29112019

Buhari presents 

rejected 2016/18 

$30bn external 

borrowing plan 

to Senate 

N100bn 

constituency 

projects: ICPC, 

ActionAid, NOA 

Gunmen kill 2 6 

chiefs in FCT, 3 

others in Taraba 

•6 die, 23 injured in 

Lagos gas explosion 

IPPIS: Reps 

wade into 

8 

FG, ASUU 

now in charge 

8 

9 

face-off 

AfDB approves $210m power project for Nigeria 

19 

VOL. 26: NO. 63951 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 

CAN, Editors, others rally 

against hate speech bill 

5 

NIGERIA EDITORS CONFERENCE... 

From third left: Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State; Former Governor of Ogun, Aremo Olusegun 

Osoba; immediate past president of Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mrs Funke Egbemode; former President 

of the Guild and General Manager\Editor-in-Chief of Vanguard newspapers, Gbenga Adefaye and others, 

cut the anniversary cake at the 15th All Nigeria Editors Conference in Sokoto, yesterday. Photo: NAN. 

Nigeria’s 

pension 

assets hit 

N9.58trn 

16 

APC threatens 

to expel 

‘charlatan' 

seeking third 8 

term for Buhari 

P r e s i d e n t 

Muhammadu Buhari 

with from left: GMD 

NNPC, Mele Kyari; 

Chairman and CEO 

of Total Group 

Worldwide, Mr 

Patrick Pouyanne and 

Minister of State 

Petroleum, Timipre 

Sylva as he receives in 

a u d i e n c e , 

Chairman\CEO of 

Total Group 

Worldwide in State 

House, Abuja, 

yesterday. STATE 

HOUSE PHOTO. 

BUHARI RECEIVES TOTAL GROUP BOSS 

DONU 17 OWEI 31 AZU 36 

•We're against bid to 

curtail press freedom, 

says Guild of Editors 

•How to save the 

media, by Adefaye, 

Ogunleye 

•Defamation laws 

inadequate to tackle 

hate speech, says 

sponsor, Sen. Abdullahi 

Dangote, Elumelu, 

Otudeko, 22 others 

bag National 

12 

Productivity Award 

•See photos on Pages 5&14 

Mr & Mrs 

C 

M 

Y

2 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 — 3


vanguardnews @vanguardnews @vanguardnews 

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 — 5 

POCKET CARTOON 

NATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY ORDER OF MERIT AWARD —From left: Chairman, Honeywell Group, 

Mr. Oba Otudeko; Minister of Labour and Productivity, Senator Chris Ngige; SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapher; 

Chairman, Heirs Holdings Limited, Mr, Tony Elumelu; President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote 

and Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Ndudi Elumelu, during the 18th National Productivity 

Day Celebration and Conferment of National Productivity Order of Merit Award at the NAF Conference 

Centre, Kado, Abuja. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida. 

CAN, Editors, others rally against hate 

speech bill 

By Clifford Ndujihe 

& Sam Eyoboka 

L groundswell 

AGOS—The 

of 

opposition against 

the hate speech bill before 

the National Assembly was 

taken several notches 

higher, yesterday, by 

editors in Nigeria, the 

Christian Association of 

Nigeria, CAN, and a 

serving senator, Akon 

Eyakenyi, who vowed to 

“strongly” resist it. 

Insisting that the bill will 

undermine the freedom of 

citizens and hurt 

democracy, those opposed 

to it argued that there are 

adequate laws within the 

body of Nigeria’s statutes 

to curb hate speech. 

Sponsor of the bill, 

Senator Sabi Abdullahi, 

however, disagreed with 

this argument, countering 

that defamation laws are 

inadequate to tackle hate 

speech. 

Editors restate 

opposition to fake 

news, hate speech 

Indeed, newspaper, 

radio, online and television 

editors, under the aegis of 

the Nigerian Guild of 

Editors, NGE, expressed 

their opposition to anti-fake 

news and hate speech bill. 

Acting President of the 

Guild, Mustapha Isah, 

stated the group’s position 

in Sokoto at the opening of 

the 15th All Nigeria Editors’ 

Conference, ANEC. 

“The Nigerian Guild of 

Editors is not in support 

and will never support fake 

news and hate speech. Our 

members are trained 

professionally. It is true that 

the social media space, like 

any other ecosystem, is 

being abused by some 

people,” he said. 

He said the Guild is not 

in support of any move to 

“surreptitiously” curtail 

press freedom and advised 

government to work with 

critical stakeholders in the 

media industry to address 

the challenges relating to 

fake news and hate speech. 

He said the Guild chose 

the 2019 theme of the 

conference, “A Distressed 

Media: Impact on 

Government, Governance 

and Society,” with a view 

to focusing on the media as 

a business. 

Isah added that the 

theme was also meant “to 

focus on Nigeria and the 

sustenance of our 

democracy because without 

a robust media, democracy 

suffers.” 

He said current economic 

challenges had affected the 

business of journalism, 

warning that practitioners 

must survive first to perform 

their constitutional 

responsibility of holding 

government accountable to 

the people. 

“The constitution gives 

the media an enormous 

responsibility of holding 

governments accountable 

to the people without 

providing for us the 

economic and the 

constitutional protection to 

do our duty. 

“The media is passing 

through a tough phase. We 

are going to survive and we 

must survive. We will find 

solutions to our problems,” 

he said. 

According to him, the 

Nigerian media has a rich 

history, having been in the 

forefront of the fight against 

colonialism and the 

struggle for democracy. 

Isah also commended 

Gov.ernor Aminu 

Tambuwal of Sokoto State 

for his consistent show of 

friendship to the media and 

the guild in particular. 

Isah’s comments were 

later enriched by Mr. 

Gbenga Adefaye, Editorin-Chief 

and General 

Manager of Vanguard 

Newspapers; and Mr. 

Gbemiga Ogunleye, 

Provost, Nigeria Institute of 

Journalism, NIJ, Lagos. 

Media under 

threat, says Adefaye 

In a nine-page keynote 

speech, titled: “Fighting 

The Throes of Death,” 

Adefaye argued that the 

media, especially the print, 

are under serious threat in 

Nigeria and efforts must be 

made to keep the media 

afloat in the interest of the 

citizenry and democracy. 

Apart from shrinking 

revenue from advert and 

copy sales, Adefaye 

regretted that media 

freedom and security of 

journalists were headed 

south, noting that in 2019, 

no fewer than 60 journalists 

“have experienced some 

form of attacks or the other 

from state actors and 

several civil society 

institutions have been 

subjects of similar attacks, 

ranging from shutdowns to 

withdrawal of operating 

licenses and outright 

decommissioning.” 

He said: “To compound 

the woes of the media, 

profitability which is key to 

vibrancy, freedom and 

independence is poor 

because of decline in 

advertising revenue. The 

global village is real and 

virtual. However, the virtual 

Village Square meeting 

can define and refine own 

rules of engagement, using 

the Google key. 

“Then we can defend free 

speech with responsibility. 

We must build capacity and 

bring our credibility to bear 

on the use of new media to 

probably crowd out the 

unprofessional, unskilled, 

dangerous social media 

engagement. 

“We are in a democracy, 

where there is no other 

choice than constitutional 

order. It is only a strong, 

free and independent 

media that can check 

inefficiency, corruption and 

lack of accountability of 

state actors. 

“The media must 

collaborate and cooperate to 

survive. That’s the lead 

from the marketplace. The 

experience from history tells 

me that the current travails 

notwithstanding, we will 

survive to tell the stories 

Continues on Page 41 

On refusal of DSS to release Sowore, Bakare 

By Bose Adelaja & 

Olayinka Latona 

The 

continued 

detention of Sowore 

and Bakare despite meeting 

the bail conditions clearly 

shows that our judiciary 

system is not independent. 

The action of the DSS is 

totally unconstitutional and 

means we are still practicing 

Militocracy. I will want the 

judiciary to redeem their 

image by doing what it is 

right if actually they are the 

last hope of common man. 

—Mr. Ogunleye Femi, 

Researcher 

This is outrageous and 

we all should not 

keep quiet over this issue. 

It is so unlawful for the 

DSS to still detain Sowore 

and Bakare despite the 

fact that they have met 

with their bail condition. 

It is time Nigerians to join 

the campaign for their 

release. The truth will 

surely prevail, that I am 

sure of. So I say 

#freesowore #freebakare 

and let the truth set this 

country free. 

—Ayo Afolabi. 

Mediaprenuer 

The court has given 

order for the release 

of Omoyele Sowore but the 

Department of State 

Services (DSS) still held 

on to the fact that they 

won’t let go of him 

because they are yet to 

receive a copy of the court 

order granting him 

(Sowore) bail. I believe no 

one in his right state of 

mind will go against court 

order except the necessary 

documents get to the DSS. 

—Olayemi Wonder, 

Analyst 

Honestly, 

the 

d i m e n s i o n 

Sowore’s case is taking is 

not good for Nigeria’s 

image. Due to their 

continuous detention, there 

are strong fears the nation 

is descending into the dark 

days of undemocratic 

system. Unless DSS want 

to confirm these worries, 

they can no longer detain 

these people against court 

orders. This is how to show 

the world justice is alive. 

— I b r a h e e m 

Abdullateef, Writer 

The 

continuous 

detention of Sowore 

and Bakare is an affront to 

our Democracy, utter 

disrespect to the constitution 

and contempt of court. It’s 

really sad. It goes to prove 

that we have a dictator at the 

helms of affair in this country 

and not a democratic 

president. This is a further 

dent on the already battered 

image of this country. 

: —Emma Asuquo, 

Businessman 

Gradually Nigeria is 

tilting towards 

autocratic rule and we are 

overlooking the pointers. 

The detention of Sowore 

is one such pointers that 

we over look. DSS has no 

reason to continue the 

detention of Sowore since 

he already fulfilled bail 

terms. It clear they have 

other reasons unknown to 

the public for keeping 

him. 

— P h i l o m e n a 

Chinenyenwa. 

Researcher

6—Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 

6 dead, 23 others injured in Lagos gas explosion 

•… as Gunmen kill 2 chiefs, 3 others in Taraba; kidnap traditional ruler in Abuja 

By Kingsley Omonobi, 

Esther Onyegbula & 

Joseph Ajikapo 

SIX persons, including two 

children, reportedly died in 

a gas explosion that occurred at 

2 Aduke Street, Ojo Road, in 

Ajegunle area of Lagos, with 23 

others sustaining varying 

degrees of injuries. 

The fire from the gas explosion, 

which occurred Wednesday 

night, lasted for over four hours. 

It was gathered that before the 

arrival of the firefighters, residents 

made futile efforts at putting out 

the fire, which was successfully 

later put out by operatives of the 

Federal Fire Service after lives 

were lost and property worth 

millions of naira destroyed. 

The fire incident reportedly 

occurred as a result of a phone 

call by an unidentified resident, 

who was buying cooking gas. 

It was gathered, yesterday, that 

when the woman’s mobile phone 

rang, she reportedly picked it 

leading to an explosion that killed 

her and the attendant instantly, 

while others were severely burnt. 

The inferno, which also affected 

a close-by saloon and bungalow, 

claimed the life of the saloon 

owner and two of her apprentice 

identified simply as Kudi and 

Faidat, while others were terribly 

burnt. 

One of the apprentices escaped 

as she was on an errand, when 

the incident happened. 

It was learned that another 

victim, Iya Quadri, who had 

escaped initially unhurt, ran back 

into her shop to collect her money, 

but was engulfed by the flames 

before she was rushed to the 

hospital. 

One of the victims, a mother of 

three, Mrs Dupe Adelaja, got 

By Emma Una 

C ALABAR—CATHOLIC 

women of the ArchDiocese 

of Ogoja, yesterday, took to the 

streets of the town to protest and 

demand the removal of the bishop 

of the diocese, Most Rev Dr 

Donatus Edet Akpan, following 

his plans to relocate the cathedral. 

Tens of women, led by Mrs 

Garforishor Daniel, chanted 

songs as they marched round 

major streets in Ogoja, calling for 

the removal of Bishop Akpan from 

the Diocese. 

They chanted: “Bishop Akpan 

go, you must go. We are tired of 

you, please go. Akpan go, go and 

leave our cathedral alone.” 

Mrs Daniel said the women are 

aggrieved over the planned 

relocation of the cathedral from 

Igoli to Ndok Junction at Abakpa, 

a distance of five kilometres, 

which the women said is too far 

since the bulk of the worshippers 

are resident in Igoli. 

Their leader said: “Most of 

those who worship in the 

cathedral are resident at Igoli and 

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

Images of victims and scenes of the gas explosion. 

burnt beyond recognition. 

Lamenting, her husband, Mr. 

Adelaja, said the incident is 

unfortunate, adding “my wife was 

outside the building when the 

incident happened.” 

Mr Adelaja called on the Lagos 

State government to help the 

victims, as the incident has 

rendered them homeless. 

When Vanguard visited the 

scene, yesterday morning, 

officials of the fire service and 

Lagos State Emergency 

Management Agency LASEMA 

were still at the scene. 

Eyewitness 

A resident, Salako Joke, 

revealed that three corpses were 

evacuated, while two were 

removed this yesterday. 

Joke said: “The two bodies that 

were discovered this morning 

Women protest against Catholic Bishop of Ogoja 

The protesters 

taking it to Abakpa means our 

having to pay transport fare to 

Abakpa. Some of us go to the 

church three times a day 

beginning with morning prayers 

and so the decision is not 

favourable to us.” 

The women claimed there is 

hardship in the land and 

movement of the cathedral would 

inflict more pain on them, as they 

would be forced to pay transport 

fare to and from the church daily. 

Efforts to speak with Bishop 

Akpan did not yield result, but a 

Reverend Father in the diocese 

said the women were sponsored. 

He warned that those behind 

the action “should repent or by 

the time the foundation is laid, 

some of them would see the 

wrath of God.” 

(yesterday) were that of a little girl 

and a man, who wanted to rescue 

the girl. 

“Because of the seriousness of 

the incident, most of the hospital 

within the locality rejected victims, 

who were later taken to Gbagada 

General Hospital.” 

Confirming the incident, 

Director-General of LASEMA, Dr. 

Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, said 

two people died in the gas 

explosion with 23 others injured. 

He said when LASEMA 

officials arrived at the scene of the 

incident, they discovered that a 

gas cylinder store had exploded 

as a result of leakage. 

He added: “Further 

investigations at the scene 

revealed that the fire ignited as a 

result of a phone call by an 

unidentified resident. 

“This spread to other nearby 

shops and a bungalow behind the 

shops. Unfortunately, two 

children (a male and a female) 

lost their lives and there were 

other 23 casualties who sustained 

multiple burns. 

“All the casualties have been 

evacuated to the Burnt Unit, 

Gbagada General Hospital.” 

Oke-Osanyintolu said the 

remains of one of the two bodies, 

identified as Damilare Afolabi, 

had been bagged by LASEMA 

Response Team, LRT, and handed 

over to the family. 

He, however, said the entire 

area had been cordoned off and 

that post-disaster assessment was 

ongoing. 

In Taraba 

In a separate incident in Taraba 

State, gunmen reportedly killed 

two village heads, the chairman 

of a vigilante group and two other 

persons. 

The traditional rulers killed 

were Garba Dangari, the village 

head of Bilango 1 and Sarki Ali, 

the village head of Bilango 2. The 

bandits also abducted five 

children in the area before 

escaping into neighbouring 

Plateau State. 

The bandits, numbering 30, 

armed with AK-47, invaded the 

two communities and killed the 

village heads of Bilango 1 and 

Bilango 2 in Old Muri chiefdom 

around midnight on Monday. 

The bandits, suspected to be 

kidnappers, were said to be on a 

vengeance mission over the 

killing of their colleagues by 

hunters and vigilante in the area. 

The bandits, it was gathered, 

killed the traditional rulers in 

their palaces and also killed the 

chairman of the vigilante in the 

community, as well as the 

secretaries of the two rulers. 

Police search for 

Abuja kidnappers 

Meanwhile, the police and 

Joint Security Team have 

intensified manhunt for the 

kidnappers of Rubochi traditional 

ruler in Abuja. 

The FCT Police Command has 

said its operatives working in 

conjunction with the joint security 

team against kidnapping have 

mobilised to Rubochi and 

surrounding communities in 

pursuit of the kidnappers, who 

abducted the traditional ruler of 

the FCT community, Ibrahim 

Pada. 

FCT Police Commissioner, Bala 

Ciroma, who confirmed that the 

Command received a complaint 

of the kidnapping, said the joint 

security team had intensified the 

manhunt for the abductors, while 

seeking to rescue the victim and 

was combing suspected hideouts. 

It was gathered that the 

kidnapping of Pada in Abuja, in 

the early hours of Wednesday, was 

resisted by two of his sons, who 

got injured. 

According to a resident of the 

village of Rubochi, who spoke to 

newsmen, the men wielding 

sophisticated weapons stormed 

the compound of the chief 

through the fence and forced him 

out of the bedroom, before taking 

him away. 

The eyewitness said: “It was 

while the chief’s two sons tried 

to prevent the kidnappers from 

taking away their father away that 

one of the gunmen used a 

machete to inflict injuries on 

them.” 

A member of the family, who 

preferred anonymity, said phone 

contact was established with the 

kidnappers around 8:34a.m., on 

Wednesday. 

“In fact, the chief himself spoke 

with some of his family members 

this morning(yesterday), but the 

kidnappers are yet to negotiate 

for ransom,” he said.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019—7 

By Peter Duru 

MAKURDI—A nine-yearold 

girl, Abah Maria, 

yesterday, allegedly committed 

suicide in her guardian’s Ankpa 

Quarters area residence of 

Makurdi, the Benue State capital. 

Vanguard gathered from a 

source in the area that the 

deceased was found dead on the 

floor of the bathroom, with a 

wrapper tied to her neck, 

suggesting suicide. 

According to a resident, until 

her death, the deceased who 

resided with a female evangelist 

alongside the woman’s other 

children, lived happily with the 

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

9-yr-old Makurdi girl commits 

suicide in guardian’s homes 

family and never exhibited any 

strange behaviour that 

suggested that she could take her 

own life. 

“The entire thing is strange and 

we are finding it very difficult to 

understand why she would want 

to kill herself, but we expect the 

police to investigate the matter 

before we draw conclusions,” he 

said. 

Meanwhile, when Vanguard 

visited the house where the 

deceased lived before her death, 

which also houses a church, 

some of the woman’s children 

said she had gone to the police 

headquarters in connection with 

the matter. 

NO fewer than 30 inmates 

serving various jail terms at 

the Jos Correctional Centre are 

currently participating in the 

ongoing November/December 

Senior School Certificate 

Examination, an official has said. 

ASC Martha Banda, Public 

Relations Officer of the Plateau 

Command of Nigerian 

Correctional Service, NCS, 

disclosed this in Jos, yesterday. 

According to Banda, the 30 

inmates, who are sitting for the 

examination organised by the 

National Examination Council, 

NECO, within the correctional 

facility, consist of 28 males and 

two females. 

She explained that the move 

was part of the mandate of the 

Service geared toward making 

the prisoners useful to themselves, 

The children declined to 

comment on the issue, insisting 

that their mother was the only 

person competent to speak on the 

matter. 

Police story 

Contacted, the Police Public 

Relations Officer, Deputy 

Superintendent Catherine 

Anene, who confirmed the 

development, said the matter was 

reported to the police at about 

11:30a.m., yesterday. 

Anene said the corpse had been 

deposited at St. Theresa’s 

Hospital mortuary in Makurdi, 

while an investigation into the 

matter was already ongoing. 

Police nab 39 kidnappers, bandits in Kaduna 

KADUNA State Police 

Command said it had arrest 

no fewer than 39 suspected 

kidnappers, armed bandits and 

robbers within the past few weeks 

in Kaduna. 

The Command’s Public 

Relations Officer, DSP Yakubu 

Sabo, made the disclosure in a 

briefing at the command’s 

headquarters in Kaduna, 

yesterday. 

Sabo said: “I am pleased to 

update you on the achievements 

recorded in suppressing criminal 

activities in the state during the 

past few weeks. 


Command has intensified efforts 

towards ensuring safety and 

security of the populace through 

some coordinated raiding of 

criminal hideouts. 

His words: “This is being carried 

out by our gallant operatives and 

the IGP’s Special Tactical Squad, 

STS, and IRT as well as active 

Community Engagement 

Initiative in line with the Inspector 

General of Police mandate on 

community Policing. 

“These efforts have gained 

some remarkable results, which 

led to the arrest of 39 suspected 

criminals, comprising largely 

suspected kidnappers, armed 

bandits, culpable homicide 

suspects, cattle rustlers and 

internet fraudsters, among 

others.” 

Sabo disclosed that the 

following exbhit were recovered 

from the suspects, which include 

10 AK-47 rifles, four pump action, 

two locally-made pistols and one 

locally-made gun. 

Also 154 live ammunition, 17 

cartridges, four vehicles, four 

motorcycles and host of other 

recoveries. 

He explained that the 

Command, like other commands 

across the country, has some 

peculiar security challenges 

among which are armed banditry, 

cattle rustling, kidnapping, armed 

robbery and other violent crimes 

against law abiding citizens of the 

state. 

“However,” he said, “we have 

succeeded in reducing these 

crimes within our towns, villages 

Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home 

Affairs, Samuel Aruwan(right);Kaduna State Police Command 

Public Relations Officer, DSP Yakub Sabo(middle) and others 

displaying the recovered arms and ammunition, yesterday. 

and, to a large extend, on our 

major highways.” 

He added that the command 

had been relatively calm, as the 

bandits can no longer carry out 

any coordinated attack largely 

due to our strategic deployment 

as well as the public support we 

receive, which forced the 

criminals to resort to soft targets 

at outskirts and hamlets, where 

there are no firm security 

structures. 

Sabo revealed that some of these 

suspects confessed to series of 

kidnapping within and outside 

the state, including the killing of 

police personnel and two other 

victims at Kangimi after collecting 

millions of naira as ransom. 

He said: “In view of the 

successes recorded and the 

drastic reduction in crime rate in 

the Command within the period 

under review, we cannot afford 

to relent in our effort to sustain 

the gains.” 

He called on the public to 

continue to be supportive of the 

police in all ways. 

30 inmates sit for SSCE in Jos 

families and society after serving 

their jail terms. 

“This is part of our mandate to 

boost the reformation process of 

inmates so they can be useful 

to themselves and the society 

after serving their jail term. 

“As the saying ‘knowledge is 

power’, the essence of having 

a school within the prison yard 

is to reform the inmates with 

skills and provide them with 

formal education as well,” she 

said. 

Banda thanked individuals, 

NGOs, religious bodies and 

government agencies that 

provided the funds used to 

register the inmates for the 

examination. 

The examination, which began 

on November 18 would end on 

December 18. 

... with Emma'nKen (08163121378) 

Especially the ones who don't 

have a say in their own homes 

Oh, good Lord! 

It's our 

world, 

woman 

*runs away*

8 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 


APC threatens to expel 

‘charlatan’ seeking third 

term for Buhari 

THE All Progressives 

Congress (APC) has 

distanced itself from a suit 

seeking amendment of the 

constitution to allow 

President Muhammadu 

Buhari get another term in 

office. 

Charles Enya, a member 

of the party in Ebonyi, 

had filed the suit before a 

federal high court in 

Abakiliki, the state capital. 

Enya, who served as 

organising secretary to 

Buhari during the 2019 

general election, described 

the two-term tenure limit for 

presidents and governors 

as “discriminatory”. 

But in a statement 

yesterday, Lanre Issa- 

Onilu, spokesman of the 

ruling party, said as a 

“progressive party”, APC 

does not have space for 

“anti-democratic forces and 

charlatans.” 

The party also said efforts 

were being made to verify 

the membership status of 

Enya, adding that if he is a 

member of the party, steps 

would be taken to expel 

him. 

“The All Progressives 

Congress (APC)read in the 

media about a purported 

legal action taken by a selfproclaimed 

member of the 

Party, Charles Enya, 

seeking an amendment of 

the constitution to allow 


Buhari run for a third term 

in office. 

“The Party had initially 

chosen to ignore him. 

However, it has become 

important to send a clear 

message to him and such 

Senate probes non-take off 

of HYPADEC, 9 years after 

By Henry Umoru 

A has BUJA—SENATE 

begun a probe 

into the non- take off of 

the Hydro Electric Power 

Producing Areas 

D e v e l o p m e n t 

Commission, HYPADEC, 

nine years after the bill 

was passed into law. 

Consequently, it 

mandated its Committee 

on Legislative 

Compliance to, as a 

matter of urgency, carry 

out a holistic investigation 

into the matter. 

The committee, led by 

Senator Adelere 

Oriolowo, 

All 

Progressives Congress, 

APC, Osun West, will also 

investigate the 

utililisation or otherwise of 

the total sum of N612, 177, 

269 appropriated so far to 

the commission and report 

back to the Senate in four 

weeks. 

Resolutions of the 

Senate were sequel to a 

motion, titled “The need 

to address the non-takeoff 

of the Hydro Electric 

Power Producing Areas 

D e v e l o p m e n t 

Commission, HYPADEC, 

nine years after its 

passage into law,” 

other agents provocateurs. 

“At the last National 

Executive Committee 

(NEC) meeting of the Party, 

President Buhari didn’t 

mince words and he is not 

the type that talks tonguein-cheek. 

He pointedly 

said he would abide by the 

constitution and uphold the 

oath of office he took, 

swearing by the holy book 

he believes in. This he said 

was besides his advanced 

age which made such an 

idea beyond his 

contemplation. 

“The NEC meeting 

highlights released to the 

media by the party equally 

quoted the President 

admonishing APC 

members, leaders and 

elected officials to 

reposition themselves in 

their respective 

constituencies so as to 

sustain the administration’s 

landmark legacies beyond 

2023 when the President’s 

constitutionally permitted 

terms end. 

“The president said 

history would not be fair to 

members if the APC 

collapses after his second 

term. What better proof is 

required of the President’s 

resolve to abide by the 

constitution on term limit? 

“The party is, however, by 

this statement sending a 

strong signal to such other 

busybodies like Charles 

Enya, who may be 

contemplating testing the 

resolve of our government 

on our mission to work for 

the best for our country to 

be ready to face the law,” 

the statement read. 

sponsored by Senator 

Muhammad Enagi, APC, 

Niger South. 

The upper chamber also 

urged the Federal 

Government to urgently 

constitute the commission 

and make funds available 

for it in the 2020 budget. 

Presenting the motion, 

Enagi noted that the Act 

that established the 

commission charged it 

with the responsibility of 

managing the ecological 

menace, among other 

things, due to operation 

of dams and other 

hydroelectric power 

activities in the power 

producing areas. 

He said: “It also 

establishes the Governing 

Council of the 

Commission, the 

Management, Advisory 

and Monitoring 

Committees for efficient 

discharge of the functions 

of the commission. 

“The act establishing the 

commission was passed 

by the Senate and the 

House of Representatives 

of the 7th Assembly on 

May 25 and June 3, 2010. 

It was finally signed into 

law by the then President 

Goodluck Jonathan on 

August 10, 2010.” 

Buhari presents rejected 2016-2018 

$30bn External Borrowing Plan request 

to Senate •We’ll get the details later, says Senate 


A 

B U J A — 

PRESIDENT 


yesterday wrote to the 

Senate, again requesting for 

approval of 2016 - 2018 

External Borrowing plan 

which would enable the 

federal government secure 

a $30 billion loan. 

According to the 

President, the loan will be 

used to execute key 

infrastructure projects across 

the country. 

The letter, dated 

November 26, 2019, was 

read on the floor by the 

President of the Senate, 

Ahmad Lawan, at plenary. 

President Buhari said in 

the letter that the 8th 

National Assembly 

approved only a part of the 

External Borrowing request 

forwarded to it in September 

2016. 

President Buhari had 

earlier presented the 

borrowing plan of $29.96 

billion to the 8th Senate, led 

by Senator Bukola Saraki 

but it was rejected. 


rejection then stalled the 

Federal Government’s 

implementation of critical 

projects spanning mining, 

power, health, agricultural, 

water and educational 

sectors. 

The letter read: “Pursuant 

to Section 21 and 27 of the 

Debt Management Office 

Act, I hereby request for 

Resolutions of the Senate to 

approve the Federal 

Government’s 2016 - 2018 

External Borrowing plan, as 

well as relevant projects 

under this plan. 

“Specifically, the Senate is 

invited to note that while I 

had transmitted the 2016- 

2018 External Borrowing 

Plan to the Eighth National 

Assembly in September, 

2016, this plan was not 

approved in its entirety by 

the Legislature. 

‘’Only the Federal 

Government’s emergency 

projects for the North East, 

four states’ projects and 

one China Exim Bank 

Assisted Railway 

Modernisation Projects for 

Lagos – Ibadan Segment) 

we’re approved, out of a 

total of 39 projects. 

“The outstanding 

projects in the plan that 

were not approved by the 

Legislature are, 

nevertheless, critical to the 

delivery of the 

government’s policies and 

programmes relating to 

power, mining, roads, 

agriculture, health, water 

and educational sectors. 

“These outstanding 

projects are well advanced 

in terms of their preparation, 

consistent with the 2016 

Debt Sustainability Analysis 

undertaken by the Debt 

Management Office, DMO, 

and were approved by the 

Federal Executive Council, 

FEC, in August 2016 under 

the 2016 – 2018 External 

Borrowing Plan. 

“Accordingly, I have 

attached, for your kind 

consideration, relevant 

information from the Minister 

of Finance, Budget and 

National Planning the specific 

outstanding projects 

under the 2016 – 2018 External 

Borrowing plan for 

which legislative approval 

is currently sought. 

“I have also directed the 

Minister to make herself 

available to provide any 

additional information or 

clarification which you may 

require to facilitate prompt 

approval of the outstanding 

projects under this plan.’’ 

N100BN CONSTITUENCY PROJECTS: 

ICPC, ActionAid, NOA now in charge 

•Presidency, Agric Ministry get lion share allocation 

•North corners N51.9bn; South N44.2bn 

By Soni Daniel, 

A 

week after 

P r e s i d e n t 


taunted legislators for 

wasting over a trillion 

Naira in a decade without 

anything to show for it 

under the guise of 

implementing 

constituency projects, the 

Independent Corrupt 

Practices and Other 

Related Matters 

Commission, ICPC, 

National Orientation 

Agency, NOA, and 

ActionAid have now been 

put in charge of execution 

by the Federal 

Government. 

The Chairman of ICPC, 

Prof Bolaji Owasanoye, 

who disclosed this at the at 

the launch of a scheme to 

take constituency projects 

to the grassroots and make 

them key into the scheme 

yesterday in Abuja, gave 

details of how the N100 

billion earmarked for the 

scheme in this year’s 

budget will be spent. 

He revealed that the 

Ministry of Agriculture and 

agencies under the 

Presidency took the lion 

share of zonal intervention 

projects, popularly known 

as constituency projects, in 

2019 budget. 

The breakdown of the 

allocations given by ICPC 

boss, indicated that the 

North got N51.9 billion, 

while the South was 

allocated N44.2 billion. 

The document, which was 

circulated to participants at 

the event, tagged 

“Roundtable for Media 

Executives on Community 

ownership of Constituency 

Projects” showed that in 

terms of regional 

breakdown the North West 

got the highest allocation 

with N17.97 billion, 

followed by the North 

Central with N17.90 and 

North East, N16.06 billion. 

The project is to be jointly 

executed by the National 

Orientation Agency, NOA, 

ActionAid and the ICPC in 

order to make constituency 

projects more relevant to the 

citizens of Nigeria and add 

value to their lives, against 

the current practice where 

the money meant for the 

scheme is mismanaged. 

On the other hand, the 

South-South got N15.14 

billion: South East, N14.85 

billion, while the South West 

was given N14.28 billion 

AWARD: From left; 

Chairman, Advisory 

Council, International 

Breweries Foundation, 

Mr Peter Bamkole; a 

beneficiary of Kickstart 

grant, Mr Stanley 

Igboke; Minister of State 

for Labour and 

Employment, Mr Festus 

Keyamo, representing 

the Vice President, Prof 

Yemi Osinbajo; and 

Managing Director, 

International Breweries 

PLC, Mrs Annabelle 

Degroot; at the 

International Breweries 

Foundation Kickstart 

grant awards ceremony, 

held in Lagos. Photo: 

Joseph Akintola, Photo 

Editor. 

out of the N100 billion vote 

for constituency projects. 

On state basis, Kano got 

the highest number of 

projects worth N5.2 billion, 

followed by Niger State 

with N4.4 billion. Edo State 

got N4 billion. 

Enugu State came fourth 

with projects worth N3.7 

billion; Anambra and 

Bauchi states, N3.7 billion 

and N3.5 billion 

respectively. 

Chairman of ICPC, Prof 

Bolaji Owasanoye, 

explained that with the 

involvement of 

communities, the 

management and 

implementation of 

constituency projects 

would not be the same 

again, as the people 

remained the ones to 

choose projects most 

relevant to their needs and 

take ownership of them 

after the provision by 

government. 

“If we don’t do something 

urgent to change the way 

constituency projects are 

handled in this country, 

there would still be 

challenges while huge 

government funds 

continue to be used with 

little or nothing to show.


IPPIS: Reps wade into FG, ASUU face-off 

By Levinus 

Nwabughiogu 

ABUJA—HOUSE of 

Representatives 

yesterday waded into the 

face-off between the 

federal government and 

the Academic Staff Union 

of Universities, ASUU, 

over the Integrated 

Payroll and Personal 

Information System, 

IPPIS, with a view to 

resolving 

the 

disagreement between 

them. 

The task was given to 

its Committees on 

Finance, Education, and 

Labour, Employment and 

Productivity. 

The committees will, 

among other issues, identify 

the cause of the conflict and 

proffer solutions as a way of 

reconciling the warring 

parties. 

The face-off stemmed from 

the Federal Government’s 

may jeopardise the corruption and other social Federal Government and 

directive and insistence that 

current peace and stability anomalies, the areas of ASUU on the 

all workers who draw 

being enjoyed in university discrepancies between the implementation of the 

salaries from the 

campuses. 

government and ASUU IPPIS policy in the 

consolidated revenue 

Tajudeen, while leading should be resolved. universities, the matter 

account must be enrolled 

the debate, noted that “The House is convinced should not be allowed to 

into the IPPIS, including 

though the IPPIS was a that whatever are the degenerate to another 

ASUU. 

good policy to curb differences between the strike in our 

But in their reaction, 

ASUU rejected the system 

and threatened to down tool 

should the federal 

Buhari orders MDAs to go digital 

government go ahead with 

the implementation in By Johnbosco in service delivery, and introduction of the 

federal universities. 

ASUU’s position is that 

Agbakwuru promote more inter-agency Nigerian E-government 

synergy. 

Masterplan will further 

the policy lacks legal 

A 

backing and derogates 

B U J A — 

The President, who gave consolidate our successes to 

the autonomy of the 

PRESIDENT 

the directive in his remarks date and increase interoperability 

among the 

universities. 


at the opening ceremony of 

The House on the heels yesterday directed 

the e-NIGERIA 2019 different Ministries, 

of a motion moved on the Ministries, Departments 

Conference on the Departments and Agencies 

issue by Abbas Tajudeen and Agencies, MDAs, to 

Nigerian Digital Economy of government. 

at the plenary, expressed comply with ongoing 

at the International “A key requirement of the 

fears that the insistence transition of all government 

Conference Centre, ICC, e-government Master plan 

of the federal operations to digital 

said the transition to digital is for all government 

government on the platforms to enhance 

economy was no longer institutions to create a 

IPPIS’ implementation efficiency and effectiveness 

optional for MDAs, but an Digital Transformation 

absolute necessity, Technical Working Group 

following the launch of the that will work with the 

e-government master plan Ministry 

of 

HEALTH TIPS 

which will drive and guide Communications and 

the process. 

Digital Economy to ensure 

By Sola Ogundipe 

He noted that a directive seamless and coordinated 

in 2018 that all implementation of projects, 

government-funded ICT programs and policies. 

Muscle cramps 

projects be reviewed and “Furthermore, the 

cleared by the National Nigerian e-Government 

A muscle cramp is a sudden more easily. Athletes who Information Technology Interoperability 

and involuntary contraction of become fatigued and Development Agency, Framework, the Enterprise 

one or more of your muscles dehydrated while NITDA, saved the country Architecture and the 

and can cause severe pain. participating in warmweather 

sports frequently He said: “Our recent Regulation are in place and 

over N16.8 billion. Nigeria Data Protection 

Though generally 

harmless, muscle cramps can develop muscle cramps. 

make it temporarily Muscle cramps also are 

impossible to use the affected common during pregnancy. 

muscle. 

You might be at higher risk of 

Long periods of exercise or muscle cramps if you have 

physical labour, particularly diabetes, or nerve, liver or 

in hot weather, can lead to thyroid disorders. 

By Omeiza Ajayi & a roundtable on electoral 

muscle cramps. Some Drink plenty of liquids 

Dirisu Yakubu issues. 

medications and certain every day. The amount 

“The Independent 

medical conditions also may depends on what you eat, 

National Electoral 

cause muscle cramps. your sex, your level of activity, A Independent 

BUJA—THE 

Commission, INEC, will 

Muscle cramps usually the weather, your health, your National Electoral continue to use and deploy 

disappear on their own and age and medications you Commission, INEC, has the Smart Card Reader, 

are rarely serious enough to take. Fluids help your said it would continue to SCR, in all elections, 

require medical care. muscles contract and relax employ the use of Smart including the re-run 

However, see your doctor if and keep muscle cells Card Readers, SCR, in all elections in Kogi West 

your cramps cause severe hydrated and less irritable. elections, despite resistance senatorial district, the 

discomfort, are associated Stretch before and after you by some partisan interests. Ajaokuta Federal 

with leg swelling, redness or use any muscle for an National Commissioner Constituency and Sabuwa 

skin changes, or are extended period. If you tend and Chairman, Information State Constituency elections 

associated with muscle to have leg cramps at night, and Voter Education of the holding on November 30, 

weakness or aren't associated 

2019. 

stretch before bedtime. Light 

Commission, Barr. Festus 

“This clarification has 

with an obvious cause, such 

Okoye, who disclosed this 

exercise, such as riding a 

in a statement yesterday in become necessary in the 

as strenuous exercise. stationary bicycle for a few 

Abuja, said the clarification light of remarks attributed 

Older people lose muscle minutes before bedtime, also had become necessary, to the National 

mass, so the remaining may help prevent cramps following attempts to Commissioner in-charge of 

muscle can get overstressed while you're sleeping. misrepresent his position at Information and Voter 

C 

M 

Y 


15TH ALL NIGERIA EDITORS CONFERENCE: Former governor of Ogun, Aremo Olusegun Osoba (left); 

Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State (2nd left); Acting President of the Guild, Mr. Mustapha Isah (centre), a 

member, Guild of Editors and immediate past President of the Guild and Commissioner of Information, Osun 

State, Mrs Funke Egbemode at the 15th All Nigeria Editors Conference in Sokoto yesterday 

universities,” he said. 

Adopting the motion, 

the House gave the 

committees two weeks 

within which to conclude 

their assignment and 

report back for further 

legislative input. 

all Ministries, Departments 

and Agencies are expected 

to comply with these 

policies.” 

The President said the 

digitisation of key 

operations in public service 

such as the use of the Bank 

Verification Number, BVN, 

Treasury Single Account, 

TSA, and the Integrated 

Payroll and Personnel 

Information System, IPPIS, 

has enabled the 

government to save cost 

and fight corruption. 

He said the Federal 

Ministry 

of 

Communications and 

Digital Economy would 

develop training and 

sensitization programs 

which would be rolled out 

across all key MDAs with 

immediate effect to ensure 

seamless implementation of 

the master plan. 

President Buhari pointed 

out that the push for more 

Education, Festus Okoye, at 

a program organized by the 

Situation Room, which gave 

the impression that 

Smartcard Readers are no 

longer useful in the electoral 

process. 

PDP reacts 

Meanwhile, Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, said 

yesterday that the 

confession by the 

Independent National 

Electoral Commission, 

INEC, that its card readers 

were being circumvented, 

was a confirmation of its 

position that the polls were 

rigged in favour of the ruling 

party in Kogi and Bayelsa 

states’ governorship polls. 

In a statement signed by 

NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

ULTIMATUM: 

FIRS, NDDC, 

FCTA, Amnesty 

Office, others 

fail to submit 

audited 

accounts 


A Senate BUJA—THE 

is angry that 

the 25 agencies of 

government invited to 

submit their audited 

accounts have failed to do 

so, despite the seven days 

ultimatum they were given. 

The ultimatum expired 

yesterday, and 18 of the 

agencies have neither 

presented their documents 

nor write to explain the 

reason for not submitting 

their audited accounts. 

Consequently, the Upper 

Chamber again issued 

another strong warning to 

the agencies yesterday to 

make available their reports 

in the overall interest of the 

country or would be 

brought to public arena. 

The Chairman, Senate 

Committee on Public 

Accounts, Senator 

Matthew Urhoghide, 

Peoples Democratic Party, 

PDP, Edo South, yesterday 

in a statement listed the 

Federal Inland Revenue 

Service, FIRS and the 

Niger-Delta Development 

Commission, NDDC, 

National Agency for 

Science and Engineering 

and Infrastructure, 

NASENI, Nigeria 

Investment Promotion 

Council, Federal Roads 

Maintenance Agency, 

FERMA, National Space 

Research and 

Development Agency, 

Nigerian Building and 

Road Research Institute, 

Nigeria Maritime 

Administration and 

Safety Agency, NIMASA, 

Petroleum Equalization 

Fund, Ministry of Niger 

Delta Affairs, Presidential 

Amnesty Office, Nigerian 

Petroleum Development 

Company, NPDC. 

Others are Small and 

Medium Enterprise 

Development Agency, 

SMEDAN, Federal Road 

Safety Corps, FRSC, etc.. 

We’ll continue to use smartcard readers in all elections — INEC 

•INEC’s admission on card reader shows Kogi, Bayelsa polls were rigged – PDP 

its National Publicity 

Secretary, Kola 

Ologbondiyan, the party 

urged Nigerians to brace up 

for more revelations in the 

weeks ahead, arguing that 

regardless of the distance 

falsehood travels, truth was 

fated to overtake it. 

The party said in the 

statement: “The confession 

by the commission 

vindicates the position of the 

PDP and majority of 

Nigerians that there were 

manipulations, alterations 

and circumventing of 

genuine data captured by 

the card readers and that 

actual results transmitted 

from polling units were 

tampered with.

10 — VANGUARD, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 

Dangote rewards 160 staff 

for long service, commitment 

L AGOS—DANGOTE 

Industries Limited, 

yesterday, honoured 160 

staff for their long service, 

loyalty, commitment and 

contributions to the growth 

of the conglomerate. 

At a gala dinner held in 

Lekki, Lagos, elated staff 

were feted like royalty for 

their loyalty to an 

organisation, which was 

recently ranked as the best 

indigenous company to 

work in Nigeria according 

to the Jobberman 2019 

Report. 

Out of the 160 awardees 

in five categories, 29 staff 

were celebrated for between 

10 and 14 years of service; 

85 were rewarded for 

between 15 and 19 years of 

service; another 29 were 

feted for between 20 and 24 

years of loyal service; 13 

were applauded for 

dedicated service of 

between 25 and 29 years; 

while four staff were also 

honoured for their service 

from 30 years and above. 

Remarkably, 12 staff, who 

had passed on while in 

active duty to the company, 

were eulogised and posthumous 

awards were given 

to their spouses for their 

dedicated service ranging 

from 10 to 39 years. 

The Group Executive 

Director, Logistics and 

Distribution, Dangote 

Industries Limited, Alhaji 

Abdu Dantata, emerged the 

highest living awardee for 

his 36 years of service, 

while the Group Managing 

Director, Mr. Olakunle 

Alake, was given an 

outstanding ovation for his 

29 years of loyalty in service 

to the organisation. 

In his keynote address, 

the President/CE of 

Dangote Industries Limited, 

Aliko Dangote , 

commended all the 

awardees for their loyalty, 

commitment and dedicated 

service over the years. 

He said: “I want to say a 

very big thank you to all of 

us here tonight. Indeed, 

loyalty is royalty and the 

successful growth of our 

company is a direct result 

of your excellent service. 

Your loyalty upholds our 

core principles and our 

continuous growth is based 

on a culture of resilience 

and loyalty. 

“Today, we celebrate your 

individual and collective 

successes and our 

breakthrough was due to 

your investment of many 

years of loyal service. I 

encourage you to remain 

dedicated and committed. 

We deeply appreciate you 

and your efforts. Thank you 

very much.” 

Responding, a staff in the 

security department, Mr. 

Samanja Umaru, who was 

rewarded for his 20 years of 

service to the company, said: 

“Dangote is a blessed man 

and Dangote (DIL) is a 

good company. I began 

working with Dangote way 

back in 1981 at the 

warehouse where we were 

paid N10 daily. God bless 

Alhaji Dangote. 

Lawyer flays police 

interference in land dispute 

LAGOS—A 

Lagosbased 

lawyer, Chief 

N.C Okwarauba has 

accused officers of 

Nigeria Police of undue 

interference in a dispute 

over the ownership of the 

Alma Beach Estate, a 

choice residential estate in 

the Ikate, Lekki, area of 

Lagos. 

Okwarauba, who raised 

the alarm, yesterday, 

accused the police for 

providing security cover 

for same touts and land 

grabbers, who have 

invaded the estate, 

destroying several 

structures and seizing 

and selling off empty plots 

there. 

According to the lawyer, 

who is also one of the 

allottees in the estate, the 

only legal backing for 

what the police and their 

collaborators are doing is 

an October 26, 2016 

interim exparte order, 

granted by Justice C.A. 

Obiozor of the Federal 

High Court , in Suit No. 

FHC/L/CS/1242/17 which 

has since been vacated by 

another court. 

While warning the 

general public to be wary 

of purchasing any plots in 

the estate, Okwarauba 

alleges that what is 

currently playing out in 

Alma Beach Estate is a 


deliberate plot by the land 

grabbers and their police 

collaborators to provoke a 

retaliation and 

subsequently, violence 

killings, which would now 

give police the justification 

to fully come in and take 

over the place. 

He called on the Inspector 

General of Police to call the 

officers involved, in the alleged 

illegal interference, to order. 

Proliferation of light arms affecting 

Nigeria’s security, economy —IGP 

By Esther 

Onyegbula 

L Inspector AGOS—THE 

General of 

Police, Muhammed 

Adamu, yesterday, 

bemoaned the proliferation 

and smuggling of small 

and light arms into the 

country saying it was 

affecting the security and 

economy of the country. 

The IGP said this at the 

2019 Annual Lecture and 

Award ceremony organised 

by the Crime Reporters 

Association of Nigeria, 

CRAN, in Lagos. 

Adamu, who was 

represented by the 

Assistant Inspector General 

of Police in Charge of Zone 

2, AIG Ahmed Illiyasu, 

however, solicited for 

citizens’ support in fighting 

criminality, kidnapping 

and banditry in the country. 

His words: “It is of great 

concern the way arms and 

ammunition are being 

illegally imported, 

smuggled, made and 

possessed in the country. 

The police are not unaware 

of its effect on the security 

and economy of 

FCMB produces more millionaires, 

as Season 6 of promo ends 

The Season 6 of the 

First City Monument 

Bank (FCMB) reward 

scheme tagged: ‘’FCMB 

Millionaire Promo”, has 

come to an end with another 

16 customers emerging 

millionaires at the 

grand finale draw. 

The customer carted 

away cash ranging from 

N1million to N2 million, 

while 2,560 others won 

LED televisions, generating 

sets, decoders, tablets 

and smart phones. 

At each of the draws, 

which lasted from March 

to October this year, 644 

lucky customers won cash 

prize of N1million and 

other exciting prizes. 

At the Lagos grand finale 

regional draw, Obiajulu 

Ujunwa won the star 

AWARDS—President/CE, Dangote Industries Ltd., Aliko Dangote (middle) posing with recipients, 

after presenting Long Service Awards to Nzeako Onyembo Alexander (left); Group Managing 

Director, Olakunle Alake (2nd right), and Taiye Ajiyen, for their 29 years of dedicated service to 

Dangote Industries, at the Long Service Award 2019, held in Lagos, Wednesday. 

prize of N2 million, while 

Nabegu Bushira smiled 

home with the same 

amount at the Abuja & 

North regional draw 

which took place in Abuja. 

Nwachukwu Chigozie 

emerged winner of N2 

million at the South-East 

& South-South regional 

draw held in Umuahia, 

Abia State, just as Yetunde 

Olubanwo got the 

reward of the same 

amount at the South-West 

regional draw in Ijebu- 

Ode, Ogun State. 

The winners were 

unanimous in commending 

FCMB for sustaining 

and boosting its support 

to customers through 

various empowerment 

opportunities, including 

the millionaire promo. 

the country.” 

“The police alone cannot 

achieve these noble goals 

but through community 

engagement, which is the 

strategy that I 

have adopted in 

combating crime, 

criminality, ranging from 

kidnapping, banditry, arms 

Nigerians must be pragmatic in choosing 

leaders—el-Rufai 

By Dayo Johnson 

A 

K U R E — 

GOVERNOR 

Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna 

State, yesterday, urged 

Nigerians to always 

choose their leaders based 

on competence as against 

any political or ethnic 

affiliation. 

El-Rufai said this at 

the 2019 Foundation 

Colloquium in honour 

of the first governor of 

Ondo State, the late Pa 

Michael Ajasin. 

Speaking on the theme: 

Promoting Economic 

Development, Social 

Justice And Rule of Law As 

Pathways To Stability, 

Peace and Prosperity in 

Nigeria, he said that for the 

nation to attain its full 

potentials, Nigerians must 

proliferation and so on will 

be tackled. 

“Every one must know 

our next door neighbor and 

neighborhood. The security 

of this nation is the job of 

all and sundry, as we are 

all stakeholders when it 

comes to the security of this 

country.” 

be pragmatic in choosing 

their leaders. 

El-Rufai said: “Nigerians 

must have access to justice, 

if the elites must enjoy their 

wealth. If we must make 

progress as a nation, the 

laws of the land must be 

balanced. 

“One of the problems of 

Nigeria is that the elites are 

not sitting down to agree on 

the minimum, they should 

make the country work, 

because if the country 

works, they will be the 

greatest beneficiaries. 

“Nigerians have not 

realised that if their 

neighbours are not okay, 

they will not enjoy their 

wealth. One of this is that 

they must have access to 

justice. The law must be 

balanced. 

“Each person should be 

judged by his merit and 

While highlighting that 

the primary role of Police 

includes the provision of 

security, he said: “It is well 

known to us that the Police 

is constitutionally 

empowered with the 

statutory duties, such as 

protection of lives and 

property. 

competence, if we want our 

country to grow. Any policy 

that we have that has not 

worked for the 

development of the country 

for 20 to 40 years should be 

reviewed. 

“Those saying politicians 

messed up the country are 

at fault, because our best 

never joined politics. 

“They are all working 

with oil companies, MTN 

and so on. When the bad 

politicians are messing up 

the country, they are 

shouting. You better come 

and join us to collectively 

move the country forward. 

“In great societies, the 

best of citizens join politics. 

Here in Nigeria, the best 

work for multinationals 

while only the unemployed 

join politics.” 

Nigeria vows to ‘go after’ stolen artefacts 

worldwide 

THE 

Federal 

Government 

yesterday vowed to use all 

“legal and diplomatic 

instruments” to demand 

the return of Nigeria’s stolen 

artefacts and cultural 

materials worldwide. 

The Minister of 

Information, Lai 

Mohammed, announced 

this in Lagos yesterday. 

“We have never laid claim 

to the Mona Lisa or a 

Rembrandt. Those who 

looted our heritage 

resources, especially during 

the 19th-century wars, or 

those who smuggled them 

out of the country for 

pecuniary reasons, have 

simply encouraged the 

impoverishment of our 

heritage and stealing of our 

past,” the minister said. 

The development comes 

on the heels of 

W e d n e s d a y ’ s 

announcement by a 

Cambridge University 

college that it would return 

a bronze cockerel statue 

looted from the former 

kingdom of Benin by the 

British in the 19th century. 

During his speech, Mr 

Mohammed said the 

federal government is 

putting on notice all those 

who are holding on to 

Nigeria’s cultural property 

anywhere in the world. He 

said the federal 

government would go for 

them, using all legal and 

diplomatic instruments 

available. 

“We cannot imagine by 

what logic an Ife Bronze or 

a Benin Bronze or a Nok 

Terracotta can belong to any 

other part of the globe 

except to the people of 

Nigeria, whose ancestors 

made them. We are on a 

quest to retrieve the Ife 

Bronze Head, which was 

one of the items stolen in 

1987 when one of our 

national museums was 

broken into,” he said.


:Vanguard 

News 

We’ll be tough on 'sex-for-mark' 

lecturers —Gov Abiodun 

By James 

Ogunnaike 

A BEOKUTA— 

GOVERNOR Dapo 

Abiodun of Ogun State, 

yesterday, vowed to 

bring down the full 

weight of the law on 

lecturers who take 

advantage of their 

students or sexually 

harassed them. 

He said his 

Buhari laments apathy towards 

technical education 


A 

K U R E — 

PRESIDENT 

Muhammadu Buhari, 

yesterday, expressed 

concern over youths’ 

apathy to technical 

based institutions in the 

country. 

He lamented that the 

general apathy towards 

technical education in 

Nigeria is detrimental to 

the manpower needs of 

emerging industries in 

the nation 

The President spoke at 

the combined 

convocation of the 

Federal Polytechnic, Ile- 

Oluji in Ondo State 

where 292 students 

graduated out of which 

91 had distinctions in 

Diploma certificates. 

He said: “It is imperative to 

note that though vocational 

education is important for 

preparing necessary 

manpower for a developing 

economy, such as ours, 

youths of school ages in our 

country are apathetic towards 

it. 

“Enrolment into technical 

based educational 

institutions at tertiary level 

is still at an appalling 

percentage. Records of 

enrolments into universities 

in recent years show a 

progressive increase while 

those of into technical based 

institutions have only been 

marginal. 

administration would not 

condone any form of 

sexual immorality or 

other vices in any of the 

state-owned institutions 

of higher learning. 

Abiodun said this at 

the 11th convocation 

ceremony of the Tai 

Solarin University of 

Education, Ijagun, 

Ijebu-Ode. 

His 

words: 

“Government notes with 

Buhari was 

represented by the 

chairman of the 

governing board 

National Board for 

Technical Education, 

NBTE, Prof. Modupe 

Adelabu. 

The President said: 

“The dearth of skilled 

manpower at the middle 

level should provide a 

huge opportunity for our 

By Onozure Dania 

L Sule AGOS—JUSTICE 

Hassan of a 

Federal High Court, 

sitting in Lagos, 

yesterday, remanded an 

alleged Nigerian 

internet fraudster, 

Kayode Philip also 

known as Voice of the 

King and his Lebanese 

accomplice, Hamza 

Koudeih a.k.a. HK, over 

alleged $7.069m, £1m, 

E8000 internet fraud. 

The court ordered that 

Kayode and Hamza are 

to be remanded in prison 

custody until December 

5, when their bail 

applications would be 

heard and determined. 

Justice Hassan made 

the remand order after 

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

CONVOCATION: From letf—Prof. Abayomi Adelaja Arigbabu, Vice Chancellor, Tai Solarin University 

of Education, TASUED; Prince Dapo Abiodun, MFR, Governor, Ogun State; Bolatito Matthew 

Olatunde, Best Graduating Student of TASUED, and Engr. (Mrs.) Noimot Salako-Oyedele, Deputy 

Governor, Ogun State, during the 11th Convocation Ceremony of the university. 

pride the sensitization 

and warning publication 

by the Vice-Chancellor 

of this great institution. 

This government will not 

close its eyes to 

indiscipline and 

unwholesome attitude on 

the part of any staff.” 

Abiodun also 

commended the 

TASUED for maintaining 

an uninterrupted 

academic calendar and 

youths who attend technical 

based institutions 

or are willing to develop 

themselves in any of 

them. 

“Nations all over the world 

have come to realise the 

importance of technical 

vocational education training 

in strengthening economies 

and building formidable 

industries. 

the plea of the alleged 

internet fraudsters, was 

taken. 

The accused are facing 

a 25 count charge 

bordering on conspiracy, 

phishing spamming and 

unlawful conversion 

preferred against them 

by the Economic and 

Financial Crimes 

Commission, EFCC. 

EFCC alleged that 

defendants, sometimes 

in May, 2019, conspired 

among themselves and 

unlawfully converted the 

sum of $7, 069 million, £1 

million and E80,000, to 

their own use which were 

proceed of unlawful act. 

They were also accused 

of an attempt to retain 

the sum of $700,000 in 

Multi Currency account 

No. 012-611-2-009379-4 

domiciled in Bank of 

for being the most 

peaceful tertiary 

institution in the country. 

The governor noted 

that for the school 

curriculum to be relevant 

to the dynamics of the 

21st century, the state 

government has begun 

to match “the gown with 

the town” to make both 

mutually beneficial”. 

The governor 

announced automatic 

employment for the 

overall best graduating 

student in the College of 

Vocational and Technical 

Education, COVTED, 

Bolatito Matthew 

Olatunde. 

In his convocation 

address, the Vice- 

Chancellor of the 

University, Professor 

Abayomi Arigbabu, 

stated that the institution 

has embarked on the 

process of restructuring 

the academic 

programmes of the 

institution to 

revolutionize the 

teaching profession and 

also improve the quality 

of school services. 

ALLEGED $7.069M, £1M, E8000 FRAUD: Court 

remands Nigerian, Lebanese accomplice in 

prison 

China (Hongkong) 

Limited in the name of 

Pung Shen Technology 

Trading Co. Limited, 

which sum they 

reasonably ought to have 

known form part of the 

proceeds of fraud. 

The offences according 

to the prosecutor, Mr. A. 

O. Muhammad, are 

contrary to sections 

18(a), 15(2)(d), 18(c) of 

the Money Laundering 

(Prohibition) Act, 2015 

and punishable under 

section 15(3), 27(1)(b), 

28(2), 32(2) and 33(9) of 

the Cybercrimes 

(Prohibition, Prevention 

etc)Act,2015 and 

punishable under 

section 32 (2) of the 

same Act. 

The defendants 

pleaded not guilty to the 

charges. 

Abiodun vows to deal with 

illegal toll operators 

By James 

Ogunnaike 

A GOVERNOR BEOKUTA— 

Dapo 

Abiodun of Ogun State, 

yesterday, vowed to deal 

with operators of illegal 

toll points in the state. 

Abiodun, who made 

this known while 

receiving a three-man 

team from the Ogun- 

Guangdong Free Trade 

Zone, at his office in Oke 

Mosan, Abeokuta, said 

those behind these 

points are impeding the 

economic growth of the 

State and would be 

treated as saboteurs. 

He said: “The issue of 

illegal tolling has been 

brought to my notice. I 

learned that people are 

collecting multiple tolls. 

We are creating a task 

force in the state that will 

ensure it stops, if there 

would be any levies that 

will be placed on 

anyone, those levies will 

be from our ministry of 

commerce and the 

revenue will be coming 

to the state. All these 

illegal tolls, we are 

going to make sure that 

LAGOS—THE Lagos 

State Government, 

yesterday, ordered street 

traders, squatters and 

occupiers of shanties 

and commercial vehicles 

presently on the stretch 

of Outer Marina up till 

the frontage of the State 

House Marina from the 

foot of Apongbon Bridge 

to immediately vacate 

the area or get arrested 

and prosecuted. 

In a statement by the 

Commissioner for the 

Environment and Water 

Resources, Mr. Tunji 

Bello, said from next 

week, the state 

government, through the 

Lagos State Parks and 

Garden Agency, would 

commence work on the 

beautification and 

we remove them and all 

other issues that have to 

do with the free trade 

zone management.” 

Speaking on the 

benefits of the free trade 

zones, the governor 

said: “For us in the state, 

the benefit to us is that 

such establishments 

must offer our citizenry 

employment and when 

our citizens are 

employed, that 

immediately impacts on 

their collective 

responsibility. 

“So we will do 

everything to support 

this type of activity in our 

state. We will do 

everything to encourage 

other investors. This 

administration’s policy 

thrust is focused on 

public-private sector 

partnerships. It is the 

centerpiece of our vision 

and we are determined 

to continue to create that 

enabling environment for 

the public-private sector 

partnership because we 

believe that is the only 

way we can see economic 

prosperity.” 

LASG orders street traders to 

vacate outer Marina 

Whyte Cleon makes case for 

workplace engagement 

LAGOS—A human 

r e s o u r c e s 

outsourcing and 

consulting company in 

Nigeria, Whyte Cleon 

Limited, yesterday, 

announced the soon to 

c o m m e n c e 

Entrepreneurial 

Development Training, 

designed for its exemployees. 

The company’s Chief 

Executive Officer and 

Managing Director, Mrs. 

Nireti Adebayo, said this 

while addressing 

newsmen during the 

announcement of 

activities leading to the 

celebration of the 

company’s 10th 

landscaping of the whole 

stretch of outer Marina 

and it has become 

expedient to clear the 

area. 

He added that 

operatives of the State 

Task Force of 

Environmental and 

Special Offences will 

move to the area and 

commence enforcement 

of the state laws on all 

offenders including 

commercial vehicles that 

stop and pick passengers 

indiscriminately in 

Marina from next week. 

He urged all 

commercial vehicle 

operators in Marina to, 

henceforth, move their 

vehicles to the 

designated Park in 

Marina. 

anniversary, scheduled 

for the first quarter of 

2020. 

Adebayo said: “Over 

time, we have delivered 

unrivaled quality service 

to our clients and 

provided practical 

solutions to our clients 

assisting them in 

Strategy Formulation 

and Execution, Talent 

Acquisition, 

Organizational 

Performance and Human 

Capital Investment. 

“The entrepreneurial 

development training is 

a platform through which 

we aim to give back to 

society by equipping our 

former colleagues."

C 

M 

Y 



NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058


G 

U S A U — 

GOVERNOR 

Bello Matawalle of 

Zamfara has said the 

savings from the state’s 

repealed pension law for 

ex-governors will be 

used for youth 

empowerment and the 

development of 

infrastructure in the 

state. 

He said former 

governor of the state, 

Abdulaziz Yari, paid 

himself N300 million as 

severance while the state 

owed N10 billion in 

pensions. 

Matawalle spoke while 

assenting to the 

repealed law in which 

past governors, deputy 

governors, speakers of 

the state house of 

assembly earned about a 

:Vanguard 

News 

Dangote acquires 50,000 hectares land 

for rice in Nasarawa 

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

Yari paid self N300m severance 

benefit, owes N10bn in pensions 

interest in such 

—Matawalle 

retirement allowance.” 

billion naira annually as 

upkeep allowance. 

The governor said the 

repealed law, which was 

hurriedly passed by the 

immediate past 

administration of the 

state, did not take into 

account the social and 

economic realities of the 

state. 

He said his 

administration would 

only pay allowances as 

provided by the Revenue 

Mobilisation Allocation 

and Fiscal Commission 

(RMAFC). 

“I was shocked when I 

received a letter from 

former governor Yari for 

the payment of the 

money that the failure of 

which I learned, the 

former governor 

threatened my 

administration with a 

court case,” he said. 

“I called a meeting 

with my deputy as well 

as the speaker of the 

state house of assembly 

and we all agreed that 

we do not have any 

“Although the 

immediate past 

administration in the 

state left behind 

pensions liabilities of 

local government 

workers, primary school 

teachers and state civil 

servants amounting to 

about N10 billion. 

“Apart from other 

liabilities such as 

promotion benefits, 

workers annual 

increment and the rest 

which have put the state 

in a terrible financial 

quagmire. 

LAUNCHING: From left—The Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe, with the 

state's Attoreney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Aisha Dikko, and the Solicitor-General of 

the state, Chris Umar, during the official launching of Case Management System in the Ministry of 

Justice, Kaduna, yesterday. Photo: Olu Ajayi. 

By David Odama 

L AFIA—NASARAWA 

State Governor, 

Abdullahi Sule, has 

announced plans by the 

Dangote Group to 

establish rice plant and 

other investments in the 

state. 

Sule, who disclosed 

this during a meeting 

with councillors from the 

13 council areas of the 

state, urged the Dangote 

Group to sustain the 

investments in the 

state. 

He said the state had 

finalized plans to invite 

Dangote Group to invest 

in the state, noting that 

it has become imperative 

to relocate officials of 

two ministries to Lagos 

today for the parties to 

sign agreements that 

would see the 

commencement of the 

projects. 


governor, Flour Mills 

of Nigeria Plc would also 

acquire 10,000 hectares 

to set up cassava 

processing plant in 

Wamba LGA , 

“I want to be thinking 

and doing, I want to 

bring investment, I want 

to bring opportunities, I 

want to bring people who 

will come to Nasarawa, 

provide employment 

opportunities and 

provide revenue for 

Nasarawa state,” Sule 

stated. 

Governor Sule 

described the state as 

being among the most 

disadvantaged in terms 

of federal subvention 

and internally generated 

revenue, while at the 

same time burdened with 

three major debts that 

have to be settled. 

The Governor said the 

economy of the state was 

facing a serious 

challenge with the 

dwindling federal 

revenue even as it 

contended with settling 

three major debts 

namely, excess crude 

account debt, bailout 

funds and budget 

support, all collected 

between 2015-2018. 

While challenging 

elected council officials 

to start looking for ways 

to raise revenue to 

execute projects, he said 

it did not make sense for 

elected officials to sit in 

the office and worry only 

about paying salaries. 

Repentant bandits give conditions to 

surrender arms 

By Bashir Bello 

K ATSINA— 

REPENTANT 

armed bandits have 

given conditions to lay 

down their arms in the 

peace dialogue initiative 

by the government of 

Katsina, Zamfara and 

other states. 

The leaders of the 

repentant bandits who 

spoke yesterday during 

a security meeting held 

in Katsina, expressed 

fear of attack by other of 

members or unknown 

persons. 

A leader of the bandits, 

Ruga Kachalla said there 

was serious infighting 

among the bandits in the 

forest resulting in the 

death of many. 

Kachalla called for 

unity among the bandits 

in the forest and a 

meeting on how to 

return arms for fear of 

betrayal among them. 

Also, Ardo Nashawari 

and Yellow Nakira, 

called for empowerment 

of the repentant bandits 

for them to return arms, 

noting 

that 

unemployment was also 

responsible for their 

resorting to crimes. 

Another leader, 

Abdullahi Mairafi 

called for proper 

coordination of the 

disarmament of the 

bandits by the North 

Western Governors to address 

the fear by the bandits. 

Governor Aminu Bello 

Masari admitted that the 

disarmament of the bandits 

by the North Western 

Governors had to be 

collectively carried out not 

in piece meal. 

Masari said in spite of the 

peace deal initiative, the state 

still recorded some pockets of 

attacks here and there. 

“The immediate past 

governor Yari is 

requesting the state 

government to pay him 

a whooping amount of 

N120 million annually, 

made up of a monthly 

upkeep allowance of N10 

million. 

“The ex-governor who 

recently wrote to the 

state government in this 

regard, was also under 

the repealed law 

supposed to be collecting 

the exact amount he was 

collecting as his monthly 

salary while as governor 

which should continue 

for him for life as his 

pension. 

“In addition to these, 

he is supposed to get 

two vehicles to be bought 

by the State Government 

and replaceable after 

every four years; Free 

medical treatment for 

former Governor and his 

immediate families and 

vacation within Nigeria 

and outside. 

“Thirty days vacation 

within Nigeria or 

outside Nigeria and a 5- 

bedroom house in any 

location of the choice of 

the former Governor 

within the country. “ 

The governor also said 

the law extends to former 

deputy governors, 

former speakers of the 

state assembly, and 

former deputy speakers. 

BENUE: A-Court upholds Gov 

Ortom’s election, fines APC, 

Jime N150,000 

By Ikechukwu 

Nnochiri 

ABUJA—THE Abuja 

Division of the Court 

of Appeal, yesterday 

upheld the election of 

Governor Samuel Ortom 

of Benue State. 

The appellate court, in 

a unanimous judgment 

by a five-man panel of 

Justices, dismissed a 

joint appeal the All 


APC, and its candidate, 

Emmanuel Jime, filed to 

challenge the outcome of 

the governorship 

election that held in the 

state on March 9. 

In the lead judgment 

that was read by Justice 

Fred Oho, the court 

resolved four issues the 

Appellants raised before 

it, against them, even as 

it awarded a cost of 

N150, 000 against 

them. 

The court held that the 

appeal lacked merit, 

stressing that the 

Appellants failed to 

prove why results the 

Independent National 

Electoral Commission, 

INEC, declared in 

favour of governor Ortom 

and the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, 

should be nullified. 

It therefore declined to 

set aside the verdict of 

the Benue State 

Governorship Election 

Petition Tribunal that 

affirmed Ortom as the 

valid winner of the 

gubernatorial contest. 

Customers besiege SPAR’s 

Black Friday sale 

By Providence 

Emmanuel 

CUSTOMERS have 

continued to troop 

retail hypermarket store, 

SPAR Nigeria, for 

discounted goods as the 

2019 Black Friday Sales 

continues at all outlets of 

the brand across the 

country. 

Many customers were 

delighted making 

purchases with great 

discounts from a wide 

range of quality products 

which include Food, 

Grocery, Meats, Wine & 

Spirits, Electronics, Home 

Appliances, Laptops, Mobile 

Phones, Watches, Clothes, 

Perfume and many other 

products essential for 

individual and family use. 

The 2019 SPAR Black 

Friday Sales would continue 

until November 30, 2019 

across all the brand stores 

located in Lagos, Abuja, 

Enugu, Calabar and Port 

Harcourt. 

One of the customers, 

Mr Ayorinde Bayode 

said, “The Black Friday 

of SPAR makes a lot of 

difference for customers 

because of the discount. 

As a regular customer of 

SPAR, I have always 

been enthralled by the 

quality products. 

Ex-Benue first lady gets FNIA 

Fellowship 

FORMER 

Benue 

State First Lady, 

Mrs. Yemisi Suswam will 

today be bestowed with 

as a fellow of the 

Nigerian Institute of 

Architects, FNIA. 

The event which takes 

place at the Federal Capital 

Territory, Abuja, will see her 

receives an honorary fellow 

of the institute. 

•Mrs. Yemisi Suswam


18TH NATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY AWARD 

The 18th National Productivity Day celebration and conferment of National Productivity Order of Merit Award 

held at the NAF Conference Centre, Kado, Abuja yesterday. PHOTOS: ABAYOMI ADESHIDA. 

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapher presenting 

a certificate of award to the President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote while the 

Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr Chris Ngige (2nd left) and Director General, 

National Productivity Centre, Dr. Kashim Akor watch. 

SGF Mustapher decorating the Chairman, Heirs Holdings Limited, Mr, Tony 

Elumelu with his award while Senator Ngige, Dr. Akor and the Minority Leader, 

House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu (right) watch. 

Mr. Boss Mustapher presenting a plaque to the Chairman, Honeywell 

Group, Mr. Oba Otudeko. 

Boss Mustapher decorating the Chairman, Channels Television, Mr. John Momoh 

with his award while Dr Ngige (2nd left); and Dr. Akor watch. 

Senator Chris Ngige (3rd left) Comptroller General, Nigeria Customs Service, 

Col. Hameed Ali (4th left) the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Barr. 

Georgina Ehuriah (2nd left), Mr Sam Omatseye, Chairman, Editorial Board of the 

Nation newspaper (3rd from right, back row) with other recipients. 

Mr. Boss Mustapher presenting a certificate to the Chairman, 

Zinox Computers, Chief Leo Stan Ekeh. 

Cross section of students and others at the awards. 

A cross section of the awardees.


Anambra begins e-registration of migrants 

By Vincent Ujumadu 

A WKA—ANAMBRA 

State government has 

commenced the e- 

registration of migrants in 

the state to enhance 

effective monitoring and 

control of foreigners. 

Governor Willie Obiano, 

who spoke at Anambra 

State Command 

headquarters of the 

Nigeria Immigration 

Service during the take off 

of the exercise, explained 

By Ikechukwu Odu 

N SUKKA—THE 

Academic Staff 

Union of Universities, 

ASUU, University of 

Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN, 

branch has refused to be 

enrolled in to the Integrated 

Payroll and Personnel 

Information System, IPPIS. 

The union said the branch 

cannot deviate from the 

directives of the National 

Executive Council, NEC, of 

the body which asked the 

members to boycott the 

exercise nationwide. 

Meanwhile, when 

Vanguard visited the Epko 

Convocation Arena, the 

venue for the exercise, only 

non-academic staff of the 

institution were seen 

enrolling into the scheme, 

even as the monitoring 

team set up by the UNN 

ASUU were seen mounting 

the entrance to the venue 

to ensure zero-compiance 

of members. 


that the e-registration would 

help all security agencies 

and institutions involved in 

migration management to 

monitor and coordinate 

their activities. 


governor, who spoke 

through the Secretary to 

State Government, SSG, 

Professor Solo 

Chukwulobelu, the 

exercise would also help 

the state to know those that 

were illegal migrants in the 

state and what they do, so 

development, the 

chairman of the branch, 

Christian Opata, said the 

Federal Government has 

not honoured the 

agreement it reached with 

the union in respect to the 

enrolment, adding that 

ASUU is not sabotaging 

the fight against corruption 

by the ruling All 


APC. 

He said: “After series of 

negotiation, government 

told ASUU to design a 

template. The union is still 

in the process and the same 

government is asking us to 

as to help to fish out 

criminals among them. 

He called on landlords 

and owners of premises that 

were accommodating 

migrants, including hotels, 

guest houses, employers of 

expatriates, traditional 

rulers, market/traders 

associations, presidents' 

general of town unions 

and academic institutions 

with foreign students, to 

ensure that such migrants 

complied with provisions 

of immigration 

ASUU-UNN rejects IPPIS 

By Peter Okutu 

ABAKALIKI —NO 

fewer than 1,200 

inmates of Nigeria 

Correctional Service, 

Ebonyi State Command, 

are to benefit from the 2019 

readership promotion 

campaign initiative of the 

enroll into IPPIS, reneging 

on the promises it reached 

with the union. 

“ASUU told the Federal 

Government to capture all 

the agreements it reached 

with the union in a 

document but it reneged. 

As it stands now, there is 

no document signed 

between Federal 

Government and ASUU on 

IPPIS. ASUU asked that 

peculiarities of lecturers 

should be captured and 

that has not been done, so, 

that is the bone of 

contention. 

“As it concerns UNN, the 

Federal Government. 

The campaign, which is 

powered by National 

Library of Nigeria, Enugu 

branch, in partnership with 

Ebonyi State command of 

Nigeria Correctional 

Service was put in place to 

guarantee the intellectual 

and character development 

regulations. 

The Controller of 

Immigration in the state, 

Mrs. Tochukwu Agwai, 

recalled that President 

Muhammadu Buhari had 

earlier in the year 

inaugurated the exercise 

in Abuja and declared a 

period of amnesty to all 

migrants. 

According to her, by the 

end by January 2020, all 

migrants would have 

presented themselves for 

the e-registration. 

IMMUNISATION: Wife of Enugu State Governor, Mrs. Monica Ugwuanyi (2nd right), 

administering measles vaccine to a child during the launch/grand finale of the introduction of measles 

second dose vaccine into routine immunisation programme in Enugu State for children between 15 and 

23 months, held at ESUT Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu, yesterday. 

exercise started yesterday. 

I went there to monitor what 

was happening with my 

members, but when we got 

there, the hall was empty. 

It started with the Faculty 

of Social Sciences, no 

lecturer was seen within 

the arena.” 

Also speaking on the 

development, the treasurer 

of the union in UNN, 

Oyibo Eze, said members 

should not embrace the 

enrollment, which he 

described as a twin sister 

to the Structural 

Adjustment Programme, 

SAP, handed over to 

of inmates across the 36 

states of the federation. 

The National Librarian, 

Professor Lenrie Aina, who 

was represented by the 

Head of Branch, National 

Library of Nigeria, Enugu, 

Mrs. Rachel Neboh, stated 

that the purpose of the 

campaign was to 

Enugu student emerges 

BPE’s best essay writer 

A 

student of Girls 

Secondary School, 

Abakpa-Nike, Enugu 

State, Miss Chidiogo 

Jane Onoh, has emerged 

the overall winner of the 

maiden edition of the 

essay writing competition 

of the Bureau of Public 

Enterprises (BPE). 

In a letter to the principal 

of the school, the Director- 

General of BPE, Alex A. 

Okoh, stated that Miss 

Onoh’s entry in the essay 

writing competition titled: 

The Reason for 

Government Reforms and 

Privatization of Public 

Enterprises, “was 

adjudged the best by the 

Bureau’s team of 

evaluators”. 

Okoh congratulated the 

student for emerging the 

overall winner in the 

country as well as the 

school for producing the 

winner. 

The Director-General 

consequently invited Miss 

Onoh to the award 

ceremony scheduled to 

hold on Thursday, 

December 12, 2019, at BPE 

Main Conference Room, 

Abuja at 10am. 

It would be recalled that 

Model Secondary School, 

Nsukka, in Enugu State, 

recently emerged the 

5 th best school in public 

category for 2019 

President’s Teachers & 

Schools Excellence Award 

(PTSEA) of the Federal 

Ministry of Education. 

The prestigious national 

award conferred on the 

school at the Eagle Square, 

Abuja, by the Minister of 

O 

W E R R I — 

TRANSPARENCY 

Group of Customs 

Licensed Agents, led by 

Mr. Jerry Obichere, 

yesterday, said touts 

operating within the Onne 

command of the Nigeria 

Customs Service, were 

kicking against the 

ongoing reforms at the 

port. 

Obichere, who disclosed 

this in Owerri, also called 

on the Onne command 

1,200 inmates benefit from FG’s reading scheme in Ebonyi 

encourage inmates to 

imbibe the culture of 

reading. 

Aina spoke at the 

Custodial Centre, 

Abakaliki, during the 2019 

readership promotion 

campaign with the theme 

Reading, a tool for empowering 

the vulnerable. 

State for Education, Hon. 

Chukwuemeka 

Nwajiuba, was sequel to 

the general assessment 

of infrastructure, E- 

Library, quality teaching 

& learning in public 

secondary schools in 

Nigeria, by the Federal 

Ministry of Education. 

The outstanding feat, 

according to the 

Executive Chairman of 

Enugu State Post Primary 

Schools Management 

Board (PPSMB), Barr. 

Nestor Ezeme, who 

received the award on 

behalf of the school, was 

a fallout from various 

educational 

interventions by 

Governor Ifeanyi 

U g w u a n y i ’ s 

administration, which 

ensured the overhaul of 

all classroom blocks at 

Model Secondary 

School, Nsukka, 

construction of 

dormitories and dining 

hall with state-of-the-art 

facilities”. 

Other pivotal 

interventions, according 

to him, include 

“installation of ICT/E- 

Library through the 

works department of the 

Post Primary Schools 

Management Board 

(PPSMB) and 

recruitment and training 

of quality teachers, 

leading to excellent 

performance of the 

school’s JSS3 and SS3 

students in junior and 

senior WAEC, 

respectively, among 

others.” 

‘Touts battling reforms 

in Onne Port’ 

By Chinonso Alozie 

Comptroller, Galadima 

Saidu, not to be deterred 

in ensuring that the right 

thing was done. 

It was Obichere’s view 

that “the eagle-eyed 

officers and men of the 

Federal Ocean Terminal, 

FOT, Gate, Onne 

Customs Service, are 

implementing the laws 

in order to make sure that 

goods passing through 

the gate are well 

documented and normal 

duty paid to the Federal 

Government. 

“But they have 

attracted hatred and 

threats to themselves as 

some agents/touts are 

trying to smear them for 

not compromising. 

“This is as the customs 

men at the FOT gate 

Onne have redoubled 

their efforts in keeping 

with the norms of 

international 

documentation of goods.”


RETREAT: 

From left— Minister of 

Special Duties & Intergovernmental 

Affairs, Senator 

George Akume (left) and 

Permanent Secretary, 

Federal Ministry of Special 

Duties & Intergovernmental 

Affairs. Festus 

N.Y. Daudu, at the daytwo 

of the Strategic Retreat 

organised by the Federal 

Ministry of Special Duties 

and Intergovernmental 

Affairs held at the Radisson 

Hotel Ikeja, Lagos, 

yesterday. 

Photo: Kehinde Shonola. 

Nigeria's pension assets hit N9,58trn 

By Cynthia Alo 

ABUJA—THE National 

Pension Commission 

(PenCom) says its assets in 

the contributory pension 

scheme, CPS, have grown 

to N9.58 trillion. 

Aisha Dahir-Umar, acting 

director-general of the 

commission, said this, 

yesterday, while speaking 

at a journalism workshop in 

Benin, Edo State capital. 

The commission’s assets 

are said to have grown by 

over N1 trillion in one year, 

Women empowerment, most potent tool for national 

devt —Sanwo-Olu 

By Josephine 

Agbonkhese 

LAGOS—WIFE of the 

governor of Lagos State, 

Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, 

yesterday, identified the 

empowerment of women as 

the most potent tool for the 

development of any nation. 

Sanwo-Olu, who spoke in 

Lagos at the graduation of 

50 women and girls from a 

two-month vocational 

training organised by Inner 

Wheel District 911 Nigeria, 

said empowering women 

translates directly into 

national development. 

She said: “When you 

empower women, you have 

empowered the nation. As 

a matter of fact, there is no 

tool for development more 

effective than the 

empowerment of women. It 

is also a fact that 

government cannot do this 

alone. Hence I profoundly 

commend Inner Wheel 

PEBEC honours young public servants at 

Future Awards Africa 2019 

By Oscar Ochiogu 

‘Fela and Kalakuta Queens' hit Terra Kulture 

in December infused the celebration of 

L AGOS—FOLLOWING 

the success of ‘Fela and 

the Kalakuta Queens’ in 

Lagos, Abuja, Cairo and 

Pretoria, Bolanle Austen- 

Peters Productions has 

announced the return of a 

sequel – ‘Fela’s Republic 

and the Kalakuta Queens’ 

to Terra Kulture this 

December. 

While ‘Fela and the 

Kalakuta Queens’ was majorly an 

exploration of the life of Fela Kuti 

and his wives, Fela’s Republic and 

the Kalakuta Queens has 

and stood at N8.49 trillion 

in November, 2018. 

Dahir-Umar, who was 

represented by Kunle 

Odebiyi, head, micropension 

department, also 

said the commission has 

recorded great increase in 

the number of Nigerians 

registered under the CPS. 

She said: “As at 

September 2019, the 

number of registered 

contributors under the CPS 

has grown to 8.85 million 

while pension fund assets 

have grown to N9.58 

District 911, Nigeria, for 

coming up with this sort of 

initiative. This gesture is a 

demonstration of the 

essence of International 

Inner Wheel, which is to 

impact lives and eradicate 

poverty.” 

In her remarks, Chairman, 

Inner Wheel District 

911 Nigeria, Adejumoke 

Anike Odulaja, disclosed 

that the empowerment kits 

L AGOS—THE 

Presidential Enabling 

Business Environment 

Council, PEBEC, as part of 

the delivery of its mandate 

to remove all regulatory 

obstacles towards ensuring 

businesses thrive in 

Nigeria endowed the Prize 

the unapologetic and 

prophetic messages 

enshrined in his music into 

the original storyline. 

Having raised the bar with the 

local and international success of 

Saaro the Musical, Wakaa the 

musical, Queen Moremi the 

Musical, and others, Bolanle 

Austen-Peters Productions is set 

to thrill audiences with this new 

musical play at the Terra Arena, 

Victoria Island Lagos from the 14th 

of December, 2019 to January 

2020. 

According to Bolanle Austen- 

Peters, “The play which first 

trillion. 

“This growth indeed 

justifies our emphasis on 

the safety of pension funds 

as the bedrock of sustaining 

the CPS and assure all 

stakeholders that the 

pension reform remains 

steadily on course. 

“These modest milestones 

notwithstanding, the 

Commission and Pension 

Operators are committed to 

actualising the growth 

potentials of the pension 

industry.” 

She added that the theme 

which gulped about three 

million naira were made 

possible by members of the 

organisation, friends and 

corporate organisations. 

for Public Service at the justconcluded 

2019 The Future 

Awards Africa which held 

Sunday, 24 November, 

2019 at the Balmoral Event 

Centre, Federal Palace 

Hotel, Lagos. 

In recognition of the 

commitment required to strive 

towards transforming public 

service delivery in Nigeria, the 

opened in Lagos in 2017 has now 

been shown in different countries 

across the continent. However, 

we’ve brought it back to Lagos 

because there has been a lot of 

clamour for that to be done. 

"The sequel is just as exciting 

and the major twist to it is that 

the new play is a fusion of the 

Kalakuta Queens and Fela’s 

social messages.” 

Fela’s Republic and the 

Kalakuta Queens is proudly 

supported by Ecobank, Amstel 

Malta, MTN, Dormanlong, the 

Estate of Fela Anikulapo Kuti, 

Africa Magic, Red Media Africa, 

Beat FM amongst others. 

of the workshop, ‘expanding 

coverage of the pension 

industry’ reflects the commission’s 

focus to “expand 

access to pension via the 

CPS as a veritable tool for 

economic development. 

“This aligns with the pension 

reform objective of old age 

poverty reduction and 

improvement in the welfare and 

general standard of living. 

“The quest to expand coverage 

of pension is being pursued 

through some transformational 

initiatives especially the Micro 

Pension Plan,” she added. 

Odulaja said: 

“Everything we are giving 

out here today is branded 

with our logo. Also, we will 

do follow-ups to make sure 

they are doing the right 

thing. Personally, if I see 

anyone doing well among 

them, I will empower her 

further. I am an ardent believer 

in the assertion that 

if people around you are poor, 

then you are also poor no matter 

how much wealth you possess.” 

On her part, the Project 

Chairman, Olori Kafilat Afodun, 

said the beneficiaries who were 

selected from across Lagos State 

were intensively trained by 

distinguished professionals 

throughout the two-month 

exercise; and also received an 

additional two-week introductory 

lesson on entrepreneurship. 

head of the Enabling Business 

Environment Council (EBES) 

and Special Adviser to the President 

on Ease of Doing Business, 

Dr. Jumoke Oduwole lauded all 

the nominees for the prize category 

while restating the commitment 

of the Presidential Enabling 

Business Environment Council 

to making businesses work while 

“changing the face of governance 

in Nigeria”. 

Also spotlighted at the event 

was the Presidential Enabling 

Business Environment Council’s 

ReportGov App which aims to 

help citizens resolve complaints 

against regulatory bodies and 

public officials within 72 hours 

using the web and mobile 

applications available for 

downloads on all mobile devices. 

Through its Enabling Business 

Environment Secretariat 

(EBES), PEBEC, since its 

establishment in July, 2016, has 

successfully implemented over 

140 reforms which continue to 

make doing-business easy across 

the country by removing bureaucratic 

obstacles to doing-business 

and reducing the time, cost, and 

procedures required to start and 

run businesses in Nigeria. 

World stocks stall as U.S.-China 

tensions flare again 

A 

four-day rally that had lifted world stocks to nearrecord 

highs stalled on Thursday after China said 

it would retaliate for U.S. legislation backing Hong 

Kong’s protesters, leaving investors concerned as to 

the extent of the Chinese response. 

Fading hopes of a rapprochement between the world’s 

two biggest economies before additional, potentially 

damaging tariff hikes kick in has lowered risk appetite, 

pushing the benchmark German 10-year government 

yield to its lowest since Nov. 1 DE10YT=RR. 

The yen - a safe-haven currency - gained against the 

U.S. dollar, recovering from six-month lows JPY=EBS. 

London's blue-chip index fell from two-month highs 

.FTSE and a pan-European stocks index was down 0.2% 

, led by trade-sensitive sectors such as autos, down 

0.6% .SXAP and tech, down 0.4%. .SX8P. 

Oil falls as U.S. rights bill fuels 

tensions with China 

OIL prices fell for a second day on Thursday after 

official data showed U.S. crude and gasoline stocks 

rose and President Donald Trump signed into law a bill 

backing protesters in Hong Kong, fuelling tensions with 

China. 

Brent crude was down 35 cents, or 0.5%, at $63.71 a 

barrel by 1503 GMT. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 

17 cents, or 0.3%, to $57.94. 

China warned the United States that it would take “firm 

countermeasures” in response to U.S. legislation backing 

anti-government protesters in Hong Kong. 

Investors are concerned that the move might delay 

further a preliminary agreement between the United 

States and China to put an end to their trade war that 

has slowed global economic growth, and consequently 

consumption of oil. 

UBN unveils flagship branch in Lekki 

UNION Bank of Nigeria Plc has launched a flagship 

branch in Lekki, Lagos, as part of continued efforts to 

provide more customers with simpler and smarter banking 

services. 

The modern solar-powered branch structure equipped with 

an innovative drive-through ATM facility portrays Union 

Bank's innovative outlook to banking. 

The branch was formally declared open by Mr. Hakeem 

Fahm, the Honourable Commissioner for Science and Technology 

in Lagos State. 

Speaking at the launch, Emeka Emuwa, Chief Executive 

of Union Bank, said the new establishment will give more 

of the bank's customers increased access to the reliable and 

efficient banking experience the bank is known for. 

"We are proud to unveil our flagship branch right here in 

the heart of Lekki; one that speaks to our rich heritage 

while staying true to our simpler, smarter proposition. 

"At Union Bank, we believe banking should be simple, 

smart and tailored to the needs of the customer. It is this 

customer-centric outlook that underpins our goal to continuously 

innovate and improve on our products and services 

across all our touchpoints." 

While declaring the branch open, Mr. Fahm praised the 

bank's focus on ensuring excellent service delivery. 

The new branch is equipped to cater to the banking needs 

of all categories of customers including individuals, small 

businesses and big corporates. 

Cormart announces new partnership 

with AB Mauri 

CORMART Nigeria Ltd., a leading chemicals and 

food raw materials Company and a member of 

Tropical General Investments Group, has partnered 

with AB Mauri, a global business devoted to the 

banking industry. The partnership will enable 

Cormart distribute AB Mauri's Mauripan Gold Instant 

Dry Yeast and Activa 10 Bread Improver in the 

Nigerian market. 

The Mauripan Gold Instant Dry Yeast is well regarded 

worldwide as one of the best yeasts for bakers. It has a 

much longer shelf life than fresh yeast and no refrigeration 

is required. It is a fast acting yeast with results 

that provide good quality and increased quantity. 

Martin Middernacht, Executive Director, Cormart, 

expressed his delight about the partnership. He said, 

"Cormart is excited about this new partnership with 

AB Mauri. These products are targeted at bakers and 

confectionary makers in the Nigerian market. We are 

committed to supporting local production in Nigeria 

across all spheres." 

General Manager, Dr. Johannes Flosbach, explained 

that both companies are looking to leverage on each 

other's strengths and abilities. 

"Cormart and AB Mauri look forward to many successful 

initiatives together. We will continue to deliver world-class 

quality solutions and services to help bakers become more 

efficient and profitable", he said.


SOMETIMES, 

other 

writers highlight 

situations so succinctly or 

eloquently that I don’t feel that 

it is necessary to add many 

extra words of my own. 

Regarding the erosion of free 

speech in today’s Nigeria, I’m 

reproducing an article by 

Eromo Egbejule, a young 

Nigerian journalist I know 

who is currently based abroad. 

It first appeared in the British 

Guardian newspaper. 

‘Climate of fear’: 

Nigeria intensifies 

crackdown on 

journalists. 

Fisayo Soyombo was eating 

an evening snack in Lagos in 

late October when a colleague 

called to warn him about a 

plan hatched by Nigerian 

government officials at a 

clandestine meeting to arrest 

him. 

Hours earlier, the second in 

a three-part undercover series 

by the Abuja-based 

investigative journalist on 

corruption in Nigeria’s 

criminal justice system had 

been published. 

“I made two more calls that 

night [to government sources] 

and it was clear I was in 

trouble,” Soyombo said. 

According to all three 

contacts, the government 

wanted to prosecute him 

under a law criminalising 

certain types of 

communication with inmates. 

Soyombo pulled out of a 

public event he had travelled 

to Lagos for, and went into 

hiding. 

Had he been detained, 

Soyombo would have been the 

latest victim of a crackdown on 

the media and freedom of 

speech this year in Nigeria, 

which is 12th out of 13 on the 

Committee to Protect 

Journalists’ Impunity Index, a 

ranking of countries with the 

worst records of unsolved 

murders of journalists. 

Soyombo said he received a 

lot of support on social media 

in the days after he went into 

hiding, and that the plan to 

arrest him has seemingly been 

•Nigeria Union of Journalists protesting the attack on journalists in the country 

Free speech under attack 

dropped. The Nigerian 

correctional service eventually 

released a statement saying 

work could be done to clean 

up the system, and that it had 

“no intention of arresting or 

harassing” Soyombo. 

At least three journalists are 

currently detained in Nigeria. 

Omoyele Sowore, an activist 

and founder of the New Yorkbased 

online news agency 

Sahara Reporters, was taken 

by secret police from a hotel 

room in Lagos in August. 

Sowore, who stood as a 

candidate in February’s 

presidential elections and 

usually lives in the US, has 

Throwing 

reporters in jail 

for doing their job 

of informing the 

public sends a 

chilling message 

to journalists, 

activists and 

citizens 

been charged with treason, 

cyberstalking and money 

laundering for allegedly 

sharing false and insulting 

information about the 

president, Muhammadu 

Buhari. 

Despite being granted bail 

earlier this month his lawyers 

said they were denied access 

to him, and he remains in 

detention and is currently on 

hunger strike. 

Jones Abiri, the publisher 

and editor-in-chief of the 

Weekly Source newspaper, 

was arrested in May and 

charged with cybercrime, 

sabotage and terrorism. The 

case related to 2016 

allegations of links to rebels 

in the Niger Delta, after 

which he was detained by 

Nigeria’s intelligence agency 

for two years without trial. 

In the southern state of 

Cross River, Agba Jalingo, 

who publishes the Cross River 

Watch paper, was arrested in 

August, days after the 

publication of an article about 

alleged corruption. Jalingo 

has been charged with treason 

and a bail request has been 

declined. 

Return to the 

dark days 

Human rights activists and 

civil society groups say that 

the muzzling of the press 

under Buhari has raised the 

spectre of a return to the dark 

days of military rule in 

Nigeria. 

Buhari, a former army 

general who has been 

president since 2015, was also 

Nigeria’s head of state in the 

mid-1980s, when he took 

power in a military coup. At 

the time he introduced the 

draconian Public Officers 

(Protection Against False 

Accusation) law, better known 

as Decree 4. The law targeted 

the press, criminalising the 

publication of information 

deemed injurious to the junta. 

“These (recent) incidents 

suggest a disturbing trend 

towards repression of freedom 

of expression and create a 

climate of fear which may 

stifle the media,” said Anietie 

Ewang, Nigeria researcher at 

Human Rights Watch. 

“Throwing reporters in jail for 

doing their job of informing 

the public sends a chilling 

message to journalists, 

activists and citizens.” 

Soyombo said gagging the 

press was a misuse of power. 

“It is an irony that a president 

and state governors who 

ascended to power via the 

polls can suddenly not tolerate 

dissent,” he said. 

Meanwhile, in an article 

titled “Short walk to 

totalitarianism?”, Matthew 

Hassan Kukah, the Catholic 

Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, 

criticises the controversial 

Social Media and Hate 

Speech Bills. Excerpts: 

Democracy thrives on 

debate, consensus building, 

negotiation, persuasion, 

argumentation, rule of law, 

process, and inclusion. The 

military thrives in a coup 

culture, secrecy, betrayal, 

violence, command structure, 

exclusion and lack of 

transparency. That explains 

why I have always warned 

against describing the current 

charade of violent elections as 

democracy… 

…The recent outrage by the 

Minister of Information, Mr. 

Lai Mohammed, over public 

reaction to the Social Media 

Bill, is illustrative of the point 

I am making, namely, that not 

all who call themselves 

democrats appreciate the 

enormous burden that goes 

with the claim today…The 

Minister says that no amount 

of threat, blackmail, etc., will 

dissuade the government from 

going ahead with the social 

media because it is borne out 

of patriotism. Really?.. 

…Is this the language of 

people who understand or 

have really imbibed and 

internalized the spirit and fine 

principles of 

democracy? If we 

must do your will or 

face the wrath of 

government, then, 

this suggests two 

things: First, we 

must obey you and 

government because 

we are subservient to 

you and government. 

We must be 

answerable to you 

not the other way 

round. We must, 

because if we don’t, 

we can be penalized 

by imprisonment for 

daring to question its 

wisdom or seek to 

have an input in a 

law that concerns 

us… 

…To be sure, there 

is no one, including 

myself, who is not 

aware of the dangers 

posed by the social 

media. We have all 

been victims. 

However, should the 

government wish to address 

this matter legally and openly, 

why should they be afraid of 

a public debate? 

Public 

debate 

…Technology is here to stay. 

All we can do is to try to make 

it work for us…the future of 

employment lies there and we 

need to extend the frontiers of 

the imagination of our 

[brilliant and energetic] 

youths to enable them explore 

a future that can make us 

safer and prosperous… 

…It is a measure of who we 

are and the premium we place 

on life that anyone would 

dream of suggesting a death 

sentence for the propagation 

of Hate speech. Surely, 

unscrupulous and immoral 

theft of humungous resources 

belonging to all of us by our 

politicians is more damaging 

to our society than any Hate 

speech. It is like comparing 

saliva and a dam…. 

The ultimate goal of this Bill 

is not to punish those who 

offend, but those who offend 

government or those in 

government… 

The Government [already] 

has all the laws it needs to 

fight any form of crime...This 

Bill is a redundant, stale, 

superfluous…totalitarian 

attempt to circumscribe our 

hard earned freedom. 

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.


IN other countries the news that 

“trillions” of naira were wasted in the 

past ten to twenty years on the socalled 

“constituency projects” of the 

National Assembly should have 

brought outraged and angry citizens 

to the streets. But in Nigeria, massive 

public sector corruption is no longer 

news, which is very sad! 

As usual, we are not even given 

enough credible information to know 

how much the nation has lost through 

the constituency projects which are 

meant to extend Federal-funded 

amenities to local communities to 

justify federal representation by 

members of the Senate and the House 

of Representatives. 

In July 2019, Chairman of the 

Independent Corrupt Practices and 

Other Related Offences Commission, 

ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, told a 

gathering of quantity surveyors in 

Abuja that its tracking of the National 

Assembly’s constituency projects in 12 

states proved that they had made 

Rethinking the constituency projects issue 

almost zero impact at the grassroots, 

though they gulped “about” two 

trillion naira since 2000. 

Also, President Muhammadu Buhari 

informed another forum recently 

organised by the ICPC that the one 

trillion naira spent on constituency 

projects in the past decade with zero 

impact proved that the appropriation 

was wasteful. 

However, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, a 

member of the House of 

Representatives, countered that 

though amounts were actually 

appropriated, only 40 to 50 per cent 

of the budgets were released for the 

projects. 

The truth is that lawmakers do not 

execute the contracts. Rather, they are 

often allowed to nominate contractors 

while the Executive takes charge of 

contract delivery. In view of this, it is 

obvious that both the Legislative and 

Executive arms of the Federal 

Government have questions to answer 

as to their roles in this colossal waste. 

This is where the absolute 

professional handling of this probe by 

the ICPC is called to play. 

We commend the Commission for 

taking the initiative of auditing these 

constituency projects, but we also urge 

it to desist from the temptation of 

joining to play politics with the effort. 

For instance, it would be helpful and 

useful to the public if the ICPC is able 

to painstakingly establish the total 

amounts actually released for these 

projects by the Executive rather than 

focusing on the amount budgeted, 

which is misleading. 

It is also curious that the National 

Assembly members had kept mute for 

nearly 20 years when the promise of 

constituency projects could not be 

delivered due to alleged poor funding 

by the Executive. 

Under a proper Federal system, the 

central government has no business 

sinking boreholes and building public 

toilets for local communities. These 

are the jobs of states and local 

governments. Besides, it is very 

difficult for the Federal Government 

to monitor these mushroom projects 

to ensure implementation. 

The fund for constituency projects 

should be invested in Federal 

infrastructure. 

OPINION 

Traditional medicine, an alternative goldmine 

By YUSUF HASSAN WADA 

FOR many, especially in developing 

countries, traditional medicine is 

their first choice of remedy for any adverse 

health condition. This is particularly true 

for those living in remote or marginalised 

areas, where distance and cost are barriers 

to orthodox treatment. From my 

interactions with people from different 

cultures, professions and social actors on 

the subject of traditional medicine, certain 

answers have become inevitable. This is 

because some people have 

misconceptions and or convictions about 

the field of traditional medicine that need 

to be unmasked to ascertain their veracity. 

No single answer had a counter-narrative 

that it was a medicine that originated from 

plants which were first used traditionally. 

In Africa, medicinal plants also called 

botanical medicine, herbal medicine or 

phytomedicine have been used for 

centuries to treat different types of 

diseases. Plants have been the primary 

source of most medicines in the world, and 

they continue to provide mankind with 

new remedies. Nigeria, with its rich 

medicinal plant resources, a country that 

has a surfeit of fruits, herbs and vegetables 

is expected to have the healthiest people 

on earth. We also could have become a 

leader in the field of drug discovery. 

The world’s global market for medicinal 

plants generates billions of dollars and the 

figure keeps growing yet, Nigeria is not 

benefiting. The few products developed 

so far are yet to be integrated into the 

essential drug list for use by orthodox 

doctors. Before the introduction of orthodox 

medicine, Nigerians relied mainly on local 

herbal medicines. However, a major 

obstacle to the use of African medicinal 

plants are their poor quality control and 

safety. Besides, traditional medical 

practices are still shrouded in secrecy, with 

few reports or documentations of adverse 

reactions. 

About three-quarters of the world’s 

population currently uses herbs and other 

forms of traditional medicines to treat 

disease, according to the World Health 

Organisation. In the US and Europe, the 

market is highly regulated and extremely 

difficult to enter, as companies need to 

pass through rigorous tests before mass 

production. In Nigeria, there is arable land 

that can be cultivated for medicinal plants 

with a potential job creation potential that 

can open a new window for economic 

growth, yet there has been no 

encouragement and regulations. 

Karabonde village, New Bussa, is the 

headquarters of Borgu Local Government 

of Niger State. The area is rich and blessed 

with natural resources while one of its 

natural resources is the availability of fertile 

land for agriculture. It is a resettlement 

town brought about by the construction of 

the first hydro electricity dam, the largest 

on the Niger River and one of the longest 

in the world. Traditional/herbal medicines 

in the area have impacted the lives of 

people. 

At the national physique garden in 

Karabonde Village, there is a great 

potential in drugs development that has 

enabled the society to promote health, to 

guard against illnesses and to cure 

diseases. While strolling the place with a 

taxonomist, a traditional medicine 

practitioner and a focal person, one 

observed the presence of diverse medicinal 

plants for treating of different ailments, 

active ingredients, that could be developed 

possibly because of their accessibility, 

affordability, and acceptability to the local 

society. 

Years back, a group of research scientists 

had come out with a groundbreaking study 

We need a national advisory 

committee on traditional 

medicine and endorsement of 

the national traditional 

medicine policy 

that may lead to the discovery of a drug 

for cancer cure from medicinal plants in 

Nigeria. The team, led by an erudite 

scholar and researcher, Marte Hussaini, a 

professor of pharmacology at the University 

of Maiduguri, identified eight local herbs 

or plants that are more efficacious than the 

drugs currently being used in the treatment 

of cancer. 

In 2015, Hussaini presented one of his 

latest research findings to the Nigerian 

Academy of Science at the induction 

ceremony of Fellows in Abuja where he 

stated that some Nigerian herbal plants 

are more efficacious than the current drugs 

Send Opinions & Letters to: 

opinions1234@yahoo.com 

used in cancer treatments. In 2014, the 

World Health Organisation, WHO, passed 

a resolution on the integration of traditional 

medicine into the global health care 

delivery system. The organisation sees this 

as a veritable strategy for building a 

knowledge base that could enhance 

policies, strengthen quality assurance, 

safety and use of traditional medicine. It 

also called for creation of a national 

database that would prescribe how these 

herbal and medicinal plants can be used. 

The traditional medicine policy for 

Nigeria needs to be reviewed, endorsed 

and implemented. We need a national 

advisory committee on traditional medicine 

and endorsement of the national traditional 

medicine policy. We also need the 

development of green form for reporting 

traditional medicine related adverse events 

to establish and strengthen regulatory 

systems by identifying and supporting 

qualified practitioners and protecting the 

public against potentially harmful 

practices. 

NAFDAC and other relevant agencies 

should step up their regulatory 

mechanisms to make Nigeria’s herbal 

products meet good manufacturing 

practices and global standards. As Nigeria 

strives to achieve universal health 

coverage, UHC, it’s time to promote a 

dialogue of understanding to revive, 

harmonize and scientifically integrate 

Nigerian traditional medicine with modern 

medicine to ensure quality health services 

and practicing. 

•Wada, a social commentator, wrote 

from Usmanu Danfodiyo University 

Sokoto

AfDB approves $210m power project for 

Nigeria 

CURRENCY BUYING SELLING 

US DOLLAR 

POUNDS 

EURO 

FRANC 

YEN 

CFA 

WAUA 

RENMINBI 

RIYAL 

SDR 

DANISH 

RAND 

$ 115.70 0.00 

$2,629.00 -76.00 

12.78 0.00 

$12.73 -0.03 

$63.97 -0.09 

$58.24 0.13 

306 306.5 307 

395.1378 395.7835 396.4291 

336.7224 337.2726 337.8228 

306.2144 306.7147 307.2151 

2.7943 2.7988 2.8034 

0.4944 0.5044 0.5144 

419.4232 420.1086 420.7939 

43.5008 43.5724 43.6439 

81.5956 81.729 81.8623 

420.1074 420.7939 421.4803 

45.055 45.1286 45.2022 

20.7438 20.7777 20.8116 

CBN Exchange rate as at 28/11/2019 

From left, Ernst & Young, EY Alumni, Wole Falana; EY Alumni, Michael Ayo Oni; 

Henry Egbiki, EY Regional Managing Partner (West Africa); EY Alumni, Abimbola 

Lasebikan; and EY Alumni, Dave Uduanu, at the EY Nigeria Alumni reunion dinner 

in Lagos. 

By Prince Okafor 

AS a bid to refurbish and 

expand the transmission 

grid across the six geopolitical 

regions of the country, the 

African Development Bank, 

AfDB, yesterday, approved 

$210 million for the Nigerian 

Transmission Expansion Program, 

NTEP, one of the 

projects under Transmission 

Rehabilitation and Expansion 

Programme, TREP. 

The first phase of the 

programme, NTEP-1, executed 

by the Transmission Company 

of Nigeria, TCN, is targeted 

at rehabilitating and expanding 

parts of the transmission 

grid in the North West, South- 

South and the South East. 

The project would reconstruct 

old transmission lines 

and build new ones as well as 

construct new substations, contributing 

to a further increase 

in TCN's transmission capacity. 

Meanwhile, the procurement 

processes for the project 

is about 70 per cent completed, 

meaning that execution of the 

projects under NTEP-1 would 

soon commence. 

In a statement signed by 

TCN's General Manager, Public 

Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, said 

even though the approval has 

just been given, the company 

has already concluded environmental 

studies including 

resettlement action plan in 

which people that would be 

affected by the acquisition of 

the Right of Way (RoW) for the 

proposed transmission lines 

were identified. 

It further stated: "The NTEP- 

1 projects would address some 

transmission lines and substations 

requirements in the 

North West, South-South and 

South-East regions of the nation. 

In the North West, the 

projects that would be executed 

include the construction 

of 212KM Double Circuit 

330kV Quad conductor 

(Kaduna to Kano); installation 

of 2x150MVA and 2x60MVA 

transformers and bay extensions 

in Zaria. 

"Installation of 2x150MVA 

and 2x60MVA transformers 


USSD: CBN, NCC in dialogue on new pricing regime 

By Elizabeth Adegbesan 

& Chiamaka Uba 

THE Central Bank of Nigeria 

(CBN) has said it is holding 

dialogue with Telecommunications 

companies (Telcos) and the Nigerian 

Communication Commission 

(NCC) to create a new pricing regime 

for Unstructured Supplementary 

Service Data (USSD) and 

would get back to Nigerians as soon 

as a decision is made. 

The Director, Payment System 

Management, CBN, 

Samuel Okojere, disclosed 

this at the 2019 

Mobile Money Conference 

organized by the 

Association of Licensed 

Mobile Payment Operators 

(ALMPO) in collaboration 

with the apex bank 

in Lagos. 

On 20th October 2019, 

MTN subscribers received 

a notice from 

MTN, informing them 

that USSD would be 

charged directly to customers. 

The message 

read: "Yello, as requested 

by your bank, from October 

21, we will start charging 

you directly for USSD 

access to banking services. 

Please contact your 

bank for more info". 


theme: "Accelerating 

Mobile Money Adoption 

in Nigeria: The Role of 

regulators", Okojere, represented 

by Aisha Isa- 

with associated bay feeders 

and bay extensions in Kaduna 

Millennium city; installation 

of 2x60MVA transformers and 

outgoing feeders in Rigasa 

Kaduna; and the installation 

of 2x60MVA transformers and 

outgoing feeders in Jaji, 

Kaduna. ''The substations 

would all have turn in and 

turn out transmission lines. 

Olatinwo, Assistant Director, Payment 

System Department, CBN, 

said:"Digital disruption has made it 

possible to leverage the penetration 

of mobile phones for mobile payments 

through innovative payment 

solution. The solutions are often 

complemented by presence of 

agents for cash in and cash out and 

other services being offered by mobile 

payments. 

"However, there is huge investment 

required in building an agent 

network at communities that are offering 

this advantage. Engagement 

with the NCC is still ongoing to find 

"In the South-South and 

South-East, NTEP-1 would 

reconstruct the 107KM 

double circuit Delta-Benin 

transmission lines into a 

330kV quad line; reconstruct 

the 138KM Alaoji- Ihiala - 

Onitsha Single Circuit line 

into 330kV Double Circuit 

Quad line." 

a new conducive pricing regime for 

USSD services in the Industry. 

"Notwithstanding the progress 

made in Mobile Money adoption, 

we have a lot of ground to cover up 

in Nigeria as a whole. 

"Furthermore, it is necessary that 

we improve the agents' footprints 

across the country to bring the services 

closer to the excluded", 

Okojere, said. 

In his welcome address, Chairman 

ALMPO, Chinedu Onuoha, explained 

that the theme of the conference 

'Beyond Payments' aptly captures 

the general direction of the in- 

'Multiple taxation 

killing small 

businesses in 

Nigeria' 

— Mobile Screens 

By Providence Emmanuel 

THE Managing Director, 

Mobile Screens/Sound 

Limited, Mr. Tunbosun Daisi, 

has said that multiple taxation 

has contributed in killing of small 

businesses in Nigeria. 

Also, Managing Director, 

BusyBee Group, an event planning 

company, Mrs. Bisi 

Sotunde, revealed that the Event 

Industry in Lagos alone contribute 

N300 billion annually to the 

State. 

They said these at the third edition 

of the BusyBee event business 

summit with the theme: "Expanding 

your Horizons" in 

Lagos. 

Daisi who said that Nigeria is 

a harsh place to do business 

stated: "Nigeria is a harsh place 

to do business and it seems as if 

so many things are working 

against us, but opportunities 

abound and the entrepreneurs 

need to be disciplined enough 

to exploit much untapped opportunities. 

"Government should provide 

the enabling environment to 

support investors, especially as 

many problems, including inadequate 

capital abound. 

"It would make sense for them 

to be assisted because many entrepreneurs 

run to neighbouring 

countries to establish their businesses 

due to poor infrastructure 

and other problems. 

Her words: "The event industry 

is contributing a lot to the Nigerian 

economy. Statistics has 

proven that 20 thousand events 

are done monthly which has contributed 

to N300 billion annually 

in Lagos state.” 

dustry saying " We are of the opinion, 

and rightfully so, that for the 

objectives of financial inclusion to 

be realised, we must go beyond 

payments as we try to attract more 

people into formal financial services. 

"We are aware that the financial 

needs of the average citizen are 

much more than pay and receive. 

People want to save and earn interest. 

We also know that for all of 

this to be realised, there must be 

adequate security and trust in the 

system." 

Banks lend to only 0.02% of 41.5 m MSMEs 

—DG SMEDAN 

• Seeks increased lending to micro enterprises 


THE Director General of Small 

and Medium Enterprises 

Development Agency of Nigeria 

(SMEDAN) Dr. Dikko Umaru 

Radda, said banks are only lending 

to 0.02 percent of 41.5 million 

Micro Small and Medium Enterprises 

(MSMEs) operating in the 

country. 

He called on banks to increase 

lending to micro enterprises, saying 

that impact of the credit would 

be felt with only 72 MSMEs enjoying 

banks' loans. 

Dikko, who was represented by 

Monday Ewan, Director SMEs, 

SMEDAN, disclosed this at a conference 

organized by Business a.m 

Newspaper in Lagos. 

According to him, "In Nigeria, 

the 2017 National MSMEs Survey 

conducted by SMEDAN in 

partnership with National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS) showed that 

there are about 41.5 million 

MSMEs out of which41.4 million 

are micro enterprises. These enterprises 

employ 59.6 million 

people; contribute 49.7 percent to 

nominal GDP and 7.64 percent to 

exports. 

"Of course, as you are also aware, 

that access to affordable finance is 

a major challenge to MSMEs. Finance 

is not the only challenge. 

There are other issues related to 

market, skills, infrastructure and 

the rest. 

"From my own perspective, the 

banking sector should do a rethink 

because you cannot say you are 

lending to 72 enterprises out of 

41.5 million and you think that the 

impact will be felt. The impact will 

not be felt. The economy will not 

feel it and unfortunately, most of 

the small businesses in Nigeria fall 

under the micro enterprises category. 

"The over N5 trillion that 

AMCON is looking at for 

SMEDAN went to only medium 

and large. So, the banks should 

have a rethink towards attending 

to the financial needs of micro enterprises."

20— Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 

Send Opinions & Letters to: 

opinions1234@yahoo.com 

World without nuclear, amen! 

POPE Francis this week sent 

humanity on another soul 

searching mission. During a visit to 

Japan, he held out the mirror in 

Nagasaki and Hiroshima, and 

invited the world to look at itself. The 

only imagery that stared back at us, 

was the savagery of the atomic 

bombs dropped in both Japanese 

cities by the Americans in August, 

1945. 

Within eight to twelve weeks the 

two bombs torched the earth, 

between 90,000 and 146,000 died n 

Hiroshima and 39,000 and 80,000 

in Nagasaki. Half of the victims died 

in each city the very day the bombs 

were dropped. With this carnage, 

humanity lost its innocence; it died 

a little and for many, life lost its 

meaning. 

However, that did not stop the 

human race from engaging in a 

nuclear weapon race. So much that 

today, in 2019, there are about 

14,000 nuclear bombs and just 100 

of such bombs, dropped in crowded 

areas, can wipe out 34 million 

human beings. In other words, less 

than 300 nuclear bombs are enough 

to wipe out the entire world 

population of 7,609, 997,647. 

The United States and Russia 

account for 92 percent of the nuclear 

weapons in the world. The former 

carried out the first nuclear test in 

July 1945 and dropped the two 

atomic bombs on Hiroshima and 

Nagasaki the following month. It felt 

invincible thinking it had a 

monopoly that can frighten other 

countries. But four years later, Russia 

carried out its own test followed by 

the United Kingdom in 1952, 

France, two years later and China in 

1964. 

It became an exclusive club of the 

big boys with deep pockets. To keep 

it so, they established the Nuclear 

Nonproliferation Treaty, NPT, in 

1968. But that did not stop the 

proliferation. Rivals, India and 

Pakistan developed their nuclear 

weapons as did Israel and North 

Korea. As at June, 2019, the 

Stockholm International Peace 

Research Institute reports that Russia 

has 6,490 strategic nuclear 

warheads, United States, 6,185; 

France, 300; China, 290; United 

Kingdom, 200; Pakistan, 160; India, 

140; Israel, 90 and North Korea, 20. 

Iran has an on-going nuclear 

programme for which there is a 

shaky treaty. South Africa, Libya and 

Iraq were at various points thought 

to be developing nuclear 

programmes before dismantling 

them. Syria is suspected to have tried 

its hands on a nuclear capability. 

Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine 

who as part of the defunct Soviet 

Union, had nuclear weapons, 

returned them to Russia. Argentina, 

Brazil, South Korea, and Taiwan are 

said to have shelved their nuclear 

weapons programmes. 

Ironically, possessing hundreds of 

nuclear warheads is illogical and a 

great burden partly because even in 

a nuclear war scenario, only some 

would be needed. In their joint 

research, Michigan Technological 

University Professor, Joshua Pearce, 

and David Denkenberger, Assistant 

Professor at Tennessee State 

University who is also Director of 

Alliance to Feed the Earth in 

Disasters, wrote: “The results found 

that 100 nuclear warheads is 

adequate for nuclear deterrence in 

the worst case scenario, while using 

more than 100 nuclear weapons by 

It is unlikely that the 

nuclear power countries 

would be receptive to 

the anti-nuclear 

campaigns of the Pope; 

they live in mutual 

suspicion and fear of 

themselves 

any aggressor nation (including the 

best positioned strategically to 

handle the unintended 

consequences) even with optimistic 

assumptions (including no 

retaliation) would cause 

unacceptable damage to their own 

society.” 

The Americans between 1940 and 

1988 spent $5 trillion developing and 

maintaining nuclear weapons and 

has budgeted $1.2 trillion on its 

nuclear weapons in the next three 

decades. The nine nuclear countries 

expend $12 million every hour on 

these weapons. On this, Pope Francis 

argued: "In a world where millions 

of children and families live in 

inhumane conditions, the money that 

is squandered and the fortunes made 

through the manufacture, 

upgrading, maintenance and sale of 

ever more destructive weapons are 

an affront crying out to heaven." 

The Pope’s main message was not 

merely to repeat the stories of 

Hiroshima and Nagasaki whose 

near deletion from the surface of the 

earth 74 years ago (before their 

rebuilding) has come to symbolize 

the extent human beings can go, and 

the criminal use science has been put. 

Rather, it is to show the illogicality 

in the nuclear arms race. He 

characterized as perverse, the claims 

by some world leaders that nuclear 

weapons can be a deterrence. To him, 

possessing or deploying atomic 

weapons is ungodly. He argued that: 

"Peace and international stability are 

incompatible with attempts to build 

upon the fear of mutual destruction, 

or the threat of total annihilation." 

He told the world: "The use of 

atomic energy for purposes of war is 

immoral. As is the possession of 

atomic weapons…A world of peace, 

free from nuclear weapons, is the 

aspiration of millions of men and 

women everywhere.” While urging 

the resumption of talks especially 

between the two leading nuclear 

powers, the Pope said: "No one can 

be indifferent to the pain of millions 

of men and women whose sufferings 

trouble our consciences today. No 

one can turn a deaf ear to the plea of 

our brothers and sisters in need. No 

one can turn a blind eye to the ruin 

The Senate’s Anti-Social Media Bill, an act of inter-generational warfare 

By CHIDI ANSELM ODINKALU 

SENATOR Mohammed Sani Musa’s 

anti-social media bill now making its 

way through Nigeria’s upper legislative 

chamber in the Senate is worse than a 

throwback to the worst years of Nigeria’s 

experience of military rule. It is a hubristic act 

of inter-generational warfare that must be 

resisted and defeated. 

A Senate comprising essentially an analogue 

generation, whose average age exceeds 

Nigeria’s life expectancy by about 30 per cent, 

seeks to liquidate the only means of expression 

left for a digital generation whose analogue 

rulers have afflicted with little choice and no 

hope. A cross-party effort, this bill is evidence 

of how elite consensus in Nigeria, wherever it 

happens, is both self-serving and irresponsible. 

Rather than start a war that it cannot win, the 

Senate should be well advised to withdraw 

this bill and seek to influence digital content 

through good leadership and positive 

example. It can still do so. 

On November 20, 2019, in Nigeria’s Senate, 

the “Protection from Internet Falsehoods and 

Manipulation and Other Related Matters 

Bill”, successfully navigated second reading. 

The Senate has now committed the bill to its 

Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and 

Legal Matters. The sponsor of the Bill is 

Senator Mohammed Sani Musa, of the ruling 

All Progressives Congress, APC, representing 

Niger East in the north-central. In the debate 

on the Senate floor, Senator Sani Musa 

received ample support from Elisha Abbo, the 

woman-battering, young senator of the 

opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, 

representing Adamawa North in north-east 

Nigeria, and Abba Moro, also from the PDP 

representing Benue South in the north-central. 

In his last major public service role as Interior 

Minister, Mr. Moro presided over the culpable 

homicides involving the death of many young 

Nigerians in a phantom hire for jobs in the 

Immigration Service in March 2014, for which 

he proved incapable of empathy or 

compassion. Also supporting the Bill is Gobir 

Ibrahim Abdullahi of the APC, representing 

Sokoto East in north-west Nigeria. 

Senator Sani Musa’s bill is not the only one 

on the books of the Senate at the moment 

seeking to eviscerate social media and free 

expression in Nigeria. His colleague from the 

neigbouring Niger North Senatorial District, 

Aliyu Sai Abdullahi, Baraden Borgu, is also 

single mindedly pushing “A Bill for an Act to 

Provide for the Prohibition of Hate Speeches 

(sic) and for Other Related Matters.” This latter 

bill proposes to create an “Independent 

National Commission for the Prohibition of 

Hate Speeches (sic)”. In its earlier incarnation, 

Senator Sabi’s bill also included a provision 

for death penalty for what he calls “hate 

speeches” (sic). That will be a subject for 

another day. 

Senator Sani Musa’s anti-social media bill 

is the latest in various attempts by successive 

administrations in Nigeria to social media 

their exclusive mouthpiece or, if they fail, shut 

it down. Previous attempts in 2014 and 2017 

failed. Senator Sani Musa’s bill is an awful 

cut-and-paste job. I 

n every essential respect, the bill is a bad 

copy of Singapore’s Protection from Online 

Falsehoods and Manipulation Act No. 18 of 

2019, signed into law on June 3, which entered 

into force on October 3, 2019. It comprises 36 

sections, just a little over half of the 62 sections 

found in its Singaporean ancestor. 

Characteristic of Nigerian politicians, 

however, the author of the bill and his 

distinguished senatorial supporters are not 

interested in copying Singapore’s experience 

of decent and effective government. Rather, 

they want to extinguish in Nigerians any 

capacity to complain about a pattern of 

misrule that ensures that we can never dream 

of the kinds of things that the people of 

Singapore take for granted. 

But this Bill is worse than merely a bad 

import from Singapore in a season when 

Nigeria’s borders are closed. In essentially 

seeking to re-enact the Public Officers 

(Protection Against False Accusation), Decree, 

Number 4 of 1984, it clearly returns Nigeria 

to an era that is both forgettable and best 

forgotten. Issued by the military in 1984, 

Decree No. 4 purported to punish any false 

report about the government, (then as now, 

headed by Muhammadu Buhari), which 

brought or was intended to bring officials of 

the military government into disrepute or 

ridicule. It substantially drew upon the Public 

Officers (Protection Against False Accusation) 

Decree No. 11 of 1976, which also purported 

to punish allegedly false reports linking the 

then military regime or any of its officers with 

corruption or malfeasance. Decree No. 11 of 

1976 was designed to separate the military 

regime of Murtala Muhammed/Olusegun 

Obasanjo from the scandal-ridden last years 

of its predecessor, the regime of Yakubu 

Gowon, whom they overthrew in July 1979. In 

one essential respect, however, Decree No. 4 of 

1984 was different from and harsher than 

Decree No. 11 of 1976 - truth was no defence 

under Decree No. 4. 

This is where Senator Sani Musa’s bill takes 

its inspiration from. Contrary to its title, the 

bill is far from solely or even substantially 

about Internet falsehoods and manipulation. 

The bill proposes two broad categories of 

Senator Sani Musa’s bill is a 

criminal mis-normer. It has 

little to do with Internet 

falsehoods or manipulation 

offences. First, there are offences for which 

truth may be a defence, such as the offence of 

doing an “act in or outside Nigeria in order to 

transmit in Nigeria a statement knowing or 

having reason to believe that it is a false 

statement of fact.” Against a charge for this 

offence, for instance, it may be a defence to 

plead that the statement in question was in 

fact true or reasonably believed to be true. The 

number of possible offences for which this 

defence may be available under the bill is, 

however, miniscule. 

Second, and very importantly, for most of 

the offences under Senator Sani Musa’s bill, 

just as with Decree No. 4, truth is no defence. 

Quite clearly, it is impossible to legislate against 

falsehood by sending truth into exile. Like 

Decree No. 4, this bill creates nebulous crimes 

in open-ended, subjective language, such as 

statements “likely to be prejudicial to the 

security of Nigeria or any part thereof”. 

caused by a culture incapable of 

dialogue." 

Interestingly, during the Second 

World War, it was the Germans, not 

the Americans that worked speedily 

towards building a nuclear weapon 

which Wikipedia described as: “an 

explosive device that derives its 

destructive force from nuclear 

reactions, either fission or from a 

combination of fission and fusion 

reactions. Both bomb types release 

large quantities of energy from 

relatively small amounts of matter.” 

Three German scientists, Otto 

Hahn, Lise Meitner and Fritz 

Strassman in 1938, discovered 

nuclear fission. They discovered that 

the uranium atom, when bombarded 

by neutrons, split. It was this 

discovery that was used to build the 

atomic bombs dropped on Japan. 

Nazi Germany might have produced 

the bomb had its scientists worked 

as a single team, rather than being 

grouped into three different 

competing teams. 

Had Nazi Germany been able to 

prolong World War II, used their 

advantage to produce the first atomic 

bomb, and was willing to use it as 

the Americans were, the result of that 

war might have been different; the 

Nazi German axis, would have won 

the Second World War. It is unlikely 

that the nuclear power countries 

would be receptive to the antinuclear 

campaigns of the Pope. They 

live in mutual suspicion and fear of 

themselves. Given the mutually 

assured destruction of a nuclear war, 

there is more a danger of an 

accidental, rogue or deranged use 

of nuclear weapons than a deliberate 

one. As I write, I recall Bob Marley’s 

Redemption Song: “Have no fear for 

atomic energy 'Cause none of them 

can stop the time” 

The crime of making a statement 

“prejudicial to public health, public safety, 

public tranquility or public finance” can be 

used, for instance, to jail any citizen for 

criticising a thieving politician. The bill also 

proposes to criminalise statements that are 

likely to “influence the outcome of an election 

to any office”. This provision effectively would 

prohibit digital campaigns by opposition 

parties because all campaign statements made 

digitally are designed to influence election 

outcomes. It’s a charter for a single-party state 

and an end to political pluralism. 

The clincher is the provision that seeks to 

punish statements likely to “diminish public 

confidence in the performance of any duty or 

function of, or in the exercise of any power by 

the government.” Under this, anyone who calls 

out government when it is not performing is 

liable to be jailed for a felony. The punishment 

under this bill could be anything for up to three 

years or N300,000. The people most likely to 

be jailed are tech-savvy young people for whom 

the digital space is both livelihood and political 

oxygen. 

There are many more notable things about 

this bill, not the least of which is the lack of 

federal character in the list of its distinguished 

advocates. Rightly or wrongly, the fact that its 

most ardent supporters come from one part of 

the country feeds an unhealthy narrative that 

contradicts the claim of its sponsors to being 

concerned about healing Nigeria’s deepening 

divisions. 

In reality, Senator Sani Musa’s bill is a 

criminal mis-normer. It has little to do with 

Internet falsehoods or manipulation. Rather, 

it seeks to throttle active citizenship in Nigeria 

and to punish truth telling to people like these 

senators who are in power today. This bill is 

also a threat to entrepreneurship and can be 

used to shut down most digital start-ups. If this 

bill passes, the last citizen left in Nigeria will 

not even be afforded the luxury of turning out 

the lights or whistling in the darkness. This is 

why Nigeria’s young people must rally together 

and tell these senators to stuff their sabres of 

inter-generational warfare. 

•A co-convenor of Nigeria Mourns, 

Odinkalu works with the Open Society 

Foundations and writes in his personal 

capacity.




It's Christmas and New 

Year season again! 

Create happy 

memories for 

your family 

Agood life they say, is a 

collection of happy 

memories. This is 

because memories are the 

only thing that don't change 

when everything else does. 

Every Homemaker deserves 

good memories for herself 

through her family especially 

in this season having played 

her roles from the beginning of 

the year till the Ember months 

signalling the celebration 

season and the end of the year. 

The word of God affirms in the 

Bible that men should count 

their blessings, name them 

one by one and see what God 

has done for them. Doing this 

is awakening their memories 

which will definitely burst out 

joy inside of man. 

Creating family memories is 

essential this season because 

the memories we make with 

our family is everything. A 

recent research shows that 

families who spend time 

together share a strong 

emotional bond because 

spending time with family 

reflects a sense of belonging 

and enhances communication. 

Children in such environment 

too is said to be less likely to 

have behavioral issues. 

Since you can not create 

memories without planning, 

here are a few things you can 

begin to look at to create 

lasting memories for you and 

your family this Christmas and 

New Year season. 

Organise a phone off fun 

day. 

Technology has robbed 

many families of the best 

moment they are supposed to 

have together. That is one of the 

reasons why family values are 

eroded and people don't value 

family members again. Family 

get together should be the first 

contact for children to learn 

most important value of how to 

relate with people before 

learning to relate with people 

outside the family. Children will 

have the opportunity to learn 

and unlearn. 

What happens now in every 

gathering is that everyone 

comes together, takes 

something to eat and keeps 

busy with their gadgets on 

Social media platforms such as 

Facebook,Whatshapp, 

Instagram, Twitter, just to 

mention a few. People now loose 

interest in family gatherings 

because there are no memories 

to remember. Plan a two to 

three hours family fun time and 

strictly without phones. Get a 

The memories 

from this type 

of family fun 

will linger for 

a very long 

time and every 

family 

member will 

look forward 

to it 

camera to take photograph 

during the period. 

Few things to do to have fun 

Let it be a cocktail party 

where there is more than 

enough to chew and drink. 

You may also organize 

competitions between family 

members such as card or board 

games which involve as many 

members as possible. 

Monopoly, Chess and Ludo are 

great fun games too. Dancing 

time with rewards will also add 

fun to the get together. This is 

one of the best things you can 

do when you are with your 

family. Get some musical 

instruments and dance to the 

beats of some wonderful music 

and lyrics. Do not forget to 

record videos and photos. This 

is very important. 

Being with family is the best 

thing you can do for spreading 

love, laughter, gratitude, 

warmth and smiles. The 

memories from this type of 

family fun time will linger for a 

very long time and every family 

member will look forward to it 

in future. It builds intimacy, 

opens communication and 

strengthens your family bond. 

Keep a date with us in our 

next edition. Enjoy your 

weekend. 

CONSUMER WATCH A place that makes you plan ahead 

Items Prices Items 

Prices 

Items Prices 

Basket of Tomatoes N12,000 - N13,000 

A bag of Pepper (Rodo) N 6,500 - N8,000 

A bag of Long pepper N9, 000 - N12,000 

A bag of Onions (white) N15,000 - N15, 000 

A bag of Onions (Red) N14, 000 - N15, 000 

50kg of Nigeria Rice N18,000 - N22,000 

A Derica Nigeria Rice N300 - N350 

50kg of long grain Rice N26,000 - N28,000 

A derica of long grain Rice N400 - N400 

50kg of short grain Rice. N26,000 - N28,000 

A derica of short grain Rice N400 - N450 

A crate of eggs N1,000 - N1,100 

A bag of Olotu beans N14,000 - N38,000 

A bag of Oloyin N15,000 - N20,000 

A bag of Yam Flour (Elubo) N63, 000 - N69,000 

A bag of Garri (Yellow) N5,000 - N8,000 

A paint bucket 

N400 

A bag of Ijebu Gari N5,000 - N8,000 

A paint bucket Gari 

N400 

25 Litres of Vegetable Oil N13,500 

10 Litres of Vegetable Oil N7,000 

5 kg of Vegetable Oil N3,000 

25 Litres of Palm Oil N9,000 - N9,500 

5Litres of Palm Oil N1,900 - N2,000 

Salt N50 - N200 

Noodles- 70g N1,900 - N2,200 

Spaghetti (1packet) N220 - N230 

Macaroni(1packet) N220 - N230 

Semovita (10kg) N2,800 - N3,000 

Pampers (cartons of 8) N3,400 

Seasonings N100 - N500 

Tomato paste (2,200g) N1200 - N1500 

Tomato paste (Medium) N550 - N700 

Tomato paste(small) 

N150-N350 

Tomato sachet (a roll) 

N230 

Pack of toilet roll (48pieces) N1500-N1,800 

A Satchet of milk 

N25-N50 

A Sachet of beverage 

N40-N50 

Toothpaste 

N50-N300 

5 Litres of Kerosine N1,100 

12.5kg. Cooking gas N3, 700-N4000 

Yam (1 tuber). N400- N1,000 

Ugu Leaf (a bundle) 3, 000 – N4,000 

A dozen of tied Ugu Leaf N750 

Moin-Moin Leaf (a dozen) N800-1,000, 

1 pack- N100 - N200 

Carton Titus ice Fish N19,000 

1 Carton of Kote ice fish N14,500 

1 Carton of Sawa iced Fish N10, 000, 1Kg-N600


By Theodore Opara 

L-r: Managing Director/ Country Delegate, CFAO Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Pelletier; Japanese Ambassador, 

Amb. Kikuta Yutaka; Chairman CFAO Nigeria Plc, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode; and Executive Director, 

International Marketing, Suzuki Motors, Mr. Koichi Suzuki...at the launch of Suzuki state-of-the-art 

showroom and Suzuki brand by CFAO Motors on Akin Adesola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. 

Nigeria, important market for 

Ashok Leyland — Satishan 

ASHOK Leyland, flagship 

of the Hinduja Group, 

along with Stallion Motors, its 

distributor in Nigeria for over 

a decade, has launched two 

light commercial vehicle - Partner 

and - Boss into the market. 

Stallion, a household name in 

Nigeria's auto industry controls 

45 per cent of the new car business 

and is also one of the 

strongest players in the commercial 

vehicle segment by virtue 

of its vast distribution network. 

The exclusive national 

partnership with Ashok Leyland 

has evolved with time to 

bring the best in class products 

and service to the Nigerian consumer. 

These commercial vehicles 

are assembled locally and 

are best engineered for Nigerian 

roads. 

CFAO launches Suzuki cars, offers free petrol, 

service to customers 

SUZUKI cars, one of Ja 

pan's renowned auto 

brands have been formally 

launched into the Nigerian 

market by CFAO Motors. The 

launch, which was well attended 

by dignitaries, including the 

Ambassador of Japan to Nigeria, 

Kikuta Yutaka, also witnessed 

the opening of a befitting 

showroom for the Suzuki 

car models on Akin Adesola 

Street, Victoria Island, popular 

known as Nigerias automobile 

avenue. 

Among other guests in attendance 

were the chairman of 

CFAO Nigeria Plc, Mr. Gbenga 

Oyebode; Managing Director/Country 

Delegate, CFAO 

Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Pelletier; 

Executive Director International 

Marketing Suzuki Motor, Mr. 

Koichi Suzuki. 

Speaking at the event, the 

Managing Director CFAO Nigeria, 

Mr. Pelletier said that 

CFAO has outlined a lot of 

goodies for Suzuki car customers 

in Nigeria. 

On the qualities of Suzuki 

cars, he said: “Our parnter, 

Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan 

is renowned for production 

of top quality and reliable vehicles 

which are widely trusted 

for durability and competitive 

prices. 

TNL revokes Globe Motors accreditation 

•We've made huge investments in auto business in the last 25 years — Globe MD 

TOYOTA Nigeria Limited, 

TNL has revoked the accreditation 

of Globe Motors as 

one of its dealers. 

Next Titan Reality TV Show: 

Coscharis keeps to Henry Ford ideal 

CONTESTANTS from the 

o n g o i n g 

entrepreneurial reality TV show, 

The Next Titan, paid a courtesy 

call on Coscharis Motors at their 

Ford office in Victoria Island, 

Lagos. 

Welcoming the contestants on 

behalf of the company, Abiona 

Babarinde, General Manager, 

Marketing and Corporate 

Communications at Coscharis 

Group said: “We are excited to 

support the Next Titan reality 

show once again. Henry Ford 

once said that a business that 

makes nothing but money is a 

poor business. Therefore, 

Coscharis aligns with Ford’s 

objective as a corporate citizen to 

support Nigeria’s upcoming 

business owners with 

entrepreneurial skills that will 

make a contribution towards the 

economy and for them to lead by 

example.” 

Coscharis Motors Plc, the sole 

official distributor of Ford vehicles 

in Nigeria and Ford Motor 

Company are the official 

automobile sponsors of the 

entrepreneurial reality TV show, 

for the fourth consecutive season. 

“Since inception of its 

participation in Next Titan, 

Coscharis Motors and Ford are 

proud to have given previous 

winners, over the past four 

seasons, Ford vehicles to help run 

their business. This year, the 

business will continue the 

momentum and give the winner 

of Season 6 a brand new Ford 

Figo," said Babarinde said. 

The Next Titan, now in its sixth 

season, is a platform for young 

entrepreneurs to demonstrate 

their talent in business. 

"As traditional with CFAO, we 

have already trained technicians 

with the support of the 

manufacturers and we have 

made provision for sufficient 

genuine spare parts at right 

place.” 

The highlight of the event was 

the announcement of the new 

Suzuki offer of financing starting 

from just N85,000 per month 

with an option to trade-in old 

cars subject to terms and conditions. 

In addition during the 

In an advertorial published recently, 

TNL said: “Globe Motors 

Holdings Nigeria Limited is no 

longer authorised to transact any 

business on behalf of Toyota Nigeria 

Limited. As such Toyota 

Nigeria will not be liable for business 

transactions with Globe 

Motors Holdings Nigeria Limited. 

To this end TNL said its dealers 

remain: Elizade Nigeria Limited, 

R. T. Briscoe (Nigeria) Plc, 

Omoriege Motors Limited, Germaine 

Auto Centre Limited, 

Mandilas Enterprises Limited, 

Metropolitan Motors Limited 

and Kojo Motors Limited. 

Reacting to the publication, 

Globe Motors through its Managing 

Director, Mr. Victor Oguamalam 

said that Globe Motors 

has been a leading distributor 

of Toyota vehicle in Nigeria in the 

last 25 years with huge investment 

in the auto industry. 

Oguamalam said: "Toyota Motors 

Company, TMC, the nuumber 

one automobile manufacturer 

company in the world has 

about four to five layers of distributorship 

for their products - 

first year, the customer does not 

pay for petrol or service. 

CFAO is a pioneer in automotive 

distribution and has 

been in Nigeria for 117 years. 

CFAO Motors is the distributor 

of the Suzuki brand in 26 

African countries with dedicated 

sales and aftersales support. 

The Suzuki models available in 

Nigeria include: Jimny, Vitara, 

Dzire, Baleno, Celerio, Alto and 

Ertiga. 

Toyota vehicles and spare parts - 

covering all continents of the 

world. All these distributors ensure 

that TMC standards are met 

and factory warranty of three 

years is ensured. Globe Motors 

is successfully linked to this value 

chain. 

"GML has been one of the leading 

distributors of Toyota vehicles 

in Nigeria in the last 25 years 

with a current inventory position 

and investment in automobile assembly 

plant on a 100,000 

square metres or prime real estate 

in Lekki corridor with a valuation 

in excess $150m. Our warranties 

are more valid than those 

of any other subset or moribund 

acronyms in the country. We import 

tropicalized vehicles built for 

Nigerian roads and climate. Our 

customers enjoy three-year warranty 

as stipulated by the manufacturer 

of Toyota vehicles. We 

have better backup services." 

Vanguard's investigation revealed 

that the rift between the 

two companies had been on since 

2017 but got to its height in the 

third quarter of 2019 as the two 

companies had to part ways. Toy- 

Speaking at the unveilinhg at 

Lagos Sheraton Hotel, Mr. 

Anant Badjatya, Group CEO 

for Stallion, reiterated that the 

launch of the light commercial 

vehicles from Ashok Leyland 

adds to the range and shows 

the company’s renewed commitment 

towards bringing 

tough dependable and durable 

vehicles for logistics use in affordable 

range to Nigerian customers. 

The company has sales 

and service outlets in Lagos, 

Abuja, Ibadan and Port Harcourt 

and has invested in a 

state-of-the-art central auto 

parts and service centre at 

Orile Lagos to support the distribution 

of genuine parts 

across the nation for the upkeep 

of these vehicles. 

In his remark, Ashok Leyland 

Zonal head Africa, Mr. O. 

Satishan, said: “Nigeria is an 

important African market for 

Ashok Leyland. The new range 

of fully built trucks will sport 

contemporary design, a newgeneration 

platform and will 

offer best-in-class efficiency, 

performance and comfort. They 

will reinforce our brand promise 

to offer the best products in 

all segments where we compete. 

We are offering two products 

that will provide the best 

total cost of ownership to our 

customers.” 

The key attributes of Partner 

are: Vehicle performance, customer 

profitability and driver 

comfort. 

ota Nigeria Limited has over the 

years built the Toyota brand in 

Nigeria with its dealers who kept 

to the highest ethical standards 

of automobile marketing business 

in Nigeria to the envy of distributors 

of other brands. 

Some of the services and products 

which are exclusive to Toyota 

accredited dealers include ensuring 

distribution of genuine 

spare parts with the right warranty 

and tropicalise vehicles 

adequate training for staff and 

ensuring that only tropicalised 

models are sold by their dealers. 

This development has led to Toyota 

products being the preferred 

brands by majority of Nigerians. 

Toyota products like Corolla, 

Camry, Avensis, Hilux, Hiace, 

Land Cruiser, RAV4, etc., have 

become household names as a 

result of Toyota Nigeria's strategic 

marketing of the brand in the 

country. 

Only recently, the Toyota Rush 

Sport Utility vehicle was added 

to the Toyota family in Nigeria to 

respond to the yearnings of 

young professionals that wish to 

own durable Toyota models.


•Kia Telluride 

•Kia Telluride SUV 

Kia's new largest SUV Telluride makes 

waves, beats competitors 

THOUGH it is yet to 

be introduced into 

the Nigerian market, Kia's 

largest vehicle, Telluride is 

making waves in the United 

States of America. 

Kia Motors America’s 

(KMA) largest vehicle ever 

- the Telluride - has been 

awarded 2020 SUV of the 

Year by MotorTrend. With 

its comfortable and functional 

interior, the Telluride 

stands out as a well-rounded 

product that meets the 

needs of today’s modern 

family, while its terrific value 

solidified it as a winner 

in the SUV segment. 

"The Telluride has been 

an undeniable success 

since its launch earlier this 

year, with an impressive 

number of consumers rediscovering 

Kia in the 

highly competitive SUV 

segment and more than 

45,000 units sold to-date,” 

said Michael Cole, president, 

Kia Motors America. 

“Earning MotorTrend’s 

coveted SUV of the Year 

award is an honour and a 

historic moment for the 

brand, serving to further 

reinforce Kia’s transformation 

to a world-class automaker. 

“Designed in California 

and assembled in Georgia, 

the 2020 Telluride’s bold 

and boxy shape and sophisticated 

exterior accents 

convey a spirit of adventure 

and possibility. 

That sentiment is 

strengthened by its engineering, 

delivering an enjoyable 

and confidence-inspiring 

driving experience. 

The mid-size SUV 

offers impressive interior 

luxury and an upscale cabin, 

complemented by an 

array of advanced technology 

and safety systems 

featuring standard Blind 

Spot Collision-Avoidance 

Assist Rear, Lane Following 

Assist, Rear Occupant 

Alert, Safe Exit Assist, Forward 

Collision Assist and 

available Highway Drive 

Assist, Driver Talk, multi- 

Bluetooth Connectivity 

and more. 

“This year’s MotorTrend 

SUV of the Year competition 

was one of the most 

competitive we’ve ever 

had, which makes Kia Telluride’s 

win all the more 

significant,” said Motor- 

Trend Editor-in-Chief Edward 

Loh. 

“Telluride absolutely 

nails our awards criteria – 

it’s gorgeous, spacious, 

technology-laden, and offers 

a great ride for an astonishingly 

fair price. Congratulations 

to Kia and 

the Telluride team. 

“With a more than 20- 

year history, the Motor- 

Trend SUV of the Year 

award is one of the most 

sought-after honors by global 

automotive manufacturers. 

SUV of the Year judges 

are comprised of Motor- 

Trend staff as well as two 

guest judges, Johan de 

Nysschen, former head of 

Audi of America, Infiniti 

Motor Co. and Cadillac division 

and Tom Gale, 

former head of Chrysler 

design. 

Range Rover Velar SVAutobiography Dynamic Edition for SSA 

JAGUAR Land Rover has 

finally offered the Range 

Rover Velar SVAutobiography 

Dynamic Edition to the 

Sub-Sahara Africa market. It 

should be recalled that when 

it debuted in 2017, the Range 

Rover Velar brought an enhanced 

dimension of glamour, 

modernity and elegance 

to the Range Rover family. 

Designed to fill the white 

space between the Range Rover 

Evoque and Range Rover 

Sport, the Velar offers levels 

of luxury, refinement and allterrain 

capability never before 

seen in the mid-size SUV segment. 

In sub-Sahara Africa, the 

Range Rover Velar is available 

with a selection of four-and 

six-cylinder diesel and petrol 

engines, but now it also comes 

as a range-topping Velar 

SVAutobiography Dynamic 

Edition with V8 supercharged 

power. 

The exclusive Range Rover 

Velar SVAutobiography Dynamic 

Edition has been developed 

by Land Rover Special 

Vehicles. Powered by a 

405kW and 680Nm 5.0-litre 

V8 supercharged engine, the 

•Range Rover Velar SVAutobiography Dynamic Edition 

new addition features a range 

of design enhancements and 

will be available for one year 

only. The powerful new model 

accelerates from 0-100km/ 

h in 4.5 seconds and is capable 

of 274km/h, while cosseting 

customers with traditional 

Range Rover refinement 

and comfort. 

Uprated brakes and suspension 

components, plus bespoke 

settings for everything 

from the powertrain to the safety 

systems, ensure the SVAutobiography 

Dynamic Edition 

mixes the personality of a performance 

car with the go-anywhere 

capability of a luxury 

mid-size SUV. 

On the outside, the awardwinning 

mid-size SUV features 

include a new front 

bumper with larger air intakes 

to feed the V8 Supercharged 

engine and cool the 

uprated braking system. A 

new grille and lower side 

mouldings combine with a 

revised rear bumper featuring 

integrated quad exhaust finishers. 

The exterior changes 

combine with a transmission 

tunnel undertray to ensure the 

fastest Velar in the range cuts 

through the air more efficiently. 

Even the Range Rover lettering 

on the bonnet and tailgate 

has been enhanced, with 

a knurled finish on the metal 

element of the two-piece letters 

adding a fresh degree of 

sophistication to the exterior. 

The SVAutobiography Dynamic 

Edition is also the only 

Velar available in Satin Byron 

Blue – a unique metallic 

paint finish from Special Vehicle 

Operations – and all 

models feature a contrast 

Narvik Black roof as standard. 

The lightweight 21-inch 

forged aluminium wheels 

weigh the same as the 20-inch 

rims on the core model, but 

customers can also specify 

optional 22-inch rims with a 

unique Silver Sparkle finish 

and diamond-turned edging 

or with a Dark Grey finish. 

I-PACE wins 

Golden 

Steering 

Wheel award 

JAGUAR’s all-electric 

Performance SUV has 

won Germany’s most famous 

car award, the Golden 

Steering Wheel. The I- 

PACE triumphed in the 

Mid-size SUV category, 

ahead of the Audi Q3 and 

Seat Tarraco. 

Designed and developed 

in the UK, the I- 

PACE was created from a 

clean sheet of paper with 

the aim of delivering the 

world’s best premium 

electric vehicle – and a true 

Jaguar driver’s car. Its 

combination of sports car 

performance, zero 

emissions, exceptional 

refinement, and all-wheel 

drive SUV usability and 

practicality make I-PACE 

the stand-out choice in its 

segment. 

A 90kWh lithium-ion battery 

enables a range of up 

to 470km (WLTP) and is 

capable of charging from 0- 

80% in around 72 minutes 

(60kW DC). 

The two light, compact 

and efficient Jaguardesigned 

motors generate 

a combined output of 

294kW and 696Nm of instant 

torque, delivering 0- 

100km/h in just 4.8 seconds. 

•L-R: Ifeanyi Agwu, organizer, Abuja International Motor Fair, Lecticia Onuzulike, 

Assistant Branch Manager, Coscharis Motors Plc, Abuja; Dr. Ahmed Bashar, SA to the 

Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment; Rukayat Dahiru, a Ford enthusiast 

and customer, Abiona Babarinde, General Manager, Marketing and Corporate Communications, 

Coscharis Group during the official unveiling of the Abuja International 

Motor Fair.

26 —Vanguard 

Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, , 2019 

THE Vice Chancellor, 

University of Lagos, 

UNILAG, Prof Oluwatoyin 

Ogundipe has urged the 

graduating students of Diploma 

in Mosque Leadership and 

Management, DMLM to be good 

ambassadors of the school and 

Islam, urging them to positively 

change the society through their 

sermons and mosque leadership. 

Ogundipe stated this during the 

graduation ceremony of the 30 

graduating students who 

received Diploma certificates in 

Mosque Leadership under the 

department of Religious studies 

of the institution last weekend. 

The Vice Chancellor who was 

represented by the Dean, Faculty 

of Education, Prof. Monday 

Ubangha congratulated the new 

Imams urging them to impact 

positively on the society. 

“I urge you to be good 

ambassadors of the University of 

Lagos and Islam. You are 

carrying the certificate of the 

school and you are enjoined to 

be good representatives of the 

school at all times,” he said. 

The Coordinator of the 

programme, Ag. HOD, 

Department of Religious Studies, 

Dr. Ismail Musa said 

“Today, 30 students have been 

successfully exposed to various 

learning experiences including 

practical demonstrations in 

Tafsir and Khutbah delivery. 

The programme was conceived 

as a platform for professional 

training of lmams and different 

categories of serving or intending 

officials of mosques. 

“The feedback we obtain from 

the beneficiaries in terms of 

significant changes in their 

orientation and understanding of 

Rabiul Thaani 1, 1441 A.H. 

UNILAG trains 30 Imams in Mosque Mgt 

•VC urges them to be good ambassadors 

their enormous responsibilities 

is both impressive and 

encouraging. Our colleagues in 

the academia have also been 

appraising the programme since 

its inception. 

Dr Musa who is also the Chief 

Imam of school, said two 

universities have already 

indicated interest in mounting 

similar programmes based on the 

success story at the University of 

Lagos. 

“We are prepared to offer 

mentoring services to whoever 

decides to build capacity of 

lmams to be able to meet the 

needs of the 2lst century. We are 

keen on improving the quality of 

the programme through the 

identification of further needs of 

participants and responding to 

them adequately. 

“One critical area of challenge 

is securing sponsorship for 

numerous qualified participants 

who are cannot afford the cost 

of the programme. I take this 

opportunity to call on 

stakeholders to recognize the 

need to support the programme 

by funding our scholarship 

schemes on a sustainable basis. 

“Some of them have 

demonstrated brilliance in 

specific areas of their training. We 

have decided to recognize them 

specially today. 

Imam Gbenle AbdulWasiy 

emerged as the best graduating 

student with a cumulative GPA 

of 4.64. He also clinched the Best 

Prize in Arabic Grammar and 

Khutbat presentation, Best in 

Principle of Mosque 

Management and Best in 

Professional Research. He was 

closely followed by Imam 

Mojeed Yahya Kolawole with 

CGPA of 4.21. 

Delivering lecture at the event, 

Sheikh Ridwani Zuglool, Mudeer 

of Daru-Dawah Wal-Irshad, 

Arabic and Islamic Center, Isolo 

urged the graduands to continue 

to seek knowledge, keep abreast 

with developments in the country 

so as to be able to treat issues of 

interest in their sermons. 

The Chairman of the Occasion, 

Dr. Fatai Lawal described the 

programme as laudable and one 

way of promoting peace and 

unity in the country. He 

congratulated the graduands 

urging them to make the mosque 

a more friendly environment 

where people will be encouraged 

to seek knowledge. In the same 

vein, Prof Wakeel Isola who is the 

chairman of Human Resources 

Development Center of the 

institution stated that the success 

of the programme would provide 

a solution path to the plethora of 

socio-economic problems 

confronting the nation as the new 

religious leaders would 

positively impact on the society. 

Also, Prof M. A Bidmus on his 

part, urged the new Imams to 

further their knowledge as 

according to the Prophet, 

knowledge is from the cradle to 

the grave. He added that the 

mosque was designed for 

sustainability and that the 

Institution had provided the 

expertise with which they can 

sustain the mosques in their 

respective areas. Others who 

presented goodwill messages 

were the Baba Adini of Lagos and 

Chairman of the Lagos Central 

Mosque Council, Sheikh 

AbdulHafeez Abou and Head of 

Imams, Imam Tijani 

Gbajabiamila who also 

represented the Grand Chief 

Imam of Lagos State at the 

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 

MUSWEN calls for Sharia Courts ts in 

South West 

est 

THE Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria recently advocated 

establishment of Shariah Courts in all the six states in the South 

Western parts of Nigeria. 

MUSWEN in a communique made available to newsmen at the end 

of the 4th MUSWEN General Assembly held in Ibadan, Oyo State 

maintained that the creation of the Shari’ah courts in South West 

states “is necessary in order to cater for the yearnings of Muslims 

who are in the majority.” 

Part of the communique reads that, “Shari‘ah Court should be 

established by governments in the Southwestern Nigeria in catering 

for the yearnings of Muslims who are in the majority to replace 

Shari‘ah Panels being operated presently by Muslim organizations”. 

“That Shari‘ah Court should be established by governments in the 

Southwestern Nigeria in catering for the yearnings of Muslims who 

are in the majority to replace Shari‘ah Panels being operated presently 

by Muslim organizations. That to ensure proper administration of 

justice, MUSWEN advocates urgent judicial reform, taking a cue 

from the principle of Islamic Judicial System.” 

MUSWEN added, “these Shari’ah courts when established, would 

replace Shari‘ah panels being operated presently by Muslim 

organizations in the region.” 

Concerning the Hijab issue, MUSWEN insisted that “institution of 

Hijab is sacrosanct in Islam and cannot be compromised for Muslim 

girls and women in any part of the country,” 

“ Institution of Hijab is sacrosanct in Islam and cannot be 

compromised for Muslim girls and women in any part of the country. 

MUSWEN further reiterates its commitment to Hijab struggle not 

only in the southwest but throughout the country as provided for, 

under freedom of religion in the constitution of the Federal Republic 

of Nigeria.”. 

It pointed out that the issue of Hijab controversy at the International 

School, University of Ibadan should be legitimately pursued and 

that the Ummah should do so within the ambits of the law.”. 

MUSWEN in the communique also frowned at what it termed as 

political lopsidedness against Muslims in the Southwest and at the 

Federal Level. 

On the state of the nation, MUSWEN said “ there have been some 

modest improvements in the state of the nation under the present 

administration.” and that “Federal Government should intensify 

efforts to diversify the economy of the nation”. 

MUSWEN in the communique also announced the appointment of 

Professor Muslih Yahya, a retired Professor of Arabic and Islamic 

Studies from the University of Jos as new Executive Secretary, 

following expiration of the tenure of the pioneer Executive Secretary, 

Professor Dawud Noibi. 

From Left: Sheikh Ridwanullah Zuglool, Mudeer, Daru-Dawah Wal Irshad Arabic From left: Dr. Ismail Musa, Coordinator/Ag. H.O.D, Department of Religious 

Center, Isolo; Alhaji M. O Junaid; Dr. Fatai Lawal, Chairman of the Occasion; Studies, and Chief Imam of UNILAG; Chairman, UNILAG Muslim 

Prof Monday Ubangha, Dean, Faculty of Education, and Representative of the Community, Prof Lai Olurode and Founder, Jama’atu Ahlillah, JAMALI, 

Vice Chancellor, UNILAG and Prof Wakeel Isola, Chairman, Human Resources Imam Abdullah Akinbode during the graduation ceremony held at the 

Development Centre, UNILAg during the occasion. 

Mosque, Multipurpose hall, University of Lagos, Akoka, recently.

Rabiul Thaani 1, 1441 A.H. 

NAHCON Act ct on tenure of chairman, 

commissioners 

By Ibrahim Muhammed 

“There is no shame in not 

knowing; the shame lies in not 

finding out” – Rusian Proverb 

HAJJ administration in 

Nigeria witnessed a 

historic moment on Thursday, 

24th May 2007 inside the 

Olusegun Obasanjo hall in the office 

of The Head of Civil Service of the 

Federation. It was the day hajj 

administration was erected on a 

pillar of law and defines 

regulations. That was the day the 

then Secretary to the government 

of the federation, Mahmud Yayale 

Ahmed formally inaugurates 

members of the boards of the 

national hajj commission of 

Nigeria. Hajj operations took an 

upward swing since that historic 

day. 

Members of the national hajj 

commission inaugurated on that 

day are: Alhaji Muhammed Musa 

Bello, the current Minister of FCT 

as Chairman/Chief Executive 

Officer. The Full-time 

commissioners are: Alhaji Liadi 

Tella and Dr Badmus O. Yusuf. 

Part-Time members representing 

Geo-political zones are Sheikh 

Adams Idoko representing South 

East Zone, Alhaja Fatimah Oyekan 

representing South West Zone, 

Alhaji Ahmed Efebili representing 

South-South Zone, Sheikh Musa 

Isa representing North Central 

Zone. Alhaji Salisu Ado Shinkafi 

from North West. Zone and Hajiya 

Hannatu Sanda Birma amount to 

North East Zone 

Please, permit me to share with 

you some vital parts of the 

inaugural speech of the then 

secretary to the government of the 

federation vis-a-vis the position of 

the NAHCON ESTABLISHMENT 

ACT 2006 as it relates to the office 

of Chairman and other members 

of the commission. 

Furthermore, NAHCON ACT 

2006 separated the office of 

Chairman as a distinct office from 

the three permanent 

commissioners. Office of 

Chairman as the chief accounting 

officer is not the same as the office 

of Permanent Commissioners as 

contained in NAHCON 

establishment 2006. 

On the composition of the 

commission, Section 3 (1) stated 

that the commission shall consist 

of (A) The chairman who shall be: 

i) The Chief Executives and 

accounting officer of the 

commission; ii) Responsible for 

the commission for the day to day 

management of the commission. 

This was followed by section 3 

sub-section (b) which stated that 

“Three full-term members and six 

part-time members representing 

two geopolitical zones two who 

shall be women. 

Interpretatively, Section 3 (A) 

sub-section 1 and 2 stands on its 

own and it clearly defines the office 

of chairman while section 3 (B) 

deals with the appointment of 

permanent commissioners. 

This shows that there is a clear 

difference between the office of the 

Chairman of NAHCON and that of 

the permanent commissioners. 

Consequently, whoever 

occupies the office of Permanent 

Commissioner for 8 years can be 

appointed as Chairman for 

another eight years. That is the 

position of NAHCON 

Establishment Act 2006. 

Moreover, the current Ag 

Chairman and the commissioner 

in charge of operation have 

served only one term in office as 

Chairman and Commissioner of 

Operation respectively. 

Their reappointment in acting 

capacity falls within the scope of 

NAHCON act as they can still be 

considered for another term 

(second-term) of 4 years or be 

allowed to operate pending when 

new boards are constituted. 

President Muhamadu Buhari 

administrative policies have been 

on consolidation of service 

delivery through Ministries, 

departments and agencies. This 

commendable vision saw the 

second coming of the Governor 

of Central Bank Godwin Emefiele. 

The chairman of the Revenue 

Mobilisation, Allocation and 

Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Elias 

Mbam was also reappointed due 

to his good record. 

The current Ag NAHCON 

Chairman, Abdullahi Mukhtar 

Muhammed and his team are 

widely acknowledged as the 

engine inside the moving 

transformation vehicle in 

NAHCON in the last 8 years. They 

deserve a second term as 

Chairman of NAHCON to 

consolidate the gains of their 

achievements. 

Note that Section 20(1) of the 

National Hajj Commission Act 

2006 squarely places the 

supervision of the Commission 

under the Presidency. So, if the 

Presidency whose responsibility 

it is to supervise NAHCON says it 

is satisfied with the status quo, who 

then will say no? 

Muhammed is the National 

Coordinator, Independent Hajj 

Reporters 

Hon. Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Pharm. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf (middle) 

receiving the 2019 Hajj report from the Chairman, Ad-hoc Committee, Alh. Jebe Ahmad 

Abdullahi (left). With them from right are, the Ad-hoc committee Vice Chairman, Alhaja 

Muhibat Rufai; Board Secretary, Mr. Rahman Ishola; Permanent Secretary, Mrs. 

Adebunmi Adekanye and Director, Home Affairs, Mrs. Olubunmi Fatimikun, during 

the presentation of the report held at the Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, recently. 

"Vanguard, 

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 29, 2019 —27 

MURIC wants speedy trials, death 

sentence for looters 

•Asks NASS to rescue Nigeria, support 

Buhari 

THE Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has recommended speedy 

trials, death sentence and life imprisonment for looters through 

the special courts. 

MURIC in a statement signed by its Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola 

also called on National Assembly to support President Muhammadu 

Buhari in his efforts to put Nigeria back on the right track. It will be 

recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari recently appealed to 

members of the nineth National Assembly NASS to support his 

programmes. 

According to MURIC, “If looters who are less than 1% of the population 

can arrogate to themselves more than 85% of Nigeria’s total wealth, if 

kleptomaniacs can sentence more than 198 million Nigerians to a life of 

total darkness, pot-hole ridden roads, hunger, illiteracy and disease, 

why shouldn’t we have special courts that will sentence the same looters 

to life imprisonment or even death (as in China) after speedy trials? 

“In our concluding remarks, we charge the nineth NASS to cooperate 

fully with President Muhammadu Buhari in the interest of Nigeria. We 

demand bills for the creation of special courts to try looters. We urge the 

NASS to ignore the tauntings, insinuations and provocations from fifth 

columnists. We call for the support of legislators for bills sponsored by 

the executive, approval for its projects and speedy confirmation for its 

nominees.” 

“Nigeria has seen better times in terms of the attitude of the legislature. 

The nineth NASS must distant itself from the parliamentary rascality for 

which the eighth NASS was known. Decorum was thrown to the winds 

under Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara. 

“It was the era of rebellious and unscrupulous lawmakers, legislative 

charlatans, traitors of the cause of democracy, enemies of probity and 

accountability and champions of lootocracy. Bitter politics made the 

eighth NASS delay the budget for seven months during which the masses 

whistled for their dinner while lawmakers had breakfast in Rome, lunch 

in Florence and dinner in Venice. It was the age of theatricals and 

professional tree-climbers took the driving seat. The leadership of the 

eighth Senate saw himself as invincible until the ‘O to gee’ revolution 

pulled the rug from his feet from far away Kwara. 

“However, Nigerians have seen the difference in the nineth NASS. We 

have seen purposeful leadership and patriotism in the new crop of 

legislators. These must translate to result-oriented legislation. Our 

lawmakers must realize that only a harmonious relationship between 

the executive and the lawmakers can give Nigerians the dividends of 

democracy. But corruption has been the monster standing between 

the latter and the citizenry. 

The human rights group called on the NASS to rescue Nigeria. 

“The nineth National Assembly must come to the nation’s rescue. It is 

therefore not just about President Muhammadu Buhari. It is about 

Nigeria. The current NASS, especially Senate, must therefore set the 

machinery in motion for the establishment of special courts to try 

looters. The existing courts are being bogged down by technicalities 

and red-tapism. Our people say if a child masters the art of dying, the 

mother must perfect the art of immortality. If looters are bent on using 

part of their booty to beat prosecution, our lawmakers must design 

ways of beating them in their own game. 

Lagos Muslim Pilgrims Board submits 

2019 19 Hajj report 

THE Lagos State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board has formally 

presented the Y2019 Hajj report to the State Governor, Mr. 

Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu. 

The report was received by the Hon. Commissioner, Ministry of 

Home Affairs, Pharm. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf on behalf of the 

Governor from the Chairman, Ad-hoc Committee for Y2019 Hajj 

operation, Alh. Jebe Ahmad Abdullahi, in the conference room of 

the ministry, recently. 

After the presentation, the Commissioner on behalf of the State 

Government thanked God and appreciated the members for ensuring 

a hitch-free hajj exercise. She stressed that the commitment shown 

by the committee was responsible for the successes recorded during 

the operation. 

Pharm. Akinbile-Yussuf who promised to personally read the 

report and forward same to Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, 

assured the members that she would encourage Mr. Governor to 

issue a letter of commendation to them in recognition of their selfless 

service to the state. 

While promising to take advantage of the committee’s 

recommendations with a view to improving future operations, the 

Commissioner urged them not to hesitate to render selfless service 

to the state whenever they are called upon. 

Earlier in his address, the Committee Chairman, Alh. Jebe said that 

the committee which was inaugurated by the Deputy Governor, Dr. 

Kadri Obafemi Hamzat fews days before the commencement of 

airlifting exercise, immediately set up sub-committees in order to 

make the exercise seamless. 

He gave the list of the sub-committees and their heads to include, 

Alh. Hakeem Shittu (Finance); Hon. Jubreel AbdulKareem 

(Transport); Hon. Hakeem Bamgbola (Accommodation) and Imam 

Shakirudeen Gafar (Mina/Arafat/Madina) 

Others are Imam Hakeem Lawal (Dawah); Hadja Muinat Ajose and 

Muhibat Rufai (Welfare); Alh. Abubakar Olamilekan (Luggage); Alh. 

Bashiru Adekoya (Publicity) and Alh. Tajudeen Alabi (Adviser). 

Alh. Jebe who is presently the Special Adviser to the Governor on 

Islamic Affairs, stressed that every member of the committee 

including the Board Secretary and members of staff worked 

assiduously towards ensuring that the state’s pilgrims received the 

best of treatment through out their stay in the Kingdom of Saudi 

Arabia.


We’ll resist RUG 

UGA with our blood, say y Akok 

oko 

communities ‘We woke up to see NLTP signpost’ 

•Pic of the controversial signpost erected in each of the four communities 


A KURE—FOUR 

communities in Akoko, agrarian 

the 

Northern Senatorial Districts in 

Ondo State are on collision 

course with the state government 

for allegedly covertly ceding their 

land for RUGA without any 

consultation and their consent. 

The state government had 

designated the communities for 

the establishment of the National 

Livestock Transformation Plan, 

NLTP. 

Stakeholders in the 

communities are angered that 

they, including their traditional 

rulers, only woke up to see the 

signpost of NLTP at their doorstep 

by the state government without 

any prior knowledge or briefing 

by the government and its 

agencies. 

Speculations were rife across 

the communities that Governor 

Rotimi Akeredolu wanted to use 

the programme in the Northern 

Senatorial District, where he hails 

from, to play his second term 

ambition card. 

Leaders of the four 

communities namely Auga, lse, 

Ikakumo and Akunnu, AIKA, 

have not only threatened to drag 

the state government to the court 

of law for the forceful takeover but 

resist it with their blood. 

The four communities met 

recently and reached an 

agreement to reject the project 

because they were kept in the 

dark by the government. 

Vanguard gathered that the 

stakeholders have mandated 

their traditional rulers to meet 

with the government and convey 

their displeasure and rejection. 

They kicked against the state 

government’s action insisting 

that no consultation was made 

before it was decided that their 

communities should be used for 

the project. 

Speaking with Vanguard, a 

prominent leader in Akunnu, 

Alhaji Kazeem Idris, said: “We are 

not happy that we woke up to see 

a signpost at our doorstep saying 

the area had been earmarked for 

NLTP better known as RUGA. 

The government’s action is not 

only unfortunate but arrogant. 

“The community was not 

consulted or carried along. Even 

the traditional rulers knew 

nothing. 

“Government did this without 

regards to anybody. We are crop 

farmers. The government could 

have done better by assisting us 

with a functional cassava 

processing factory, cashew 

processing or even better still, 

motorable road to get our 

products to its consumers. 

“We are amazed that the Ondo 

State Government could 

introduce this project into our life 

so covertly, it is a shame. None 

of the communities were preinformed 

or regarded. They just 

woke up to a signpost at their 

doorstep. 

By Dapo Akinrefon 

AKURE—IN a move aimed at 

developing the oil rich community 

of Ilaje, prominent personalities 

from the community 

converged io Akure, Ondo State 

last week to brainstorm on ways 

of achieving this. 

To achieve this, the Ilaje sons 

and daughters are embarking on 

a strategic, deliberate and 

structured path in building an 

enviable community. 

After much brainstorming, the 

strategic gathering, made of 

professionals and technocrats, 

led to the establishment of the 

Ilaje Development Summit 

Group, IDSG. 

The IDSG, held at the DOME 

in Akure had a convergence of 

stakeholders from Ilaje including 

traditional rulers, politicians 

across party divide, religious 

leaders, and top government 

functionaries among other 

relevant stakeholders. 

Summit not just a talk shop— 

Ogunyomi, BoT chairman 

In his opening speech, 

chairman, Board of Trustees of 

IDSG, Asiwaju Oluyemi 

Ogunyomi, said the inaugural 

summit was conceptualized to 

address the common purpose of 

developing Ilaje in a sustainable 

way. 

According to him, the summit 

is poised at engaging 

stakeholders in fashioning out a 

“The land actually belongs to 

Odua Investments. We leased it 

to Odua Investments years ago 

for 99 years or so.” 

You can’t negotiate our 

ancestral lands—Auga leader 

Another leader from Auga, 

Oriowo Hakeem said: “We do not 

support a programme that is 

disguised as RUGA or one that 

we are not properly briefed 

about. 

“We support everything 

agriculture. We are 

predominantly farmers, crop 

farmers not livestock. Must we 

be forced into what we don’t 

know anything about? 

plan of implementation that will 

move Ilaje community forward 

saying “the summit is not just a 

talk shop but a realistic 

opportunity to make a mark on 

the resurgence of hope and 

reinvention of the people as a 

community.” 

Also speaking, Rev. Adesola 

Adebawo said “irrespective of 

political affiliations, all sons and 

daughters of Ilaje must come 

together and lend their voices to 

the proposed Development Plan 

Agenda as there is wisdom in the 

multitude of counsel.” 

In his presentation, Mr. 

Andrew Omomehin, while 

highlighting some of the 

challenges confronting Ilaje 

community, said the regional 

development plan being 

canvassed will cover all areas of 

endeavour. 

Some of the plans he 

highlighted include the 

development of new towns and 

gated communities like VGC in 

Lagos, building of digital 

innovation hub and as well 

opening up the community as 

access brings development. 

Akeredolu commends IDSG 

In his keynote address, 

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of 

Ondo State, hailed the organizers 

for coming up with the initiative 

saying “Ilaje people are one of 

the most resourceful set of people 

in Ondo State.” 

Akeredolu, who was 

represented by his Special 

Teach us how to process our 

yam, garri and cashew. Give us 

the processing facilities. We don’t 

want to learn a new trade. 

“It is important that all AIKA 

communities should rise up as a 

body to this development. There 

was no consultation. There is a 

fear that this will gradually turn 

to become a RUGA project. We 

reject this development, more so, 

the Federal Government I am 

aware has put a caveat to such 

programmes, indicating that 

where there are oppositions, the 

project would be moved to other 

states. 

“Government cannot decide to 

allocate an area for livestock 

without discussing with the 

owners of the land. You would 

have to explain your programme 

to the indigenous people and 

decide with them on the best way 

to forge ahead. They shouldn’t 

just wake up and find a signpost 

at their doorstep. We are crop 

farmers and not livestock farmers. 

This development is suspicious. 

“We have not benefited from the 

government in the last 20 years. 

We have no roads, no schools, no 

hospitals, health centers without 

doctors, no market, no single 

agro-processing industry, yet the 

only thing the government has 

thought about is to make us a 

dumping ground for cows, pigs 

and goats. We need motorable 

roads for agriculture. Are they 

going to move the cows on 

motorcycles to the abattoir? Why 

put the cart before the horse? Our 

fears are well-founded and Ondo 

State could have done better. You 

just don’t dump things on us 

without reaching out to us to at 

least notify us even if you will not 

seek our consent. This is a 

democracy, not a military regime. 

You cannot negotiate our ancestral 

lands without informing us. 

“We will resist it with the last 

drop of our blood. We are not 

pawns in a chess game. 

It’s RUGA in disguise—PDP 

Meanwhile, the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, amongst 

other groups, have frowned at the 

programme insisting it was 

RUGA in disguise. 

The South West PDP, through 

Adviser on Investment, Mr. Boye 

Oyewumi, also used the 

opportunity to affirm 

government’s readiness to 

ensure the take off of the deep 

sea port. 

He said: “Beyond citing 

massive structures in the 

community, the people must be 

ready to address the issue of 

insecurity without which 

everything amounts to nothing.” 

On his part, the head of 

ONDIPA, Mr. Femi Akarakiri 

urged the leadership of Ilaje 

communities on the need to 

manage hooliganism, vandalism 

and as well improve intelligence 

gathering mechanism. 

Also, Mr. Banji Okunomo 

described the summit as a 

welcome development just as he 

called for a united front in 

its Publicity Secretary, Ayo Fadaka, 

said: “The idea that there must 

be a National Livestock 

Transformation Plan is not itself a 

bad one, it is indeed a concept 

that should have been 

implemented many decades 

back. 

“It is sad enough that the issue 

of cattle and Fulani have become 

a sensitive matter in the nation 

since the inauguration of 

President Buhari as Commander 

in Chief since 2015. 

“If the goal of the project is to 

create a ranch where indigenes 

can have active participation in 

animal husbandry, it is a welcome 

decision, but if the intent is to 

import some Fulani and their 

cattle to Ondo State, it is certainly 

not a welcome development.” 

It’s not RUGA—Ondo govt 

However, in a swift reaction, the 

state government has allayed the 

fear of the people that the 

programme was RUGA in 

disguise. 

The Senior Special Adviser SSA 

to the state governor on 

Agribusiness and Empowerment 

Akin Olotu, in his reaction, said: 

“The National livestock 

transformation plan is not RUGA. 

It is not about cattle only. It is not 

about beef only. It is about the 

holistic development of the sector. 

“Ondo State is not doing RUGA. 

We are doing the upscaling of the 

entire links on the value- chain 

of the sector, using a PPP 

approach. Ours include Piggery, 

Dairy, Beef and goats etc. Who 

says Yoruba cannot go into the 

business? Who is saying 

Christians cannot go into it? 

“Our agenda under the 

national livestock transformation 

plan involves goat as well. It 

involves a breeder station, where 

our livestock entrepreneurs will 

have access to sexed semen for 

artificial insemination and breeds 

of calves, goats, piglets that are 

of better quality. 

“The National Livestock 

Transformation Plan, NLTP, is for 

us all. It is a business for us. It is 

not an ethnic issue. It is not about 

any religion. It is about our 

people, our economy, our future 

and our well being.” 

When IDSG mapped out blueprint for Ilaje devt 

vt 

•Co-convener of the summit and Executive administrator of the IDSG, 

Rev. Adesola Adebawo (middle) moderating the Executive session 

and panelists, Mr. Femi Akarakiri of the Ondo State Development 

and Investment Promotion Agency, ONDIPA, and Dr. Molayoto Abiola, 

Secretary, Board of Trustees of the IDSG during the inaugural summit 

of the group in Akure, Ondo State. 

wielding state power to be in a 

position to influence policy 

direction that would bring about 

the desired change. 

Govt must tackle insecurity— 

Oba Ogbaru 

The Odoka of Obe Ogbaru, Oba 

Femi Ogbaru, while also 

applauding the initiative to 

organize the summit said 

government must be ready to 

combat issues of insecurity as it 

is not peculiar to Ilaje community 

alone. 

Security should be all-inclusive 

—Ilaje LG boss 

Speaking on the state of 

insecurity in the area, the 

chairman of Ilaje council, Mr. 

Otito Atikase, said government 

cannot do it alone adding that the 

“issue of security is everybody’s 

business.”

HORROR IN OSUN: 

When mother 

allegedly kills child to 

punish husband 

By Shina Abubakar were looking for his 

O 

whereabouts early in the 

SOGBO — A mother, morning. 

Mrs. Rukayat It was gathered that their 

Abdulrahmon, allegedly neighbours joined in the search 

confessed to killing her 3-year for the boy in the neighborhood 

old boy as a punitive measure but their effort was futile after 

to her husband, Raheem, few searching different houses in 

days to the dissolution of their the area. 

union. 

However, while a lady in the 

Investigations showed that the house attempted to fetch water 

deceased, Ganiyu, was the only for laundry, the body was 

child she had for her husband, discovered in the well dug to 

which is her third marriage. serve occupants of the house. 

Besides, the couple had not The neighbours quickly 

been having a healthy entered into the well to retrieve 

relationship, as a Sharia Court the body, hoping that he might 

in the state had given the be resuscitated, but it was late 

embattled couple three months as the body was recovered 

to go their separate ways if they lifelessly. 

cannot resolve their differences. However, a source in the 

The incident occurred five house 

confided 

days to the expiration of the 90 in Vanguard that the boy could 

days given by the court. have open the cover, because of 

The residents of Olorunosebi its weight, and jump into the 

community at Kola Balogun well and still closed it. 

area of Osogbo, in Osun State, 

had on Sunday, November 17, Police arrest couple 

woke up to the cries of the The police arrested the parents 

couple searching for the as the prime suspects and later 

deceased, whom they claimed other tenants in the building. 

slept in the same room with Investigation revealed that the 

them. 

woman confessed to the police 

They were thrown into that she wanted to punish her 

confusion as the body was found husband and ensure that he 

in a well in the house, which is does not gain anything out of 

a storey building. 

the union. 

Co-tenants in the building When contacted, the 2 I/C 

where the incident happened police Public Relations Officer 

woke up to the cries of the of Osun Police Command, 

parents of the deceased who Mustapha Ketayeyanjue, 

ABEOKUTA — 

GOVERNOR Dapo Abiodun 

of Ogun State has said that 

plans are on to de-worm about 

900,000 school children in the 

on-going health awareness 

programme across 10 local 

government areas in the state. 

Governor Abiodun has, 

therefore, called on parents 

and guardians to work 

harmoniously with the health 

workers who are saddled with 

the responsibility of carrying 

out the ongoing school-based 

de-worming exercise across 

the selected 10 local 

government areas. 

Speaking through the 

Permanent Secretary, Ministry 

of Health, Dr. Adesanya 

Ayinde in Abeokuta, the 

governor said the exercise is 

an opportunity for the children 

to get rid of worms that may 

have adverse health effects 

and make them susceptible to 

skin and respiratory 

infections. 

Dr. Ayinde further revealed 

that a total of 839, 273 

children is targeted during the 

EDITOR: Dayo Johnson (08033509763) 

Deputy Editor: Dapo Akinrefon 

08023844928 (sms only) 

CORRESPONDENTS: 

Ola Ajayi 

Ibadan 

Dare Fasube 

(Photo) 

Rotimi Ojomoyela 

Ekiti 

Monsuru Olowoopejo Lagos 

Adeola Badru 

Ibadan 

Shina Abubakar 

Osogbo 

James Ogunnaike 

Abeokuta 

•Mrs. Rukayat Abdulrahmon: Allegedly confessed to killing 

her 3-year old boy. 

confirmed the incident, saying 

the woman is cooperating with 

the police investigation. 

exercise across 4,900 schools 

in the designated 10 local 

government areas. 

The second round of the 

exercise for children between 

ages 5 and 14, commenced 

last Friday and will end on 

November 24. 

The designated Local 

Government Areas are: 

Abeokuta South, Abeokuta 

North, Ifo, Odeda, Yewa 

North, Yewa South, Odogbolu, 

Sagamu, Ijebu North and 

Ogun Waterside respectively. 

He said contrary to 

insinuations in some quarters, 

the exercise is meant to 

enhance the children’s health 

and help guard against 

untoward health conditions 

that may result in absenteeism 

from school. 

Ayinde commended the 

present administration in the 

state for the timely schoolbased 

deworming of children, 

the Permanent Secretary 

admonished parents, 

guardians and all 

stakeholders to allow their 

children and wards to 

participate in the exercise. 

In her remarks, the State 


As at the time of filing this 

report, the tenants in the house 

have been released. 

Ogun to de-worm 839,273 73 school children — Gov v Abiodun 

By James Ogunnaike 

Coordinator, Neglected 

Tropical Diseases, Dr. 

Islamiyat Soneye, thanked the 

parents for their enthusiasm 

towards the school-based 

deworming exercise, urging 

them to encourage their 

friends to take part in the 

exercise to avoid infecting 

others. 

Dr. Soneye noted that 

parents should endeavour to 

deworm their kids in another 

three months to keep them 

healthy. 

While monitoring the 

exercise in Odeda Local 

Government area, the Medical 

Officer of Health in charge of 

the area, Dr. Olusan 

Oluwaseun, noted that the 

turn-out was impressive, just 

as he assured that all schools 

within the area will be 

touched without leaving any 

out of the programme. 

Dr. Olusan appreciated the 

teachers for their support 

which has made the task easy 

to carry-out, pointing out that 

children who are yet to be 

dewormed will be attended to 

in the coming days. 

Akeredolu 

performs 

ground- 

breaking of 

N230m Mother 

and Child 

Hospital 


A KURE—THE groundbreaking 

of the N230 

million Mother and Child 

Hospital at Ode Ugbo, Ilaje 

council area of Ondo State 

has been performed by 

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu 

with a promise of qualitative 

and affordable health services 

across the state. 

Governor Akeredolu said 

his administration would 

partner with groups and 

associations that share similar 

concerns to achieve a 

healthier state. 

The health facility is a joint 

project of the Ilaje Regional 

Development Initiative 

Committee, IRDC and 

Amalgamation of Ilaje Ugbo 

Coastal Communities 

Association, AMAICOMMA, 

with support from Chevron 

Nigeria Limited. 

Akeredolu, who spoke 

through his deputy, Mr. 

Agboola Ajayi, noted that 

“This project is in tandem with 

the sincere efforts of the 

Akeredolu-led government to 

improve people’s access to 

good health facilities.” 

Speaking at the event, 

Chairman of AMAICOMMA, 

Mr. Taiwo Orisabinone, 

commended the bidding 

process that paved the way 

for the emergence of the 

contractor handling the 

project. 

Orisabinone said: “The 

contractor emerged after a 

well-thought-out process, in 

keeping with the principles of 

transparency and 

accountability which are core 

values of the MoU.” 

Similarly, Chairman of Ilaje 

RDC, Mr. Ade Omomowo, 

was optimistic that the health 

facility would improve 

healthcare delivery, and 

enhance the quality of life in 

the oil-producing 

communities of the region. 

Also, the General 

Manager, Policy, Government, 

and Public Affairs, Mr. Brikini 

Esimaje, commended efforts 

that culminated in the 

ground-breaking ceremony, 

after a successful bid, adding 

that Chevron Nigeria Limited 

will continue to support the 

communities. 

Esimaje said: “The success 

we have recorded generally 

through GMoU/OMoU 

process reinforce CNL’s belief 

that the community-driven 

participatory model can 

stimulate quicker 

development process than a 

system designed without the 

effective participation of the 

communities and other 

relevant stakeholders.”





From left— Rwanda Chief Investment Officer, Guy Baron (middle), flanked by Revd Mother Esther 

Abimbola Ajayi (left) and her husband, Revd Dr Ademuyiwa Ajayi, in Kigali, Rwanda. 

Catholic church marches against 

ritual killings, internet fraud 

By Jimitota 

Onoyume 

W ARRI—MEMBERS 

of Catholic Diocese of 

Warri, Delta State, have 

embarked on a march 

against ritual killings and 

internet fraud by Yahoo 

Boys, pleading that they 

could still make it in life if 

they embraced hard work . 

Led by Reverend Father 

Emmanuel Obadjere, 

Director Justice 

Development and Peace 

Commission, JDPC, of the 

Diocese and the Priest 

incharge of St Williams 

Catholic Church, 

Orerokpe, headquarters of 

Okpe local government 

area, they marched down 

to the palace of the Orodje 

of Okpe kingdom in 

Orerokpe from St Williams 

Catholic church. 

Father Obadjere told the 

Orodje of Okpe kingdom, 

His Majesty Orhue I, 

Orodje of Okpe kingdom, 

Major General Felix 

Mujakperuo(retd), that 

they were in the palace to 

urge monarchs across the 

state to join in spreading 

the message against ritual 

killings, internet fraud by 

Yahoo Boys in their various 

Monye, DESG boss, tasks Deltans on selfless service 

D IRECTOR- 

GENERAL of Delta 

Economic Summit Group, 

DESG, Mr. Chukwuka 

Monye, has urged the 

recipients of DESG’s 

Unsung Heroes Award to 

remain steadfast in their 

efforts at positively 

impacting the lives of 

Deltans. 

He also said instead of 

engaging in unconstructive 

criticisms, people should 

invest their time in 

endeavours that elevate the 

communities, adding 

that most of the Yahoo Boys 

were already regretting 

their involvement because 

of the demands on them by 

various shrines for sacrifice 

to remain rich. 

Continuing, he said the 

walk against Yahoo 

economy was part of the 

events lined up for this 

Belemaoil explains hospital project in Daura 

By Egufe Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT— 

INDIGENOUS 

upstream player, Belemaoil 

Limited, has said it decided 

to site a one-stop Children 

Hospital in Daura, 


Buhari’s home in Katstina 

State to strengthen national 

unity. 

Jack-Rich Tein Jr, 

Founder and President of 

Belemaoil, operator of Oil 

Mining Lease, OML, 55 in 

Rivers State, gave the 

clarification in Port Harcourt 

during contract signing 

between the firm and 

contractors to construct the 

Daura Children Hospital. 

Tein said: “We do 

business in the Niger Delta, 

but do the best we can to 

society. 

Monye said this at the 

2019 Unsung Hereos 

Award ceremony in Asaba, 

where eminent Deltans 

were honoured for their 

contributions to the 

development of the state. 

His words: ”The 

awardees did not wait for 

anyone to impact their 

communities. They built 

orphanages, fed 

thousands, emphasising 

the striking selflessness 

and nobility in the deeds 

year’s JDPC week with the 

theme “Re inventing 

Nigeria for a better future 

and a sub-theme, 

“Menace of Ritual killings 

and internet fraud – Yahoo 

Yahoo.” 

He said in his church, 

St. Williams Catholic 

Church, Orerokpe, about 

15 pensioners came to him 

touch lives across the 

country. Before coming up 

with the hospital project, we 

have been providing 

welfare in the North, 

including potable water 

which has also benefited 

Daura. 

“What we are doing is not 

to display arrogance. It’s to 

display humility and 

recognise the importance of 

peaceful coexistence in the 

human race. This hospital 

would go a long way in 

helping our brothers within 

the Daura Emirate and 

Katstina State in general. 

“We are saying whether 

you are from North or 

South, we are all one and 

not different. This is the 

smartest way to build 

bridges. 

“You must not be full to 

of the heroes. 

“These nominees showed 

that actions do speak 

louder than words and 

they have been recognised 

as heroes for impacting 

thousands of lives so far 

and the millions more to 

come. 

“It is important for the 

society to recognise and 

celebrate such individuals 

because the rate at which 

our moral structure is 

deteriorating is alarming. 

We must all do our part to 

that they lost all their 

gratuities to Yahoo Boys, 

who laid hands on their 

ATM cards. 

He added: “All the boys 

do when they lay hands 

on your ATM cards is to 

take the information on it 

and in seconds all the 

money in the accounts are 

gone.” 

share with the next man. I 

pray the contractors put out 

quality job, so it serve as a 

legacy to generations to 

come.” 

Mansur Kurfi of 

Multisystems, consultant, 

said when completed, the 

project would encompass 

100 beds in wards, two 

operations theatres, 

laboratory, scanning room, 

staff quarters and 

powerhouse among others. 

Companies who signed to 

handle various aspects of 

the contract include Afdin 

Construction, Niya 

Engineering, BAABB 

International and Eagle 

Scientific and Laboratory 

Equipment, while Chuks 

Izogu, Vice President, 

Belemaoil signed for the 

project sponsor. 

ensure we do not get to a 

point where doing good 

becomes an anomaly. 

“I have chosen not to 

criticise the government for 

the issues we face in society, 

because I believe it is 

more productive for us to 

invest our time in what we 

can do to contribute and 

impact our communities.” 

At the event were Chief 

Shimite Bello, Mr. Brian 

Hammond, Mr. Ekenem 

Isichei and Ms. Uzor 

Okonmah, among others. 

Political, religious 

leaders urged to learn 

from Rwanda's genocide 

N IGERIAN 

p o l i t i c i a n s 

have been urged to 

stop playing ethnic cards 

and learn from 1994 

Rwanda experience, 

where over a million 

people were massacred 

during the genocide. 

A world renowned 

evangelist and 

philanthropist, Reverend 

Mother Esther Abimbola 

Ajayi, who spoke at 

Kigali Genocide 

Memorial Arcade in 

Rwanda where the 

victims were buried, 

noted that 25 years after 

the ethnic war, many 

families are yet to recover 

from its effect. 

She said she would 

have loved most of the 

Nigerian politicians 

fanning the embers of 

disunity to visit Rwanda 

and see the effect of what 

they were preaching. 

Mother Ajayi said 

Nigeria and, indeed, 

Africa needed leaders 

that would preach love, 

peace and unity among 

their people and canvass 

votes based on what they 

have to offer and not on 

ethnic sentiment. 

She said: “Twenty-five 

years after genocide, I 

can still feel the impact 

among the people. The 

memory was still fresh 

and their tears are yet to 

dry. I pray such heinous 

crime against humanity 

would never happen 

again in Africa, 

especially in Nigeria.” 

Mother Ajayi and her 

husband, Reverend 

Ademuyiwa Ajayi, were 

invited to the country by 

the 

Rwanda 

Development Board, 

RBD, and Solace 

Ministries, a non-profit, 

non-denominational 

Christian organisation 

dedicating to comforting 

widows and orphans in 

response to the 

overwhelming needs of 

By Jimitota 

Onoyume 

W ARRI—POPULAR 

American gospel 

evangelist, Mr. Don 

Moen, preached peace 

alongside 11 other 

gospel artistes in Niger 

Delta at this 

year’s Festival of 

Champions organised by 

Champions cathedral of 

the Redeemed Christian 

Church, Warri, Delta 

State. 

Moen and the other 

traumatized survivors 

of genocide especially 

HIV/AIDS victims. 

Apart from helping 

Rwandans to heal their 

wounds, the 

organisation is 

essentially committed to 

reconciling them with 

Christ. 

Welcoming the Ajayis 

to Rwanda, the Chief 

Investment Officer of 

RDB, Mr Guy Baron, 

appealed to the family 

to invest in the country, 

especially in the real 

estate and agriculture. 

Mother Ajayi 

promised to study the 

proposal and get back 

after the family might 

have decided on what 

to with Rwanda. 

She commended 

Solace Ministry for 

providing for the 

welfare of the orphans 

and widows of the 

genocide. 

Solace Ministries 

founded in 1995 by 

Jean Gakwandi had 

practically taking over 

Rusoro District, about 

20 kilometres to Kigali, 

the capital city of 

Rwanda by not only 

providing spiritual 

therapy for the 

traumatised Rwandans, 

but providing hospital 

and means of livelihood 

to the community 

inhabited by over 

50,000 families. 

After visiting the 

patients in the hospital 

and its new structure 

under construction, the 

Ajayis and their 

entourage joined them 

in the fellowship to 

praise God for the lives 

of the survivors. 

Welcoming the Ajayis 

to the church, 

Gakwandi, who narrated 

how he survived the 

war by miracle and 

special grace of God 

said, “Today is a special 

day for us.” 

Don Moen, others 

preach peace in Warri 

artistes, who spoke 

in songs at the event 

attended by about 13,000 

persons at the Urhobo 

College Field, Warri- 

Sapele Road, brought 

life to many homes. 

The other artistes were 

Beejay Sax, Mercy 

Chinwo, Chioma Jesus, 

Tim Godfrey, Travis 

Greene, Frank Edwards, 

Pastor Kunle Ajayi, 

Bukola Bekes, Damilola 

Bekes and Tosin Bee, 

while host was Pastor 

Emmanuel Emefienim.


EEDC urges customers 

to protect facilities 

against vandalism 

By Chinedu Adonu 

ENUGU Electricity 

Distribution 

Company, EEDC, has 

called on consumers 

within its franchise area to 

be vigilant and ensure 

power installations 

serving them are 

protected against vandals, 

as the yuletide is around 

the corner. 

Head 

of 

Communication, Mr 

Emeka Eze who made this 

known to newsmen in 

Enugu yesterday, 

regretted the rate at which 

power facilities are being 

vandalized across 

EEDC’s network, 

stressing that the menace 

is always high during the 

yuletide period as already 

being experienced. 

According to him, “in 

recent times, millions of 

Naira have been 

committed to replacing 

vandalized materials, a 

regular practice which has 

eaten deep into the 

company’s revenue. No 

day passes without a case 

of vandalism recorded in 

three or more districts. 

“The effect of vandalism 

has untold consequences 

on electricity customers 

who depend on electricity 

DSC owners fault 

report of collapse 

M ANAGING 

Director and 

Chief Executive Officer of 

Premium Steel and Mines 

Limited, PSML, Mr. 

Prasanta Mishra, has 

assured that the new 

owners of the former Delta 

Steel Company, DSC, 

Ovwian-Aladja, Delta 

State, are working hard to 

get the plant fully 

operational, noting that 

any insinuation of a 

collapse in operation of the 

plant was in bad taste and 

not the reality on ground. 

Mr. Mishra spoke in 

reaction to a publication, 

“Reps Probe N1.9bn Delta 

Steel Company Collapse,” 

in a national daily (not 

Vanguard) with the 

headline suggesting that 

the company was not 

doing well, prompting the 

House of Representatives 

upon a motion moved by 

Ben Igbakpa, to set up a 

committee to investigate 

the state of things at the 

plant. 

He maintained that the 

information made 

available to Igbakpa did 

not portray the true picture 

on ground, disclosing that 

since the take-over of the 

to carry out their various 

business activities, as 

they are subjected to 

blackout and 

inconvenienced during 

the period, before the 

vandalized material is 

replaced and supply 

restored”. 

Mr Eze said that 

EEDC is however not 

relenting on its effort to 

reduce the cases of 

vandalism through its 

strategic partnership 

with government 

security agencies and 

vigilant groups. This 

collaboration is however 

yielding positive result. 

Eze stated that in some 

cases, investigations 

have led to the recovery 

of vandalized items at 

the residents of these 

vandals who happen to 

live among other people. 

“These vandals are not 

spirits and do not 

operate in the air. They 

are human beings: our 

relatives, friends, 

neighbours and so on, 

who operate in the same 

environment. 

“We encourage you to 

say something once you 

see something. Report 

any suspicious 

movement around these 

power installations.” 

company by PSML, 

activities have peaked 

and steel products were 

being produced daily. 

A statement by the firm 

said: “We are doing a 

total turn-around of the 

company with 

installation of modern 

equipment just as we 

have continued to 

impact on the immediate 

community, where we 

operate through our 

corporate social responsibility 

initiatives.“ 

The rolling mill is 

working at full blast and 

the next in line is the 

SMS shop, which will 

guarantee local 

production of billets. We 

are targeting the third 

quarter of next year for 

the SMS to come on 

stream. When PSML 

took over the plant, we 

met just five staff on 

board. 

He said the company 

was prepared to meet 

with the House of 

Representatives 

Committee on Steel 

Development for an 

opportunity to share the 

company’s experiences 

with the lawmakers. 

Stakeholders worry over environmental pollution in Imo 

By Chinonso Alozie 

O WERRI—SEVERAL 

organisations in Imo 

State said the time has come 

to put an end to activities 

that are causing 

environmental pollution in 

the state. 

Vanguard gathered 

yesterday in Owerri that 

the organisations, led by 

Centre for Peace Across 

Borders, CEPAB, spoke 

through Anthony Osuoha, 

N 

N 

E W I — 

LANDLORDS 

and traders, who are 

victims of Upper Iweka 

tanker fire incident that 

spread to Amobi, Emodi 

streets, Zik's Avenue and 

parts of Ochanja Central 

Market heaved a sigh of 

relief yesterday as Church 

of Nigeria, Province of the 

Niger, Anglican 

Communion, visited and 

made a donation of 

N10,000,000. 

The Province of the Niger 

is made up of nine 

dioceses—Diocese on the 

Niger, with headquarters in 

Onitsha; Dioceses of 

Nnewi, Awka, Amichi, 

Aguata, Ogbaru, Ihiala, 

Niger West and Mbamili. 

Speaking during the visit, 

Archbishop, Province of the 

Niger, Anglican 

Communion and Bishop of 

Awka Diocese, Rt. Rev. 

Alexander Ibezim, 

admonished the victims on 

the essence of trusting in 

God in all circumstances. 

He thanked the members 

of the Diocese on the Niger 

and its Bishop, Rt. Rev. 

Owen Nwokolo, for the 

earlier visit and donation to 

the victims, adding that the 

Province as a family is 

who advised the current 

government to implement 

policies that will address the 

issue of companies using 

non-degradable materials 

for production of their 

goods. 

Osuoha said: “On the 

World Clean-Up Day 2019, 

we conducted a house-tohouse 

clean-up on plastic 

and collected data on the 

brands we found. 

“After our analysis, we 

found out that sachet water 

coming to sympathise and 

give them hope. 

He announced a 

donation of N10 million to 

the victims and assured 

them of prayers by the 

church for them to get to 

their feet again. 

Other Bishops that visited 

with Archbishop Ibezim, 

were Bishop of Amichi 

Diocese, Rt. Rev. Ephraim 

Ikeakor; Bishop of Niger 

West Diocese, Rt. Rev. 

Johnson Ekwe, and Bishop 

is the highest plastic 

polluters in our state and 

among the highest 

environment polluters 

around the area (Owerri 

North) where these plastic 

collections were 

conducted. 

“It is time to change the 

habit of polluters. In 

making a change, it is right 

for them to lead the change. 

We are proposing that they 

go into research and come 

up with materials that are 

of Ogbaru Diocese, Rt. Rev. 

Prosper Amah. 

Earlier in his 

admonition, Bishop 

Nwokolo encouraged the 

traders to always see any 

thing that happened to 

them as act of God, to 

which only him can provide 

remedy or solution. 

Other Bishops in 

attendance, who took turns 

to speak, encouraged the 

traders not to loose hope or 

be discouraged because 

degradable and re-usable.” 

They also demanded 

among other things that 

“companies publicly 

declare how many units of 

single plastic they produce 

per year. 

“It is also their responsibility 

to lead the way in 

redesigning packaging to 

be refillable and re-usable. 

It is time to take responsibility 

for the harm caused by 

the single-use plastic they 

are pushing on society.” 

HONOUR: Retired Permanent Secretary, Delta State Hospitals Management Board, Dr. Akpufuoma 

Pemu (5th left); Chief Medical Director of the Board, Dr. Ola Odidi (on his left); Medical Director, Central 

Hospital, Agbor, Dr. Roy Maduka (on his right), and other zonal medical directors, during the retirement 

and birthday party organised by the zonal medical directors in honour of Dr. Pemu. 

Anglican Communion donates 

N10m to Upper Iweka fire victims 

By Chimaobi 

Nwaiwu 

NGO partners police to monitor 

abuse of Nigerians by officers 

By Vincent 

Ujumadu 

AWKA—THE Rule of 

Law and 

Accountability Advocacy 

Centre, RULAAC, a nongovernmental 

organisation, is to appoint 

experts to identify and 

report police abuses in 

Anambra State. 

The monitoring group 

would report to the Police 

Stakeholders Partnership 

Forum, PSPF, jointly set up 

by RULAAC and the 

Nigeria Police Force. 

Executive Director of 

RULAAC, Mr. Okechukwu 

Nwanguma, said at the 

inauguration and launch of 

PSPF in Awka that the new 

platform would serve as a 

mechanism for making the 

police account for rights 

violation and creating 

awareness to ensure 

prevention and reduction of 

such violations. 

According to 

Nwanguma, RULAAC had 

already designed a case 

management register, 

CMR, into which cases and 

complaints would be 

entered, adding that the 

register would provide an 

opportunity to monitor the 

progress of cases and 

complaints. 

He said: “To facilitate this 

process, RULAAC has 

engaged the services of a 

good things will soon come 

their ways, their lives and 

businesses. 

Responding on behalf of 

the victims, Chairman of 

Ochanja Market, Mr. 

Nelson Ugochukwu, who 

received the N10 million 

donation from the Province 

of the Niger, thanked the 

Church and promised to 

ensure that each of the 

affected victims get their 

share of the money and 

make judicious use of it. 

documentation officer to 

receive reports of police 

abuses and challenges 

from the field and steps 

taken by PSPF and other 

relevant institutions of state 

to address them. 

“We will engage public 

advocacy appropriate to 

update the public on recent 

developments from the 

case management register. 

“We will also print and 

publicly present the final 

CMR at the end of the 

project and we hope that 

we will work together to 

improve the system of 

criminal justice administration 

in the overall interest 

of citizens and residents of 

Anambra State.”


From left; Justice Samson Uwaifo (retd), Hon. Justice Esohe 

Ikponmwen (retd) and Hon. Justice Constance Momoh (retd) during 

the valedictory court session Edo State judiciary held in honour of 

retired chief judge of the state, Justice Ikponmwen. 

Only confirmed board members'll defend 

NDDC's budget, Lawan insists 


A 

B U J A — 

PRESIDENT of 

the Senate, Senator Ahmad 

Lawan, yesterday insisted 

that the Senate would only 

deal with the board 

members of the Delta 

Development Commission, 

NDDC, it screened and 

confirmed earlier in the 

month. 

He spoke after the Senate 

Leader, Senator Yahaya 

Abdullahi, read the 

Executive Communication 

on the 2019 and 2020 

Budget Estimates of the 

NDDC that the Senate 

should consider and pass 

the NNDC budget as sent 

by President Muhammadu 

Buhari. 

The Senate President who 

referred the request to the 

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, 

led Committee on Niger 

Delta Affairs to return back 

at Plenary in two weeks, 

said, “I want to reiterate for 

emphasis that you deal 

with the Governing Board 

that this Senate approved. 

The President of the 

Senate said, “ I believe that 

the executive arm of 

government will attend to 

that quickly so that we have 

the right people to come 

and defend the 

Appropriation request of 

Mr. President.” 

Recall that President of 

the Senate had on Tuesday 

read a letter from the 

President on the 2019 and 

2020 budget estimates of 

NDDC. 

The letter reads: 

“Pursuant to Section 18(1) 

of the Niger Delta 

Development Commission 

(NDDC (Establishment 

Act), I forward herewith, 

the 2019 and 2020 Budget 

Estimates of the Niger 

Delta Development 

Commission, for the kind 

consideration and passage 

by the Senate. 

“While I trust that the 

Senate will consider this 

request in the usual 

expeditious manner, Please 

accept, Distinguished 

Senate President, the 

assurances of my highest 

consideration 

Recall that President of 

the Senate, Senator Ahmad 

Lawan had said in 

Tuesday that the onus was 

now on the President to do 

the needful by 

inaugurating the Dr. Pius 

Odubu-led NDDC 

following the confirmation 

by the Upper Chamber in 

consonnance with the 

Constitution of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria. 

Lawan had earlier said 

those it screened and 

confirmed as Chairman 

and board members of 

NDDC were the only 

people that would come 

and defend the budget of 

the Commission before its 

Committee on Niger Delta 

Affairs. 

The Senate had in the 

first week of November 

confirmed the President 

Buhari’s nominees for the 

Okowa, Omo-Agege blame relocation of oil firms on youths 

restivenes, illegal levies 

By Festus Ahon 

A 

S A B A — 

GOVERNOR 

Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta 

State and Deputy Senate 

President, Senator Ovie 

Omo-Agege have blamed 

the relocation of 

multinational oil companies 

from Urhobo land to other 

parts of the country on youth 

restiveness and illegal 

development levies. 

Speaking during the 

Second Urhobo Economic 

and Investment Summit 

organised by the Urhobo 

Economic Summit Group in 

Ekpan, Uvwie LGA of the 

state, they lamented that the 

development had also 

hampered economic 

development in 

Urhoboland. 

The Urhobo nation, they 

held, must take advantage 

of their comparative 

advantage in area of 

population and 

UniZik immortalises Pro-Chancellor 

THE 

Governing 

Council of the 

Nnamdi Azikwe University, 

Awka, Anambra State, has 

approved the naming of the 

Administrative Block of the 

Faculty of Agriculture of the 

University after its Pro- 

Chancellor and Chairman 

of Council, late Alhaji 

Azeez Oladokun Bello, 

whose death occurred on 

October 15, 2019. 

The Vice Chancellor of 

the university, Prof. Charles 

Okechukwu Esinome 

disclosed this during the 

40th day fidau prayer 

organized for late Alhaji 

Bello in Lagos, last 

Saturday. 

Prof. Esimone said the 

Faculty of Agriculture 

Administrative Block would 

now be known as Alhaji 

Azeez Oladokun Bello 

Administrative Block, 

Faculty of Agriculture 

noting that the late Alhaji 

Bello was an agriculturist 

and a promoter of 

agriculture in the university 

as well as a seasoned 

administrator. 

geographical positioning in 

ensuring the economic 

development of its people. 

The summit with the 

theme “Private Sector and 

the Future of the Nigerian 

economy: The Ease of 

Doing Business in 

Urhoboland” was chaired by 

Engr. Mike Orugbo and 

had in attendance, Attorney 

General and Commissioner 

for Justice, Mr Peter 

Mrakpor, Executive Director 

Business Development, 

NEXIM Bank, Mrs Stella 

Okotete, several speakers 

He said: ‘’The Governing 

Council has approved the 

naming of the 

Administrative Block 

Faculty of Agriculture after 

late Alhaji Azeez Oladokun 

Bello because he was an 

agriculturist and promoted 

of agriculture in our 

university. 

''He is a great man and 

we will forever miss him. 

We cherished the virtue he 

stood for the two years that 

he governed the 8th 

Council of the Nnamdi 

Azikwe University.’’ 

A cross section of the judges of the EdoState judiciary at the valedctory court session. 

board of NDDC. 

Those confirmed were 

former Deputy Governor of 

Edo State, Dr. Pius Odubu, 

(Chairman of the NDDC 

Board), Chief Bernard 

Okumagba, (NDDC 

Managing Director). 

Also confirmed were 

Otobong Ndem. (Executive 

Director, Projects), 

Maxwell Oko (Executive 

Director, Finance and 

Administration). 

The Senate similarly, 

confirmed Prophet Jones 

Erue, (Delta) Chief Victor 

Ekhator, (Edo), Nwogu 

Nwogu, (Abia), Theodore 

Allison (Bayelsa), Victor 

Antai (Akwa Ibom), 

Maurice Effiwatt (Cross 

River), Olugbenga Elema 

(Ondo), Uchegbu 

Chidiebere Kyrian (Imo), 

Aisha Murtala Muhammed 

(Kano), Ardo Zubairu 

(Adamawa) and Amb. 

Abdullahi Bage 

(Nasarawa). 

Only a nominee from 

Rivers State, Dr. Joy Yimebe 

Nunieh was not confirmed 

by the Senate as she did not 

appear for screening. 

including Dr. Benson 

Uwheru among other 

dignitaries. 

Okowa, who was the 

Special Guests of Honour at 

the event, reiterated the 

commitment of his 

administration to the 

creation of a conducive 

atmosphere for private 

enterprise to thrive and 

stressed the need for value 

re-orientation from 

dependence on government 

to self reliance. 

Represented by his Chief 

of Staff, Olorogun David 

Edevbie Okowa said: “We 

have made appreciable 

progress in setting up the 

Kwale industrial park to 

speed up the 

industrialization of the state 

and to create jobs for 

Deltans,” 

Omo-Agege, represented 

by his Chief of Staff, Dr 

Otive Igbuzor, said 

“Urhoboland has a 

significant role to play in the 

micro and macro economic 

prosperity of the state and 

country arising from its 

population advantage, 

the natural resources 

therein, and the 

hospitality of her people. 

Orogun emerges national 

president of OOTTCOSA 

OLOROGUN 

(Dr.) 

Alex Orogun has 

emerged as the National 

President of Onicha-Olona 

Teachers’ Training College 

Old Students Association, 

OOTTCOSA, located in 

Aniocha Local Government 

Area, LGA of Delta State. 

The colourful event which 

held on November 16,2019, 

in Benin City, Edo State, 

witnessed the attendance of 

over 300 old students to 

launch the college's old 

students association. 

Speaking with journalists 

on the occasion, an elated 

Orogun, who graduated 

from TTC, Onicha-Olona 

over 40 years ago, pledged 

to bring his wealth of 

experience and knowledge 

to pilot the association. 

He said: ”I am absolutely 

overwhelmed by the great 

love, 

support, 

encouragement, trust and 

faith from the old students. 

I will carry all and sundry 

along to achieve our lofty 

goals. 

“My executives and I will 

do what it takes to justify the 

confidence reposed on us. I 

want to use this opportunity 

to express my profound 

gratitude to the old students 

and we will deliver our 

mandate by the grace of 

God.” 

Orogun disclosed that the 

interest of the old students 

association was uppermost 

in his mind, adding “I want 

to commend the pioneer 

THE immediate past 

Chairman House of 

Representatives Committee 

on USA/Nigeria 

Parliamentary Relations, 

Hon EJ Agbonnayinma lost 

his mum Mrs. Cecilia 

Agbonayinma. 

A statement by the 

Agbonayinma family last 

Saturday, said the family 

will soon announce the 

burial arrangements of their 

precious mother. 

Agbonnayinma 

represented Ikpoba- Okha/ 

Egor Federal Constituency 

of Edo State in the 8th 

Assembly. 

Hon. EJ Agbonayinma 

was one of the most vibrant 

legislators in the 8th 

Assembly and advocate of 

“Nigeria First “ against 

Corruption crusader. 

principal of Onicha-Olona 

TTC, Venerable,J.O Kolo, 

for contributing his quota to 

the growth of the college 

and Mr. Mensah 

Nkemdilim, the Local 

Organising Committee, 

LOC.” 

During the ceremony, an 

award of excellence was 

presented to Orogun in 

recognition of his 

entrepreneurial and 

political prowess, including 

the promotion of Urhobo 

cultural heritage by the 

National Union of Urhobo 

Students, NUUS, 

University of Benin, 

UNIBEN. 

Others who emerged as 

executives of OOTTCOSA 

include, Barr. Isoken 

Guobadia, National Vice 

President 1; Mr. Mensah 

Nkemdilim, National Vice 

President 2; Mr. Solomon 

Krubu, National Secretary 

General; Mrs. Felicia 

Bazuaye, Assistant National 

Secretary General, Mr. 

Onyinsi Christian; National 

Treasurer, Mrs. Unoma 

Oyegun, National Assistant 

Treasurer and others. 

Others are, Engr. Olaye 

Ajayi, national public 

relation officer; Mr.Emenike 

Aguh, national financial 

secretary; Ms.Pat 

Ewbaraye, national assistant 

financial secretary; Barr. 

Momodu Jatto, national 

legal adviser; and Ms.Osas 

Egbarevba, international 

affairs officer. 

Hon Agbonayinma loses mum 

The statement said the 

late Mrs.Agbonayinma. is 

survived by three children, 

Madam Jane Enorense 

Agbonayinma, UK based, 

Hon. Ehiozuwa Johnson 

Agbonayinma (EJ) and Ms. 

Stella Agbonayinma, UK 

based also with many 

grandchildren, and great 

grandchildren. 

Late Mrs Agbonayinma.


acchaeus and the perils of 

a ta collector 

WHEN the tenure of a chief executive is 

coming to an end, there’s usually a 

feverish outbreak of schemes to push him over 

the edge, for good or bad reasons. Lobbyists 

are masters of the game. They keep a diary of 

appointment and termination dates - including 

possible renewal where the law permits - and 

also keep a meticulous dossier of everything 

that happens in-between to sway public opinion 

and, possibly, the appointor. 

If the chief executive under scrutiny is a tax 

collector, then he is despised with the venom 

reserved for acchaeus, the biblical tax 

collector. acchaeus was the Israelite hired by 

the occupying Roman government to collect 

taxes and levies from his own people. Even 

though he appeared to be an honest guy, doing 

his ob as best as he could, the system was so 

badly tainted that anyone who held that ob 

was viewed with suspicion. Being a rich and 

short man only made things worse for 

acchaeus. 

Many modern-day acchaeuses like the 

Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue 

Service, Tunde Fowler, may be taller and, 

therefore, have no need to climb a sycamore 

tree to find salvation, but their professional 

perils have not changed much. As Fowler’s 

first term comes to an end, there has been 

heightened interest in whether or not he would 

be retained, with arguments flying on both 

sides. In a country so spoilt by oil rent that 

government is only ust beginning to take 

taxation seriously against a wall of resentment 

by the public that considers paying taxes 

punishment, tax collectors are still as despised 

today as they were in the days of acchaeus. 

And their enemies are vocal and influential. 

With oil revenues ever more precarious and 

politicians promising heaven on earth, tax 

collectors need the skills of acchaeus, if not 

his stature, to survive. n his appointment as 

the nation’s chief tax collector in 2015, Fowler 

was under pressure to live up to the hype 

following his accomplishments as the 

chairman of Lagos State Internal Revenue 

Service, LIRS, where he raised the internally 

generated revenue from N600million in 1999 

to N20billion in 2015. 

The challenges at FIRS were daunting, yet 

Fowler was also under pressure to meet the 

high standards set by his predecessor, Ifueko 

moigui- kauru. With crude oil prices 

plunging as low as $30 per barrel at some 

point in the life of the Buhari administration, 

Fowler needed something beyond the 

precarious balancing act of acchaeus to raise 

revenue from taxes. The economic recession 

compounded his misery. 

The plunge 

But he took the plunge. Fowler plugged 

internal leakages and loopholes instigated by 

insiders; adopted more efficient tax collection 

methods; and enticed a large army of tax 

defaulters through the oluntary Assets Income 

Declaration Scheme, which raked in 

N17billion within the first six months of 

introduction. 

By 2016, FIRS had brought into the tax net 

800,000 new corporate taxpayers and by the 

first half of 2018, tax revenue had increased by 

42 per cent. Non-oil tax revenue in the same 

year was a record N2.852trillion, representing 

more than 50 per cent of N5.3trillion that 

year. By the end of 2018, he had almost 

doubled the revenue benchmark from 

N3.2trillion in 2015 to N5.3trillion. Also, the 

FIRS generated N1.5 trillion revenue in the 

first quarter of 2019, and revenue from nonoil 

taxes had increased to 11 percent compared 

to the previous year. 

With more reforms, including but not limited 

to tackling multiple taxes duties levies; 

improvements in infrastructure; removal of 

red tape and better regulatory environment; 

reduction in corporate taxes; and possibly, 

introduction of flat rate tax, the revenue from 

the tax pie could grow beyond its present level. 

As things are now, 

the relatively narrow 

taxable base, 

comprising mainly 

distressed formal 

sector workers and 

struggling small 

business owners, is 

reaching its elastic 

limits. While going 

after the big-time 

dodgers, the 

government needs to 

grow the economy 

more aggressively and 

nurture small businesses to expand the tax base. 

Also, the challenge for countries like Nigeria 

is how to substantially fund their budgets from 

incomes not determined by the outside world, 

which include extractive resources, loans and 

grants. Collaboration and involvement, as 

well as deploying technology have been crucial 

to the changes at the FIRS in the last four years. 

The service signed a memorandum of 

understanding with the state revenue boards 

to exchange taxpayer information. 

It also broadened its AT collection scope 

with the adoption of States Accountants 

General, SAG, collection platform, AT Auto- 

Collect, integration of GIFMIS platform with 

ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs, 

and through e-Service payment option. Due to 

these efforts, FIRS and states have over 19 

million taxpayers nationwide by 2018. 

Collabo 

Through collaborative efforts, monitoring 

and compliance tracking have also improved. 

And because technology has been put to better 

use, it is easier to file tax obligations. By 

aggressively enforcing the Taxpayers 

Identification Number, TIN, registration 

exercise, 45 million taxpayers would be 

captured in the tax net by December 2019. The 

figure was less than half of that when Fowler 

took over in 2015. 

About 6,772 accounts with balances of 

between N1billion and N5billion were 

identified without their owners having TIN and 

did not file any tax returns. They are reportedly 

being engaged on what they should henceforth 

be paying to FIRS yearly as tax. Some other 

Will the hawks 

in government 

allow Fowler to 

carry through the 

reforms required 

to further 

strengthen the 

FIRS? 

measures Fowler 

introduced to grow 

FIRS tax returns in 

the last four years 

i n c l u d e 

automation and 

incentives for 

taxpayers 

Integrated Tax 

Administration 

System, ITAS; e- 

registration; e- 

Filing; e-Payment; 

e-Receipt; e-TCC, 

Electronic tax certificate. He is also focusing 

on big players in the property market who 

control big portfolios in key cities like Lagos, 

Abu a and Port Harcourt and don’t pay tax on 

them. 

Also worthy of note is that within the last 

four years, FIRS has helped facilitate the 

payment of N135.8b as outstanding Pay As 

You Earn, PAYE, tax liabilities owed the states 

by Federal Ministries, Departments and 

Agencies, MDAs, from 2002 to 2016. The 

recent reclassification of Nigeria by the World 

Bank among the most improved countries with 

regards to the Ease of Doing Business, 

attributed substantially to the institutional 

reforms introduced by Fowler at FIRS, means 

that the future is not gloomy without oil. 

With Nigeria’s 2020 national budget 

estimated at N10trillion and considered 

perhaps the most ambitious ever laid down by 

a Nigerian government, taxation becomes a 

core source of revenue pro ections, especially 

with unstable oil price. It is a reminder of the 

conveniently reminisced glorious past, 

particularly pre-Independence Nigeria, when 

regions funded their budgets from taxation, 

agriculture and real production, not oil rent. 

Will the hawks in government allow Fowler 

to carry through the reforms required to further 

strengthen the FIRS or will the lobbyists’ 

pressure for change prove too hard to resist 

Whichever way the government decides, the 

peddling of the long knives that started with 

acchaeus in Jericho won’t end with Fowler. 

But the government’s answer will send an 

important message about how serious the 

government is with its reforms. 

:Van- :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnewsNEWS HOTLINES: 

VIVO launches V17 Pro smartphone 

S MARTPHONE 

company, VIVO has 

launched the V17 Pro 

smartphone, a stylish device 

with amazing features that 

will not only compete with 

flagships from competitors 

but could displace them. 

The company said it is not 

deterred by the Nigerian 

mobile phone market, with 

its over 20 mobile phone 

brands, which presumably 

shipped over 100 million 

devices and served about 40 

million users. 

It noted that these and 

more were considered 

when it was about to launch 

its flagship product, V17 Pro 

into the Nigerian market. 

According to a statement, 

the firm stated that ''Vivo 

V17 Pro boast of six highend 

cameras and debuts the 

first ever Elevating Dual 

Pop-Up Front Camera of 

32MP and 8MP (Wide 

Angle Camera). The front 

camera also comes with a 

selfie softlight which makes 

pictures clear in lowlight 

environments. 

‘’Due to the peculiarity of 

the camera, many would 

assume there would be a 

notch on the phone to 

accommodate all of these, 

but then, Vivo has found a 

way to brilliantly conceal the 

camera, earpiece and 

sensor, in order to allow 

users enjoy a fantastic visual 

experience.''

FRIDAY Vanguard, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 — 37 

By Benjamin Njoku 

08111813022 

End of beef: 2Baba drops N50m 

lawsuit against Blackface 

‘I’m relieved that this matter has been settled’ 

After weeks of 

mediation, legendary 

singer, 2Baba, has agreed 

to end his legal battle by 

an out-of-court settlement 

with his former band mate, 

Augustine Ahmedu popularly 

called Blackface. . 

2Baba had in 2018 

dragged Blackface to court 

for defamation of character, 

following several 

claims made by Blackface 

across several media platforms. 

The latter had accused 

2Baba and his manager/business 

partner, Efe 

Omorogbe of intellectual 

property theft, claiming 

that 2Baba stole his songs 

"African Queen" and "Let 

Somebody Love You". He 

also accused the duo of 

blacklisting him in the industry, 

and sabotaging his 

career. 

After Blackface ignored a 

cease and desist request 

from Mr. Justin Ige, principal 

at Creative Legal on 

behalf of Innocent Idibia 

and Efe Omorogbe, the 

only legal option was the 

filing of a defamation suit 

with a N50m damages 

claim. 

Blackface's preliminary 

objection was dismissed by 

the court in April 2019 by 

the Honourable Justice 

Oyefeso and his counter 

claim was withdrawn in 

October. Justice Oyefeso 

who then proceeded to refer 

the matter to the Lagos 

Multi Door Court for mediation. 

The mediation process anchored 

by Mrs. Ronke Koku 

resulted in the out-of-court settlement 

that was finalized on 

Wednesday, November 27, 

2019. 

Blackface submitted to 

apologize to 2Baba and to 

desist from making any 

such defamatory claims in 

the future. His apology 

reads: 

“Having consulted with 

my Solicitors, I do hereby 

revoke all allegations of 

intellectual property theft 

and career sabotage previously 

made against Mr. 

Innocent Idibia and Mr. 

Efe Omorogbe. 

These statements were 

erroneously made under 

misapprehension as to 

their accuracy, due to prevailing 

circumstances at 

the time. I have been advised 

on the inaccuracy of 

my previous allegations 

and retract them entirely. I 

undertake to refrain from 

making any such subsequent 

statements against 

the persons of Mr. Innocent 

Idibia and Mr. Efe 

Omorogbe in future”. 

2Baba and his manager, 

Efe Omorogbe, on their 

part, graciously accepted 

the apology and agreed 

not to proceed with the 

N50million claim in damages 

against Blackface 

bringing to an end, the 

long drawn media drama 

that has threatened to completely 

destroy the Plantashun 

Boiz legacy. 

Parties also agreed to 

work together to effect 

name change of Blackface 

from Ahmedu Austin to 

Ahmedu Augustine at appropriate 

quarters. 

Reacting to the development, 

2Baba said ; "I'm 

happy and relieved that 

this matter has been settled 

and Efe Omorogbe and I 

are satisfied with the outcome. 

I can't thank family, 

friends and fans enough 

for their steadfast love and 

support. Thanks also to our 

lawyer, Mr. Justin Ige. 

Blessings to one and all. 

God bless Blackface too. 

Time to move on." 

Also, his manager, Efe 

Omorogbe confirmed that 

2Baba has accepted the 

apology in good faith. 

Orits Wiliki celebrates 35 years on 

stage with double album release 

Reggae star and pro 

ducer, Orits Wiliki 

has revealed plans to release 

a double album to 

celebrate his three and 

half decades of being on 

stage. 

The reggae legend 

made this revelation, 

while in a chat with WG, 

last weekend. 


celebration of his 35 

years on stage will take 

place on the 22nd of February, 

2020, at the 

Bamoral hall of Federal 

Palace hotel, Victoria island, 

Lagos. He also 

added that he intends to 

release a double album 

to mark the milestone in 

addition to launching a 

music college foundation 

for kids. “There are a lot 

of things happening 

now. We need to redirect 

our youths in terms of 

music writing and composition. 

It will an 

evening of fun and performance,” 

Wiliki stated. 

Describing his journey 

into the world of music, 

“as a mixture of joy, pain, 

loss and gains”, Wiliki 

noted that he's beginning 

of another phase in 

his career after 35 years 

on stage. 

The dreadlock musician, 

however, expressed 

happiness following 

his success story 

in the entertainment industry 

in the past 35 

years. He also added 

that he intends to release 

a double album to mark 

the milestone. 

MultiChoice, VIMN Africa renew partnership, 

retain BET, MTV Base, Nickelodeon, others 

ultiChoice Group, 

MAfrica’s leading video 

entertainment company, has 

announced the renewal of its 

distribution partnership with 

Viacom International Media 

Networks Africa (VIMN 

Africa). 

The renewal guarantees the 

continuous broadcast of a 

host of VIMN Africa’s 

channels such as BET, 

Comedy Central, MTV, MTV 

Base, MTV Music 24, 

Nickelodeon, NickToons and 

Nick Jr. on MultiChoice’s 

platforms, DStv and GOtv. It 

also highlights the investment 

in local content, bringing 

programming that 

showcases the best of Africa’s 

creativity and talent and 

offers a broad range of 

original entertainment 

content across every age 

demographic. 

Yolisa Phahle, MultiChoice 

Chief Executive Officer, 

General Entertainment, said: 

“As Africa’s most-loved 

storyteller, we are pleased to 

share this market 

announcement of VIMN 

Africa. Our content offering 

ensures that we provide our 

partners platforms to tell their 

own stories in an authentic 

way. We invest over US 

$164,850 million in local 

content to keep bringing 

exciting and engaging 

African content to market 

and the industry.” 

“This continued 

partnership demonstrates the 

shared commitment between 

VIMN Africa and 

MultiChoice to invest in local 

and international content 

that resonates with our 

•Orits 

audiences across the 

continent. We truly value our 

collaboration with 

MultiChoice as it also 

enables us to consistently 

deliver great African 

productions,” said Alex 

Okosi, Executive Vice 

President and Managing 

Director for VIMN Africa and 

BET International. 

BET continues to celebrate 

black excellence across the 

African continent with its 

broadcast of locally 

produced programmes. A 

biopic that portrays one of 

South Africa’s legendary 

musicians in Dream: The 

Lebo Mathosa Story, 

featuring a joint lead cast of 

KB Motsilanyane and 

Bahumi Madisakwane will 

air on the channel. 

CALL TO BAR — Akpokona Omafuaire Esq of Vanguard Newspapers (middle) 

with family and friends, during his call to bar in Abuja. 

GRADUATION — From left— HRH Oba Oyebamiji Fadare, Olupo of Oluponna; Mrs. 

Abimbola Oshikoya, CSR Education Officer, Total Nigeria; Makinde Ayobami, one of 

the TotalPreneur graduands receiving starter pack; Mr. Azu Azuike, Manager, CSR 

Education, Total; Dr. Charles Ngeribara, CSR Advisor, Total Nigeria; Mrs. Moji Ladipo, 

Chairperson of the occasion with some graduands at the 2019 TotalPreneur graduation 

ceremony at Oluponna, Iwo, Osun State. Photo: Lamidi Bamidele. 

PROMO: From left— Managing Director, The La Casera Company, Chinedum 

Okereke; La Casera Refresh & Connect Promo Smart TV winner, Jeremiah Amobi; 

iPhone X winner, Oluwatobi Femi and La Casera dealer in Lagos, Fair Bridge, at 

the Lagos Grand Draw of the La Casera Refresh & Connect promo in Lagos. 

AWARD: — From right— Divisional Police Officer in-charge of FESTAC Division, 

Lagos, CSP Obong Okon receiving the West African Regional Partnership 

Award for Community Policing from the representative and Head of Research, 

West African Regional Summit on Peace, Security and Development, Bar. 

Desmond Rinse, with them are other police officers of the division.


AJIROBA 

My name was wrongly written 

as Ajiroba Christian Adeshola, 

instead of my correct name as 

Ajiroba Christiana Adeshola. 

All former documents remain 

valid, general public take note. 

ASAN 

I, formerly known as Asan 

Beatrice Member, now wish to 

be known as Agnes Iveren 

Hinga. All former documents 

remain valid. General public 

please take note. 

NGOKA 

I, formerly known as Ngoka 

Chukwuoma Good-God, now 

wish to be known as Nkwocha 

Chukwuoma Blessing. All 

former documents remain 

valid. General public please 

take note. 

ADEYEMI 

I, formerly known as Miss 

Adeyemi Mercy Oluwafunso, 

now wish to be known as Mrs. 

Aluede Mercy Oluwafunso. All 



UZOMAH 

I, formerly known as 

Uzomah, Chinyere Virginia, 

now wish to be known as 

Ogboin, Chinyere Virginia. All 



OMOWAYE 


Omowaye Bosede Regina, now 

wish to be known as 

Nwachukwuemeh Bosede 

Regina. All former documents 

remain valid, general public 

take note. 

ABOLADE 

I, formerly known as Abolade 

Nureni Olanrewaju, now wish 

to known as Isiaka Nureni 

Abolade. All former documents 


take note. 

SAGAY 


Sagay Rachael Oghenenyore, 

now wish to known as Mrs 

Samuel-Levi Rachael 

Oghenenyore. All former 

documents remain valid. 

General public take note. 

IGE 

I, formerly known as Miss Ige 

Oluwabunmi Gift, now wish to 

be known as Mrs. Adeniyi 

Oluwabunmi Olaitan. All other 



ISAIAH 

I, formerly known as Miss Isaiah 

Olanaziba Promise, now wish to be 

known as Mrs. Chukwubuikem 

Olanaziba Promise. All documents 

bearing my former name remain valid. 

General public and all relevant 

authorities please take note. 

EJIMOKUN 

I, formerly known as Ejimokun 

Oluwatosin Bukola, now wish 

to be known as Ayodele 

Oluwatosin Bukola. All former 

documents 

remain 


take note. 

OGUNLEYE 

I, formerly known as Ogunleye 

Busayo Caroline, now wish to 

be known as Gbadegesin 

Busayo Caroline. All former 

documents 

remain 


take note. 

EBENEZER 

This is to confirm that Okpalaotubelu 

Ebenezer Ngozi is not my correct 

name. My correct name is 

Okpalaotubelu Ebenezer Ifeanyi and 

I now wish to be known as 

Okpalaotubelu Ebenezer Ifeanyi. All 

former documents remain valid. First 

Bank, FCMB and general public take 

note. 

ODULATE 

I, formerly known as Odulate 

Aliu Olayinka, now wish to be 

known as Harun Aliu 

Olayinka. All former 

documents remain valid, 

general public take note. 

ULOKO 

I, formerly known as Uloko 

Joan Oshoriamhe, now wish to 

be known as Obiajulu Joan 

Oshoriamhe. All former 



OLUWASEUN 

My name was wrongly written 

as Oluwaseun Elizabeth, instead 

of Ojo Oluwaseun Elizabeth, 

which is my correct name. All 



BEN’S 


Ben’s Ezinne Sandra, now wish 

to be known as Mrs. Uzoma 

Ezinne Sandra. All former 



SUCCESS 


Success Efe Peter, now wish to 

be known and addressed as Igbe 

Efe Peter. All former 



EKONYE 


Ekonye Emonena Margaret, 


Chibuike-Ekonye Emonena 

Margaret. All other documents 


take note. 

EKEREYA 


Ekereya Onome Evelyn, now 

wish to be known as Mrs. 

Asiayei Evelyn. All documents 

bearing my former name 


and all relevant authorities 


ATEWOLOGUN 


Atewologun Esther Omolola, 


Anifowose Esther Omolola. 



take note. 

OGHUVWU 

I, formerly known as Oghuvwu 

Ejowhokughene Tina, now 

wish to be known as Obarolo 

Ejowhokughene Tina. All 



take note. 

OSHINOWO 


Oshinowo Oluwabunmi 

Oluwafunmilayo, now wish to be 

known as Adegoke Oluwabunmi 

Oluwafunmilayo. All former 

documents remain valid. GTBank and 

general public please take note. 

COLE 

I, formerly known as Cole 

Abosede Modupe, now wish to 

be known as Salami Cole 

Abosede Modupe. All former 



UMOH 


Aniebiet Bassey Umoh, now 


Aniebiet Ekemini Bassey. All 



SANYAOLU OB 

I, formerly known as Sanyaolu 

Aderonke Oluwatoyin, now 

wish to be known as Seidu 

Aderonke Oluwatoyin. All 



WYOM 

I, formerly known as Wyom 

Moira Chinyere, now wish to 

be known as Mba Moira 

Chinyere. Former documents 


take note. 

ALHASSAN 

I, formerly known as Mr. 

Alhassan Abdullahi A.T. Ada, 

now wish to be known as Mr. 

Alhassan Emmanuel. All other 



AKPOBOLOKAMI 


Akpobolokami Evelyn 

Ebikaboere, now wish to be 

known as Mrs Pere Evelyn 

Ebikaboere. All former 

documents remains valid, any 

authority it may concern and 

general public to take note. 

ADEDIRAN 


Abosede Precious Adediran, 

now wish to be known as Mrs 

Abosede Michael Victor. All 



take note. 

GODSON 

I, formerly known as Godson 

Pearl, now wish to be known 

as Enyioha Pearl. All former 

documents remain 


take note. 

EKEZE 

I, formerly known as Ekeze Favour 

Uchechukwu, now wish to remove 

Uchechukwu and add Divine to my names 

and be addressed as Ekeze Divine Favour. 

I state that any documents bearing Ekeze 

Favour Uchechukwu remains valid. The 

Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB),Delta State 

University, Abraka and the general public 

should please take note. 

ODIMEGWU 

I, formerly known as Precious 

Njideka Odimegwu, now wish 

to be known as Precious 

Njideka Ike. All former 


General public please take 

note. 

ALADE OD 


Alade Mercy Adeola, now wish 

to be known as Mrs Enewe 

Mercy Adeola. All former 



AKINTOLA 

I, formerly known as Akintola 

Oluwafunmilayo Elizabeth, 


Olisa Oluwafunmilayo Elizabeth. 

All former documents 


take note. 

ABU 

I, formerly known as Abu Musa, 


Abubakar Musa Moses. All 



take note. 

WILSON 

I, formerly known as Wilson 

Nmagu Ome, now wish to be 

known as Echu Walson 

Ndipenock. Former documents 


take note. 

ONUWAJE 


Onuwaje Majemite Taiye, now 


Oritsejeminone Majemite 

Taiye. All other documents 


take note. 

AJAO 

I, formerly known as Ajao 

Ayoola Alice Olubunmi, now 

wish to be known as Oladayo 

Alice Olubunmi. All former 


Access Bank and general public 


UYAMMADU 


Obianuju Felicia Uyammadu, 


Obianuju Felicia Sam-Okpara. 



take note. 

MADUEWESI 


Ifeyinwa Maduewesi, now wish 

to be known as Mrs. Ifeyinwa 

Onyeanusi. All former 

documents 

remain 


take note. 

IMON 

I, formerly known as Fortune 

Elooghene Imon is the same 

person as Imoniaruena, now 

wish to be known as Fortune 

Elooghene Gabriel. All former 



note. 

ENUGHWURE 


Enughwure Peace, now wish to 

be known as Mrs. Akporeha 

Jesumewo Peace. All former 



note. 

OGBAJI 

I, formerly known as Ogbaji 

Nnenna Ifeyinwa, now wish to 

be known as Akanji Nnenna 

Ifeyinwa. All former 



KINGSLEY 

I, formerly known as Favour 

Kingsley, now wish to be 

known as John Favour. All 



ANULIKA 


Kosisochukwu Anulika, now 


Kosisochukwu Aidelomo 

Oyakhire. All former 

documents 

remain 


take note. 

OWAJOBA 


Folashade Temitayo Owajoba, 


Folashade Temitayo Adebesin. 

Former documents remain 

valid. General public take note. 

NWOKOLO 


Nwabunwanne Lilian Nwokolo, 


Nwabunwanne Lilian Enebe. 

All other documents remain 

valid. General public take note. 

ORACHI 

My name was wrongly written as 

Orachi Christiana O. on my voters 

card instead of Orachi Christiana 

Onyeoghaniwudiken which is my 

correct name, that the correction of 

name is due to my bank verification 

number (BVN). All former documents 

remain valid. Banks, General public 


AKUMO 

I, formerly known as Akumo 

Akumo Erem, now wish to be 

known as Akuma Akuma 

Erem. All former documents 



IDUO 

I, formerly known as Iduo 

Asuquo Iduo, now wish to be 

known as Prince Sylvester 

Asuquo Iduo. All former 

documents 

remain 


take note. 

AJAYI 

I, formerly known as Ajayi 

Oluwatosin Janet, now wish to 

be known as Ayanuga 

Oluwatosin Janet. All former 


General public please take note. 

OGONNAYA 


Chukwuemeka Juliana 

Ogonnaya, now wish to be 

known as Chukwu Juliana 

Ogonna. All former documents 


take note. 

UKWU 


Ebere Celestina Ukwu, now 

wish to be known as Mrs Ebere 

Celestina Nwaoda. All former 



ATUAGIE 


Etuagie Sandra Agbonare, now 


Etuagie Sandra Innocent- 

Adesunloye. All former 



EBIGWAI 


Nkechi Magdalene Ebigwai, 

now wishes to be known as Mrs 

Nkechi Magdalene Alli. All 



take note. 

ISOK 


Christiana Boniface Isok, now 

wish to be known as Mrs 

Christiana Imaobong 

Ezenwaka. Former documents 

remain valid. LCTS LTD, 


NWOKPOR 


Nwokpor, Ruth Onyinye, now 

wish to be known as Mrs Edeh, 

Ruth Onyinye. All documents 

bearing former names remain 

valid. The general public should 


IYOHA 


Iyoha Edewede Augusta, now 


Ehioghae Edewede Augusta. All 



take note. 

DICK 

I, formerly known as Ndifreke 

Dick Ntuk, now wish to be 

known as Ndifreke Fraiz Ntuk. 



take note.

CHANGE OF NAME 

OMOLAYE HEKU OTUAGOMA ODUTOLA ODOGU 

I, formerly known as Folusho I, formerly known as Heku I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Miss I, formerly known as Odogu 

Samuel Omolaye, now wish to Patience Bose, now wish to be Jennifer Okiemute Otuagoma, Folake Roli Olabode Odutola, Otekome Increase, now wish 

be known as Samuel Folusho known as Okoya Patience 

now wish to be known as Mrs now wish to be known as Mrs to be known as Egboye Evi 

Jennifer Okiemute Harley- 

Kayode. First bank, and the Bose. All former documents 

Folake Roli Olabode Taire. All Increase. All former 

Obeghe. All former documents 

General public should please remain valid, general public 




take note. 

take note. 

take note. 

valid, general public take note. general public take note. 

CHIKELU 


IYASELE 

I, formerly known as Iyasele 

OWHERE 

I, formerly known as Beauty 

YA’U 

I, formerly known as Ya’u 

EWOMAZINO 

This is to confirm that the name, 

Josephine Obioma Chikelu, Enimhien Edith, now wish to Emuobohmenuvie Owhere, Musa Kangiwa, now wish to Eghrudhe Charles Ewomazino and 

now wish to be known as Mrs be known as Mrs Oyageshio now wish to be known as Mrs be known as Musa Ya’u Eghrudhe Charles refer to me. I now 

wish to be known as Eghrudhe 

Chikezie Josephine Obioma. .I. Enimhien Edith. All former Beauty Israel Emuvode. All Kangiwa. All former 

Charles Ewomazino. All former 

All former documents remain documents remain valid, former documents remain documents remain valid, 

documents remain valid, general 

valid, general public take note. general public take note. valid, general public take note. general public take note. public take note. 

IKOKO 


OGBEIDE 


OMOGHAN 

I, formerly known as Omoghan 

AKPOGUMA 


BLESSING 

I, formerly known as Afekhai 

Ikoko Blessing Chinedum, now Ogbeide Bose, now wish to be Blessing, now wish to be known Aghogho Success Akpoguma, Bose Blessing, now wish to 

wish to be known as Mrs known as Mrs Amengialue as Mrs Oguike Blessing now wish to be known as Mrs be known as Afekhai Bose. 

Omojero Blessing Chinedum. Bose. All former documents Ifunaya. All former documents Aghogho Success Turiz. All All former documents remain 

All former documents remain remain valid, general public remain valid, general public former documents remain valid. Banks and general 

valid, general public take note. take note. 

take note. 

valid, general public take note. public take note. 

OGBORU EGBO EDOBOR 

EWALEIFOH 

OKONOFUA 

I, formerly known as Ogboru I, formerly known as Egbo I, formerly known as Edobor I, formerly known as Miss The name Okonofua Jeremiah Itoya 

Ewomazino, now wish to be Beatrice, now wish to be known 

Omoye Ciera Ewaleifoh, 

Ehijiele, now wish to be 

and Okonofua Jerry Itoya, is one 

now wish to be known as and the same person, henceforth 

known as Ogboru Tessy as Mrs. Capable Beatrice known as Osin Ehijiele. All 

Mrs Omoye Eseiwi All now wish to be known as 

Ewomazino. All former Erhuvwu. All former former documents remain former documents remain Okonofua Jeremiah Osenyamhee. 

documents remain valid, banks documents remain valid, valid. General public take valid. General public take All former documents remain valid. 

and general public take note. general public take note. note. 

note. 


IGWEDIBIA 

OBOMA 

OBONORIGHO 

OKONMAH 

UNAEGBU 

I, formerly known and I, formerly known and I, formerly known and addressed as I, formerly known and I, formerly known and 

addressed as Miss Nkiruka addressed as Miss Oboma Miss Obonorigho Lilian addressed as Miss Sheila Obi addressed as Miss Unaegbu 

Linda Igwedibia, now wish to Blessing Oghale, now wish to 

Oritsegheyi, now wish to be known Okonmah, now wish to be Nkechinyere Mary, now wish 

be known and addressed as Mrs. be known and addressed as Mrs. 

known and addressed as Mrs. to be known and addressed as 

and addressed as Mrs. Ikechukwu 

Nkiruka Linda Bankole. All Amatokwu Blessing Oghale. All 

Sheila Oduma Efe. All former Mrs. Kwentoh Nkechinyere 

former documents remain former documents remain Lilian Oritsegheyi Okocha. All 

documents remain valid. Mary. All former documents 

valid. General public please valid. General public please former documents remain valid. General public please take remain valid. General public 

take note. 

take note. 

General public please take note. note. 


ONIANWA 

OBIGBAZIE 

AGWU 

ILOMBU 

ONYISI 

I, formerly known and 

addressed as Miss Onianwa 

Chinye Joy, now wish to be 

known and addressed as Mrs. 

Abua Chinye Joy. All former 



UGBANAKA 

This is to confirm that Ugbanaka Nabel, Ugbanaka Mabel 

Etemejarihwo, Ugbanaka Mabel, Mabel T. Ugbanaka, Ugbanaka 

M.E., Mabel Ugbanaka, M. Ugbanaka, and Ugbanaka Mabel 

Etemejeraiwho refer to one and the same person. I now wish to be 

known and addressed as Mrs. Ugbanaka Mabel Etemejarihwo. All 

former documents remain valid. General public please take note. 

AMUSI 

OFFIAH 

I, formerly known and addressed as I, formerly known as Chioma 

Miss Amusi Sandra Chiamaka now Juliet Offiah, now wish to be 

wish to be known and addressed as known and addressed as Mrs 

Chioma Juliet Ubiaru (nee 

Mrs. Nwajiaku Sandra Chiamaka. All 

Offiah). All former documents 

former documents remain valid. 


General public please take note. Plsase take note. 

FOY 

CHRISTOPHER 

My name was captured in BVN as Foy 

Anita Nkem and also appear as Foy- 

Gomwalk Anita, in my documents. I 

now wish to known as Foy Anita 

Nkem. All documents bearing the 

above names remain valid. General 

public please take note. 

AKUWARA 

I, formerly known as Akuwara 

Joy, now wish to be known as 

Akuwara Joy Nmesoma- 

Chukwu. All former documents 



I, formerly known and addressed as 

Mrs. Franca Chioma Obigbazie, now 

wish to be known and addressed as 

Mrs. Franca Chioma Obigbazie- 

Jesse. All former documents remain 

valid. General public please take 

note. 

I, formerly known as Kate 

Christopher, now wish to known as 

Inakan Kate Emmanuel. All 

documents bearing the above names 

remain valid. Authorities concern and 

general public please take note. 

OKEREKE 


Okereke Adamma Stella, now 


Ibeabuchi Adamma Stella. All 


valid. The general public should 



Dr. Agwu Ebere Lilian, now wish to 

be known and addressed as Dr. Obi- 

Odimegwu Ebere Lilian. All former 

documents remain valid. General 


FATHER 

I, formerly known as Father Gabriel 

Ewarewah, now wish to be known 

and addressed as Ewarewah Gabriel 

Founkoro. All former documents 

remain valid. General public please 

take note. 

UKIWO 

I, formerly known as Nene 

Blessing Ukiwo now wish to be 

known and addressed as Nene 

Blessing Philip. All former 



IGBODO 


Igbodo Ogochukwu Francisca, 


Uwaosayemi Ogochukwu 

Emmanuela. All former 


NYSC, general public take 

note. 

UKACHI 


Ukachi Udoka Chituru, instead of 

Kamalu Udoka Chituru, but 

henceforth wish to be known and 

addressed as Kamalu Udoka Chituru. 

All former documents remain valid. 

The general public should please take 

note. 

This is to confirm that Mrs. Magdalen 

Nwuli Ilombu and Mrs. Mandy 

Nwuli Ilombu refer to one and the 

same person. I now wish to be known 

and addressed as Mrs. Magdalen 

Nwuli Ilombu. All former documents 


take note. 

MILTON 

I, formerly known as Miss Milton 

Efficient Oghenerukevwe, now wish 

to be known as Mrs. Ejolamhen 

Efficient Oghenerukevwe. All former 



ONOCHIE 


Miss Onochie Geraldine Obianuju 

now wish to be known and 

addressed as Mrs Ijeoma Geraldine 

Obianuju. All former documents 


take note. 

OKWUNJOR 

I, formerly known as Miss Ondu 

Margaret Okwunjor, now wish 

to be known as Mrs. Ondu 

Ereigwa-O’bemigho Umana. All 



take note. 

UKACHI 


Ukachi Olachi Bessie, instead of 

Kamalu Olachi Bessie, but henceforth 

wish to be known and addressed as 

Kamalu Olachi Bessie. All former 

documents remain valid. The general 

public should please take note. 

This is to confirm that Mrs. Onyisi 

Destiny Esther, and Mrs. Adejoh 

Destiny Esther refer to one and the 

same person. I now wish to be known 

and addressed as Mrs. Destiny 

Onyisi Esther. All former documents 


take note. 

UBBOE 

I, formerly known as Miss Ubboe 

Sylvia Chikamneto now Wish to be 

known as Mrs. Chukwuneke Sylvia 

Chikamneto. All former documents 


take note. 

ISA 


Miss Isa Patience Omaye now wish 

to be known and addressed as Mrs 

Ifeanyi Patience Enini. All former 



LEONGE 


Esther Chinyere Grey Leonge, 


Esther Chinyere Grey Origho. 



take note. 

IMADOJEMUN 


Agnes Omozele Imadojemun, 


Agnes Omozele Etuk. All 



take note. 

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La Casera 

rewards 

winners in 

Refresh and 

Connect promo 

By Gabriel Olawale 

LAGOS—THE 

La 

Casera Company, 

TLCC makers of the natural 

tasting La Casera apple, 

has rewarded consumers in 

the first batch of grand draw 

winners in the ongoing 

Crown Consumer Promotion 

tagged; “Refresh and 

connect.” 

The various prizes won 

include Smart TVs, 

Laptops, iPhone X mobile 

phones, Samsung mobile 

phones, Home theatre systems, 

Bluetooth headsets, 

La Casera products and 

millions of Naira worth of 

airtime. 

Speaking during the prize presentation 

that took place in Port 

Harcourt, Abuja and Lagos, the 

Managing Director, TLCC, Mr 

Chinedum Okereke said the 

promo is pan Nigeria. 

“More draws will hold in 

Enugu, Ibadan, Kano and yet 

another draw in Lagos as the 

promo continues and presentation 

of prizes will be done at the 

grand draw events in those locations. 

He said: “In line with the promise 

made at the commencement 

of the promo, La Casera has already 

given out millions of naira 

worth of instant airtime to La 

Casera apple consumers across 

the country and it is a way of giving 

back to loyal consumers." 

NALPGAM 

distributes 

free cooking 

gas cylinders 

L AGOS—THE 

Nigerian Association 

of Liquefied Petroleum 

Gas 

Marketers(NALPGAM) 

says it has distributed no 

fewer than 10,000 6kg 

cylinders with burners 

to Nigerians in the last 

12 months as part of efforts 

to deepen gas penetration 

in the country. 

President NALPGAM, 

Mr Nosa Ogieva- 

Okunbor, , made the 

disclosure on Wednesday 

at the group’s South 

West Zone Liquefied Petroleum 

Gas (LPG) 

sensitisation and awareness 

campaign in 

Ikorodu, Lagos. 

Ogieva-Okunbor 

stated that the LPG usage 

awareness campaign 

also involved a demonstration 

on the way to 

use cooking gas, safety 

precautions to be observed 

in cylinder handling, 

checks for leakages 

and cylinder maintenance.


CAN, Editors, others rally 

against hate speech bill 

Continues from Page 5 

and write the history. That’s 

what is the DNA of our 

media.” 

In like manner, 

Ogunleye, in a 53-page 

paper, titled: “Journalism 

Education and Shrinking 

Opportunities,” lamented 

that the Nigerian print 

media were now in 

intensive care unit 

“gasping their breath with 

poor circulation figures, 

dwindling advert 

revenues” worsened by 

“digital disruptions.” 

Essentially, Ogunleye 

dealt with the importance 

of the press, what people 

say about the press, the 

impact of the press in the 

society, journalism 

education, opportunities in 

the media, and shrinking 

opportunities and the 

disruption of the social 

media, and proffered 

suggestions on how to keep 

the Fourth Estate of the 

realm afloat. 

We’ve enough laws 

to tackle hate speech 

– CAN 

Speaking on the issue, 

the Christian Association of 

Nigeria, CAN, urged the 

National Assembly to 

discountenance the 

“Protection from Internet 

Falsehoods and 

Manipulation and other 

related Matters Bill 2019” 

and the “National 

Commission for the 

Prohibition of Hate 

Speeches Bill, 2019” which 

are currently being 

considered to become part 

of the extant laws of the 

Federal Republic of 

Nigeria. 

A statement by the 

National Director, Legal 

and Public Affairs, CAN. 

Evangelist Barrister 

Kwamkur Samuel Vondip, 

on behalf of the CAN 

President, Rev. (Dr.) 

Samson Olasupo 

Ayokunle, expressed deep 

concern about the ongoing 

debate on the two bills and 

urged the National 

Assembly to “put off 



completely any 

contemplation to pass them 

into Acts of the National 

Assembly as sincere lovers 

of the nation.” 

Reason: “These two bills 

have generated so much 

misgivings and criticisms 

that they have led to 

uncommon tension and 

fears among Nigeria’s 

citizens. This is doing no 

good to the fears and 

apprehension of the 

citizens already on ground 

as a result of insecurity, 

deplorable infrastructural 

amenities and the general 

welfare of the people. 

“The bills, in the general 

view of majority of 

Nigerians, and in ours too, 

appear to separately seek 

to gag Nigeria’s citizens 

from speaking out freely on 

matters that affect their 

lives in all spheres. This to 

us is an ill-wind that will 

blow nobody any good.” 

Continuing, Ayokunle 

said CAN was not 

unmindful of the fact that 

“many individuals and 

organizations have taken 

advantage of the social 

media to perpetrate evil and 

cause tremendous damage 

to individuals, both private 

and government 

institutions. 

“CAN is also not ignorant 

of the grave consequences 

of hate speech among 

Nigeria’s citizens and how 

even political parties used 

hate speeches to effect 

change of leadership and 

government at various 

times. All these are 

unfortunate developments 

in the use of technology.” 

However, he said “CAN 

believes that there are 

adequate laws within the 

body of Nigeria’s laws that 

can be used to check the 

excesses of individuals and 

organizations that are 

misusing the social media 

and propagating hate 

speeches. 

“For example, the 

provisions of Nigeria’s 

Constitution on the 

Fundamental Rights of 

Nigerian citizens and 

Naira stable at N358.5/$ in parallel 

market 

The naira, yesterday, was stable at N358.5 per 

dollar in the parallel market. 

However, the naira yesterday appreciated by three 

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

due to a 131 percent rise in the volume of dollars 

traded on the window. 

Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative 

exchange rate for the window dropped to N362.61 

per dollar yesterday from N362.64 per dollar on 

Wednesday, translating to three kobo appreciation 

of the naira. 

The volume of dollars traded on the window 

yesterday dropped by 131 percent to $252.25 million 

from $109.41 million on Wednesday. 


NEWS HOTLINES 

018773962, 

08052867058 

E-NIGERIA CONFERENCE —From left: Chairman, Senate Committee on Communications, Senator 

Oluremi Tinubu; Managing Director, Chiniki Guard, Abdulkarim Bashir; President Muhammadu Buhari; 

Minister of Communications, Alhaji Isa Pantami; Minister of Police Affairs, Muhammad Maigari 

Dingyadi and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, Sadiya Umar Farouq, during 

the E-Nigeria Conference, Exhibition and Awards at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, 

yesterday. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida. 

exceptions are explicit. The 

Penal Code, Criminal Code, 

Cyber Crime Act and other 

legal provisions on crimes 

that deal with hate 

speeches, defamation, libel 

and similar offences are 

clear and strong enough. 

“CAN is particularly 

concerned that Nigerians 

are being daily distracted 

from discussing topical 

issues that have direct 

bearing on their survival 

and well being, such as 

poverty, corruption, and the 

provision of good health 

facilities, etc. 

“We desire that 

governments at all levels 

and, indeed, members of 

the National Assembly pay 

greater attention to the 

issues of insecurity, 

economic hardship, poverty, 

bad roads, poor education 

and dearth of 

infrastructure.” 

Bills ‘ll abrogate 

freedom of 

expression 

– Senator Eyakenyi 

Sharing the views of 

CAN, Senator Akon 

Eyakenyi (PDP, Akwa Ibom 

South), said if passed into 

law, the Prohibition of Hate 

Speech Bill, and Internet 

Falsehood and 

Manipulation Bill will 

abrogate the freedom of 

expression of Nigerians. 

In a statement, she said: 

“The mandates we hold as 

senators are in trust for the 

people and the powers we 

exercise are delegated by 

the people with whom 

power resides. 

“Therefore, any attempt to 

shut up and threaten the 

owners of the mandate from 

freely holding their opinions 

in line with our laws shall 

strongly be resisted by me.” 

Mrs Eyakenyi said 

freedom of expression, 

besides being a 

fundamental human right, 

as enshrined in the 

Nigerian constitution, the 

Universal Declaration on 

Human Rights, and the 

African Charter on Human 

and Peoples Rights, was a 

necessary ingredient that 

sustains a democratic 

system. 

To move against the 

peoples’ freedom to 

express themselves, she 

said, amounts to 

degenerating into 

dictatorship. 

She continued: “The 

ECOWAS Court of Justice 

and the African Court of 

Human Rights had in the 

past declared similar 

attempts as illegal. Across 

the globe, infringements 

on human rights and free 

press is condemnable. 

“We must, therefore, be 

careful not to portray 

ourselves as a country that 

is sliding into intolerance 

and, we must not allow the 

rights we fought for and 

won to be abrogated by 

misconceived opinions. 

“I, therefore, condemn in 

the strongest terms, the 

proposed pieces of 

legislation which in my 

judgement are not in the 

best interest of our image 

as Africa’s big brother. 

“Let it be on record that I 

stand against these bills 

and that my constituents 

reject them in totality. 

Death penalty as 

canvassed by one of the 

proposals is without 

argument outrageous and 

such dangerous signal 

must not be sent out to the 

international community 

about our human rights 

records.” 

Mrs Eyakenyi said 

Nigeria already had 

sufficient laws, such as the 

Penal Code, Criminal 

Code and Cyber Crimes 

Act of 2015 to tackle hate 

speech and cybercrimes. 

“There is, therefore, no 

justification for over 

flogging issues that are 

already adequately taken 

care of by our laws. I must, 

however, state that our 

problem does not lie in 

lawmaking but law 

enforcement and 

implementation. What we 

need most as a country is 

ensuring that the various 

law enforcement agencies 

carry out their duties as 

they ought to.” 

Defamation laws 

inadequate to 

tackle hate speech 

– Senator Sabi 

Abdullahi 

However, Deputy Chief 

Whip of the Senate, 

Senator Aliyu Sabi 

Abdullahi, who sponsored 

the hate speech bill, said 

yesterday that existing laws 

on defamation were grossly 

inadequate to tackle hate 

speech in its form. 

Abdullahi stated this 

against the backdrop of 

groundswell of protests and 

reactions to the introduction 

of the Hate Speech Bill by 

the National Assembly. 

According to Abdullahi, 

who represents Niger 

North Senatorial District in 

the National Assembly, 

Parliaments across the 

world have identified ‘hate 

speech’ as a new “threat 

that dehumanizes and 

targets individuals and 

groups, and also threatens 

peace in a diversified 

society.” 

The lawmaker stated that 

the Parliamentary 

Assembly of the Council of 

Europe, which is a 47- 

nation member 

organization, in a report 

identified threats posed by 

hate speech to include; 

exclusion among minority 

groups, alienation, 

marginalization, 

emergence of parallel 

societies, and ultimately 

radicalization. 

These, Abdullahi warned, 

were present features in the 

socio-dynamics of Nigeria 

as a nation which places 

the country on the brink of 

implosion from the effect of 

hate speech. 

He stated that given the 

complex dynamics 

associated with hate 

speech, “the provisions of 

defamation and libel laws 

in Nigeria clearly lack the 

grip to tackle the 

dimensions of hate speech 

in acts such as 

victimization, 

marginalization and 

exclusion.” 

Senator Abdullahi added 

that the Parliamentary 

Assembly of the Council of 

Europe in its resolutions 

contained in a publication, 

titled: “The role and 

responsibilities of political 

leaders in combating hate 

speech and intolerance” 

endorsed “criminal 

legislation” to “prohibit and 

sanction” hate speech. 

The publication read in 

Part: “The Assembly 

believes that a wide range 

of measures is necessary to 

counter hate speech, 

ranging from selfregulation, 

particularly by 

political movements and 

parties, and in the statutes 

and rules of procedure of 

national and local elected 

bodies, to civil, 

administrative and criminal 

legislation prohibiting and 

sanctioning its use.” 

Citing countries such as 

Germany and France, 

Abdullahi stated further 

that the Parliaments of both 

countries passed a 

landmark law in 2018 and 

2019, respectively, to fight 

online hate speech. 

These and many other 

countries, the lawmaker 

stressed, all have 

defamation and libel laws 

but have introduced 

legislation to tackle hate 

speech as a specific threat. 

“Hate Speech bill is about 

prohibiting incitement to 

discrimination, hostility and 

violence,” the lawmaker 

emphasised. 

Senator Abdullahi said 

the new legislation passed 

by France and Germany 

compelled all social media 

networks to remove 

offending content as well as 

create buttons to enable 

users flag cases of abuse. 

“The Deputy Secretary- 

General of the United 

Nations, Amina 

Mohammed, on Tuesday 

commended the move to 

tackle hate speech without 

the death penalty. 

Speaking on the Hate 

Speech bill before the 

National Assembly, the UN 

deputy secretary-general 

said: “We need to know 

that globally we are in a 

space where hate speech 

has reached an all-time 

high. So, any check and 

balances we can put into a 

society, a country, a region 

to bring an end to this is 

welcome.”


“As we prepare for the re-run 

elections in Essien Udim LGA, 

we are cautious and mindful of a 

re-run election superintended by 

Mike Igini. We have no faith in 

Igini’s impartiality as an 

unbiased and independent 

umpire. 

“We are distraught and 

doubtful of a change of posture 

by Igini and therefore cautious 

to go into a fresh election while 

Igini remains the State REC. We 

demand the immediate redeployment 

of Igini in the 

interest of peace and justice.” 

•Akpabio 

* Says no difference between past military 

govts and civilian administrations 

AKPABIO VS EKPENYONG: 

Uncertainty in Akwa Ibom over senatorial rerun 

By Chioma Onuegbu 

THE Appeal Court ruling in 

Calabar, penultimate 

Saturday, which ordered re-run 

poll in Essien Udim local 

government area within 90 days 

in respect of the Akwa Ibom 

North-West Senatorial seat has 

dominated discussions in Akwa 

Ibom polity. 

Arising from the discussions are 

arguments, allegations, renewed 

bickering and varied 

interpretations of the judgement 

by leaders, stakeholders, and 

supporters of the two rival political 

parties involved in the legal battle 

– the People’s Democratic Party, 

PDP, and the All Progressives 

Congress, APC. 

Senator Godswill Akpabio, 

current minister of Niger Delta 

Affairs, ran on the plank of the 

APC while Senator Chris 

Ekpenyong contested on the 

banner of the PDP. Ekpenyong 

was returned as winner by the 

Independent National Electoral 

Commission, INEC, a decision 

Akpabio kicked against leading 

to the court of appeal ruling 

ordering repeat poll in Essien 

Udim, one of the 10 LGAs of the 

zone to determine the winner. 

Currently, Ekpenyong has 

114,973 votes from the remaining 

nine LGAs while Akpabio has 

76,917 votes. There are 95,987 

voters with permanent voters 

cards, PVCs, in Essien Udim 

LGA, where Akpabio hails from. 

Akpabio’s chances 

Depending on voters turnout, 

Akpabio has the chance of 

cancelling out Ekpenyong’s 

38,056 voters lead and winning 

the overall election. This is one of 

the reasons the yet to be fixed 

supplementary poll is raising dust 

in Akwa Ibom. 

However, part of the argument 

in the camp of the PDP is that 

even if Akpabio of the APC decides 

to go for the rerun it will 

be impracticable and impossible 

for him to win. 

Their argument stems from 

their belief that during the 

general elections, the total 

number of eligible voters in 

Essien Udim that collected their 

PVCs was 95, 987, and out of 

the number only 19,455 were 

accredited for the actual election. 

Some chieftains of the party 

argued further that the situation 

may worsen during the rerun, 

because in actual election 

situation, it is difficult to have 

up to 75 percent voters turnout, 

which explains the wide gap 

between 19,455 accredited 

voters and the 95,987 that 

collected their PVCs in Essien 

Udim. 

Poll has been won and lost — 

Asikpo 

A chieftain of the PDP from 

Akwa Ibom Northwest, Dr Anny 

Asikpo, said as far the people of 

Ikot Ekpene senatorial district 

are concerned the senatorial 

election had been won and lost. 

“It was won comprehensively 

by the incumbent senator and 

lost badly by the current 

Minister of Niger Delta Affairs. 

Like I had said before, even if 

the election will be conducted 

one million times he will fail one 

million plus one times. 

“So if I were him I will not 

present myself for the rerun. 

Even the people of Essien Udim 

don’t want him to return to the 

Senate; that is not the wish and 

expectation of the people of 

Essien Udim. They believe in 

rotation which he (Akpabio) is a 

beneficiary, and that the Senate 

seat is not rightly Essien Udim’s 

•Ekpenyong 

*Rerun a trap to make Akpabio lose appointme nt — Stakeholders 

turn.” 

Asikpo claimed that the people 

of Essien Udim purposely voted 

against Akpabio during the 

elections, that it was only 

reasoned ahead of the 2019 

general elections that the Senate 

seat should go to Obot Akara 

where Chris Ekpenyong hails 

from because the deputy 

governor, Mr. Moses Ekpo, is 

from Abak. “But in the right sense 

of it Abak5, would have taken it. 

After Ekpenyong, the next senate 

seat will go to Abak5, that is the 

position,” he stressed. 

The PDP also chided the APC 

for claiming that the electoral 

umpire cancelled over 61,000 

votes cast for Akpabio whereas 

the total number of accredited 

voters for that February 23, 2019 

election was 19, 455, insisting 

that those votes were cancelled 

because they were unlawful and 

indicated electoral fraud. 

Some observers 

suggest that 

Akpabio may be 

facing the 

problem of 

indecision, 

especially as he 

is expected to 

resign his 

appointment as 

Minister, to go 

for the exercise 

Akpabio has all it takes to win 

— APC supporters 

However, supporters and members 

of the APC are boasting that 

Akpabio has all it takes to beat 

Ekpenyong given his popularity 

and the goodwill he enjoys 

among his kinsmen of Essien 

Udim. 

A Chieftain of the party, Prince 

David Benjamin, boasted, “I can 

assure you that the people of 

Essien Udim will come out and 

massively vote for Godswill Obot 

Akpabio. And I can foresee more 

registered voters coming out for 

accreditation during the rerun 

and they will vote for Godswill 

Akpabio” 

Will Akpabio run or not? 

However, there is uncertainty 

whether or not Akpabio would 

resign to re-contest the Akwa 

Ibom Northwest Senate seat. 

At the time of filing this report, 

Senator Akpabio has not made 

any formal statement on the 

issue. 

Some observers suggest that 

Akpabio may be facing the 

problem of indecision, especially 

as he is expected to resign his 

appointment as Minister, to go 

for the exercise. 

Some APC stakeholders in the 

state, want the Resident Electoral 

Commissioner, Mr Mike Igini, 

removed as a condition to go for 

the rerun. 

A statement by Akwa Ibom 

State Chairman of the APC, Mr. 

Ini Okopido, immediately after 

the judgement read in part: 

“What is instructive about this 

judgement is the 

acknowledgement and 

expressed declaration by a 

superior court that election in 

Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial 

district was a sham; an indictment 

of INEC. 

“In other words, the Court is 

saying that INEC was wrong to 

have announced such a result. 

Re-reun a set up against 

Akpabio? 

However, comments from some 

stakeholders of Ikot Ekpene 

federal constituency where both 

Akpabio and Ekpenyong hails 

from indicate that they view the 

rerun as a distraction and maybe 

a set up against Akpabio. 

They fear that in the unlikely 

event that Akpabio resigns to run 

and in the end did not win, he 

will be left with nothing, and 

therefore that it is a risk for 

Akpabio to resign his ministerial 

appointment. 

Ikot Ekpene federal 

Constituency is made up of Ikot 

Ekpene, Essien Udim, and Obot 

Akara local councils. 

A source privy to political 

happenings in the area told 

Vanguard: “The people of Ikot 

Ekpene federal constituency 

believe that those advising him 

to continue to pursue his senate 

ambition are trying to make him 

lose both the ministerial 

appointment and senate seat 

and end up with nothing. 

“This is because after he must 

resigned he cannot get the 

appointment back if he lost out. 

Even if he wins, it also means 

that we have lost the ministerial 

position. When Akpabio was 

appointed as minister our people 

were happy that the fight brought 

good thing after all, so he’ll not 

expect us to be happy if he 

resigns.” 

Similarly, Chairman of a youth 

group under the aegis of “Ikot 

Ekpene Senatorial District Youths 

Frontiers”, Mr Victor Mbebe, 

advised Senator Akpabio not to 

go for the rerun. 

He said in a statement: “It is 

surprising that one would rather 

choose an office that only has a 

N220million Zonal Intervention 

projects allocated to it, to a 

Ministry with a budget of 

N23billion as presented by Mr. 

President for the year 2020. 

“It would interest the Minister 

to note that we the people of Ikot 

Ekpene senatorial district will not 

fold our arms and watch this giant 

position slip away. He should 

know that resigning from his 

ministerial position to contest the 

rerun is highly catastrophic. 

“We want to advise Chief 

Godswill Akpabio to disappoint 

his cosmetic supporters by not 

resigning his position as 

Minister for the rerun.” 

Meanwhile the general 

argument in the state is that 

Akpabio would make great 

impact as a Minister of Niger 

Delta Affairs than as a senator 

given the way he is already 

going, trying to sanitize the 

federal government agency.

YOUR LUCK TODAY 

By Joshua Adeyemo Phone 08056180139 

CAPRICORN: EVERYBODY needs other people’s 

co-operation just like you today but you will not be 

compelled by situation to dance to others’ tune; meaning 

that you can do things your own way and rightly 

expect success. 

AQUARIUS: THOSE of you willing to give others 

the needed co-operation will be in better position to 

consolidate on progress you have made recently. Don’t 

allow sex to distract you. 

PISCES: WATCHOUT for minor and avoidable but 

costly mistake within your working arena, especially 

if you are in charge of other people’s money. If you 

develop new romantic liaison today, it may not last. 

ARIES: AS the saying goes Atime waits for nobody 

it’s important you guard against unnecessary procrastination 

capable of putting you at tight corner tomorrow. 

Be loving. 

TAURUS: IT’S better you conclude what you’ve been 

doing for a while rather than starting something new 

you don’t know when to finish it. Be more family minded. 

L E I S U R E 

TAKE HEART — ELLA RANDLE 

TERROR MUDA in “Never say goodbye” 


“Do not dwell in the past, or worry about the 

future, concentrate the mind on the present 

moment.” 

—Take Heart Quotes 

A big part of happiness and success is letting go of 

what you assume your life is supposed to be, and 

sincerely appreciating it for everything that it is in 

the moment. 

— Ella Randle 

SAYINGS OF 

OUR PEOPLE 

Coffee and 

love taste 

best when 

hot. ~ 

Ethiopian 

proverb 

By Kola Fayemi 

GEMINI: IF careless remarks are made by you today, 

it would back-fire at resumption of work tomorrow 

morning. Those who are eager for romantic attention 

will have their dream coming true. Be more loving 

CANCER: IF you wait too long before an important 

(financial) decision is taken, you may find yourself 

keeping date with what you don’t bargain for. 

LEO: Placement of the Moon influences your associates 

to become more self-assertive. If you take good 

advice you’ll fare better. However, it’s important you 

don’t forget your tomorrow with others. 

VIRGO: BETTER than yesterday and luckily for you, 

opportunity to rectify mistakes made yesterday may 

come today to the betterment of your finances. Don’t 

try to buy love with money. 

DUDU in “ROLLING HOT” “HOT” By A.O.OLAIDE 

LIBRA: BETTER than yesterday as you will be at a 

more comfortable place today and suddenly discover 

that your hope is alive. Venus bring you money 

SCORPIO: ROMANTIC Venus at positive angle may 

bring matters-of-the heart related temptation through 

friends. But your best bet now is moderate ambition. 

SAGITTARIUS: The best bet for you is to consolidate 

on progress you made yesterday and look for best way 

to pacify your new friends. 

ASTROLOGICAL ASTROLOGICAL COUNSELLING 

COUNSELLING 

Send your date e and place of birth th to the Astr 

trological 

Counselling, P.M.B 100 

007, 7, Apapa, Lagos 

WHAT ABOUT ME? 

VIRGINIA 

dadadekola@yahoo.com 

Dear Joshua, 

You have done many people’s horoscope; what about 

me? I want you to kindly analyse my star and tell me 

everything about my self. Please take note that I value 

my health and career than any other thing. 

Chioma, Lagos. 

Dear Chioma, 

What space can take will be given to you here-under. 

Scorpio and Libra that hosted both your natal sun and 

moon are members of very strong star signs-health 

wise. 

Scorpio, in particular, has unusual survival ability. 

That is to say, even when health related challenges 

come, your survival endowment will always see you 

through. 

Your major challenge is from your constant worries 

about too many things, especially on career related 

issues. Business miscalculation can be another source 

of health related challenge. You will agree with the fact 

that both constant worries and business miscalculation 

can affect one’s circulatory system. 

Other things to watch-out for include: Urino-genital 

organs, minor accident (fire), bones dislocations, a few 

other times, skin infections and, of-course, fever. Always 

take care of the stomach. Please take note that all 

these are mere warnings as there is nothing fatalistic 

about them; a good guard, though. 

Oil related Neptune was the closet heavenly body to 

the sun when you were born at positive angle to Pluto 

in Leo. Thus, having things to do with oil along your 

career/business lines is not by accident. 

Then preponderance of water element and fixed quality 

in the distribution of the planets when you were born 

are favourable to commercial involvement with anything 

liquid. 

HOME & ABROAD 

By Lawrence Akapa


Rohr doesn't deserve 

contract extension 

– Adamu 

By Tony Ubani 

As Super Eagles coach 

Gernot Rohr waits 

eagerly for a renewal 

of his contract by the NFF, 

former Director-General of 

the defunct National Sports 

Commission, Dr. Amos 

Adamu has kicked against 

its renewal and asked "what 

has he won for the country". 

Adamu, a former FIFA 

Executive Committee 

member who spoke in 

Owerri at the Imo State 

Sports Commission Summit 

tagged "Rebuilding Imo 

through Sports" said that 

Rohr does not deserve a 

contract renewal because he 

has not achieved anything 

with the Super Eagles. 

Adamu spoke to Sports 

Vanguard after the 

inauguration of the Imo 

State Sports Festival bid 

committee for 2022. 

The contract of Rohr 

expires in June 2020 with no 

renewal offer on the table yet. 

Dr Adamu who spoke at the 

Summit and emphasized 

that sports was about 

Champions League: 

Osimhen rues Lille ouster 

Lille has no chance of 

progressing to the 

round of 16 after they lost 2- 

0 to Ajax at home, and for 

striker Victor Osimhen, it was 

•Osimhen 

NFF ‘loans’ Yusuf to 

Enugu Rangers 

Nigeria 

Football 

Federation, NFF 

has seconded Super Eagles 

coach Salisu Yusuf to 

Enugu Rangers as the team 

prepare to in the group 

phase of the CAF 

Confederation Cup. 

Rangers are currently 

without a coach after they 

sacked Benedict Ugwu due 

to poor performance of the 

team in the Nigeria 

Professional Football 

League. They are 15th on 

the log after five games. 

Yusuf’s main task is to get 

the team ready for the 

Confederation Cup tie 

against Egyptian club 

Pyramids FC on Sunday. 

“I am here on a technical 

assistance from the 

federation (NFF) as 

Rangers is representing the 

country in continental club 

football,” said Yusuf. 

•Adamu 

winning said that coaches should be sacked if they 

failed to deliver. "A target must be set before 

employing a coach. Also, everything necessary to 

help the coach attain success must be provided. 

Once he fails, he should be sacked", he said at the 

Concorde Hotel, venue of the Sports Summit. 

Asked about Gernot Rohr's 

contract renewal, Dr Adamu 

retorted; "what has he won? 

He went to the World Cup in 

Russia and came back empty 

handed. He went to African 

Cup of Nations and got a 

bronze medal. As for me, he 

has not done enough to 

deserve a renewal of his 

contact. I am not his 

employer, anyway. It's left 

for them to assess him and to 

determine whether he 

deserves a second time or 

not", he noted. 

a painful exit. 

Osimhen worked off his 

socks to put his club back into 

contention after Ajax took the 

lead, but Lille failed to 

convert their chances. 

“It was devastating to 

concede such an early goal. 

But we had chances, we could 

have led 2-1,” Osimhen said 

after the game. 

“I’m always positive in what 

I think and do, so we’ll go to 

Chelsea to play our game. 

“We are playing against 

one of the best teams in the 

world, and we know it’ll be 

tough. But our best 

performance so far came 

against Chelsea here.” 

Lille face Chelsea next at the 

Stamford Bridge in their last 

group game. 

•Yusuf 

“We hope to take the 

team to the next level from 

where they are now and it 

is not going to be easy. 

“We need to change some 

things but is going to be a 

gradual process.” 

Rangers spokesman 

Norbert Okolie confirmed 

that Yusuf and his assistant 

Mbwas Mangut are 

determined to help the 

team - 15th in the NPFL 

table - get positive results. 

•Rohr 

AFN crisis deepens as Gusau 

insists on Anambra congress 

By Ben Efe 

Embattled Athletics Federation of 

Nigeria, AFN president, Ibrahim 

Gusau said yesterday that there was no 

stopping the Annual General Meeting of 

the federation billed for Awka, Anambra 

State on Wednesday December 4, 2019. 

This is just as the vice-president, 

Olamide George countered that the 

AGM has no legitimacy and has called 

on invited dignitaries and States’ 

association chairmen to ignore the 

notice. The newly appointed AFN 

secretary Adisa Beyioku had written to 

all stakeholders stating that the 

gathering would not hold. 

However, Gusau who was speaking in 

Abuja said the AFN constitution empowers 

him to call for meetings: “Nothing has 

changed nor has the 

AGM been postponed. 

There is no better 

avenue to discus the 

progress of athletics.” 

Also chairman of the 

organising committee 

for the AGM, Hon. 

Patrick Oyedum Estate 

said there wasn’t any 

postponement by the 

secretary-general in the 

first place, adding that 

the meeting would go 

on. 

“We have the CAA 

president Kalkaba 

Malboum and the 

Nigeria Olympic Committee, NOC 

president Habu Gumel as invited 

guests.” 

However, George argued that the 

AGM fell short of the requirement of 

the AFN constitution and as such, the 

meeting is an exercise in futility. 

“Less than one month notice given 

for the Congress runs contrary to the 

letters of the AFN constitution, which 

stipulates a 60-day notice for the 

convening of an Annual General 

Congress or Assembly.” 

He also reiterated that only the 

Secretary General of the federation is 

empowered to issue notice of meeting 

upon clearance from the board of the 

AFN. And in this case there wasn’t any 

endorsement by majority of the board 

members and this renders the meeting 

illegal. 

Nigerian, South African Bikers to restore bilateral 

relations 

By Sam Eyoboka 

AS part of efforts to 

restore relations and 

strengthen the bond between 

Nigeria and South Africa, 

bikers from both countries 

are set to embark on a 

biking initiative to promote 

unity. 

The exercise tagged ‘Africa 

Unite Bike Ride’ will hold 

from December 4-16 in 

South Africa under the 

auspices MzansiNaija and 

Inspire Marketing & 

Branding International. 

Speaking on the event, 

Chief Executive Officer, 

Inspire Marketing and 

Branding 

International, Mr. Yinka 

Abioye said the ride will 

involve a minimum of two 

Nigerian and four South 

African bikers. 

He said: “They are going to 

visit historical, cultural and 

geographical places of interest 

in South Africa, one of them 

being the Mandela bridge. 

“The objective of the ride 

is to instill and encourage 

unity among African people 

by reshaping African minds 

about who we are, the value 

we could bring to one 

another, and the benefits of 

‘building bridges’ across the 

continent. 

“Bikers under the initiative 

will visit an African country 

annually to highlight and 

celebrate one another and 

to continue fostering 

relations and sacrifices that 

our leaders contribute to 

their various countries and 

our continent.” 

According to him, the tour 

will help inspire 

reconciliation and foster 

unity between both 

countries in the wake of 

recent xenophobic attacks in 

South Africa. 

Super Eagles 

move four 

steps higher 

on FIFA 

rankings 

igeria has moved four 

Nplaces on the FIFA World 

rankings for November, 

according to the world football 

governing body. 

The Super Eagles, who 

dropped a place in October, 

recovered from the slip after they 

started their qualifying 

campaign for the 2021 Africa 

Cup of Nations with victories 

against Benin and Lesotho, on 

November 13 and 17 

respectively. 

Gernot Rohr’s side rallied from 

a goal deficit to defeat their West 

African neighbours 2-1 in Uyo 

then they travelled to Maseru 

to beat the Crocodiles 4-2 in 

their second Group L game. 

Nigeria gathered 1493 points 

this month and they are ranked 

as the third-best footballing 

nation in Africa behind Senegal 

and Tunisia who occupy first and 

second place respectively. 

2019 Afcon champions Algeria 

are fourth while Morocco, 

Ghana, Egypt, Cameroon, Mali 

and DR Congo complete the top 

10 teams on the continent. 

The next Fifa rankings will be 

released on December 19 

Delta Force 

sell NPFL spot 

to Kwara Utd 

Delta Forces have sold their 

spot on the Nigeria 

Professional Football League to 

Kwara United just after five games 

into the 2020 season. 

Ironically, Delta Force also 

bought their spot on the NPFL 

from Kada Stars, but because of 

financial constraints they have 

been force to sell to Kwara United. 

The deal was struck, after both 

sides reached an agreement in 

Asaba. 

Addressing the media on this 

development, Kwara United’s 

chairman Olakumbi Titiloye 

claimed his management will 

blend with the league and its 

challenges. 

“I am sure it’s a development all 

the club’s stakeholders will also 

want to support,” said Titiloye 

“We are conscious of the 

challenges that will come with this 

massive decision, but we know it’s 

a situation that is redeemable, as 

the NPFL is just starting.” 

Before their demotion, Delta 

Force were ranked 17th in the 

country’s top-flight with four 

points after five outings. 

Kwara United will now obtain 

the team’s league points and 

continue from Week Six after formal 

registration. 

Kwara United


Mbappé: Madrid 

will wait for me 

In the last week, mixed in 

with the excitement 

over PSG’s visit to the 

Santiago Bernabéu for 

Champions League duty, 

rumours have been rife - 

not for the first time - about 

the possible arrival of 

Kylian Mbappé to the Real 

Madrid ranks. And a man 

that was close to the young 

star says it’s just a matter of 

time. 

As the Parisien giants 

continue to try and 

convince their national 

treasure to renew his 

contract with them, Los 

Blancos manager Zinedine 

Zidane has been throwing 

out further ‘love’ in his 

compatriot’s direction in 

order to tighten the bond 

even further. Following the 

2-2 draw on Tuesday 

evening, Vadim Vasilyev, 

former vice president of the 

player’s previous club AS 

Monaco, told Le Parisien 

that he only sees Mbappé’s 

future at the LaLiga side. 

“When? I don’t know,” 

Vasilyev answered, “but it 

seems Inevitable. 

Emery: Arsenal board 

won’t sack me 

Arsenal head coach 

Unai Emery says he 

has the club’s support 

despite a disappointing 

season, dismissing claims 

that he was set to be sacked. 

Arsenal are currently 

eighth in the Premier 

League and have failed to 

win any of their last five 

league games. 

The Gunners were booed 

off following the 2-2 home 

National Sports Festival: 

Gov Ihedioha, Sports Minister 

inspect Dan Anyiam Stadium 

By Tony Ubani 

The march towards 

rebuilding Imo 

State through Sports 

took off on a grand style 

yesterday in Owerri, the 

State capital with all the 

eggheads in Nigerian 

Sports present and the 

Executive Governor, Rt. 

Hon. Emeka Ihedioha 

vowing that the State 

would become the 

Mecca of Sports in 

Nigeria. 

In a colorful ceremony 

that saw the Concorde 

Hotel venue filled to the 

brim, Governor Ihedioha 

said that he was 

convinced that Imo State 

with the array of sports 

men and women it 

produced deserved to be 

the epicenter of sports in 

Nigeria. 

Among the dignitaries 

who were present 

include Minister of Youth 

and Sports, Sunday Akin 

Dare, Chief Emmanuel 

Iwuanyanwu, Hon. 

Gerald Irona, Deputy 

Governor of Imo, Hon 

Uche Onyeagocha, SSG, 

Chief Fan Ndubuoke, 

Executive Chairman Imo 

State Sports Council, 

Dan Ngerem, Chairman 

Imo State Sports Festival 

Bid Committee 

chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim 

Galadima, Mike 

Itemuagbor, Felix 

Awogu, Mitchel Obi, 

draw against Southampton 

on Saturday, but Emery 

says he does not feel any 

pressure from the club. 

He said: “The club is 

supporting me. I feel the 

club is responsible in that 

area. I really appreciate that 

a lot. “I feel strong with that 

support and I know my 

responsibility is to come 

back and change the 

situation. 

•Dep Gov unveils 2022 bid mascot 

Prof Ken Anugweje, Dr 

Kweku Tandoh, Chief 

Chioma Ajunwa, Dr 

Ademola Are, Chief 

Charity Opara-Asonze 

among others. 

Towards the 

actualization of Imo State 

bid to host the 2022 

National Sports Festival, 

Governor Emeka 

Ihedioha led the 

Minister of Sports, Mr. 

Sunday Dare on an 

inspection of some of the 

facilities designated to 

host the event yesterday. 

The governor and his 

entourage which 

included Mr. Dare 

arrived at the Dan 

Anyiam Stadium at about 

10 in the morning and 

went straight to the main 

bowl of the stadium 

which is still undergoing 

massive renovation to 

bring the facilities up to 

the required standard. 

The main pitch was 

being regrassed with 

groundsmen working 

while construction 

workers were busy 

working on the terraces 

which had been in a 

state of disrepair under 

the previous regime. 

The governor and the 

minister were assured by 

the contractors handling 

the various renovation 

works at the stadium that 

the facilities will be 

ready before the next 

round of inspection. 

The entourage also 

inspected the indoor 

sports before moving to 

the prestigious Concorde 

Hotel venue of the Imo 

Sports Summit. 

In his speech, Mr. Dare 

revealed that since he 

became minister, Imo 

was the first state in the 

South East he will be 

visiting because he felt 

Governor Ihedioha 

shared the same 

aspirations with the 

sports ministry. 

“During our inspection 

of some sports facilities 

in the state,my mood 

moved from that of 

depression to hope 

because it’s obvious the 

governor has started 

matching words with 

action on his mission to 

rebuild Imo.” 

Before the Sports 

Summit started at the 

Concorde Hotel, the 

Deputy Governor of the 

state Hon. Gerald Irona 

officially unveiled the 

mascot for the Imo 2022 

bid. 

Before then, members 

of the bidding committee 

chaired by former AFN 

president, Dan Ngerem 

were inaugurated. 

The chairman of the 

Imo State Sports 

Commission, Chief Fan 

Ndubuoke revealed that 

the hosting bid torch will 

begin a tour of all the 27 

local government 

councils in the state from 

Monday, December 1. 

•Mbappé 

•SImeone 

Joshua should be 

confident he can beat 

Ruiz Jr, says Tyson 

Mike Tyson says Anthony Joshua 

doesn’t need to be worried about 

facing off against Andy Ruiz Jr. if he has 

properly analysed what went wrong last 

time, while he questioned the Mexican’s 

weight loss. 

The two heavyweights go head-to-head 

once again in Saudi Arabia at the start of 

December with AJ looking to win back 

the WBA, IBF and WBO titles he lost 

after being stopped in the seventh round 

at Madison Square Garden. Both fighters 

have noticeably slimmed down since 

their previous meeting and Tyson isn’t 

sure that is wise, while he feels Joshua 

can have success in the rematch. 

Asked what AJ needs to do in the 

rematch, Tyson told Parimatch: 

‘Obviously he knows what happened, 

because I’m sure he’s watched the films. 

“Because if he’s intelligent like I 

believe he is, he watched the films over 

and over of the last encounter he had 

with Ruiz. And he’s worried, but he 

should be confident that he can be 

successful.” 

PSG want 

Simeone to 

replace Tuchel 

PSG’s surprise 

Champions League exit last 

season at the hands of Manchester 

United, coupled with the failure to defend 

both domestic cup titles, has left Thomas 

Tuchel’s stock rather flat at the Parc des Princes, 

where the feeling is that another change of coach 

will be necessary to bring the Champions League 

success that the Ligue 1 club crave. 

Barring a run to the final this season, another 

Ligue 1 title may not be enough to convince PSG’s 

Qatari backers that Tuchel is the man to lead them 

to glory on the continental stage. The French side 

have sealed top spot in group A ahead of Real 

Madrid, which should provide a softer last 16 

opponent, but PSG’s record in the knock-out 

stages over recent seasons does not lend itself to 

over-confidence: the Ligue 1 side have exited at 

the last-16 stage in each of the past three seasons 

and have never been beyond the quarter-finals. 

Fabinho’s injury could be 

massive – Klopp 

Jurgen Klopp says he 

is unsure of the 

severity of Fabinho’s 

injury, but says the 

outcome is “massive” 

after the midfielder 

limped off in Liverpool’s 

1-1 draw with Napoli. 

Fabinho, who has 

played in all but one of 

Liverpool’s Premier 

League games this 

season, limped off in the 

first half after team-mate 

Dejan Lovren attempted 

to tackle Hirving 

Lozano. “The biggest 

thing is the Fabinho 

injury, that’s massive,” 

said Klopp. 

“It’s early and we all 

hope it’s not too serious 

but it’s pretty painful 

and in an area you don’t 

want to have pain, 

around the ankle.”



Vanguard, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 

TODAY’S PUZZLE 

Sudoku 

FRIDAY’S ANSWER 

TODAY’S CROSSWORD 

QUICK CROSSWORD 

THURSDAY’S SOLUTION 

How to Play Sudoku 

ACROSS 

1 Thailand, formerly (4) 

3 Immaculate (8) 

9 Autumn month (7) 

10 Edible fish (5) 

11 Not expressed directly 

(5) 

12 Cancer or Capricorn (6) 

14 Game bird (6) 

16 Bigger (6) 

19 Stinging plant (6) 

21 Musical note (5) 

24 Intended (5) 

25 Antagonistic (7) 

26 Reject (4,4) 

27 You (archaic) (4) 

DOWN 

1 Deficit (8) 

2 Upper room (5) 

4 Sea rover (6) 

5 Forbidden (5) 

6 End of the day (7) 

7 Not all (4) 

8 Dies down (6) 

13 First showing of a film (8) 

15 Alfresco (4-3) 

17 Nearly (6) 

18 Male relative (6) 

20 Carried (5) 

22 Whinny (5) 

23 Fail to include (4) 

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: 

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