later killed 

and disposed of his corpse in a 

river after collecting a ransom of 

three million naira from his 

family. My share from that 

operation was N300, 000.” 

During their arrests, it was 

gathered that a VW Golf 

belonging to Chibuike Ezenkwu, 

whom the gang kidnapped in the 

month of May 2018 and killed, 

was found in their possession 

with 2 Ak47 rifles and pump 

action gun. 

It was gathered that the 

Assistant Comptroller of 

Custom’s family decided to pay 

the ransom demanded so that the 

kidnappers would not kill her, 

“and immediately after the 

negotiated ransom of N5,000,000 

was paid by her family she was 

released the same day.” 

The IRT team, subsequently, 

moved after them leading to the 

arrest of the seven suspects, with 

one of them, Zigabari Voonu, 

revealing that he alerted 

@vanguardnews 

Police arrest 7 over Customs officer's kidnap 

By Ugochukwu Alaribe 

ABA—AFTER much beating, 

one of the robbers lynched by 

an irate mob, yesterday, along 

Aba-Owerri Road, Aba, Abia State, 

pleaded with the mob to pull off a 

charmed ring in his finger for him 

to die. 

It was gathered that the suspects 

snatched money from a victim, 

who was at a nearby bank to 

withdraw money, before racing 

towards Aba-Owerri Road. 

An eyewitness said unknown to 

the suspects, they were trailed by 

some tricycle operators after the 

victim raised the alarm. 

He said: “The robbers almost 

escaped with their motorcycle, but 

were caught in a gridlock along 

Aba-Owerri road where the 

tricycle riders raised the alarm.” 

The eyewitness alleged that the 

robbers confessed to being 

members of the gang that killed a 

tricycle rider a week ago at 

Immaculate Avenue and made 

away with his tricycle. 

He added: “The criminals 

trailed someone to a bank and 

snatched money from the man as 

he came out and took off in their 

motorcycle. The tricycle riders 

pursued them as the victim 

shouted for help. On getting to 

Star Paper Mile Junction here in 

Umungasi, they were caught up 

in the traffic jam and the tricycle 

riders came through the other lane 

blocked them and shouted for 

help. 

“People arrested them and beat 

them for about 30 minutes, but 

nothing worked until they 

discovered that they had charms 

on them. Their charms were 

pulled out and one was beaten to 

death while the other refused to 

die. 

“He later pleaded with the 

crowd to pull out the charm on his 

finger which was a ring. It was 

pulled out before he died. His 

remains did not burn as you can 

see with your eyes. 

“This is not the first time they’re 

doing this. These were the same 

group of robbers that killed a tricycle 

rider some weeks ago at 

Immaculate Avenue. That big one 

there confessed when people were 

beating him close to death. 

One of the tricycle riders, who 

members of the gang of the 

movement of the custom 

officer. 

Zigabari Voonu said: “I 

worked as a security guard in 

the restaurant the victim, 

Justina Tanko, patronised. I 

was the one who informed 

Bobo and his gang about her. 

“I also alerted the gang 

when the officer arrived at the 

restaurant on the day of the 

kidnap. I am also a member 

of the deadly Degbam secret 

cult.” 

Police sources confirmed 

that the suspects are 

cooperating with operatives 

and have made more useful 

revelations that will aid the 

investigation. 

The sources also said efforts 

are ongoing to arrest Bobo 

Biara, the gang leader who is 

still in possession of a large 

chunk of ransom meant for 

members of the gang already 

arrested, arrest of other 

fleeing gang members and 

recover of more weapons. 

Robber begs mob to remove charmed 

ring from finger before dying 

helped in the arrest of the 

fleeing robbers, said the 

criminals relied on their charms 

which failed them and urged 

the security agents to protect 

lives and property in order to 

avoid people taking laws into 

their hands. 

Contacted Commissioner of 

Police, Abia State, Mr. Chris 

Ezike, said he was in a meeting 

and promised to contact his men 

to confirm the incident. 

SKY KING: Oluwaseun S-King performing stunts with 

his bicycle at the graduation of 510 beneficiaries of Owolabi 

Salis Foundation skill acquisition programme at Onike Iwaya, 

Lagos, yesterday. PHOTO: Agbonkhese Oboh. 

... with Emma'nKen (08163121378) 

Blood of Zachariah! 

For coming too close to me in 

public, this relationship is over! 

OMG! My mummy and daddy, is 

this how it used to start?



NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

Osinbajo camp sets 

post-Buhari era targets 

By Emmanuel 

Aziken, Political Editor 

MUTTERINGS over 

a widening gulf in 

the Presidency with 

associates of President 

Muhammadu Buhari and 

those of Vice President 

Yemi Osinbajo pursuing 

stealthy separate political 

aspirations have surfaced. 

While the two camps 

remain united in 

achieving victory for the 

joint Buhari/Osinbajo 

ticket in the 2019 

presidential election, 

multiple sources, 

however, note a divergent 

of aspiration thereafter. 

While the aspirations of 

Osinbajo as a person 

concerning 2023 remain 

sketchy, if not doubtful, 

there are indications that 

those around him are 

making plans for their 

camp’s sustenance in a 

post-Buhari era. 

The plans are partly 

premised on the 

possibility that the ruling 

All Progressives 

Congress, APC, may no 

longer have the force of 

unity provided by Buhari 

when the president steps 

out of office. Those plans, 

including the shopping 

around for alternative 

political platforms, are 

quietly causing distress 

among concerned 

political interests. 

Those projections, 

sources in Abuja 

disclosed, helped to 

cause the crisis in one of 

the newly registered 

Nigeria to overtake India 

as world capital for under-5 

deaths—World Bank 

THE World Bank has 

said Nigeria will take 

over India as the world 

capital for deaths of 

children under the age of 

five by 2021. 

The bank’s report was 

based on the fact that 

India, with a population 

of 1.3 billion recorded 

989,000 under-five deaths 

in 2017, while Nigeria, 

with 196 million citizens, 

recorded 714,000 deaths 

in the same year. 

In its bi-annual 

economic update on 

Nigeria, the World bank 

said Nigeria records the 

highest number of child 

malaria deaths anywhere 

in the world, adding that 

Nigeria had the highest 

number of out-of-school 

children anywhere in the 

world, and that 90 percent 

of these children are from 

northern Nigeria. 

The bank said: 

political parties which, it 

was gathered, had been 

taken over by proxies of 

those in the Osinbajo 

camp. 

The outworking of the 

plans has also rubbed 

negatively on some 

associates of the president 

who accuse the Osinbajo 

camp of overreaching itself 

in its political agenda. 

A close associate of the 

president embedded 

within the camp of the 

cabal, as it is called, 

particularly expressed 

displeasure with what he 

claimed as tendencies by 

associates of the vicepresident 

to paint the 

image of him being a better 

performer than the 

president. 

The associate believed to 

be involved in many of the 

administration’s political 

agenda was particularly 

miffed by what he claimed 

as projections that tend to 

make the vice-president 

look good at the expense 

of the president. 

A senior aide of the vicepresident 

has, however, 

dismissed the claims as 

baseless and inspired by 

enemies of the 

administration determined 

to cause a fracture where 

he said none exists. 

The scenario, it was 

alleged, was akin to the 

situation in the first half of 

the Olusegun Obasanjo/ 

Atiku Abubakar presidency, 

where the former vicepresident 

was alleged to 

have inspired plots towards 

political ascendancy. 

“Nigeria’s weak revenue 

mobilization has major 

implications for its growth 

and development, 

including for improving its 

dire social service delivery 

outcomes. 

“Poverty remains high in 

Nigeria and access to basic 

social services is not 

universal. In 2016, the 

World Bank estimated 

poverty at 38.8 percent of 

the population using the 

national poverty line. 

“By international poverty 

line of PPP-corrected $1.90 

per capita per day, an 

estimated 49.2 percent of 

the population lived below 

poverty in 2017. 

“With nine million 

children out of school, 

Nigeria has the highest 

number of out-of-school 

children of primary school 

age in the world: North 

takes over 90 percent of this 

figure.” 

Sign Electoral Act Amendment now, Atiku urges Buhari 

By Dirisu Yakubu 

A 

B U J A — 

PRESIDENTIAL 

candidate of PDP in the 

2019 elections and former 

Vice President, Atiku 

Abubakar, has called on 


Buhari to sign into law, the 

Electoral Act amendment, 

if he is really interested in 

the conduct of free, fair and 

credible elections. 

By Victor 

Ahiumayoung & 

Ndahi Marama 

SHEHU of Borno, His 

Royal Highness 

(HRH), Alhaji Abubakar 

Umar Ibn Garbai Elkanemi, 

has dismissed claims by 

security operatives that the 

ongoing military 

operations, particularly in 

some parts of the state and 

the Lake Chad Region, was 

yielding positive result. 

He insisted that even in 

Maiduguri, the state 

capital, residents and 

farmers cannot move out of 

the city beyond 5 kilometres 

without being killed or 

kidnapped by insurgents. 

This is even as 

Organised Labour 

yesterday pleaded with 


Buhari to immediately sack 

all service chiefs and heads 

of the nation’s security 

apparatus and set up a 

high-powered probe into 

the immediate and remote 

causes leading to recent 

slaughter of over 100 

soldiers by Boko Haram 

terrorists in Melete, Borno 

State. 

The monarch stated this 

when President Muhammadu 

Buhari paid him a 

courtesy call at his palace 

in Shehuri, Maiduguri. 

Speaking at the 

inauguration of the 

Presidential Campaign 

Council yesterday in 

Abuja, Atiku said that 

signing the Electoral Act 

was necessary because 

elections were governed by 

laws and that good laws 

were required to ensure 

credible elections. 

“Such laws constrain the 

behaviour of all who are 

involved in the electoral 

The President had visited 

the monarch before 

proceeding to the Chief of 

Army Staff Annual 

Conference where he was 

special guest of honour. 

Vanguard reports that the 

recent onslaught by 

terrorists have left over 20 

farmers killed, while 

harvesting their crops in 

their farmlands, with 

several villages of Bale 

Shuwa, Mammanti and 

surrounding communities 

of Konduga, Mafa Council 

areas on the outskirt of the 

metropolis, razed by 

rampaging terrorists 

without confrontation. 

The Shehu of Borno, 

while applauding 

President Buhari in the 

fight against Boko Haram, 

said there was much to be 

done for the people of the 

state to be free from 

terrorists atrocities. 

He said: “On behalf of the 

traditional institution in 

Borno, I want to commend 

Your Excellency for the 

commitment you have 

given towards ending the 

lingering crisis of Boko 

Haram 

“It is unfortunate that 

despite all efforts put in 

place to restore peace in our 

land and the North East, we 

the people of Borno State 

are still under Boko Haram 

process, including the 

candidates and their 

supporters, security agents 

and the electoral umpire,” 

Atiku said. 

He predicted that the 

2019 Presidential election 

would be tough based on 

what he called the 

desperation of the APCled 

government to cling to 

power at all costs. 

“We are facing an APC 

government that is 

desperate to cling to power 

at all costs, which means 

that this will be a tough 

Presidential election,” he 

added. 

He said he was not 

surprised that the APC 

government was running a 

campaign of “personal 

attacks and innuendo,” 

which he said was caused 

by the party's failure to 

keep its promises to 

Nigerians. 

AIDS DAY: From left— DG, Dr. Sani Aliyu; Board Chairman, Dame Pauline Tallen, both of National 

Agency for the Controll of AIDS, NACA; Secretary to Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapher, 

and Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, at the 2018 World AIDS Day NACA event at the State 

House Conference Centre, Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: Abayomi Adeshida. 

Boko Haram: We're still under 

siege, Shehu Borno tells Buhari 

•...as labour calls for rejig of nation’s security apparatus 

siege. 

“Nobody can dare move 

out of Maiduguri by 10 

kilometres without being 

confronted/attacked by 

Boko Haram. 

“Quite a number of 

farmers are being killed 

and kidnapped on a daily 

basis around Molai 

General Area, which is just 

10 kilometres away from the 

metropolis, along 

Maiduguri -Damboa -Biu 

road. 

“Most of the surrounding 

villages and communities 

in Konduga, Damboa, 

Mafa and other local 

government areas have 

been razed down in the last 

two weeks. 

“We plead that the federal 

government and the 

security agencies review 

the strategies in nipping 

this lingering crisis in the 

bud.” 

Labour 

Meanwhile, Organised 

Labour has pleaded with 


Buhari to sack all service 

chiefs and heads of the 

nation’s security apparatus, 

and set up a high-powered 

probe into the immediate 

and remote causes leading 

to recent slaughter of 100 

soldiers by the Boko 

Haram. 

Speaking through the 

United Labour Congress of 

Nigeria, ULC, Labour said 

the killing of the soldiers 

was not only shocking and 

a national disgrace, but also 

symptomatic of the deep 

failure of the Nigerian state 

to respond proactively in 

defence of itself and 

institutions against the 

onslaught of evil 

organisations such as Boko 

Haram. 

In a statement by Mr. Joe 

Ajaero, organised labour 

reiterated its calls for an 

urgent review of the 

nation’s security 

architecture, stressing that 

Federal Government 

should immediately set up 

a board of inquiry made up 

of the civil society, retired 

military top brass, 

representatives of the 

judiciary and the 

legislature to investigate 

the military’s handling of 

the Boko Haram insurgency, 

while all the service 

chiefs are suspended from 

office, pending conclusion 

of investigations. 

He said: “That our 

soldiers can be mowed 

down this way speaks of the 

urgent need for the nation 

to quickly review the 

structure and operational 

framework of its security 

agencies.”

VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018—9 

Army removes Texas 

Chukwu as spokesman, 

re-appoints Usman 

THE Nigerian army has 

replaced Texas 

Chukwu as its spokesman. 

A military source told 

TheCable that Chukwu’s 

removal followed outcry 

from different quarters on 

his “inability” to manage 

information on the counterinsurgency 

campaign. 

“Chukwu was not attune 

with media management 

and did not sustain the 

efforts already in place,” the 

source said. 

“A good public relations 

officer always responds to 

critical national issues on 

time and provides 

solutions. His inefficiency 

did not only affect the 

army’s efforts but made the 

military a subject of 

embarrassment in the eyes 

of the world.” 

The source added that 

Sani Usman had been 

reinstated as spokesman of 

the army. 

Chukwu took over the 

position in February when 

Usman enrolled for a senior 

executive course at the 

National Institute for Policy 

and Strategic Studies, 

NIPSS, in Kuru, Jos. 

A senior military officer 

listed Chukwu’s alleged 

poor management of 

several incidents of Boko 

Haram as some of his flaws. 

“Chukwu’s handling of 

the recent Boko Haram 

incidents did not help in 

managing the situation, 

thereby embarrassing the 

chief of army staff and the 

commander-in-chief,” he 

said. 

When contacted, 

Chukwu confirmed that he 

had been replaced but said 

it was because of a course 

he ought to attend at the 

NIPSS. 

“There must be progress. 

I’m going to NIPSS for 

study. You know there are 

some courses you would 

take before getting 

promoted to major-general. 

It’s true. I’m no more the 

army spokesman. SK 

Usman would take over. 

He just returned from 

course, too,” he said. 

Usman also confirmed 

that he had returned to his 

former position since 

Monday. 

BOKO HARAM: Nigeria, Chad, 

Cameroon, Niger agree to 

change tactics 

IN a renewed call to arms 

in N’djamena, capital of 

the Republic of Chad, 

yesterday, President 

Muhammadu Buhari held 

a one-day consultation with 

Heads of State and 

Governments of the Lake 

Chad Basin Commission, 

LCBC. 

The meeting was called 

to address the recent 

upsurge in terrorist 

activities in the region, and 

the Nigerian President 

rallied his colleagues from 

Chad, Niger Republic, and 

Republic of Cameroon to a 

fresh onslaught against 

insurgents, particularly the 

Boko Haram group. 

“Times as these call for 

quick interventions and 

measures. As you are 

aware and have witnessed 

in recent times, there are 

FG freezes bank accounts of suspects 

on ‘looters list’ 

THE 

Federal 

Government has 

frozen the bank accounts of 

suspects being tried in court 

over allegations of 

corruption by the Economic 

and Financial Crimes 

STRIKE: Students may stay long at 

home, ASUU warns 

THE Academic Staff 

Union of Universities, 

ASUU, has warned that the 

ongoing strike by its 

members may be 

prolonged as no concrete 

resolution has been 

reached in the negotiation 

with the Federal 

Government. 

The union called on 

parents and students to 

show understanding over 

the development so as to 

save Nigeria’s university 

:Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

new developments of security 

concern in our sub-region. 

‘’The region in the recent 

past has witnessed 

increasing attacks, 

particularly on military 

formations by elements of 

the Boko Haram terrorists 

as well as the renewed 

kidnapping of people. 

These activities are aimed 

at weakening our collective 

resolve to eradicate them 

from the region. 

“We must not cave in. The 

group’s renewed strategy 

of increasingly mining the 

general area as well as its 

recent deployment of 

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles 

(UAVs) for surveillance 

activities have proved to be 

critical factors in the 

resurgence of attacks in the 

region,’’ President Buhari 

said. 

system from collapse. 

ASUU National 

President, Biodun 

Ogunyemi, made the 

appeal in an interview with 

the News Agency of Nigeria 

(NAN) in Lagos yesterday. 

NAN reports that 

university lecturers had on 

November 5 embarked on 

a strike, demanding the 

implementation of the 2009 

agreement it entered into 

with the Federal 

Government. 

Commission, EFCC, 

according to online 

publication, TheCable. 

This, according to the 

report, is part of the 

implementation of the 

Executive Order No. 6 on 

the “preservation of 

suspicious assets 

connected with corruption 

and other relevant offences” 

signed by President 

Muhammadu Buhari in 

October 2018. 

The federal government 

has also placed a travel 

ban on the affected persons, 

but the list is yet to be 

officially made public. 

“I issued a cheque of 

N250,000 to a friend and it 

was turned down,” said a 

former minister who was 

affected. 

“When I called my 

account officer, he invited 

me for a meeting, where I 

was told there is a ‘post no 

debit’ instruction on all my 

accounts because of the 

executive order. They told 

me I am not the only one 

affected. All persons 

undergoing trial are 

affected.” 

On Tuesday, Olisa 

Metuh, former spokesman 

of the Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, said he did not 

have money to buy even 

“Panadol” because all his 

accounts had been frozen 

by the EFCC. 

On March 30, Lai 

Mohammed, Minister of 

Information, had released 

the list of alleged 

looters following a 

challenge from Kola 

Ologbondiyan, spokesman 

of the PDP. 

“The PDP has challenged 

us to name the looters 

under their watch. They 

said they did not loot the 

treasury. Well, I am sure 

they know that the treasury 

was looted dry under their 

watch. Yet they decided to 

grandstand,” he had said. 

“This shows the 

hollowness of their apology. 

This list is just a tip of the 

iceberg, and the PDP is 

aware of this. We did not 

make these cases up. 

Many of these cases are in 

court and the records are 

available.” 

Among those listed were 

Sambo Dasuki, former 

national security 

adviser; Dieziani Alison- 

Madueke, former minister 

of petroleum resources; 

Kenneth Minimah, former 

chief of army staff; Alex 

Badeh, former chief of 

defence staff; Inde Dikko, 

former comptroller-general 

of customs; and Bala 

Mohammed, former 

minister of the Federal 

Capital Territory, FCT. 

Others are Stella Oduah, 

a serving senator; 

Babangida Aliyu, former 

Niger 

State 

governor; Jonah Jang, 

former Plateau governor; 

Nenadi Usman, former 

minister of finance; Bashir 

Yuguda, former minister of 

state for finance; Femi Fani- 

Kayode, former minister of 

aviation; Raymond 

Dokpesi, founder of DAAR 

Communications and Uche 

Secondus, national 

chairman of the PDP. 

The list released in two 

batches contained 29 

names. Dokpesi and 

Secondus had sued the 

federal government over 

the issue but lost and file 

appeal. The cases are 

ongoing. 

2019: APC Senators, Reps pass vote of 

confidence on Ganduje 

By Henry Umoru 

& Levinus 

Nwabughiogu 

ABUJA—AHEAD of the 

2019 general elections, 

senators and members of 

the Federal House of 

Representatives from Kano 

State on the platform of the 

The lecturers are also calling 

for full implementation 

of the Memorandum of 

Action (MoA) agreement 

with the government in 

2017; improved working 

conditions and welfare 

package; and upgrade of 

facilities in universities 

across the country. 

According to him, the 

strike is not to short-change 

students, parents and other 

key stakeholders but to save 

the country’s university 

system from collapse. 

All Progressives Party, APC, 

yesterday passed a vote of 

confidence on the state 

governor, Abdullahi 

Ganduje. 

They also flayed former 

governor of the state, Rabiu 

Musa Kwankwaso, who 

recently defected from APC 

to Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, saying he 

cannot stop the re-election 

of President Muhammadu 

Buhari and Governor 

Ganduje. 

The 16 National Assembly 

caucus members in a joint 

press conference, reiterated 

that President Buhari 

would garner no less than 

5 million votes in the state. 

The lawmakers, led by 

Senator Kabiru Gaya ( 

Kano South), in a jointly 

signed statement issued at 

the briefing, said aside from 

Kwankwaso and his 

handful of supporters 

making empty noise 

•Dieziani, Dasuki, Dikko, Dokpesi, 

Minima, Badeh, Oduah, Jang affected 

WORKSHOP: From left—Mr. Oluwatosin Bamidele, Chief Technical and Information Officer, 

NTEL; Mrs. Maryam Bayi, Director, Human Capital and Admin, Nigerian Communications 

Commission, NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO NCC Mr. Gbenga 

Adebayo; Chairman Association of Licensed Telecoms Operator of Nigeria, ALTON, Mr. Akinwale 

Goodluck; Head Sub Saharan Africa Global System of Mobile Association, GSMA, during a 

workshop on "Driving Innovation and Growth," at the NCC Head Office, Abuja, yesterday. 

...reiterate 5m votes for Buhari 

against the governor and 

President Buhari, some 

other moles within 

government were also 

allegedly undermining the 

Kano State government 

and by extension, President 

Muhammadu Buhari-led 

federal government . 

They said : “The most 

unfortunate aspect is that 

certain roamers in the 

corridors of power who are 

more interested in their own 

personal ambition rather 

than the collective success 

of Buhari’s administration, 

have keyed into this 

devilish scheme not only to 

undermine Governor 

Ganduje but also to throw 

spanners in the electoral 

fortunes of the President as 

far as Kano State politics is 

concerned. 

“These roamers who also 

double as moles, are empty 

vessels and bad belle 

politicians who played little 

or no role in the election of 

the President in Kano State 

before he, through his 

magnanimity, brought 

them on board but are now 

capitalising on that 

privilege to harm his 

interests and the APC 

government in Kano State 

.“They are shameless 

masters in the art of 

promotion of selfish 

agenda over and above the 

collective interest of APC 

and the President, through 

stealth deceit and treachery. 

“We call on the President 

to be wary of these people. 

These moles must desist 

from their treacherous 

actions forthwith. They 

should be wise to 

understand that any evil 

scheme designed by the 

opposition and supported 

by them, if allowed to foster, 

will not only affect Governor 

Ganduje but the President 

in the forthcoming 

elections.”

10 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

:Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

FRSC EMBER MONTHS CAMPAIGN: Major Joseph Anderson, Signals 

Operations Command, Mile 2, Nigerian Army; A. C. Joseph Oyerinde, Lagos 

Command, FRSC, Commander, Unit Command Rs2. 13 Apapa, FRSC; 

Abdulrahaman Bima and Lanre Da-Silva, Head, Innovation & Corporate 

Communication, Honeywell, during the 2018 annual Ember months campaign of 

FRSC RS2 13 Apapa Unit Command in Lagos yesterday. Photo: Kehinde Shonola. 

Appeal Court to hear Kalu’s 

appeal Feb 7 

By Onozure Dania 

LAGOS—THE Court of 

Appeal, Lagos 

Division, yesterday, 

adjourned till February, 7, 

2019, to hear an appeal filed 

by former Abia State 

Governor, Dr. Orji Uzor 

Kalu, against the verdict of 

Justice Mohammed Idris of 

a Federal High Court in 

Lagos, which dismissed his 

no-case submission over an 

alleged fraud preferred 

against him and two others 

by the Economic and 

Financial Crimes 

Commission, EFCC. 

The Court will also hear 

separate appeals filed by 

Kalu’s co-accused, Udeh 

Jones Udeogu and Slok 

Nigeria Limited, in similar 

circumstance. 

The presiding justice, 

Justice Garuba Lawal, fixed 

the date after listening to 

arguments of appellants’ 

lawyers; S. E. Elema, SAN, 

Solo Akuma, SAN, and K. 

C. Nwofo, SAN, over the 

Reddington Hospital re-accredited 

as int'l provider of quality healthcare 

R Hospital EDDINGTON 

has been 

re-accredited by 

COHSASA (Council for 

Health Service 

Accreditation of Southern 

Africa) for another three 

years until 2021 having 

recently been assessed and 

GMD & Chief Surgeon at 

Reddington Hospitals, Dr 

Olutunde Lalude. 

transmission of record of 

appeal. 

EFCC was represented by 

Adebisi Adeniyi. 

Justice Idris had on July, 

31, 2018, held that Kalu has 

some explanations to make 

particularly on certain 

documents tendered by the 

EFCC as exhibits in 

evidence against him. 

Justice Idris said: “I am of 

the view that the defendants 

have some explanations to 

make in the light of the 

exhibits and the evidence so 

far. Again, I will say no 

more. The no-case 

submission is dismissed.” 

Dissatisfied, Kalu through 

his lawyer, Chief Awa Kalu, 

SAN, filed a notice of 

appeal dated August 1, 

2018, asking that the lower 

court’s verdict be 

overturned. 

The former governor is 

consequently asking the 

Court of Appeal to set 

aside the verdict of the 

Federal High Court 

delivered in respect of 

the case on July 31. 

certified consistent in 

meeting rigorous 

international quality 

standards in its healthcare 

practices. The hospital was 

initially accredited in July 

2012 when it became the 

first independent hospital 

in Nigeria to achieve the 

award and in 2015, became 

the first healthcare facility 

in Nigeria to be reaccredited 

at the first 

attempt. 

COHSASA is an 

international accreditation 

organisation certified by 

the global regulating 

accreditation body, ISQua 

(International Society for 

Quality in Healthcare) to 

audit healthcare 

institutions against 

approved internationallyaccepted 

standards, and to 

certify them when they 

meet the requirements. 

COHSASA is the only 

healthcare accreditation 

organisation in Sub- 

Saharan Africa. 

ROTARY'S FREE EYE SCREENING: From left: Rotn. Bamidele Ogunbanwo, 

member, Rotary Club of Gbagada; Rotn. Faithia Adekeye, member; Rotn. 

Tawa Ayeni, President, Rotary Club of Ikorodu; Rotn. Basirat Giwa, President, 

Rotary Club of Gbagada; Mr. Oluranti Alabi, Special Marshal; one of the 

beneficiaries and Mr. Julius Ozallo, Special Marshal, at the free eye screening 

for motorists by Rotary Club of Gbagada, in collaboration with Federal Road 

Safety Corps, Zone RS2.0 Command Headquarters, at the flag-off of FRSC Ember 

Month campaign at Madojutimi Park, Ikorodu, Lagos. Photo: Bunmi Azeez. 

2018 WORLD AIDS DAY: 90% of infected Lagosians 

to know status by 2020 — LSACA BOSS 

By Sola Ogundipe 

LAGOS—THE Lagos 

State AIDS Control 

Agency, LSACA, said it 

has put in place 

measures to ensure that 

90 percent of Persons 

Living With HIV/AIDS 

in the state know their 

status by 2020. 

Chief Executive 

Officer, LSACA, Dr. 

Oluseyi Temowo 

disclosed this in Lagos 

ahead of the 2018 World 

AIDS Day on December 

1st with the theme: 

‘Know Your Status’. 

Temowo said: “Lagos is 

not a high burden state 

for HIV because the 

prevalence rate is about 

0.5 percent which 

equates to less than 

140,000 persons living 

with HIV/AIDS. 

Currently around 74,000 

of those identified to be 

living with the virus are 

accessing treatment and 

efforts are on to scale up 

the process so that more 

people are put on 

treatment.” 

Explaining the 

significance of the 90-90- 

90 initiative, he said: “The 

first 90 means 90 percent 

of those living with HIV 

must know their status by 

2020; the second 90 is that 

90 percent of those that 

know their status must be 

accessing Antiretroviral 

Therapy, ART, by 2020, and 

lastly, the third 90 means 

that 90 percent of those 

accessing ART must be 

virally suppressed by 2020. 

Temowo noted that 

attaining viral 

suppression would not 

be realised if the 2018 

theme that focuses on the 

1st 90 was not 

implemented and 

ultimately eradicate new 

infections according to 

the 2030 Roadmap. 

He said human 

resources needed to 

tackle the burden still 

had gaps in terms of 

training, requisite 

knowledge and will to 

•Currently 140,000 identified, 74,000 under treatment 

tackle challenges 

confronting the HIV 

response. 

The Lagos State 

Government through 

LSACA, had from 

December 2017 to 

November 2018, embarked 

on what he referred to as 

“4 by 3” strategy of 

reaching the three 

Senatorial districts of the 

state thereby increasing the 

uptake of HIV Testing 

Services (HTS) across the 

state especially to hard-to- 

GRAZING: Herdsmen don’t see anything 

wrong invading farmlands — LAGOS CP 

By Monsuru 

Olowoopejo 

L Commissioner AGOS—THE 


Police, Lagos State 

Command, Edgar 

Imohimi, yesterday, 

warned that anyone 

seeking services of 

herdsmen in the state 

should sensitise them on 

illegal grazing, saying 

they don’t see anything 

wrong grazing their 

cattle on people’s farms. 

Imohimi stressed that the 

warning became 

imperative following 

herdsmen and farmers 

clash in Badagry recently 

which was later nipped in 

the bud by the police 

through the introduction of 

community policing 

strategy. 

The Commissioner, 

who gave the warning 

while reeling out the law 

enforcement agency’s 

achievement at the 12th 

Town Hall Meeting on 

security in Victoria 

Island, hinted that 

proper orientation would 

further prevent such 

clashes in the state. 

He said: “What 

happened was that the 

owner of the farm hired 

some herdsmen to rare 

cattle for him. As the weeks 

went by, the herdsmen 

deployed the cattle to graze 

on another person’s farm in 

Badagry and destroyed 

crops on the farmland. On 

learning about the crisis, 

I invited all parties. 

“And during 

interrogation, the 

herders did not see 

anything wrong in what 

they had done. They felt 

that their cattle needed 

to graze and they 

Resist what can mortgage your 

future, Salis tells students 

By Agbonkhese 

Oboh 

LAGOS—HIGH Chief 

Owolabi Salis has told 

students to resist any form 

of politicking that will 

mortgage their future, 

stressing the need to change 

a system that enslaves the 

majority for the benefit of a 

few. 

Salis, Lagos State 

governorship candidate of 

Alliance for Democracy, AD, 

gave the charge as keynote 

speaker at a one-day 

conference hosted by 

National Union of Lagos 

State Students in 

conjunction with Nigerian 

Youths Movement Lagos 

State, the Federal College 

of Education, Technical, 

Akoka, Lagos. 

Speaking on Vote Buying 

and Graduate Students’ 

Destiny, Salis said: “A 

system that does not 

allow graduates occupy 

offices where they can 

use their skills effectively, 

but ensures only the 

children of the elites get 

good jobs is slavery. 

reach communities. 

Similarly, he stated that, 

HIV sensitisation and 

screening were conducted 

among 2,230 market 

women and men and 

identified positive clients 

were linked to care. 

deployed them to where 

they could get grass. But 

I was able to sensitize 

them that their action 

was injurious to others 

who have invested their 

money on the farmland.” 

“Vote buying is one of the 

tools of such a system and 

so you must do everything 

legal to resist such a 

system, otherwise you will 

end up as drivers of danfo, 

keke or as okadamen while 

the children of those that 

have taken over our 

commonwealth will take 

better jobs.” 

Speaking earlier at the 

graduation of 510 

beneficiaries of the Owolabi 

Salis Foundation at Onike 

Iwaya, the Star Alliance 

consensus candidate said 

although political 

candidates can jointly 

ensure peaceful 

electioneering, himself, his 

party and supporters have 

never and will never be 

advocates of violence. 

While expressing her 

gratitude, one of the 

beneficiaries, Mrs Anne 

Adeba, who said she can 

now manufacture soap in 

any form, urged the AD 

governorship candidate to 

do more for women when 

he gets into office, saying 

the Nigerian society is not 

friendly to women.


ONDO PRIMARIES SAGA: Akeredolu 

loses another loyalist to AA 

By Dayo Johnson 

A 

K U R E — 

ANOTHER 

loyalist of Governor 

Rotimi Akeredolu of 

Ondo State, Dr Olatunji 

Julius Adeoye- Felder, 

yesterday, dumped the 

All Progressives 

Congress, APC, to 

contest on the Action 

Alliance platform. 

Felder failed to pick the 

Senate ticket following the 

automatic ticket given to 

the three serving senators 

APC WOMEN VISIT 

SANWO-OLU: From 

right; All Progressives 

Congress, APC deputy 

governorship candidate 

in Lagos State, Dr. 

Obafemi Hamzat; wife 

of Lagos State APC 

governorship 

candidate, Dr. Ibijoke 

Sanwo-Olu and wife of 

the 

deputy 

governorship 

candidate, Mrs. 

Oluremi Hamzat, 

during a visit of the 

APC Women Group to 

the Babajide Sanwo-Olu 

Campaign Office, in 

Ikoyi yesterday. 

representing the state at 

the National Assembly by 

the party’s National 

Working Committee, 

NWC. 

Speaking after a 

consultative meeting with 

leaders and other major 

stakeholders from his 

district, Felder said: “It 

would be uncharitable on 

our part to abandon the 

collective wishes of the 

people simply because 

someone procured an 

automatic ticket.” 

His words: “Our people 

have demonstrated 

enough commitment to 

democratic ethos. The 

people have spoken 

unequivocally that they 

are with us and we would 

not disappoint. 

“My decision to run for 

the Senate seat would not 

affect the re-election bid 


President 

Muhammadu Buhari and 

we have nothing against 

Governor Rotimi 

Akeredolu but we must 

do everything 

legitimately possible to 

VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 — 11 

•APC reacts 

win this mandate for the 

people.” 

Ondo APC reacts 

Reacting, the APC in the 

state, through its Publicity 

Secretary, Mr Alex Kalejaye 

described Felder as a 

notable figure in the party 

while he was with the party. 

Kalejaye pointed out that 

the party would miss 

Felder’s contributions in 

Ondo South but would 

renew its strategy to ensure 

victory for the candidates of 

the party in the state. 

NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

MDAs must invest in ICT 

skills to boost GDP, create 

jobs — DBI 

A BUJA—NIGERIA’S 

Digital Bridge 

Institute, DBI, yesterday, 

urged Ministries, 

Departments and 

Agencies, MDAs, to invest 

in Information 

Communication 

Technology, ICT, skills to 

stimulate growth and boost 

Nigeria's Gross Domestic 

Product, GDP. 

The Chairman, 

Governing Board of DBI, 

Mr Titi Omo-Ettu, said 

this at the institute’s oneday 

interactive forum with 

Directors of Human 

Resources and Information 

Technology, IT, of various 

government agencies. 

Omo-Ettu said: “It is my 

hope that as leaders in your 

various organisations, you 

will make the right 

decisions by recognising 

the need to give ICT 

training its deserved 

priority. 

“We must invest 

consciously in digital skills 

acquisition through 

training and retraining not 

only to remain relevant but 

to prepare the workforce 

for the unfolding digital 

revolution.” 

According to him, 58 per 

cent of organisations would 

recruit employees with 

specialised knowledge and 

experience as both hard 

and soft skills would be vital 

for future vocations. 

He said: “Statistics show 

that by 2020, 85 per cent to 

90 per cent of jobs will 

require ICT skills. 

“While science, 

technology, engineering 

and mathematics 

professions are projected to 

have the highest growth 

rate, computer occupations 

are expected to have the 

highest job growth. 

“This highlights the need 

to have a rethink on how 

we view jobs and skills to 

ensure that the population 

is not left behind” 

In his remarks, 

Administrator of DBI, Dr Ike 

Adinde, said that feedback 

from the interaction would 

go a long way in helping 

the institute redesign and 

represent its programmes 

in 2019. 

Adinde said: “It will help 

the institute to determine 

where skills are mostly 

needed in ICT for the 

purpose of supporting 

goals and objectives.” 

Lions Club sponsors cataract 

surgeries for 15 patients 

76-YEAR-OLD BOUNDARY DISPUTE: Ekiti 

govt warns against violence 

By Rotimi 

Ojomoyela 

A DO-EKITI—THE 

Ekiti State 

Government, yesterday, 

appealed to communities 

across the state to always 

seek amicable resolution of 

disputes, rather than 

resorting to violence. 

Deputy Governor, 

Otunba Bisi Egbeyemi, 

made the appeal while 

meeting with the people of 

Ise, Orun and Emure 

Communities over a 76- 

year-old boundary dispute. 

At the meeting were 

monarchs, chiefs and 

leaders of three towns on 

the boundary dispute, 

which started in 1942. 

A statement by the Special 

Assistant (Media) to the 

Deputy Governor, 

Odunayo Ogunmola, 

revealed that the meeting 

was consequent upon a 

petition filed by the Orun 

Community alongside 

other documents alleging 

encroachment by Ise and 

Emure. 

The meeting was 

attended by the Arinjale of 

Ise, Oba Adetunji Ajayi; the 

Elemure of Emure, Oba 

Emmanuel Adebayo and 

the Olowuro of Orun and 

Oba Aderounmu Adewumi. 

Egbeyemi, who 

expressed surprise that the 

boundary dispute which 

erupted in 1942 during the 

colonial administration was 

allowed to fester for such a 

long time, stressed that 

Presidential panel moves to recover 

$20m, landed property for NPA 

By Ajayi Omeiza 

ABUJA—THE Special 

Presidential 

Investigation Panel for the 

Recovery of Public Property, 

SPIP, said, yesterday, it has 

initiated action towards 

recovery of over $20million 

owed the Nigerian Ports 

Authority, NPA, by some 

unnamed entities. 

AIn a statement by Head, 

Media 

and 

Communications of the 

panel, Lucie-Ann: “The 

said money is unremitted 

revenue of NPA domiciled 

in Heritage Bank PLC. 

According to the 

statement, also to be 

government would not 

allow the situation to 

degenerate into violence. 

Egbeyemi said: “Allowing 

this type of dispute to 

fester for too long is not 

good because we have 

eminent citizens in the 

three communities who 

are qualified to settle this 

matter. 

recovered are several 

hectares of land and 

houses belonging to the 

NPA in Lagos, Delta, 

Rivers and Cross River 

states, “which have been 

illegally taken over or 

encroached upon by 

squatters and 

unscrupulous 

disengaged public 

officers”. 

The presidential panel, 

led by its chairman, Chief 

Okoi Obono-Obla, 

recalled how it previously 

recovered part of Agura 

Hotel, “which had been 

fraudulently annexed by 

some persons and 

agencies for the NPA also.” 

“You are too close to be 

fighting and this may turn 

your children and people 

against themselves and 

that is what we want to 

prevent.” 

The peace meeting was 

adjourned to March 5, 2019 

for Ise and Emure 

communities to present 

their defence and 

documents on the issues 

raised by Orun community. 

The statement reads: “In 

a related development, the 

Presidential Panel recently 

arrested, released on bail, 

and is prosecuting a serving 

Senator and APC 

governorship candidate for 

lmo State, Senator Hope 

Uzodinma, for failure to 

execute a contract for the 

dredging of the Calabar 

Channel by his company 

Niger Global Services, 

years after collecting over 

$12 million for the project, 

from the NPA. SPIP 

remains committed to 

supporting government in 

its fight against corruption 

in the area of recovery of 

illegally acquired assets.” 

By Adetutu Adesoji 

LAGOS—LIONS Club 

International District 

404B-1 Nigeria said it has 

successfully sponsored 

cataract surgeries on 15 

patients. 

Speaking during the 

presentation of Lion 

Adekunle Fasakin NLCF as 

4th President of Lagos 

PDG, Yinka Bolarinwa 

Lions Club, the District 

Governor, Lion Lekan 

Babalola PMJF, Fashakin 

said: “On our second focus, 

vision, which we started 

last month, we were able to 

give out 150 pairs of 

glasses, we sponsored 15 

cataract surgeries and 

donated 20 white canes to 

the blind. “These are some 

of the things we do in the 

Lions Club. Our other 

agenda is feeding the 

hungry, protecting the 

environment and 

eliminating childhood 

StarTimes unveils Xmas promo 

LAGOS—PAY 

TV 

company, StarTimes 

has announced a special 

50% discount off 

subscription rates this 

festive season for its 

subscribers. 


company, the offer kicks off 

on December 1 till January 

31, 2019. 

During this period, 

subscribers who renew 

their subscription for two 

months will automatically 

get 50% discount on their 

2nd month subscription. 

Speaking on the 

initiative, the Public 

cancer from our society.” 

He urged women to join 

the band wagon of the 

International Lions Club, 

noting that women are the 

engine of growth as he 

advocated an increase in 

the 32% women 

membership of the service 

club. The new president in 

his acceptance speech 

highlighted his core 

projects for the 2018/2019 

Lions year which include 

visitation and donations to 

orphanages, donating 

books to schools and 

visitations to hospitals. 

The public presentation of 

Lion Adekunle Fasakin 

NLCF as new president of 

the Lagos PDG Yinka 

Bolarinwa Lions Club as 

well as installation of the 

board of directors for the 

2018/2019 Lions year, 

induction of new club 

members and fund 

raising luncheon for club 

projects recently took 

place in Lagos. 

Relations Manager, 

StarTimes Nigeria, Kunmi 

Balogun said: “The 

Christmas season often 

come swith a lot of 

expenses, hence our 

reason to make it a bit more 

bearable by offering 50% 

discount when you pay for 

2 months. 

“When subscribers pay 

for two months on any 

bouquet, between 

December 1st and January 

31st, they enjoy 50% 

discount on the second 

month plus instant gifts at 

any StarTimes business 

hall nationwide.”

12—VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

DISCOs knock Obaseki over 

‘maltreatment’ of BEDC mgt 

By Chris Ochayi 

B Association 

ENIN—THE 


Nigerian Electricity 

Distributors, ANED, has 

faulted the Governor of Edo 

State, Godwin Obaseki for 

walking the Managing 

Director of Benin Electricity 

Distribution Company, 

BEDC, Mrs. Funke 

Osibodu, out of his office 

during a meeting in Benin 

City. 

Executive Director for 

Research and Advocacy, 

Hubmart rolls out second raffle 

draw tomorrow 

ON the heels of the 

success of the first 

raffle draw of the ongoing 

Awoof promo and prize 

presentation ceremony, 

indigenous retail chain, 

Hubmart stores, is set to 

hold raffle draws to 

produce the second set of 

winners. The draw which 

is the second of three 

scheduled raffle draws, will 

see loyal customers win 

shopping vouchers and 

freebies as part of a largesse 

that will exceed the N3.5 

million mark and is billed 

to hold tomorrow, Saturday 

December 1 at the Ikeja 

GRA store. 

Vice President, 

Marketing, Cheng Fuller, 

stated that the retail chain 

was pleased with the 

massive participation of her 

ANED, Sunday Oduntan, 

while responding to media 

queries on the incident, 

accused the governor of 

attempting to sacrifice the 

management of BEDC on 

the alter of politics. 

According to him, “What 

is most unfortunate about 

the whole episode is that 

there is a 

misunderstanding about 

how the power sector works 

and this has led to the 

Governor’s expectations 

from BEDC.’’ 

Ayade approves Igbo City, 

donates N20m to Igbo 

community 

CALABAR—TO boost 

economic development 

of Cross River State, 

Governor Ben Ayade has 

donated N20 million and 

approved a piece of land for 

the Igbo community to be 

known as Igbo City. 

The N20 million is to be 

used to commence the 

building of the of Igbo City. 

Three areas have been 

mapped out, the Igbo 

community will choose one 

of the three. 

Ayade made the 

donations during the 

Ohanaeze Ndigbo cultural 

day celebration held at the 

University of Calabar 

Stadium, where he was 

honoured with a chieftaincy 

title. 

Cross River State 

Ohanaeze President, Mr 

Ugorji Nwabueze who 

presented the award to the 

governor said the honour 

was in recognition of 

Ayade’s achievements in 

the area of industrialisation, 

promising that the Igbo 

community will support 

Ayade's re-election bid. 

Delta PDP chieftain condemns 

presence of service chiefs at 

Buhari's campaign flag off 

A 

Chieftain of the 

Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, in Delta State, 

Chief Sunny Onuesoke has 

described the presence of 

service chiefs at the launch 

of President Buhari’s 

Campaign as an aberration. 

Onuesoke, who spoke to 

journalists at Nnamdi 

Azikiwe International 

Airport, Abuja on his way 

to attend an overseas 

environmental programme 

pointed out that the 

presence of the service 

chiefs at the president's 


campaign flag off ceremony 

had shown where the 

election pendulum will be 

swinging to in the coming 

presidential election. 

According to him, “It is a 

total aberration and against 

the doctrine of neutrality. 

Where on earth would 

Service Chiefs be 

attending a Presidential 

flag off? We have 76 

Presidential candidates 

and the country Service 

Chief decided to attend the 

flag off ceremony of one 

candidate.’’ 

teeming customers in all 

Hubmart activations and 

was always happy to share 

delight. According to Fuller, 

“We were pleased with the 

customers' participation in 

our Awoof promotions but 

even more pleasantly 

surprised at the massive 

turnout we experienced 

during the just concluded 

Black Friday promotions. 

For this, we are deeply 

grateful to you our beloved 

loyal customers”. 

He further stated that 

following the black Friday 

sales, the store will have its 

first ever Orange Friday 

Fiesta, commencing 

December 14, which will 

see Hubmart offer 

customers bumper flash 

discounts on electronics, 

alcoholic beverages, fresh 

produce, groceries as well 

as lots of other surprises. 

A’Ibom Assembly crisis: Akpabio, Speaker 

bicker over alleged assassination plot 

•Ex-gov plotting to kill me, Speaker insists 

•His claims are childish, says Akpabio 

•As Police vacate Assembly complex 

By Clifford 

Ndujihe, Harris- 

Okon Emmanuel, 

Chioma Onuegbu 

& Yinka Ajayi 

SPEAKER of Akwa 

Ibom State House of 

Assembly, Mr. Onofiok 

Luke, yesterday, said the 

immediate past governor of 

the state, Senator Godswill 

Akpabio is plotting to kill 

him, accusing him of being 

behind the crisis in the 

House. 

Senator Akpabio, who 

represents Akwa Ibom 

North West on the platform 

of All Progressives 

Congress, APC, dismissed 

the allegation as ‘’a lie from 

the pit of hell.’’ 

These came as the Police 

were absent at the Complex 

where the lawmakers held 

a valedictory session. 

Vanguard could not confirm 

at press time if the absence 

of the Police was in 

response to a court order 

restraining it from 

barricading the Complex. 

The state government had 

last Wednesday, obtained 

an injunction from a 

Federal High Court sitting 

in Uyo restraining the 

Police from further 

inhibiting access to the 

House. 

However, the five sacked 

lawmakers were absent at 

the plenary held in honour 

of a former lawmaker. 

Speaker crying wolf 

—Akpabio 

Reacting to the Speaker’s 

allegation, Akpabio, in a 

statement by his Special 

Assistant on Media, Mr. 

Anietie Ekong, said the 

PDP chieftain had adopted 

the strategy of crying wolf. 

In the statement, Akpabio 

referred to Luke simply as 

the member representing 

Nsit Ubium State 

Constituency. 

He said: ‘’For the 

avoidance of doubt, we 

wish to state categorically 

that Senator Akpabio has 

not sent anyone to 

assassinate Luke. He has 

neither reason nor 

motivation to do so. The 

Senator will never 

subscribe to any plot to 

eliminate any Akwa Ibom 

son or any human being for 

that matter, let alone 

Onofiok Luke who had 

served him as his Personal 

Assistant while he was the 

governor of Akwa Ibom 

State. This latest outburst by 

Luke is a further 

confirmation of our caution 

on the attempt to denigrate 

Senator Akpabio since he 

defected from the PDP to 

APC. 

‘’The statement by Luke 

is not only spurious but 

false and malicious and the 

figment of his wild 

imagination. Senator 

Akpabio takes very strong 

exception to this campaign 

of calumny by Luke and 

others and will not take this 

accusation lightly.’’ 

On his part, Luke, in a 

statement by his Chief 

Press Secretary, Mr. Kufre 

Okon, said Ekong made a 

‘’futile attempt at 

disentangling Senator 

Godswill Akpabio from the 

net and web of his 

conspiracy.’’ 

Recalling that Akpabio 

opposed Luke’s election as 

a lawmaker and later 

Speaker of the House of 

Assembly, Okon said: ‘’By 

this press statement where 

Senator Godswill Akpabio 

refuses to address the Right 

Honourable Speaker by his 

office, rather, he addressed 

him as the member 

representing Nsit Ubium 

State Constituency, he has 

clearly shown to the world 

that his hands are actively 

in the plot to destabilise the 

state Assembly. 

Akpabio wants to 

kill me —Speaker 

‘’May we reiterate that the 

Honourable Speaker of the 

Akwa Ibom State House of 

Assembly, Onofiok Luke 

stands by his earlier 

statement on the sponsored 

assassination attempt on 

him by Senator Akpabio 

and at the appropriate time, 

will take necessary actions. 

The world should know that 

if anything untoward 

happens to the Speaker, 

Senator Akpabio and his 

wife should be held 

responsible.’’ 

Contacted, yesterday, on 

the speaker’s fresh 

allegation, Senator 

Akpabio’s Media Aide, Mr. 

Jackson Udom, dismissed 

it as ‘’act of childishness’’ 

NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

NDDC seeks NASS assistance on 

fund recovery 

By Egufe 

Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT — 

NIGER Delta 

Development Commission, 

NDDC, has appealed to the 

National Assembly to assist 

in the recovery of 

outstanding funds accrued 

to the commission’s 

statutory funders. 

Managing Director of the 

commission, Mr. Nsima 

Ekere, made the appeal 

when the House of 

Representatives 

Committee on NDDC 

visited the commission’s 

office in Port Harcourt, 

Rivers State. 

Ekere told the visitors led 

by the committee chairman, 

Nicholas Mutu, that NDDC 

would appreciate an 

expedited process that 

would enable it access 

funds. 

His words: “Recall that 

you had invited 

Accountant-General of the 

INSTALLATION: 

From left, Chaplain to 

the Archbishop of 

Lagos Methodist 

Church, Rev Festus 

Fadele; the newly 

Installed Archbishop 

of Lagos, Most Rev 

Isaac Ayobami; Very 

Rev John Solubi; and 

the Church PRO, 

Aramide Noibi, after 

the installation of the 

Most Rev Olawuyi as 

the Archdiocesan 

Bishop of Lagos, held 

at the Wesley 

C a t h e d r a l 

Olowogbowo, Lagos. 

adding that the senator 

stands on his earlier 

statement. 

APC passes vote of 

confidence on Police 

Meanwhile, the state 

chapter of APC passed a 

vote of confidence on the 

new Commissioner of 

Police, Musa Kimo, 

describing him as a 

professional policeman 

who knows his onions. 

The state chairman of the 

party, Ini Okopido made the 

disclosure while 

addressing newsmen in 

Uyo. 

He said: “We in APC 

have absolute confidence in 

the new Commissioner of 

Police, who was posted to 

the state a few days ago. 

We have not seen any form 

of partisanship in what the 

CP has done.’’ 

PDP reacts 

However, the PDP called 

on the federal government 

to overlook calls by the APC 

to declare a state of 

emergency in the state, 

saying that Governor 

Udom Emmanuel is 

capable of resolving all the 

issues in the state 

legislature. 

A statement by the state 

chairman, Obong Paul 

Ekpo, said the call for state 

of emergency in Akwa 

Ibom confirmed what he 

termed the desire to take 

over power in the state. 

Federation and officials of 

the Ministry of Finance on 

the issue of outstanding 

payments due to the 

NDDC from the Federation 

Account. That issue is still 

pending and the 

reconciliation which the 

President ordered is yet to 

be concluded. 

“We will appreciate your 

support to push the process 

so we can access these 

funds to enable us continue 

to work for the progress of 

the Niger Delta, ‘’he added.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018—13

14 — VANGUARD FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

Group sues FIRS over 

Atiku’s tax receipts 

By Henry Ojelu 

A 

civil rights group, 

Committee for the 

Protection of Peoples 

Mandate, CPPM has 

dragged the Federal 

inland Revenue Service, 

FIRS, before a Federal 

High Court, Abuja over its 

refusal to release the tax 

receipts of People’s 

Democratic Party, PDP 

presidential candidate 

Atiku Abubarkar. 

CPPM had on November 

16, 2018, written to FIRS 

using the Freedom of 

Information Act, FOI 

asking for details of Atiku’s 

tax receipts from 2015 to 

2016. 

Following refusal by 

FIRS to release the 

requested information 

within seven working days, 

CPPM yesterday formally 

approached the Federal 

High Court Abuja for an 

Order of Mandamus 

compelling FIRS to make 

G E R I A , 

yesterday, 

expressed readiness to roll 

out 5G networks just as it 

kick-started preparations to 

make the roll out by 2020, a 

success. 

The country consequently 

earmarked three spectrum 

bands 26 GHz, 38GHz and 

42GHz bands for trial in 

Lagos and other parts of the 

country. 

This came as the umbrella 

body of Global System for 

Mobile communications 

companies, GSM 

Association, GSMA 

highlighted modalities that 

would help the country 

achieve a robust 5G 

platform by 2020. 

Speaking at a 

collaborative meeting 

between Nigeria 

Communication Company, 

NCC and GSMA in Abuja, 

to facilitate 5G policy and 

spectrum, the Executive 

Vice Chairman of the NCC, 

Prof Umar Danbatta, said 

although the NCC was not 

ready at the moment, in 

terms of policy and 

regulations, it however 

kick-started processes and 

reserved three frequency 

bands to facilitate 5G roll 

:Vanguard :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

available either directly to 

it or to the court. 

The group in a statement 

said it had reasonably 

grounds to believe that the 

PDP flag bearer might not 

have been paying his tax 

till date. 

The statement jointly 

signed by CPPM National 

Cordiantor, Nelson 

Ekujumi and Trustee, 

Solomon Sobade reads: 

“From our private 

investigation, it has come 

to our knowledge that 

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar may 

not have been paying his 

personal income taxes as at 

when due. We wonder how 

he intends to get Nigeria 

working again if he has 

been a tax dodger. 

“We have instituted this 

court action for the purpose 

of enlightening Nigerians 

about the electoral process 

as well as campaigning for 

the accountability of public 

office holders and 

aspirants.” 

Nigeria begins preparations for 

5G roll out 

By Prince Osuagwu 

& Emmanuel 

Elebeke 

N 

I 

...Earmarks three 

spectrum bands 

for trial 

out. 

He promised that Nigeria 

would do everything 

possible to stay ahead in 

innovation and new tech 

developments, considering 

that economies all over the 

world had become 

dependent on mobile 

communications. 

He said: “In the world we 

live today, mobile 

communication is a cardinal 

tool of economic 

development, growth and 

integration, and the mobile 

industry is a key enabler of 

productivity across 

economies and societies. 

“The mobile industry is 

not only a significant 

contributor to the economic 

activities of Nigeria, but also 

towards the growth of other 

sectors of the economy. The 

Nigerian Communications 

Commission has been, and 

continues to play a key role 

in the development of 

mobile communication in 

Nigeria, and I am 

delighted to be part of this 

event today. This provides 

and avenue for regulators, 

operators, investors, and 

other 

stakeholders to examine, 

share and constructively 

exchange ideas.” 

AHouse 

BUJA—THE 


Representatives, yesterday 

faulted non-constitution of 

the board of National 

Pension Commission, 

PenCom, and resolved to 

set up an ad-hoc committee 

to investigate the activities 

of the commission from 

April 2017 to date. 

This came as the House 

urged the Federal 

Government to abide by the 

constitution of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria and 

PenCom Act and send a 

constituted PenCom 

board to the Senate for 

confirmation within 

Ahmed tackles rising early marriage cases in Kwara 

By Demola Akinyemi Governor Abdulfatah 

I State LORIN—KWARA 

Ahmed, who was 

represented by the 

government has Commissioner for Women 

described as unacceptable Affairs, Hajia Taibat Ahmed, 

the high rate of early child said: “We will continue to 

marriage in the state and seek partnership and give 

vowed to make those support to individuals, nong 

o v e r n m e n t a l 

involved to face the 

consequences. 

organisations, NGOs, civil 

Speaking during a one society organisations, 

day seminar on the rights CSOs, to address issues 

of a girl organised by affecting women and girls 

Women and Youth and the community at large, 

Development Initiative, with the interest of ending 

WOYODEV, in Ilorin, child marriage and other 

Reps decry non-constitution of PenCom’s 

board ...To probe 19 months activities of commission 

By Emman 

Ovuakporie 

seven days. 

The recommendations of 

the House followed the 

adoption of a motion by a 

member, Benjamin Wayo 

(APC Benue). 

Wayo brought the motion 

entitled: “Motion to 

investigate the violation of 

PenCom Act, Illegal and 

Unlawful Appointments 

and Provisions and Use of 

Public Funds,” to the floor 

of the House under matters 

of urgent national 

importance. 

Wayo while moving the 

motion said: “In April 2017, 

the Federal Government of 

Nigeria announced the 

constitution or composition 

of the Board of the 

National Pension 

Commission (PenCom), 

made up of Chairman, 

UTME: JAMB to commence 2019 registration in December 

ABUJA—THE Joint 

Admissions and 

Matriculation Board, 

JAMB, said yesterday it was 

set to commence registration 

for 2019/2020 Unified 

Tertiary Matriculation 

Examination, UTME, in 

December as scheduled. 

The Head of Media of the 

Board, Dr. Fabian 

Benjamin, announced this 

while addressing newsmen 

during the conduct of 

promotion exercise for the 

relevant Nigerian Customs Service, 

NCS, at the board’s 

Computer Based Test (CBT) 

Centre in Abuja. 

child right issues.'' Child 

marriage, which has its root 

cause in socio-cultural 

beliefs, ignorance and 

poverty, has various side 

effects as it puts our girls at 

high risk of health 

complications, including 

HIV, VVF and maternal 

mortality.” 

Earlier, Executive Director, 

WOYODEV Tosin Ajayi, 

said her organisation had so 

far registered no fewer than 

6,000 girls vulnerable to 

early marriage. 

According to him, no 

specific date has been fixed 

for the commencement of 

the registration yet. 

He, however, said that 

plans were underway to do 

so as soon as possible as 

the board was initially 

waiting for the 

pronouncement of the 

Presidency on the 

reduction of the 

examinations fee, which 

was formally announced 

on Wednesday. 

The Federal Executive 

Director General and four 

members as Executive 

Commissioners 

respectively. “ 

He said 19 months 

after the announcement 

of the composition of the 

Board , members were 

yet to assume office, 

saying “As a statutory 

A g e n c y , t h e 

appointment or the Board 

members is made subject to 

the confirmation of the 

Senate, upon the request 

of the President to that 

effect, but which request 

has up till now not been 

made to the Senate by the 

President. 

He said the Net Assets 

Value (NAV) of the 

contributory Pension fund 

as at October 28, 2018 

stood at N8.779 trillion with 

Council, FEC, on 

Wednesday approved the 

downward review of the 

examination registration 

fees from N5,000 to N3,500 

effective from January 

2019. 

The Minister of 

Education, Malam Adamu 

Adamu, announced this 

after the meeting. 

Benjamin said it was 

commendable what the 

President had done as he 

was someone, who had 

always had the interest of 

FOUNDER'S DAY: 

From left; The wife of the 

Governor of Ogun State, 

Mrs. Olufunso Amosun, 

Headmaster/CEO. 

Grange School, Guy 

Cassarchis, his Wife, Mrs 

Dominata Kabessa and 

Chairperson of 

Governing council, 

Grange School, Mrs 

Awuneba Ajumogobia 

and former Minister, 

Odein Ajumogobia, 

during the 60th founders 

day commemoration 

service of Grange School, 

held in Lagos yesterday. 

Photo: Kehinde Shonola. 

the number of contributors 

also grew to 8.90 million to 

date. 

Wayo expressed concern 

that in absence of a proper 

structure put in place i.e the 

commission’s Board, the 

N8.779 trillion was left in 

the care of an Acting 

Director General. 

“The Acting Director- 

General, Mrs. Dahir Umar 

has been acting unilaterally 

without any backing of the 

law increased her terminal 

benefits and that of other 

Senior Staff of the 

Commission by an 

outrageous 300 percent, 

and has also jerked up the 

number of PenCom 

General Managers from 10 

to 17 clearly in breach of 

extant laws governing the 

institution of PenCom.” 

the masses at heart and 

would prove to ensure that 

no Nigerian was deprived 

of tertiary education. 

“The president has 

overtime, expressed 

concern that the charges 

were high. Our consistent 

remittance has proven that 

something could actually 

be done and even if 

charges are reduced, 

examinations can still be 

conducted with no 

service suffering any 

issue of funding.'' 

Merit Abode unveils Rachel Oniga as ambassador, 

rewards customers 

FOREMOST 

real 

estate and property 

management company, 

Merit Abode Nigeria 

Limited has added 

renowned actress, Chief 

Rachel Oniga to its array of 

brand ambassadors. 

At a ceremony at its head 

office in Opebi, Ikeja, Lagos, 

the firm also splashed 

various prizes on its 

customers for what it called 

‘’their unflinching 

patronage over the years.’’ 

Speaking at the event, 

Managing Director of the 

firm, Mr. Oludotun Oseni 

said: ‘’The decision to adopt 

Chief Rachel Oniga as a 

brand ambassador of this 

company is based on her 

pedigree as an achiever, an 

icon and a public figure with 

an unimpeachable 

character, and we know that 

associating with such a 

person will boost the profile 

of our business, which is 

laid on honesty, integrity 

and efficiency. 

‘’We are identifying with 

credible people like Prince 

Jide Kosoko and Chief 

Oniga to send a message to 

prospective customers that 

what we are doing is real, 

as they will realise that 

these are professionals who 

would not want their hardearned 

reputation to be 

soiled. Prince Jide Kosoko’s 

credibility has opened doors 

for us during our numerous 

trips abroad.’’ 

Also speaking, Chief 

Oniga said: ‘’After a 

vigorous research and 

useful pieces of advice from 

Prince Jide Kosoko, I am 

happy to identify with Merit 

Abode because I found out 

that associating with them 

will bring success, progress 

and no regrets. They are a 

straightforward company.''


Bishop Crowther school: Court 

restrains Anambra govt 

By Chimaobi 

Nwaiwu 

N NEWI—THE 

Federal High Court 

sitting in Awka, Anambra 

State, has restrained the 

Anambra State government 

from using any form of force 

or intimidation to stop the 

Diocese on the Niger from 

entering and using the 

Bishop Crowther Memorial 

Primary School, BCM, for 

her religious activities. 

The order was given 

when the case between the 

Diocese on the Niger and 

Anambra State 

Government came up for 

hearing on Monday, 

November 26, 2018, 

following a plea for an 

interim injunction by 

Council to the Diocese on 

the Niger, Barr Nnamdi 

Ibegbu, SAN. 

Granting the plea, the 

presiding Judge, Hon 

Justice I. B. Gafai, 

restrained the chairman, 

Onitsha North Local 

Government and the Chief 

of Staff, Government 

House, Awka from using 

any form of force to prevent 

the Diocese on the Niger 

from making use of the 

BCM premises. 

The four point judicial 

order read inter alia: “As 

sought by the applicants, 

the relief number two on the 

motion : that is to say, for 

‘An order of interim 

injunction restraining the 

4th and 5th respondents, 

whether by themselves, 

servants, agents or privies, 

however called from using 

any police officer, uniform 

men or security officers, 

whether state or federal, to 

arrest, detain or threaten 

the applicants with arrests 

or detention in any police 

station in respect of all 

matters subject of this suit 

pending the determination 

of the substantive 

fundamental rights suit ‘is 

hereby granted.“ 

Boundary dispute: Anambra, 

Kogi reach truce 

By Nwabueze 

Okonkwo 

ONITSHA—IT was 

jubilation galore for 

the warring communities of 

Eziagulu-Otu, Enugu-Otu 

and Mkpunando Aguleri, 

all in Anambra East Local 

Government Area, 

Anambra State and their 

arch rivals, Odeke, Ihile 

and Echeno communities, 

Ibaji Local Government 

Area, Kogi State, as they 

unanimously cemented 

their cease- fire agreement 

and at the same time, made 

peace covenant. 

The peaceful resolution of 

the war over land 

ownership, through oathtaking, 

(Iko Mmee) it was 

gathered, was the most 

fearful means of dispute 

settlement in the war-torn 

communities and 

neighborhood as death 

awaits defiant ones. 

On the fateful day, the 

sponsor of the peace 

settlement, Omabala 

Indigenous Youth Foundation, 

OIYF resolved to use 

the Nsukka residence of the 

Traditional Ruler of Igwe 

Ifite-Ogwari, HRM, Igwe 

Alphonsus Ofuebe, for the 

peace covenant. 

At the venue, three people 

from each state, representing 

the three communities 

at war with their rivals, 

did the oath-taking 

covenant, which is binding 

to all indigenes of the warring 

communities in both 

states. 

The three representatives 

from Kogi who swore to the 

oath included, chairmen of 

Odeke, Echeno and Ihile 

and they were Edwin 

Ajodo, Ezekiel Amajeh and 

Egwuna Gabriel while 

those from Anambra were, 

chairmen of Eziagulu-Otu, 

Chief Obidike Eneanya; 

Enugu-Otu, Chief Joe 

Obiorah; and Mkpunando/ 

Agulu-Otu, Chief 

Igboanugo Ilochi. 

We're worst hit by flood, says 

Anambra council boss 

By Nwabueze 

Okonkwo 

O NITSHA— 

CHAIRMAN of 

Ogbaru Local Government 

Area of Anambra state, 

Comrade Arinzechukwu 

Awogu has described the 

local government as the 

worst hit by the recent flood 

disaster that ravaged most 

riverine areas of the 

country. 

He explained that of all 

those living along the River 

Niger, Kainji Dam and 

Shiroro Dam, Ogbaru local 

government which has 16 

communities, out of which 

13 are located along the 

River Niger area, recorded 

as high as 11,180 

Internally displaced 

Persons, IDPs who he said 

the council authorities fed 

throughout the flooding 

period that has just 

subsided. 

Awogu who stated this 

yesterday, when members 

of the Onitsha Federated 

Chapel of the Nigeria 

Union of Journalists paid 

him a courtesy call in his 

office at Atani, further 

explained that about 23 

women were delivered of 

their new born babies, out 

of which five of them were 

delivered through 

caesarean sessions. 

Anambra Assembly crisis: Drama, as 

‘two speakers' fight over seat 

By Vincent 

Ujumadu 

AWKA—A mild drama 

ensued yesterday at 

the crisis-riden Anambra 

State House of Assembly as 

two persons struggled for 

the seat meant for the 

speaker. 

The member representing 

Aguata 11 constituency, Mr. 

Ikem Uzoezie had entered 

the assembly chambers first 

and was exchanging 

pleasantries with other 

lawmakers, but as soon as 

he saw the allegedly 

impeached speaker, Mrs. 

Rita Maduagwu arrive, he 

rushed to the speaker’s 

seat. 

Both of them dragged the 

seat for some time, while the 

lawmakers and visitors 

By Chioma 

Gabriel 

SPOKESMAN 


Ohanaeze Ndigbo, 

Chuks Ibegbu has 

announced that the apex 

Igbo body will monitor the 

2019 elections in Igbo land 

and beyond. The group will 

send its monitors 

across Igbo land and 

beyond to ensure the 

election is conducted in 

internationally established 

standard. 

He warned against any 

form of rigging by INEC, 

security agents and 

politicians and noted that 

Ohanaeze will meet early 

in January to take a position 

on the 2019 elections. 

On the killing of 

Nigerian soldiers by Boko 

Haram recently, Ibegbu 

noted that Boko Haram was 

caused by elites in the 

North and now, every body 

is paying the price. 

He commiserated with 

watched, but at a point, 

Maduagwu left the seat 

and went to her office. 

Security operatives did 

not interfere with the 

happening in the House, 

but after the drama, the 

much publicised sitting of 

the House did not take 

place. 

After making several 

telephone calls, 

Maduagwu left the 

chambers. 

The complex was 

guarded by heavy police 

presence and other security 

operatives despite the 

unsealing of the complex 

by the police on 

Wednesday. 

State Police Public 

Relations Officer, Mr. 

Haruna Mohammed had 

said that police decided to 

reopen the House of 

Assembly after being 

assured that there would 

be no breakdown of law 

and order. 

,”The Commissioner of 

Police, CP Garba Baba 

Umar has ordered for the 

Assembly complex to be 

unsealed with immediate 

effect and adequate 

security is being provided 

around the complex to 

provide safety and security 

in the area,”he said. 

Elect those who’ll 

work for the people 

—Catholic knights 

Elsewhere, in Awka, 

Knights of Saint Mulumba 

Nigeria, yesterday, urged 

Nigerians to vote those 

who have the interest of the 

country at heart in the 2019 

Ohanaeze to monitor 2019 elections 

...queries use of $1bn security fund 

the fallen soldiers and 

lambasted Garba Shehu for 

his theory that the identity 

of the fallen soldiers should 

not be made open. “These 

are peoples husbands, 

brothers, sisters and 

relations and this man is 

talking bullshit," Ibegbu 

noted. 

Expresses shock 

over Metele killing; 

queries use of $1bn 

security fund 

Expressing shock over 

the massacre of Nigerian 

soldiers at Metele in Borno 

State, Ibegbu wondered 

why and how this kind of 

tragedy would happen 

when the federal 

government recently 

budgeted $1 billion dollars 

for the war against Boko 

Haram. 

He called on President 

Muhammadu Buhari to 

explain what happened to 

the security budget and 

why the soldiers 

complained of lack of 

weapons and welfare. 

Ibegbu noted that the 

Boko Haram war is now a 

money-making venture for 

some governmant officials 

and top army officers. He 

warned that if Boko Haram 

is not completely defeated 

now by this regime , it will 

be a disaster for Nigeria in 

the future. 

On the forthcoming Igbo 

International Leadership 

Lecture and Igbo 

International Xmas Retreats 

holding at Enugu and 

Abagana, Ibegbu called on 

Ndigbo to attend the events 

in their numbers, noting 

that friends of Ndigbo are 

also invited to the occasion. 

COCSON calls for 

resignation of 

Police, EFCC 

bosses 

In another development 

, the Coalition of Civil 

general elections. 

Addressing a press 

conference as part of 

activities marking the 39th 

convention of KSM at St 

Patrick’s Catholic 

Cathedral, Awka, the 

Supreme Knight, Brother 

Diamond Ovueraye 

observed that Nigerians 

were passing through a lot 

of difficulties and therefore, 

needed leaders that would 

put smiles on their faces. 

He said: ,”In the midst 

of intractable insecurity, 

raging ethno-religious 

conflicts, pulverising 

poverty, palpable injustice, 

dilapidated infrastructure, 

worsening unemployment 

and nose-diving economy, 

the Nigerian atmosphere is 

nevertheless feverishly 

charged with politics." 

From Left, Head, Professional Standards and Development, Chartered Institute of Personnel 

Management, CIPM, Charles Ugwu; Vice President, CIPM, Wale Adediran; overall best 

graduating student, Nwoye Odinakachukwu; and Treasurer, CIPM, Nkeiru Adesogan, at the 

31st induction ceremony of CIPM in Lagos. Photo: Kehinde Shonola. 

Society Organisations of 

Nigeria,COCSON, the 

umbrella body of civil 

society groups in Nigeria 

have called for the 

immediate resignation of 

the Inspector General of 

Police and the chairman of 

the Economic and 

Financial Crimes 

Commission, EFCC, for 

keeping quiet over the 

Ganduje bribery scandal. It 

also lambasted President 

Muhammadu Buhari for 

keeping mum over the 

matter, saying no Nigerian 

should listen to EFCC or 

FG again on its "so-called 

war against corruption until 

the Ganduje alleged 

bribery scandal is treated." 

The spokesman of the 

group, Pat Anyanwu noted 

that as long as Ganduje is 

not brought to justice, 

Buhari and the APC 

government are wasting 

time over their war against 

corruption as nobody will 

ever take them serious 

again.


Reps to stop Health Ministry from importing, 

distributing equipment to hospitals 

By Davis 

Iheamnachor 

PORT HARCOURT—: 

THE House of 

Representatives 

Committee on Health 

Institutions has said that it 

would stop the Ministry of 

Health from importing and 

distributing health 

equipment to government 

hospitals. 

The Chairman of the 

Committee, Hon. Betty 

Apiafi, who spoke at the 

University of Port Harcourt 

Teaching Hospital, during 

an oversight function of the 

health committee, said it is 

wrong for health ministry 

to impose equipment on 

hospitals, stating that 

government hospitals 

should be allowed to 

decide the facilities they 

need. 

Apiafi said the hospitals 

ought to be allowed to place 

priority on the medical 

equipment they need and 

not the ministry deciding 

and imposing them on the 

hospitals. 

She added that such 

impositions are the reason 

there are many abandoned 

medical equipment in 

ROUNDTABLE: From left— Dr. Wiebe Boer, CEO, ALLON; Mr. Pedro 

Omontuemhen,Pwc Energy,Utilities & Resources Leader and Ms Welela 

Dawit,Chief Financial officer,General Electric Africa, at the PWC's Annual 

Power & Utilities Roundtable reports in Lagos. 

Broadcasting: NTA drops foreign satellites for 

NiGCOMSAT1R 

By Emmanuel 

Elebeke 

ABUJA—IN response to 

the Executive Order 5 

of the Federal Government 

on use of local content, the 

Nigerian Television 

Authority, NTA is to be 

powered by the Nigerian 

Communications Satellite, 

NIGCOMSAT1R in its 

broadcast operations. 

This followed the signing 

of a Memorandum of 

Understanding, MoU by 

the NTA with the Nigerian 

Communications Satellite 

Limited, NigComSat for the 

lease of C-Band 

Transponder of the 

NIFCOMSAT1R. 

With the lease agreement, 

NTA is to switch from all 

its foreign satellite services 

to NIGCOMSAT1R as one 

of its backbones to supply 

its contents and put them 

out to the public. 

Group backs Oshiomhole on Buhari's 2nd 

term 

By Alemma Aliu 

BENIN CITY—A group, 

Buhari/Osibanjo 

Reelection Station, BORS, 

yesterday, said the National 

Chairman of the All 

Progressives Congress, 

APC, Comrade Adams 

Oshiomhole has the 

capacity to deliver President 

Muhammadu Buhari in his 

Nothing'll make us stop CSR— Okomu Oil boss 

B ENIN—MANAGING 

Director/Chief 

Executive Officer of 

Okomu Oil Palm Company 

Plc, Dr. Graham Hefer, has 

stressed that no amount of 

shortfall in the company's 

profit margin will lead to the 

stoppage of its Corporate 

Social Responsibilities 

(CSR) to its host 

communities. 

He made the pledge 

while doling out over 

N7million as bursary 

allowances to 

undergraduates from the 

communities yesterday 

government hospitals, 

noting that before 

equipment are purchased 

there is also need for training 

of personnel to man them. 

Apiafi also frowned at the 

level of mosquito infestation 

in UPTH, noting that serious 

actions need to be taken to 

end the menace. 

The agreement is also expected 

to cut down capital 

flight through outsourcing of 

satellite services to foreign 

satellites. 

Signing the agreement, 

the Director General of NTA, 

Mr. YAKUBU Mohammed 

said the new collaboration 

between NigComSat s and 

NTA will go to a large extent 

in helping Nigeria, not only 

afternoon in the company's 

office in Okomu, Edo State. 

"Yes, we admit that there 

has been a shortfall in prices 

of commodities worldwide 

which has also affected 

Okomu Oil Palm Plc. 

"Nonetheless, it will not 

stop us from ensuring that 

we continue with our 

corporate social 

responsibilities within the 

limit of available resources," 

he stated. 

Buttressing Dr. Hefer's 

claim, Prince Benjamin 

Ogbemudia, chairman of 

Udoh Community in Ovia 

She said: “Over the years 

we have had this issue of 

mosquitoes. A lot of 

patients, even staff of the 

hospital have written us 

complaining of the menace. 

They say when a patient 

comes here they leave 

with malaria. 

“We agreed on how to 

NTA and NigComSat to 

reduce cost of their 

operations. 

‘‘This collaboration 

between NTA and 

NigComSat is further in 

fulfillment of cardinal 

policy of this 

administration. It will to a 

very great extent help this 

country reduce capital 

flight. We transmit from 

various part of the country 

and we transmit too to 

second term bid. 

It described the recent 

barrage of attacks on 

Oshiomhole by the 

opposition as a "panic 

measure" that would have 

no effect on Buhari's reelection. 

In a statement by the 

Coordinator General of the 

group; Aiyamenkhue 

Edokpolo and made 

available to journalists in 

South West Local Government 

Area of Edo 

State(one of the host 

communities) gave kudos 

to the management of 

Okomu Oil Palm for its concern 

about the living conditions 

of the people of its 

host communities. 

In his submission, 

Wuluku Godwin, a 

member of the traditional 

council of Okomu 

kingdom, sent a note of 

warning to 'some unscrupulous 

elements' who are threatening 

the peace of the area to steer 

clear. 

sort out one of the construction 

error. They have tunnels 

where they passed the 

cable they used for electrification. 

The tunnel houses 

mosquitoes, so we are looking 

out how to close down 

those tunnels.” 

other parts of the world. For 

us to do that, we need the 

services of a satellite 

provider." 

In her remarks, the 

Managing Director of 

NIGCOMSAT, Ms. 

Abimbola Alale, said she felt 

fulfilled going into such a 

collaborative engagement with a 

large broadcasting network like 

NTA, which will offer her the confidence 

to preach the gospel of 

NIGCOMSAT at any global fora. 

Benin City, the group said; 

"At a time when the main 

opposition party has the 

capacity of devising all 

manners of propaganda 

and sabotage; the ruling 

APC is adequately 

equipped with the right 

therapeutic handler in 

Comrade Adams 

Oshiomhole as the National 

Chairman of APC. 

From the panic measures by the 

opposition PDP, it is evidently 

clear that their major concern is 

to reduce the effects of a devastating 

reality in Nigerians overwhelming 

solidarity for a Buhari 

second term in office." 

The statement said the position 

of BORS was taken in Port 

Harcourt, the Rivers State capital 

when the South-South zonal 

directorate of the group was 

flagged of. 

He said the platform consists 

of APC members and aggrieved 

PDP members "resolutely 

working for Buhari's reelection in 

appreciation of the President's 

consistent determination to rid 

Nigeria of corruption and the 

culture of abandoned projects 

which PDP symbolises." 

Oil rises after Russia agree on output cut 

OIL industry sources yesterday said oil price rose af 

ter Russia had accepted to cut production together 

with Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries 

(OPEC). 

The price is still set for its biggest monthly fall since the 

depths of the financial crisis in 2008, having lost more 

than 22 percent so far in November. 

A seemingly relentless rise in U.S. crude supply, together 

with Saudi Arabia’s insistence that it will not cut output 

on its own to stabilize the market, earlier sent Brent crude 

to a fresh 2018 low below $58 a barrel. 

The Russian Energy Ministry held a meeting with the 

heads of domestic oil producers on Tuesday, before a gathering 

in Vienna of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting 

Countries and its allies on December 6 to7, 2018. 

“The idea at the meeting was that Russia needs to reduce. 

The key question is how quickly and by how much,” 

said one source familiar with the talks between Russian oil 

firms and the ministry. 

Bayer to sell businesses, cut jobs after Monsanto 

deal 

BAYER, the German drug maker that bought US seed 

company Monsanto, yesterday announced the sale 

of a number of its businesses, and job cuts that will affect 

thousands of its staff and 3.3billion euros ($3.8 billion) in 

impairments. 

The group is looking into strategic options for product 

lines including Coppertone sunscreen and Dr. Scholl’s 

for foot care, among the main brands from Merck and 

Co’s consumer healthcare division it bought in 2014 for 

$14 billion. 

Bayer Chief Executive Werner Baumann is under pressure 

to boost Bayer’s share price after a drop of more than 

35 percent so far this year, dragged down by concern over 

more than 9,000 lawsuits it faces over an alleged cancercausing 

effect of Monsanto weed killer Roundup. 

Deutsche Bank offices raided in money 

laundering probe 

POLICE raided six Deutsche Bank offices in and 

around Frankfurt yesterday over money laundering 

allegations linked to the “Panama Papers”, the public prosecutor’s 

office in Germany’s financial capital said. 

Investigators are looking into the activities of two unnamed 

Deutsche Bank employees alleged to have helped 

clients set up offshore firms to launder money, the prosecutor’s 

office said. It focuses on the years 2013 through to 

2018, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office said. 

Around 170 police officers, prosecutors and tax inspectors 

searched the offices where written and electronic business 

documents were seized. 

“Of course, we will cooperate closely with the public prosecutor’s 

office in Frankfurt, as it is in our interest as well to 

clarify the facts,” Deutsche Bank said, adding it believed it 

had already provided all the relevant information related 

to the “Panama Papers”. 

Goldman names Arth Co-chief operating officers 

for Asia investment banking 

GOLDMAN Sachs Group Incorporated has named 

Aaron Arth and Iain Drayton co-chief operating officers 

of its investment banking division in Asia Pacific, 

excluding Japan, a memo Reuters reveals. 

Arth is currently head of the financing group in Asia 

Pacific, excluding Japan, while Drayton leads the financial 

and strategic investors group in Asia Pacific and also 

heads the investment banking services in the region, excluding 

Japan. 

In their expanded roles, Arth and Drayton will report to 

Todd Leland, the recently named investment banking head 

for Asia Pacific, excluding Japan, according to a memo 

obtained by Reuters. The Wall Street Journal reported the 

appointments. 

Marriott to open about 30 business hotels in 

Europe in 2years 

UNITED States (US) hotel chain Marriott Interna 

tional Inc (MAR.O) yesterday said it plans to open 

about 30 Courtyard by Marriott hotels in Europe in the 

next two years, as it targets newer markets including Finland 

and Iceland. 

The expansion plan comes nearly a month after the company 

cut its fourth-quarter forecast for revenue per available 

room (RevPAR) - a key measure of hotel health - 

blaming weak demand in North America, its biggest market. 

The company’s RevPAR for Europe grew 5.7 percent 

for the first nine months of 2018, while North America 

grew 2 percent in the same period.


GASLIGHTING is a form 

of psychological 

manipulation that seeks to 

sow seeds of doubt in a 

targeted individual or 

members of a targeted group 

and make them question their 

memory, perception and 

sanity. 

According to Wikipedia, the 

online encyclopaedia: “Using 

persistent denial, 

misdirection, contradiction 

and lying, (gaslighting) 

attempts to destabilise the victim 

and delegitimise the victim’s 

belief.” The term was 

inspired by “Gaslight”, a 1938 

play by the British writer 

Patrick Hamilton, in which a 

man dims the gas lights in his 

marital home, then slyly 

persuades his increasingly 

bewildered wife to agree when 

he insists that she’s imagining 

the decreased brightness. 

But I think that we can safely 

say that the actual practice of 

gaslighting did not start in 

1938 and is as old as the 

human race. 

Ultimate 

gaslighters 

Some spouses, husbands 

especially, gaslight each other 

by swearing that they are not 

having affairs, even when 

evidence exists. Gaslighting 

also occurs in many 

workplaces as colleagues, 

superiors and subordinates 

manipulate each other into 

accepting falsehoods. But the 

ultimate gaslighters – Premier 

League Gaslighters 

Extraordinaire! – are 

politicians of all nationalities. 

And it has to be said that Naija 

politicos are particularly 

skilled within this 

context…..alongside amoral 

heads of state such as 

Presidents Trump/Putin of 

America/Russia and the Saudi 

royal family, who have turned 

the shameless and crude 

peddling of blatant deceptions 

– and the attempted 

concealment of their most evil 

activities - into a fine art. 

It is, of course, normal to try 

to put your best foot forward 

publicly, in a bid to gain the 

approval of electorates and 

Gaslighting 

subjects. Even the most powerful, 

autocratic and 

sociopathic dictators need a 

certain amount of genuine 

support from their sidekicks 

and “constituencies”. 

Nobody can rule any roost 

for five minutes on his or her 

own. And propaganda – the 

dissemination of biased or 

misleading information - is a 

tool that is frequently 

deployed during the quest for 

support. But there is a big 

difference between spindoctoring 

your policy failures 

and general screw-ups – as in 

trying to portray them in the 

best possible light - and flatly 

denying that you have made 

mistakes and that your 

political opponents sometimes 

make valid points. 

One thing that has struck me 

very forcibly in recent weeks 

is the totally divergent stories 

that are being told about the 

past and present by Nigerian 

politicians who belong to the 

two main parties – All 

Progressives Congress, APC, 

and Peoples Democratic Party, 

PDP. 

Some of my APC- and PDPaffiliated 

friends and 

acquaintances provide me, 

from time to time, with 

balanced analyses of their 

parties’ historical and current 

strengths and weaknesses. 

But many APC/PDP devotees 

are allergic to intellectual 

honesty and are always trying 

to gaslight me and the rest of 

the world by smoothly or 

shrilly insisting that black is 

white and vice versa. 

Some APC/PDP devotees are 

running around swearing that 

President Buhari is a genius 

and saint and that all criticisms 

of him are based on 

mischievous misinformation 

from his enemies. Other APC/ 

Very few 

voters have 

what it takes to 

always spot 

gaslighting 

from a mile off 

and firmly say 

“no way” to 

being 

bamboozled 

PDP devotees are running 

around swearing that Buhari’s 

previous and current rivals 

(Dr Goodluck Jonathan and 

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar) are 

geniuses and saints who have 

never put a foot wrong. So 

even when one of the above 

does something that is 

obviously highly suspect - 

refusing to participate in a 

televised debate for 

candidates, for example - his 

defenders’ stories don’t 

change. 

Even if it is common knowledge 

that verbal dexterity is 

not his thing and even if he 

has been seen speaking unimpressively 

a thousand 

times, the debate-avoider will 

be described by his dogged 

defenders as a champion orator 

who only avoids debates 

because he is busy. 

Meanwhile, we - the target 

audiences of these gaslighting 

politicians - react in varying 

ways to the fabrications they 

inflict on us. 

Gaslighting 

politicians 

It is difficult to differentiate 

between fact and fiction when 

you are being toyed with by 

seasoned purveyors of fake 

news; and some of us gullibly 

swallow the dodgy “facts” that 

we are routinely fed, while 

others get confused and aren’t 

sure what to think. 

Very few voters have what it 

takes to always spot 

gaslighting from a mile off and 

firmly say “no way” to being 

bamboozled. Journalists tend 

to be more well-informed than 

the average citizen because it 

is our job to do research and 

authoritatively comment, on 

whatever happens to be going 

on in various public spaces. 

But I don’t know any 

journalist, myself included, 

who is an expert on every 

issue. And I never pretend to 

be omniscient and am always 

struggling to develop a deeper 

and more holistic 

understanding of the Nigerian 

socio-economic-militarypolitical 

terrain and to decide 

which narratives deserve to be 

embraced or dismissed. 

I have been taken in by gaslighters 

quite a few times; and 

if I am frequently struggling 

to find out what the truth 

really is, despite having more 

access to inside information 

than most, many voters must 

also be struggling to figure out 

what the truth really is. I am 

reminded of something a 

foreign divorce lawyer once 

sardonically observed about 

couples who want to go their 

separate ways and are fighting 

to push out their own 

viewpoints about what went 

wrong with their collapsed 

marriages: “There are always 

three sad stories in these situations: 

HIS story, HER story 

and the truth!” I guess the 

same can be said about the 

PDP and APC’s self-glorifications 

and accusations against 

each other: There is the APC 

gas-lighters’ story, the PDP 

gas-lighters’ story and the 

truth. 

Responses 

To 

Donzol2002@Yahoo.co.uk Or 

To 0802 747 6458 Or 0811 675 

9752. Please kindly note that 

unless you specifically request 

anonymity, your email or text 

message may be published 

with your name and contact 

details attached.


THE decision of the Federal 

Ministry of Education to bow to 

pressure and restore the Christian 

Religious Knowledge, CRK and 

Islamic Religious Knowledge, IRK, as 

separate subjects in our basic 

education curriculum is welcome and 

commendable. 

In 2013, the Federal Government 

had set up a committee to explore 

ways of reducing the number of 

subjects under the nine-year basic 

Basic Education curriculum from 20 

to at least nine to reduce the 

overbearing academic load on our 

children. The eggheads in the 

National Educational Research and 

Development Council, NERDC, went 

on a quixotic adventure by merging 

CRK and IRK along with Civics and 

Security Studies as a single subject 

known as Religion and National 

Values. 

The National Council on Education, 

NCE, without pondering the 

implications of this unwholesome 

Defusing basic education time-bomb 

measure, approved it for 

implementation as from September 

2014 amidst protests from Christian 

and Muslim interest groups. Matters 

were worsened when Arabic and 

French were imposed on students to 

choose from, which many Christian 

groups suspected was an Islamisation 

ploy. 

The great danger in adopting 

Religion and National Values as a 

subject lies in the manner in which 

the founders of the two rival faiths 

were depicted which did not match 

what their respective scriptures 

taught. As Minister of Education, 

Mallam Adamu Adamu rather 

belatedly observed, putting the two 

religions under one subject was as 

futile as trying to mix oil and water. 

As expected, many lawsuits were 

lodged against the new curriculum. 

Those who tried to merge the two 

rival religions into one were simply 

exploring a new way of increasing 

national tension. Also, forcing 

students to study Arabic when it is of 

no interest to them stokes the embers 

of suspicion of religious imperialism. 

This is condemnable and must be 

withdrawn. 

Our Constitution forbids the 

imposition of religion or any of its 

appurtenances on any Nigerian. 

Section 10 makes it clear that the 

Federal and State governments shall 

not adopt any state religion. Also, 

Section 38 (2) directs that no person 

shall be forced to receive religious 

instruction other than his own. No 

child shall be forced to study a 

religion not approved by his parent 

or guardian. These efforts to ruffle 

religious feathers are not only 

unconstitutional but also unpatriotic. 

Because of the manner in which 

these issues were being pushed last 

year the impression was erroneously 

created that it was part of a hidden 

Islamisation agenda by the current 

administration. By taking this 

measure, this speculation will be put 

to rest. 

We therefore urge the Federal 

Ministry of Education and the NCE 

to go further (in case they have not 

already done so) and restore Arabic 

as a subject only for those who wish 

to study it. 

It does not pay to play with fire. 

By Akintola Benson Oke 

IN an article titled, Government by Design, 

Diana Farrell and Andrew Goodman of 

McKinsey & Co. argued that one of the 

strategies for improving government’s 

perceived performance, including 

procurement decisions and activities, is by 

becoming better at collecting and analyzing 

relevant data. According to them, 

“Governments must decide what to measure 

and how, always with an eye on the overall 

goal of the programme or initiative.” For one, 

a critical examination will reveal how civil 

servants can creatively utilize data to generate 

ideas and communicate government actions 

and performances to ensure positive 

perception (or, in the least, accurate perception) 

of government procurement decisions by the 

citizens. I, therefore, challenge the Lagos State 

Public Service to come up with data-backed 

and data-inspired ideas that will ensure and 

assure the quality of the government’s 

procurement activities. 

Another advocated strategy for ensuring the 

delivery of quality services by the public service 

including in the area of procurement, is to 

innovate to make government services more 

customer-centric. This is one of the subjects 

that have been previously explored in the 

trainings organised by the Ministry of 

Establishments, Training and Pensions. In 

essence, procurement decisions would only be 

regarded as being of acceptable quality when 

they are made with the end-user in mind. 

In a recent publication, PwC, United States, 

asked and answered a germane question as 

follows: “What does a customer-centered 

organization look like? It’s an organization 

that considers the customer in everything it 

does, from procurement to deployment to the 

OPINION 

Aligning quality with cost effectiveness in Lagos 

entire customer experience. It also speaks to 

its customers in their own language and makes 

it easy for them to align their goals with the 

mission at hand.” Thus, I dare say that, even in 

procuring items that would be exclusively used 

by public servants, the sole question should be 

whether the procured items would help the 

public service better serve its customer, the 

citizens. The third strategy I want to highlight 

is that of actively soliciting citizens’ input to 

improve public services, including 

procurement activities. As noted, “Innovative 

governments are creating new ways for citizens 

Officers must always be able 

to see how any procurement 

action or decision affects every 

part of the service and its 

service offerings 

to make their voices heard, giving them the 

ability to provide input into regulations, 

budgets, and the provision of services.” It has 

been further noted that, “Other governments 

are going even further to solicit citizen 

feedback: Iceland in 2010 chose 950 citizens 

at random to participate in the drafting of a 

new constitution, a significant example of 

‘deliberative democracy’ at work. And the city 

of Cologne, Germany, has used participatory 

budgeting: residents helped decide how to 

allocate a portion of the municipal budget.” 

In addition to the foregoing, the cultivation 

of the following skills will also aid the 

attainment of the pursuit of quality in 

procurement decisions even in the face of a 

depressed economy: (a) The possession of 

conceptualisation skills. Business magnate, 

Chester I. Barnard argued the importance of 

conceptualisation skill when he wrote: “…the 

essential aspect of the (executive) process is 

the sensing of the organisation as a whole and 

of the total situation relevant to it.” The purport 

of this is that officers of the Lagos State Public 

Service must always be able to see how any 

procurement action or decision affects every 

part of the service and its service offerings. 

(b) Paying attention to details. This is an 

important skill expected of civil servants who 

will pursue and deliver quality services. As 

important as it is for officers to see the big 

picture and think strategically, it is equally 

important for them to pay attention to the 

details. This does not mean that officers have 

to be involved in every minor decision, or 

undermine the decisions of subordinates and 

colleagues; rather, every officer must remain 

aware of the activities of the other officers and 

the status of projects, thus allowing autonomy 

whenever possible. 

(c) Effective delegation of responsibilities and 

duties and collaboration with the private sector. 

This is also an art and skill that public servants 

must acquire and master. There is a fine line 

between delegating tasks to staff and shirking 

from responsibilities, knowing subordinates 

and colleagues will take up the slack. The 

Lagos State Public Service must navigate this 

distinction by assigning not just tasks, but 

clearly defined spheres of influence where 

officers have authority to make procurement 

decisions and to collaborate with the private 

sector. Having set forth the foregoing, the 

pursuit of quality, as the ultimate objective of 

the procurement process even in a depressed 

economy, let me quickly examine the 

importance of the public service procurement 

functions in order to show how they may be 

utilized to respond to economic challenges. 

According to Aigheyisi and Edore (2001), good 

“public procurement practices, according to 

the IEG World Bank (2014), are a major 

determinant of the effectiveness of public 

expenditure, and governments all over the 

world typically spend five to 20 percent of their 

gross domestic product, GDP, on procurement 

of goods and services. According to European 

Network on Debt and Development, 

EURODAD (2012), public procurement 

accounts for at least 15 percent of global GDP, 

and it is the largest share of government 

spending besides wages. Public procurement 

accounts for an average of 15% of GDP in 

OECD countries and 25-30% of GDP in 

developing and emerging market economies 

(Roos, 2012). In 2011 it accounted for 12% of 

GDP in the United States and 17% in the EU. 

(Moerenhout and Roe, 2012). 

The quoted statistics above thus clearly show 

that procurement as a public service function 

must be given exceptional attention especially 

when there is paucity of funds and economic 

depression. Thus, as noted by Angel 

Gurria,“Public procurement can have a 

significant impact on policy outcomes . . . Until 

only a few years ago, public procurement was 

perceived as an administrative, back-office 

function. Today however, it is seen as a crucial 

pillar of services delivery for governments and 

a strategic tool for achieving key policy 

objectives: from budget accountability, to 

spending efficiency, to buying green and 

improving outcomes in health, and promoting 

socially responsible suppliers into the global 

value chain.” 

“Strategic public procurement can also 

significantly support a more circular economy 

and transform supply-chain business models, 

given the magnitude of its size in government 

spending. and its predominant role in 

delivering some of the most resource-intensive 

public services such as infrastructure. 

Continues online @www.vanguardngr.com 

•Dr.Benson Oke, is Commissioner, Lagos State 

Ministry of Establishments, Training and 

Pensions


Eurobond: External reserves record first 

increase in 4mths 

*Gains $476m in 3days 

By Babajide Komolafe 

THE nation’s external re 

serves reversed its four 

months downward trend, gaining 

$476 million in three days 

this week, buoyed by proceeds 

of the Federal Government’s 

$2.86 billion Eurobond issue 

earlier this month. 

The reserves have been on the 

downward trend since July 5th, 

2018 when it peaked at $47.798 

billion, falling by $6.275 billion 

to $41.523 billion last week Friday. 

The decline was largely due 

to capital flow reversal as foreign 

portfolio investors exit the 

nation’s debt market. It was also 

attributable to the increased supply 

of US dollar by the Central 

Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in pursuit 

of exchange rate stability. 

The reversal of the downward 

trend came contrary to analysts’ 

projections that the it would continue 

till end of this year and 

may drop to as low as $40 billion. 

Head of Research, FSDH 

Merchant Bank, Mr. Ayo 

Akinwunmi, said the trend reversal 

may be connected with the 

$2.86 billion Eurobond recently 

raised by the federal government. 

The federal government this 

month offered $2.86 billion under 

its Global Medium-Term 

Note Programme, which attracted 

significant interest from 

leading global institutional investors 

with a peak combined 

order book of over US$9.5 billion. 

The federal government this 

month offered $2.86 billion under 

its Global Medium-Term 

Note Programme, which attracted 

significant interest from 

leading global institutional investors 

with a peak combined 

order book of over US$9.5 billion. 

CURRENCY BUYING SELLING 

US DOLLAR 

POUNDS 

EURO 

FRANC 

YEN 

CFA 

WAUA 

RENMINBI 

RIYAL 

SDR 

DANISH 

RAND 

$110.10 0.00 

2,086.00 0.00 

$13.10 0.26 

$59.36 0.60 

$50.98 0.69 

305.8 306.3 306.8 

390.5678 391.2064 391.845 

347.8169 348.3856 348.9543 

307.3367 307.8392 308.3417 

2.6971 2.7015 2.7059 

0.5069 0.5169 0.5269 

421.2155 421.9042 422.5929 

44.0244 44.0969 44.1693 

81.501 81.6343 81.7675 

421.8817 422.5715 423.2613 

46.5931 46.6693 46.7455 

22.3563 22.3928 22.4294 

CBN Exchange rate as at 29/11/2018 

According to the Debt Management 

Office (DMO), “The 

Notes comprise a $1.18 billion 

7-year series, $1.00 billion 12- 

year series and a $750 million 

30-year series. The 7-year series 

will bear interest at a rate 

of 7.625 percent, while the 12- 

year series will bear interest at 

a rate of 8.75 percent, and the 

30-year series will bear interest 

at a rate of 9.25 percent. In each 

case, they will be repayable with 

a bullet repayment of the principal 

on maturity. The offering 

is expected to close on or about 

21 November 2018, subject to 

the satisfaction of various customary 

closing conditions. The 

Republic intends to use the proceeds 

of the Notes towards funding 

of the fiscal deficit and other 

financing needs. The Notes represent 

the Republic’s sixth Eurobond 

issuance, following issuances 

in 2011, 2013, two in 2017 

and one in early 2018 and its first 

triple-tranche offering.” 

From left: Prince Abimbola Olashore, President IAPM (left); Ms. Mary Uduk, Ag. DG SEC; 

Mr. Oscar Onyema, CEO NSE; and Akinduro Philips, Executive Secretary/CEO IAPM, at the 

2018 Investment Advisers & Portfolio Managers forum held recently in Lagos. 

SEC targets e-IPO next year for Capital Market 

Master Plan 

By Peter Egwuatu & Nkiruka 

Nnorom 

THE Securities and Exchange 

Commission (SEC), yesterday 

disclosed that efforts are on to ensure 

that Nigeria joins the 

advanced economies to 

float the first electronic 

Initial Public Offering, e- 

IPO before the end of 

2019. 

The Commission also 

informed that the physical 

share certificates 

have fully been 

dematerialised, while reaffirming 

its commitment 

to developing the 

capital market in line 

with the 10-Year Master 

Plan. 

Disclosing this during 

the SEC’s two day Journalists 

Academy in Uyo, 

the Commission’s Acting 

Director-General, Mary 

Uduk, who spoke on the 

theme, “Capital Market 

Master Plan: The Journey 

So Far”, noted that 

as a result of the market 

crash in 2008, investors 

have lost confidence and 

are yet to return to the 

market. 

She stated that the 

Commission has carried out 101 initiatives, 

since the implementation of 

the 10-year Capital Market Master 

Plan four years ago. 

She explained that SEC aims to expand 

capital market’s role in nation’s 

economic development in general. 

Explaining the success achieved so 

far, Uduk stated: “We have ensured 

that all share certificates are fully dematerialized. 

This is to say that physical 

share certificates are now fully converted 

into electronic form in Nigeria. 

This initiative has further enhanced 

the market efficiency and 

transparency. 

“The recapitalization of capital 

market operators was aimed at improving 

the baseline infrastructure of 

the Capital Market Operators, 

CMOs, improve their market access 

and service delivery as well as enable 

them comply fully with the new minimum 

operating standard set by the 

Commission. 

“These were aimed at helping the 

market develop robust controls; 

strong governance framework and effective 

human capital. As at December 

30, 2016 which was the deadline 

given for all CMOs to recapitalize, 

384 out of 449 CMOs had fully complied. 

More of them have done so af 

ANED challenge 

Obaseki over 

row with BEDC 

By Prince Okafor 

THE Association of Nigerian 

Electricity Distributors, 

ANED, yesterday, berated the 

Governor of Edo State, Godwin 

Obaseki, for sending the Managing 

Director of Benin Electricity 

Distribution Company (BEDC), 

Mrs. Funke Osibodu, out of the 

Government House. 

Obaseki was alleged to have 

walked out Osibudu out of his office 

for failing to meet obligations 

to electricity consumers in Edo. 

Reacting to media queries, 

ANED’s Executive Director for 

Research and Advocacy, Mr. Sunday 

Oduntan, said the umbrella 

body was displeased by the recent 

treatment of BEDC’s Managing 

Director by the Governor during 

a visit by the House of Representatives 

Committee on Power to 

Edo state. 

Oduntan in a statement yesterday 

said, “What is most unfortunate 

about the whole episode is 

that there is a misunderstanding 

about how the power sector works 

and this has led to the Governor’s 

unfair expectations from BEDC. 

“I cannot also rule out with the 

upcoming elections and everyone 

looking for scapegoats, that local 

politics may be involved in this 

case and that is highly unfortunate. 

“He mentioned that the state 

generates over 600MW and as 

such should not be encountering 

power supply challenges. However, 

he needs to understand that 

the power generated at Azura or 

any other power plant in the country 

for that matter is first sent to 

the national grid from where it is 

redistributed to different DISCOs 

for distribution to customers. 

“Benin DISCO is only entitled 

to 9 percent of the power sent out 

from the national grid so it is clear 

that the DisCo does not have the 

power to retain the 600MW generated 

by Azura. 

“More interestingly is the fact 

that out of this 9 percent, over 40 

percent of it distributed within 

Edo state as the host community 

of the DISCO. The other three 

states in the franchise area - Delta, 

Ekiti, and Ondo - share the remaining 

60 percent. You can 

clearly see therefore that Edo state 

enjoys the lion share of what the 

DISCO gets already. To allocate 

more to Edo - which is what the 

Governor is advocating for - will 

be grossly unfair to the other states. 

Leadway Assurance commits to delivering 

innovative products 

By Rosemary Onuoha 

LEADWAY Assurance Com 

pany Limited said that it is 

committed to building the biggest 

retail insurance company in Nigeria 

by developing alternative channels 

and delivering innovative products 

to customers. 

The insurer said that the move 

will make insurance products accessible 

across all market segments 

and distribution channels. 

Executive Director, Financial 

Services & Systems, Leadway Assurance, 

Mr. Tunde Hassan- 

Odukale said this when the company 

was crowned ‘Insurance Company 

of the Year 2018’ at this year’s 

edition of the Business Day Banking 

and Financial Institutions 

Awards. 

Hassan-Odukale said the company 

would continue to invest in 

best in class skills, tools and processes 

with the objective of delivering 

sustainable benefits to all stakeholders 

through the provision of innovative 

and comprehensive insurance 

solutions. This, he added, 

would aim to deepen Leadway’s 

position as a market trend-setter in 

retail insurance in the country. 

Receiving the award on behalf of 

Leadway Assurance Company Limited, 

Divisional Director, Life Sales, 

Oluwafemi Adebayo, said the 

honor was an acknowledgement of 

Leadway’s iconic position as a 

path-finder as well as an innovation 

driver in the insurance segment 

of the nation’s financial sector. 

“Since 1970 when Leadway came 

on the scene as an indigenous insurance 

service provider, there has 

been a dramatic expansion of local 

service providers. Leadway has 

continued to evolve and be dynamic 

in order to remain in the forefront 

as Nigeria’s largest and an 

insurer of repute.

20 — VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

, 2018 

Emefiele CBN Governor Segun Agbaje GTBank MD Kennedy Uzoka UBA MD Herbert Wigwe Access Bank MD 

Losses to bad loans remain high 

in Nigerian banks — Moody's 

*Projects 2.3% GDP growth for Nigeria in 2019 

*Highlights risks to African banks 

By Babajide Komolafe 

GLOBAL rating agency, Moody’s 

Investors Services yesterday affirmed 

a ‘Stable' outlook on the Nigerian 

banking system, but warned that 

losses to bad loans remain high in the 

industry. 

In its 2019 Outlook on African Banks 

released yesterday, Moody’s stated that 

while Nigerian banks now enjoy improved 

foreign currency liquidity due to higher oil 

prices, they however face the challenge of 

rising loan quality. 

The company said: “Higher oil prices and 

partial liberalisationof the foreign-exchange 

market have eased pressures on “unhedged” 

borrowers and normalized foreign-currency 

liquidity. Asset risks nonetheless 

remain high as banks continue to 

tackle legacy issues; similarly, earnings 

remain under pressure as loss-loss provisions 

remain elevated. Capital buffers are 

strong for the bigger banks, but weaker for 

smaller bank.” 

Concerns by Fitch 

Moody’s warning is coming on the heels 

of similar concern expressed by its global 

rating companion, Fitch Ratings on Nigerian 

banks. 

In its latest credit rating for three Nigerian 

Tier-1 banks, namely Access Bank, 

GTBank and UBA, Fitch warned that Nigerian 

banks face pressure on margins and 

capital. 

“The fragile economic recovery restrains 

banks’ growth prospects and asset quality. 

Operating conditions are still difficult for 

banks. “Despite stronger oil prices in second 

half of 2018 (H2’18) supporting economic 

growth, credit demand is weak and 

banks face pressure on margins and capital. 

“Fitch believes that sovereign support to 

Nigerian banks cannot be relied on given 

Nigeria’s weak ability to provide support, 

particularly in foreign currency. In addition, 

there are no clear messages of support 

from the authorities regarding their 

willingness to support the banking system. 

“Therefore, the Support Rating Floor of 

all Nigerian banks is ‘No Floor’ and all 

Support Ratings are ‘5’. This reflects our 

view that senior creditors cannot rely on 

receiving full and timely extraordinary support 

from the Nigerian sovereign if any of 

the banks become non-viable”, Fitch stated. 

Moody’s project 2.3% GDP growth for 

Nigeria in 2019 

Meanwhile, Moody’s have projected 2.3 

percent growth for Nigeria’s economy in 

2019 and 3.8 percent growth for African 

economy, noting that more stable oil prices 

will drive economic growth in Nigeria in 

2019. 

It stated: “African economies will show a 

mild recovery. Recovery will support credit 

growth and financial stability. The macroeconomic 

outlook will strengthen slightly. 

For Moody’s rated countries we project 

GDP growth of 3.8 percent in 2019, up from 

3.1 percent in 2018 and 2.7 percent in 2017. 

Growth will be driven by relatively stable 

oil and commodity prices, stronger agricultural 

output, domestic policy adjustments 

and strong domestic demand. 

“Growth will be particularly robust in East 

Africa, the West African Economic Monetary 

Union (WAEMU), and in Egypt. For 

the continent’s two biggest economies, 

Nigeria and South Africa, growth will be 

more subdued at 2.3 percent and 1.3 percent 

respectively, but higher than 2016- 

2018. More stable oil prices will drive economic 

acceleration in Nigeria and improved 

business and investor confidence will spur 

improvement in South Africa.” 

Risks to African Banks 

While affirming a ‘Stable’ outlook for African 

banks, Moody’s highlighted risks to 

banks on the continent to include rising 

US interest rates and political uncertainty 

in some countries including Nigeria. 

It stated: Our outlook for African banks is 

stable but risks are tilted to the downside 

though banking prospects remain strong 

over the longer term 

Risks to the operating environment relate 

to: Rising US interest rates leading to 

capital outflows across emerging markets, 

in conjunction with rising government debt 

and currency depreciation, could significantly 

harm banks’ loan quality and access 

to foreign currency; Political uncertainty 

and risk of social unrest are an everpresent 

challenge for Africa; South Africa, 

Tanzania, Nigeria are some of the countries 

that face such challenges, which could 

weaken investor and consumer confidence; 

External shocks such as falling commodity 

prices, drought, or an escalation of global 

trade wars, could hurt African corporates 

and their ability to repay debt.” 

Growth Prospects 

Moody’s however averred that in spite 

of these risks there is ample opportunities 

for African banks to grow. It stated: “Longer-term, 

however, the banking sector has 

significant scope for growth. This is mainly 

because of the still low banking penetration 

(banking assets at ~63 percent of GDP, 

according to the International Monetary 

fund, IMF), low level of financial inclusion 

and rising urbanisation. 

“Increased use of mobile technology in 

particular will help unlock potential: already, 

unique mobile money accounts in 

Sub-Saharan Africa increased to 280 million, 

accounting for 21% of adults (up from 

12% in 2014). 

“Use of mobile money accounts brings 

significant benefits for banks, including 

higher fees relating to money transfers/ 

payments; reduced costs as mobile technology 

uses agents in place of bank branches; 

and eventually increasing banking penetration.” 

Basis for outlook 

Explaining the basis for its ‘Stable’ outlook 

on African banks, Moody’s said: “We 

expect a slight acceleration in GDP growth 

supported by stable commodity prices, robust 

domestic demand and policy adjustments. 

Stricter regulation (e.g. higher capital, 

IFRS 9 / Basel II/III implementation) 

will also support financial stability. High 

asset risks and renewed foreign-currency 

liquidity pressures will be partly offset by 

resilient earnings and high local currency 

liquidity. Egyptian, Moroccan and Mauritius 

banks most resilient.” 

It however stated that the outlook can 

change to negative in the event of, “ tightening 

global financial conditions, political 

tensions, or fiscal slippages leading to: a 

deterioration in loan quality that would also 

affect banks’ earnings and capital; and 

tightening foreign currency liquidity; Tunisian, 

Tanzanian and DRC banks most at 

risk.” 

It also noted that the outlook can change 

to positive in the event of, “Improved economic 

conditions; reduced external vulnerabilities; 

Upward sovereign rating migration; 

and a material decline in problem loan 

ratios and uninterrupted access to foreign 

currency funding.”

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 — 21

22—VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018



By Theodore Opara 

Lanre Shittu takes 

FG's auto policy to 

next level 

•Completes most advanced Truck 

assembly plant 

AFRONTLINE automobile 

dealer in Nigeria, Lanre 

Shittu Motors, has taken the 

Federal Government’s auto policy 

to the next level with the 

completion of a world class truck 

assembly plant for the 

production of JAC heavy duty 

and medium duty truck in 

Nigeria. 

The assembly plant which is 

unarguably the most advanced 

and equipped in the country at 

the moment is capable of churning 

out 1,800 trucks annually 

with capacity for further expansion. 

The multi-million naira 

plant is equipped with state of 

the art equipment from Germany 

and is manned by Nigerian 

technicians with the supervision 

of JAC staff. 

Though Lanre Shittu is 

setting up as similar and bigger 

plant in Ogun State, the road 

to achieving the historic 

milestone which will be ready 

for commissioning very soon 

was started about one year ago 

and successfully completed this 

year with all the trappings of a 

modern truck assembly plant 

found in China, Europe and 

America. 

A number of officials from JAC 

truck manufacturers, China are 

presently overseeing the day to 

day assembly activities inside 

the assembly plant with the 

ultimate aim of transferring 

requisite skills to local Nigerian 

engineers. 

Speaking with a selected 

number of Nigerian automotive 

journalists that had gathered at 

the new plant located on the 

Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, Taiwo 

Shittu, Executive Director, 

Lanre Shittu Motors Limited 

stated that the company invested 

massively in the assembly 

•JAC T6 Pickup 

because it believes in the ongoing 

National Automotive Policy 

of the federal government, describing 

it as a policy that that 

has come to stay. 

Explaining that this was the 

reason they decided to invest 

into one of best and most sophisticated 

equipment that will last 

for a long time, he said, "We 

believe solely in the JAC brand, 

it has come to stay and very 

•L-r: Jack Huang, JAC China, Yu Dekun Country heavy duty sales manager, Taiwo 

Shittu, Group Executive Director, Lanre Shittu Motors; Ejaz Mughal, Head, Plant and 

Logistics, Lanre Shittu Motors and Udo Anietie Philip, Head of Admin, Lanre Shittu 

Motors during the tour of the plant in Lagos.. 

soon, it will take over the market 

demand for trucks in the 

market because of its quality 

and our experience in the automotive 

business in the last 38 

years in Nigeria. Already we 

have received orders for hundreds 

of units of these trucks 

from fleet customers including 

BUA group, AY Mustapha and 

many others." 

Shittu said his company enjoyed 

support from JAC parent 

manufacturers in China adding 

that the good relationship with 

the parent company led to the 

setting up of this state of the art 

assembly plant which is proba- 

JAC Motors, Rosabon roll out easy vehicle finance scheme 

DETERMINED to ensure 

that more Nigerians drive 

brand new cars without stress and 

at affordable prices, Elizade Autoland, 

the official distributor for JAC Motors 

in Nigeria has entered into a part- 

by the quality 

and skill of the Nigerian technicians 

on ground. 

The Group Executive Director 

was also full of commendation 

for the Federal Government’s 

auto policy saying that “some 

of the stringent measures taken 

by the federal government to 

streamline auto assembly 

•The new Lanre Shittu Motors plant in Lagos 

bly the most 

modern and 

advanced in 

Africa. 

“JAC officials 

are always visiting 

to ensure 

that we are 

complying 

with the international 

standard 

set by the 

company,” he 

said, noting 

that they are 

also impressed 

processes and procedures 

whereby nobody is allowed to 

set up an assembly plant without 

satisfying the full requirement 

for the mandatory assemblers 

bonafide certificate are 

quite commendable”. 

To this end disclosed that 

Lanre Shittu Motors was also 

simultaneously working on the 

possibility of setting up another 

assembly plant which is expected 

to be sited on about 

40,000 square meters of land at 

Mekun, along the Lagos- 

Ibadan expressway way, near 

the Redemption camp and before 

the Sagamu interchange. 

Shittu said that upon completion, 

the assembly plant will be 

producing buses, pick-up trucks 

and passengers’ cars, in addition 

to providing other ancillary 

support services of trailer flat 

bodies, tanks and buckets including 

local contents. 

nership with Rosabon Financial services 

to enable more Nigerians have 

access to low interest finance for affordable 

vehicles. 

The partnership allows customers 

to access finance to purchase the latest 

brands of JAC Motors at discounted 

prices with reduced interest rates. 

Speaking at the signing of Memorandum 

of Understanding, MoU, in 

Lagos recently, Managing Director, 

Elizade Autoland, Demola Ade-Ojo, 

said the partnership was to enable 

more Nigerians afford brand new 

vehicles. 

He said,“Our goal is to provide 

mobility for Nigerians far and wide, 

hence we are passionate about partnering 

a financial organisation that 

will assist in bringing this to life. With 

our partnership, existing and new 

customers can now have access to 

low interest finance package to purchase 

highly durable and stylish JAC 

Motors range of vehicles.” 

On his part, the Managing Director/CEO, 

Rosabon Financial Services; 

Chukwuma Ochonogor, explained 

that the partnership between 

the two indigenous organizations 

showed great commitment to economic 

growth and development. 

“The partnership between both indigenous 

brands shows great commitment 

to economic growth and 

development by providing fast, easy 

and reliable funding to the transportation 

needs of individuals, as well 

as small and medium sized enterprises, 

to enable them run effectively 

as well as expand their businesses 

whilst creating a viable economy,” he 

said. 

The Elizade Autoland, Rosabon 

partnership provides the opportunity 

for customers to walk into Elizade 

Autoland Showrooms and through 

its digital platforms or Rosabon financials 

branches across the country to 

get immediate financial solutions to 

purchase any model of JAC Motors 

brand ranging from sedans, SUVs, 

pickups, buses and light duty trucks. 

JAC is the only Chinese brand with 

full range of vehicles across all segments 

in Nigeria. Some of the models 

include the J4 sedan, S2, S3, S5, 

S7 (SUVs) as well as T6 pickup, Sunray 

bus X5 pickup, L40 Truck and 

the N-Series which can be adopted 

to various applications.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 —25 

All-new A-Class redefines luxury, utility, safety in 

compact car segment 

RIDING on the success 

and achievements of 2018, 

Mercedes-Benz has introduced 

the all-new Mercedes-Benz A- 

Class, a compact car with youthful 

and dynamic attributes. The 

new A-Class was quietly unveiled 

in Nigeria, courtesy of 

Weststar Associates Limited, 

authorised general distributor of 

Mercedes-Benz in Nigeria. 

Since its world premiere in 

March 2018 the new A-Class 

has solidified its position as the 

top choice for compact and comfort 

oriented vehicles with more 

revolutionizing technology and 

an increased appeal to comfort 

and connectivity. 

Managing Director of Weststar 

Associates Limited, Mr. Mirko 

Plath, said the Mercedes-Benz 

A-Class completely redefines 

modern luxury in the compact 

class, and revolutionizes interior 

design. All models of the 

new A-Class are also powered 

by new, efficient petrol engines. 

Though Mercedes-Benz has 

retained the sporty appearance, 

the utility value has increased. 

Technologically the A-Class 

stands out among its competitors 

with MBUX – Mercedes- 

Benz user experience, it offers 

a number of functions that were 

previously the preserve of the 

luxury class. Here are some key 

facts and features of the new A- 

Class. 

The completely new multimedia 

system MBUX (Mercedes- 

Benz User Experience) in the 

IN the spirit of the festive 

season, Christmas and New 

Year, Nigeria’s leading tyre, 

battery, lubricants, solar/ 

renewable energy solutions and 

premium automobile accessories 

company, Infinity Group is giving 

its customers, a chance to 

experience Infinity’s quality 

automobile after market products 

by offering amazing gifts to its 

customers nationwide courtesy of 

the annual Infinity “Value Drive 

2018”. The company said that the 

gesture was its humble way of 

saying thank you to its numerous 

customers across the country. 

The 2018 Value Drive is the 16th 

edition of Infinity Tyres annual 

rituals to thank its customers and 

reward them for their support 

over the year. 

The 16th edition of the Value 

Drive2018 will commence on 

December 1 and end on 

December 31, 2018. Infinity Tyres 

Limited is the authorised 

importer and marketer of 

premium tyre brands such as 

Pirelli, Goodyear, Infinity, Ceat, 

Eternity, Riken, Battery brands 

such as Exide, Infinity and 

Eternity, Global Lubricant Brand, 

Motul, Genuine Filters from 

Filtron, Eastman Brand of 

Renewable Energy Solutions as 

•All New Mercedes Benz A Class 

A-Class creates an emotional 

connection between the vehicle, 

driver and passengers. It is enhanced 

with an inbuilt learning 

capability thanks to artificial intelligence 

and can also be personalized 

to the taste and needs 

of the driver. 

The MBUX multimedia system 

comes with a comprehensive 

touch operation by touchscreen, 

touchpad (optional) on 

the centre console and touch 

control buttons in the steering 

wheel, there is also an optional 

Intelligent voice control with 

natural language comprehension 

and activation using the 

keyword “Hey Mercedes”. Other 

key features of the MBUX 

include a navigation display 

with MBUX augmented reality 

technology and new “Mercedes 

Infinity Tyres kickstarts 2018 edition of Value Drive 

well as Eternity standby and 

traction battery range. 

“Infinity Value Drive 2018” 

guarantees customers a chance 

to win amazing gifts instantly on 

purchase of products from Infinity 

sales and service outlets and 

Infinity Express stores. Gifts 

include Premium quality 

compressed T-shirts, Motul 

Lubricants and Brake Fluid, 

Infinity coolant & Battery 

Terminals. Based on the value of 

the purchase, customers can 

receive items up to an inventer 

and vehicle battery as well. 

According to the company, “the 

management of Infinity Tyres 

Group gratefully aknowledges 

the patronage of its customers 

across Nigeria. This group is of 

the firm belief that due to the 

unstinted support and loyalty of 

its customers and stakeholders, 

this has been most exciting, 

awaited and successful boost and 

has become a tradition for the 

company. The management of 

Infinity Tyres Group is indebted 

to its customers and, therefore, 

wishes to delight its customers 

and encourages them to avail the 

benefits of “Infinity Value Drive 

2018”. 

In his remarks, Mr. Babatunde 

Ajayi, Branch Head of Infinity 

Limited, Victoria Island Branch, 

described the “Value Drive 2018” 

as a unique platform through 

which the company shows 

appreciation to its loyal 

customers. He stated that the 

customers’ trust in quality 

products and superior service 

quality of the Group has been the 

singular reason for the success 

and consistent growth of Infinity 

Tyres. He further said that the 

Nigerian market, though 

competitive is highly inclined in 

favour of companies that deliver 

•Officials of Infinity Tyres Group 

me” services. 

The A-Class is highly distinguished 

in its segment with the 

intelligent drive system, for the 

first time, the A-Class is able to 

drive semi-autonomously in certain 

driving situations. It has 

also been able to achieve the 

highest safety standard in this 

segment thanks to extended 

driving assistance systems with 

S Class functions as optional 

equipment. Other features like 

the Active Distance Assist Distrionic 

and Active Steering Assist 

now support the driver even 

more conveniently in keeping 

a safe distance and steering, the 

vehicle speed is now also automatically 

adjusted on bends, at 

road junctions and on roundabouts. 

PRE-SAFE® PLUS can recognize 

an imminent rear-end collision. 

If the danger of a collision 

persists, the system can also 

firmly apply the brakes of the 

vehicle when stationary, thus 

minimizing the risk of injuries 

by reducing the forward jolt 

caused by an impact from the 

rear. There are also other additional 

features like the Active 

Emergency Stop Assist and the 

intuitively understandable Active 

Lane Change Assist. 

Drivers are in for a treat as 

the A-Class is enhanced to give 

more driving pleasure and ride 

comfort compared to its predecessor. 

There is further improved 

suspension with 

MacPherson front suspension 

with aluminium transverse control 

arms and multi-link rear 

suspension. 

products and services of highest 

quality. 

In conclusion, Mrs. Moyo 

Ekiran, Branch Head of the 

Infinity Tyres Limited, Ikeja 

Branch, took the opportunity to 

thank customers all over Nigeria 

for their patronage. She said that 

the management of Infinity Tyres 

is aware that many Nigerians 

travel during the festive season. 

She wished them safe journey 

and a very enjoyable festive 

season with lots of good wishes 

for 2019. 

High alcohol 

consumption 

by drivers 

worrisome, says 

FRSC, Lagos govt 

By Monsuru Olowoopejo 

WORRIED by the level of 

alcohol induced road 

traffic crashes, the Lagos State 

Government and Federal Road 

Safety Corps, FRSC, have 

raised concerns over alcohol 

consumption across the state. 

The concern was raised at the 

flag-off of 2018 Don’t Drink and 

Drive campaign initiated by 

Lagos Traffic Radio in Ikeja. 

Commissioner for Information 

and Strategy, Kehinde 

Bamigbetan, stated that the 

level of consumption increased 

daily with establishment of 

restaurants and bar in every part 

of the state. 

Bamigbetan noted that 

establishment aided by peace 

and harmony in Lagos has 

made alcoholic consumption in 

the state a daily routine. 

He stressed that the new level 

of alcohol consumption rate has 

justified a report released by a 

Market research data group, 

Global Data (formerly Canadean) 

recently, estimating 

five percent annual growth rate. 

The commissioner argued that 

the State Government isn’t 

frowning at the establishment 

but they shouldn’t drive or engage 

in any activities that 

would endanger other peoples 

lives and property. 

According to the Lagos Sector 

Commander, FRSC, Hyginus 

Omeje, disclosed that the level 

of alcoholic consumption has 

made the agency to immediately 

deploy the seven breathalysers 

donated to it across the state. 

Omeje added that any vehicle 

which its driver test positive to 

alcohol would be impounded 

immediately to ensure safety of 

lives and property in the state. 

Earlier, Acting General 

Manager, Lagos Traffic Radio, 

Eyitayo Akanle, disclosed that 

to sensitize motorist on negative 

impact of drunk driving, 10 

Billboards have been placed on 

major roads within the state.

26—VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, , 2018 

LEADING 

Islamic 

charity organisation in 

the country, Zakaat and 

Sadaqah Foundation has 

distributed a total of 

N142.9million to 1,516 

beneficiaries selected across 

Lagos State. 

Both cash raging from 

N50,000 to N1million and 

equipment such as Grinding 

machine, Welding machine; 

generating sets, Freezers, 

tricycles, laptops, were given 

to artisans and individuals to 

grow their various businesses. 

More than ten artisans got 

N1million each 

Zakaat and Sadaqah is a faithbased 

organization 

supporting the economic wellbeing 

of poor Nigerians and 

delivering quality Zakat 

assessment, collection and 

distribution services to both 

private and public individuals 

as well as corporate 

organisations as provided in 

the Qur’an; Chapters 9:103, 

60. It doles out over 

500million yearly in Zakaat to 

Rabiul-Awwal 22, 1440 A.H. 

Zakat foundation gives out N142m again 

•It will reduce economic inequality, crime — Adebule, Chief 

Imam of Lagos 

...As Abdulhakeem advocates legal backing for charity 

several Nigerians 

irrespective of religious 

affiliation. 

Speaking at the 14th Zakat 

Distribution Ceremony of the 

Foundation held at the 

Alausa Secretariat Mosque, 

Ikeja, recently, Lagos State 

Deputy Governor Dr. Idiat 

Adebule, recommended the 

payment of Zakat (wealth 

redistribution) as one of the 

ways of alleviating poverty in 

the country, just as the Chief 

Imam of the State, Sheikh 

Sulaiman Abu Nolla urged 

Muslims to come together to 

fight poverty. 

Adebule who was 

represented by the Lagos 

State Chairperson of College 

of Nigeria Pathologists (CNP) 

Prof Fatimah AbdulKareem, 

noted that the payment of 

Zakat would help to fight 

insecurity in the country. 

Among other benefits that 

she attributed to the 

payment of Zakat are 

promotion of economic 

equality and promotion of 

Executive Director/CEO, Zakat & Sadaqat Foundation, 

Prince Sulayman Olagunju, (left); Prof Rahmon 

Bello, Chairman of the Occasion; Director/CEO Jaiz 

Foundation, Imam Abdullahi Shuaib (right) presenting 

a tricycle to one of the beneficiaries during the 

Zakaat distribution ceremony held at Alusa Secretariat 

Mosque, Ikeja Lagos recently. 

From left: Director/CEO Jaiz Foundation, Imam Abdullahi 

Shuaib; Alh Modupe Kadri; Executive Director/ 

CEO, Z&S Foundation, Prince Sulayman Olagunju; Dr 

Tajudeen Yusuf, Chairman, Board of Directors and Prof- 

Rahmon Bello, chairman of the occasion at the event. 

love. 

The deputy governor said, 

“When we take from the 

wealthy to distribute to the 

appropriate beneficiaries, 

there is constant circulation of 

wealth such that it is not 

concentrated in the hands of a 

few. 

“Zakat gives rise to relative 

equality among mankind. It 

fosters feeling of love, and 

harmony as well as cohesion 

within the society. In the 

present day Nigeria, wealth 

circulates among a few while 

the majority languishes in 

poverty. 

“The few wealthy ones, 

unfortunately, don’t feel 

secured living amongst the 

majority who are poor, hungry 

and angry; thus the wealthy 

spends so much on security 

when all it takes is to give out 

2.5 per cent as zakat. 

“It is economic inequality 

that results in increasing crime, 

hooliganism and other vices in 

the society. Zakat is a means 

to prevent all these vices in the 

society by ensuring social 

security.” 

In the same vein, the 

Commissioner for Home 

Affairs Dr Abdullateef 

Abdulhakeem, urged 

government to give legal 

backing to Zakat. 

According to him; “Anyone 

who possesses wealth must 

realise that he/she is a 

distributor on behalf of the 

giver – Allah. There is so much 

wealth within the community 

but because we have failed to 

activate our sense of 

generosity, so many people are 

suffering today. 

“Charity will do a lot to 

alleviate poverty in the 

society. Zakat is something that 

even the government should 

give legal backing to. It will be 

a form of Public Private 

Partnership that will assist the 

government to get funds for the 

purpose of alleviating poverty. 

“Organisations like this 

should be given support. 

Governance is also about 

touching the lives of people in 

the society .” 

Chief Imam of Lagos State 

Sheikh Sulaiman Oluwatoyin 

Abou-Nollah, advised Muslims 

to prioritise investments in 

areas capable of reducing 

poverty among Muslims. 

He said: “It is important for 

us to invest. We cannot get to 

the level that we want without 

any meaningful investmwent. 

It is key for us to invest. Zakaat 

is about enriching poor people 

so that they can get to the level 

that is sustainable. ” 

The Chief Imam said the 

challenges confronting the 

Ummah in Lagos are multidimensional, 

adding that 

“apart from battling poverty, 

BARKA JUMAH 

Stay with faith 

Allah will grant ease after difficulty. 

Al-Talaq 65:7 

Sudden and shocking deaths of great 

friends, all at once, is most confounding! Too 

much pain laced with unbearable confusion. 

Only Allah can heal us. Hang on to Him. Stay 

with faith. Be strong! Allah won't ever 

burden us beyond our capacity. Allah shall 

heal and restore us. Hail Allah. Be real 

strong! Ease and joy forever stay with us 

all, insha Allah. Happy jumat. 

— Dr. Adewale Adeeyo, OON 

Do you seek a Muslim life partner? 

Profile 150: A Muslim lady, 28, from North Central based 

in Sagamu, Ogun State, Self-employed, wants a God fearing 

man from any part of the country, preferably Yoruba, between 

the age of 32-35 for marriage. She couldd be reached 

via 0815xxxxxxx. 

Profile 151: A 41-year-old male Muslim from northern Nigeria 

but based in Lagos State, searching for a Muslim ladywith 

fear of Allah, working and ready for marriage. Preferably 

based in Lagos. 

Profile152: A Muslim male, 40, 5ft5", working in Lagos 

seeking a Muslim lady as second wife from South West Nigeria, 

between 30 - 35 years of age. She must be literate, working 

and ready for marriage. 

Profile153: A Muslim male, 50, employed, based in Lagos 

needs a Muslim lady between ages 30 to 35 years, divorced 

with not more than one child or single and ready for marriage. 

Profile 154: A Muslimah, 38, divorced, based in Lagos 

needs a Muslim man between 40 and 42 years for marriage. 

He must be based in Lagos. 

other issues that have direct 

impact on the practice of our 

faith are numerous. Among 

such challenges are Muslim 

cemetery, Muslim hospital as 

well as investment company 

that will not only serve the 

employment need of Muslims 

but improve their economic 

well-being.” 

Chairman of the occasion 

and immediate past Vice- 

Chancellor of the University of 

Lagos, Prof. Bello Rahmon, 

advised that investments 

should be focused towards the 

health needs of Nigeria. 

He said: “This is one of the 

few events to showcase the 

beauty of Islam. It is an aspect 

of our religion that must be put 

to use. The level of 

unemployment is high. You 

find hundreds and thousands 

of graduates walking around 

with nothing to do. Zakat is one 

of the ways to resolve the 

challenges.. 

We must continue to 

consider the possibilities of 

setting up institutions that can 

assist with unemployment and 

health challenges. We need to 

set up clinics that attend to 

prevalent ailments in our 

society.” 

Zakat and Sadaqat 

Foundation Executive 

Director Prince Sulayman 

Olagunju, said the foundation 

was worried about the 

growing rate of poverty in the 

country. 

“We were deeply touched to see 

the numbers of Nigerians who 

were wallowing in abject poverty, 

which has been one of the 

propelling forces driving us to step 

up zakat collections on yearly 

basis despite the economic 

situation of our country. 

“Today, with the support of 

our zakat payers, we are 

pleased to inform you that the 

sum of N142,938,905 is being 

distributed to 1,516 

beneficiaries in Lagos State out 

of the N318,152,130 Zakat 

mobilized for this year, 2018 as 

at October 31. 

“However, we still have a long 

way to go. We appeal to 

Muslims passionately to help 

us create jobs, by contributing 

their own quota to building an 

egalitarian society.” 

ZSF Board of Directors 

Chairman Dr. Tajudeen Yusuf, 

appealed to Nigerians to join in 

the effort to stop poverty in the 

country. 

“Poverty can be eradicated in 

Nigeria. We are prepared to 

work towards the eradication. 

Poverty is not our own portion 

as Muslims, so we are not just 

focused on alleviating but 

eradicating. 

“It is gratifying for me that 

each year we come here, our 

performance has always been 

better that previous year. 

“Secondly, a programme 

titled KOSOSI Forum would be 

launched on Sunday, 

December 23, 2018 where we 

seek to equip our economic 

empowerment beneficiaries in 

such a manner that they 

become economically 

accountable and self-reliant.” 

Jaiz Charity Foundation 

Executive Director Imam 

Abdullahi Shuaib, warned 

against the danger of not paying 

Zakat. 

“ Allah gave us the institution 

of Zakaat for specific purpose 

but some of us are ungrateful 

elements. Some Muslims are 

capable of paying but they 

won’t pay. Muslims should not 

be rich and poor at the same 

time. Zakat is a potent tool for 

poverty alleviation. We must 

be prepared to pay our zakat, it 

is a contradiction that we are 

rich, yet poor,” he said.

MUSLIMS of Igbo ex 

traction have expressed 

disaffection against 

the delay in the appointment 

of an Igbo Imam for the 

National Mosque Abuja, as 

promised by the Sultan of 

Sokoto and the President 

General of the Nigerian Supreme 

Council for Islamic 

Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammadu 

Abubakar Sa’ad 

III when the Murshid of the 

Mosque was appointed. 

According to the group, 

The Sultan made the promise 

to erase any tribal attachment 

on the Imamship 

of the national institution, 

considering the fact that the 

three Imams under the Murshid 

are two Hausas and a 

Yoruba. 

Speaking under a nongovernment 

organization, 

Igbo Muslim Forum (IMF), 

the Southeast Muslim faithful 

explained that when the 

promise was made, the Igbo 

Rabiul-Awwal 22, 1440 A.H 

National Mosque: Igbo Muslims grumbles 

over delay in appointment of Imam 

Muslims were happy to be carried 

along by the Sultan in that 

regard. But it has been too 

long when the promise was 

supposed to have been fulfilled. 

In a statement signed by the 

coordinator general and secretary 

of the forum, Suleman 

A. Afikpo and Dr. Muhammad 

Amaechi, respectively, they 

recalled recent convention 

convened in Abuja by the 

South East Muslims of Nigeria 

(SEMON) where some members 

of the Igbo Muslim Ummah 

expressed displeasure 

over the promise described 

by some as normal lip service. 

They said that the matter 

had become a subject of discussion 

at every forum of the 

organisation. 

“The acquiescence of the 

President General of NSCIA, 

echoed further by his Secretary 

General, published in all 

the major Nigerian dailies after 

their meeting of the 6th 

Extended General Purpose 

Committee in October 9, 

2017, was one pronouncement 

that placed smile on the 

faces of every Igbo Muslim. 

“In readiness, we converged 

in a general meeting that 

screened and produced three 

eligible scholars from 

amongst us for the duty. Follow-up 

letter dated 16th April 

2018, with Reference no: 

IMF/NSCIA/18/01 was disseminated”, 

the statement 

noted. 

“For over a year now, there 

has not been any response to 

our letter nor the said imamate 

position filled. While we 

wait in anticipation, we grieve 

and grumble at the neglect 

being meted on us. We humbly 

want to use this medium 

to remind the authorities in 

charge, lest our case be held 

under administrative redtopism.” 

Emir of Kano, 

Muhammad Sanusi 

Lamido (2nd right), 

Member of Jaiz 

Foundation Board of 

Trustees (BoT) and 

representative of 

Chairman of Jaiz 

Foundation, Alhaji 

Danladi Sani Hanga 

(2nd left), Director/ 

Chief Executive Officer 

Jaiz Foundation Imam 

Abdullahi Shuaib 

(right) and Jaiz 

Foundation Company 

Secretary/Legal Adviser 

Umar Faruk Yakubu, 

(2nd right) during the 

Zakat distribution 

ceremony organized by 

Jaiz Charity and 

Development 

Foundation at the 

Emir’s Palace in Kano, 

Wednesday. 


Pomp as Ike Oluwa Mosque gets new 

Chief Imam 

•Turbans Oladejo as Mogaji Adini 

IT was pomp and festivity as the Muslims in Oke Aro, Ogun 

State turbaned Alhaji AbduFatai Adeyemi as the new Chief 

Imam, Ike Oluwa Central Mosque. Alhaji Semiu Adebayo Oladejo, 

a philanthropist and businessman also turbaned as Mogaji 

Adini and confered on his wife, Alhaja Sherifat Oladejo, the Otun 

Iya Sunna of the mosque last Sunday. 

The Oke Aro Grammar School playing ground, venue of the 

event was beehive of activities as residents, friends and well 

wishers trooped for the event. Personalities from far and near 

were decked in different Aso-ebi with food and drinks flowing 

freely. The occasion was also used for a fund raising for the 

Mosque project. 

Among those turbaned were Alhaji Alhaji Boyejo Taoheed Olatunbosun 

as Otun Saraki Adini; Alhaji Mufutau Sholanke as Giwa 

Adini. Others included Chief AbvdRahman Adamu as Otun Seriki; 

Alhaja Wasilat Jubril as Olori Alasalatu among others. 

Chief Imam of Ike Oluwa Central Mosque, Alhaji AbdFatai 

Adeyemi, (left) and other Ulamas turbaning Alhaji 

AbduSemiu Oladejo (middle) as Mogaji Adini of Ike 

Oluwa Central Mosque, Oke Aro, Ogun State last Sunday. 

2019: Ogun League of Imams, Alfas pray y for peace- 

ful, violence-free elections 

•Why Muslims must be united—Prof. Balogun 

By Daud Olatunji 

THE grand mufti of Eg 

baland, Professor 

Kamaldeen Balogun has advised 

Muslims to be united 

and love one another as 

stipulated by the Qu’ran and 

hadiths. 

Prof. Balogun gave the advice 

during a Special Prayer 

held at Lantoro Eid prayer 

grounds in Abeokuta, organised 

by the League of Imams 

and Alfas in Ogun for Peaceful 

and Violence-free 2019 

elections. 

He said, Unity is the only 

antidote to solving the problems 

facing the ummah. 

He also called for love 

among Muslims and good examples 

by religious leaders 

,adding that , their actions influence 

their followers greatly 

. 

The event which attracted 

all the Islamic scholars in the 

State who include; the President-General 

of Ogun State 

Rabitah who is also the Chief 

Imam of Egbalnd, Sheikh 

Imam Liadi Orunsolu, the Secretary-General 

of the league 

who is also the Imam of Ilaro 

,Sheikh Mustopha Adewunmi 

and the Wakilu Muslimun of 

Yorubaland, Sheik Iskil Lawal 

popularly called Imam 

Sugar. 

While charging the gathering 

on the coming elections, 

Prof. Balogun called on all 

Muslims to wake up to their 

responsibility, propagate Islam 

in order to reclaim its lost 

glory 

The professor from the department 

of Religious studies 

of the university gave the 

charge on the need to choose 

good leaders so as to have 

good governance . 

While explaining the essence 

of the programme, 

Sheik Lawal said the Muslims 

would contribute their quota 

to the success of the coming 

elections through prayers. 

Alhaja Sherifat Oladejo (middle) being conferred with 

Otun Iya Sunna of Ike-Oluwa, Oke Aro, after her 

husband, Alhaji AbduSemiu Oladejo (right) was 

turbaned Mogaji Adini of Ike Oluwa Central Mosque, 

Oke Aro, Ogun State at the event. 

Mogaji Adini, Alhaji Oladejo and wife, Otun Iya Sunna 

of Ike-Oluwa Mosque, Oke Aro, Ogun State with 

family and friends at the event.

28— Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

By Adeola Badru 

IBADAN-IT was a sad 

experience as a 

commercial farm owner at 

Akoya community in Ibarapa 

North Local Government Area 

of Oyo State, Mr. Kayode Olaitan 

expressed his ordeal of cattle 

invasion that caused serious 

damage to his eight hectares 

maize farm, which he said, led 

to a loss of 40 tonnes of maize, 

among other costs amounting to 

N3 million. 

Olaitan, the Manager of 

Fempanath Nigeria Limited, 

while expressing his sadness to 

Vanguard, stated that he planted 

maize on a total of eight hectares 

of land expanse and to his 

surprise, cattle herders around 

there came to his farm and 

devoured all the crops, leaving 

them with nothing to harvest. 

Narrating his ordeal, Olaitan 

said: “These are crops that were 

already developing the cubs. The 

cubs were already forming. 

There are several of them that 

were due for harvest in the next 

three or four weeks, but we have 

nothing left to harvest. We have 

invested a lot of money here. It 

cost us thousands of naira to 

bulldoze this land; we spent a 

lot of money to plough this land; 

we got seeds that were planted; 

we paid workers to plant these 

seeds; and we have a sprinkler 

irrigation system that we are 

using. These cost us a lot of 

money. 

“We are commercial farmers, 

cultivating hundreds of hectares 

of land.” 

However, Olaitan is looking up 

to the police and the judiciary to 

adjudicate over the loss of 

millions of naira to herdsmen 

invasion, noting the need for 

cattle herders to be willing to 

lease, purchase or rent land to 

ranch their cattle. 

His words: “We are willing to 

embrace compensation. We are 

commercial farmers, cultivating 

hundreds of hectares of land. We 

also expect the cattle herders to 

invest and acquire land, own their 

own ranches where they can own 

and keep their own cattle, as it 

is done in several parts of the 

world. They should also be able 

to lease, or purchase land to 

ranch their cattle without 

incurring losses for other 

farmers.” 

One of the leaders of Akoya 

community, Mr. Taiwo Moses, 

noted that reports of invasion of 

farmlands had assumed an 

alarming dimension and was 

threatening the peaceful 

coexistence between herdsmen 

and community dwellers. 

According to Moses, more 

worrisome for residents was the 

seeming failure of security agents 

and traditional rulers to 

effectively call the herdsmen to 

order. 

He said: “The herdsmen have 

continued to wreak havoc on 

farmlands in this area. We have 

met with them several times not 

to continue to graze on our 

farmlands but they remain 

hesitant. We have informed 

leaders around to caution them 

but this has not yielded results. 

•The affected farm land located at Akoya community in Ibarapa North LGA of Oyo State. 

Anger, as herdsmen graze 

on N3m maize farms 

•Farmers’ association expresses anger 

We report to the police but they 

only beg us to remain calm. The 

police seem to be conniving with 

the herdsmen leaders. What we 

basically want is that the 

herdsmen should stop grazing on 

our farmlands. It is the herd of 

cattle that meets the farmland not 

farmland meeting the herd of 

cattle. 

“When there is negotiation 

between the herdsmen and 

owner of destroyed farmland, 

offer of compensation would 

usually begin from N2,000 and 

they hardly pay N15,000. For the 

past four years, I have not 

received compensation above 

N40, 000; whenever my farmland 

LAGOS—SOME 

land 

owners at NASCO Estate in 

Amuwo Odofin Local 

Government Area of Lagos State 

have appealed to the Federal 

Government to come to their aid 

over an alleged plot by suspected 

land grabbers to eject them from 

their legitimately acquired land. 

The lawyer to the association, 

Mr. Iheanyi Emeh explained that 

the entire stretch of land called 

NASCO Estate belonged to 

NASCO Estate Nigeria Limited 

by virtue of a Lease between the 

Federal Government of Nigeria 

and the company, entered in 1978. 

Emeh said: “In 1994, one 

Michael Mojisola Cole filed suit 

No.ID/1134/94 between Michael 

Mojisola Cole vs Agbojojoye 

family, the original land owners 

(Omonile) from whom the Federal 

is destroyed. To get a higher 

compensation, the case will have 

to be handled by the people in 

Ibadan.” 

Farmers’ association express 

anger 

Reacting to the incursion by 

herdsmen, the Secretary of 

Ibarapaland farmers association, 

Taiwo Adeagbo said the situation 

had assumed a grave dimension, 

stating that in a day, the 

association had been inundated 

with reports of herdsmen 

destruction of farmlands totalling 

about 100 acres. 

Adeagbo echoed the state of 

fear that had gripped farmers in 

Igangan, who are now scared to 

go to their farms, for fear of attack 

from herdsmen. 

Adeagbo said: “These 

occurrences began in 2013. We 

got petitions of the destruction 

of farmlands ranging from eight 

acres to 20 acres and 30 acres. I 

have just been called again that 

cows are on a farmland grazing. 

We have forwarded a petition to 

the Alaafin of Oyo, the 

Commissioner of Police and the 

Governor over the several 

incidents there. Today, alone we 

have got reports of destruction 

of farmland of about 100 acres. 

Years ago, we went to Osogbo to 

report to the Assistant Inspector 

General of Police and he 

promised to arrest and sue the 

concerned herdsmen. 

“Then, the herdsmen signed an 

undertaking. On the 7th of 

November, this year, a meeting 

was convened by the state 

government but many residents 

failed to speak up about their 

plight. Then some executive 

members of Ibarapaland farmers 

association spoke about the 

plight of the people, on their 

behalf. We found out that one of 

the problems is that some are 

benefiting from the presence of 

the Fulani farmers not thinking 

of the havoc wreaked on the 

entire community. 

“When we questioned the 

Seriki Fulani on why cattle 

continued to graze over 

farmlands, his response was that 

occurrences of cattle grazing over 

farmlands were not new and that 

as the number of herdsmen were 

growing, so was cattle growing 

and farmers increasing, hence 

farmers had to be patient. But 

we reprimanded him and asked 

that was it legal for cattle to 

continue to destroy crops. We are 

at a stage where we are tempted 

to say that farmers can also kill 

cows that destroy their 

farmlands. It’s peculiar to 

Igangan, as it is not happening 

in neighbouring places like Tapa 

and Ayete. We have complained 

that we are not sure of the 

capability of the police and 

traditional rulers to handle the 

issue.” 

Allegation of backing 

herdsmen false—-Oyo Police 

Meanwhile, the Police Public 

Relations Officer, PPRO, in Oyo 

State, SP Adekunle Ajisebutu 

dismissed allegations of being on 

Lagos landlords seek FG intervention over eviction 

By Henry Ojelu 

We are commercial 

farmers, cultivating 

hundreds of hectares 

of land. We also 

expect the cattle 

herders to invest and 

acquire land, own 

their own ranches 

where they can own 

and keep their own 

cattle 

continued on Page 29 

Government of Nigeria acquired 

the land and thereafter leased to 

NASCO after paying 

compensation to the Family. 

“The Family entered settlement 

with Mojisola Cole wherein they 

agreed to give him 42 Acres of land 

as replacement for the 100Acres 

he bought from them at any other 

location other than the Federal 

Government acquired land leased 

to NASCO. 

“However, in February 2018, 

some land grabbers entered 

NASCO land purporting that they 

were executing judgment in the 

earlier Suit No.ID/1134/94. They 

refused to avail us of the copy of 

the judgment they were executing. 

The Police were called in to 

intervene .The Police in turn 

sought for clarification from the 

office of the Surveyor General of 

the Federation as to the boundaries 

of NASCO land vis a vis Mojisola 

Cole’s land. 

“In its response to the Police 

enquiry, the Office of the Surveyor 

General stated emphatically that 

the matter is not one of boundary 

dispute but a case of complete 

trespass into NASCO’S land by 

the acclaimed Attorneys of 

Mojisola Cole. Nevertheless, the 

land grabbers have remained on 

NASCO’S land because they are 

aided and goaded by some top 

security officers.” 

Also, chairman of the estate 

association, Chief Osita Ekpunobi 

said they were shocked recently 

when the suspected land 

grabbers invaded the estate with 

thugs on the strength of the 

consent judgment that is meant 

for another land. 

In a statement, Ekpunobi said: 

“They padlocked our gates; 

claiming they won the land in the 

court. We requested them to serve 

us the court papers but they did 

not. So we traced the suit number 

in the court and discovered that 

the matter does not concern us, 

neither NASCO our landlord nor 

the federal government that leased 

the land. 

“Despite that, the land grabbers 

have not ceased to molest us. 

They even erected gate at the 

entrance/exit of the estate but we 

opposed it; because there was no 

way someone who does not live 

in the estate could hold keys to 

the gate.” 

“Therefore, we beg and urge the 

Federal Government and 

Inspector General of Police to 

intervene urgently and save our 

lives and land. We plead with 

federal government to reassure 

us that the provision in the 

Constitution of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria, 1999 

(Sections 43, 44,) that the citizens 

can genuinely acquire landed 

properties in any part of the 

country is still true.”


Why Nigerians engage 

in open defecation 

— UNICEF 

By Rotimi Ojomoyela 

ADO-EKITI—A water 

and sanitation expert, 

Mr Pius Eno, has traced the 

practice of open defecation 

among Nigerians to lack of 

access to water and 

sanitation facilities. 

He said the practice, 

which is the major cause of 

contaminated water, has led 

to the outbreak of 

diarrhoea, cholera, 

dysentery, typhoid, 

gastyronomical disorder, 

among other delibitating 

diseases. 

Eno, UNICEF resource 

person, said this at a Zonal 

Orientation Workshop for 

Local Government Area. 

Participants at the event 

were drawn from Ekiti, 

Osun and Edo states. 

Eno said: “In most rural 

communities in the country 

today, where there are no 

sanitation facilities, 

inhabitants practices open 

defecation, and the faeces 

are washed into the ponds, 

which are often the source 

of water supply, this 

contaminated water spread 

diseases like wildfire. 

Currently, access to 

improved water supply is 

about 62 percent and even 

THE TEAM 

EDITOR: Dayo Johnson 

Deputy Editor: Dapo Akinrefon 

08023844928 (sms only) 

CORRESPONDENTS: 

Ola Ajayi 

Gbenga Olarinoye 

Dare Fasube 

Daud Olatunji 

Rotimi Ojomoyela 

Monsuru Olowoopejo 

Adeola Badru 

low as 29 percent for 

sanitation, a greater 

proportion found in rural 

areas and among lowest 

wealth areas.” 

Explaining the effects of 

the menace on 

communities, Eno said: 

“Low level of school 

enrolment and completion 

rate especially among girl 

child, loss of family income 

to treatment of illness, loss 

of economic time to sickness 

or caring for sick ones and 

poor educational 

performance of children due 

to stunting.” 

The Water and Sanitation 

expert, however, posited that 

the responsibility to solving 

water, sanitation and 

By Dayo Johnson 

AKURE—- THE traditional 

ruler of Igbara- Oke, Oba 

Francis Adefarakanmi Agbede 

has said that the completion 

of the Sunshine Crest Rice 

Project in Igbara- Oke, Ondo 

state would boost the federal 

government’s efforts towards 

increase in food production 

Ibadan 

Osogbo 

(Photo) 

Abeokuta 

Ekiti 

Lagos 

Ibadan 

•Open defecation 

hygiene problems lies with 

the governments at all levels, 

communities and 

individuals. 

He said that Water, 

Sanitation and Hygiene 

(WASH) programme was 

design to address the 

Ondo monarch tasks Akeredolu on Igbara-Oke rice 

mill factory 

and reducing rice importation 

in the country. 

Oba Agbede said this during 

the celebration of the Igbara- 

Oke Day. 

He called on Governor 

Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo 

State, who flagged off the 

project in February this year, 

to hasten works on the rice 

mill factory and the on-going 

roads’ construction in the area. 

Anger, as herdsmen graze on N3m maize 

farms 

continued from Page 28 

the side of the herdsmen as false, 

spurious and baseless. 

He stressed that the police 

usually admonished both parties 

to embrace alternative dispute 

resolution to prevent a resort to 

violence, while offenders are 

charged to court when an 

amicable settlement could not 

be reached. 

Ajisebutu said: “Allegation of 

supporting the herdsmen over 

community dwellers is false and 

baseless. We stand on the path 

of justice and fairness. Ours is 

to act as arbiters between the 

two parties, using alternative 

dispute resolution approach to 

avoid violent clashes. Where 

amicable settlement cannot be 

reached, cases are charged to 

Court. Often, it is the parties 

themselves that initiate out-ofcourt 

negotiation to get financial 

compensation but when the 

results fall short of their 

expectations, spurious 

allegations are made. However, 

no fewer than 6 cases involving 

farmers and herdsmen in the 

area have been charged to court 

while some are still under 

investigation at the state CIID, 

Iyaganku. The CP, Abiodun 

Odude, has directed the DPO 

Ayete as well as other DPOs to 

treat such cases with all 

seriousness and promptness.” 

Allegations against us 

unfair—Sarkin Fulani 

However, when contacted by 

Vanguard, the Seriki Fulani of 

Oyo State, Alhaji Soliu 

Abdul’Kadir refuted the 

allegations levelled against the 

herdsmen as unfair and lies, 

pointing out that they usually 

investigate reports of their cows 

destroying farmland. 

He was quick to add that 

compensation is usually paid to 

any farmer who brings such 

information of an invasion to 

their notice. 

Abdul’Kadir said: “Whenever 

we are informed of cows invading 

a farmland, we try to find out the 

truth, the kind of farmland, and 

whose farmland was destroyed, 

and what measures the police 

was using to address the issue. 

There is no herdsman that is 

said to have destroyed a 

farmland that does not pay 

compensation. In fact, the 

situation is such that they kill the 

cows of herdsmen and we get 

no compensation from the 

farmers and community. There 

is no week that our cows are not 

killed. 

“They tell several lies against 

us that we kill them. In the same 

way that they say we kill them, 

we can also say that the farmers 

do same to us, herdsmen. For 

everywhere they allege that a 

Fulani has killed a farmer, you 

find out that a farmer has also 

killed herdsmen.” 

problems, adding that in 

Nigeria, UNICEF support 

WASH intervention with 

funding from European 

Union and Department for 

International Development. 

His words: “Guide 

WASHCOM federations on 

Oba Agbede said the 

government needed to hasten 

works on the rice mill factory 

in order to create more job 

opportunities for the youths 

in the community and its 

environs. 

He, however, lauded the 

governor “for appointing 

natives of the town into 

various positions and for 

ongoing developmental 

projects in the area. 

The traditional said he was 

satisfied with the successes 

recorded by the sons and 

daughters of the area in their 

various fields of endeavours 

described the season as a 

new dawn for the area. 

The monarch said: “I am 

always happy and it gives me 

LAGOS—YORUBA 

Leaders across party 

lines will gather in 

Lagos on Monday, 

December 3, 2018 at a 

Colloquium to discuss the 

interest of the Yoruba nation 

as the country goes into 

general election next year. 

The Colloquium entitled: 

‘Yoruba Nation yesterday, 

today, and the challenges of 

2019’, will hold at the Recital 

Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan 

Lagos by 12 pm. 

In a statement by the 

Special Adviser on Political 

the process for registration as 

civil Society group, develop a 

work plan of action, educate 

them on their roles and tools 

to ensure accountability in 

water and sanitation sector 

among others. 

so much joy every time I read 

and hear of our sons and 

daughters doing great in their 

various fields of endeavours. 

This is indeed a good sign.” 

He appealed to indigenes of 

the area, in the private or 

public sector, to look into the 

needs of the town. 

Governor Akeredolu, who 

spoke through the Health 

Commissioner, Dr. Wahab 

Adegbenro assured that 

government would 

implement the request of the 

community. 

He pleaded with them “to 

be patient in view of the 

competing needs of the 

people of the state despite 

lean revenue accrued to the 

state. 

Yoruba leaders hold colloquium 

on 2019 polls 

Matters to the former Deputy 

National Chairman of the 

Peoples Democratic Party, 

Chief Olabode George, 

Prince Uthman Shodipe- 

Dosunmu, the colloquium 

which will have Chief 

Olabode George as the 

Keynote Speaker will also 

have in attendance the Pan 

–Yoruba Group, Afenifere 

leaders , Chief Ayo 

Adebanjo, Senator Femi 

Okurounmu and all elected 

candidates and leaders of all 

political parties in Yoruba 

land.



Send Opinions & Letters to: 

opinions1234@yahoo.com 

Ukraine’s farcical drama 

WHEN the Ukrainian 

government, against 

warnings by Russia, this Sunday, 

sent a tug boat, the Yani Kapu, and 

two gunboats, the Nikopol and the 

Berdyansk, into the Kerch Strait 

in the Crimea controlled by the 

latter, it could not have been hoping 

for a joyous reception. It could also 

not have hoped that the small 

naval ships would over run Russian 

positions in the waters which 

Russia had barricaded since 

September. The barricade had 

followed an earlier drama of a 

claim of sovereignty by the same 

ships enacted in the same waters. 

This time, Russia seized the three 

ships and two dozen sailors, 

including the intelligence officers 

on board. 

What might be surprising is 

Ukraine’s cry of “provocation” by 

Russia. It is also claiming a 

Prisoner of War status for the 

sailors, while Russia is treating 

them as criminal trespassers. 

Ukrainian President Petro 

Poroshenko’s act of sending the 

three naval ships to breach Russian 

military defences in the Crimean 

waters is like a child slapping an 

adult, and then crying that the 

latter is reacting. It is unclear why 

Poroshenko decided to provoke 

Russian reaction. It might be part 

of an understanding with the 

American-led North Atlantic 

Treaty Organsiation, NATO, to 

provoke war in the Black Sea. 

If this was the case, it means the 

Ukrainians learnt nothing from the 

five-day Russo-Georgian War. 

Georgia, led by President Mikheil 

Saakashvili believing that NATO 

would fight on its side, had in 2008, 

taken on the Russian Army. But 

NATO did not lift a finger, leaving 

the Georgians to be crushed by 

Russia. There is nothing to indicate 

today, that were war to break out 

between Ukraine and Russia, 

NATO would risk a Third World 

War by attacking Russia. On the 

other hand, the provocation could 

be part of Ukraine’s tactics to get 

the West impose fresh sanctions 

against Russia; but if it were to 

succeed in doing this, of what 

benefit will it be? What were the 

effects of earlier Western sanctions 

on Russia over the same Ukraine? 

Ukraine has enacted on the 

world stage a number of farcical 

drama presentations against 

Russia in order to turn the 

international community against 

its neigbour. So far, the most 

childish is the Tuesday, May 29, 

2018 fake assassination of Russian 

exile journalist, Arkady 

Babchenko. The Ukrainian 

security services staged scenes in 

which the journalist was ‘shot’ 

three times, subsequently, declared 

dead and wheeled to the mortuary. 

The Ukrainian government went 

on to show footages of the alleged 

assassin, Valid Lurakhmanov, a 

‘notorious Chechen hitman’. There 

was outrage across the world 

against Russia. A few days later, the 

Ukrainian Government produced 

Babchenko alive at a press 

conference saying it had faked the 

assassination for “propagandistic 

effect”. 

The Ukrainian government this 

Wednesday followed up its latest 

drama with an unrelated 

declaration of Marshall Law 

which it claims it introduced with 

the sole purpose of boosting 

Ukraine's defence in the light of a 

growing aggression from Russia. 

While the state of emergency 

includes what it says is a partial 

mobilization and strengthening 

the country's air defence and antiterrorism 

measures, the 

government quite curiously 

included curtailing fundamental 

human rights in the measures. No 

such measures were introduced in 

2014 and 2015 when the country 

witnessed an escalation of war in 

the Eastern part including the 

Crimea. It is not unlikely that the 

new law is aimed at curtailing the 

opposition as the Presidential 

elections approach. 

Stripped of all its melodrama, 

the real issue in contention is the 

Crimea which both countries 

claim. Crimea became part of the 

Russian Empire in 1783. So when 

the Russian Revolution took place 

in 1917, it was part of the successor 

Union of Soviet Socialist 

Republics, USSR. Ukraine was 

also part of the Soviet Federation. 

In October 1921, Crimea became 

an autonomous Republic within 

the USSR. However, in 1946, it 

was stripped of this status, and in 

1954, merged with Ukraine. As the 

USSR began to unravel in 1990, 

Crimea sought to regain its old 

status as an autonomous republic. 

But the process was still on when 

Ukraine became an independent 

country with Crimea, which has a 

70 percent Russian stock, as an 

integral part. 

However, in the post-Cold War 

era, there was an ideological 

struggle with Eastern Ukraine 

being pro-Russia, and the rest of 

the country including the capital 

If Ukraine were to 

reunite, it will take 

more than the antics 

of the leadership in 

Kiev 

Kiev, leaning more to the West. 

These differences were reflected in 

the country’s elections. The 2004 

presidential elections resulted in 

a run-off in which Viktor 

Yanukovych a pro-Russian 

politician from the East was 

declared the winner. A protest in 

the capital Kiev followed. Called 

the Orange Revolution, the 

presidential elections were 

upturned and the Supreme Court 

ordered new elections in which the 

rival candidate, Viktor 

Yushchenko was declared winner. 

However, Yanukovych again 

won the 2010 elections. This time, 

all agreed he was the clear winner 

and was sworn into office. 

However in 2014 there were again 

pro-West demonstrations in Kiev 

over the refusal of the government 

to sign a trade deal with the West; 

the Ukraine - European Union 

Association Agreement. Unlike the 

bloodless Orange Revolution 

protests, this was quite bloody with 

over 100 persons killed. This led 

to a coup in which President 

Yanukovych was ousted. He fled 

to Eastern Ukraine where the 

populace took up arms and 

declared themselves independent 

from the rest of the country. Half 

the Ukrainian soldiers stationed in 

the East defected to the side of the 

rebels and that war in which over 

10,000 people have been killed, is 

still on. 

Crimea was part of the country 

that took up arms against the Kiev 

coup plotters. On May 25, 61 of 

the 64 parliamentarians at a 

sitting, voted for a referendum on 

autonomy, and 55 of them voted 

to remove the regional 

government. The Crimea 

population voted to rejoin Russia, 

and were accepted. The Ukrainian 

authorities claim that the votes in 

Crimea Parliament and the 

referendum were secured under 

duress and that the Crimea 

remains part of sovereign Ukraine. 

It is this sovereignty, Ukraine tried 

to assert by sending the three naval 

ships to the Kerch Strait in the 

Crimea. 

The disputes in Ukraine are 

likely to go on for a long time, but 

I think the country shot itself in the 

foot by using the populace of one 

part of the country to overthrow 

the legitimately elected 

government led by politicians from 

another part of the country. If 

Ukraine were to reunite, it will take 

more than the antics of the 

leadership in Kiev. For instance, it 

may need to consider the 

restoration of the Yanukovych 

administration as part of national 

reconciliation. If this seems farfetched, 

so does the reunification 

of the country. 

UI @ 70 and irony of peace and conflict scholarship 

By Tunde Akanni 

SO, the University of Ibadan, at 70, 

the nation’s premier, will now act the 

proverbial lamp lacking the capacity to 

see own underside? What has happened 

to all the promises of the supposed 

progress made in peace and conflict studies 

for which it has no rival in Nigeria? What 

has happened to the impression it keeps 

flaunting to the world on the rare capacity 

of the peace and conflict studies team? Is 

the University of Ibadan no longer part of 

the SPSP which is the exclusive preserve 

of peace and conflict scholars and 

practitioners? What has happened to all 

the exposure and collaborations? How can 

hijab haters be allowed to make a mess of 

Africa’s foremost peace scholars and 

practitioners? 

Fate beckons to UI. It beckons to the 

distinguished scholar and the ingenious 

administrator at the helm of affairs, Prof. 

Abel Idowu Olayinka who is reputable to 

be a fair minded and all-time modest 

person. I can testify to all these but this 

would be later in this same intervention. 

The raging controversy over hijab at the 

International School Ibadan, ISI, is 

unfortunately adding to the mounting 

pressure on the incumbent administrators 

of the institution. 

UI’s leadership in the tertiary education 

sector in Nigeria is being keenly contested 

and in fact being overtaken. And it didn’t 

start with Prof. Olayinka’s leadership. As 

a stakeholder in the education sector and 

respectable consultant to the Joint 

Admissions and Matriculation Board, 

JAMB, I was at the Gbongan meeting 

convened for stakeholders June 26, 2018. 

A major issue that arose from the admission 

pattern of many Nigerian universities was 

de-internationalisation. UI was openly 

declared guilty. It is no longer opening its 

doors to international students and, 

therefore, international values and by 

extension, resources. And diversity, of 

course. 

Today, according to the Registrar and 

Chief Executive of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq 

Oloyede, the University of Ilorin is the most 

international university in Nigeria. I was 

happy for the University of Ilorin as a 

distinguished alumnus and proud parent 

of current student. Your natural query on 

this Unilorin status are regularly answered 

by the institution: It is home to the highest 

University of Ibadan is too 

endowed to be pulled back by 

ISI administrators who 

probably need more education 

in diversity and diasporic 

knowledge 

number of SAN law lecturers. Perhaps more 

than any other university in the country, it 

attracts international grants for research 

and other developmental activities. 

It may interest you that it emerged as 

one of the African Centres of Excellence, 

ACE, enabling it again to attract millions 

of dollars for more functional and timeous 

research activities. Yes, as its own support 

for peace in the country and resistance to 

menacing experience such as Boko Haram 

is inflicting on us, Unilorin recently 

announced its breakthrough on bullet proof 

vest and has even gone ahead to sign 

memorandum of understanding with the 

Nigerian Army. More money, more 

recognition! What will it cost Nigerian 

Army to extend its collaboration to the 

University of Ilorin’s Strategic Studies 

programme, a feat University of Ibadan 

celebrated recently. 

As a University of Ibadan postgraduate 

student, I had been invited for an award 

by University for Peace in Ethiopia in 2009. 

Beyond ordinary television features, I had 

encountered and interacted with Ethiopian 

ladies decently decked in hijab. My 

Islamic consciousness welled up to reckon 

with most of them as muslims. I was 

wrong! Ethiopia today is a leading light in 

Africa having produced another female 

president. When will the ISI administrators 

be exposed to cultures that would enable 

them appreciate the diversity that will keep 

pervading the world? Have they not heard 

of Amina Mohamed, our fellow Nigerian, 

always with her hijab, who is now a top 

player in UN? Shouldn’t they start thinking 

of inviting diverse motivational speakers 

to come inspire their students? And the 

university community, present and past, 

has this in abundance. 

Stories and actions of inspirations and 

tolerance abound in abundance at the 

University of Ibadan which owns ISI and 

which ISI must learn from. Those who may 

choose to hang on to their conservatism 

should not be encouraged to think they 

still have relevance in the community 

especially under Prof Olayinka. And I 

return to his story. Prof Olayinka was the 

Dean of the Postgraduate School when I 

applied for my doctoral programme in 

Media and Conflict Studies. The result of 

the master’s programme I had submitted 

was from the University of Leicester in 

United Kingdom where I was a 

distinguished British Chevening Scholar. 

Somehow, because it was one of the few 

international submissions, the reckoning 

was that it presented some difficulty in 

interpretation. It, therefore, had to be kept 

apart. In spite of the fact that I had a PhD 

grade, my name didn’t feature in the first 

list. My brother, friend and teacher, Sola 

Olorunyomi was surprised but felt caution 

and dialogue, now missing in the ISI 

context, should be explored. He reported 

back to me to say that “it took the personal 

intervention of the dean fah”. He insisted 

I should call Prof. Olayinka for taking the 

pains to resolve my matter. I called my dean 

and notwithstanding the fact that mine was 

not a familiar telephone number to him, 

he picked it and we exchanged 

pleasantries. I also registered my deep 

gratitude. 

Must Olayinka be made to stoop to drain 

pains at all times? This fine administrator 

has competent lieutenants in abundance, 

including my benefactor and able 

Professor of Peace Studies, Isaac Olawale 

Albert, as well as another brother and 

friend, Prof Abideen Aderinto, a Deputy 

Vice-Chancellor. 

University of Ibadan is too endowed to 

be pulled back by ISI administrators who 

probably need more education in diversity 

and diasporic knowledge both of which 

are available and as leader programmes 

in the University. 

Dr Akanni is the Director of Digital 

Media and Research Centre of the Lagos 

State University, LASU. Follow him on 

Twitter via @AkintundeAkanni


Wike to PHCCIMA: Work with govt to fulfill your goals 

By Egufe Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT— 

GOVERNOR Nyesom 

Wike of Rivers State, has 

urged the new leadership 

of the Port Harcourt 

Chamber of Commerce, 

Industry, Mines and 

Agriculture (PHCCIMA) to 

work closely with the state 

government to fulfill its 

goals. 

The governor gave the 

advice in Port Harcourt 

during the inauguration of 

the new PHCCIMA executives 

led by its President, 

Nabil Ahmed Saleh. 

Represented by his 

deputy, Dr. Ipalibo Banigo, 

Wike noted that: “It is by 

the enormous commitment 

to providing an 

investment-friendly 

environment that Rivers, 

under the current 

administration, is rated the 

state that has attracted the 

most foreign direct 

investment in recent times. 

“We see it as a duty to 

provide an enabling 

environment. We have 

invested in infrastructures, 

reformed taxes to be more 

investors friendly. 

“In attracting more 

investments, we are 

VISIT: From left— Team Coordinator, Colonel Obolo; Team Leader, Brig-Gen. Efemena Edafioghor, and 

Secretary to Delta State Government, Festus Ovie-Agas, during a courtesy visit by participants of Senior 

Course 41 of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, to Delta State. PHOTO: Nath Onojake. 

By Festus Ahon 

A SABA—GOVERNOR 

Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta 

State, yesterday, warned 

against using oil 

surveillance contract as a 

ploy to cause trouble in the 

state, saying such could 

cause more economic 

challenges in Nigeria. 

Okowa, who gave the 

warning while addressing 

over 1,000 aggrieved exagitators 

of the Federal 

Government Amnesty 

Programme and youths 

from host communities of 

OML 30, who protested at 

the Government House, 

Asaba, said his 

administration would take 

necessary actions to 

address their grievances. 

He said: “I want to advise 

that whosoever is plotting 

against the people, should 

allow Delta State to remain 

peaceful, because, in peace, 

we will be able to produce 

and export more crude oil. 

“It is our hope that 

nobody, especially as the oil 

prices are going down 

should take any action that 

would foil the quantity of 

oil that we are currently 

producing. I want to thank 

you and appreciate you for 

the way you have put 

yourself together. 

“I want to appreciate you 

for deciding to make the 


protest peaceful. That is the 

hallmark of Delta youths. 

We are knowledgeable and 

we know that what is right 

is what should be done. 

“This protest is 

happening on a day we are 

holding our Security 

Council meeting and the 

security agencies are here. 

“The agencies have been 

working hard with the 

support of our people to 

keep the Trans Forcados 

line safe and we thank God 

that because of the safety 

of that pipeline, oil 

production in this nation 

has increased. 

“We have held a series of 

meetings with stakeholders 

and we have long agreed 

that it is best to secure our 

pipelines when we are in 

charge. 

“The people, who own 

the place know how best to 

protect their property and 

since June 2017 that the 

Trans Forcados line has 

been open, it has been 

functional and our oil 

production and export have 

continued to increase. 

“I will find it very 

disturbing if a new 

contract is being awarded 

not to talk about awarding 

the said contract under a 

higher cost. I believe Mr. 

C OUNCILOR 

representing Ubeji 

Ward in the legislative Arm 

of Warri South Council 

Area of Delta State, Mr. 

Ogbitse Osanwere, has 

called for the speedy 

construction of the 

growing internally 

generated revenue, 

making it possible to deliver 

more development projects 

and creating jobs despite 

dwindling federation 

allocations.” 

On his part, Saleh 

commended government 

for the release of land to the 

Chambers, promising to 

take the cordial relationship 

to new heights. 

Okowa warns against crisis over 

pipeline surveillance contracts 

Edo calls for review of CBN monetary policy 

By Gabriel 

Enogholase 

BENIN—EDO State 

Government has 

disclosed that the monetary 

policy of Central of Bank of 

Nigeria, CBN, has 

negatively affected 

commercial banks’ interest 

rates to Small and Medium 

Enterprises, SMEs. 

Commissioner for Wealth 

Creation, Cooperatives 

and Employment, Mr. 

Emmanuel Usoh, made the 

observation , yesterday, in 

Benin at the 17th Micro, 

Small and Medium 

Enterprises, MSMEs, 

International Summit and 

Exhibition organised by the 

Nigerian Association of 

Small and Medium 

Enterprises, NASME. 

Usoh, who explained that 

the apex bank’s monetary 

policy still pegged interest 

rates at between 20 percent 

and 25 percent for 

President will not accept 

this.’’ 

Mr. Tennyson Oriunu, 

who spoke earlier on behalf 

of the protesters, said; 

“Earlier this month, close to 

a thousand angry youths 

and ex-agitators from the 

111 communities of Ijaw, 

Urhobo, Itsekiri and Isoko 

ethnic nationalities who 

are hosts to the OML 30 

facilities, came to Asaba to 

peacefully complain about 

the directives of some 

companies to start another 

war in our communities by 

hijacking the surveillance 

contract of the Trans- 

Forcados Pipeline.” 

commercial banks, noted 

that the high-interest rates 

has made it difficult for 

SMEs to access loans. 

He said: “CBN's monetary 

policy is not cascading 

to commercial banks, where 

interest rates are between 

20 and 25 percent.” 

He also noted that 


UPU floats MFB 

By Jimitota 

Onoyume 

W ARRI—URHOBO 

Progress Union, 

UPU, is set to float a 

Micro Finance bank for 

Urhobo communities in 

Delta State. 

President General, of 

the apex Urhobo body, 

Olorogun Moses Taiga 

disclosed this yesterday 

at the end of a meeting 

of the national executive 

of the body and 

President-Generals of 

Urhobo communities in 

Uvwie, Delta State. 

Taiga said the micro 

finance bank would 

commence operation in 

the second quarter of 

next year, adding that 

By Festus Ahon 

A SABA—WORRIED 

by unsteady oil 

prices across the world, 

Nigerian petroleum 

explorers gathered to 

deliberate on ways to 

remain competitive and 

profitable in the face 

daunting challenges 

Tagged Evolving 

Strategies for a 

Sustainable Petroleum 

Business in a 

Fluctuating Oil Price 

Regime, the conference 

had in attendance all the 

major stakeholders in the 

Nigerian upstream and 

downstream sectors 

including Chevron Plc, 

Shell, Total, NNPC, 

ExxonMobil, CEOs, 

consultants, students, 

NSUKWA Grammar 

School, Class of 

1981 has raised the 

alarm over the 

deplorable state of 

infrastructure in Nsukwa 

Grammar School, 

Nsukwa, in Aniocha 

South Local Government 

of Delta State. 

A statement by its 

Chairman, Mr. Austin 

Chukwudi, said:”It is 

unfortunate that the 

efforts put in place by the 

likes of Chief Van 

Nwokoh, HRM Obi 

Ezeamaka, and the 

maiden Principal, Mr. 

NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

Urhobo communities 

would own a minimum of 

40 percent shares. 

He said UPU will also 

invest in the acquisition of 

shares from the bank. 

“The concept of the bank 

is to promote 

empowerment 

programmes in our 

communities. 

“When something is 

established properly, it will 

succeed. The 24 kingdoms 

will own 40 percent of the 

shares. It is their own. 

UPU will own minimum 

shares. 

“The Urhobo would own 

shares. It would not 

charge much interest. It is 

for women and youths. It 

will 

reduce 

unemployment.” 

Explorers make case for 

increase in oil reserve 

Legislator makes case for Ubeji/Ifie community 

important Ubeji Road and 

the building of a functional 

Fire Service Station in the 

area hosting six fuel depots 

and a gas and bitumen 

plants. 

He also tasked the fuel 

depot management on the 

and academicians. 

In his contribution at 

one of the panels sessions, 

General Manager Asset 

Development and 

Exploration, Chevron 

Nigeria, Dr. Kunle 

Adeyemo emphasised the 

need to employ 

technology to unlock 

small fields and stranded 

assets. 

He noted that Chevron 

has been at the forefront 

of adopting unbonded 

flexible pipe to reduce 

pipeline installation and 

lifecycle costs, long and 

distance tiebacks to 

existing facilities. 

Adeyemo also 

reinstated the importance 

of third-party funding as 

a key strategy for survival 

in the sector. 

NGS, Nsukwa alumni decry 

infrastructure decay 

provision of infrastructure 

for the communities, and 

the provision of 

employment for indigenes 

among others. 

Ogbitse commended 

Matrix Energy for 

embarking on the 

S.M.O. Kofi, (all 

deceased) were left to rot. 

“We are urging the 

school authority to ensure 

that the withdrawn hardwon 

accreditation of 

Nsukwa Grammar School 

as a centre for West African 

Examination Council 

Examination, WAEC, in 

1979 and National 

Examination Council, 

NECO, is restored.” 

The Acting Principal of 

the school, Mrs. Calista 

Ajufo, requested support 

for the procurement of 

modern laboratory 

apparatus for the school. 

upgrading of the 

dilapidated Ubeji Health 

Centre to a modern cottage 

hospital, urging other petrol 

depots to emulate Matrix's 

compliance with good 

corporate social 

responsibility practices.

34—VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

Ezekwesili unveils manifesto, says PDP, 

APC's promises not economically sensible 

...announces Abdulganiyu Galadima as running mate 

P RESIDENTIAL 

candidate of the Allied 

Congress Party of Nigeria, 

ACPN, Dr. Obiageli 

Ezekwesili, has unveiled 

her manifesto and advised 

Nigerians to shun 

promises that are not 

“economically sensible.” 

She specifically faulted 

the proposed economic 

policies of the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, 

presidential candidate, 

Atiku Abubakar, 

describing it as a “deceit.” 

Ezekwesili, who also 

unveiled her running mate, 

Abdulganiyu Galadima, on 

Wednesday in Ilorin, the 

Kwara State Capital, listed 

areas that would be given 

priority if she emerged as 

the President of Nigeria. 

ELAN urges FG to explore equipment leasing 

to boost economy 

By Samson 

Echenim 

C HAIRMAN, 

Equipment Leasing 

Association of Nigeria, 

ELAN, Mr. Olutoyin 

Okeowo has called on the 

Federal Government to 

consider equipment leasing 

as an option to boost the 

nation’s economy. 

Okeowo stated this at the 

16th National Lease 

Conference, which was 

held recently in Abeokuta, 

Ogun State with the theme 

“Enhancing the Value 

Proposition of Equipment 

Leasing to Nigeria’s 

Economy.” 

Okeowo said: “this year’s 

“PDP is making promises 

that are not economically 

sensible. I looked at what 

the PDP candidate is 

promising, and I realise 

that most of what he is 

promising don’t make any 

economic sense. So please 

do not be deceived,” she 

added. 

Among the areas she 

listed were security, 

economy, health, education 

and poverty reduction. 

The ACPN presidential 

candidate assured that 

frantic efforts would be 

made to increase the 

current 52-year life 

expectancy in the country 

to equal Singapore’s 85 

years life expectancy. 

She said: “To achieve this, 

we have to improve 

event is essentially aimed 

to further propagate the 

ideals of leasing to national 

economic development 

and stimulate more valuable 

investments at this period 

where the economy is still 

struggling to get out of the 

woods. 

“Indeed, the attributes of 

leasing which centre on 

easy and convenient access 

to capital equipment, can 

be brought to bear to 

support the government's 

developmental initiatives 

and achieve inclusive 

growth. Essentially, leasing 

can provide the integral 

support for the massive 

investment in 

people’s health condition 

and human security. In a 

way, everything that we will 

do to improve business 

opportunities for everyone, 

where we were targeting 

higher productivity and 

competitiveness of 

Nigerian economy, will 

lead to improved income 

level for Nigerians. 

“When you have better 

income level, you will be 

able to afford basic things 

of life. We will focus on 

improving our health 

system. Our health 

system today discriminates 

between the wealthy and 

poor. 

...announces 

running mate 

Enugu PDP calls for 7-day prayer, fasting 

for violence-free elections 

By Dennis Agbo 

ENUGU—Ahead of the 

commencement of 

campaigns for the 

governorship and House 

of Assembly elections in the 

:Vanguard :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

infrastructure, mining, agriculture, 

among others, 

that would stimulate 

production and 

employment. 

“In Nigeria, the 

impactful visibility of 

leasing is increasing, 

contributing to capital 

formation in the economy 

and creating wealth. In 

2017, outstanding lease 

volume was estimated at 

N1.44 trillion, up from 

N1.26 trillion in 2016, 

representing a growth rate 

of 14.5 per cent. Assets 

worth over N8.98 trillion 

has been financed in the 

past ten years and can 

significantly improve with 

the right support for the 

industry.” 

Meantime, Alhaji 

Abdulganiyu Galadima has 

emerged the running mate 

to Ezekwesili. Galadima is 

the chairman and former 

presidential candidate of 

the ACPN. 

A statement from 

Ezekwesili’s campaign 

organisation - HOPE 2019 

- read: “He is a 

businessman, an effective 

administrator, a political 

leader, a seasoned 

community builder and 

political leader born on the 

11th of June 1964. 

“Galadima has dedicated 

a significant portion of his 

life serving Nigeria 

through people-centered 

politics at the grassroots 

level - from the ward to 

the state and at the national 

levels.” 

TRAINING: From left, Mrs. Rhoda Ayinde, Perm Sec, Ministry of Establishments,Training and 

Pensions; Mr. Sola Oyetayo, Facilitator and Guest Speaker; Dr. Akintola Oke, Commissioner 

for Establishments,Training and Pensions; Mr. Ayodeji Aruna, Director of Training; and Mr. 

Jimoh Ibrahim, MD, Midas Partners, during a training on "Public Procurement in a Depressed 

Economy: Emerging Issues and Challenges," for Lagos State government senior staff, at 

Golfview Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos. Photo: Bunmi Azeez. 

country, the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, 

Campaign Organisation in 

Enugu State, has called on 

the people of the state to join 

the party to observe one 

week of prayers and 

fasting, “for peaceful, 

transparent and violencefree 

elections in 2019, 

which Enugu State is 

known for”. 

Briefing newsmen at the 

campaign office in Enugu, 

the Director-General of the 

Organisation, Dr. Charles 

Egumgbe, disclosed that 

the praying and fasting 

exercise will commence on 

Saturday, December 1 and 

end on Friday, December 

7. 

Egumgbe, who was 

accompanied by the 

Secretary of the Campaign 

Organization, Chief Ikeje 

Asogwa, stated that the 

decision was “in keeping 

with our tradition of 

entrusting the affairs of the 

state to the hands of God”. 

He also urged the people 

of the state “to pray for 

issue-based, smooth and 

successful campaigns in the 

state” and equally thanked 

them for their unceasing 

prayers, support, goodwill 

and solidarity. 

“We therefore, reassure 

the good people of Enugu 

State that the PDP-led 

government will, through 

God’s grace, continue to 

maintain the tempo of 

peace and security in the 

state for them to enjoy more 

dividends as the true 

heroes of our democracy”, 

the Director-General said. 

Intersociety faults detention, 

parading of Nnewi traders 

...describes arrest as racial profiling, 

false labelling taken too far 

By Chimaobi 

Nwaiwu 

N NEWI—THE 

International Society 

for the Civil Liberties and 

the Rule of Law, Intersociety, 

yesterday faulted the arrest, 

detention and alleged 

parading as terrorists, 30 

traders of Agbo-Edo Motor 

Spare Parts Dealers 

Market, describing it as 

"racial profiling, mistaken 

identity and false labelling 

gone too far.” 

This came as the 

leadership and traders of 

eight major markets in 

Nnewi decided to close 

their shops in protest 

against the arrest, 

detention and parading of 

the traders by the Anambra 

State Police Command in its 

Awka State Headquarters. 

Intersociety therefore 

called for immediate and 

unconditional release of the 

traders, just as it asked the 

Inspector General of Police 

and the Anambra State 

Commissioner of Police, to 

tender unreserved 

apologies to the arrested 

traders, their market leaders 

and the general public. 

“Intersociety must 

commend the leadership of 

Burial 

•Late Pa Omolase 

BURIAL arrangement 

for late Pa James 

Omolase has been 

announced. Christian 

wake, December 13, 2018 

while burial and interment 

take place next day at his 

residence, 9, Iro Quarters, 

Ilawe Ekiti, Ekiti State. 

Late Pa Omolase is 

survived by his widows, 

children and other relatives. 

the Nkwo Nnewi Motor 

Spare Parts Dealers 

Association for not 

abandoning its members in 

such dangerous and critical 

hours of their ordeal. We 

however faulted the 

parading of the traders, as 

killers of Police Inspector, 

terrorists and snatchers of 

two AK-47 rifles and Barreta 

pistol as well as arsonists; 

that is unacceptable," 

Intersociety said in a 

statement by its Board 

chairman, Comrade 

Emeka Umeagbalasi. 

It called for the "end of 

commercialisation of 

criminal investigation and 

other police duties in Igbo 

land and return to 

professionalism and 

intelligence policing." 

The group’s statement 

further read: “It is no 

longer hidden that the 

Buhari/Osinbajo 

government of Nigeria and 

its security agencies, the 

Nigerian Police and the 

Nigerian Army are 

undeniably and steadily 

using hate policy, racial 

profiling and selective 

enforcement of the law 

against the citizens of the 

southeast or Igbo nation.” 

Diamond Bank highlights 

benefits of Xclusiveplus 

By Nkiru Nnorom 

DIAMOND Bank Plc 

has introduced a 

premium lifestyle 

subscription service for its 

affluent banking customers 

called XclusivePlus. 

Speaking on the 

XclusivePlus proposition, 

Kari Tukur, Head, 

Consumer Banking, 

Diamond Bank, said: “ Our 

proposition is well 

positioned to further 

enhance their lifestyle and 

provide them with the most 

satisfying rewards. 

“XclusivePlus 

membership comes with an 

automatic card upgrade to 

the Diamond Visa signature 

naira debit card. Diamond 

Bank is the first 

bank in Nigeria to go to 

market with this card. 

"This is a naira card with 

higher spend limits and 

enabled for international 

spend. With this card, our 

customers will enjoy lots of 

world class travel and 

lifestyle benefits such as free 

access to over 800 premium 

airport lounges globally, 

great discounts and VIP 

treatment at luxury hotels 

around the world, free 

travel insurance cover for 

them and their family for 

medical emergencies, lost 

luggage, flight cancellation 

and much more anytime 

they travel." 

Passage 

BARR Wilfred Mojekwu 

of Akamili Umudim in 

Nnewi, is dead, aged 95 

years. He will be buried 

today. 

He is survived by children 

and grand children. 

•Late Barr Mojekwu



NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

AWARD: From left— Software and Automated Metre Infrastructure Development Manager, Mojec 

Metre Company, Mr. Wole Solanke; representative of Mojec Metre's Technical Partner, Miss Judy Ye; 

Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mojec Metre Company, Ms Chantelle Abdul; Principal Partner, 

Heritage/member, Advisory Board of the Nigerian Entrepreneurs Award, Mr. Kokoyo Robinson, and 

Team Lead, Virtuitis Solaris, Mojec Business Intelligence Unit, Mr. Sheu Olatunji, during the presentation 

of the Most Entreprising Female Entrepreneur of the Year Award to Ms Chantelle Abdul at 2018 

Entrepreneurs Award in Lagos. 

NULGE demands abolition of LG, 

state govt joint account, SIEC 

By Bashir Bello 

K ATSINA—NIGERIA 

Union of Local 

Government Employees, 

NULGE, has stepped up its 

fight for the autonomy of 

local government in the 

country, demanding for the 

abolition of the state joint 

account and State 

Independent Electoral 

Commission, SIEC. 

The union accused 

governors of interference 

and manipulation of SIEC 

and the state local 

government joint account. 

National President of 

NULGE, Ibrahim Khalil, 

who spoke at the 40 years 

anniversary of the union, 

also accused governors of 

emasculating and 

rendering the local 

government system 

incapacitated. 

Represented by Katsina 

State President of the 

union, Aliyu Haruna 

Kankara, Khalil said: 

“There has always been 

attempts to emasculate and 

render the system 

Yobe budgets N91.6bn for 2019 

By Ndahi Marama 

D AMATURU— 

GOVERNOR 

Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe 

State, yesterday, announced 

N91,647,597,000 as 

budget for 2019, which he 

presented before the state 

House of Assembly, tagging 

it Budget of Consolidation. 

He said: “In this budget, 

we intend to consolidate 

the gains recorded so far by 

completing all the major 

legacy projects being 

executed by our administration 

before handing over to 

the incoming APC 

administration in the state. 

“We intend to hand over 

incapacitated. State 

governors always see local 

government as insignificant 

and nothing good for selfish 

reasons and have, 

therefore, done everything 

possible to render it 

impotent. 

“It is on the basis of the 

aforementioned challenges 

that NULGE decided to 

mobilise its teeming 

members to wage a total 

and comprehensive 

campaign to liberate the 

CHIEF of Army Staff, 

COAS, Lt. General 

Tukur Buratai, has said the 

Nigerian Army will replicate 

the successes it recorded in 

Osun and Ekiti elections 

this year in the 2019 polls. 

Speaking at the ongoing 

2018 COAS Annual 

Conference in Maiduguri, 

Buratai said the Army has 

launched operation safe 

conduct to secure the 

electoral process in 2019. 

to the incoming administration 

a government that is 

free from any debt and 

without any uncompleted 

capital project, and that has 

a robust civil service to plan 

and implement any 

project.” 

Gaidam said Yobe State 

government projected 

N49,968,967,000 or 54.5 

percent for recurrent 

expenditure and 

N41,678,630,600 or 45.5 

percent as capital 

spending. 

The governor said: “The 

2019 budget is slightly 

below that of 2018. It is 

N534,739,000 or 0.6 

percent less than 2018’s.” 

third tier of government 

from the jugular of state 

governors for the overall 

development of the country. 

“Our struggle for local 

government autonomy is 

not only for workers but 

also the entire system, 

since we believe that if the 

system should perform 

optimally, workers and 

the entire citizenry will 

benefit. 

“Our position and 

demand for local 

Army’ll replicate Ekiti, Osun elections 

successes in 2019—Buratai 

He said: “As the nation 

moves towards the 2019 

general elections, the NA 

is conducting Operation 

Safe Conduct to support 

other security agencies 

during the period of 

elections in the country. 

“The Nigerian Army 

activated the operation on 

14 July 2018 during the 

elections in Ekiti and Osun 

states and it was a huge 

success. 

He said the economic 

sector had been allocated 

N30,635,430,000, 

governance sector 

N17,473, 893, 500, 

regional sector (covering 

water supply, 

environment and 

housing) N4,431,968,000, 

law and justice 

N2,298,887,000 and social 

sector N36,807,418,500. 

The governor revealed 

that education had been 

a l l o c a t e d 

N22,497,645,000 under 

the social sector. 

“We will continue to take 

steps to revitalise education 

for the progress of our state 

depends on it,” he said. 

government autonomy 

are constitutional 

recognition of local 

government as third tier 

of the government with 

full autonomy. 

“Our study shows that 

Section (7) (I) though 

guarantees the existence 

of local government, but 

the section needs to be 

overhauled to give local 

government their full 

executive and legislative 

powers.” 

“We intend to replicate the 

successes achieved, during 

the 2019 general elections 

because we believe that a 

secure electoral process will 

play a critical role in 

safeguarding our 

democracy into the future.” 

He appreciated President 

Muhammadu Buhari for 

the support he had given 

to the armed forces, 

especially the army, and 

assured the president of the 

“unflinching loyalty and 

commitment of the Nigeria 

Army, NA, to the defence 

of democratic governance 

in Nigeria.” 

He also enjoined military 

personnel to refrain from 

partisan politics at all 

levels, as the general 

election draw nearer. 

By Boluwaji Obahopo 

L OKOJA—NATIONAL 

Coordinator and Chief 

Executive Officer of 

SERVICOM, Mrs Nnenna 

Akajemeli, has said 

SERVCOM is 

brainstorming on how to 

tackle service failures in 

Nigerian universities and 

Kogi unseals telcos facilities 

after NCC intervention 


I NDICATION 

yesterday emerged 

that a looming telecom 

blackout which threatened 

about 13 states, including 

some parts of Abuja, might 

have been averted 

following the intervention 


Nigerian 

Communications 

Commission, NCC. 

The commission said its 

intervention in the dispute 

between telecom 

operators and Kogi State 

government led to the 

unsealing of telecom 

operators’ infrastructure in 

the state. 

NCC said Governor 

Yahaya Bello had on 

Wednesday ordered the 

unsealing of telecom Base 

Transceiver Stations, BTS, 

restoring services to over 

120 sites after a meeting 

between the governor and 

NCC (regulator) in Lokoja, 

the state capital. 

The governor was also 

By Charles Agwam 

BAUCHI 

State 

Command of the 

Nigerian Police has 

paraded alleged prime 

suspect of the Bauchi 

birthday party violence 

which claimed four lives 

about two weeks ago. 

Parading the suspect at 

the Police Command in 

Bauchi, yesterday the 

Police Public Relations 

Officer, Kamal Abubakar, 

said the suspect would be 

charged to court soon. 

According to Abubakar, 

“you may recall that two 

Sundays ago, the Bauchi 

Command arrested 76 

suspects, except the prime 

suspect in connection to 

the birthday tragedy. 

“The Command has 

since collaborated with 

other sister agencies 

towards ensuring that 

peace and order is 

maintained in the area 

and equally bring 

perpetrators to book. 

“The prime suspect, 

Patrick Zumunta, 26, ran 

away and hid in Jos. 

said to have directed that 

court cases instituted by 

the state be withdrawn 

and amicable settlement 

reached between the 

telcomms and Kogi State 

government. 

Penultimate week, the 

state shut down the BTSs 

following a standoff with 

telecom operators over 

revenue-related 

contention, which led the 

telcos to threaten telecom 

blackout. 

According to sources, 

the Executive 

Commissio-ner 

Stakeholder Management, 

Mr. Sunday Dare 

led the delegation that 

included officials of the 

affected Telcos to the 

meeting which held in 

the Governor’s Office. 

Telcos like IHS, MTN 

and ATC and the head of 

the Kogi State Inland 

Revenue Service and 

Chief of Staff to the 

governor were also at the 

meeting. 

Principal suspect in Bauchi 

birthday killings nabbed 

However, following 

credible intelligence, 

operatives attached to the 

State Intelligence Bureau 

intercepted and arrested 

the suspect on his way 

from Jos to Bauchi. 

“The suspect is currently 

being interrogated at the 

State Criminal 

Investigation and 

Intelligence Department, 

SCIID, after which he will 

be charged to court”. 

Reacting, the suspect 

said it was a coincidence 

that the clash occurred on 

the night of his daughter’s 

birthday, saying the clash 

had no connection to the 

birthday party he 

organized for his two years 

old daughter. 

According to him, “I am 

not a criminal; I repair 

shoes and do electrical 

works. I am sorry about the 

death of four people, 

including the many 

injured people on the 

night of my daughter’s 

birthday. 

“The truth is the clash 

had nothing to do with my 

daughter’s birthday.” 

SERVICOM tackles service failures in varsities 

ensure efficient and quality 

service delivery. 

She spoke while making 

presentation at the 

National Universities 

Commission/Parastatal 

SERVICOM Committee 

(NUC/PSC) 4th Quarter 

2018 meeting at the 

Federal University, Lokoja. 

Mrs Akajemeli said 

SERVICOM is saddled 

with the responsibility of 

ensuring quality and 

efficient service delivery for 

all Nigerians. 

She said: “The meeting is 

to provide a platform for 

sharing of information, 

knowledge and experiences 

among representatives of 

member-universities.”


I 

didn’t want to write 

this week. It wasn’t 

writer’s block or the occasional 

frustration from 

sounding like a broken 

record. It was not the feeling 

of speaking to the Nigeria 

wall, either. 

Nothing of the sort. 

It was the call, Ikeogu. 

The call from your sister, 

Ada, on Saturday night. 

The call shattered me and 

left me bereft. 

I had not spoken with 

Ada since she returned to 

Aba from Abuja after she 

and your wife, Nneoma, 

took turns to nurse you before 

and after your return 

from the Obafemi 

Awolowo University 

Teaching Hospital in October. 

When Ada first called on 

Saturday, I missed it. For I looked at Ada who had 

some inexplicable reason, entered the ward without 

my mind began to roam my knowing, and looked 

as I dialed back. at the yellow, jaundiced 

I thought of that encounter 

on September 12 how, you recognised me 

stare in your eyes. Some- 

at the teaching hospital. and called my name, but 

You had just been operated 

upon the previous from another place. 

it sounded like an echo 

day and I came to Ile-Ife Ikeogu!, I repeated, and 

to see you with my friend, wept. Ada escorted me out 

Niyi. 

of the ward. For a moment 

Ada met us at the entrance 

of the emergency nursing two patients at 

it seemed she would be 

ward. She looked exhausted 

but relieved. She She said I should not cry 

once. 

said your surgery had and that the doctors had 

gone well, but the anxiety 

leading up to it and over. The surgery, she had 

told her the worst was 

the errands to buy this or been told, was successful. 

that medication outside All we needed to do now, 

the hospital in a place was pray for your speedy 

where she was a stranger recovery. 

was clearly taking a toll. 

Then she led us upstairs Long road back 

to the Intensive Care Unit 

to see you. The medical 

staff demurred, but after 

explaining that we had 

come all the way from Lagos, 

they relented but 

said Niyi and I could not 

enter the ward together. 

It had to be one at a time, 

and brief. 

Journey to Ile-Ife 

I donned the overall 

and slipped into a pair of 

special footwear. Then I 

braced myself, parted the 

curtains and entered the 

ward. 

There you were, lying 

right in front of me yet I 

was too dazed too see. 

Was this you, Ikeogu? You 

were wired by the hands 

and the sides, with electronic 

cables that looked 

like the strings of the 

Lilliputians in Gulliver’s 

Travels. A few of the cables 

were connected to 

monitors at the top of your 

bed. For a moment that 

seemed like eternity, the 

only sound in the ward 

was the sound of the 

monitor: beep, beep, 

beep. 

Your hands were white, 

and your forehead had 

receded. You had lost 

weight beyond recognition. 

Beep, beep, beep. 

Your eyes were closed, 

and I couldn’t make out 

what kind of sleep this 

was. I asked the nurse if 

I could call you. She said 

I could. 

Ikeogu! 

You stirred and opened 

your eyes, slowly. I was 

smitten with goose pimples. 

Beep, beep, beep. 

A letter to Ikeogu 

I returned to Lagos with 

mixed feelings, especially 

after what Niyi, a medical 

doctor of over 25 years, 

told me on our way back. 

You remember Niyi? Of 

course, I’m sure you do, 

Ikeogu. He was the one 

you spoke with at length 

after your prognosis and 

referral from the Asokoro 

District Hospital, Abuja, 

before you were admitted 

in OAUTH, Ile-Ife on September 

8. 

He said he was sure the 

surgery was “palliative” 

but promised to speak 

with the doctors later to 

get a clearer sense of the 

post-surgery report. “Pancreatic 

cancer,” Niyi said, 

“is one of the most aggressive 

forms of cancer. Surgery 

is, at best, palliative.” 

The rest of the three and 

a half hours return journey 

from Ile-Ife to Lagos 

was a blur. 

But the next day, you 

called. Your voice was 

weak but calm. You admonished 

me against despairing 

and said from 

what the doctors told you, 

the cancer had not spread. 

You spoke about the large 

amount of bile that was 

drained from your system 

and said you never had a 

better fighting chance for 

recovery and survival. 

It was not the first time 

you would express this 

hope, welling up from 

your irrepressible spirit. I 

recall that at the time you 

were referred to Ife in August, 

you told me at the 

Asokoro District Hospital 

in Abuja that at the final 

review before the surgery 

was supposed to commence, 

the doctors there 

decided it was best to refer 

you to Ile-Ife. 

You asked why, and was 

told that there was a patient 

with similar prognosis 

who was referred and 

who survived after the 

surgery. Then you said, 

Ikeogu, and I’ll never forget: 

“If there is a second 

person who will survive it, 

I’ll be the one; and if no 

one had survived it before, 

I’ll be the first.” 

Your life was 

an open book. 

You lived for 

virtue and the 

arts, investing 

your talent, 

passion and 

humanity in 

others without 

holding anything 

back. I’m 

a beneficiary 

Heart of the 

matter 

According to a foundation 

dedicated to pancreatic 

cancer research, 

Hirshberg Foundation on 

its website http:// 

www.pancreatic.org, pancreatic 

cancer survival 

rates have been improving 

from decade to decade, 

but the disease is 

considered largely incurable. 

The one-year survival 

rates, according to the 

American Cancer Society 

for all stages of pancreatic 

cancer combined, is 20 

per cent, and the five-year 

survival rate is 7 per cent. 

Scientists say that the low 

survival rates are attributable 

to the fact that fewer 

than 20 per cent of patients’ 

tumours are confined 

to the pancreas at 

the time of diagnosis, in 

most cases the malignancy 

has already progressed 

to the point 

where surgical removal is 

impossible. 

The causes are unknown, 

but the risk factors 

are largely genetic. 

I’m sure you knew these 

– and even more. I remember 

you told me that 

within the first few weeks 

after the diagnosis this 

year, you read up and 

mastered the subject as 

well as any layman can. 

Your hope of recovery 

and survival was not 

based on ignorance; it 

was based on the transcendence 

of mind over 

matter. It was based on 

that stubborn, determined 

hope that one year after 

you were announced winner 

of the NLNG Prize for 

Literature 2017, your sun 

was only just rising and 

though the temporary 

cloud of pancreatic cancer 

may overshadow it, the 

cloud will soon pass. 

Yet, my anxiety resurfaced 

in a way that I could 

not bring myself to share 

with you before Saturday. 

Two weeks after your surgery, 

the Pro-chancellor of 

OAU, Dr. Yemi Ogunbiyi, 

who had played a big role 

in arranging your trans- 

fer to Ife called me and repeated 

what Niyi said on 

that trip back to Lagos. If 

anyone told you, I will 

never know, but I never 

sensed it till the end. It 

was just not in your warrior 

spirit to accept defeat 

or invite sympathy. 

Ikeogu, I remember 

what you said at each 

deadline post-surgery, 

when I didn’t think I 

should bother you with 

reviewing my weekly articles. 

“Azu, I didn’t have 

brain surgery. My mind is 

still strong and active. 

Please send your article to 

me!” 

And I did, even till Tuesday, 

a few days before 

Ada called and gave me 

the news. 

Did you know the end 

was near, so near? I ask 

because in the days after 

your surgery and discharge 

back to your home 

in Abuja, you were twice 

as prolific as I have 

known you to be since 

July 7, 2015 when our 

paths crossed at the that 

Sundiapost lecture in 

Bayelsa House, Abuja. 

For art and virtue 

It was post-surgery, 

three weeks ago, in fact, 

that you wrote a 2126- 

word application to the 

Woodrow Wilson Centre 

for the 2018 Fellowship 

for scholars, journalists 

and public intellectuals. 

Your piece, entitled, “Positive 

hip-hop and behavioural 

improvement in 

contemporary America,” 

was a lucid slice of the 

Heresiad, your epic book 

of poetry. 

But who shall we send 

if your entry wins? Who 

will go for us? 

Your life was an open 

book. You lived for virtue 

and the arts, investing 

your talent, passion and 

humanity in others without 

holding anything 

back. I’m a beneficiary. 

And I can speak of a few 

– old and young – who 

would say the same, in 

words that convey greater 

depth and meaning than 

I can ever conceive. J.P 

Clarke, Wale Okediran, 

Femi Adesina, Garbadeen 

Muhammed, Akeem 

Soboyede – and even your 

new acquaintance, Louis 

Odion. 

It’s a week when I 

should not write, but be 

silent. But something tells 

me you would have 

wished otherwise. 

Goodnight, Ikeogu! 

Ishiekwene is the Managing 

Director/Editor-In- 

Chief of The Interview 

and member of the board 

of the Global Editors Network.


Edited by Emeka Aginam 

Gunfire, as Akwa Ibom Assembly crisis 

escalates 

Akwaowo 

Akwa is too civilized for APC 

and their goons. Akpabio is 

losing his grip on reality. 

Kaycee 

The questions to ask are: 

Was there any crisis or 

shooting before the 

government stormed the 

House of Assembly? Did the 

Police deny any member 

access to the House complex? 

Was Governor Emmanuel 

invited to the House? Why 

does the Governor need 300 

thugs despite having heavy 

security detail attached to 

him? 

NIGERIA MC 

Must they be challenged in 

court? Simply follow what the 

constitution says! After all they 

, are called law makers. 

- 

Yawe1 MC 

Sacking illegally is not 

accepted without court ruling 

and that is where you get it 

wrong and they are right for 

fighting for their right. 

Ralph 

No court 

gave 

authorisation for any seat to 

be declared vacant. Hon 

Ntuen having got wind of 

what Onofiok was planning 

preemptively approached the 

courts to restrain Onofiok. The 

court did not grant the 

request. But that does not 

mean Onofiok should do what 

he did. He isn't wiser than all 

the speakers in states and 

national assembly who haven't 

declared any seats vacant. 

moruti Ralph 

What the speaker did is what 

the constitution stipulates. You 

cannot go to another party with 

your seat if there is no division 

in the party. The court rulings 

for these decamping in state 

assembly has been there and 

those lost their seat and that 

is reason Ntuen went to court 

but failed. 

Don 

•Gov. Udor Emmanuel 

It's not about decamping but 

about the rule of law. “Are you 

not aware that court of 

competent jurisdiction ordered 

the speaker to declare the seat 

vacant?“Or is Nigeria a 

lawless country now? 

Yuletide: 

South east deplorable roads 

attract attention of executive, 

legislature 

Atlanta Kaycee 

Second niger bridge was 

first awarded by Jonathan, 

71% of the bill was paid and 

work started and done up to 

51%. While PDP was not the 

best, they did better than apc. 

If APC stays in power for 

16yrs, the whole country will 

share the same fate. 

Nigerians will become slaves 

in their own fatherland. While 

I do not affiliate with any 

party. 

Femosilla 

It is no news that South East 

region has the most deplorable 

roads in Nigeria, instead of 

their state governments 

constructing and repairing 

roads, they're busy blaming 

President Buhari for their selfinflicted 

woes as if it was 

Buhari that had been in the - 

dom Williams 

The South-East governors 

should proceed on a Christmas 

thanksgiving and solidarity 

visit to Aso Rock once again 

so they can be given the 

presidency in 2023. Just a 

suggestion in good faith. 

We’re under siege by 

herdsmen, Delta women 

protest 

Pius Odiaka 

Hold your traditional rulers 

responsible for the killing. 

They allowed the devils into 

farmlands. 

trouble 

When will southerners 

realise that herds men only 

understand revenge. You don't 

negotiate with fulani herds 

men. And eye for an eye is all 

they understand or they see 

you as their conquered . 

On point 

This is very sad. Why is 

Urhobo sleeping and allowing 

evil to take over their land. I 

have not seen any united front 

to confront this evil since 2016 

till date. Where are kings? 

Apart from the Ohworode of 

Olomu kingdom HRM 

Richard Ogbon, we have not 

heard the voice of any other 

urhobo king on the issue, what 

of d Oloroguns and the youths? 

Where are they? What of the 

so call politicians from Urhobo 

land, are they keeping quiet 

and leaving the battle for the 

women. Where is UPU? If they 

rely solely on police, what 

happened in Benue will 

happen in Urhobo land. This 

is the time to nip the bud. 

Urhobo people should wake 

up. 

Efe Warri 

If truly they are Fulani 

herdsmen,tell your community 

youths to round them up in 

your farmlands and possibly 

take possession of their 

cows,instead of crying as if you 

no longer have able bodied 

young men in your 

communities. Urhobos are 

known to be fearless and 

truthful. 

Ibrahim B. Babangida 

@General_Ibbro 

Once again, I will like to quote Late Gen. Sani 

Abacha: “Any Insurgency that lasts more than 24 

hours, a government official has a hand in it.” 

0lusegun 0basanjo 

@Chief_Obasanjo 

Why should a sterile man insist on holding on to 

a woman who desires children? Nigeria deserves 

life. A failed government is a desert. Deserts turn 

lifeless whatever they touch. The solution to a failed 

system, no matter how vociferous, is to wipe it off 

— like the last election. 

Prof Yemi Osinbajo 

@ProfOsinbajo 

President Muhammadu Buhari and I believe 

unequivocally, that the resources of Nigeria must 

TRENDING ON TWITTER 

be used for Nigerians. It must be available to 

farmers, the traders, those who need jobs, the 

young, the old and everyone in between. 

saeedmuhd28@gmail.com 

@saeedmuhd28 

If most of our past leaders were like BUHARI 

in handling national resources no section of the 

country will be agitating for any breakup.What 

belongs to Nigerians should be distributed to 

them without bias or been looted by an 

individual or group.. 

Muhammadu Buhari 

@MBuhari 

In spite of the long delay in the passage of 

the 2018 budget, and in the approval of the 

budget’s Borrowing Plan, we will continue to 

demonstrate our commitment to infrastructure 

development. Developing infrastructure is one 

of the best things any Government can do for 

Nigerians. 

Tomi Davies 

If one wanted to build a pan-african portal 

(cloud mobile) with a goal of reaching farmers 

across the continent (subject: agriculture 

technologies) who would the go to development 

team (criteria: capacity, experience, expertise) 

be? 

Abdul-Majid Lawan 

@Abdul_Majid84 

The 8th assembly under Bukolasaraki and 

Yakub Dogarais invariably the worst in the 

history of our country. They sat on our budget 

for 7 months b4 passing it. Bringing down 

everything good for the masses.


AWARD: Governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos 

State, Mr. Jimmy Agbaje (left) presenting the Influencer of the Year 2018 Award 

to Segun Awosanya during the Brand Nigeria Award /Gala night in Lagos. 

CONFERENCE: From left: Mrs. Olabisi Salis; her husband, High Chief Owolabi 

Salis, Lagos State governorship candidate of Alliance for Democracy, AD; Mr. Olujinmi 

Gbotemi, Student Union President, Federal College of Fisheries and Marine Tech, 

Lagos; Mrs Toyin Oladipo, AD Woman Leader, Somolu, and Mr. Babatunde Ofuokwu, 

Secretary, Lagos Youths Coalition, at the one-day conference where Salis presented a 

paper on “Vote Buying and Graduate Students' Destiny” at Federal College of 

Education, Technical, Akoka, Lagos, yesterday. Photo: Agbonkhese Oboh. 

TRADERMONI: From left; Beneficiaries of TraderMoni, Mrs. Ikowo David; 

Mr.Yusuf Haruna; and Isara Saliu, during the inauguration of TraderMoni 

at Karu Market, Abuja yesterday. 

FCMB PROMO: From left: Acting Zonal Head, Edo/Delta, First City Monument 

Bank (FCMB), Mr. Momodu Dauda; the Asagba of Okpanam in Asaba, Delta State, 

Obi Ozili Adamagba; winners of power generating sets at the grand finale of the 

FCMB Millionaire Promo Season 5 in the South-East/South-South (SE/SS) region, 

Dillion Hope and Rose Edozie; Regional Head, SE/SS of the Bank, Mr. Okey Ogelle 

and an Assistant Director of the Consumer Protection Council, Mr. Uchegbu 

Chukwuma, during the promo draw ceremony in Asaba, Delta State

Edited by: 

Prince Osuagwu 

08050498513 

princeosuagwu@gmail.com 

VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 — 39 

GADGET OF THE WEEK 

Magic bulb, Flyte, defies 

law of gravity 

By Juliet Umeh 

Most light bulbs are 

usually fixed to a 

socket, but technology has 

made it possible for them 

to now hang on the air 

without socket or wire aids. 

This is made possible by 

magnetic levitation 

technology inbuilt in special 

type of light bulbs known 

as Flyte, 

The device’s energy 

efficient, with LEDs 

technology that are 

powered wirelessly 

through the air for 12 

hours, providing soft, warm 

GEEK ‘N’ TEK 

You can shop safe, online, but you must do these… 


As more people now 

engage in online 

shopping, more scammers 

are also on the increase 

trying to steal information 

or money from 

innocent shoppers. But, 

you can protect yourself, 

with a few smart strategies. 

*Don’t take their bait 

Phishing scams involve 

victims receiving a 

request, usually by email, 

for information from what 

looks like a legitimate 

source. When they enter 

their information (such as 

passwords or Social 

Security numbers) on a 

Web page, they then 

discover the entity 

requesting it was actually 

a scammer. That person 

now has access to your 

passwords and other 

information you provided. 

*Don’t trust online 

‘friends’ 

The best approach is to 

believe that online friends 

are not real friends even if 

white glow 

light. It 

requires no 

batteries and 

powers light 

through the 

air via 

induction. 

Flyte uses energy 

efficient LEDs rated at about 

50,000 hours. 

Interestingly, with its 

minimalist design and 

magnetic magic, Flyte 

makes the ultimate 

conversation piece and the 

perfect design gift for any 

home or office. 

you know some of them in 

real life. What if some of 

your ‘real friends’ have 

their accounts hacked? So 

when they post a link 

about a great deal, that 

link might actually take 

you to a phishing site. Be 

especially wary of deals 

that sound too good to be 

true or of shortened links 

with hidden domain 

names. 

*Watch out for ticket 

scammers 

Whether you’re buying 

tickets to an event for 

yourself or as a gift, you’ll 

want to make sure you’re 

buying the tickets from 

someone who actually 


After several years of absence 

in the Nigerian market, 

Phone manufacturer, Blackberry, 

has bounced back with an android 

blackberry smartphone 

called Key2 LE. 

As part of strategies to reclaim 

its top spot in the market, the device 

maker announced a robust 

after sales support system with a 

one year warranty on all legitimately 

acquired phone at the 

right resellers. 

It also promised to make its 

marketing strategies organic, deriving 

from research and development 

R&D that would tilt heavily 

towards what the Nigerian 

Designed in Sweden, its 

base is made of quartersawn 

oak, ash and walnut 

wood finishes. Each unit is 

carefully crafted to 

has them. 

*Change passwords often 

It’s tempting to use the 

same password for your 

email, bank account and 

retail sites, but doing so 

puts you at great risk. If 

one site’s security is 

jeopardized, then 

suddenly the fraudster 

could potentially access 

all of your accounts. 

So, sign up for two-step 

authentication when 

possible and create 

complicated passwords 

that are difficult to guess. 

*Talk with your loved 

one before sending 

money 

NEWS 

precision using premium 

components inspired by 

minimalism and vintage 

design. 

Grandparents are often 

the victims in an online 

scam, which involves urgent 

requests for cash 

from an alleged 

grandchild in trouble. Of 

course, the real person 

requesting the money is 

not a grandchild at all, but 

a scam artist hoping to 

make a quick buck off 

unsuspecting 

grandparents. Before 

wiring money, make sure 

you know who is really 

requesting it. 

*Skip the free Wi-Fi, if 

possible 

There’s the joke that 

nothing is free even in 

Freetown. So that free 

Wi-Fi you are rushing to 

take advantage of could at 

the end cause you a great 

deal of sorrow. 

Avoid shopping online 

with free Wi-Fi. While it’s 

convenient, it can also put 

your credit card data at 

risk. That’s because 

public Wi-Fi networks 

aren’t private, so other 

people could potentially 

see the data being 

transmitted over them. 

WhatsApp 

giggle 

Blackberry back in Nigeria with Key2 smartphone 

…promises organic marketing strategy 

consumers want. With all these, it 

hopes to capture about five to 10 

percent market share within the 

next one year. 

Re-launching the blackberry 

brand with the Key2 smartphone 

in Lagos, recently, the company’s 

representative in Nigeria, Mr 

Kingsley Obaji said that Nigeria 

is the first place in Africa that 

Blackberry was launching the new 

Blackberry Key2 describing it as 

an alternative with sophisticated 

features needed in a country like 

Nigeria where options are highly 

required. 

He said the new phone has access 

to millions of applications on 

Google store, offers constant security 

and protection of your upgrading 

system, regular Android security 

update and spots key features 

to manage users business, 

personal and social lives. 

Also, VP Business development, 

Ngilex mobile Ltd, Thomas Larson, 

explained that the choice of 

Nigeria as the first country in Africa 

to have the Key2 smartphone 

was considering the tremendous 

push the Nigerian market gave 

the brand in all the years it remained 

active before temporarily 

withdrawing from the market 

a few years ago. 

He said: “We are back and 

stronger. We chose Nigeria because 

of how central it is in our 

business. At least we cannot forget 

the push the Nigerian market 

has given us from the time we 

launched our first product here. 

So we couldn’t have gone elsewhere” 

he added. 

The Key2 LE smartphone is a 

dual SIM, dual application android 

phone. It has a special application 

to help the user manage 

personal, financial and social 

activities. 

The phone is powered by an 

un-removable battery capacity 

of 3000mAh which features a 

quick charge 3.0 charger. The 

battery capacity can last a user 

one day and extend into the next. 

The device features a 4.5- 

inch, IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 

1080 X 1620 pixels (434 

ppi), 4GB RAM + 32/64GB onboard 

storage, dual rear camera 

of 13MP + 5MP and 8MP selfie 

camera. It runs Android 8.1 Oreo 

out of the box with support for 

dual account.

40— VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

DELTA CENTRAL: 

Omo-Agege in 

Evelyn Oboro's 

'gun sights' 

HAVING pulled a great stunt in flooring the 

one-time acclaimed political leader, Senator 

Ighoyota Amori to clinch the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP Senate ticket for Delta 

Central, Evelyn Oboro has set her sights on 

Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, the All Progressives 

Congress, APC Delta Central Senate 

candidate. It is a scintillating battle that is 

exciting everyone. 

By Perez Brisibe 

Ms. Oboro’s defeat of 

Amori, the famed 

political adviser to 

former Governors James Ibori 

and Emmanuel Uduaghan, 

came as a shock to many. But it 

was not to those tough Sapele 

guys she had over the years 

pummelled in several political 

combats. 

In fact, she honed her political 

talents in Uvwie, arguably, one 

of the toughest political terrains 

in Delta State and has 

represented the Uvwie/Sapele 

and Okpe federal constituency 

in the House of Representatives 

for two consecutive sessions. 

Hon. Evelyn Oboro is set to 

battle the incumbent senator, 

Ovie Omo-Agege at the polls. 

Oboro, a devotee of the 

political dynasty of former 

Governor James Ibori, stamped 

her feet in the political scene of 

the state in 1999 when she 

emerged councillor in Uvwie 

local government area under the 

platform of PDP and was elected 

chairman of the council in 2004 

after which she upped her game 

following her election and reelection 

into the House of 

Representative in 2011 and 2015 

respectively. 

Senator Ovie Omo-Agege on 

the other hand, served as 

Executive Assistant to the 

Governor James Onanefe Ibori 

in 2003 and was subsequently 

appointed Secretary to the Delta 

State Government under 

Governor James Ibori and is 

seeking re-election to the red 

chambers on the platform of the 

All Progressives Congress, APC, 

after his defection from the 

Labour Party, LP on whose 

platform he was elected in 2015. 

Bad blood between Oboro and 

Omo-Agege 

Remarkably, the contest for the 

2019 Delta Central Senate seat 

is shadowed with bad blood 

between both lawmakers. It is a 

controversy that dates back to 

the argument over the 

sponsorship of the bill 

establishing the Federal 

University of Petroleum 

Resource, FUPRE, Delta State 

which was signed on October 

17, 2017, by President 

Muhammad Buhari. 

While Oboro claims the bill 

was her “copyright and 

brainchild,” Omo-Agege 

punctured her claim and accused 

her of lying, stating that her 

copyright declaration is the worst 

form of “public exhibition of 

legislative illiteracy.” 

Accusing Omo-Agege of 

plagiarism, Oboro said: “My 

bone of contention with Senator 

Omo-Agege is that he is 

referring to himself as the 

sponsor and originator of the 

FUPRE bill which predates his 

emergence as a senator. 

“When you see a drama about 

a bill that has been passed by 

the House of Representatives, 

sent to the Senate for 

concurrence and somebody 

came up with the same bill and 

introduced it as a fresh bill that 

he is sponsoring, it sounds 

funny. This bill we are talking 

about today is my brainchild and 

a product of my endeavour. It is 

my intellectual property because 

I actually engaged the services 

of consultants to look into it.” 

However, Omo-Agege in 

several fora including a recent 

briefing of his constituents said: 

“Upon my resumption in the 

Senate, my first occupation was 

to push for legislation to give 

FUPRE a legal backing to 

function as an institution. 

“Though I am not the first 

senator that made an attempt to 

pass the bill, I was able to get 

President Muhammad Buhari to 

sign the bill into law.” 

2019 battle line between both 

candidates 

The animosity between both 

lawmakers would be going to the 

next level come 2019 during the 

National Assembly elections as 

Ovie Omo-Agege 

they would be aiming to create 

a record for themselves if any of 

them emerges victorious during 

the election. 

While Oboro 

claims the bill was 

her “copyright and 

brainchild,” Omo- 

Agege punctured 

her claim and 

accused her of 

lying, stating that 

her copyright 

declaration is the 

worst form of 

“public exhibition 

of legislative 

illiteracy 

While Oboroh who is currently 

the highest female political 

office holder in Urhobo nation, 

would emerge as the first Urhobo 

female senator in the history 

of the district, Omo-Agege on 

the other hand, would be making 

a feat for himself as the first 

senator in Delta Central to be 

re-elected for a second term in 

office. 

Challenges before both candidates 

Though the opposition under 

the umbrella of the APC 

governorship candidate in the 

state, Chief Great Ogboru has 

its stronghold in Delta Central, 

Oboro is consolidating on her 

popularity and political 

influence in Okpe and Uvwie 

which is her home council to 

unseat Omo-Agege who has a 

strong support base for himself 

and his party in Udu and Ughelli 

North which also is his home 

council. 

With a voting population of 

1,267,773 registered voters in 

the 2015 general elections, the 

then PDP candidate, Chief 

Ighoyota Amori, was declared 

winner having pulled 116,723 

votes with Omo-Agege scoring 

76,635 and the then APC 

candidate, Halims Agoda 

scoring 15,491 votes. 

The returning officer for the 

election, Prof. Prekeyi Tawari- 

Fideyin had cancelled the 

results for selected areas 

particularly some units in 

Uvwie, Udu, and Ethiope East 

over some irregularities. 

Omo-Agege’s political 

associates had described the 

affected areas as the 

“stronghold of their principal.” 

The Appeal Court sitting in 

Benin was, however, to later 

declare Omo-Agege winner of 

the election, 

The electoral battle between 

both candidates would be 

fierce come 2019, especially 

Evelyn Oboro 

with Agoda and Omo-Agege 

pitching tent together while 

Oboro, on the other hand, 

would be wishing to prove the 

point that her rising political 

profile is certainly not a joke. 

Though Oboro was able to 

overcome the “feminism 

factor” to emerge as a member 

of the House of 

Representative amidst been 

nicknamed “Mama 

Empowerment” by her 

supporters particularly from 

Uvwie and Okpe council 

areas, she is also hoping to 

repeat the same feat if the 

masculinity of the Urhobo 

nation would allow her to 

represent them in the Senate. 

Areas that might likely be 

tough for her to win are; 

Ughelli North and Udu 

council areas which have 

always been the stronghold of 

the opposition in the state 

while areas tipped to be tough 

for Omo-Agege are; Okpe, 

Uvwie, Ughelli South and 

Sapele council areas. 

The deciding council areas 

for both candidates would be 

Ethiope West which is the 

hometown for Agoda, PDP 

candidate for Uvwie/Sapele 

and Okpe federal constituency, 

Ben Igbakpa and former 

Governor James Ibori as well 

as Ethiope East which is the 

hometown of Chief Ogboru. 

It would be a tough call for 

Amori, one of the more 

formidable political giants in 

the state. Many stakeholders 

would be watching to see how 

Amori who had acted as a 

godfather to nearly all PDP 

candidates in the senatorial 

district since 2003, would 

throw himself in the forthcoming 

election. 

Would he support the woman 

that bruised him or would he sit 

out the election and watch his 

mutual political rivals fight it out?


BAYELSA: PDP, APC flex muscles over Alaibe, other’s defection 

By Emem Idio 

BAYELSA State is being 

primed for testy contests 

in the 2019 polls. A 

swathe of defections across 

the two leading political parties-ruling 

Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, and All Progressives 

Congress, APC, is 

altering calculations for the 

polls. 

The bulk of the defections 

are in favour of the PDP, a 

development the APC has 

downplayed as insignificant 

and incapable of hurting its 

chances at the polls. 

One of the APC top shots 

who left for the PDP is its 

former chairman, Chief Tiwei 

Orunimighe, who was 

also a close ally of former 

governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, 

the leader of the party in 

the state. 

Orunimighe, who has 

since been appointed the 

Special Adviser to Governor 

Seriake Dickson on Oil and 

Gas, led some APC chieftains 

in an exodus to the PDP. 

The defectors include former 

ex-militant leader Africanus 

Ukparisia aka, General Africa; 


Buhari’s representative 

in Ogbia in the 2015 

general election, Chief Orifie 

Ene and his supporters; 

former Commissioner for 

Environment, Mr Victor Akenge; 

Chief Diekivie 

Okologhbo; Chief Alatei 

Maxwell; Mr Amangala 

Ani; Chief Nkoi Gita; Barr 

Mike Amiekumo; and Mr 

Cleopas Johnbull among 

others. 

Orunimighie’s defection 

was not much of a surprise 

to many unlike his co-travellers 

because he fell out 

with Chief Sylva after dragging 

the party to court following 

his suspension for alleged 

anti-party activities. 

Chief Ndutimi Alaibe, also 

bid farewell a month later, a 

former managing director of 

the Niger Delta Development 

Commission, NDDC, 

and former special adviser 

to the President on Niger 

Delta and Coordinator of the 

Presidential Amnesty Programme, 

PAP also defected. 

Alaibe, whose political 

pedigree in the oil rich state 

is well known was accompanied 

by former federal 

and state lawmakers, Hon 

Michael Epengule,Nelson 

Belief, B.Z. Onniye and 

Ebamua Empere. 

They were also followed 

by former Secretary to 

Bayelsa State Government, 

Alabo Gideon Ekeuwei, 

one-time Commissioner for 

Youths and Sports, Kemi Prefa, 

former commissioner for 

information, Mr. Nathan 

Egba, former chairman of 

Sagbama Local Government 

Area, Barnabas Edure; and 

former Executive Secretary, 

SUBEB, Rhodesia Whyte. 

Why we left APC, Alaibe, 

others 

Speaking on why he left 

the APC, Alaibe said: “We 

are coming back to support 

you so you can continue to 

invest in other areas including 

what you have already 

done in the health sector like 

the diagnostic centre where 

a former president came to 

be diagnosed. 

“We are happy to be back. 

By tradition every child that 

goes out and meets danger, 

returns back home. We went 

out there and we saw things 

that were not palatable, in 

fact we saw danger and decided 

to run back home and 

interestingly, we have a governor 

that is kind enough to 

receive use.’’ 

Also, Orunimiye said he 

and others dumped the APC 

because it lacked vision and 

mission and described the 

leader of the party in the 

state as a businessman rather 

than a politician. 

We are better positioned 

to win coming polls — APC 

However, the APC appears 

unperturbed with the 

gale of defections and has 

been boasting that it is now 

better positioned and formidable 

going into the general 

elections. 

The state Organising Secretary 

of the APC, Tonye 

Okio, said the APC was not 

losing sleep over the defections 

of Alaibe and others. 

He said: “This is a welcome 

development as Alaibe had 

been PDP at night and APC 

by day.” 

APC CRISIS: Will NWC panel efforts yield dividends in Bauchi? 

*I want reconciliation of aggrieved APC members — Gov Abubakar 

By Charles Agwam 

ALL eyes are on the 

Governor Umaru Al- 

Makura-led peace committee 

of the All Progressives 

Congress, APC, to resolve 

the disaffections of aggrieved 

members in Bauchi and other 

states of the North-East 

geo-political zone. 

The panel raised by the 

National Working Committee, 

NWC, has started its 

work with a visit to Bauchi 

State, where Governor Mohammed 

Abubakar, said that 

he is ready to ensure that efforts 

to reconcile aggrieved 

members of the party yield 

results. 

Declaring that said he is 

willing to do anything for the 

ruling party to emerge stronger 

ahead of the 2019 general 

election, Abubakar made 

the pledge while receiving 

the Peace and Reconciliation 

Committee at the Government 

House, Bauchi. 

The Bauchi State governor 

described himself as a 

peace-loving person, who is 

being widely misunderstood 

by aggrieved members of the 

party, particularly those he 

claimed he defeated at the 

governorship primaries of 

the APC in 2015 and 2018. 

“After winning the 2015 primaries, 

I went to each of the 

eight contestants to embrace 

peace and work as a team to 

move the party forward. I am 

a firm believer that power 

comes from God and He 

gives power to whomever he 

wants. So I went to them, for 

Al-Makura 

those ‘fighting’ him within 

the party. 

He expressed gratitude to 

the NWC for the reconciliation 

moves and called on all 

members of the party especially 

those who are aggrieved 

to come on board, 

stressing that he is willing to 

do anything that is legal to 

ensure that the APC succeeds. 

Speaking earlier, Governor 

Al-makura told party faithful 

that the committee had the 

mandate to build peace and 

reconcile all aggrieved memus 

to work together and 

move our state forward. I did 

the same thing in the recent 

primaries after my victory,” he 

said. 

Governor Abubakar lamented 

that despite all his 

pleas, his fellow contestants 

never gave him the room to 

settle their grievances, adding 

that even one of them left 

the APC for another political 

party where he emerged as 

a governorship candidate, 

because “his heart was never 

with our party.” 

To give peace a chance, he 

said he had to give prominent 

positions to some of 

2019: Asaba on Ogboru’s mind 

By Felix Ayanruoh 

Gov. Dickson welcoming Alaibe to PDP 

THE Delta State Capi 

tal is a one-time colonial 

capital of the Southern 

Nigeria Protectorate, strategically 

located on a hill at 

the western edge of the Niger 

River, overlooking Onitsha, 

across the Niger 

Bridge. The city is a complex 

hive of human activity 

that highlights all that’s inspiring 

and beautiful about 

modern life and it’s historical 

past. 

Like any state capital, it is 

more than any other city in 

the state. It is the seat of 

government for Delta State. 

It connects our hopes and 

dreams, representing the 

wishes and aspirations of all 

Deltans, defining our essence 

as one people, 

though tribes and tongues 

may differ, Asaba is the symbol 

of our unity as a people. 

As the engine room where 

policies, innovation stream 

forth to affect all nooks and 

crannies of the state, it is the 

expectation of every single 

Deltan that our state capital 

Asaba should be the epitome 

of development, a model 

for infrastructural epitaph 

and centre for trade and commerce. 

However since 1999 when 

the the Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP-led government 

took over the rein of governance 

of the state, the capital 

has remained an epicentre 

of infrastructural decay 

and deterioration, which is 

more evident in densely populated 

parts, characterized 

by slum, overcrowding, under 

supply of public amenities, 

bad roads, and u flood 

among others. We expect extremes 

in capital cities — except 

in the case of Asaba 

Ogboru 

which is all too often viewed 

as one, big, monolithic 

mess. Folks and strangers 

elsewhere can’t even imagine 

the existence of overwhelming 

flood with the 

Niger River nearby in a state 

blessed with both human 

and natural resources. 

Unlike neighbouring 

states capitals with revitalized 

districts sizzling with 

creative fervour, that exudes 

prosperity, charm and bustling 

city centre neighbourhoods 

along with extensive 

urban renewal plans, Asaba 

capital city is a conglomerate 

of false starts and failures 

by the present and past 

PDP-led administrations. 

There are gaps in infrastructure, 

housing, road network, 

healthcare, law enforcement, 

schools, transportation 

— on a massive scale 

not seen in many other state 

capitals in the Niger Delta 

region. 

These glaring deficiencies 

in our beloved capital city 

occupies a big part of the 

beautiful mind of Chief 

Great Ovedje Ogboru, Delta 

State All Progressives 

Congress, APC governorship 

candidate. Ogboru has 

given deep and contemplative 

thoughts on how to position 

Asaba as a resurgent 

city that will be beneficial to 

all Deltans. 

The Ogboru-led government 

will on inauguration 

bers. 

Al-Makura opined that it 

was normal that in a scramble 

where many people are 

looking for a position, there 

can only emerge a winner, 

advising that as people who 

believe in God, those who 

lost should accept that power 

is given by God. 

The Nasarawa State governor 

pledged that his committee 

would be fair and just 

to every aggrieved member. 

He said the mandate of the 

committee was not to adjudicate 

but to identify areas of 

conflicts, aggrieved members, 

and proffer political solutions 

acceptable to the vast 

majority of members, and to 

restore confidence, commitment, 

and trust of aggrieved 

members. 

He said because of time 

constraint, the committee has 

divided its assignment itinerary 

to cover Bauchi and Gombe 

zones, Adamawa and 

Taraba zones and Borno and 

Yobe zones. 

Reacting, the aggrieved 

members of the party at the 

reconciliation meeting said 

they want justice to be served 

since ‘no primary election 

happened in the state. 

kick start the already prepared 

plan that will lift the 

city from its present state to 

one that all Deltans will be 

proud of. 

The People’s General will 

carry out a holistic review 

and overhaul of the Asaba 

Capital Territory Development 

Authority Agency, 

ACTDAA, to play the lead 

role in infrastructural renewal. 

So far, this agency only 

functions in the minds of its 

creators, nothing substantial 

and sustainable is on ground 

after almost four years of its 

creation. The recent election 

year roll out of construction 

and rehabilitation of roads 

by the Okowa-led government 

is a testimony of the 

failure of his government 

and disdain for the capital 

city. The ability of any city to 

create employment for its 

residents is a factor that will 

always sustain the essence 

of the city and its capacity to 

attract developed human 

capital.


ACHA OBIUKWU BENEDITA AJAYI ISHOLA 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Iroha I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as 

Ezinne Kalu Acha, now Frank Obiukwu, now wish Obiwuru Benedita, now Ajayi Esther Mobolaji, Ishola Esther Bukola, now 

wish to be known as Mrs to be known as Iroha 

wish to be known as now wish to be known as wish to be known as 

Ezinne Ogbugo Osonwa Frank Ugochukwu. All 

Mrs Anushola Esther Oladimeji Esther Bukola . 

Udo. All former former documents remain Obiwuru Chika. All former 

Mobolaji. Former All former documents 

documents remain valid. valid. General public take documents remain valid. documents remain valid. remain valid. General 

General public take note. note. 

General public take note. General public take note. public please take note. 

UMOH 

NWANERI 

ARO 

ADEYEMI 

ODUDU 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss 

Uduak Archibong Umoh, Oluchi Eucharia Nwaneri, Aro Modupe Florence, now Olufunmilayo Olubusola 

now wish to be known as 

Adeyemi, henceforth wish to Odudu Charlyn, now wish 

now wish to be known as wish to known as Mrs be known as Mrs. 

Mrs. Deborah Ekpo 

to be known as Mrs 

Udoma. All former 

Oluchi Eucharia Udoha. 

Gbadegesin Modupe Olufunmilayo Olubusola 

Florence. All documents Fatogun. All former Onyibe Charlyn. All 

documents remain valid. All former documents bearing my former names documents remain valid. former documents remain 

General public please take remain valid. General 

Lagos State University, Ojo, 

remain valid. The general Lagos and general public take valid. General public take 

note. 

public take note. 

public should pls take note. note. 

note. 

NWATU 

OLOGE 

ODOGU 

SUEBAT 

OKAFOAGU 

I, formerly known as Ani I, formerly known as Miss Correction of Name I, formerly known as I, formerly known as 

Nwatu Emeka, now wish Ologe Tracy Ese, now I, formerly known as Suebat Omotayo Onundi, 

Okafoagu Chinonye 

Emmanuel Ovoka Odogu, 

Uzoamaka as a result of my 

to be known as Ani Emeka. wish to be known as Mrs 



former marriage now wish to 

Atatigho Tracy Ese. All 

All former documents 

Emmanuel Ovoka-Odogu. Omotayo Onundi Alatise. be known as Obi Chinonye 

former documents remain Former documents remain All former documents Uzoamaka. Former 

remain valid. General 

documents remain valid. The 

valid. General public take valid. General public please remain valid. General general public should take 


note. 

take note. 


notice. 

OKOLO 

OKONKWO 

AGOFURE 

OKEDUNWON AVBUOHIEN 

I, formerly known as I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss 

Chinwe Patricia Okolo, Okonkwo Nzube Stephine, Agofure Augustina Okedunwon Olusegun Dorothy Enogiela 

now wish to be known as now wish to be known as Oghenerukevwe, now wish Samuel, now wish to be Avbuohien, now wish to 

Chinwe Patricia Chukwu. Igbokwe Nzube Stephanie. 

to be known as Mrs. known as Okedunwon 

Olusegun Samuel Sunday. 

be known as Mrs. Dorothy 

Former documents remain 

Omarijivwie Augustina 

All former documents 

Oghenerukevwe. All former All former documents Enogiela Edema. All former 

valid. General public remain valid. General documents remain valid. remain valid. General documents remain valid. 

please take note. 


General public take note. public take note. 

General public take note. 

ORJI 

GRACE 

ADEJUWON 

EDIEBE 

EFURHIEVWE 

I, formerly known as Orji I, formerly known as Mrs. I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Mrs. 

Azubuike, now wish to be Okeke Grace Chinenye, Adejuwon Temilade Ediebe Emobowasa Victoria Efurhievwe, now 

known as Oyibo Azubuike now wish to be known as Adeleye, now wish to be Keturah, now wish to be wish to be addressed as 

Mrs. Okeke Chinenye 

addressed as Mrs. Oyibo 

known as Olude Temilade 

Zukky. All former 

Emobowasa Keturah. All 

Mrs. Victoria Enamuotor. 

Martina. All former Adeleye. All former 

documents remain valid. 

former documents remain All former documents 

documents remain valid. documents remain valid. valid. General public remain valid. General 

General public take note. General public take note. General public take note. please take note. 

OGHUMU 

EJEREBE 

OLOWOYEYE 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss 

Helen Erhire Oghumu, now Lilian Aghogho Ejerebe, Helen Damilola Olowoyeye, 

wish to be known as Mrs now wish to be known as now wish to be known as 

Helen Ugbokan. All former Mrs Dudu Lilian Aghogho. 

Mrs Helen Damilola 

Abidakun. All former 

documents remain valid. All former documents remain documents remain valid. 

General public, banks and all valid. General public, banks General public, banks and all 

concern institutions should and all concern institutions concern institutions should 


should please take note. please take note. 

IDOKO TALATU AMOKEYE 

I, formerly known as Miss This is to confirm that the This is to confirm that the 

name Nuhu Nana Talatu and name Alekwu Rose Amokeye 

Fatima Idoko, now wish to Nuhu-Iliya Talatu Favour- and Roseline Emungukere 

be known as Mrs Fatima Nana is one and the same Alekwu is one and the same 

person, but now wish to be person, but now wish to 

Idoko Chukwueke. All known as Nuhu-Iliya Talatu known as Alekwu Rose 

former documents remain Favour-Nana. All former Amokeye. All former 

valid, general public documents remain valid, documents remain valid; 

general public please take Ecobank and general public 


note. 


AMADI 

OLOREGBULEM 

JAGABA 

I, formerly known and I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss 

addressed as Miss Precious Oloregbulem Ruth Deynum Adams Jagaba, 

Chizarum Amadi, now wish Chukwuemeka, now wish to now wish to be known as 

to be known and addressed be known as Mrs. Egwu Mrs. Deynum Jagabaas 

Mrs. Precious Chizarum 

Ruth Chukwuemeka. All 

Ogbonda. All former 

Ambore. All former 

documents remain valid, former documents remain documents remain valid. 

general public please take valid. General public please General public please take 

note. 

take note. 

note. 

OKARA 

EGBUDU 

GEORGE 

Reconciliation of Name 

This is to confirm that Franca 

George, Franca 

I, formerly known as 

Chukwuemeka Samuel 

Okara, now wish to be 

known as Onyemaluechi 

Samuel Chukwuemeka. All 

former documents remain 

valid. General public 


ISAIAH 

I, formerly known as Joy 

Isaiah, now wish to be 

known as Monday Joy 

Igho. All former 



I, formerly known as Mr. 

Patrick Efe Egbudu, now 

wish to be known as Mr. 

Patrick Efe Emuobuvie. All 




OLOTU 


Precious Ovwenor Olotu, 


Precious Oghenevwogaga 

Ovwenor. All former 



Nkechinyerem George and 

Franca Nkonyenum George 

refer to the same person. I 


Franca Nkonyenum George. 

All former documents remain 

valid. General public please 

take note. 

WARRI 

I, formerly known as Miss 

Elohor Warri, now wish to 

be known as Mrs. Okotie 

Elohor. All former 



FADAIRO 


Fadairo Funmilola Rachael, 


Mrs Abobade Funmilola 

Rachael. All former 


General public, banks and all 

concerned institutions 

should please take note. 

WODAH 

I, formerly known and 

addressed as Miss Grace 

Ibekwe Wodah, now wish to 

be known and addressed as 

Mrs. Grace Leonard 

Nwayima. All former 

documents remain valid, 

general public please take 

note. 

OKOYE 


Okoye Patricia Ifeoma, 


Mrs. Echekam Patricia 

Ifeoma. All former 


General public please take 

note. 

HUSSEIN 


Babatunde Taofeek 

Hussein, now wish to be 

known as Babatunde 

Taofeek Sosami. All 


valid. General public take 

note. 

ONIYARA 


Rachael Ogbemi Oniyara, 


Mrs. Rachael Ogbemi 

Marcel Ugboaja. All 



note. 

EREZI 

OLOWOYEYE 


Olowoyeye Tinuola 

Adebola, now wish to be 

known as Mrs. Adenuga 

Tinuola Adebola. All 




OJUKWU 


Ojukwu Chigozie 

Ndidiamaka, now wish to 

be known as Mrs 

Ezenwanolue Beatrice 

Ndidiamaka. All former 



EFFIONG 

I, Effiong Emmanuel 

Matthew hereby affirm that 

my name is Emmanuel (first 

name) Matthew (middle 

name), Effiong (surename) 

and wish to be addressed as 

Effiong Emmanuel Matthew. 

Former documents remain 

valid. GTBank Plc and 

general public take note 

AMAJUOYE 


Amajuoye Eugene 

Chukwuyere, now wish to 

be known as Amajuoyi 

Eugene Chukwuyere. All 



note. 

ABIRI 


Sophia Nyerhovwo Abiri, 


Mrs Sophia Nyerhovwo 

Eluaka. Former documents 

remain valid. General 

public please take note. public please take note. 

UKEH ELEONU 

I, formerly known as Mr. I, formerly known as Miss 

Abraham Kelechukwu Ukeh, Eleonu Ifesinachi Sandra, 

now wish to be known as now wish to be known as 

Mr. Ukeh Kelechi Okor. All Mrs Ifesinachi Sandra 

documents bearing former Ajuonuma. All former 

names remain valid. The general 

public and Diamond documents remain valid, 

Bank should please take general public please take 

note. 

note. 

ANYIENWE 

CHUKWUMA 

I, formerly known and I, formerly known and 

addressed as Miss Anyienwe addressed as Miss Sonachi 

Rosemary Chimyenum, now Favour Chukwuma, now 

wish to be known and wish to be known and 

addressed as Mrs. Ossai addressed as Mrs. Sonachi 

Rosemary Chimyenum. All Favour Emencheta. All 

former documents remain former documents remain 

valid, general public please valid, general public please 

take note. 

take note. 

ONYEOGAZILI 

UWAGWU 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as 

Onyeogazili Obiageli Uwagwu Chioma Angel, 

Anthonia, now wish to be now wish to be known 

known as Mrs. Ezeocha Akinbolade-Jones 

Obiageli Anthonia. All Chioma. All former 

former documents remain documents remain valid. 

valid. General public General public please take 


note. 

ODUYOMI 

OGHOLI 


Oduyomi Adepeju 

Omolara, now wish to be 

known as Bashorun 

Adepeju Omolara. All 



note. 

I, formerly known as Esiwo 

Erezi Joy, now wish to be 

known as Esiwo Joy. All 



note. 


Margaret Ogholi, now 

wish to be known as 

Margaret Omuedi. All 



note. 

AJOKU 

I, formerly known as Mr Ajoku 

Chukwuemeka Maxwell, now 

wished to be known as Mr 

Ebueburho Majirie 

Maxwell. All former 

documents remain 

valid. Fidelity Bank, Zenith 

bank, Ambrose Alli University, 

MDCN, other concerned 

authorities and general public 

take note.


CHANGE OF NAME 

OKUNUSE OKORONKWO UZU 

I, formerly known as Confirmation of Name Confirmation of Name 

This is to confirm that the 

Okunuse Irikefe Lucky, 


names Adaku Okoronkwo and 

now wish to be known as Ibegbulem Adaku D. N. refer names Uzu Ifeanyi Fortune 

to one and same person but and Uzu Ifeanyi refer to one 

Williams Irikefe Dominion. now wish to be known as Mrs. and same me, i.e. Uzu Ifeanyi 

All former documents Ibegbulem Adaku Esther D. N. Fortune. All former 


remain the same. General valid. Access Bank Plc and documents remain valid. 

general public please take General public please take 


note. 

note. 

OJARUAIRE 

OTUATA 

JOHN 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as 

Ojaruaire Mary, now wish Otuata Ify Priscillia, now Olunlade Omowale John, 

to be known as Mrs. Eboh wish to be known as Mrs. 


Olunlade Omowale 

Mary. All former Ikomi Ify Priscillia. All Olakunle. All former 

documents remain the former documents remain documents remain the 

same. General public take the same. General public same. General public take 

note. 

take note. 

note. 

CHINWUDE 

JOHNSON 

AKUDO 

I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss 

Chinwude Bright Oghenekevwe Gift Johnson, Akudo Eseoghene Julie, now 

Kosisochukwu, now wish to now wish to be known as 

wish to be known as Mrs 

be known as Okeke Bright Mrs Akpovoke-Royal 

Samuel Kosisochukwu. All Oghenekevwe Gift. All 

Omajene-Akudo Eseoghene 

former documents remain the former documents remain Julian. All former documents 

same. General public take valid. General public please remain valid. General public 

note. 

take note 


ALAJAIBO 

ELEMUEL 

We, formerly known as (1) Blessed Monday Endurance Alajaibo I, formerly known as 

Odin (2) Rhoda Ogheneyoma Overare (3)Alajaibo Celestina Daniel Elemuel, 

Urhioboghene Barnabas (4) Alajaibo Iruoesirioghene Godsfavour 

(5) Alajaibo Oghenevwegba Flourish Samuel (6) Alajaibo now wish to be known as 

Iruoghene Victory, now wish to be known and addressed as (1) Mrs. Celestina Best Edeki. 

Odin Oduma Blessed (2) Mrs Odin Ogheneyoma Rhoda (3) All former documents remain 

Odin Urhioboghene Barnabas (4) Odin Iruoesirioghene valid, any authority it may 

Godsfavour (5) Odin Oghenevwegba Flourish Samuel (6) Odin 

Iruoghene Victory. All former documents remain vaild, any concern and general public to 

authority it’s may concern and general public take note. take note. 

EDAFEUNU 

URADU 

GLADYS 

The name Edafeunu Elo Joy I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as 

and Edafeunu Elo Nkem, Uradu Toochi Perpetua, 

which appears in my 

Okonye Chidima Gladys, 

documents belong to the same now wish to be known as now wish to be known as 

person but now wish to be Mrs Nosiri Toochi Okonye Marvelous 

known and addressed as Perpetua. All former documents 

remain valid. The 

Ndudi. All former 

Edafeunu Elo Joy. All former 

documents remain valid, any 


authority it’s may concern and general public should General public please take 

general public take note. please take note. 

note. 

ONOJIERUO 

OGBOBOR 

OBI-GABRIEL 

I, Onojieruo Igbunu Favour I, formerly known as Mrs. I, formerly known as Miss 

wish to notify the general Ogbobor Onome Obi-Gabriel Nkechinyere 

public that my name was 

wrongly written as Onojieruo Chiwendu, now wish to be Jennifer, now wish to be 

Igbunu-Oghene, instead of known as Mrs. Ojo Faith known as Mrs. Ari 

Onojieruo Igbunu Favour Chiwendu. All former Nkechinyere Jennifer. All 

which is my correct name. All documents remain valid. former documents remain 


valid. General public please General public please take valid. General public 

take note. 

note. 


DUDU 

IKIKI 

NZUKWE 

I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss 

Dudu Patience, now wish Gbubemi Ikiki, now wish to Nzukwe Chijiugo Lucy, 

to be known as Mrs. Akeni be known as Gbubemi Alba now wish to be known as 

Patience. All former Lemmy. All former 

Mrs. Nwankwo Chijiugo 

Dorathy. All former 

documents remain valid. documents remain valid. documents remain valid. 

General public please take General public please take General public please take 

note. 

note. 

note. 

JOLOMI 

ABANTA 

KESIENA 

I, formerly known as Ogbe Confirmation of Name I, formerly known as Miss 


Lofty Jolomi, now wish to names Sunday Nwachukwu Kesiena Natasha, now 

be known as Peter Robert Abanta and Nwachukwu wish to be known as Mrs 

Sunday refer to one and same 

Ogbe. All former me. I now wish to be known as Natasha Cousin Ejima. All 

documents remain valid. Nwachukwu Sunday Samuel. former documents remain 


General public please take valid. General public please valid, general public, 

note. 

take note. 


AKPAN 

IZONTIMI 

IDONIBOYE 

I, formerly known as I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss 

Emmanuella Edet Akpan, Izontimi Ebimowenere Tamuno Oribim Jeddahlin 

now wish to be known as Ashley, now wish to be Idoniboye, now wish to be 

Dickson Emmanuella known as Mrs. Tebepina known as Mrs. Tamuno 

Ebikoro. All former Ebimowenere Ashley. All Oribim Jeddahlin Eruani. All 

documents remain valid. former documents remain former documents remain 

General public and all valid. General public and all valid. General public and all 

relevant authorities please relevant authorities please relevant authorities please 

take note. 

take note. 

take note. 

FAGA TOKYO AN 

I, formerly known as Faga 

Alexander, now wish to be 

known as Faga Alexander 

Terdue. All former 


Access bank, UBA and the 

general public and all relevant 

authorities please take note. 

I, formerly known as Tokyo 

Yamai, now wish to be 

known as Samuel Tokuruse 

Yamai. All former documents 

remain valid. Diamond bank, 

sterling bank and the general 

public and all relevant 

authorities please take note. 

SPACE FOR 

SALE 

FOR ADVERT PLACEMENT VISIT TRINITY 

MALL, BESIDE ZENITH BANK BALOGUN BUS 

STOP, OBAFEMI AWOLOWO WAY, IKEJA, 

OR MURPHIS PLAZA, SANUSI FAFUNWA 

STREET, VICTORIA ISLAND LAGOS 

By 2020, 90% of persons living with 

HIV in Lagos would know their 

status — TEMOWO 

* 140,000 persons currently identified out of which 74,000 

are under treatment 

By Sola Ogundipe 

IN line with its 

determination to ensure 

that the burden of HIV 

transmission in Lagos State 

is eradicated, the Lagos State 

AIDS Control Agency, 

LSACA, has put in place 

measures to ensure that all 

Persons Living With HIV/ 

AIDS in the State know their 

staus by 2020. 

Disclosing this during a 

media chat in Lagos last 

week, the Chief Executive 

Officer, LSACA, Dr. Oluseyi 

Temowo, noted that knowing 

one's status was important as 

the global scene was 

working towards reducing 

the burden of HIV on those 

infected and affected by 

2020, using the UNAIDS 

General Assembly 

Declaration of 2016, widely 

known as the 90-90-90 

initiative. 

Temowo, who urged all 

partners, CSOs, Line 

Ministries, the Private Sector 

and all citizens to embrace 

the 2018 World AIDS Day 

(WAD) theme: “Know Your 

Status”, explained that they 

should access the free HIV 

Testing Service (HTS) 

available in the government 

heath facilities across the 

State. Explaining the 

significance of the 90-90-90 

initiative, he he noted: “The 

first 90 means 90 percent of 

those living with HIV must 

know their status by 2020; 

the second 90 is that 90 

percent of those that know 

their status must be 

accessing Antiretroviral 

Therapy (ART) by 2020, and 

lastly, the third 90 means 

that 90 percent of those 

accessing ART must be 

virally suppressed by 2020. 

Temowo posited that 

attaining viral suppression 

would not be realised if the 

2018 theme that focuses on 

the 1st 90 was not 

implemented and ultimately 

eradicate new infections 

according to the 2030 

Roadmap. 

About 360 million people 

are living with HIV globally 

and of this, about 10 percent 

are in Nigeria therefore 

making Nigeria the country 

with the second highest 

burden after South Africa. 

“Lagos is not a high burden 

state for HIV because the 

prevalence rate is about 0.5 

percent which equates to less 

than 140,000 persons living 

with HIV/AIDS. 

“Currently around 74,000 

of those identified to be 

living with the virus are 

accessing treatment and 

efforts are on to scale up the 

process so that more people 

are put on treatment.” 

He said human resources 

needed to tackle the burden 

still had gaps in terms of 

training, requisite 

knowledge and will to tackle 

challenges confronting the 

HIV response. 

He said material and 

financial resources were not 

readily available especially 

with the dwindling of funds 

from International partners 

who were the major 

financing sources of HIV 

and AIDS response in 

Nigeria. 

Nigerian health specialists brace up to 

tackle spinal injuries 

By Chioma Obinna 

& Arinola Kolade 

ABODY of experts in the 

field of Neurosurgery 

and Orthopaedic surgery in 

Nigeria - the Nigeria Spine 

Society - NSS, has been 

inaugurated with a mandate 

to tackle challenges and 

improve professional 

practice in spine 

management and treatment 

of spinal cord injuries in 

Nigeria. 

A coordinator of the Society, 

Dr Tayo Ojo, who is a 

Consultant Neuro-surgeon 

at the Lagos University 

Teaching Hospital, LUTH, 

said NSS would, among 

others, build capacity of other 

surgeons spinal injuty 

treatment, as well as ensure 

reduction in challenges of 

getting hardware for spine 

surgeries, reduce errors in 

surgery and improve 

survival and success rates 

generally. 

Ojo who spoke to Good 

Health Weekly during the 

inaugural meeting of the 

body identified lack of 

expertise and difficulty in 

getting the hardware for 

spine surgery, implants and 

other innovative equipment 

the most important 

challenges facing their 

practice. 

“In Nigeria today, you will 

find between 30 to 50 spine 

surgeons. That is definitely 

not enough for a population 

close to 200 million, but we 

think with the Society we 

would generate enough 

interest for other people to 

join us and do the spine 

surgeries appropriately,” he 

added. 

Stressing the seriousness of 

spine injury, he explained 

that a victim of road accident 

who broke a neck would 

need spine surgery and that 

Stakeholders decry static 

development in health sector 


M 

E D I C A L 

professionals and 

associations in Nigeria's 

Health Sector have called for 

greater commitment to 

Universal Health Coverage in 

Nigeria. The experts who 

made the call in Lagos during 

a Health Insurance 

Conference with the theme 

"Progress towards universal 

health coverage," organised 

by Healthcare Federation of 

Nigeria, HFN, in 

collaboration with 

PharmAccess decried the 

static development in the 

healthcare sector. 

The Emir of Shonga, and 

former chairman National 

Primary Health Care 

Development Agency, Dr 

Haliru Yahaya, decried the 

static development in the 

healthcare sector and the lack 

of basic health facility in the 

country even as he 

recognised that finance is the 

health sector's greatest 

the surgery is time bound. 

“If it isn't done between 24 

to 48hours he may never be 

able to walk again.” 

He stated that if the federal 

government would subsidise 

implants, more people 

would be able to have spine 

care as the cost of treatment 

is high. 

impediment. 

The Emir noted that 64 per 

cent of Nigerians finance 

their health needs and 

services "out of pocket" and 

stated the need for 

collaboration over universal 

health care. 

"It is every human's right to 

get access to quality 

healthcare by fighting for it". 

He added that everyone has 

a role to play." 

President, Health Care 

Federation of Nigeria, HFN, 

Mrs Clare Omatseye, urged 

Nigeria policymakers and 

professionals in the health 

sector to solve the problem of 

funding in the health sector. 

"How do we fund the 

vulnerable in the health 

sector". She narrated the 

complexities in the health 

sector, citing the GDP for 

health in Nigeria," she asked. 

For Omatseye, the core 

question that must be 

answered regarding 

universal coverage is "who do 

you want to cover, and how 

much do you have?”


Tekno’s vocal cords 

not permanently 

damaged 

– Management 

When news broke on Tuesday that Nigerian afropop 

singer, Tekno Miles, a.k.a Slim Daddy, was 

taking a break from music-making as a result of 

damages done to his vocal cords due to overtime 

performances, speculations went viral that it may be the 

end of the singer’s music career because his vocal cords 

could be permanently damaged. 

However, in a chat, his road manager, who simply 

identified himself as John, told E-Daily that 

contrary to speculations making the 

rounds that the singer’s vocal cords 

are permanently damaged, he just 

needed to rest the vocal cords to 

enable them recover from the 

temporary damages done to 

them after stressing them too 

much. 

“Haba! No o, God forbid, his 

vocal cords are not 

permanently damaged. He will 

be fine soon, he just needs to 

rest the voice”, he confirmed. 

Recall that while Tekno’s 

manager, Ubi Franklin, 

broke the news on Tuesday, 

he had assured that 

Tekno’s vocal cords were only temporarily damaged, as he 

begged for prayers for the ailing artiste. 

“These past few days have been really trying times for 

your boy Tekno. He had tried to downplay the severity of 

his ailment hoping that it will be short lived but after further 

diagnoses doctor advised he should take time out to recover. 

His vocal cord is temporarily damaged due to strain from 

How Simi plots to floor 

Wizkid, Tiwa, others 

Ahead of the end of year 

festivities, velvety voiced 

alternative 

R&B 

singer, Simisola Bolatito 

Ogunleye, popularly known 

as Simi, has kicked off the 

concert season with her ‘Simi 

Live’ series. 

Dubbed ‘a night of 

surprises, the first of the 

event tagged, ‘Simi live 

in London’ was held on 

Sunday, November 11, 

2018 at the O2 

Academy, in Islington, 

London. The sold-out 

show featured 

incredible live 

performances, 

paving the way for 

the second live 

series, ‘Simi live in 

Lagos.’ 

A host of 

celebrity guests 

showed up to the 

•Simi 

•Tekno 

London event to support the R&B queen 

with performances from Adekunle 

Gold, Falz, and surprise appearances from 

Mr. Eazi and Wizkid. 

According to Simi, the concert which is 

scheduled to hold on Sunday, December 

9, 2018 at the Balmoral convention Centre, 

federal palace hotel, lovers of good 

music should expect the unexpected 

from her this time because she would 

be bringing her A’game to the stage, 

she as she intends to steal the show 

from the likes of Wizkid, Davido and 

other artistes who will be staging their 

own concerts in December. 

In elation and appreciation, Simi took 

to social media after the event with the 

words, “All the glory to God; my king, 

my father, my everything, my source. 

Lagos, are you ready, December 9, 

in anticipation of the Lagos 

event. 

overtime performance and cannot sing or perform in 

a while. Please put Tekno in your prayers. Nevertheless 

he also wants to reassure his fans that they have 

nothing to worry about as he has put in so much work 

so a lot of music will be released this period. Please 

send love and positive vibrations his way as these are 

hard times for him”, he had written in an official 

statement. 

Frank Edwards, Mike 

Abdul, storm Festac 

for RCCG ‘Real 

Worship’ concert 

•Frank 

Edwards 

•Davido 

After successfully winning over 1000 souls to God 

at its 2017 edition, ‘Real Worship’, a faith-based 

initiative targeted at rendering songs of worship 

through gifted gospel artistes to God as well as 

serve as a platform for harnessing and 

promoting the talents of young gospel artistes, 

is set for the 2018 edition, themed ‘Worship unto 

perfection’. 

This program which has enjoyed massive 

publicity over the years has hosted A’list 

gospel artistes, Nathaniel Bassey, 

Chioma Jesus, Tope Alabi, Nosa, Sola 

Allyson, BJ Sax, Cobhams, and Frank 

Edwards etc. 

The event which has been 

repackaged with ‘A’ list celebrity 

gospel artistes, Frank 

Edwards, David G, Mercy 

Chinwo, Ada, Dcns Moji, 

Mike Abdul, BJ Sax, Bidemi 

Olaoba, and many more, as 

well as one of RCCG 

AGOs, Pastor Peter 

Amenkhienan (The AGO 

Youth Affairs), will hold 

at FHA field, Festac 

Town, on November 30, 

2018. 


organisers, adequate 

security/health 

measures have been 

put in place to 

cater for a crowd of 

not less than 

30,000 worshipers 

expected to attend the 

all night event, and they 

are convinced that by the power 

of the Holy Spirit, drawn 

through real worship, no 

form of violence or 

misfortune would occur. 

Planning my 

December concert 

too stressful, 

Davido complains 

Pop music star, Davido, has 

complained that the stress of 

putting together his end of the year 

concert is becoming too much for him. 

According to Davido who made the 

confession yesterday, putting the 

concert together has been serious hard 

work for him and is beginning to stress him 

out, but is confident that God will strengthen 

him to pull through with it. 

“So much hard work putting my December 

show together, stress o! But with God we will 

pull through”, he said. 

However, his girlfriend, Chioma Rowland has 

promised to give him all the 

necessary support he needs 

•Amanda 

F ollowing 

controversial 

blogger, Kemi 

Olunloyo’s claim that 

pop music star, Davido, 

secretly wedded his 

second babymama, 

Amanda in Atlanta 

earlier in the year, the 

Atlanta based beauty 

expert has finally 

broken silence on the 

scandal which has 

since gone viral. 

According to Amanda 

who has been radio 

silent on the matter, 

while Kemi Olunloyo’s 

allegations are fake 

because she is neither 

married to Davido nor 

any other man at all, 

she needs to find 

herself a better hobby 

than tarnishing 

innocent people’s 

images. 

“Please stop tagging 

me in fake news, I’m 

not married. Some 

people need to find 

to ease the stress. 

“We will go through 

it together baby God 

got your back, I’m 

always here to 

make that stress go 

away bae”, 

C h i o m a 

responded to 

Davido’s tweet. 

Meanwhile, 

Davido is yet to 

announce a 

venue for the 

annual end of 

the year concert 

which he has 

tagged ‘City of 

David Concert’, 

scheduled to 

hold on 

December 27th, 

2018. 

I’m not married to Davido; 

2nd babymama cries out 

another hobby and 

don’t come disturb my 

peace, ok bye”, she said. 

But Kemi Olunloye 

insists that Amanda’s 

cousin confirmed to her 

that because she could 

not be found guilty of 

being a babymama like 

Sophie Momodu, 

Amanda had compelled 

Davido to get married to 

her which he consented 

to without the 

knowledge of his 

girlfriend, Chioma, who 

he had lied to that her 

visa was denied which 

was why she couldn’t 

travel with him to 

Atlanta during that 

period. 

Recall that Olunloyo 

had also reported that 

the celebrated romance 

between Davido and 

Chioma had come to an 

end over infidelity 

issues, a rumour both 

parties have since 

dismissed as mere envy.

VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 —45 

Diplomats with DG, NCAC, Otunba Olusegun Runsewe at the launch of the International Cultural 

Diplomacy Day for Peace 

Nigeria’s culture still a myst 

yster 

ery 

to the world 

— Ogbonnaya Onu 

…commends NCAC for showcasing country’s artefacts 

Stories by Jimoh 

Babatunde 

“ 

Nigeria has a very rich past, 

our culture is number one. 

The world marvelled when they 

saw the artefacts from Eburoku, 

Ile Ife, from Benin, and what the 

world found in the Jos, Plateau. 

These were the words of the Dr 

Ogbonnaya Onu, the Minister 

of Science and Technology, at 

the closing ceremony of the 11th 

International Arts and Crafts 

(INAC) Expo, organised by the 

National Council for Arts and 

Culture (NCAC) in Abuja on 

Saturday. 

“The North culture till today 

astonishes the very best in the 

world. I do not have enough 

words to thank the DG of NCAC 

and our extraordinary cultural 

ambassadors for putting this 

event together. 

“This 11th edition is historical, 

because today when I went 

round the stands of 27 countries 

coming from four continents of 

the world, I was astonished. 

“What we have during this 

exhibition is the best way to 

build peace in the world, 

because we are using what is 

common to humanity; we are 

using our arts and crafts to bind 

ourselves together. 

“It built the bridges that can 

unite all humanity, because no 

matter which country we come 

from, which continent, we are all 

humans and we all have the 

image of God in us. 

“Also, what is common is our 

love for our own crafts, things we 

do to remember not just how we 

live but how we should live,‘’ he 

said. 

Onu also said that the 

exhibition opened a new 

window to change the 

narratives and perception of 

how the world sees Nigerians. 

“All that people say about 

Nigerian which are not true, 

they will know that Nigeria is a 

very hospitable country, that we 

love peace, believe in peace, 

works for peace. 

“A country that will ensure 

that humanity will be one and 

all that is needed for the world 

to come together, that Nigeria 

will work tirelessly for peace to 

be achieved,” he said. 

The Director- General of the 

National Council of Arts and 

Culture (NCAC), Otunba 

Segun Runsewe, said “I am 

delighted to note that this 

exposition has lived up to the 

expectation of bringing about 

regional integration, 

continental unity as well as 

unveiling the economic 

opportunities in the arts and 

crafts sector.” 

The DG reiterated that the 

expo was created to expose the 

untapped arts and crafts 

potentials of the ordinary 

Nigerians to the world. 

According to him, Africans are 

not aware that “some of our 

crafts produced in Nigeria are 

taken abroad to be sold and they 

take the credit for them”. 

“So I decided for our 

traditional arts and crafts to 

open a new window where the 

ordinary Nigerian people can 

interact with all the networking 

platforms. 

“This will develop arts and 

crafts in the history of the world. 

We have more than seven 

countries. 

“Right now some of our 

creative industry people have 

made some connections. 

“They’ve made some network, 

so one other fundamental 

missing item is e-selling, e- 

marking which our people have 

not been taking advantage of. 

“Now people use Facebook, 

Instagram and these platforms 

to discuss love and greetings 

using the platform to do 

business too. 

So we’ve been able to untap 

and unlock that platform again 

so a lot of Nigerians, even the 

ordinary woman selling peanut 

can excel,‘’ he said. 

The performance of Nigeria’s 

first female drummer, Ara Lola, 

with her dance troupe at the 

closing ceremony marked a 

successful performances by 

troupes from China, India and 

Bangladesh among others. 

Guests and domestic tourists 

were treated to doze of nonstop 

music and dance entertainment 

all through the one week event. 

The Minister of Information 

and Culture, Alhaji Lai 

Mohammed, has re-iterated 

that the programmes and 

policies to fully harness the 

country’s vast tourism 

potentials are anchored on 

the National Tourism 

Development Masterplan. 

He said his ministry is 

partnering with the United 

Nations World Tourism 

Organisation (UNWTO) in the 


National 

Tourism 

Development Masterplan, in 

order to optimally harness the 

country’s tourism potentials. 

Lai Mohammed, who 

disclosed this at a Tourism 

Investors Forum in Abuja 

recently, said “I wish to draw 

your attention to the fact that 

the programmes and policies 

British Airways says goodbye 

to Boeing 767 

British Airways will retire the 

last of its Boeing 767 fleet 

after it operated its final 

revenue flight for the airline. 

The last flight was from 

Larnaca in Cyprus to London 

Heathrow on Sunday. The 

aircraft will now go to St Athan 

in Wales for storage. 

BA launched its 767 services 

in February 1990 with a flight 

to Paris, and since then the 

fleet has flown over 425,000 

commercial flights for the 

airline. 

Initially used on lower 

density long-haul routes such 

as Abu Dhabi, Calgary and 

New York, the fleet has more 

recently mostly flown shorthaul 

services, including 

Athens and Larnaca plus some 

domestic routes. 

The 767s have been phased 

out as BA has taken delivery 

of the more fuel efficient 

Boeing 787 Dreamliner, with 

30 of that type now in service. 

“The 767 has been a brilliant 

part of our fleet, flying some 

of our most popular routes and 

giving customers what was an 

industry-leading service in its 

time,” British Airways director 

of flight operations Captain Al 

Bridger said. 

“It’s fitting that as the final 

767 leaves the fleet, we take 

our 30th delivery of another 

industry-leading aircraft, the 

787, which offers customers an 

exceptional experience in the 

skies.” 

The airline said the aircraft 

that operated the final 767 

commercial flight first flew in 

1998 and has flown an 

estimated 23 million miles. It 

has visited Larnaca 900 times 

and Athens 1,275 times. BA 

says the aircraft has carried 

around 4 million customers on 

nearly 23,000 flights during 

that time.(Airwise) 

British Airways 767 final flight crew. PIX by Stuart Bailey 

Nigeria’s tourism policies anchored on 

Masterplan – Minister 

to fully harness the country’s 

vast tourism potentials over 

the next one and half decades 

are anchored on the National 

Tourism Development 

Masterplan. In order to ensure 

its full implementation, the 

Ministry sought and secured 

the support of the UNWTO to 

assist in the implementation 

of the Tourism Masterplan.” 

The Minister, who was 

represented by the Permanent 

Secretary, Federal Ministry of 

Information and Culture, 

Grace Isu-Gekpe, said 

pursuant to the 


Masterplan, the UNWTO is 

already seeking the support 

of some donor agencies to 

assist Nigeria with funds for 

the execution of the project on 

the Strengthening of National 

Troupe from India performing at the just concluded 11th 

International Arts and Crafts (INAC) Expo, organised by the National 

Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) in Abuja. 

Tourism Statistical System and 

the development of a Tourism 

Satellite Account for Nigeria. 

He said this became 

necessary because lack of 

accurate statistics on arrivals 

and receipts is one of the 

major problems militating 

against the development of 

tourism in Nigeria. 

Alhaji Mohammed said the 

Ministry of Information and 

Culture will soon inaugurate 

a National Consultative 

Forum that will review the 

recommendations of the 

UNWTO Post Technical 

Mission Project Document, 

with membership of the Forum 

drawn from all critical 

stakeholders in the Tourism 

Sector, including FTAN. 

He said the private sector is 

critical to the development of 

tourism in the country, hence 

the government’s decision to 

build an enduring framework 

for Public-Private Partnership 

(PPP) to provide the required 

confidence for prospective 

investors. 

The Minister said the 

government has fashioned out 

tourism investment incentives 

such as tax exemption for up 

to three years, export/Import 

Incentives, land at 

concessionary rate and work 

permit to foreigners with 

specialized skills in order to 

attract private sector 

investment.



48 — VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018

VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 —49 

Trump withdraws from Putin 

meeting, cites Ukraine crisis 

*Russian President wants to annex Ukraine—President 

*Cohen pleads guilty 

U 

.S. President 

Donald Trump on 

Thursday abruptly cancelled 

a planned meeting 

with Russian President 

Vladimir Putin in Argentina, 

registering his disapproval 

of Russia’s 

treatment of Ukraine 

and casting new uncertainty 

over U.S.-Russian 

ties. 

Trump said he pulled 

out due to tensions over 

Russian forces opening 

fire on Ukrainian navy 

boats and then seizing 

them and their crew on 

Sunday near Crimea, 

which Russia annexed 

from Ukraine in 2014. 

His decision also 

comes as a federal investigation 

into his 2016 

election campaign’s ties 

to Russia is intensifying. 

Trump’s former lawyer 

Michael Cohen pleaded 

guilty on Thursday to lying 

to Congress about a 

proposed Trump real estate 

project in Russia. 

“Based on the fact that 

the ships and sailors 

have not been returned to 

Ukraine from Russia, I 

have decided it would be 

best for all parties concerned 

to cancel my previously 

scheduled meeting 

in Argentina with 

President Vladimir Putin. 

I look forward to a 

meaningful Summit 

again as soon as this situation 

is resolved!” Trump 

tweeted. 

Trump’s tweet from 

aboard Air Force One 

shortly after takeoff from 

Washington on the way to 

Buenos Aires for a Group 

of 20 summit, was a sudden 

turnaround. 

Roughly an hour earlier, 

he had told reporters he 

would probably meet with 

Putin at the summit and 

said it was “a very good 

time to have the meeting.” 

Trump had also said he 

would get a final report 

during the flight to Argentina 

on the tension in the 

region after Russia seized 

Ukrainian vessels near 

Crimea on Sunday. 

Ukrainian President 

Petro Poroshenko on Thursday 

accused Putin of wanting 

to annex his entire 

country and called for 

NATO to deploy warships 

to a sea shared by the two 

nations. 

While it was unclear why 

there was a sudden change 

in plans for a meeting, 

holding talks with Putin 

now could represent bad 

optics for the White House 

at a time when the president 

is under scrutiny over 

prior plans to build a 

Trump Tower in Moscow. 

Cohen pleaded guilty on 

Thursday to lying to Congress 

about the proposed 

Trump Organization skyscraper 

in Moscow, 

prompting Trump to lash 

out at Cohen as a “liar” 

and “weak person.” 

White House spokeswoman 

Sarah Sanders 

told reporters on the presidential 

aircraft that Trump 

made the decision not to 

meet Putin after speaking 

with Secretary of State 

Mike Pompeo, White 

House chief of staff John 

Kelly and national security 

adviser John Bolton. 

The decision appeared 

to catch the Kremlin by 

surprise. The Kremlin’s 

spokesman said Moscow 

had no official information 

on Trump’s 

decision, and that if 

true, Putin would have 

some extra time for a 

useful meeting at the 

G20 summit. 

G20 leaders arrive in Argentina, 

talks on communique difficult 

*Macron to meet Saudi crown prince on sidelines 

G20 member nations 

were still struggling to 

reach agreement on major issues 

including trade, migration 

and climate change as world 

leaders began arriving in Buenos 

Aires ahead of a summit 

starting on Friday. 

“This is not a good year for 

multilateralism,” said a German 

government source about 

talks on a final communique 

that the leaders are due to issue 

at the end of their meeting on 

Saturday. The negotiations are 

“very, very difficult,” the official 

told Reuters. 

The official offered no details 

on the points of dispute, but global 

trade tensions, fuelled by 

President Donald Trump’s 

launch of a trade war against 

China, are expected to dominate 

this year’s gathering of the 

G20, an unwieldy club of the 

world’s industrialized countries. 

Trump’s scepticism of manmade 

global warming has also 

raised questions about what the 

communique will say on the issue. 

This year’s G20 gathering in 

the Argentine capital is expected 

to be one of the most consequential 

summits since the 

group’s leaders first met in 2008 

to plan how to contain the economic 

crisis roiling the globe. 

Financial and commodities 

markets are closely watching 

the outcome of the summit, especially 

the planned meeting 

between Trump and Chinese 

President Xi Jinping on 

Saturday. 

“After 2-1/2 days of talks and 

very short nights, some twothirds 

of the paragraphs have 

been okayed,” said a G20 official 

involved in drafting the 

communique. 

Brexit: UK economy not 

ready for no deal 

LARGE parts of the British 

economy are not ready for 

a no-deal Brexit, Bank of England 

governor Mark Carney 

has said. 

Fewer than half of businesses 

have initiated contingency 

plans, Mr Carney told BBC 

Radio 4’s Today programme. 

He said the UK would need a 

transition period to adapt to 

whatever form of exit from the 

EU that Parliament chose. 

He denied that the Bank’s 

warning that no-deal could 

lead to a UK recessionwas intended 

to scare people into 

backing his favoured form of 

Brexit. 

Mr Carney said “we know 

from our contacts with business, 

others know from their contacts, 

that less than half the businesses 

in the country have initiated 

their contingency plans for 

a no-deal Brexit”. 

*Trump 

“All the industries, all the infrastructure 

of the country, are 

they all ready at this point in 

time? And, as best as we can tell, 

the answer is no,” Mr Carney 

said. 

It is in the interests of the country 

that there should be a transition 

to whatever new relationship 

the UK has with the EU, he 

said. 

He added: “We know issues 

around the borders, we go to the 

ports and we know the issues 

that are there today. So we need 

some time to get ready for it.” 

On Wednesday, MPs warned 

that there was a “real prospect” 

of “major disruption” at UK 

ports in the case of a no-deal 

Brexit, with government plans 

“worryingly under-developed”. 

However, the Department for 

Transport said the Public Accounts 

Committee’s conclusions 

“were not accurate”. 

Wike fumes as Army stops 

recruitment into Rivers security 

agency 

*You are recruiting militia, Army fires back 

By Egufe Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT - 

GOVERNOR Nyesom 

Wike , yesterday, 

accused the Nigerian 

Army of partisanship 

and fueling insecurity in 

Rivers State, following 

the disruption of recruitment 

into the state’s security 

outfit, Neighbourhood 

Safety Corps Agency. 

However, the Army 

Spokesman for the 6 Division, 

Nigerian Army, 

Col Aminu Iliyasu, said 

they responded to checkmate 

an illegal militia 

training camp where over 

100 recruits were “undergoing 

military training.” 

Shortlisted applicants 

OGFZA takes major steps towards 

cheap power in Onne Free Zone 

By Esther Onyegbula 

THE Oil and Gas 

Free Zones Authority 

(OGFZA) has 

disclosed that a power 

World Toilet Day: 3 in 10 Nigerians 

have decent toilets 

*As Hypo makes case for germ-free 

environment 

THE Brand Manager of 

Hypo, Onome Asagbra, 

has said that Nigeria 

has been ranked among the 

top three countries in the 

world with the highest 

number of people without 

toilets. 

He also noted that no fewer 

than three in 10 people 

have decent toilets, adding 

that the situation clearly 

showed that there is a problem 

which must be tackled. 

He said this in Lagos during 

the celebration of this 

year’s World Toilet Day, 

where the firm unveiled a 

new variant, Hypo Toilet 

Cleaner to cater to different 

economic social class. 

This year’s theme for the 

World Toilet Day tagged 

“When Nature Calls” was 

borne out of the need to 

proffer solutions to the global 

sanitation needs. 

Mrs. Wale Poluyi, Director, 

Pharmacy, Lagos State 

Drug Quality Control Laboratory, 

who represented the 

Permanent Secretary, Ministry 

of Health, Abdullahi 

Mashi, emphasised the need 

for Nigerians to understand 

that human waste if not 

properly disposed of, is capable 

of spreading germs. 

Firm launches app to solve transportation 

challenges 

A 

FIRM, RideOn 

Nigeria has introduced 

a new phone 

application, RideOn to 

solve transportation 

challenges in Nigeria. 

Speaking at the unveiling 

in Enugu, the 

creator of the product, 

Mr. Iwuchukwu Nwabueze, 

said: “You do 

not need to stand 

under the sun or in the 

rain waiting for taxis 

anymore. You do not 

need to scramble 

through your phone 

looking for phone 

numbers of taxi 

drivers anymore. You 

vanguardnews 

for the Rivers Neighbourhood 

Safety Corps Agency, 

also known as Neighborhood 

Watch, were 

commencing recruitment 

training at the Nonwa 

Gbam NYSC Orientation 

Camp, Tai Local Government 

Area of the state 

when troops of 6 Division 

Nigerian Army invaded 

and dislodged the crowd. 

The governor in reaction 

said, “The Army is 

not concerned about the 

killing of soldiers in 

Borno. They are only interested 

in creating insecurity 

in Rivers. If you 

don’t want Rivers to be 

safe, then Nigeria will not 

be safe. They want to use 

their guns against us. 

“Zamfara and Kogi 

states have vigilante 

consortium, PHEDC/ 

ESOP, has been licensed 

as a project 

partner to provide 

cheap electricity in 

@vanguardnews 

groups commissioned 

and the Chief of Army 

Staff, COAS, did nothing. 

Rivers Assembly passed a 

law approving Rivers 

State Neighbourhood 

Safety Corps Agency. 

COAS did not challenge 

the law in court, but today 

he sent troops to invade 

the training camp. 

“The Army is the agency 

causing insecurity 

mainly to attract more security 

votes. They collected 

$1Billion from our Excess 

Crude Account, yet 

our soldiers were killed. 

All they are doing is to intimidate 

people for political 

reasons. When you 

fight a state blessed by 

God, you will crumble. 

Nobody can intimidate us 

in Rivers State.’’ 

Onne Oil and Gas Free 

Zone. 

The mandate of the 

power consortium is to 

provide gas-fired dedicated 

power to the 

free zone at a cost per 

kilowatt of power that 

is lower than the going 

rate of diesel-generated 

power in the zone. 

Announcing the key 

step on the embedded 

power project at a 

stakeholders forum, 

Managing Director of 

OGFZA, Mr Umana 

Okon Umana, said the 

latest development 

was in line with his 

commitment to stakeholders 

in the free zone 

during the joint stakeholders 

meeting in 

August 2017 in Onne, 

adding that OGFZA 

would “provide embedded 

power as a 

cost-cutting measure 

to improve competitiveness 

in the Free 

Zones.” 

also do not need to 

wait long for a driver 

to arrive at your location 

to enjoy the benefits 

of a smooth ride 

anymore as RideOn 

has come to the rescue. 

At just the click of a 

button, a driver is at 

your doorstep in a few 

minutes. The platform 

is a phone application 

that can be downloaded 

from the apple or 

android store. 

“Our drivers are 

courteous and well 

trained. All vehicles 

are in good working 

condition and well assessed 

on a regular 

basis to meet the comfort 

of our passengers. 

The App functions in 

such a way that once a 

ride request is made, 

the closest driver to the 

passengers’ location 

immediately receives a 

notification and then 

the driver starts heading 

to the passenger’s 

location. Also, the passenger 

is able to view 

the ride estimate before 

a ride. With the 

RideOn app, movement 

around the city is 

easy, safe, reliable and 

affordable.”


YOUR LUCK TODAY 

By Joshua Adeyemo Phone 08056180139 

GEMINI; Placement of the Moon will encourage you to become a little bit 

aggressive; here is a day when your leadership ability will assist many. 

CANCER; The Moon’s placement can force agitation on the minds of some 

of you but if keep your head above the cloudy atmosphere you will not have 

anything to fear. 

LEO; Young-at-heart Librans may be greatly excited today and for the next few 

weeks; if you take good decision on your love life you will enjoy it. 

VIRGO; Here is an ambitious day for many of you. The more practical you are 

about your reasonable desire the better for your cause. Be more family minded 

LIBRA; Good luck will knock at your door. Although it is good to plan ahead, 

you have to take advantage of now that presented good opportunities. 

SCORPIO; Keeping both your personal and other people secrets will do you 

lots of good today. Then tomorrow is your big day; prepare yourself accordingly. 

L E I S U R E 

TAKE HEART — ELLA RANDLE 

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we 

spend our lives.”- Annie Dilliad- 

Set your priorities and identify what really matters. Work 

towards manisfestion of your goals. Spend the majority 

of your time and effort in those areas which need. improvement. 

Otherwise, it’s too easy to drift away in the 

currents of life. Remember the saying, “there’s only one 

corner of the universe you can be certain of improving 

and that’s your own. - Ella Randle. 

TERROR MUDA in “Never say goodbye” 

SAYINGS OF 

OUR PEOPLE 

Patience is 

the mother of 

a beautiful 

child. ~Bantu 

Proverb 

By Kola Fayemi 

SAGITTARIUS; Here is a day when your closeness to the influential people 

can be source of assistance to both yourself in particular and your group in 

general. And then your love life is getting better. Exhibit loving maturity. 

CAPRICORN; Take your health more seriously than before. However that is 

not to say you have to ignore your responsibilities at work. Respect your senior 

colleagues 

AQUARIUS; The influence looks more favourable to you now. You will 

certainly become more enterprising to the betterment of your cause. Right now 

nobody can ignore you. 

PISCES; Those of you who are more observant within your base of operation 

will have more to gain. Prepare to take good advice from the veterans within your 

base. 

ARIES; Although your personal ideas are very reliable and capable of bringing 

success, you will need to be as co-operative as possible to achieve your desire. 

TAURUS; It is important you take your sources of making money very 

seriously. Both hard work and element of luck will work favourably for you. 

DUDU in “ROLLING HOT” By A.O. OLAIDE 

GOOD HEALH FOR ME? 

Dear Joshua, 

I have never gone through any major sickness since I was born 

but it is always good to know, especially as people are saying that 

those that do not fall-sick often can die the very first time such 

happen. Can they be right? Please tell me about my financial 

prospects. 

Folake, Edo. 

ASTROLOGICAL COUNSELLING 

Send your date and place of birth to the Astr 

trological 

Counselling, P.M.B 100 

007, Apapa, Lagos 

ASTROLOGICAL COUNSELLING 

Dear Folake, 

They are wrong. And you have no cause to fear. Actually my 

findings here pointed to your hard beginning-health wise. If you 

ask your parents they would tell you much than you think you 

know about yourself. 

Leo and Scorpio that hosted your natal Sun and Moon are members 

of few strongest Star signs available (when talking of health/ 

life and death). Thus you are well endowed. 

Although as both the Sun and Moon were at loggerheads when 

you were born you must have gone through some tough times 

health-wise, especially when you were younger, very great ability 

of Scorpio to survive and good aspects the planets enjoyed during 

your birth hour are indications of good health for you. And as 

your age advances so also your health will continue to improve. 

Then concentration of many heavenly bodies in health related 

Virgo is another pointers to good health. However that is not to 

say you will go through adulthood life without any health related 

challenges but when they come you have what it takes to survive 

and be back on the road to sound health. 

What to watch out for include TOOTHACHE, the chest/back, 

stomach and at very advanced age may come circulatory system 

related challenge. Being a female Scorpio born person always 

pay good attention to gynaecological related ailments and fever 

is common in this part of the world. 

But then all ailments mentioned here are mere warnings (although 

to be taken seriously) nothing fatalistic please!!!! 

Although you can be generous, kind and loving you are not the 

extravagant type. Thus you are reliable and can make success of 

your family purse. You are practical analyst with respect for your 

family dignity, therefore putting aside money for raining days 

comes natural to you 

Occasionally you think that money don’t come as faster as desired 

by you but it comes eventually after a few lesson. Luckily for 

you Libra that hosted your natal planet of desire (Mars) is money 

and partnership/marrige related. Thus money will find it way 

into your life either personally or via joint efforts between you and 

your husband. 

VIRGINIA 

HOME & ABROAD 

dadadekola@yahoo.com 

By Lawrence Akapa

Confusion in Okorocha, 

Amosun’s camps 

Continues from Page 5 

the APM. 

Indicative of that fact was 

the recent defection of a 

member of House of 

Representatives, Mikhail 

Kazzim, representing 

Abeokuta North/ Odeda/ 

Obafemi-Owode Federal 

Constituency to APM. 

Defections in Ogun 

Meanwhile, Amosun’s 

preferred successor, 

Akinlade, yesterday, 

formally defected from the 

APC to the APM on the 

floor of the House of 

Representatives. 

Three other House 

members also defected 

from their respective parties 

for others. 

The lawmakers included 

Mohammed Kabir Ajana 

and Salisu Koko, who 

moved from the APC to the 

Peoples Democratic Party, 

PDP, and Social Democratic 

Party, SDP, respectively, 

while Rabiu Kaugama 

dumped the PDP for SDP. 

Meanwhile, a mild 

drama followed the 

defection of the lawmakers, 

especially that of Akinlade. 

Just as Speaker Dogara 

started reading the notice 

of the defection of the 

lawmakers at the plenary, 

the House leader, Femi 

Gbajabiamila, suddenly got 

up from his seat and 

shouted “Point of Order, 

Mr. Speaker, Akinlade 

cannot go. Akinlade cannot 

go.” 

But he was ignored by the 

speaker who continued to 

read the defection notice. 

As soon as Dogara 

finished reading the letters, 

Akinlade got up and bowed 

to the chair. 

He also shook hands with 

the Minority Leader, Leo 

Ogor, and proceeded to 

where the majority leader, 

Gbajabiamila, was seated 

to exchange pleasantries 

with him. 

Gbajabiamila, however, 

ignored him. 

To further ruffle the 

moment, Akinlade hung a 

hand band on 

NAIRA WATCH 

Naira down to N369/$ 

in parallel market 

By Elizabeth Adegbesan 

The Naira, yesterday, depreciated to N369 per 

dollar in the parallel market. 

According to naijabdcs.com, the live exchange rate 

platform of the Association of Bureaux De Change 

Operators (ABCON), the parallel market exchange 

rose to N369 per dollar from N364 per dollar on 

Wednesday, translating to five naira depreciation 

of the naira. 

Meanwhile, the naira yesterday appreciated by 

seven kobo in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) 

window due to a 32 percent increase in the volume 

of dollars traded. 

Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative 

exchange rate for the window dropped to N364.08 

per dollar yesterday from N364.15 per dollar on 

Wednesday, translating to seven kobo appreciation 

of the naira. 

The volume of dollars (turnover) traded yesterday 

in the window rose by 32 percent to $516.57 million 

from $390.15million on Wednesday 


Gbajabiamila’s 

microphone, bowed, and 

returned to his seat. 

Subsequently, 

Gbajabimila took the band, 

walked up to the speaker 

and handed it over to him. 

Other frantic efforts by the 

House leader to protest the 

defection were 

unsuccessful as lawmakers 

rose in unison to prevail on 

him. 

Meanwhile, four 

members of the Ogun State 

House of Assembly also 

dumped the APC for APM. 

The four defectors 

included the Majority 

Leader, Adeyinka Mafe, 

Chief Whip, Idowu 

Olowofuja (Abeokuta 

South 2), Tunde Sanusi 

(Obafemi-Owode) and 

Ganiyu Oyedeji (Ifo 2). 

The defection letters were 

read on the floor of the 

House of Assembly 

yesterday. 

The lawmakers in their 

letters blamed party 

injustice and mandate theft 

during the APC direct 

primaries conducted on 

October 7 as part of the 

reasons for their action. 

The defecting lawmakers 

claimed they won the 

primary election but were 

denied the victory by the 

National Working 

Committee of the party, 

which, they said submitted 

other names to the 

Independent National 

Electoral Commission. 

The Ogun State 

Commissioner for 

Information, Mr. Dayo 

Adeneye, did not respond 

to phone calls yesterday. 


NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

Never Drink and Drive —From left: Managing Director, Guinness Nigeria 

PLC, Mr Baker Magunda; Minister of Transportation, Mr Rotimi Amaechi 

and Executive Director, United Nations Institute for Training and Research 

(UNITAR), Mr Alex Mejia, at the opening of Road Safety Multi-Stakeholders 

Conference themed: “Never Drink and Drive”, in Abuja, yesterday. 

2019: Buhari, APC unperturbed by U.S plan 

to restore Atiku’s visa but... Lai Mohammed 

•Describes as idiotic claims of ‘fake Buhari’ 

•Says under level playing field, APC will sweep Kwara polls in 2019’ 

By Soni Daniel, 

Northern Region 

Editor 

ABUJA—The Federal 

Government said, 

yesterday, it was not 

perturbed over claims and 

counter claims that the 

United States of America 

was begging former Vice 

President, and 

presidential candidate of 

the Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, Atiku 

Abubakar, to come for a 

new visa after many years 

of denial, which has 

prevented him from 

entering that country. 

The Minister of 

Information, Alhaji Lai 

Mohammed, who 

disclosed this at a media 

briefing in his office, 

however, said that in 

restoring Atiku’s visa, the 

U.S government should 

not give Nigeria and the 

international community 

the impression that it was 

tactically supporting one 

candidate against the 

other in the forthcoming 

election. 

Mohammed stated that, 

while Nigerians and the 

world at large had not 

forgotten various findings 

and conclusions reached 

by the U.S Congress in 

relation to some financial 

transactions involving the 

former vice president, 

which led to the banning 

of Atiku from entering the 

country, it would be 

necessary for the U.S to 

also explain to the world 

and Nigeria why it was 

currently ‘begging Atiku’ 

to come for a visa. 

The minister said: “We 

are not panicking over 

the claimed plea by the 

U.S to the PDP 

presidential candidate to 

come and collect a U.S 

visa, although the U.S has 

not told us what has 

changed since the former 

vice president was 

investigated by Congress 

which made some 

recommendations against 

him. We want to wish 

Atiku well. 

‘’We ask that these 

issues should not just be 

wished away by the U.S. 

But let it be said also that 

the Nigerian government 

does not want to see a 

situation where the U.S is 

seen to be endorsing one 

candidate over the other 

in the 2019 elections. 

“If Atiku has a visa to the 

U.S; since he has been 

intensely lobbying for it, 

it would not make us to 

lose sleep. But countries 

must not take any action 

that would tend to give the 

erroneous impression that 

they are endorsing one 

candidate over the other.’’ 

No ‘fake Buhari’ 

in Aso Rock 

The minister, who also 

reacted to claims by some 

persons, led by the leader 

of the proscribed 

Indigenous People of 

Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi 

Kanu, that there was a 

‘fake Buhari’ in the 

Presidential Villa, 

described the idea as not 

only idiotic but also sheer 

bunkum, which does not 

require any response 

from any responsible 

government or its 

agencies. 

Asked to comment on 

the recent killing of 

Nigerian soldiers by Boko 

Haram insurgents, 

despite the claim that 

Nigeria had ‘technically 

degraded’ the sect, the 

minister insisted that the 

sect had been degraded 

to a point that it could no 

longer hold any territory 

in Nigeria as it did before 

Buhari came into power 

in 2015. 

Mohammed pointed out 

that it was to the credit of 

the present administration 

that insurgents were 

driven out of Abuja and 

more than 10 local 

government areas in 

Borno, Yobe and 

Adamawa states, where 

Boko Haram not only held 

court but also collected 

taxes and hoisted their 

flags freely. 

Describing last week’s 

attack at Metele as a 

setback, the minister 

vowed that the Buhari 

administration would 

certainly flush out the 

insurgents from Nigeria 

and bring an end to their 

deadly attacks on farflung 

villages and 

communities in the North- 

East. 

Mohammed pointed out 

that the war being waged 

by the soldiers in the 

North-East was 

complicated because of 

the involvement of foreign 

mercenaries and fighters, 

who cross over from the 

fringes of Lake Chad into 

Nigeria to commit 

atrocities. 

On the claim that the 

APC government was 

detaining opposition 

figure and closing the 

media space against its 

opponents, the minister 

described it as untrue, 

pointing out that the 

administration had no 

intention to do so. 

He denied claims that 

government-owned NTA 

declined to transmit a live 

event on the Founders’ 

Day of Atiku Abubakar 

University in Yola last 

week, explaining that 

NTA never entered into 

any agreement with Atiku 

or his campaign 

organisation to transmit 

the event. 

He said it was the 

management of the AUN, 

which paid for the 

transmission, adding 

when the NTA, which had 

already begun the 

transmission ran into a 

technical hitch, it agreed 

with the management to 

record the event and 

transmit thereafter, a 

development, which often 

happens to many others, 

including the President 

and other Nigerians, 

without political 

insinuations. 

On the arrest and 

prosecution of a human 

rights campaigner, 

Adejanju, the minister 

said that being a rights 

campaigner or an 

opposition member does 

not confer any immunity 

on anyone who flouts the 

laws of Nigeria. 

“What Nigerians must 

and should know is that 

the law is always there to 

guide their conducts. So, 

it does not matter whether 

you are in government or 

opposition if you flout the 

law,’’ he said. 

On how the APC won the 

by-election in Kwara last 

week, Mohammed said it 

was due to the conducive 

security situation provided 

by the government for all 

to cast their votes without 

molestation by those who 

had always used thugs to 

snatch election materials 

and rig elections in the 

state. 

Mohammed added: “We 

simply want to say that if 

given a level playing field, 

we will retire those who 

had been manipulating 

election results in Kwara 

State from politics and make 

them know that peoples 

power is greater than a 

certain individual, who 

uses thugs to molest and 

cart away election materials 

and declare results as they 

like.’’


FIFA RANKING: Eagles maintain 

44th position, 4th in Africa 

SUPER Eagles have 

maintained their 

44th position but dropped 

to fourth in Africa in the 

latest FIFA World Ranking 

released yesterday. 

The Super Eagles are 

currently on 1,427 points 

and will hope to improve 

on their position when the 

next FIFA World Ranking 

is released. 

The three-time African 

Champions played out a 

draw in the two matches 

they played in November 

which has no doubt impacted 

on their FIFA 

Ranking position in the 

world and continent. They 

were held to a 1-1 draw 

by the Bafana Bafana of 

South Africa in a 2019 Africa 

Cup of Nations qualifying 

fixture at the FNB 

Stadium, Johannesburg 

and also played out a 0-0 

draw in a friendly fixture 

against Cranes of Uganda 

at the Stephen Keshi 

Stadium, Asaba. 

The Teranga Lions of 

Senegal are now ranked 

the number one team in 

Africa having displaced 

Tunisia from the numberone 

position. Both are 

AWCON: 

Okobi, 

Ordega ready 

for final 

SUPER Falcons stars, 

Ngozi Okobi and 

Francesca Ordega said 

they have put behind them 

the scare they got from 

Cameroon in the semi-finals 

of the Africa Women 

Cup of Nations, as they 

stay upbeat ahead of the 

final against Banyana 

Banyana of South Africa. 

Okobi and Ordega 

stressed during separate 

interviews that they are 

excited with the victory 

against Cameroon and 

insist only the final versus 

South Africa is now on 

their mind. 

Though both players admitted 

Cameroon put up 

a great fight on Tuesday, 

they acknowledged that 

experience and calm 

nerves helped the Falcons 

pull through eventually 

via penalties’ shootout. 

Okobi 

ranked 23rd and 26th respectively 

in the world. The 

big climbers in the ranking 

include the African quintet 

of Mozambique (117th, up 

5), Angola (125th, up 5), 

Sudan (127th, up 8), Comoros 

(143rd, up 5) and Gambia 

(166th, up 7). The rise 

of Kosovo (131st, up 6) was 

also notable as it took them 

to their highest FIFA Ranking 

position to date. 

Belgium remain top in 

the latest FIFA World Ranking, 

although the gap between 

the Red Devils, 

France (2nd, unchanged) 

and Brazil (3rd, unchanged) 

has narrowed 

over the past month. 

The next release of the 

FIFA World Ranking is 

scheduled for December 20. 

AWCON Final: NFF motivates Falcons with double 

bonus ahead Banyana clash 

T 

HE Nigeria Football 

Federation has opted 

to double the winning bonus 

of the Super Falcons 

as a big incentive ahead 

Saturday’s 11th Women 

Africa Cup of Nations Final 

against the Banyana 

Banyana of South Africa in 

Accra. 

President of the NFF, 

Amaju Melvin Pinnick, 

made the pledge when he 

met with the players and 

Nigeria's former Commonwealth gold 

medallist, Dafiagbon dies at 48 

By Patrick Omorodion 

Musa 

Falcons celebrating their AWCON final qualification 

Late Dafiagbon 

Former Nigerian Commonwealth 

gold medallist 

and Olympian, David Dafiagbon 

has died in Las Vegas, 

Nevada in the United 

States at the age of 48 from 

heart complications, according 

to TorontoSun.com. 

Dafiagbon who shot into 

limelight during the glorious 

days of late Air Force 

officer, Group Captain Brai 

Ayonote as Chairman of the 

Nigeria Boxing Association, 

represented Nigeria last 

during the 1992 Olympic 

Games in Barcelona, Spain 

where he lost in the first 

round to the chargrin of Nigerians 

who had hope in the 

boxing contingent for medals 

that year. 

This followed his superlative 

performance two years 

earlier at the Commonwealth 

Games in Auckland, 

Australia where he beat Canadian 

Greg Johnson in the 

welterweight category to 

win the gold. 

After the poor outing at the 

Olympics in 1992, Dafiagbon, 

according to 

TorontoSun.com approached 

Canada's national 

boxing coach, Taylor Gordon 

in search of the proverbial 

greener pasture to “escape 

the poverty and brutal 

military government of Nigeria”, 

to help him switch 

nationality. 

officials at the AH Hotel, 

Accra on Thursday, as he 

delivered the good wishes 

of His Excellency, President 

Muhammadu Buhari 

Table Tennis: Quadri is 

Africa's All Time Best — IOC 

(GCFR) and the football – 

loving populace of Nigeria 

to the Cup holders. 

The Falcons had earned 

$3,000 for a win in the group 

phase but were earmarked 

for $5,000 each for victory 

in the Final. 

“I want to let you know 

that the Government and 

the good and great people 

of Nigeria are happy with 

your performance in the 

championship so far. They 

are looking forward to you 

retaining the trophy by beating 

South Africa on Saturday. 

Messi nets 106th Champions League goal 

for Barcelona 

Ebuehi eyes Eagles return 

against Seychelles 

BENFICA of Portu 

gal defender, Tyronne 

Ebuehi has declared 

that he aims to be 

fit enough to play for the 

Super Eagles in their 

last Africa Cup of Nations 

qualifier against 

Seychelles on March 22. 

With a January 29 set 

C HAMPIONS 

LEAGUE 'ONE 

CLUB' SCORING 

RECORDS 

106 - Lionel Messi (Barcelona) 

105 - Cristiano Ronaldo 

(Real Madrid) 

66 - Raul (Real Madrid) 

47 - Karim Benzema (Real 

Madrid) 

42 - Thomas Muller (Bayern 

Munich) and Alessandro 

Del Piero (Juventus) 

The ongoing battle between 

Lionel Messi and 

Cristiano Ronaldo for supremacy 

and individual honours 

continued on Wednesday 

as the Argentine 

notched up another record. 

Messi surpassed Ronaldo's 

mark as the most prolific 

Champions League goalscorer 

for a single club. 

He scored a brilliant opener 

early in the second half at 

PSV Eindhoven as Barcelona 

won 2-1 to guarantee 

top spot in Group B. 

The goal was Messi's 

106th in the Champions 

League, all of them for Barcelona. 

Ronaldo scored 105 

for Real Madrid in the 

competition before moving 

to Juventus last summer. 

It was a superb strike to 

reach the milestone too, 

pulling the ball under 

as his return date from 

injury, Ebuehi is already 

thinking big for the national 

team, and he is 

also thanking Eagles’ 

technical crew and top 

shots of Nigeria Football 

Federation (NFF) for 

checking up on him during 

his time out. 

Messi 

close control with several 

PSV defenders around, 

before firing past goalkeeper 

Jeroen Zoet with 

minimal back lift. 

On the record, Messi 

said after the game: 'I am 

delighted, I have just 

found out now. I am happy 

for this new stat.' 

Quadri 

TWO years after be 

coming the first African 

to reach the quarterfinal 

round of the table tennis 

event at the Olympic 

Games, the International 

Olympic Committee (IOC) 

has tagged the Nigerian as 

Africa’s most successful 

Olympic table tennis player 

of all time. 

IOC published an interview 

with the Nigerian on 

its official website recently 

and they lauded the Oyo 

State-born athlete for etching 

his name in the annals 

of world table tennis history 

in Brazil. 

IOC wrote, “Two decades 

after he took up table tennis 

on the streets of Oyo, 

in south-western Nigeria, 

Quadri Aruna became the 

first African to reach an 

Olympic quarterfinal.” 

Quadri reveals in the interview 

how he beat players 

“far better” than him at 

Rio 2016, while recalling 

his early battles to succeed 

against all odds and stresses 

the significant debt he 

owes his talented wife. 

“I actually had no confidence 

against Chuang 

Chih-Yuan [Chinese 

Taipei’s four-time world 

tour champion, whom Aruna 

faced in the third round] 

because earlier in January 

that year I lost in Germany 

in the first round 4-0 to 

him. So in Rio I was like, 

“I have lost before, now I 

have nothing left to lose, 

he is a much better player 

than me.” So, I said to myself, 

“Just give your best, 

play and enjoy.” Then I was 

able to win the first two sets 

and the match was a different 

spirit entirely. 

AFCON 2019: 

Cameroon 

risks losing 

hosting rights 

THE Confederation of 

African Football (CAF) 

will today in Accra discuss 

the staging of the 2019 Africa 

Cup of Nations following 

reports that host nation Cameroon’s 

preparations were in 

difficulties. 

The executive committee 

meets in the Ghanaian capital 

Accra on the sidelines of 

the Africa Women’s Cup of 

Nations tournament, an official 

of the Cairo-based told 

AFP. 

A report of the last two inspection 

visits to central African 

state, Cameroon will be 

made during the meeting. 

CAF inspectors recently 

travelled to the country, 

which last hosted the tournament 

in 1972, to check security, 

infrastructure, stadiums 

and accommodation. 

After the executive committee 

meeting, a decision 

whether Cameroon should 

continue as hosts of the June 

15-July 13 African football 

showpiece is set to be made. 

If Cameroon are rejected, 

CAF will have to launch a 

new application procedure to 

designate another host country 

for the biennial tournament 

first staged in Sudan 

61 years ago.




Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2018 

TODAY’S PUZZLE 

Sudoku 

FRIDAY’S ANSWER 

TODAY’S CROSSWORD 

QUICK CROSSWORD 

THURSDAY’S SOLUTION 

ACROSS 

1 Loosen (4) 

3 Friendly (8) 

9 Haven (7) 

10 More competent (5) 

11 Something of value (5) 

12 Gas essential for life (6) 

14 Fisherman (6) 

16 Out of sorts (6) 

19 US island state (6) 

21 Bail, rag (5) 

24 Longest river in 

France (5) 

25 Exact (7) 

26 Pacts (8) 

27 Nuisance (4) 

DOWN 

1 Great disturbance 

(8) 

2 Pub game (5) 

4 Looking-glass (6) 

5 Mad (5) 

6 Credit (7) 

7 Multi-national currency (4) 

8 Container for liquid (6) 

13 Use badly (3-5) 

15 Hard stone (7) 

17 Aromatic spice (6) 

18 Small wave (6) 

20 Turn aside (5) 

22 Join together (5) 

23 Conspiracy (4) 

How to Play Sudoku 

Place a number (1-9) in each blank cell. (No line can have two 

of the same number). 

Each row (nine lines from left to right), column, (also nine lines 

from top to bottom) and 3 X 3 block within a bold block (nine 

blocks) contains number from 1 through 9. This means that no 

number can appear twice in any block, column or row. 

No mathematics is involved – no adding, subtraction, division or 

multiplication, just plain logic and your imagination. 

Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri-Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa. Phone: Newsroom: 018773962. Deputy Editor: 01-4548355. Advert Hotline: 

08027767834; 01-4544821. Abuja office: 7, Dambata Close, Area 7, Garki, 09-2921024. Ikeja office: 73, Awolowo Way. V.I. Office: Murplus Plaza, 27, Sanusi Fafunwa Street. Asaba: 21, Anwai 

Road. Benin City: 4E, Arusa Street. Port Harcourt: 50, Ikwerre Road; Warri: 102, Efurun-Sapele Road. Advert: advertproduction@yahoo.com; E-mail: editor@vanguardngr.com, 

news@vanguardngr.com, letters@vanguardngr.com. Website: www.vanguardngr.com (ISSN 0794-652X) Editor: EZE ANABA. Phone: 01-4548355. All correspondence to P.M.B. 1007, Apapa Lagos.

30112018 - BOKO HARAM: We're still under siege, Shehu of Borno tells Buhari

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?