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16—Vanguard, THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2020 COURTESY VISIT: Oyo State Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde (middle); Inspector General of Police,IGP, Muhammed Adamu (left) and Chairman, Oyo State Advisory Council, Senator Hosea Agboola, during the governor's courtesy visit to the Inspector General of Police in Abuja, yesterday. Alleged money laundering: Ex-Kwara Finance Commissioner remanded in EFCC custody By Demola Akinyemi I LORIN—THE immediate past Commissioner for Finance in Kwara State,Demola Banu was yesterday remanded in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, by an Ilorin High Court over allegations of money laundering. Banu was arraigned alongside an official of Travel Messenger Innovation, proper marketing crucial to business survival —GMD Group Gabriel Olawale LAGOS—THE Chief Executive Officer of GDM Group, Mr Victor Afolabi has identified lack of proper marketing and innovation as one of the main reason some business especially start-up struggled to make an impact. Speaking in Lagos during the company's 10th anniversary and the unveiling of a new logo, Afolabi said that business environment is something very tough and to stay relevant requires extremely creativity, dynamic and insight into consumer understanding. “As a company, our primary objective is to help business including a startup to drive strong Company Limited, one Olarewaju Adeniyi on a nine count charge before Justice Babangana Ashigar led Court. The EFCC alleged that the defendants conspired among themselves to launder the sum of about four hundred and eleven million naira belonging to the Kwara State Government. Count one of the charge reads, “That you, Olarewaju Adeniyi, Ademola Banu and Travel innovative products that will help them win their target market and drive market share. The need for appropriate marketing and innovation is the core of our business. We support business in the area of NDE trains 50 physically challenged persons in Edo By Ozioruva Aliu BÉNIN CITY—THE National Directorate of Employment, NDE, in Edo state has commenced training of 50 physically challenged persons with in Akoko Edo Local Government Area of Edo State which it called The school On Wheels, SOW, State coordinator of NDE Ayo Edegbai while flagging off Kessiena Majemite, “The studio model of building and launching new ventures has been around for a while, but has not been standardized. Becoming a GSSN Studio means we, like other studios, work to achieve the gold standard of building and launching more successful impact start-ups across Africa. “This milestone is a major move for CeedCap on its mission to become Africa’s leading venture builder and impact investor. “The fact remains that a majority of start-ups still identify poor execution, limited funding, and market access as the primary drivers of most failed innovative Messenger Limited between January to December 2018 in Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this honourable Court conspired among yourselves to commit an offence, to wit: conversion of the sum of N411,000,000.00 ( four hundred and eleven million naira) only property of Kwara State Government, which sum you reasonably ought to know was derived from fraud, and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18(a) of the money laundering (prohibition) (amendment) act, 2012 and innovation, marketing and business transformation. “We are changing from brand solution company to marketing and innovation. Ten years ago, we started as an experiential event below the line agency and in 2015 we became a marketing operation company. Now in 2020, we look at the direction the world the training said it was under the vocational Skills Development programme of the NDE. She noted that the scheme is aimed at creating a pool of artisans as part of Federal Government initiatives of creating jobs for the teeming army of unemployed youths in Nigeria. “We are here to officially flag off this Vocational Skills acquisition programme of the federal government Nigeria-based start-up studio joins GSSN By Prince Okafor L AGOS—NIGERIAbased start-up studio, CeedCap, yesterday, said it is now an official membership of the Global Start-up Studio Network, GSSN. GSSN, is a network of venture builders, giving start-ups the power to create and grow businesses and make a meaningful impact across the world. CeedCap is the first start-up studio in Africa to be named a GSSN Studio. According to the Founder and Managing Partner, CeedCap, ideas.” GSSN provides the highest quality support to studios and their founders, leading to incredible outcomes for start-ups across the globe. Best known for achieving local impact and global reach, GSSN Studios represents true leadership in the global industry. Corroborating the development, Director, GSSN, Nick Zasowski,said: “GSSN is not for everyone, and rightfully so. GSSN studios represent the world’s most respected studios as well as some of the most inspiring pioneers working to grow startup ecosystems in unexpected places. punishable under section 15(3) and (4) of the same act .“ The accused persons pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them in Court. Counsel to the EFCC, Nnaemeka Omewa told the Presiding Judge “ My Lord, following the plea of not guilty entered by the defendants, the prosecution shall be asking this honourable Court to give a trial date to enable us prove our case , we also want you to remand the defendants in Correctional Facility pending the hearing and determination of this case“ is going which is getting more dynamic and we decided that innovation needs to become a critical part of our marketing. “In this century, people want to be sure of the impact of what marketing is contributing to their business, therefore we decided to change the very core of our business and not only the logo. which is under the National Directorate of Employment (NDE). As you all know, we are not here by chance, we are aware of the level of unemployment problem in Nigeria, so we are here to train 50 persons with various kinds of disabilities with different skills especially in the rural areas, because we have discovered that there are more persons with disability in the rural areas more than those in the urban areas, by so doing, we will be able to stem the tide of rural- urban migration.” “As we all know, unemployment has become a very big monster in Nigeria, this has greatly led to a high level of crime rate in our various communities, posing enormous danger to the stability of the nation at all levels. Therefore the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) as the apex agency saddled with the responsibility of employment generation in the country using training as its main strategy for employment creation." Meanwhile, the Director General of the programmme, Dr. NasirLadan Mohammed Argungu, in a goodwill massage charged the participants to be totally committed to the training. Boeing swings to annual loss as 737 MAX costs near $19 billion BOEING Co, Wednesday, swung to its first annual loss since 1997 on mounting 737 MAX costs and indicated it would again cut production of its bigger 787 Dreamliner aircraft, currently its main source of cash. Costs related to the global grounding of Boeing's once fast-selling 737 MAX reached $14.6 billion in 2019 and the planemaker warned of another $4 billion in charges in 2020 due to the expense of freezing and slowly restarting the jets' production. Boeing, facing the biggest crisis in its history, had previously estimated an around $8 billion price tag for the MAX fallout. The aircraft was grounded in March after two crashes that killed 346 people. Boeing has since frozen production of the aircraft as deliveries, the moment when the planemaker receives most of its cash, remain halted. "We recognize we have a lot of work to do," Boeing President and CEO David Calhoun said in a statement. Vodafone to sell stake in Egyptian unit to Saudi Telecom for $2.4 bn VODAFONE Group has agreed a preliminary deal to sell its 55 percent stake in its Egyptian unit to Saudi Arabia's largest telecoms operator STC for $2.4 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. The non-binding deal values Vodafone Egypt at $4.4 billion and the two companies have agreed to long-term use of the Vodafone brand and other services in Egypt. Selling the stake is in line with Vodafone efforts to streamline its operations to focus on Europe and sub-Saharan Africa, Vodafone Chief Executive Nick Read said. "It will reduce our net debt and unlock value for our shareholders," he said. Vodafone said the transaction is expected to close by June. STC said the non-binding agreement was valid for 75 days from Wednesday and could be extended by mutual consent. "Vodafone Egypt is the leading player in the Egyptian mobile market and we look forward to contributing further to its continuing success," said STC Chief Executive Nasser al-Nasser. OVH Energy appoints Dagazau as COO OVH Energy, licensee of Oando retail brand, has an nounced the appointment of Mumuni Dagazau as Chief Operating Officer of the Company. Mumuni Dagazau is a business strategist with over 30 years' experience in the private sector. Prior to his appointment, he was Chief Operating Officer at A.A. Rano Nigeria Limited. Mumuni Dagazau has over the years, in various capacities, become recognized for his talent in Strategy Development, Process Optimization, Corporate Vision actualization with maximum revenue generation. As Chief Operating Officer of OVH Energy, he will be responsible for Supply and Trading; Customer Service; Sales and Marketing; ASPM; Engineering and Terminal business. Dagazu stands out as a professional with the unique ability to convert strategic plans into reality. In his previous roles, he has guided companies to establish themselves as viable businesses. He is an associate member of the Association of Business Executives, United Kingdom and Alumnus of Valley Forge Military Academy in the Unites States. "We are pleased to have Dagazau join OVH Energy Marketing. His strong background in operational organizational optimization coupled with his technical expertise make him an ideal person to take on this position. His appointment is also an indication of our commitment to build a business that continually provides our customers with products and services of the highest standards." said Huub Stokman, CEO OVH Energy. 2000 retailers to benefit from MTN 'Turns It Up' scheme MTN Nigeria says 2000 retailer across the country will benefit from its 'Turns It Up' "Kiosk as a Service" scheme. The scheme which will empower retailers with an omnibus stall that will enable the retailers provide MTN's bouquet of products and services more efficiently and afford customers access to services like SIM registration, (mobile money) MoMo, 4G migrations, airtime purchase and so much more. Starting with the South-West region of the country with over 180 already installed in Lagos State, the kiosks come pre-fitted with solar panels that will power the kiosk, enable users to charge phones and generally support the ease of doing business. Speaking on the scheme, Chief Sales and Distribution Officer, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Kunle Adebiyi said: "The 'Kiosk as a Service' is a demonstration of MTN's unwavering belief in partnership." Adebiyi said MTN's use of pre-installed solar panels on the kiosks was a deliberate action and a commitment to ensure that the company leads the clamour for the use of renewable energy as a way to preserve the environment. Some stories credited to Reuters
What will be President Buhari’s legacy? THREE years from now, Muhammadu Buhari will become Nigeria’s expresident. He will most likely retire to his ancestral home of Daura to live out the rest of his life. At that stage, what will matter most is the legacy he left behind for the unmerited privileges the country bequeathed him. The time to create those legacies is now. It will be too late in 2023. Most of those who voted for him in the 2015 presidential election did so because they believed he was a man conscious of legacy. I was one of them. Former Managing Director of Nigerian Breweries Limited, Eze Festus Odimegwu, was also in that loop. In an interview shortly after the 2015 polls, Odimegwu said he believed in Buhari’s personal example. "Buhari had been military head of state. Some others who had occupied the same position simply emptied the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN. But he did not. He had headed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, but he did not steal. He had been military governor, he did not steal. There is nothing as personal example.” Besides, Odimegwu noted that: “Buhari doesn’t talk much. He is a man of few words. He is measured. But anything he says, he is clear. He doesn’t talk from two sides of the mouth. That clarity of thought and speech mirrors intention. A leader will never do well unless his intentions are good.” That is the audacity of legacy. Those presumed virtues were what people remembered of Buhari after his first stint in power. Last week, I went back to Abuja to do an encore with Odimegwu. He could barely recognise the pre-2015 Buhari. The Buhari who superintends over the affairs of Nigeria today is an “unmitigated disaster”, he insists. So, what happened? Was he changed by the presidency? Not really going by the immortal words of former U.S. First Lady, Michelle Obama, that “being president doesn't change who you are. It reveals who you are,” a sentiment re-echoed by her husband, President Barak Obama, at Miami’s Florida International University in October 2016 thus: “Let me tell you something about this office that I’ve been in for eight years. Who you are - what you are - does not change after you occupy the Oval Office. All it does is magnify who you are. All it does is shine a spotlight on who you really are.” Maybe Nigerians never really knew A president with his eyes on legacy with do everything to halt this perilous drift to anarchy Buhari, the man they elected president in 2015. But now that Aso Rock has magnified and shined a spotlight on who he really is, the image staring at us in the mirror is perplexing. But beyond all this, what I see is a man who does not care, a man to whom legacy means nothing as long as his narcissistic agenda is achieved. A president who has his eyes on leaving a legacy will not sit idly and watch his underlings wheedle the unwary with falsehoods even as the country slips inextricably into a season of anomie. Such a president will not continue to live in denial, playing the ostrich in the face of grave national occurrences. Under Buhari’s watch, Nigeria has become the archetypal Hobbesian state where life is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short," with violent non state actors daily delegitimising the commonwealth. A president with his eyes on legacy with do everything to halt this perilous drift to anarchy. Not Buhari. Instead, he is sitting on his palms watching his minions harangue Nigerians with the falsehood that security has improved considerably. On Sunday, January 26, a day two bombs were exploded by terrorists with fatalities, Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, said on national television that “Nigerians ought to be thankful for the job met with a delegation from Niger State that came to Aso Rock to tell him that insecurity and death had become the unenviable lot of the people. “I was taken aback by what is happening in the North West and other parts of the country. During our campaigns, we knew about the Boko Haram. What is coming now is surprising. It is not ethnicity or religion; rather it is one evil plan against the country. “We have to be harder on them. One of the responsibilities of government is to provide security. If we don’t secure the country, we will not be able to manage the economy properly,” he vowed. This is one vow too many. I doubt if anyone still takes the president serious anymore. His promises no longer assuage anxieties. And the reason for the incredulity is not far-fetched. There is no evidence of any of the so-called bandits or Fulani herdsmen wreaking havoc that has been successfully prosecuted for their heinous crime. Instead, the president is on record advising the victims of these atrocious crimes to accommodate their tormentors in the spirit of brotherhood. At the meeting with Niger State indigenes, the president lamented that activities of bandits had forced many to abandon their farms and homes. So, he knows? What has he done about that as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces? Is he aware that the bandits who chased away Benue indigenes from their ancestral lands are still occupying them till date while their victims are living in squalid conditions in IDP camps? Squalid conditions being done by the government.” “It (insecurity) is not as bad as you make it seem,” he admonished his interviewer. But two days later, the president himself threw Adesina under the grinding wheels of his hypocritical locomotive when he Buhari’s embarrassing security lethargy has led to regional self-help which is what the Western Nigeria Security Network, WNSN, called Operation Omotekun is all about. On Wednesday, January 29, senators reminded the president to do the needful – sack the Service Chiefs and Inspector General of Police, IGP, Mohammed Adamu. A president with his eyes on legacy will not wait to be told that it is high time he kicked out service chiefs who have supervised the disconcerting deterioration of security. Under Buhari, Nigeria’s democracy has gone to the dogs, elections have been reduced to mere joke. Yet, here is a man who contested the presidency four times and vowed to sanitise the electoral space. Rather than fulfil his vow, the situation has become worse. No decent Nigerian has any iota of confidence in the country’s electoral process again. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has become a mere parastatal of the presidency. The courts have effectively been tethered to the apron-strings of executive shenanigans. Under Buhari’s watch, election rigging has assumed a very frightening dimension. Before now, malpractices will mean, in worst case scenarios, thugs snatching ballot boxes and running away. Under Buhari, nobody snatches ballot boxes and runs away. The political gladiators will wait until after the counting just to ensure that they have lost at the polling unit and then in the full glare of the camera make a bonfire of not only the ballot boxes but also the result sheets and all other vital INEC documents. It happened in the Okota area of Lagos in the 2019 general elections. But that is even for those who still give a damn. The more hardened politicians don’t even care to campaign. They don’t bother about voting. They don’t snatch ballot boxes. They stay in the comfort of their bedrooms to write their own results and head to court. Others kidnap the returning officers and order them at gunpoint to announce them winners of elections they lost. Everything President Muhammadu Buhari touches when it comes to leadership goes south even as his government pettifogs. What a legacy for a man once touted as the country’s saviour. HOW time flies! It is now some 50 years since the Nigerian civil war ended. I recall those days in mid-January 1970 when the war ended. I was a form four student in Government College, Keffi, and we had just reported back to school after the end of the year holidays. I came back to school with a small transistor radio which Vanguard, THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2020 — 17 became of high value to me and my roommates, to follow reports aired by BBC and other international radio outlets. There were hardly any newspapers in remote Keffi, then. And television was still some years ahead. The radio was the most dependable source of news. It was from the radio that we started having an inkling that the war was ending. By the time the official announcement came it wasn’t much of a surprise. In any case it was also confirmed by the principal of the college at the morning assembly session. There was immense sigh of relief at the announcement, especially for those of us who were midway into secondary schools. We had known nothing else but the war since we came into the form one. The first shot heralding the civil war was launched in the mid-1967 when my set was just settling into form one. Since then it was one trauma or the other as the war escalated. We had imagined that the war was far away in the Eastern part of the country, but when bombs were detonated in Lagos and Kaduna it registered that one was vulnerable anywhere. There was a general fear of the unknown all around. We even had bomb drills in schools to train school children on what to do in case of bomb attacks. One could remember a general slowdown in everything. Obviously government had no money to do anything else but prosecute the war. Everything that needed government funds was affected. The roads were dilapidated, and journeys took days rather than the hours we spend now. The road I followed to college from Maiduguri, my home, was the single lane highway through Bauchi, Jos, Akwanga, Gudi and it was only tarred in Children of the Nigerian civil war Wars are horrors; we should talk about them so as to avoid them, not to repeat them parts. In fact, the portion from Bauchi would be some of the most terrifying roads one had ever travelled on. There were frightening deep gorges on the sides of the roads leading up the hills to Jos and after. There were no buses or taxis; we could only travel on rickety, open bolekajas. Trains were a luxury but available. At least one could take a train from Maiduguri all the way to Gudi. Nevertheless, the depravations we suffered as school children during the civil war on my side of the divide cannot by any stretch of imagination be compared to what our mates went through in the other side of the divide. Many of them were uprooted from where they considered home and driven under frightening conditions to a life of terrifying depravations. They suffered cramped family lives, deaths, bombs, hunger, diseases, in whatever order. In wars, and times of troubles, children suffered most and the civil war literature is full of such testimonies. After the war, secondary school over, we all converged in the universities as from 1972 onwards with the other kids from the war-torn areas who survived the war. Through various levels of interactions and sharing of experiences, we came to appreciate what hell they went through in those traumatic years. Much later I would come face to face with the horrors that the civil war visited on the affected areas when in 1975 we went as delegates from ABU Zaria to Benin to attend the convention of the now defunct National Union of Nigerian Students, NUNS. We went through Onitsha and it was the first time I crossed the River Niger into the East. Even though it was some four years after the war the tell-tale scars were visible all the way to Benin. The roads were bumpy and full of pot holes. And in all the towns and villages we passed through, the buildings bore plenty marks from bullets and or shells. Poverty was written all over the place. It was truly horrifying to see. During the national service year, I lived in Lagos but I took time off occasionally to visit fellow corpers living in the East. I would spend a day or two with Bello Abdullahi who served in Ogidi – Chinua Achebe’s home village, a short run from Onitsha. I would then hop off to Owerri where Tijjani El- Miskeen was teaching. My last port of call would be Port Harcourt where Zakar Isah Chawai was serving along with his new bride. In all these journeys the pattern I saw was the same: dilapidated infrastructure, destroyed buildings in towns and villages, and poverty written all over. That was 1976, six years after the war, yet the conditions were just as bad as the war had just ended. Wars are horrors. We should talk about them so as to avoid them. Not to repeat them. Sunny side of the social media WONDERS never end! At a time when the social media was under intense scrutiny with negative labels such as fake news being bandied about, it is heartwarming to follow what good the social media has generated to the life of blind singer living in a village in Makoda local government of Kano State. The singer, Magajiya Dambatta was a heroine of the 1970s, a great popular singer who had produced songs extolling the virtues of sound education and moral values. In the early 1970s many would recall the sonorous voice of Magajiya Dambatta, dishing out song after song, over the radios in Kano, encouraging citizens to bring out their wards to school. Unfortunately, the old maestro went blind and subsequently fell on real hard times. She was forced to go out begging to sustain herself until words reached Jaafar Jaafar, Editor-in Chief and publisher of the Daily Nigerian, an online medium. Jaafar went out to the village and sought out the singer to assess her situation and the environment as well. He immediately put her condition to the public on his Facebook account to raise awareness on the plight of the unfortunate blind singer as a means for mobilising funds from the public towards her rehabilitation. The response was overwhelming. Over 500 responded to Jaafar’s entreaties and within a week an amount of over N5million had been raised. After this wholesome collection, Jaafar went back to the village to brief Magajiya. I followed their encounter as it was reported in many international Hausa language radio stations. Their meeting, as readers would expect, was ecstatic as Magajiya was briefed on the goodies lined up to cater for her livelihood. She even belted out a thank you song, in a strong and vibrant voice, that belied her 82 years. This is expected because I understand that a substantial part of the proceeds will be used to build or rent a modest dwelling for her. They have also planned a three-year payment of allowances to cater for her food, shelter, health care and other daily needs on monthly, quarterly or as the need arises. She would also be taken to the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital for detailed medical examination, particularly her eyes condition. Obviously things are looking up for Magajiya Dambatta. Thanks to the positive power of the social media and large-heartedness of Jaafar Jaafar and his friends. We shall be following the developments. C M Y K
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