19062021 - How Jihadists planed to make Okowa cry

2—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—3

4—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021

SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021 — 5
Lagos tanker explosion: 5 lives lost, 25 vehicles
burnt; hoodlums loot offices, vandalise property
By Olasunkanmi
Akoni and Bose
Adelaja
APetroleum
Liquefied
Gas
(LPG) tanker
explosion which occurred
Thursday night on
Mobolaji Bank Anthony
Way, Ikeja, Lagos has
claimed five lives with
several others sustaining
injuries. No fewer than 25
cars were also destroyed by
the inferno while a part of
the Ogun State Property
Investment Company
(OPIC) Plaza, which houses
different commercial
outfits was severely
damaged.
And to compound the
unfortunate situation,
hoodlums were said to
have taken advantage of
the fire incident to loot
offices adding to the woes
of the victims.
The tanker reportedly
exploded while in motion
at about 10.32 pm on
Thursday. According to
eyewitnesses, the impact of
the explosion was felt
inside buildings in the
Government Residential
Area (GRA) axis of Ikeja.
The Acting Zonal
Coordinator, South West
Zonal Office, National
Emergency Management
Agency (NEMA), Mr
Ibrahim Farinloye,
confirmed that five
persons had so far lost their
lives in the fire incident.
Farinloye said yesterday
that three bodies were
earlier recovered from the
scene of the incident by
emergency response
agencies. “Sadly, two out of
the 13 persons who were
rescued and taken to the
Trauma and Burns Centre
at Gbagada General
Hospital, passed on a few
minutes ago. This makes it
a total of five persons killed
in the explosion so far,” he
said.
He said the explosion was
alleged to have been caused
by leakage while the
liquefied petroleum gas
(LPG) tanker was in
motion.
According to him, “the
resulting fire travelled
with the wind to the
premises of Ogun State
Property Investment
Company (OPIC) Plaza
besides Sheraton Hotels,
which houses different
commercial outfits
including a Chinese
Restaurant. The fire was
put out at about 12.30
a.m., after concerted efforts
of five fire trucks from the
Lagos State Fire Service and
two trucks from the Lagos
State Emergency
Management Agency
Response Unit. The initial
search and rescue activities
revealed that 13 persons
sustained various degrees of
burns. Out of this, nine are
males while four are
females. We have so far
recovered three bodies
from the incident. The
bodies were recovered from
the generator house of
OPIC Plaza and the
restaurant.”
Farinloye said the
affected victims were
taken to the Lagos State
University Teaching
Hospital (LASUTH) and
that four of the victims
with severe injuries were
later transferred to the
Trauma and Burns Centre
at Gbagada General
Hospital. “Comprehensive
post-disaster assessment on
the extent of general
damages would be done
later today (yesterday),”
Farinloye added.
Scores of onlookers and
sympathisers thronged the
scene of the tragedy as
rescue workers battled to
bring the situation under
control. The attendant
gridlock worsened as
Mr. Balogun
and his
colleagues
were trapped
in the inferno
and three of
them were
later
confirmed
dead.
security agents and rescue
team cordoned off the road
to enable unhindered rescue
operations.
Motorists and other road
users were also trapped in
the gridlock which
extended onto the ever
busy Ikorodu Road,
Gbagada end of the road,
Ikeja G.R.A, among others.
One of the eyewitnesses
told Vanguard that the
incident occurred at
exactly, 11.45 pm,
Thursday, when the gas
tanker who was on speed
suddenly exploded into ball
of fire, spreading quickly to
buildings around. “Those,
who were caught in the
inferno were screaming for
help but no one could
respond at that particular
time as everyone
scampered to safety”, he
said
According to Director
General, LASEMA, Dr.
Femi Oke-Osanyintolu,
“On arrival of the Tiger
officials at scene of the
incident, it was discovered
that a Liquefied Petroleum
Gas, LPG, tanker was on
fire as a result of explosion
while the gas tanker was
moving inward ikeja.
“The victims, who suffered
varying degree of burns
from the gas explosion were
consequently taken to
Lagos State University
Teaching Hospital,
LASUTH and Gbagada
General Hospital Burns
and Trauma Centre for
treatment. “They are
responding to treatment,
while five persons lost their
lives.”
Also, the Director, Lagos
State Fire and Rescue
Service, Mrs Adeseye
Margaret said the
unfortunate incident which
was reported at about 2235
hours on Thursday, was
promptly attended to by the
firemen.
She said: “a distress call
was received from Opic
Plaza, 28/30 Mobokaji
Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja
that a Gas Truck heading
towards Ikeja reportedly
exploded from a leakage
which travelled through
atmospheric conditions to
meet an ignition point on
the ground floor of the
OPIC Plaza which houses a
restaurant among other
outlets resulting to Fire
Outbreak”.
Adeseye added that
three fire engines and
crew were promptly
detailed to rescue the
situation and they
completely put out the fire
at the incident scene.
She further explained
that on arrival at the
scene of the incident, the
Firefighters discovered
that not less than 25
vehicles of various brands
including the gas truck
and the rear section of the
plaza building was
extensively damaged by
the resultant inferno. She
however, said that
firefighting operations
was concluded at 3 am
Friday, as comprehensive
post Fire disaster
investigation and
assessment has begun in
earnest.
Victims,
eyewitnesses’
account
An eye witness account
said it took the Lagos State
Fire and Rescue Services
over two hours to respond
to the emergency calls by
residents.
A resident Mrs Adetayo
Kasali, said several calls
made to Lagos State
Emergency numbers
were unresponded to
promptly.
A private guard Mr.
Tony Omahi, said he felt
the heat of the fire as it
spread towards his
direction before he took to
his heels for safety.
According to him, “That
was my first experience of
seeing how fast fire can
travel. I ran as far as my
leg could carry me until I
noticed the arrival of law
enforcement operatives.
There was nothing
anyone could do to salvage
lives and properties”
A victim, Mr. Akande
Erinle, who lost his
The gas explosion scenes at the Opic Plaza, Mobolaji Bank Anthony way,
Ikeja, caused by gas cylinder vehicle, last night, in Lagos.
PHOTO: Kehinde Shonola.
The gas explosion Scenes at the opic plaza, Mobolaji Bank Anthony way,
Ikeja, caused by gas cylinder vehicle, last night, in Lagos.
PHOTO: Kehinde Shonola.
vehicle to the inferno said he
took to his heels when he
noticed the rate at which the
fire was moving towards his
direction. “I was sleeping in
my vehicle
when I suddenly felt hot
breeze which aroused me
from sleep. Before I could
pull myself together, I saw the
fire coming towards my
direction and I had no option
that to run out of my car. At a
point, I though it was an
attack until I saw people
scampering for safety at that
hour of the night. I ran as far
as Ayinke House for safety
after which I started coming
back.
“Surprisingly, I noticed
that my vehicle has got
burnt but I thank God that
I am alive, after all, when
there is life, there is hope.”
An eye witness who
simply identified himself as
Azees, lamented late
arrival of emergency
responders to the scene of
the incident.
“Police were the first
responders at the scene but
that was an hour after the
incident happened,
followed by the state fire
service which arrived
about two hours later.
Many workers of the
restaurant were trapped in
the inferno and their shout
for help attracted people
like us who rushed to the
scene to rescue them.
Unfortunately, we could
not do much because of
thick chocking smoke.
“We had to use a torch
light to ascertain the exact
location of trapped people
only to notice that such
assistance would require the
services of an ambulance.
“We ran to Eko Hospital
for support but were referred
to the General Hospital and
this process was
cumbersome and could not
be completed. The fire
ravaged the more. Men of
the fire service then arrived
the scene and swung into
action. Emergency services
arrived few hours later but
without ambulance service.
This is pathetic,” he
lamented.
The manager of the
affected restaurant,
identified as Mr Balogun
was said to be among the
dead.
Mr. Balogun and his
colleagues were trapped in
the inferno and three of
them were later confirmed
dead.
Eye witnesses said that
the truck driver and his
motor boy jumped out of
the truck and ran for
safety on noticing that the
truck had developed
leakage.
A resident, Ayoola
Babajide said, “We noticed
that the truck stopped
abruptly and the next
thing was that we noticed
a leakage which spread to
the neighbourhood. The
truck driver and his motor
boy were very smart to
have escaped from the
vehicle, else, they would
have been trapped.”
Meanwhile, a
businessman, Mr Seun
Peters, has decried the
looting of his office by
hoodlums during the
incident which damaged
part of Ogun State Property
Investment Company
(OPIC) Plaza, in Ikeja.
Peters, the Managing
Director, Rolling Video
Games, told the News
Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on
Friday that his company,
located in the plaza, suffered
several losses due to the
incident.
Peters said: “Three of my
official vehicles were burnt
and the hoodlums tried to
break into my van and my
office was looted. I wonder
why, because if there is a
fire incident, I don’t know
why people will now use
that opportunity to try to
loot offices and shops. I
think they should stop this
dangerous trend when
places are burning, rather
than look for a solution to
it, hoodlums try to take
that opportunity to loot.”
He said the office was
vandalised by the
hoodlums who carted
away some cash, electronic
gadgets and wristwatches.
“Luckily, they didn’t take
any of my documents
because obviously they are
not useful to them, but the
whole place is in a mess,”
Peters said.

6 — SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021
El-Rufai sacks 99 political appointees
*Says no civil servant sacked yet
*Kaduna has hired 11,000 more workers
*Assures on free education, N30,000 minimum wage
By Ibrahim Wuyo
Governor Nasir El Ru
fai has said Kaduna
State has started implementing
its rightsizing policy by
disengaging 99 political appointees,
informing that no
civil servant has been disengaged
for now.
The governor said that
only agencies connected to
the local government system
have disengaged staff and
these included the 23 local
government councils,
SUBEB and the Primary
Health Care Board.
El-Rufai who made the
disclosure at a media chat
with some Kaduna-based
broadcast journalists on
Thursday night, explained
that the disengaged political
appointees constituted
30% of political office holders.
“So far, 99 political appointees
have lost their jobs
but we have not commenced
rightsizing civil servants. We
want to be fair with regards
to civil servants. We had
earlier promised that before
we reduce the size of the civil
service, we will start with
political appointees and we
have done that,” he said.
The governor who spoke
in Hausa, said that the rightsizing
of civil servants will
still go on as planned because
of dwindling revenues
that are accruing to the state
government from the federation
account.
El Rufai explained that the
rightsizing commenced with
political appointees because
their details are clearly
known, making it more
straightforward to disengage
them.
‘’However, civil servants
with question marks on the
veracity of their data have to
be given a chance to clear
the doubts before any action
From left:Perry Biayeibo, member, Pro-Nigeria Group; Oumarou Sanda, Director,
Media & Publicity; Engr. Lai Omotola, Founder/Convener; and Afekunle
Akanki, member during the Seminar and unveiling of Pro-Nigeria Group
titled: “22 years of democracy: Challenges and Prospects” held in Maryland,
Lagos, recently.
is taken on them,” he clarified.
The governor said that his
government has employed
11,000 more workers in the
health sector, Kaduna State
University as well as primary
and secondary school
teachers across the state.
The governor disclosed
that it is a fallacy to allege
that the salaries of political
appointees account for the
bloated personnel cost of
Kaduna State Government.
‘’In March 2021, the salaries
of these political appointees
amounted to N259 million,
while civil servants were
paid N3.13 billion, aside
from costs related to state
contributions to pension,
accrued rights and other personnel
costs. So, it is false to
insinuate that political appointees
are the ones that
guzzle most of the state’s resources,”
he said.
Justifying the rightsizing
of the public service, he said
that all states and the Federal
Government are affected
by this shortfall of revenue
and some states have
even reverted to paying the
old monthly minimum wage
of N18,000.
‘’Kaduna State cannot
continue to use 84% to 96%
of our revenues to pay salaries
of less than 1% of the
population. The rest of our
people, all 99% of them, need
better schools, hospitals,
water supply, roads, markets
and support for agriculture
to make a living outside government,”
he said.
The governor however
promised that Kaduna State
will not reverse the N30,000
minimum wage that it has
started paying.
“We are the first government,
federal or state, to pay
the minimum wage. We will
retain the minimum wage of
N30,000 and the consequential
adjustments that gave
most of our civil servants a
66% salary increase. We will
also retain the minimum pension
of N30,000 monthly.
“The unified Local Government
Service continues to
pay the minimum wage,
even though they varied the
consequential adjustments
for their workers below the
level for state civil servants,”
he added.
The governor also promised
that the state will still
fund free education from
primary 1 to the SS3, adding
that, ‘’we have directed
our Ministry of Education to
find ways of ensuring that we
sponsor students for WAEC
exams, the same way that we
sponsor them for NECO. ‘’
El Rufai emphasized that
basic education is a priority
for Kaduna State Government
because ,‘’we see it as
the bedrock for equality of
opportunity.”
Oil firm to build modular refinery in Delta community
By Ochuko Akuopha
ONOSE Deep Oil and
Gas Limited, has
concluded plans to collaborate
with the Federal University
of Petroleum Resources,
Effurun, to build
a 60,000 bpd modular refinery
at Omavovwe-Agbarha-Otor
community,
Ughelli North Local Government
Area, Delta
State.
Managing Director of
the company, Chief Jim
Elueni who made the disclosure
in an interaction
with newsmen after a meeting
with management of
the university, said the facility
could be completed
within a year and eight
months. We have actually
started construction on
site.
He said: “We are here on
the existing agreement we
have with the school management
to build the
60,000 barrels per day
modular refinery, the Russians
are willing, and desirous
by our agreement to
transfer the technology of
refinery to Nigeria via
FUPRE.
“FUPRE is very ready
with their engineers and
technicians on ground to
be able to take the technology
from there and domesticate
the technology
of building the modular
refinery.
“We have partnership
from Russia and the technology
is super and we
would be able to complete
it within one year and
eight months.
“The products we are
going to produce and get
from the refinery ranges
from PMS to diesel, kerosene
and to third fuel and
gas, bitumen and when we
produce that, we will be
able to provide employment
to our people and
support the fuel challenges
we are having in Nigeria
which will be of enormous
benefit to our people.”
Why Nigeria is losing war against corruption
— ICPC chair
By Ozioruva Aliu
THE Chairman, Inde
pendent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related
Offences Commission
(ICPC), Professor Bolaji
Owasanoye (SAN) yesterday,
said the absence of adequate
sanctions for offenders
and proper reward
regimes for people above
board had been the bane
of policies implementation
in the fight against
corruption in Nigeria.
Owasanoye disclosed
this at a one-day stakeholders
zonal dialogue on
the implementation of the
National Ethics and Integrity
Policy, South-South
edition held in Benin City,
Edo State capital.
The event was organised
by the ICPC in conjunction
with the National Orientation
Agency (NOA).
Represented by a member
of National Ethics and
Integrity Policy Board, Dr
Grace Chinda, the ICPC
boss said the country does
not lack laws and policies
aimed at curbing corruption
and indiscipline but
lacks the implementation
and effective enforcement,
based on well designed and
implementable procedure.
He said: “Nigeria is never
lacking in laws and policies
aimed at curbing corruption
and indiscipline,
perhaps, the problem is
implementation and effective
enforcement, based on
well designed and implementable
Standard Operational
Procedure(SOP).
“For government policies
to succeed, they must
be people-driven and not
government-driven. This
is the difference between
the National Ethics and
Integrity Policy and previous
similar policies
that have gone moribund
and obsolete.”
He said the National
Ethics and Integrity Policy
contains features
such as consequences
management and implementation
templates,
and that the dialogue
will take place across the
country, on a zonal basis
involving segments of
the society, especially
the youth.
Silence of elites over threat
to unity is wicked, evil
— Pro-Nigeria group
*Wants State-INECs scrapped.
*We will promote unity among youths
By Ishola Balogun
The Convener of Pro-Nigeria Group and Managing Di
rector, CFL Group, Mr. Lai Omotola has described
the silence of the elites over the threat to unity of this country
as wicked and evil. According to Omotola, the elites have
benefited immensely from the country Nigeria and there
cannot be a better time for them, not only to condemn the
development but also right the wrong.
Omotola also called for the scrapping of all state Independent
National Electoral Commission, INEC, stating that
the measure will liberate local governments from the whims
and caprices of the state governors.
He stated that subsequent Inspector General of Police
should emerge by succession, adding that until the police is
reformed along strict professionalism, the issue of election
rigging and insecurity will persist.
Unveiling the group’s platform and logo at its headquarters,
Maryland, Lagos, Omotola said the raison d’être for
the Pro-Nigeria-Group was that Nigeria has become unpopular
by the recent developments, adding that the group
is set to galvanise support and change the mind-set of those
who want Nigeria to break-up.
He said:“we will promote Nigeria which has become
unpopular.We are not partisan, we will work with all stakeholders
to promote our unity. We will organise the first Pro-
Nigeria-Summit on October 1, 2021. We will also organise
National Essay competition on why Nigeria should remain
united from primary school category to university. We have
launched our T-shirts, face-caps and stickers today in the
name of Nigeria and at the end of the day, it shall all be
well,” he stated.
“Twenty-two after democracy returned to Nigeria, who is
happy today? Is it a better way to honour those who paid the
ultimate? Most politicians that were not part of the struggle
are the ones that have hijacked our democracy just like the
military hijacked our post independence. During President
Jonathan’s election, we all wanted change and most people
were shouting change, and under the change mantra, Buhari
was elected the president, but today what did we get?
The government has been hijacked by a cabal. Again, the
endsars peaceful protest was also hijacked and before we
knew it, Lagos was in ruins. From 1960 till now, Nigeria has
been on the decline, by all indices. The exchange rate, inflation,
debt, education, healthcare, price of petrol, insecurity,
and mortality; just name it, continue on the decline.
“We cannot continue this way, there must be a new path.
Tempers are high between the youths and the president with
each one taking extreme positions. But the best solution
does not come in a state of anger. We need to engage ourselves,
it seems tough, but at the same time, it’s possible.
There is nothing novel in the destruction of lives and property.
The best general is he that resolves crisis without using
a bullet. Our leadership must come up higher.
Eleme Co-operative:CSOs
warn EFCC over disobedience
to court orders
By Omeiza Ajayi
A
coalition of civil society groups under the aegis of
Civil Society Organizations in Defence of Justice have
petitioned the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa to flush out personnel
who are fond of abusing court orders, saying the commission
should be seen as obeying the rule of law and not
perverting justice.
Convener of the Coalition, Comrade Sam Adah gave the
charge yesterday in Abuja at a media interface.
He cited the plight of some members of the Eleme Petrochemical
Cooperative and Credit Society in Rivers State who
he said have been seeking justice over issues regarding equity
shares in the company.
He said; “On February 26, 2009, the Federal Government
through the National Council on Privatization had approved
the sale of 10% of its equity shares in Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals
Ltd, Port Harcourt, Rivers State to the host community
and interested staff of Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals
Ltd. The 10% equity shares was shared as 7.5% was allotted
to the host community while the remaining 2.5% was
allotted to the Staff of Indoroma Eleme Petrochemicals.
“Interested Staff came together under Eleme petrochemical
co-operatives in compliance to the Federal Government
directive that a special purpose vehicle be formed where all
members will belong to enable
them buy the shares.
“In 2013, 10 staff who
initially subscribed to the
purchase of the 2.5 equity
shares had their jobs terminated
from the employment
of Indorama Eleme
Petrochemicals.
“This led to the beginning
of a legal battle as to
whether the laid off staff
can continue to enjoy the
dividends since they were
no longer staff in the company.

Yoruba Nation:Don’t use force to quench
agitation for self-determination, Akintoye
warns
BY DAPO AKINREFON
RENOWNED historian
and leader of the umbrella
body of Yoruba Self-Determination
Movement, Ilana
Omo Oodua, Emeritus Professor
Banji Akintoye, yesterday,
warned the Federal Government
against using force to
thwart self-determination agitators
for the emergence of
Yoruba nation.
The former senator also
called on other Yoruba elites to
emulate Speaker of the Lagos
State House of Assembly, Mr.
Mudashiru Obasa by speaking
truth to power in defense of
Yoruba Land, saying:“our elites
have more to gain in Yoruba
nation than living in fear under
the Federal Government.”
In a statement by his Communications
Manager, Mr.
Maxwell Adeleye, Akintoye
warned that any Nigerian leader
who orders shooting of Yoruba
self-determination activists
will have a date with the International
Criminal Court, ICC.
The statement reads: “This
statement by Mr. Mudashiru
Obasa is about the first forthright
statement by any Yoruba
highly placed public official on
the issue of self-determination.
Mr. Obasa has not only spoken
truthfully; he has demonstrated
unusual boldness.
“His comment has helped to
lift and boost my morale to keep
marching like a valiant soldier
in the journey to Yoruba redemption.
The vast majority of
Yoruba people are thanking
and praying for Mr. Obasa today
for speaking truth to the
Federal Government.
“We ask all our other public
officials, politicians and the
Yoruba elite to pick up courage
to emulate Hon. Obasa
now. It is their sacred duty to
their Yoruba people, and they
stand to receive great blessings
by faithfully standing by their
people.
“All our elected and bureaucratic
public officials know
what Hon. Obasa has now
dared to proclaim—namely:
that every nationality in the
*Says FG can’t stop nationalities seeking self-determination
* Journey to Oduduwa Republic fast advancing, Let’s part in peace
world has the right of self-determination,
that a nationality’s
right of self-determination
is inalienable, and that, to seek
to assert its self-determination,
a nationality does not need the
permission of the country to
which it now belongs.
“The overwhelming majority
of the people of our Yoruba
nation have made it absolutely
clear that we Yoruba now
want to assert our self-determination,
separate our nation
from Nigeria, and go forth to
run our own Oduduwa Republic
or Yorubaland, a country
that will be highly respected in
the world for its security, limitless
opportunities for all our citizens
and all law-abiding foreign
residents among us, and
eminent respect for human life
and human dignity—a land of
order, law, wealth and prosperity.
“Seeking all these is entirely
our right as a people. We
have embarked on the journey
to our goal, there is no looking
back, and nobody can force us
to give up.
“Many other nationalities in
Nigeria seek to assert their selfdetermination
too; and we
have announced our willingness
to work with them as cotravellers
seeking identical
goals. The journey is advancing
fast, and we already have
good reasons to start congratulating
ourselves.
“We need to warn the government
authorities who say
they are determined to thwart
our quest. You cannot stop us
or any of the other nationalities
seeking self-determination.
When you say you have ordered
the Nigerian police and
military to be ruthless against
us, we advise you to be aware
that you might be breaking
laws and that can lead you into
serious criminal prosecutions
in international criminal
courts.
“We, Yoruba, do not wish such
a fate for any of the persons
who are until now our co-citizens.
The truth is that you cannot
stop any nationality that is
presently part of Nigeria from
asserting their self- determination.
“The United Nations Constitution,
various United Nations
conventions, the United
Nations Declaration of the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples,
conventions of the African
Union, all lay it down that every
nationality in the world,
large or small, have the inalienable
right of self-determination
. Nigeria is a signatory to all
these laws, and therefore, these
laws are all part of Nigerian
laws. “Our ultimate advice to
Nigeria is that negotiations
be embarked upon now to enable
the departures from Nigeria
to be negotiated in
peace and in the spirit of brotherliness,
so that as different
countries, our nations may live
as friendly neighbors in all our
future. The Federal Government
has a duty to humanity
to lead us to such negotiation.”
Court dismisses N322m fraud charge against
Nwaoboshi
By Onozure Dania
A
Federal High Court
sitting in Lagos yesterday
discharged Senator Peter
Nwaoboshi of the
N322million money laundering
charge filed against
him by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC).
Justice Chukwujekwu
Aneke held that the commission
could not prove the elements
of the offences for
which it charged the lawmaker.
Nwaoboshi, a chieftain of
the Peoples’ Democratic
Party (PDP) represents Delta
North in the upper chamber.
The court also discharged
Nwaoboshi’s firms
- Golden Touch Construction
Project Ltd and Suiming
Electrical Ltd—on the
Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency,
NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd),(r) exchanging pleasantries
with Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi state when he led some members of his
management team on a courtesy visit to the Government House, Lokoja during
his ongoing assessment tour of the Agency' in the state, yersterday.
same ground.
The defendants were arraigned
in 2018 before Justice
Mohammed Idris who
was later elevated to the
Court of Appeal. They were
then re-arraigned before
Justice Aneke on October 5,
2018.
In the two-count charge
marked FHC/L/117C/18,
the EFCC alleged that the
defendants committed the
offence between May and
June 2014, in Lagos.
Nwaoboshi was said to
have acquired a property
described as Guinea House,
Marine Road, in Apapa Lagos,
for the sum of N805
million.
The prosecution said he
reasonably ought to have
known that N322million
out of the purchase sum
formed part of proceeds of
an unlawful act.
The sum was said to have
been transferred to the vendors
by order of Suiming
Electrical Ltd.
Suiming Electrical was
alleged to have on May 14,
2014, aided Nwaoboshi and
Golden Touch to commit
money laundering.
However Justice Aneke
held, among others, that the
prosecution’s case collapsed
because “bank officials
were not called to testify.”
SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021 — 7
Crowds moving into APC in Delta, says Omo-Agege
By Emma Amaize
DEPUTY Senate Presi
dent, DSP, Senator
Ovie Omo-Agege representing
Central Senatorial District
in Delta State, said
Deltans were decamping
from Peoples Democratic
Party, PDP, to All Progressives
Congress, APC, in multitudes
because they want APC to produce
the next governor of the
state.
Speaking at the inauguration
of the executive of a new
pressure group, Agege United
Elders and Leaders Forum,
AGULEF, in Ughelli, he
asserted: “I have been going
round Delta State on party
building endeavour. We
have been very successful in
Delta North senatorial district.
Every day, members
of the PDP are joining us in
APC in droves. They are determined
to ensure that come
2023, APC will produce the
governor. We shall soon
move into Delta South in the
continuation of the party
building process.”
He urged members to
preach the message of APC
to followers of other parties
in the state, pointing out that
APC govs endorse Tambuwal
C’ttee’s recommendations on
Judicial, Legislative Autonomy
By Omeiza Ajayi
GOVERNORS of the ruling All Progressives Con
gress, APC, have endorsed the recommendations of
a committee set up by the Nigerian Governors’ Forum NGF
and headed by Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal
with regards to judicial and legislative autonomy,
stating that it has taken steps to implement the report.
Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, PGF
and Governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu disclosed
this yesterday in Abuja.
He said the decision was part of the resolutions reached
at an emergency meeting of Progressive Governors.
According to him, the APC governors “reviewed the work
done by NGF Committee on autonomy for Judiciary and
State Legislature under the Chairmanship of His Excellency
Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Governor of Sokoto
State:“Noted that the Governor Tambuwal-led NGF
Committee consulted all the critical stakeholders, notably
leadership of State Judiciary and Assemblies and jointly
reached agreements on specific initiatives to be taken by
state governments to guarantee autonomy for state judiciary
and assemblies.
Poor state of Arochukwu fed road
affecting ASCETA students’
enrollment —Provost
By Steve Oko
THE Provost, Abia State College of Education Tech
nical Arochukwu, ASCETA, Dr. Philips Nto, has
decried the deplorable condition of the Arochukwu federal
road, saying it is adversely affecting students’ enrollment
in the institution.
Dr. Nto who stated this in a media chat appealed to
the Federal Government to fast-track the rehabilitation
of the road to alleviate the ordeals of the road users.
“ ASCETA is strategically located few kilometers
from Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Ebonyi respectively,
but our major set-back has been the poor state of the
Arochukwu federal road.
“Under my watch all the problems including poor infrastructure
that students complained of had been
fixed. The only remaining issue is the federal road and
I beg the Federal Government to please rehabilitate the
road,” he said.
The Provost who commended the Tertiary Education
Trust Fund, TETFund for its numerous interventions
which he said had turned ASCETA into huge construction
site, said that but for TETFund, most tertiary institutions
in the country would be overtaken by weeds.
He advocated the remittance of part of recharge card
charges to TETFund as well as 5% increase on TET-
Fund statutory revenue for more efficient service delivery.
The Provost said the institution had concluded plans
to run two satellite campuses in Aba and Umuahia as
part of efforts to increase student population and shore
up its Internally Generated Revenues.
the party was already gaining
momentum in Delta
North, where, according to
him, many were cross-carpeting
from other parties.
Senator Omo-Agege said
APC congress was by direct
primary, not indirect primary,
so people should ensure
they register to be entitled to
vote during the primary.
“I want to appeal to you,
the congress is about to start,
I want us to come out and organize.
But please, let us not
do this as a do-or-die affair.
And there is a reason for that.
Unlike in the past, nomination
will not be decided by indirect
primary. They are not
going to use delegates to determine
who the nominees
would be. It is going to be direct
primary—meaning everybody
who is a registered
member of APC has a vote.
“What that means, in effect,
is that we should not kill ourselves
over who should become
the chairman of the
party or who will become the
secretary of the party, both at
the ward, local government
or state because at the end of
the day, the chairman in your
ward has as much power as
any other member in that
ward.

8 — SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021
JAMIU
EVIDENCE FESTUS
PETER
SAMSON
CHANGE OF NAME
I,formerly Known As
M U H Y I D E E N
OLASUNKANMI JAMIU, now
Wish To Be Known And
Addressed As MUHYIDEEN
OLASUNKAN JIMOH.All
Former Document Remain Valid
And General Public Take Note.
I formerly known and addressed as
MISS NYOBANA EVIDENCE
PROMISE, now wish to be known
and addressed as MRS PROMISE
DEEKAE NWIDEEZUA. All
former documents remain valid,
general public please take note.
I formerly known and addressed
as NWORU EKENE PETER, Old
Date of Birth: 29/09/1986, now
wish to be known and addressed
as NWORU EKENE NWUNA
New Date of Birth: 29/09/1994.
All former documents remain
valid, general public please take
note.
NWANKWO
I FORMERLY KNOWN AS
NWANKWO GOODNESS
ONYINYECHI Now wish to be
known and addressed as JOEL
ONYINYECHI GOODNESS. All
former documents remain valid
General public please take note
OGBAJI
I formerly known and addressed
as OGAR JOHN OGBAJI, now
wish to be known and addressed
as OGAR JOHN AGABI. All
former documents remain valid.
All relevant organizations and
General public please take note.
I, formerly Known As
NDIDIAMARA JENNIFER
SAMSON, now Wish To Known
And Addressed As NDIDIAMAKA
JENIFER ANYALEBECHI.All
Former Document Remain Valid
And General Public Please Take
Note.
JUDITH
I, formerly known as
AWARITOMA JUDITH ESE.
Now want to be known and
addressed as ABIEGBE ODI ESE .
All former document remain valid,
All authorities concerned and
general public should take note.
FATAI
I, SHUAIB FATAI OROMBO (
Otherwise called Abdulfatayi
Shuaib Oba) do hereby wish to be
known, called and addressed as
SHUAIB FATAI OROMBO. This
is needed for record purpose. All
former documents remain valid.
Authorities concerned and general
public take note.
NYEKAZI
I, formerly known as
CHIMAZURU EMMANUEL
NYEKAZI. Now wish to be
known as CHIMAZURU
CHYGEMEZU -UGORJI. All
documents bearing my former
name remain valid. The general
public take note.
SUNDAY
I, formerly known as MISS.
SUNDAY LILLIAN CHIKA.
Now wish to be known as
MRS. MICHEAL LILLIAN
CHIKA. All documents bearing
my former name remain valid.
The general public take note.
SALAMI
I, formerly known as SALAMI
RAMOTA MOTUNRAYO,
now wish to be known as
BUSARI RAMOTA
MOTUNRAYO. All documents
bearing my former name remain
valid. The general public take
note.
OBI
I formerly known and
addressed as OBI CHIKA
SUSAN, now wish to be known
and addressed as LEVI
OZIOMA HADASSAH. All
former documents remain
valid, general public please
take note.
CHIOBA
I formerly known and
addressed as Chioba Onyinye
claire, now wish to be known
and addressed as Onu onyinye
Claire. All former documents
remain valid, general public
please take note.
ALLOY
This is to confirm that my name
was wrongly written as EMECHIE
CHIJIOKE ALLOYSIUS instead
of EMECHIE ALLOY CHIJIOKE.
Also my date of birth was wrongly
written on my account/BVN as
16th December 1972 instead of
16th November, 1972. Former
documents remain valid, general
public take note.
AMIKE
I, formerly known and addressed
as OKUOIMOSE IGUEHIDE
MONICA, now wish to be known
and addressed as AMIKE
IGUEHIDE MONICA. All former
documents remain valid. General
public to take note.
AMOS
I, formerly Known As
NAOMI AMOS, now Wish To
Be Known And Addressed As
NAOMI BAFFOI.All Former
Documents Remain Valid And
General Public Please Take
Note.
PHILIMON
I, formerly Known As PHILIMON
SHEYIN JOSEPH, now Wish To
Known And Addressed As
PHILEMON SHEYIN JOSEPH.
All Former Documents Remain
Valid And General Public Please
Take Note.
AUGUSTINE
I, formerly known as MISS.
ANTHONIA ONYEKACHI
EGBUTA. Now wish to be known
as MRS. ANTHONIA
ONYEKACHI EGBUTA-
AUGUSTINE. All documents
bearing my former name remain
valid. The general public take note.
EZEUNARA
I, formerly known as
EZEUNARA UKAMAKA
VICTORIA. Now want to be
known and addressed as MADU
UKAMAKA VICTORIA. All
former document remain valid,
All authorities concerned and
general public should take note.
ADUGA OT
I FORMERLY KNOWN AS
MUHAMMED AMINU
ADUGA. NOW WISH TO BE
KNOWN AND ADDRESSED
AS MUHAMMED AMINU . A
ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS
REMAIN VALID. The general
public take note.
KAZEEM
I formerly known and addressed as
Kazeem Ajibola Olowogbola Now
wish to be known and addressed
as Olowogbola Quzeem Ajibola.
All former documents remain valid
General public and authority
concerned please take note.
ISMAILA
That I was formerly called and
addressed as ISMAILA SAMUEL
DANJUMA and Henceforth, I wish
to be known called and addressed
as OHIZE SAMUEL DANJUMA.
All documents bearing my former
name remain valid. The general
public take note.
Herdsmen fueling ethnic crisis, secessionist
agitations in Nigeria — Ortom
By Peter Duru, Makurdi
Governor Samuel Or
tom of Benue State has
identified open grazing by
herdsmen of Fulani nationalities
and their killing spree
in the country as the major
factor fueling ethnic conflicts
in Nigeria.
He also blamed the raging
secessionist agitations in
parts of the country on the
repulsive agenda as well as
the obvious injustice, lack of
fairness and equity in appointments
and siting of
NWORAH
I, formerly Known As NWORAH
CHINELO EVELYN, now Wish
To Known As ANAENUGWU
CHINELO EVELYN. All Former
Documents Remain Valid And
General Public Please Take Note.
UMAR
I, formerly known as Umar Samuel
which is my grand father’s name,
now wish to be known as Okike
Monday Onyekachi. All documents
bearing my former name remain
valid. General public take note.
PAKAYE
I, formerly known as MISS JOYCE
PAKAYE ELEKIMA. Now want
to be known and addressed as MRS
JOYCE AKUMA GOODLUCK
OKORO. All former document
remain valid, All authorities
concerned and general public should
take note.
OCHAIDA
I, formerly known as
OCHAIDA HUSSENI
YUSUFU. Now want to be
known and addressed as
YUSUFU HUSSEINI. All
former document remain valid,
All authorities concerned and
general public should take note.
KENANI
I, formerly known as MISS.
BARINE KENANI. Now wish
to be known as MRS.
OLIVER FUBARA
AWORIABO. All documents
bearing my former name
remain valid. The general
public take note.
GARBA
I formerly known and addressed as
Christiana Hassan Garba, Now wish
to be known and addressed as
Christiana Hassan. with D.O.B =
02-02-1986 NOT 02-02-1984. All
former documents remain valid
General public and authority
concerned please take note.
projects in total disregard to
the principles of Federal
Character as enshrined in
the Constitution as factors
fanning the embers of crises
and disunity in the country.
The governor made this
known yesterday in his keynote
address at the 2021 Law
Week of the Nigerian Bar Association,
Makurdi Branch
with the theme: “OPEN Grazing
In Nigeria: Threat To National
And Food Security, National
Cohesion And Sustainable
Development.”
The Governor who accused
the presidency of a
hidden agenda wondered
what informed President
Muhammadu Buhari’s decision
to opt for open grazing
and grazing routes when
ranching is the global best
practice in animal husbandry
and also remains the panacea
to the lingering herdsmen
crisis in the country.
According to him, “In Nigeria,
open grazing has been
By Wole Mosadomi
Armed bandits have
killed one Precious
Chinnedu Emeka, a Medical
doctor in Magama Local
Government Area of
Niger state.
The Doctor was said to
have been abducted right in
his Private Clinic in Salka
village, Magama Local
Government Area of Niger
state at about 9pm on
Wednesday.
We gathered that the bandits
numbering about five
disguised as patients and
asked for the doctor.
The doctor who was inside
his compound appeared
to them only to be
led away by his abductors
to an unknown destination.
A dependable source from
the practice of livestock production.
However, in recent
times, livestock production
system has led to conflicts between
farmers and herders.
“This is due largely to population
growth, infrastructural
development and increased
economic activities
and above all, the Fulanisation
agenda of Fulani nationalities
worldwide to
make Nigeria their own
country.
“Across Nigeria, open
grazing has led to the invasion
of farming communities
by Fulani herdsmen
leading to massive killings
and maiming of people,
raping of women, destruction
of property, loss of livelihoods
and displacement of
persons.
“You might have heard that
on March 20, 2021, there
was an assassination attempt
on me by Fulani militia
on my way back from the
farm. It took the grace of
Bandits kidnap, kill Medical Doctor in Niger
God for me to survive the attack.
As at today, many states
in Nigeria have been affected
by the activities of marauding
herdsmen.
“The negative impact of
open grazing which often results
in attacks on communities
in different parts of the
country, adversely affect the
local economy as farmers are
prevented from accessing
their farms and local markets
are also deserted for fear of
imminent invasion by the killers.
“The continued rise in the
attacks by Fulani herdsmen
in the country has also led to
mass displacement of persons
leading to desertion of farm
lands. In Benue State for example,
over one million people
have been displaced and
are currently living in Internally
Displaced Persons
(IDPs) camps and host communities.
“Farmers who have
attempted to go back and till
their land are either killed or
maimed by herdsmen. This
has led to food insecurity and
poverty in the country.
the village confirmed the
abduction and eventual
killing of the doctor.
According to him,”When
they took the doctor away,
we reported to the police
and the local vigilante. The
following day, the vigilante
later called us that they
have seen a corpse inside
the bush and we were able
to identify him as the doctor.”
Efforts made to confirm
from the Police Public Relations
Officer (PPRO), Niger
State Command, Abiodun
Wasiu proved abortive
as his mobile lines could
not be reached as at the
time of filing this report.
However, the Ohaneze
Ni-igbo, Niger state, President
Chief Emmanuel
zeugo confirmed his murder.
Ezeugo who lamented the
klling however said that the
group is carrying out its on
investigation and also
called on security agencies
to fish out the killers and
prosecute them.
The Ohaneze President
also appealed to President
Muhammadu Buhari to
order a full scale investigation
into the murder.
Itsekiri nation holds funeral service for
Ogiame Ikenwoli
By Jimitota Onoyume
Rites of passage for
the late Olu of Warri,
His Majesty Ogiame
Ikenwoli continued yesterday
with a commendation
funeral service
attended by the notable
personalities in Itsekiri
nation.
Bishop Curtis Fianu
who gave the message
tagged:“ What is Life,“
at the service which
held in the Olu Palace
branch of Church of God
Mission, Warri south
Local Government area,
said the congregation
By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
PRESIDENT Muham
madu Buhari is expected
to participate in the 59th
Ordinary Session of the
ECOWAS Authority of Heads
of State and Government in
Accra, Ghana today.
A statement issued by the
Senior Special Assistant to
the President on Media and
Publicity, Mallam Garba
Shehu in Abuja yesterday
said that the president will depart
Abuja on Saturday for
the summit.
should see life as a gift
from God that could be
taken by God anytime.
While commending
the late monarch for his
commitment to service at
the Palace branch of the
Church of God Mission
before his passage,
Bishop Fianu enjoined
the congregation to give
special attention to the
worship of God.
“Life is a gift but we
shall all give account of
how we used our lives
here on earth. He is a
God of Mercy in the
land of the living, here
on earth,” he said
Buhari leaves for ECOWAS summit in Accra
*Dr Precious Emeka
Former National President,
Christian Association
of Nigeria, CAN,
Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor,
prayed for family members
of the departed
monarch and the Warri
kingdom.
Some prominent Itsekiri
leaders at the service
were the Regent
,Warri kingdom, Prince
Emmanuel Okotie-
Eboh, former Defence
Minister (State),Chief
Dr Roland Oritsejafor,
Chief Robinson Ariyo,
Chief Kofi Kartey, Chief
Solomon Areyenka,
Prince Yemi Emiko and
many others.
According to the statement,
President Buhari will join
other Heads of State of Government
of ECOWAS for the
mid-year statutory meeting
of the regional bloc, with the
exception of Mali, which was
recently suspended from the
group.
It further said: “Former
President Goodluck
Jonathan of Nigeria, ECO-
WAS Special Envoy and Mediator
to Mali, is expected to
present a report on his latest
working visit to the West African
country to the Summit
of the Heads of State.
“The Heads of State and
Government will also receive
a report on ECOWAS institutional
reforms, single currency
programmes and a memorandum
on the proposed
mechanism of rotation of
ECOWAS Member States’
candidature to the Chairmanship
of the African
Union. “A communiqué will
be issued at the end of the
Summit.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—9
FULANI THREAT TO ATTACK DELTA:
Inside details
of how jihadists
planned to
make Okowa cry
•Life of Citizen Obinobe who helped Police discover explosives threatened
•Jihadists trail him, family
•Militants, others threaten reprisal if …
•Miscreants just wanted to create panic - Ali, Compol, Delta
By Emma Amaize,
Regional Editor, South-South
Plan A and B
THE blueprint of Fulani jihadists,
who glued warning notelets at
s o m e
tactical locations in Asaba, capital
of Delta State, last Sunday, handing the
Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, a 72-
hour ultimatum to renounce his support
for the ban on open grazing of cattle in
southern states of the country, was to inflict
supreme pain on the governor. Governors
of 17 states in the South-South, South-
East and South-South regions, May 11,
ratified the ban on open grazing. Okowa
became a target for hosting the meeting
and persistently hammering on the ban in
succeeding days.
They knew that one of the precious
projects to Governor Okowa is the new
N13 billion ultra-modern Central
Secretariat Complex on Olorogun Ibru
Secretariat Road, Asaba, which is almost
completed and planned to blow it up to
send a strong signal to him.
The jihadists almost succeeded in their
wicked plot as they, indeed, planted
explosives in the Secretariat complex,
May 5, awaiting detonation, six days
before Southern governors’ May 11
meeting in Asaba, but a loyal citizen of
the state, Mr. Major Obinobe, returning
from where he went to watch football
match, saw them in the dark of the night,
suspected their mission, and reported to
policeman he ran into at a checkpoint on
his way to Delta State Police Command
headquarters in Asaba, who hesitantly
followed him to the scene and discovered
the explosive device.
It was after the plan A failed that the
jihadists conceived their plan B, which was
an unsigned three-paragraph
intimidation letter to Governor Okowa
and people of the state , entitled “Fulani
Jihadist Warnings” that they gummed at
the Living Faith Bible Church (aka
Winners Chapel), Infant Jesus Road,
Asaba and other strategic locations, June
13, threatening to attack the state capital,
Asaba and Agbor, headquarters of Ika
South Local Government Area, if the
governor did not atone of his “sin” in 72
hours, that is Thursday, two days ago.
3-paragraph effrontery
Without even knowing the conspiracies
that built up to the June 13 notice, Deltans
are enraged at the sheer impudence of
Fulani jihadists summoning guts to
threaten their governor and the people:
The letter read: ”This is to inform Delta
state that the Fulani of Usman Dan Fodio
leadership shall do everything it can to
uphold the legacy of our heritage of open
grazing, for we are nomadic people from
origination and shall never negotiate the
ownership of Nigeria and West Africa and
Sub-Sahara.
” We hereby demand the Governor of
Delta state to immediately withdraw his
early stand for the call to ban open grazing
in 17 regions (states) in not less than
72hours from the above date and also,
withdraw his position as the leading voice
for the governors, as no occurrence we
don’t have the first-hand information, (sic)
even before the hosting of the South-south,
South-East and South-South governors
meeting in Asaba.
“Failure to adhere to this demand for
been the host of the 17 governors, Delta
state, most likely the city of Asaba and
Agbor, shall encounter severe
consequences than that of Bornu, Kebbi,
Kastina, Kaduna, Enugu, Benue, Oyo and
many more that will not respect the
Fulani’s heritage, as we take responsibility
for the detonated explosive uncovered in
the state capital secretariat, which should
serve as warning to the Delta state
government for what is to come, should
•Okowa
the governor fail to abide by our demand.
” We highly advice all Fulani and
Northerners, including the security
personnel to live (sic) Delta state as soon
as possible for the wind of our action is
now present in the land for failure of the
governor to adhere to our call, this shall
live (sic) us with no choice.”
Kill 1 Deltan, we hit back
with 10 Fulanis - Militants
But for the call for restraint, reactions
from incensed Deltans, some militants and
ethnic groups were that the jihadists
should bring it on and see what would
happen to Fulani people in the state.
Movement for the Emancipation and
Defence of Niger-Delta, MEDN, a
militant group perceptibly different from
Continues on page 10

10—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Continues from page 9
the popular Movement for Emancipation
of Niger Delta, MEND, in a statement by
Dragon War, stated in a counter warning
to the jihadists: “The attention of ‘The
Movement for the Emancipation and the
Defence of the Niger Delta’ has been
brought to the threat of some Fulani
terrorists who have given a 3- day warning
to the Governor of Delta State because of
his support for the ban of open grazing
across the southern state.
” We also saw your taking
responsibility for planting explosives at
the Secretariat in Asaba. We are warning
that if your threat is made to come
to fulfillment, no Fulani will ever exist
across the Niger Delta and all oil facilities
linked to a Fulani will be brought down.
If one soul is lost, ten Fulani souls will
pay for it. If one facility is destroyed, ten
Fulani facilities will be destroyed. We will
respond proportionately ten times
whatever you give, the corresponding
response will not be limited to the Delta,
it may be with your politicians or with
your rulers.
” We will launch three rocket launchers
and ballistic missiles at any facility of
our choice as a warning in seven days if
you make bold your threats. We don’t
make cheap our threats. We have shut
down the country and we can at any time
shut you down. We are the Niger Delta,
We stand for the interest of the Niger Delta
and we will not allow any coward
threaten us. We fight without running. Be
warned,” the group added.
Similarly, the Coalition of Urhobo Ex-
Militant Leaders, CUEL, issued a threeday
ultimatum to criminal Fulani
herdsmen to leave Delta Central
senatorial district. CUEL in a statement,
Tuesday, at Ughelli, by chairman of the
group, self-styled “General” H.M. Ebirie,
declared: “We hereby categorically
advise all Fulani herdsmen to leave Delta
Central now. In fact, we are advising them
to leave Delta state because we can no
longer tolerate their killing, maiming,
threat and the untold evil done to our
people.
” We give them three days ultimatum
to do so and failure to heed to our warning
will result to the unimaginable. We will
comb all our forests and do that which
we know how to do best, and we will use
their cows as bush meat”.
Call jihadists to
order — Clark
Leader of Pan Niger-Delta Forum,
PANDEF, and Chairman, Southern and
Middles Belt Leaders Forum, SMBLF,
Senator Edwin Clark, urged the Federal
Government to warn the so-called Fulani
jihadists from provoking the Niger
Deltans into taking action that will affect
the entire country economically and
politically.
He said: “We have watched with
restrained patience, the reckless and
irresponsible utterances of the so-called
Fulani jihadists and the Miyetti Allah,
who believe that they own Nigeria from
the North to the sea, and therefore, have
the impunity to warn the state
governments, particularly the Delta state
government and governor to withdraw,
within 72 hours, his decision against open
grazing, recently taken by the 17
Governors of the South, in a meeting held
in Asaba.”
“We have decided to issue this advice
and warning to the Federal Government
and the Fulani jihadists that the people
of the Niger Delta will resist in such a
way that will make it definitely
impossible for the federal government
security forces to cope with, should this
action escalate.
“We are reacting because this is not the
first time Fulanis and their collaborators
have insulted our people. It will be
remembered that sometime in 2009, a
legislator from Kebbi state in the National
Assembly asked the federal government
to resettle the people of the Niger Delta
in another territory to create a conducive
and unhindered atmosphere for the oil
companies to operate.
“That we warn, the resulting
consequences will be very unpleasant to
'How jihadists planned
to make Okowa cry'
them. The federal government has
continuously condoned them and
behaving as if the Federal Government is
the one giving support to these Fulani
Jihadists and the Miyetti Allah because
what is happening today in Nigeria, which
has resulted in unprecedented insecurity
and bad governance in Nigeria, will be
worse, if they are not called to order by
the Federal Government within the
shortest time possible,” the elder
statesman said.
UYLA, IPDI,
others fume
On its part, Urhobo
Youth Leaders’
Association, UYLA, an
Urhobo youth body, issued
a 48- hour quit notice to
all Fulani jihadists to
immediately stop open
grazing and take away
their cattle from the Delta
Central Senatorial
district of the state.
Simmering with anger,
Acting President, Chief
Anthony Ofoni, in a
statement issued after an
emergency Executive
Committee meeting at
Otor- Udu, Udu Local
Government Area,
condemned the threat
letter to Okowa, called on
Urhobo youths in the 24
kingdoms and other
ethnic youth groups in
Delta State to mobilize into the
farmlands after the expiration of the
ultimatum and evict the herdsmen.
”This is to inform the Fulanis of
Usman Dan Fodio leadership that after
48 hours, open grazing of cattle by
nomadic people will be forbidden in Delta
Central senatorial district. The safety of
herdsmen and their cattle still in the
region after the expiration of the notice
will no longer be guaranteed because they
have sacked some of our communities in
Uwheru and killed many Abraka farmers
and we viewed the threat as a big insult
on all Deltans,” he asserted.
Also boiling with anger, National
President of Ijaw People’s Development
Initiative, IPDI, a rights group, Mr. Austin
Ozobo, said Fulani natives should be
evacuated from Delta and other states of
southern Nigeria if jihadists go ahead as
threatened to attack Asaba, Agbor or any
part of southern Nigeria.
”It has come to our notice the
We will launch
three rocket
launchers and
ballistic missiles at
any facility of
our choice as a
warning in
seven days if you
make bold your
threats
unfounded, mischievous and inimical
jihadists’ threat on our state. It is our
directive that every Fulani resident in
Delta and South-South be evacuated from
all communities in Delta and other
southern states and in the event of any
suspected attack in the region, the
resident Fulanis be held responsible.
” We want to admonish the governor of
Delta state, Sen. Ifeanyi Okowa , not to
be deterred by the Fulani jihadists’ threat
to invade the state failure to reverse the
ban on open-grazing in 72hours, which
is a collective decision taken by southern
governors of Nigeria in
Asaba, Delta state. As
people of Delta and Niger
Delta at large, we will no
longer condone any
jihadists’ attack and that
any attempted attack will
be resisted with equal
force,” he said.
Delta Fulani
leaders
renounce
jihadists
However, 24 hours after
the threat, leadership of
Fulani community in the
state, disowned the
jihadists, saying their
people were not
responsible for the threat
letter purportedly issued
by the dissenters.
The Fulani leaders,
who addressed newsmen
in Asaba, said they were scared since the
letter went into circulation on Sunday,
acknowledging that they have been living
in peace with their host. Those who spoke
on behalf of the Fulani leaders included
Muktar Usman, Musa Mohammed,
Haruna Abubakar, Useni Haruna, among
others. The Sariki Delta, Alhaji Musa
Mohammed, said they have being in Delta
for over 40 years, maintaining that they
knew nothing about the publication.
”This is our home and we cannot
create problems for the state because this
is where we earn a living. Government
should bring those people who did that
publication. We are very peace-loving and
Delta has been good to us,” he asserted.
M r. Muktar Usman, who is also serving
in the Delta State Government as Senior
Special Assistant to Governor Okowa on
Special
Duties, expressed
disappointment in the anonymous
publication, saying: “We are not part
and parcel of that nonsense, and we
condemn this act in all ramifications. We
are Nigerians and we have a good
understanding with our host
communities. We are at peace with our
host communities.”
” We are calling on the state
government and security agencies to fish
out those behind it. We are more accepted
in Delta than in our own states of origin.
I want to encourage our people to remain
peace loving and not create unnecessary
tension.
Alhaji Haruna Abubakar, Useni
Haruna and others who also spoke in the
same vein, said they have no reason to
attack their host.
From the time when suspected herders
were discovered to be involved in the
frequent kidnappings in the state though
with the support of some criminallyminded
Deltans in some instances,
especially at Okpanam community, the
leadership of Fulani in the state, had
always distanced themselves from their
kinsmen involved in the act.
Their catchphrase was that some of the
alleged persons purported to be Fulani
indigenes were criminals, who they had
no control over.
Go about your lawful
business – Police
Reacting to the threat letter, the Delta
State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ari
Mohammed Ali, in a statement by the
acting Police Public Relations Officer,
PPRO, DSP Bright Edafe, said: “The
attention of the Command has been
drawn to a recent publication making
rounds purportedly published by the
Fulanis of Usman Dan Fodio leadership
tagged ‘Fulani Jihadist Warnings’ and
pasted in various locations round Asaba
and Agbor to be precise.”
”The command under the watch of CP
Ari Muhammed Ali, who is ever
committed in its responsibility of
providing security for all Deltans, is
assuring members of the public to ignore
the said publication, which must have
been pasted by miscreants with the aim
of creating panic in the state.
“All modalities have been put in place
to forestall any of such occurrence, all
residents are advice to go about their
lawful businesses without fear or panic.
“Undercover police operatives have
been deployed across the state for the
purpose of gathering intelligence. Other
proactive measures have been put in
place by the command. Members of the
public are also urged to continue to
partner with the police, by providing
useful information that will help in
policing the state,” Police said.
Commissioner Ali described the authors
of the letter as miscreants, who just wanted
to create panic.
Jihadists trail
Obinobe, wife, children
But, facts on ground indicate otherwise,
every observant resident of Asaba,
especially at parts of the Government
Reservation Area, GRA, would know that
it was a calculated plot and there has been
an unrestricted influx of persons from the
northern parts of the country to the state
capital for more than one year, and the
fear of inhabitants is that “these people
will strike one day.”
On Sunday, June 13, when the jihadists
glued threat letters, police were caught
unawares, as some of jihadists even kept
surveillance at the residence of Obinobe,
the patriotic citizen, who tipped off the
police on the explosive planted at the new
Central Secretariat Complex still under
construction at Asaba, which they had
wanted to blow up. Their intent was to
eliminate him.
How they got contact address remains
a mystery to fleeing Obinobe, who knew
that he gave his contact address and
vehicle number to police officers that
inquisitively demanded for them despite
his hunch to decline.
Obinobe, who is supposed to receive a
whole-hearted handshake from Governor
Okowa and Police for his vigilance that
thwarted the target May 5 explosion at
the Secretariat is on the run with his wife
and children, following the manhunt for
him and family members by the jihadists.
He has beckoned on the Inspector
General of Police, Governor Okowa and
Commissioner Ali, who assured him and
other Deltans of their safety, to save his
life and that of his family currently under
severe threat.
Continues on page 11

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—11
CROSS RIVER: Duke, Imoke,
Bassey team up against Ayade
•Ayade
•Duke
•Imoke
•Bassey
By Emmanuel Una
CALABAR- THERE is so much
political criss-crossing taking
place in Cross River State as
erstwhile political soul mates are aligning
and re-aligning and finding themselves
in opposing camps.
The movement for now is
predominantly from the People’s
Democratic Party, PDP, which in the state,
prides itself as, ‘One Big Family’ to the
All Progressives Party, APC.
Governor Ben Ayade’s recent defection
to the APC, meant that for the first time
since the return to civilian rule, the PDP
is no longer the ruling party in Cross
River State.
The PDP which used to be the ruling
party in the state christened the People’s
Paradise, suddenly found itself on the
opposition side on May 20 following
Ayade’s defection to the APC.
Flurry of defections
The flurry of defections currently taking
place in the state is by acolytes of the
governor, who feel the need to join their
leader in his new political party as a show
of loyalty, solidarity, commitment and
above all to keep their jobs.
Joining the governor in the move,
Senator Florence Ita-Giwa said, “where
Ayade leads, there I go.”
Significantly, council chairmen, most
commissioners, councillors, special
advisers, chairmen of boards and a
plethora of other office holders famously
known as ‘Food on the Table Appointees’
, have since jettisoned the PDP to swell
the ranks of the APC.
Personal interest
versus ideology
In what some observers deem as
personal interests overriding ideology
and common good, it is common to find
people who since 1999 had been on
diametrically opposed platforms now
finding themselves chanting the same
slogan and seeing their erstwhile platform
as repulsive and using words like “dead”,
“ autocratic “, “ “insensitive” freely to
describe it.
In the same vein, persons who were on
the same platform but owing to certain
misgivings bitterly parted ways at the
peak of the 2019 elections are coming
back to embrace one another as if nothing
had happened. So also are those who
started in the Action Congress of Nigeria,
ACN, which in league with other parties
metamorphosed into the APC, moved to
the PDP, later went back to the APC, yet
again to the PDP and are now waving the
APC broom as members. They have
moved or found themselves oscillating
between the two parties five times.
However, there are some dogged
stalwarts who have refused to move but
would sink and swim with their old love.
Majority of the National Assembly
members from the state, some House of
Assembly members, commissioners,
special advisers, and other appointees
have refused to join the bandwagon. Some
have even shown courage and
commitment and thrown in the towel by
resigning their appointments just to stay
and “rebuild” their “mother” party.
Reunion of three wise
men
Above all these is, the reunion of “the
Three Wise Men” of Cross River politics
– Mr Donald Duke and Senator Liyel
Imoke, both past governors of the state,
and Senator Gershom Bassey, who
represents Southern Senatorial district in
the green chamber and next in line for
the governorship slot.
The three, who in the past had some
misgivings in their relationship recently
sunk their differences and came back
together on the platform of the PDP to, as
they put it, “salvage the state.”
The three, who one could say are the
founding fathers of modern day politics
in the state are back with the mission of
wrestling power from their successor,
Senator Ben Ayade and are beaming with
fierce force and ready to put their
wherewithal and political marksmanship
into action to actualise their mission. How
effective and feasible that could be
accomplished would be a matter for time
to tell. Suffice to say the three are rich,
influential, grassroots mobilisers and
how they would put that into force against
Ayade who has thousands of foot soldiers
makes a good guess.
Speaking recently during a PDP rally
at the Transcorp Hotel in Calabar, Imoke
who is the obvious leader of the group
said “God forbid that our governor in
2023 should be a food on the table
governor.”
He bragged that if “it is money, we are
there, if it is security we will meet them at
their point, if it is youths, we have them.”
Ayade gloats
On his part, Ayade, gloating over the
strings of defections by politicians to join
his new party, at the weekend, expressed
gratitude to citizens of the state for their
“faith” in him and assured that he would
not let them down. Taking a swipe at the
defections, however, a public affairs analyst,
Ashie Assorie said, “for now, we are in a
vigil, we will know who is in APC and who
is in PDP in December, 2022.”
In his reasoning, some defectors are doing
so to protect their jobs and may jump ship
when that comes to an end or near end.
Mr Agba Jalingo, mocking the defectors
made reference to the bitter feuds fought
among them in the past and came to the
conclusion that , “self interest and not that
of the state and ordinary people is their
motivation.”
'How jihadists planned to make Okowa cry'
Continues from page 10
Saturday Vanguard gathered that on
May 6, Obinobe was invited by the
Commissioner of Police, Delta state
through the Deputy Commissioner of
Police, who listened to his story and the
version of his men that accompanied him
to the scene and thanked him for his
courageous act.
Why I fled
Asaba — Obinobe
But Obinobe disclosed: ”Since after
passing the information to the security agents,
I have been experiencing a strange vehicle
trailing my car hence I parked and hid it from
where it will not be seen and used by me and
my family. My family is aware of this strange
black Toyota car trailing my car and this has
brought anxiety and danger to my life, and
consequently, I decided to be taking
alternative road to be entering and exiting my
house.”
”The last threat that made me to leave
Asaba was on Sunday (June 13) morning,
when I observed the presence of two strange
persons in our Close, apparently waiting for
me to come out from the compound and go
Church. However, on noticing them from the
upstairs apartment, I decided not to go to
church or step out of my house that Sunday,
and they waited for hours before they
left disappointingly.
”All I know about this situation is that I
gave my statement to the Investigation Police
Officer, IPO, after passing the information to
them, who also took my car registration
number. And I have called to inform the police
superintendent about my ordeal and that I
am going to make it public for fear of my
life,” he said.
On how he aided the police to forestall the
explosion, last month, he said: “I alerted the
security agency with information that led to
the bursting of the explosive device that was
found behind the states newly built Secretariat
by Mariam Babangida axis.”
”Sometime in May,
specifically the night Chelsea and
Real Madrid played Champions
League qualifying match, I was
returning from a viewing center
after the match and saw someone
standing on top of the fence behind
the newly built Delta
State Secretariat building.
”Approaching closer while still
driving, I saw a parked tricycle
having curtain on it and being in
a dark environment due to power
blackout, I felt something strange
and quickly remember the police
call for ‘if you see something, say
something.’
”I quickly turned back and
decided to drive to the Police Headquarters,
Asaba since it is close to the secretariat. But
on my way, I ran into Police check point and
reported the incident to the police men on duty.
”Initially the policemen were reluctant to
go, but I volunteered to take them to the place
with my Jeep and we all went there and the
police discovered some strange objects that
had a written word, detonate. I eventually took
them back to the check point.
My family is
aware of this
strange black
Toyota car
trailing my car
and this has
brought anxiety
and danger to
my life
”They, however, thanked me and when I
wanted to leave, they asked me to give them
my phone number that their boss will like to
thank me because I have saved them from
embarrassment and I obliged them with my
phone number and left. I later got a text
message from the police that night that the
objects were confirmed to be explosives.
”Few days after the incident, the police from
state headquarters called me to come and
meet with their boss, I went and
they told me to make statement on
the incident and I did.
” After a week later, I started
experiencing this strange car
trailing my car and now seeing two
strange persons in my Close Avenue
hanging from 6.30 am to 8.00 am
and I refused to go out for fear of
my life and I have been wondering
if I did anything wrong.
”I am, therefore, appealing
once again to the IGP, the state
governor and the state
Commissioner of Police to come
to my rescue because my life is
under serious threat.
”I equally appeal to the
Department of State Services, DSS, the state
Attorney General and Commissioner for
Justice, the Nigerian Bar Association and
Human Right Organizations to come to my
help because nobody knows who would have
been the victim of the explosive device if it was
not discovered by the police and was allowed
to explode,” he said.
Obinobe’s wife, who spoke to Saturday
Vanguard on phone, said she was scared,
disclosing that a Toyota Camry car pursued
her and the children on one occasion, but they
managed able to escape.
Rants of faceless
individual – DSP Edafe
DSP Edafe, who responded to Obinobe’s
claim told Saturday Vanguard. when
contacted: “That person, whoever he is just
telling lies and saying whatever he likes, there
is PPRO in the Command, there is a
Commissioner of Police in the Command, he
has not come to say, this is what happened. He
just went to the internet, I do not want to
assume but if he is sincere with his statement,
he should come to me, I will take him to the
Commissioner of Police instead of going to
the internet and talking rubbish.”
He has not reported the incident to any police
station, a journalist had called and asked me
the same question you are asking and it is not
right for us to be hearing these things from the
social media.
DSP Edafe added: “As far as I am concerned,
that person (Obinobe) is faceless, I cannot
comment on faceless individual, I have to see
him, he has to report officially before anything
can be said or done about it unless he had
reported and I am not aware.”
At this point, Vanguard reminded him that
the Obinobe said he had even met with the
Deputy Commissioner of Police, who took him
to the Commissioner of Police over the matter,
DSP Edafe said: “Okay, I am not aware, I will
confirm from the Commissioner of Police.”
Commissioner of Police, Ali, neither picked
nor returned the several calls, Wednesday, to
his line by Saturday Vanguard even after
one of our editors sent him a text message,
identifying himself.

12—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Governors and the futile chase for an ideal successor
•Olusola Saraki
•Obi
Dr Tony Felix Nwaka
Ihonestly do not envy the position many
Nigerian governors find themselves in,
especially as they approach the terminal
point of their exit from power. I mean, let's be
honest with ourselves, who would, after
working so hard to create applaudable
legacies, not want a successor that would
protect and consolidate those achievements?
Sadly, in recent history, the efforts of virtually
all the governors to impose a successor
singularly (or in collusion with a cabal) have
either been a woeful failure, with calamitous
consequences for the outgoing governor or,
where such governor succeeds in installing
his preferred candidate, the result has always
been a disastrous repudiation of his
expectations.
In Lagos State, where we have arguably the
most enduring political dynasty in the country
today, Governor Raji Fashola's relationship
with his benefactor was so tumultuous that
the route through which he escaped the
hammer of Jagaban was narrower than a
•Bukola Saraki
•Orji Uzor Kalu
•Theordore Orji
•Obiano •Akpabio •Emmanuel
rabbit's hole. Ambode wasn't so lucky. Sanwo-
Olu's fate remains uncertain as he is still in his
days of honeymoon.
In Akwa Ibom State, Governor Godswill
Akpabio had won the hearts of the people with
his astonishing infrastructural achievements,
among which was perhaps the finest stadium
in West Africa. And in choosing a successor to
protect those legacies, he picked his loyal
secretary to state government, Udom
Emmanuel. But what is the story today? The
two men have so fallen out that they now at
daggers drawn in opposing political
parties.
In Edo State, Governor Adams Oshiomole
probably felt that the traditional politicians
who brought him to power could not be
trusted. The vision of a technocrat would
be more aligned to his professional
perspectives. So he chose his beloved
Godwin Obaseki, the Chairman of his
Economic and Strategy Team. I guess we
do not need to rehash the recent experiences
in Edo State and what today has become of
that Oshiomole-Obaseki relationship.
In Anambra State, Governor Peter Obi
LAWMAKER ON KEBBI ABDUCTION:
Bandits now so
fearless they informed
calculated that no one could be more trusted
than a man with whom he managed billions
of money in local and foreign currencies. I
mean, if pecuniary interests could not injure
their many years of friendship, what else
would? So he chose a director in his bank,
Willy Obiano, to succeed him as governor.
And what happened? Less than six months
in office Willy Obiano could hardly allow
Peter Obi to step into the government house
in Awka. Their relationship degenerated so
irretrievably that Obi worked vigorously to
prevent Obiano from returning for a second
term in office. But Obiano prevailed.
The most pathetic of them all was what
played out in Abia State. Theodore Orji was
in detention when Governor Orji Kalu
withstood all odds to campaign and install
him as his successor. Yea, Theodore Orji was
ensconced in prison whilst the battle of his
election raged. Orji Kalu took all the bullets
to ensure the election of a man that had served
him as chief of staff. Theodore Orji emerged
from detention to be sworn in as governor. Yet,
in less than six months, he went for the jugular
of Orji Kalu. The rest, as they say, is history.
But the tale is not ended. There was another
mind-boggling experience. This time, it
involved a veteran of Nigerian politics. He
needed no tutorials on the shifty character of
many politicians. He wasn't going to fall
victim to it. So he rather picked his son as a
successor to his earlier choice, whom he felt
had let him down. After all, blood is thicker
than water. His son cannot fail him or betray
the family. And to make assurance doubly
sure, he had raised his son as a shining
specimen of his personality, including training
him to become a medical doctor like himself.
So, he installed his son to succeed the renegade
that had served for just one term. What
happened? Father and son so fell out that when
the son was running for a second term in office
as governor, the father was in another political
party campaigning for a stranger to dethrone
his son. Ludicrous, you'll say? Well, that is the
story of Olushola Saraki and Bukola Saraki
in Kwara State.
Now, when one thinks of the extraordinary
lengths those outgoing governors and
godfathers went to install their preferred
successors, the humongous resources
expended, the enemies they made and
friends they lost in the process, and the
eventual betrayal by those same successors,
one begins to wonder if plotting to install a
successor is worth all the trouble (Given
that it's all happening within the confines
of same political party).
Having learnt from history that, no matter
the pretences or assurances from
prospective successors, they will always
chart their course when they find themselves
in power,
is it not better for a governor to focus on
building enduring legacies and not bother
himself about who is coming after him or
what will be the policies of who comes after
him? I believe that even if his successor
decides to denigrate his achievements or
demonize and ostracize him and his inner
circle of followers, his achievements would
always speak for him in the public
consciousness (That is if they are true
accomplishments in the strict sense of the
word). This, in my view, appears a better
option than wasting time and resources on
a futile chase for the ideal successor.
•Dr Tony Felix Nwaka is author of
'Mountain of Yesterday'.
of their attack
•Overpowered police before
kidnapping students
By Omeiza Ajayi
The lawmaker representing Shanga/
Yauri/ Ngaski Federal Constituency
of Kebbi State, Hon. Yusuf Tanko
Sununu has lamented the growing wave of
banditry and kidnappings in his area, saying
Thursday’s kidnapping of scores of students
of the Federal Government College, Birnin
Yauri simply captures how fearless bandits
have becomes. He said that the bandits gave
notice of their attack and eventually
executed their plan with impunity as they
overpowered policemen before abducting
the students. Sununu lamented that
Thursday’s operation was the third incident
in two weeks in the area, regretting that
farmers can no longer go to farms and that
education was being badly affected.
Sununu disclosed this during a breakfast
television show monitored in Abuja on
Friday.
He said; “It is rather very unfortunate that
the security of lives and property, the welfare
of the average Nigerian which is the
constitutional basis for existence of
government is being compromised.
What really happened was that two weeks
ago we had an episode where bandits
residing in the areas bordering Zamfara,
Niger and then Kebbi came to one of the
villages in my constituency, killed a police
man and then found their way until they
reached around Ibeto where we have a
quarry, killed some security men and
kidnapped some Chinese people.
“Ten days after they came to the same area
and operated for more than seven hours,
moving from house to house, room to room,
collecting handsets and cows and machines
and they left behind a message that they
will soon be coming back. To fulfill their
promises, yesterday, we had intelligence
that they were in their way coming and they
started around 10:30am and reached their
final destination at Federal Government
College Birnin Yauri. Even though it wasn’t
an easy task, the Mobile police engaged
them according to the PPRO and the
Counter Terrorism Unit stationed at the gate
•Students of Federal Govt College, Birnin Yauri fleeing from school
after the abduction of their school mates
of the school also engaged them and they,
after a long period of exchanging fire, they
unfortunately overpowered the police
because according to eyewitnesses, the
bandits were more than 200 on
motorcycles.
“They succeeded in killing one of the
policemen and they got access to the school
and abducted an unspecified number of
students and five teachers. The number of
students cannot yet be ascertained because
immediately after the bandits left, parents
from nearby villages came and took their
wards away and that made it very difficult
to know the actual number of those
abducted”.
The lawmaker however added that
security forces have been able to track the
location of the kidnappers.
He said; “One good thing about it is that
we have made a lot of contacts. As of last
night and this morning, I had a discussion
with the field commander of Operation
Hadarin Daji that they have succeeded in
entering into the den of the kidnappers and
I think this is a major success because the
agencies are now taking the fight to the
base of the kidnappers. In fact over 800
cattle that were rustled some days back were
recovered. There is also a lot of casualties
on the part of the insurgents.
“Yauri is now facing an influx of IDPs.
The schools are virtually closed down for
fear of abductions and this will cause a lot
of problems to the Emirates as far as
education is concerned. Also we are in the
rainy season, when our farmers are
supposed to engage in farming but this has
now been interfered with.
“Before this happened, we had
communicated to the security and I think
they took their time to do surveillance and
it was that surveillance that gave them
much knowledge about the access routes
being used by the bandits because they
have a common route through the
villages. This is why I think we should
also respect local intelligence.
“As a sovereign nation we have an
advantage over criminals. It is only the
state that controls the airspace and we
can utilize the airspace to tackle these
elements so that the ground forces can go
in and do the needful. We are in a serious
crisis. The economy has nosedived and
access to food is a serious issue because
people cannot go to the farms or markets.
“The thick forest in Yauri is very
important. If you push the bandits from
Zamfara, they will come to that forest. If
you push them from Niger, they will come
to that forest too. That is a very loose area
that we must take care of because from
there they can enter into Yauri and you
can imagine 300 armed men coming into
a local government headquarters. You
know nothing can be done to challenge
them. So, this is the time to weaken them
and let the military remain in the areas
they have taken from them so that those
bandits cannot regroup there again”, he
added.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—13

14 —SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—15

16—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
•Suspects
I make N400,000 monthly
selling bread to bandits
in Kaduna State — Suspect
•They ‘re our best customers
•Bandits ‘re many in the bush, the more you kill,
the more they recruit — Another suspect
the kidnap of those university students,
the quantity of bread that they bought
increased. During that period I
delivered up to N70,000 worth of bread
everyday until recently when it dropped
to N50,000 again.
“I have not benefitted much except
that I married a new wife and I was
able to save money to take care of two
wives. To stop banditry, government
should recruit more security men. We
prefer police because they know the
job.”
On his part, 21-year-old Auwal
Abubakar from Galadimawa, said he
was aware that the people buying his
bread were bandits. He said, “I am
married with a daughter. I only
attended Arabic school. I am a farmer
and while waiting for the crops to grow,
I normally looked for other sources of
making money for my family. I started
working for Magaji about three months
ago. I am paid N500 and a loaf of bread
every day. My job is to join and bake
the bread and also sell them in the
various communities. Most of our bread
are sold to bandits. I know that they are
bandits, everyone knows them. I am
not afraid that they will kidnap me
because we mind our business. They
don’t cover their faces and we know
their village. The only thing is that they
now live in the forest. They do not have
families, it’s only some of their
commanders that are married with
children.
“I do not know that it is a crime to sell
commodities, I am only selling my
commodities and nothing else. I am
aware that they are kidnapping people
up and down but since I do not
participate in kidnapping, there is no
need to worry. It was at the police station
that they told me that I was encouraging
the bandits by giving them food. The
only way out of the problem is for
government to give them what they
want. They are so many in the bush
and the more you kill them, the more
they recruit. I did not join them because
of my family. My relations have warned
me that one day the army will bomb
that place and I will die.”
The third suspect, 17-year old
Ibrahim, who is also a primary school
dropout said, “I am from Galadimawa,
I dropped out of Galadimawa primary
school. My parents are farmers and
By Ifeanyi Okolie
Operatives of the Force
intelligence Response Team,
IRT, have arrested three bread
sellers, who specialized in supplying
bread to bandits operating from Damari,
Kidandan and Awala camps, through
Galadimawa along Birnin Gwari and
Giwa Local Government Area of
Kaduna State.
Vanguard gathered that operatives of
the IRT led by Deputy Commissioner
of Police, Abba Kyari, got information
about activities of the bread sellers on
June 8, 2021, while they were trailing
a middle-aged man who specialized in
giving information to kidnappers
terrorizing Zaria and environs. During
interrogations, the suspects confessed
to have been supplying bread to
bandits at Galadimawa, Damari,
Kidandan and Awala camps and led
the operatives to the bread factory
where 150 loaves of bread were
recovered.
Confessions
When Vanguard interviewed the
suspects, 29-year-old Hassan Magaji,
said “I am from Galadimawa village
and I am married with two wives and
three children. I started the bakery
business in 2018. I was an Okada rider
and was always losing my bike to
bandits who sometimes ambushed us.
Sometime ago, one of my relatives
Mustafa Magaji came to our area and
taught me how to bake bread and with
the little money that I saved, I started
the business. I started with about
N21,000 and now I make N400,000 a
month. The boom in my business began
when I started supplying bread to
bandits. I was born and brought up here
in Galadimawa and I know most of our
young men who decided to become
bandits. The community has a good
relationship with them because they
do not attack us. Initially when they
started, they were
raiding our
villages but some
of
our
community
heads made
them to
understand that
we were not the
cause of their
problem, that we started
were poor
villagers also
struggling to
survive. This was
why they stopped
attacking us and
many of them
started coming
out to mingle with
the villagers. I
n o r m a l l y
wandered close
The boom in my
business began when I
supplying
bread to bandits. I was
born and brought up
here in Galadimawa and
I know most of our
young men who
decided to become
bandits
to that area of the forest where they
were staying. It was during one of such
trips in 2019 that I met Mohammed who
bought ten loaves of bread and took my
phone number. I sold the bread for N200
each instead of the regular market price
of N170.
“The following day he called me that
the bread was so delicious and that I
should bring 20 more
loaves.
“On the day that I took
20 loaves of bread to
him, I met three others
who were with him and
they told me that they
would like to be buying
in large quantity. I
however told
them that I didn’t
have enough
cash and we
agreed that they
would pay the
entire money
before baking the
bread. They
started with N20,000 worth of
bread and gradually increased
to N50,000 a day. After
deducting the cost of ingredient,
I make as much as N150,000 in
a week. We have a meeting point
close to their hideout as I am not
allowed to enter inside the bush.
It is not even accessible with car.
They don’t threaten me because
we mind our business. They
were aware that people were
avoiding them, that was why
they normally encouraged me
by paying for the bread before it was
baked. I do not know about their kidnap
business; I just sell bread and go. It
was my workers that were arrested by
the police while on their way to deliver
the bread and they brought the police
to my factory.
“I observed that whenever they
kidnapped many people, like during
they made me to join them in the farm
instead of sending me to school. I have
been saving money to buy a motorcycle
but it was never enough. Luckily I got
a job at Magaji local bakery about a
year ago. I am paid N500 and a loaf of
bread. Sometimes I would sell the loaf
of bread instead of eating it. Part of my
job is to sell bread in the neighbouring
communities everyday. Those bandits
are our best customers. Instead of
trekking around begging people to buy
bread, we would just deliver everything
to them and go home.
I am not a bandit because if I try it my
father will hunt me down and hand me
over to the police. He has warned me
that those bandits used to kill innocent
people which is wrong. I know a lot of
them who have since relocated into the
forest, they only come out when they
have money to look for girls and visit
their families”.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—17
Elume bridge
where kidnappers hold sway
•30 persons kidnapped in two months
•Kidnappers’ modus operandi, lamentations of motorists
•Delta state government moves to address the menace
BY JIMITOTA ONOYUME
Motorists plying Elume bridge on
the ever busy Warri- Sapele road
in Delta state are presently
gripped with fear following the increasing
spate of kidnapping at the scene. Between
February and April 2021, not less than 30
persons have been kidnapped at different
times around the bridge.
Unfortunately, a police checkpoint
mounted a few meters away from the bridge
has actually been helping the kidnappers
who took advantage of the traffic bottleneck
created by the checkpoint to perpetrate their
devilish act at the opposite end.
Sometimes, the kidnappers would monitor
the police to observe when they arrived.
Immediately they sighted the police, they
would leave the place, wait patiently in the
bush until the policemen have left.
Thereafter, they would come out of the bush
and announce their presence with sporadic
gunshots which would force fearful drivers
to stop. Crime Guard gathered that the
kidnappers have no specific time that they
strike. They also do not have any target in
mind as they aim at vehicles randomly.
Their modus oparandi is to place some of
their members at both ends of the road
before the bridge, to watch out for any posh
car. When they notice any of such cars
coming from both ends, they would alert
their colleagues close to the bridge who
would immediately jump out and open fire,
thereby forcing the vehicles to stop.
Thereafter, the kidnappers would pick their
victims and usher them into the bush, from
where they would contact members of their
families for ransom.
Victim narrates his experience
Narrating his ordeal in the hands of these
kidnappers, a labour leader, Samson Pere,
said he was kidnapped around the bridge
•
four months ago while he was on his way to
Benin city. He said the kidnappers, whom
he said were herders and were aged between
22 and 30 years, were heavily armed and
spoke in pidgin, boasting that they would
continue to operate on the road unhindered.
The rate at which motorists and
commuters were being kidnapped along
that axis has aroused suspicion that some
persons from the Elume community in
Sapele Local Government Area of Delta
state could be profiting from the crime.
Commuters,
motorists express fears
Expressing his fears, a motorist, who
simply gave his name as Mugani Etan, said,
“Elume area is predominantly a farming
community. And it is not like Sambisa forest,
which is said to be a vast forest stretching
through several states in the North-East. So
I wonder how kidnap business thrives in this
part without involvement of locals.
“I think some community folks profit
from it. Curiously, communities around the
bridge have not been heard crying out
against harassment by herdsmen like you
hear in Abraka, Obiaruku, Uvweru and
several other parts in the state. It tells you
there is something going on”.
Another motorist who identified himself
as Egua Ekpan, said, “I ply this road
everyday because I commute between
Sapele and Warri. I have escaped not less
than eight kidnap attempts. There are
whatsapp messages alerting people of
kidnap trade around the Elume bridge. The
Police cannot say they have not seen the
messages. I am surprised that despite the
messages that have travelled very far, the
criminal business is still going on there.
On her part, a trader, Vero, said, “I think
the Police do not really care much about
what is happening there. I know that if the
Police want to stop kidnapping around the
spot they can do that within a few months.
Though they are trying, they can do more.
The Delta state government should also be
seen to take steps to work out a security
system to protect travelers on the road. It is
a major road that links the state with Benin
and Lagos. The security operatives should
comb the bushes in Elume and other
adjourning communities. Farmers cannot
say they don’t see these kidnappers and their
victims. Elume and other communities
around it know what is happening. There
should be intelligence gathering in all these
areas to fight this menace “, she said.
Commenting on measures on ground to
address the worrisome trend, an aide to
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa on security
matters, Mr Ezekiel Daniel said the
governor was working with relevant security
agencies to tackle the situation.
“Government is already doing something
by strengthening the vigilantes around the
axis to network with Operation Delta Hawk
for quick response. On my part, as Senior
Special Assistant to the governor, I have
visited some of the communities to meet with
the youths on the need to make security of
their areas their concern. I also confronted
them with information at my disposal that
some of them connived with criminals to
kidnap and rob passengers. I am aware
arrangements have been made to have a base
of Operation Delta Hawk on the Warri-
Sapele road “, he added.
My boss tortured me
to coma for using N50
airtime —Apprentice
•I disciplined him, threatened to make him mad if he stole from me - boss
By Ikechukwu Odu
About a month ago, 21-year-old
Chizoba Ayogu left his home town
in Alor-Uno, in Nsukka Local
Government Area of Enugu State, to work
as an apprentice for one Mr Chimezie Eze,
who owns a chemist shop in Agasha, Benue
State.
He had a dream of opening his own
chemist shop upon completion of his
apprenticeship. But his hope was dashed last
Friday, as he narrowly escaped death, after
he was allegedly beaten to a state of coma
by his boss.
His offence? He stated that he used N50
airtime on his boss’ business line to call
another apprentice and that he sold a pack
of paracetamol for N50, instead of N200.
Ayogu, who had visible marks of violence
on his back and other parts of his body to
show for the alleged torture, has been sent
back home to his parents.
Speaking with Crime Guard, his mother,
Mrs Chinyere Ayogu, lamented that her son
could barely walk when he returned home
until he was treated. She recalled how she
had wanted her son to learn a skill but was
discouraged by a friend she confided in, who
suggested that Chizoba would do better in
business. She added that her friend promised
to link up with Chimezie, who owns a
chemist shop in Benue State.
According to her: “She later told me that
Chimezie had approved of my son joining
him in his business but said we should keep
it secret. Chimezie came to pick my son at
about 7.30pm last month. Barely had my
son settled down when he returned home,
accompanied by someone last week, as he
couldn’t walk. The following day, I took him
to Chimezie’s father at Echezema, Ibagwa
Aka in Igbo-Eze South Local Government
Area of Enugu State. I am speaking out
because I don’t want Chimezie to carry out
his threat to my son’s life “ she narrated.
My ordeal— Chizoba
Narrating his experience in Benue state,
the victim said : “A day before this incident,
I was accused of wooing girls. The trouble
started when my boss gave me a phone to
reach him on, whenever a customer
requested to see him. When I complained
that I didn’t have airtime in the mobile
handset he became furious and asked what
I used the airtime he saw in the phone the
previous day for. I told him it was used to
call my fellow apprentice to direct customers
to my shop, if they didn’t have the medicines
buyers were looking for. I told him that the
airtime was not enough to complete the call
and that I had to borrow N50 from the service
provider.
“He gave me N500 to buy airtime and
threatened to deal with me if he discovered
any surcharge from the service provider.
After loading the N500, the service provider
deducted the N50 I had borrowed earlier.
My boss got angry when he discovered it
•Chizoba
•Chizoba
Ayogu’s back
and ordered me to go to our apartment and
wait for him.
“When he returned home, he asked me to
kneel down and started flogging me with
koboko (horsewhip) in the presence of his
wife. I pleaded for mercy but he didn’t stop.
I made an effort to break free from him
through the exit door but he blocked me.
At that point, he said I wanted to fight him.
He threw away the koboko and started
raining blows on me until I fainted. The
last thing I remembered was when he tried
•Chimezie
Eze
•Mrs
Chinyere
Ayogu
to strangle me. He
said he would
behead me and
take my corpse to
my parents,
boasting that
nothing would
happen. My cry
for help could have
alerted neighbors. I
was told they came
and stopped him,
while I laid in the pool
of my blood
unconscious. The
following day, he sent
me back to my
parents, boasting
that he would make
me pick pieces of
paper on the streets
and market places”, he
said amidst tears.
Boss’s reaction
However, when contacted, his boss,
Chimezie, denied threatening to kill his
apprentice. According to him, “when I gave
him a phone for our business calls, I didn’t
recharge the line. I just wanted him to be
receiving calls with it. I was surprised when
he called me with the line and when I checked
the airtime, I discovered he had N96
balance. But when I asked him to call me
with that line the next day, he claimed he
had no airtime on the phone, that he had
used it for business calls. We recharged
the line with N200 airtime but when we
checked the balance, it was N76. I then
concluded that he lied to me and sent him
back to my apartment.
“Yes, I gave him two strokes of koboko
when I returned in the evening, in a bid to
discipline him. But as the third stroke was
about landing on him, he stood up from
his kneeling position and grabbed my
hand. I gave him headbutt twice, to break
free from him. He fought with me. I
threatened to make him mad if he stole
from me, but I never said I would shoot
him”.

C
M
Y
K
18—SATURDAY Vanguard, , JUNE 19, 2021
Like many Nigerians, I watched
the two television interviews
with the President. But unlike
many, I also watched as a professional
interviewer. I do that with many
interviews. It is instinctive. So while
many concentrated on the President’s
answers, I found myself focusing on
the framing of the questions and the
comportment of the interviewers. I
found myself looking at the setting
and analysing the mood of the
participants. I found myself assessing
the preparedness of the interviewers,
the synergy among them, and the
quality of their follow up questions. A
good interview depends on all these
little things. It also depends as much
on the person being interviewed as
the people doing the interview. So if
Nigerians were not too happy with the
content of the interviews, they should
not blame the President alone.
You can guess by now that I know
one or two things about interviews. I
once had a weekly interview column
that ran for years at the Punch during
which I interviewed all manners of
people. From the taciturn to the
voluble; from the low to
the high; from villains
to laurates; from
technocrats to
politicians; I met them
all in hundreds of
interviews which
spanned almost a
decade. So, some of
what I am going to say
here are what I learnt as
a professional
interviewer over the
years and for which in
an ideal world, I should
be paid as a consultant.
No two interviews are
the same because
personalities differ. So it
is incumbent on the
interviewer to know
something about the
personality or
idiosyncrasy of their
subject. Interviews can be likened to
chess where mental sparring plays a
major role; poker where confidence or
composure has a role; and golf where
the landscape or ambience plays its
Disclaiming
conspiracy
theories of a presidency that
had been hijacked by a few
visible and invisible handlers,
President Muhammadu Buhari last
week came out to show himself and
character as being behind the actions
and inactions of his administration.
His interview sessions with Arise
Television, and subsequently with the
state-owned, NTA, conveyed to all the
reality that the Buhari presidency was
not dead despite the imaginations of
those who had cooked stories about a
Jibrin from Sudan and theories to
explain the First Lady’s eight-month
disappearance from the country.
To wit, all those who had unfairly
flayed Mallam Garba Shehu as
ditching out his personal whims and
caprices as presidential orders have
been brought to reality.
One of the major fallouts of the
president’s interview with Arise TV
was the resurrection of the
phenomenon of grazing routes for
cattle.
Before the interview, it had been
taken that the idea of grazing routes,
grazing reserves, and indeed, the
matter of open grazing of cattle had
been buried.
After the bold summit of the Southern
Governors in Asaba, and the
corresponding summit of Northern
Governors, what Nigerians were
looking forward to was on how
alternatives to the open grazing
menace would be explored.
Indeed, some of the most fanatical
of Buhari’s supporters among the
Northern governors, including
Abdullahi Ganduje, Kano; and Aminu
Bello Masari, Katsina, had been
particularly expressive in their
condemnation of the open grazing
phenomenon.
However, with his interview on Arise
Television, Buhari brought life back to
Our President
went off target
on a few
occasions and
no follow-up
questions to
bring him back
on track
The President’s inter
ervie
views
part. Not all interviews are successful.
Not all turn out the way you planned –
in fact, many don’t. But a successful
interviewer must learn to take charge
of the moment irrespective of who is in
front of them. Pretty much the same way
a successful photographer must take
charge of the moment. If you lose the
initiative either because of
indecisiveness or lack of preparation,
then you risk compromising the outcome
of the interview. Many interviews look
spontaneous. In
reality, very few are.
Most are products of
preparations on both
sides with laid down
ground rules.
Advanced questions
are usually requested
for and sometimes
vetted. This is where
the professionalism of
the interviewers and
the news medium
come into play. I once
had an interview with
a top brass who had
insisted on advanced
questions. My first
question was the third
from the bottom of the
list. He looked at me
surprised. But it was
an innocuous
question so he
answered it. But unknown to him, I had
gained control. I was going to work
within the confines of the agreed
questions; but in a way that gave me
latitude and allowed follow-up
questions. The key; the game changer
in any interview are the follow-up
questions because they not only show
the preparedness of the interviewer and
the knowledge of the person being
interviewed, they clarify issues. It is not
too bad if you are working for print
because you could cover some of the
gaps which lack of follow-up questions
brings with words. It is more obvious
when you are on air because the gaps
are gaping. The President’s interview
was on air. Our President went off target
on a few occasions and no follow-up
questions to bring him back on track.
There was an interview I had with a
sitting Chief Justice of Nigeria who
insisted that a certain controversial
Supreme Court judgment should not be
on the cards. I pleaded with him that it
was neither in his interest nor mine nor
that of the readers that a rare interview
with him would be silent on such a
contentious issue. I made him aware that
the ultimate judge of a good interview
are the people. Somehow, the handlers
of the President and the team that
conducted the interviews missed this
point. At the end of the day, every
interview is meant to satisfy some
curiosity. The more satisfied the
audience is with what is revealed, the
more it is deemed a good interview.
Both the interviewer and the subject owe
it to themselves to get a good interview
out. Otherwise there is no point having
the interview. I don’t know how many
people were satisfied with the
interviews on the two networks. It was
such a rare occasion to have the
President speak to us. An occasion made
Grazing routes, bandit routes
and growth routes
the debate that ordinarily should be a
non-issue.
Asked if he agreed with Abubakar
Malami on his criticism of the Southern
governors’ communique, the president
said:
“You want me to contradict my
Attorney General? “What I did was ask
him to go and dig the gazette of the
First Republic when people were
obeying laws. There were cattle routes
and grazing areas. Cattle routes were
for when they (herdsmen) are moving
upcountry, north to south or east to west,
they had to go through there.”
The president’s decision to go back to
the ways and manners of the First
Republic is one that has astounded
many. At a time many in the world are
advancing better ways of doing things,
several are shocked that the president
would want to keep Nigerians stuck to
the antiquated model of open grazing
that was practiced in the First Republic.
The criticism of being stuck to the past
is also beside the fact of documented
judicial pronouncements that outlawed
that method of grazing.
President Buhari’s action is one that
feeds the insinuation that you get for a
country the kind of leadership that you
project. It is heartwarming that the
president’s attachment to open grazing
is not generally accepted even by fellow
party members, northerners and the
Fulani.
Governor Masari has shockingly been
quick to distance himself
from the president despite
their well known political
connections.
President Buhari’s
fascination with grazing
routes for cattle at this time
when equally endowed
countries are projecting
permutations to lift their
people through various
technological feats must
be shocking to Nigerians.
It comes against the
background of the
government’s decision to
cut the country away from
Twitter, which is
undeniably one of the
most engaging platforms
for social and business
interactions. Imagine what
Nigerians are losing just
because of the administration’s
proclivities.
While noting its fascination with
grazing routes, it is also shocking that
the government has closed its eyes to
the fact that the same routes have been
converted to bandit routes and have
become routes through which farmers
more momentous by the situation in the
country. Five professional colleagues
interviewed him yet, he managed to slip
pass them without revealing much except
for those who read his lips and watched
his body language. Actually, the least said
about the NTA interview, the better. I
understand the constraints of working for
a government media but he didn’t have to
make it so obvious. As an interviewer, I
felt a bit embarrassed by what NTA put out.
And I don’t think the Arise crew will
believe they had a good outing. My
colleagues were deferential and disjointed
as a unit. They failed to command the
moment. They allowed such a unique
occasion slip out of their professional
hands. I hope the handlers who pushed
for the interviews got what they wanted
because many Nigerians did not. Too many
things that mattered to them were either
superficially touched or were not touched
at all.
My take-away. One, the President finally
talked to us from Nigeria even if he did
not address issues to our satisfaction. We
should thank God for small mercies. And
because of that, we know he is not a Jibrin
from Sudan as some mischievous people
had suggested. Two, Nigerians find the
President has a sense of humour. It’s a
good thing to have. Three, he is aware of
what is going on and talks of dementia are
widely exaggerated. Four, his comments
on issues confronting the country are
unfortunately superficial and steeped in the
past. Many of the problems confronting the
country were not created by him. But there
is a lack of profundity, a lack of depth, let
alone progressiveness in his proffered
solutions. It was not only his age that
showed in the course of the interview, but
the age of his ideas to quote Bill Clinton.
Almost every problem he inherited has
become worse in his six years in office. And
yet the blame game continues. We look up
to him for solutions to our security situation
and he passes the buck to State Governors
while withholding the tools to perform from
them. Five, and this is the most concerning
of all to me. There is a visible lack of
empathy to the yearnings of the disaffected
groups in the country and the sufferings
of an average Nigerian. Could this be due
to his age, his background as a military
man, or his character? That comment of ‘a
dot in a circle’ for example, was
condescending and unnecessary.
and school children are kidnapped.
Indeed, Buhari noted the connection
between the grazing and bandit routes in
his interview when he said that the herders
involved in criminality are foreign herders.
He said:
“So, from other areas, people rush to
Nigeria. You know Fulani from Mauritania
and Central Africa look the same, so they
feel they are the Nigerian ones and I assure
you that we are trying to resuscitate these
cattle routes, grazing areas and make them
accountable.”
So, the message passed across by the
interview was that the president knows that
the problems comes from foreign herders
wielding AK-47s but his simple response
is to resuscitate grazing routes as a
solution to the menace posed by the Fulani
militia.
How the parents of those
President Buhari’s
fascination with grazing
routes for cattle at this
time when equally
endowed countries are
projecting permutations
to lift their people through
various technological
feats must be shocking
to Nigerians.
Islamiya children
kidnapped weeks ago in
Niger State would take this
is simply unfathomable.
Indeed, despite the
president’s steer warning
last February after the
Zamfara Girls school
kidnap that that incident
would be the last, these
supposedly foreign
militiamen have mocked
the words of our president
continuing with reckless
abandon their savagery
across the land.
With Governor Masari
boldly coming out to
distance himself from the
president the danger for
him and his legacy is that
many, many Nigerians across tongue and
tribe who identified with his coming in 2015
would sooner than later leave him in the
ditch of history as they seek alternative
routes for growth outside Buhari’s grazing
and bandit routes.

Like a sepulcher, it looked nice
on the outside. At the gate, they
seemed alert and professional.
The entrance was imposing.
The dusty car park is a long walk to
the offices. Those who created that car
park knew the institution would be
inefficient. They made room for a
crowd. The car park was full.
There were many good-looking
buildings. Then I reminded myself I
was not in a police station in Bariga.
It was the headquarters of the
Nigerian Immigration Service. It
should look decent. The environment
was clean. But there were people
everywhere. A white canopy housed
what seemed like a church. Chief
Aregbesola, the Minister of Internal
Affairs, had vowed to cleanse the place
before June. So what was happening?
Someone pointed out the building,
which was named after somebody. The
man must be one of the heroes of that
organization. I passed through a dead
metal detector. A security man
scowled and asked me where I was
headed. I deemed it a joke. We were
in the middle of an Ogbete market.
Who could seriously be asking
anybody where he was headed in that
confusion? Being a Lagos man, I
ignored him and coded solicitude,
and he ignored me.
Another congregation sat like tired
passengers in a railway station waiting
for a train that was already one day
late. It’s wasn’t a beehive. It was a
herd of frustrated people. I ran
upstairs in search of my agent.
Everybody had a man or woman. At
Immigration, the staff are agents. In
no time, I met the terms, and my
documentation was complete. I was
asked to wait. I preferred to loiter, to
take in the scenes. A potbellied
immigration staff had Akara wrapped
in a sheet of old newspaper inside his
upturned cap. He was playing
Solitaire, a card game, on his desktop.
The staff beside him was explaining
to his client that they were overworked
The Nigerian Immigration Service:
The home of uniformed touts
because, “Nigerians are impatient.”
One thing was evident; our
Immigration officers were probably
never taught how to dress smartly.
Trousers hung on waists askew; only
a few had trousers
that didn’t make
them look like the
court messengers
of the old. The
entire institution
needs a massive
re-alignment. I
took a second look
at the interior of
the building. The
contractor did a
shoddy job.
Perhaps he knew
the offices would
be occupied by
indolence and
shiftlessness. The
POP ceiling
looked like the
guesswork of an
ambitious
apprentice.
Outside and in
the sun, I watched
citizens languish. I hung around
and watched a lady wail. She might
have been on the verge of missing
out on something critical. Like
missing out on an immigration visa
Chief Aregbesola
has promised
innovations. But he
must take his broom
to that institution
and sweep out a
mercenary culture
and ‘deadwoodism.’
The rot is deep.
Cosmetics won’t do.
appointment that would catapult her
into the arms of her foreign-based
knight-in-shining armour. I saw a
senior immigration officer come to her
with an air of philanthropy and
beckoned her to
follow him. The
way the man
spoke, it looked
like he could turn
bitter waters into
sweet waters in
that institution.
The girl hesitated
and then followed.
I hadn’t imagined,
I would be fed with
so much drama.
A moment later, I
received a call. It
was my agent.
Perhaps I had paid
enough to merit a
VIP treatment. I
was asked to come
upstairs to the VIP
section. I got there
and met a crowd
outside. We hung
there, on the corridors. All of us, black
and white. Yes, many Asians. They
wanted the green booklet too. I stood
for two hours. I resisted the urge to
scream at the officials and walk away.
SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—19
I resisted the urge to drag in a big man,
my ECOMOG. Soon my agent, a young,
well-dressed immigration staff, reappeared.
He came with apologies. He
located my file. I filed in. The VIP room
was an Oshodi bus stop. Immigration
staff poured in and poured out. The room
reeked with clumsiness.
Thirty minutes later, a clap of thunder
and electricity fled. We waited.
Somebody turned on the torch on his
mobile phone. The door was opened to
let in light and air. A man informed a
disgusted woman who had wondered
why the generator had not come on that
there was no serviceable generator. He
asked us to pray. After praying for the
rain to go away, to somewhere else, I
prayed for the electricity company. The
rain went away, but electric power didn’t
obey. With straight faces, the staff asked
us to exercise patience. At 5 pm, I left.
Men don’t cry.
I returned the next day and met the
same madness. Almost the same
madness.
The government doesn’t subsidize
passports. So why is it difficult to collect
money from citizens and issue them
travel documents? In the United States,
you only need a visit to a post office.
And a few weeks later, your passport
would come to you. This 2021. The
Minister should watch CCTV clips of
these passport centers. Immigration
offices are saturated with touts in
uniforms shuffling around, feasting on
their indolence. This is the age of
technology. Why can’t we surrender the
documentation to one or two banks?
It must be a deliberate policy to make
passport booklets scarce and make
citizens suffer. Otherwise, it’s
inexplicable. Why weren’t there ten
processors instead of two at the VIP
section? How can booklets wholly paid
for by consumers be scarce perennially?
Chief Aregbesola has promised
innovations. But he must take his broom
to that institution and sweep out a
mercenary culture and ‘deadwoodism.’
The rot is deep. Cosmetics won’t do.
Writing has become a curse. You
write and write and those who
should listen to you appear to
hold wisdom in utter disdain; yes, in
contempt, derision, scorn, condescension
and with total disregard.
Really, a writer could live with that. It
is left for the individual writer to speak
his truth to the winds even, and leave it at
that. He might document it believing that
administrations come and go, but Nigeria
endures. So, one day, a regime that might
embrace the views which a preceding one
had refused to consider could be in
power, and then, Nigeria would begin to
retrace her steps.
Retrace her steps? Is there really a need
for that? Reading through President
Mohammadu Buhari’s recent interviews,
in that unhurried comfort which
newspaper reports afford one, without the
hurried variation you get as you watch
the real interview for the first time on the
television set, you have the choice to set
your own pace, choose when to stop and
what to read a second or even a third time
for the real meaning, or, even an esoteric
nuance, to sink in.
That was when a strange thought
invaded my mind; Nigeria has been
bursting at the seams, but we are just
watching it turn to shreds.
It is most likely that President Buhari’s
answer which touches on his vow to speak
to some miscreants whose activities are
tearing up the nation and making the
lives of Nigerians a living hell must have
elicited that feeling in me that the nation
is ripping apart. It had all started from
the North-East. An insurrection had
arisen, an insurrection like never before.
Boko Haram is its name. Those who owe
allegiance to this group do not only hate
everything Western or modern, but they
appear to hate the very idea of Nigeria
itself. They do not recognise our
federation, the election that produces our
leaders, and they have taken up arms
against the motherland.
In the North-West, another group has
been increasing the space it has
commandeered. The group’s grouse is
murky at best; that its members said they
have been left behind as the benefits of a
modern society have devolved on others
leaving them high and dry. In terrifying
Where’s the road back...t
...to a
united Nigeria?
videos after terrifying videos, they have
talked about their having been left
behind by a wicked society that has
cared not a bit about their well-being.
Unfortunately, some of our so-called
leaders still have the temerity to argue
that there are a lot that are wholesome
with an almajiri education. Such
people have been
resisting the efforts of
some Northern
governors to end
almajiri education so
that our children
could acquire an
education that should
enable them to read
and write and to
master a trade if they
were to put their
minds to it.
That brings to mind
the vexed issue of the
age old cattle rearing
which involves the
traversing of the entire
land by herders. What
about the children of
these herders? How
will they be educated?
Is that type of animal
husbandry not just
ancient but truly
archaic and so totally
out of date?
Should any
Nigerian be allowed
Should any Nigerian be
allowed to live in the
bush in this day and age,
bereft of modern
education, health
facilities, electricity and
modern amenities? And
if some persons say that
is the life they have
chosen to live, should
they be allowed to also
destroy the lives of their
children?
to live in the bush in this day and age,
bereft of modern education, health
facilities, electricity and modern
amenities? And if some persons say that
is the life they have chosen to live, should
they be allowed to also destroy the lives
of their children?
We have a problem
on our hands, a really
gigantic problem. The
answer does not lie
with Boko Haram’s
beloved Islamic
Republic. It does not
lie in Oduduwa
Republic. It does not
lie in Biafra, whether
of indigenous peoples
or the 1967-1970
variant. The South-
South also talks tough
when its people are
threatened. And the
Middle-Belt has for
long been on its own.
Our president has
vowed to talk to the
nuisance-inducing
miscreants in the
language they
understand. Is that
violence? If so,
unmitigated violence
has its uses. A nation
must be ready to
unleash it when ANY
part of the country is under threat. Yes, any
part of the country. But the Boko Haram
insurgency has been on now for decades.
So, too the killing of farmers by Fulani
killer herders which we have been told are
not Nigerian Fulani people, but Fulani
herders from outside our borders. Buhari
has not spoken in such a language yet, or
Boko Haramists and killer herdsmen have
refused to understand his language.
Though we are supposed to be united in
our battles against the lawless peoples in
our land, Nigeria is tearing at the seams.
Talks about some ethnic groups going their
own ways have been rife for a long time
now. Thus it is disappointing that in the two
interviews that Buhari granted to two
television stations recently, he did not
showcase any road map that should bring
Nigerians on the road to national unity.
New questions and problems have cropped
up. So, it must be futile for Buhari to think
that the old answers would do. Killer
herdsmen, for instance, would require state
police to address. Making the states more
economically viable could require granting
them more powers.
And someone should advise the
presidency to listen more and accept advice,
and to think things through before reacting.
I just read something attributed to Malam
Garba Shehu, Buhari’s spokesman, but I
doubt if it emanated from that former
newspaper Editor. I read a reply purportedly
written by Mallam Shehu in reply to the
Peoples Democratic Party Governors’
Forum. The Forum had called on the
presidency to shore up Naira’s foreign
exchange value. The reply faulted the PDP
Governors, arguing that a strengthened
Naira value would militate against our
ability to export goods, especially crude
petroleum. I doubt if that emanated from
Malam Shehu because he should know that
Nigeria has been exporting oil, even when
the Naira exchanged higher than the
American dollar, but today, it is inching
towards N500 to a single American dollar.
I know that Garba Shehu knows that
Nigeria is bound by OPEC’s quota.
Nigerians are frustrated. That is why many
want to leave the federation. They have to
be reassured. We must find the way back to
a united Nigeria. And if that Nigeria never
existed, it has to be invented. That is the
task before Buhari.

20—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Why Obienu spared Boro
Gen. Johnson
Aguiyi Ironsi’s
first move as
Head of State was the
appointment of an
Mbammiri man as
Service Chief. Col
G e o r g e
Tamunoiyowunam
Kurubo became the first
indigenous Head of the
Nigeria Air Force on
January 19, 1966.
The Igbo of the Eastern
Region regarded their
riverine cousins of the
Niger Delta Creeks as
one and called them
Mbammiri (Sea People).
There was no
discrimination, Izon,
Kalabari, Ibani were
given equal attention and
played key roles in
government.
Ironsi was shocked
when Jasper Isaac Adaka
Boro, an Izon, proclaimed
the Independent
Republic of Niger Delta
Peoples in February 1966
barely a month after he
appointed the first
Mbammiri man as
Service Chief. The same
Ironsi had another officer
from the area, Navy
Lieutenant Denson
Okujagu as one of his
aides.
Kurubo’s elevation was
unprecedented. He was
not an Air Force officer
and there was at least one
Igbo Air Force officer,
Major Theophilus
Enwezor Nzegwu, who
could have been
considered after the
Germans left. Col.
Gerhard Khatz quit
following the January 15,
1966 coup.
Ironsi needed to know
why Boro, whose last
known addresss was the
University of Nigeria
Nsukka (UNN)
embarked on a suicide
mission that was going to
destroy all the good name
he made as President of
the UNN Students
Union.
Major John Ikechukwu
Obienu was close to
Ironsi. He was of the
Recconaissance
Regiment. At the Royal
Military Academy,
Sandhurst, UK he passed
out as the Best Overseas
cadet. Obienu entered
Sandhurst in January
1960.
Among his Intake 28
mates were Mobolaji
Johnson, Musa Usman
and Christopher
Emelifonwu. When they
were commissioned as
Second Lieutenants,
Obienu got the service
number N/221. Usman
was given N/222,
Emelifonwu, N223 and
Johnson N/224.
Troops of One Brigade
Enugu were tasked with
what was tagged Internal
Security Operations.
Obienu did not belong to
that formation but Ironsi
knew the commander
would act like a thorough
professional in
supervising officers like
Lieutenants Yohanna
Kure, Muhammadu Jega
and their troops.
Obienu could have
killed Boro in battle since
it was a rebellion that
came to be known as the
Twelve-Day War. That
was not the instruction.
Boro was captured so that
the world would hear him
out through a thorough
legal process after stating
his mission.
Kurubo was enough
proof that the Igbo did not
marginalise the other
ethnic groups in the
Eastern Region. Ironsi
did not appoint any Igbo
Obienu did not
belong to that
formation but Ironsi
knew the
commander would
act like a thorough
professional in
supervising officers
like Lieutenants
Yohanna Kure,
Muhammadu Jega
and their troops
as Service Chief. An
officer like Col. Conrad
Nwawo was senior to
Kurubo. Nwawo was
commissioned in May
1954.
Kurubo was
commissioned in
December 1955 with
Yakubu Pam. Ironsi and
Kurubo shared similar
history. The General was
Equerry to Queen
Elizabeth when she
visited Nigeria in 1956.
The Col. served as
Equerry to Princess
Alexandra when she
graced Nigeria’s
Independence
celebrations in 1960.
Obienu delivered and
brought Boro to state his
grouse at a Port Harcourt
High Court presided over
by Justice Phil Ebosie.
Defence counsel was
Godfrey Amachree. A
guilty verdict was passed.
To the Supreme Court the
defendant went.
Chief Justice of Nigeria,
Adetokunbo Ademola led
four other Judges, George
Baptist Ayoola (GBA)
Coker, Ian Lewis,
Charles Daddy Onyeama
and Frank Ajegbo to
uphold the decision of
the lower court.
Boro defeated Igbo
opponents Jude Emezie
and Francis Okoli at
UNN to emerge as
Students Union president
in the 1964/1965 session.
Ninety percent of the
voters were Igbo. The
students, led by Boro,
took the Nigerian
Government to court
following the flawed 1964
Federal Elections.
Shortly before Boro’s
rebellion, there were
Mbammiri officials in
prime positions in the
Eastern Region. Isaac
Dagogo Erekosima was
the first African principal
of the elite Government
College Umuahia.
Another elite School,
Government Secondary
School, Owerri
had Kombo Igbeta with
similar record.
The first Mayor of Port
Harcourt, Richard
Nzimiro was Igbo. He
was succeeded by
Ambrose Allagoa who
later became the first
Indigenous Chief Judge
of Rivers State and when
he retired, Amanyanabo
of Nembe, Ningi XI.
Allagoa represents the
strong connection
between Ndigbo and
Mbammiri which Ironsi
honoured but Boro did
not see. Allagoa’s mother,
Nwaokiri Rose Onyeka,
was an Onitsha Princess.
His wife, Francisca Ngozi
was Igbo too.
Another prominent
Mbammiri man, Rex
(Erekosima) Jim Lawson,
had an Igbo mom from
Owerri. His hit track,
‘Love Adaure’ was done
in Owerri dialect. Lyrics
from another track cost
Igbo lives during the
pogrom. He sang ‘ewu
na ebe akwa’ (goat is
weeping) which did not
go down well with
Northerners.
Then there was the
Abonnema reject, Ikoli
Harcourt- Whyte who was
transformed in Uzuakoli
and became the Father of
Igbo church music with
over 600 Igbo hymns.
Today, Chief Ephraim
Faloughi, is another rod
connecting Ndigbo and
Mbammiri.
As we approach 2023,
many probably do not
remember that Boro
fought as a Nigerian
Major and was killed by
a Federal officer. The
uninformed have to be
told that neither Ironsi
nor Ndigbo murdered
Boro. Lies have wings
and they are flying, from
Bile to Buguma.

C
M
Y
SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—21

22—Vanguard, SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 2021
The vagina is perhaps the most
important feature of the entire
female reproductive organs. It
serves as many ports, an entrance port to
the rest of the reproductive system, as
through it other features such as the uterus,
the fallopian tubes, the ovaries are accessed.
It also serves as an exit port because it is
through the vagina that life is brought forth
when a baby is birthed, bringing fulfillment
and pride to the woman, joy to the man, and
ensuring the continuity of family name and
the human race as a whole as directed by
the Creator. The monthly cycle
(menstruation) is also expelled and urine, a
toxic waste from the body passes through
the vagina even though from another
channel. Finally, the vagina also serves as
the pleasure port of the female’s sexual
desires. All (well, almost all) sexually built
up tensions for both the male and the female
are relieved at this port. Some say the
pleasures available to both sexes are
unimaginable and endless, if properly
explored.
The importance of the vagina is
undeniable to the woman, the man she
permits into her secret place, the society and
humanity as a whole. This no doubt explains
the amount of care and attention given to
the vagina by both the owners and the men
who use their services. Yes! Men too, do show
concern and care for the vagina. This is
because of our conviction that should
anything go wrong with this great port, a
whole lot of things would likely be affected.
Apart from the physical discomfort and
pain to the woman, her man also shares in
the abrupt disturbance of routine as
embargo would have to be placed on the
vagina to allow whatever went wrong,
subside. It can even disrupt the whole process
of conception and birthing, if adequate
medical attention is not accessed properly
and promptly too. Some other grave
consequences are likely, causing permanent
injury, diseases or even death. If you or your
partner has ever had something seriously
Yetunde Arebi
Maintaining the
love nest (1)
wrong down there, you’ll have an idea of
what I’m getting at.
From studies conducted by many experts,
vaginal itching is the hallmark of yeast
infections and other vaginal infections,
including sexually transmitted diseases,
STDs. However, there are other causes of
vaginal discomfort which include
chemical irritants from detergents or
soaps, douches and vaginal creams, toilet
paper, bath products, feminine hygiene
products, and vaginal
contraceptive products.
Women in the
menopausal transition
may experience vaginal
itching due to fluctuations
in Estrogen levels. As
Estrogen levels decline in
the perimenopause, the
vaginal wall becomes
thinner and drier, and
itching may result. Some
studies have shown a link
between psychological
stress and vaginal yeast
infections too. This is
likely due to the fact that
stress is known to have a
negative effect on the
immune system and could
possibly increase the
likelihood of getting a
yeast infection. It is a fact
and indeed common knowledge that women
are advised not to douche as it can disrupt
the PH of the vagina, leading to
infections. But how many of us women
adhere to this on a daily basis? Or how many
It is a fact and
indeed common
knowledge that
women are
advised not to
douche as it can
disrupt the PH of
the vagina,
leading to
infections.
men encourage their women
to keep the place only as the
good Lord created it? Women
who douche, do so for varied
reasons ranging from
personal to “medical” and
not a few of us are guilty too.
Just in case you don’t know,
vagina douching is the
process of cleaning out the
vagina by forcing water or
solutions into
the cavity to
flush out its
contents.
Douches
range from
ordinary
water to soaps
(even native
black soap)
a n d
manufacturers’
brands spiced with a variety
of fragrances, sold over the
counter. More ridiculous are
women who douche right
after sexual intercourse to
avoid pregnancy or sexually
transmitted diseases or just to
feel clean and fresh down
there. Earlier in the year, a
friend who recently began a
new relationship confided in
me that she had to go shopping for several
brands of douches to prepare her vagina
because she’d not been intimate for almost
two years. Unfortunately, she developed
Thrush after washing with one of the
Twitter: @yetundearebi
yetty5050@yahoo.co.uk
08054700825
products and had to undergo treatment
lasting several days.
Whatever the reason might be, douching
is geared at improving the sexual act by
preserving the vagina for the pleasures of
the men who use them and to boost the
confidence and sensuality of their owners.
Studies have however confirmed that
regular douching may introduce new
bacteria into the vagina
which can spread up
through the cervix, uterus
and Fallopian tubes.
Douching also increases
your chances of vagina
infections and contracting
Thereafter, whether
the sex is desirable
or pleasurable or
not, we subject our
bodies as a means to
holding on to the
relationship, often
unprotected and
unprepared for the
consequences.
STDs and will not prevent
pregnancy. In fact, the
American Journal of
Public Health published
sometime ago, that
douching may reduce a
woman’s chance of
becoming pregnant
during a particular month
by approximately 30%.
As if all these are not
enough. Our insecurities
as women cause us to self
destruct by abusing our
ports with our own hands,
besides those inflicted by
our men. The truth is that
once a level of commitment and
compromises have been staked in a
relationship by the woman, it is not a very
pleasant feeling to allow the man walk out
into oblivion, especially when the decision
was not by mutual agreement. Thereafter,
whether the sex is desirable or pleasurable
or not, we subject our bodies as a means to
holding on to the relationship, often
unprotected and unprepared for the
consequences.
Hmmm!! Do have a great weekend!!!
Remember to grab a copy of your
refreshing Saturday Vanguard for the
concluding part of this article.
Osun’s fading desperate politicians
By Adetutu M. Ogunlade
ecently, at the June 12 Democracy Day
RLecture in Osun State, Dr Yemi
Farounbi, an elder statesman and Nigeria’s
former Ambassador to the Philippines made
a profound statement about the hallmark
of democracy. It is that “power still resides
with the people”.
One of the highest expressions of disrespect
and scornful abuse of the people is to regard
them as docile species whose minds are easy
to sway, especially in a democracy. The
citizens of Osun in particular are not that
way. Osun is blessed with enlightened minds
and people of great sociocultural awareness.
Citizens of Osun and members of the All
Progressive Congress have functional eyes
and ears. They see and know what is going
on in the State and within the Party, and
they have observed the activities of those
who are trying to disrupt the peace that the
OPINION
State of Osun and the ruling party is
enjoying.
Consequently, they have spoken against
the activities of the so-called “The Osun
Progressives”, without a gun to their heads
or any form of coercion.
The people are aware that the group at the
centre of this controversy has no flag, no
scruples, no character; a group that is neither
a political party in its right nor a civil society
group. A group of aggrieved people seeking
relevance by creating confusion.
Adegboyega Oyetola came into power in
2018, with Prince Gboyega Famodun as the
Party Chairman; it was a good permutation at
the time to the now wailing wailers because
they thought the structure will favour their
cancerous dynasty. Now that they have been
shocked to their bones by a man who keeps
Ose Brain Quest Foundation holds compe
petition
Participants during Ose Brain Quest Foundation competition
making positive things happen from the
wreckage he inherited, they have resorted to
spitting into the same plate they once ate from,
showing up in 2021 to incite the public against
the government that has epitomised good
governance.
Besides, both Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and
Elder Adelowo Adebiyi were from the same
Senatorial District in the previous
administration, and it was both acceptable and
plausible to the clout-chasing “progressives”.
If there’s anyone or group trying to
forcefully impose itself on the people through
cheap propaganda like the opinion published
by one Inwalomhe Donald (who presumably
has cowardly used a Pseudonym), it is the socalled
Osun Progressives.
Let it be known to the detractors that power
still resides with the people, not with any
splinter group. The people are speaking based
on prima facie evidences of the epoch-making
interventions of the Oyetola’s administration
All is now set for this year's edition
of Ose Brain Quest Foundation
competition. The Young Talent Brain Quest will
hold on June 26, while the Smart Competition
has been slated for October 2021.
The registration portal for the educational
competition is in its 10th edition, which is a
continuous effort towards shaping future
leaders, is open both for private and public
school students to participate in. Categories
include spelling in-figures, mental quest,
mathematics quiz, impromptu speech, debate
among others.
Speaking recently at a press briefing, the
founder, Aidanmwosa Aiwanose Phina said her
passion was fuelled by the need to create a
platform that aid mental development of
students, especially in mathematics by giving
them a comparative advantage to discover their
creative abilities.
On her part, co-ordinator of the competition,
Juliet Keshinro, narrated how the COVID-19
pandemic forced the competition to go digital.
She said, “In 2020, there was a global issue
in Osun. They will yet speak when it is time to
make their choice of who represents the All
Progressive Congress in the 2022 governorship
election, and who will steer the affairs of the
State from 2022 till 2026.
The political group alluded to in the
opinion, Association of Progressive Political
Parties (APPPs), calling out Oyetola to fulfill
his campaign promises to the people,
perhaps need one of Oyetola’s interventions
in the health sector, “Jigi Ileri” (free eye care),
to see how much he has done in health,
education, commerce and empowerment,
youth development, workers welfare,
citizens welfare, infrastructures, and a host
of other sectors, in less than three years.
Citizens are watching and listening, and
of course know where to look when chaos
interrupts the tranquility Osun has been
enjoying under Oyetola, because their
emissary has announced his paymasters’
intentions in the second paragraph of his
article to “...make Osun not peaceful and
unstable in the years to come.”
•Ogunlade writes from Ikirun,
Osun State
known as the COVID-19 pandemic, which
gave birth to Online Smart Competition. We
intend to make learning fun, helping them
to cultivate a good reading and research
habit, as well as discover various abilities
in the young mind, thereby enhancing
their boldness and confidence
academically.
“What helps to make life meaningful is
quality education and that is what this
foundation has been doing in the last
eight years with the aim of promoting
excellence in schools and building
tomorrow’s leaders today. So, government
should come up with policies that
encourage intellectual competitions
among children that would help build our
tomorrow’s leader today,” Keshinro said.
Ose Brain Quest Foundation runs two
programs at different times of the year
namely; Young Talent Brain Quest and Smart
Competition, with the aim of promoting
excellence in schools and introducing fun
while teaching and learning.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—23
08116759759
India: Head of ‘world’s largest
family’ Ziona Chana dies - leaving
behind 39 wives and 94 children
He lived with his family
in a vast property with
around 100 rooms in
Baktawng, a remote village in
Mizoram.
A man said to be the head of
the world’s largest family has
died in northeastern India.
Ziona Chana had 39 wives, 94
children and 33 grandchildren -
all of whom lived together in a
four-storey pink house with
about 100 rooms in Baktawng in
Mizoram state.
The 76-year-old was the leader
of a local Christian sect, named
Chana, founded by his father in
1942 and with a current
membership of hundreds of
families.
Ziona married his first wife
when he was 17 and claimed he
once married 10 women in a year.
They shared a dormitory near
his private bedroom and locals
said he liked to have seven or
eight of them by his side at all
times. The chief minister of
Mizoram confirmed his death on
Twitter, saying the village of
Baktawng had become a “major
tourist attraction” because of the
family.
With a total of 167 members, the
family is the world’s largest,
according to local media, although
this depends on whether you count
Mr Chana’s grandchildren.
In a 2011 interview with Reuters,
Ziona said: “I am ready to expand
my family and willing to go to any
extent to marry.
“I have so many people to care for
and look after, and I consider myself
a lucky man.”
‘Oldest woman in the world’ found at
age of 124 while getting Covid vaccine
ndia’s push to vaccinate its
Ielderly population may just have
uncovered the oldest woman on the
planet.
According to reports in India,
medics came across Rehtee Begum
when they were going door-to-door
to administer vaccines.
She gave her age as 124, a
whopping seven years older than
Kane Tanaka, a Japanese woman
who has a verified age of 117.In fact,
124 would make her two years older
than Jeanne Calment, a French
woman who died at 122 in 1997 who
is officially recognised as the oldest
ever.
The Indian grandmother from the
Baramulla district of Jammu and
Kashmir showed vaccinators a
ration card giving her age as 124.
There has been no official
corroboration of her age but health
workers were satisfied enough to
release the information.
A doctor confirmed she was given
a jab on Wednesday at a mobile
inoculation unit, as did the region’s
department of information.
India has experienced a
devastating wave of Covid-19
infections in recent months.
A rise in cases was fuelled by a
mutation in the virus – now known
as the Delta variant – which has
travelled around the world to
become the dominant strain in
the UK and elsewhere.
The country of more than 1.3
billion has officially recorded
more than 340,000 deaths but it’s
believed the true toll could be
higher.
India recorded 131,000 new
cases on June 3, down from more
than 400,000 a day at the height
of its May peak.
Vaccinating the country’s large
population is a monumental
logistical challenge.
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi and his government have
been criticised by India’s
Supreme Court for the pace of
the rollout.
Reliance on mobile apps to
register for jabs has been
contentious in a country with large
rural areas, as has a decision to make
some younger people pay for jabs.
Woman ‘cut off her
husband’s penis and
cooked it’ after killing him
A
woman is suspected of
killing her husband before
cutting off his penis and frying it.
Dayane Cristina Rodrigues
Machado, 33, was arrested in the
Brazilian city of Sao Goncalo on
Monday.
Police were called to the Santa
Catarina neighbourhood and
reportedly found the body of the
husband – known only as Andre
– lifeless, naked and mutilated.
His wife is accused of cutting
off his penis and cooking it in
soybean oil in a frying pan at
around 4am.
She has been charged with
murder and corpse desecration
and police seized a kitchen knife
from the scene.
The couple were together for 10
years but had been separated for
two and continued to see one
another on and off.
They have a son, 8, and
daughter, 5, and ran a pizzeria
together.
News reports suggest the couple
went out to a snack bar on the
night of the crime and had an
argument.
Machado’s lawyer, Carla
Policarpo, said Andre threatened
her and she killed him in selfdefence.
But Andre’s sister, Adriana
Santos, claims the suspect killed
her brother in revenge for him
cheating on her.
Machado had reported her
husband to the police on one
occasion and the couple
constantly fought.
‘He did not accept the end of
the relationship and said that if
she could not be with him, she
could not be with anyone,’ Ms
Policarpo added.
She said her client is
‘remorseful’ for what happened.
The investigation is ongoing.

24—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Igbo man sold me into
slavey in Libya, a stranger
rescued me — Adaeze
•My stor
ory y of horror in desert,
slavery y in Libya, surviv
vival in Italy
Ten years after Mrs. Adaeze Onyeakpa
Oshi, arrived Italian Island of
Lampedusa after 11 hours journey on
a migrant boat across the Mediterranean
Sea, she had nothing but gratitude to God
for miraculously surviving the perilous
journey that had claimed lives of thousands
of African citizens fleeing poverty and war
to Europe. Although, she made it safely to
Italy, two years after she left Nigeria and
now enjoys comfortable life that she craved
for in Europe, Adaeze is haunted by the ghost
of her past- the journey which took her
through the deadly Libyan desert where she
was sold into slavery by Nigerian human
traffickers and the torture and suffering, she
endured to regain her freedom before fleeing
the war-torn Libya.
The mother of two kids, who currently lives
and works in Northern Italian city of Turin
with her husband, shares her experience in
this interview with Olisemeka Obeche.
What was your earliest recollection of your
life as a young girl and how it impacted on
who you are today?
Well, I am the last child and the only female
child of the eight children born by my mother
in a polygamous family at Azia, a town in
Ihiala local government area of Anambra
state. Although, we were eight, five later died
leaving only the three of us. Incidentally, both
my parents are late now. My father died when
I was four years of age and that prompted my
mother to send me away to live with one of her
sisters who was married and living with her
husband in Lagos. The couple had no child
and so my aunt claimed they needed me so
that I could bring good luck to their family. I
was barely five years old when my mother
sent me away to live with them because she
could not cope with the responsibility of
taking care of her eight children. I was the last
child and she felt it would be better for me
there. I guess my mother did it because she
was convinced that my future would be better
if I left at that time.
However, when I got to Lagos, everything
changed. It wasn’t the kind of life I envisaged
or the kind of pampering treatment that I was
used to in my house at Azia. I was maltreated
and denied basic needs by the woman. For
instance, they refused to enroll me in school
as they promised my mother. Not that they
didn’t have the money. They were living well
by all standards at that time because my aunt’s
husband was working with NAFDAC and they
had everything to take very good care of me
but they just chose to maltreat me for reasons
I do not know till today. When neighbours
and people started asking questions, they
decided to enroll me in a nearly public school
that was not up to the standard. Of course, I
was more than happy then because I was going
school. But, I hardly finished one session before
he was transferred to Akure, Ondo state and
we had to leave Lagos. When we got to Akure,
instead of getting better, things got worse. Then
I was being forced to do the kind of things
people of my age were not supposed to do. I
was denied food, clothing and other basic
cares, even good school by the couple. Just
like in Lagos, when they decided to send me to
school, they chose the one that was most
substandard in the area for me. In my school
then, whenever it rained everything would be
over because the roofs would be leaking and
water would be everywhere. But, I was
determined to make the best of the opportunity.
It was when I reached the age of eight years
that I began to agitate to go home. When I
finally managed to send message to my
mother to inform her, what I was going
through there, she demanded for my return.
By then I was about 13 years of age. I spent
about eight years with them before they
allowed me to go back home.
Did you experience
sexual molestation
during this period?
Yes, I did and it was
horrible experience. But
it’s a chapter in my life
that I had closed because
it’s something I don’t like
to remember or talk
about. As a child of God,
someone who has
taken up gospel
ministration, I had
since forgiven those
people who played
part in that era and I
have moved on with
my life. Thank God,
I had found joy and
fulfillment along the
way and am not
going back to that
again.
So, what
happened when
you returned
home?
Incidentally,
when I returned to
live with my
mother, I couldn’t cope
with the village environment. Having
spent much of my eight years in Lagos and
Akure, it was very difficult for me in Azia. So,
I told my mother that I couldn’t stay in the
village because everything was somehow to
me. After some time, she sent me back to
Lagos, this time to live with one of our family
friends. This time around, the couple treated
me well and I was enrolled in a normal school.
This time, I had the opportunity to attend
Federal College, Ikeja for my secondary
education.
When I finished secondary education, I
relocated to Akure again, where I sat for
university matriculation examination
preparatory to study at the Federal University
of Technology, Akure (FUTA). I barely spent
one year at FUTA before the opportunity to
travel outside Nigeria came up and I dropped
out of school.
Looking back to those
years, how do you feel
now?
Well, I decided to take
nothing but only the
positive from that chapter
in my life. That is the only
convenient thing for me
because if I try to reflect
on the horrible things that
I experienced at that time,
I will go crazy. But, like I
said, I regard that as the
beginning of my life-long
lesson. Although, I look
back to my time with the
couple with gratitude for
lessons learnt, I believe that
no mother should let her
child live far away from her
at that age. I was too young
to cope with the new
environment and adapt to
the new way I was being
treated. Then, my mother
had no option than to send
me away.
That was how our
journey of life and
death took off from
Akure in Nigeria on
May 27, 2009 to Birni
Konni, a border town
in the Tahoua region
of Niger Republic
from there we
travelled to Agadez
So, how did you travel out of Nigeria?
Well, after finishing my industrial training
during my first year at FUTA, I tried to find a
part time job which I needed desperately in
order to raise funds to continue my education.
When I could not get a part time job then in
2008, the only option
available to me then was to quit school
and start a petty business. •Adaeze Then, with I was already
nursing the dream classmates to become a full time gospel
artist because I love singing gospel songs. So,
my goal switched to starting a business and
then combining it with gospel ministration. I
was already in the business when my uncle’s
daughter came to persuade me to travel
abroad that it was better than suffering in
Nigeria. She said she knew someone that could
help me get to Europe. It was so convincing
that my mother did not hesitate to give her
consent, but on the condition that it must not
involve prostitution. I assured her that I will
never engage in prostitution.
At that time, I also have a childhood friend,
Chioma who incidentally is the
only daughter of her family just
like me, who also wanted to
travel outside the country as
well. So, when I told her, she was
excited and we teamed up for
the trip after meeting the man
who was handling our travel
plan. The man told us that we
were travelling to Spain and that
we would get out passport and
visa in Libya. That was how our
journey into slavery started. We
travelled outside Nigeria
without even voter’s card. No
proper documentation.
How did it happen?
It happened that the man
handling our travel plans whom
my niece introduced simply as
Ejima from Imo state was a
human trafficker who
specializes in luring people to
the city on the pretext of sending
them to Europe. He told us that
his sister resident in Spain was
operating a restaurant and was
looking for two young ladies to assist her. And
that she was ready to sponsor our visa and
other travel expenses to Europe; that once we
reach and start working for her, she would
deduct it from our pay. Ejima also assured us
that the sister would provide accommodation
and feeding for us in Spain until we complete
her repayment. He was to accompany us until
•Adaeze
we enter flight before he comes back to
Nigeria. We felt everything was genuine
because there were many Nigerian ladies who
own saloon or other businesses that usually
bring younger girls to Europe through such
agreement.
So, we thought the agreement was genuine
and we followed him with only small pocket
money with us. Before we travelled, I asked
some people that I knew that were abroad
then and they confirmed that people travel
through such means. Although one of them
asked if it was slave trade and I told him that
the person said it was work travel in
Spain. That was how our journey of life and
death took off from Akure in Nigeria on May
27, 2009 to Birni Konni, a border town in the
Tahoua region of Niger Republic from there
we travelled to Agadez.
It was when we reached Agadez and spent
one week that I became suspicious of him. I
then, called my friend whom I regard as a
sister and told her what the man was up to and
that he was planning to sell us into slavery. It
was at that point that we embarked on serious
fasting and prayers, committing the entire
journey into the hands of God.
What was it like travelling through the
notorious desert route to Libya?
It was a horrible experience. Even if offered
so much, it is a journey nobody should embark.
I do not also wish any of my enemy to go
through it. When we reached Agadez, the
traffickers normally spend one week or two to
make solid arrangements for the trip. They
first conduct headcounts and make sure that
their money is complete before the trip. It’s
roughly one week of road trip from Agadez to
Libya and during this period, you can die of
anything especially thirst. There is a section
of Libyan territory where all of us, human
cargoes will have to lie underneath the vehicle
and they cover us with tarpaulin before
covering us with goods. They said that was
done so that desert patrol officials will never
suspect that they were carrying human beings
but only goods. You can imagine the
experience of lying on your back inside a
vehicle covered with thick tarpaulin and goods
in a hot desert.
On our way, we could see remains of those
who died in the desert on their way to Libya.
Continues on page 25

Continues from page 24
From fresh decomposing bodies to skeletonseverywhere
was littered with remains of people
whose hopes and dreams of reaching Libya
and Europe ended on the desert. Many of them
died as a result of dehydration. It’s horrible
sight. It’s something only seen in horror
movies. At that area, there is no water, no grass
or trees to provide any form of comfort. We
reached a point where we were warned never
to disembark from the vehicle to avoid leaving
footprints behind. We were told that it would
tip some desert rebels or human hunters off
and they would track us down. At that point, it
was only the driver who wore a boot similar to
that normally used by desert patrols that
usually got down to get anything we needed
during that stage of the journey.
However, we reached a stage where we ran
out of water and the next place to get clean
water was like three-four days journey away.
So, we started looking for ‘anyhow’ water to
take. We eventually found a well in the desert
but the water smelled awful because birds die
inside. But we had no option than to drink
from that well to stay alive. Normally it was
rare to see birds or other living things in the
desert. Everything you see there is dead,
because living thing can hardly survive in such
environment. So, it was strange to see carcass
of a bird inside the well. But, we ignored the
stench and drank to our satisfaction. That
helped us to stay alive till we got to the point
where we had fresh water before we reached
Sabha, a city in Fezzan region, Southwestern
Libya, about 640 kilometers from Tripoli. It
was in this city that Muamar Gaddafi grew
up.
It was at Sabha that Ejima sold us to a Yoruba
man as slaves for $3,000 ($1,500 each). Before
then, he had told us that the man would
prepare our travelling document to Spain at
the city. When we eventually found out that he
had violated the agreement we reached with
my cousin, I wanted to confront him but he
managed to escape. I kept cursing him since
then and anywhere I set my eyes on that guy
again, I will make sure he pays for his crime.
Despite the fact that I survived, I don’t know
lives of many other innocent people he wasted
because of his greed.
Then, they drove us to a city called Houn,
another town in Fezzan region of Libya where
the Yoruba human trafficker, Kabiru
eventually sold us for $6,000 to Madam Pat
($3,000 each). After the last sale, Madam Pat,
an Edo woman took us to her place where she
said we could make money for them through
prostitution. The next morning, the madam
who bought us woke me up and handed us a
whitening cream, a soap called Casanova
with which I could be bathing to look
appealing to customers. She also bought me
sexy clothes that we would be wearing inside
the house so that customers would be
patronizing us. But outside house, you always
wore clothes that covered every part of the
body and it’s always hot. When it became clear
that they were forcing us into prostitution, I
revolted, telling them that I had never done
such a thing before and would not start then.
The madam that bought us tried all tricks to
force us but we refused to exchange our body
for money. They later transferred my friend to
Tripoli as part of their bid to break us down.
Then, I was the one that was behind the
resistance.
So, when they took her away and I still
resisted being forced into prostitution. Then, I
was locked up and not allowed to go out and
they tried to poison me, swearing that it was
better for me to die than remain useless for
her after paying $3,000 for me. Miraculously,
I survived and still refused to sell my body.
They continued tormenting me to the extent
that I made up my mind to take my own life
instead of serving the woman as a prostitute.
Then, I was about 22 years of age. It was
then that God used a Muslim man from Niger,
Ismail who operates a pizza shop nearby to
rescue me from the slavery. The man had seen
me and took pity because I was sick and dying
because of too much beating, starvation and
stress they had subjected me to. Then, they
would continue beating me until I pass out
and be vomiting blood. It was while I was
about to take drugs that they bought for me
that the man, whom I knew nothing of came
to intervene on my behalf. He approached
them and asked how much I was indebted to
them and the woman said $6,000. He agreed
to pay them the money so they could let me
go. Instantly, he paid them $1,000 for them to
release me to him, promising to pay the $5,000
balance. That was how I regained my freedom
and subsequently stayed at the man’s house.
He equally employed me to sell at his pizza
shop and he was paying me and saving the
money for me. That was how we raised the
money to pay that woman off after six months.
That was around June 2010.
How did you eventually find your way to
Italy?
By the time the Jasmine revolution crisis hit
Libya and the country was fast descending
into chaos, Ismail called me one day and said,
I should get ready that he would send me to
Italy, as the country was no longer safe for me.
•Adaeze
admiring her
certificate
'My story of horror in
desert, slavery in
Libya, survival in Italy'
That was how the journey to Italy started.
Honestly, I never consider that guy as a human
being but an angel sent by God to rescue and
help me and he really played that role well.
It was when they decided to open the
Mediterranean Sea locally known as Lampa
Lampa, so that people who wish to escape the
violence could use the sea route. It was then
that Ismail called me and told me to get ready
to use the opportunity to travel to Europe.
Then, I told him that I had not saved enough
money because at that point, my goal was to
save enough money that can enable me to
travel back to Nigeria. Then, I had lost interest
in travelling to Europe. But, he told me that I
should not worry that he will support me with
any amount I have so that I could make the
journey to Europe. By this time, I had managed
to re-establish contact with
my friend, who was taken to
Tripoli. I was overjoyed when
she also told me that she had
regained her freedom. I
informed her about my plan
to travel to Italy and she
informed me that her
Ghanaian boyfriend was one
of those human smugglers
that take people out of Libya.
From there, we started
planning for the journey and
when the time reached,
Ismail sent me to Tripoli to
meet with my friend with all
the money we gathered for
the trip.
Before travelling, I had
begged Ismail to travel with
me so that we could claim to
be husband and wife, because
I heard that if we made such
claims they would give us
documents faster. He refused,
telling me that his plan was
to go back to Niger, his
country. But before I left his house that day, I
prayed for him, asked God never to let him
down and always open doors for him as he
had sacrificed so much for me.
However, by the time I reached Tripoli,
everything needed for the trip was ready. I
was overjoyed when my friend’s boyfriend,
Attah called me a week later at the base camp
to inform us that Ismail had arrived Tripoli to
join us on the trip. When he managed to join
us at the camp, I asked how he came to change
I was overjoyed
when my friend’s
boyfriend, Attah
called me a week
later at the base
camp to inform us
that Ismail had
arrived Tripoli to join
us on the trip
his mind and raised money for the trip; and he
told me that one Baba helped him sell his
property and gave him the money. I was very
happy that he was with us.
Meanwhile, we spent longer time at the base
camp because the sea was not friendly. They
kept postponing it because the news we were
hearing was that those who travelled did not
make it because of the bad weather condition
out there. Then, I started fasting and praying,
asking God to make a way for us to pass
through. And it came to pass that God
successfully led us through the Mediterranean
seas safely. Since I left Nigeria till date, God
has never let me down and will never abandon
me.
So, when it was time for us to make the
journey and we came down to the port, it was
my first time of seeing that
kind of sea that has no
beginning and no end in
sight. I was scared because I
don’t know how to swim. But
Ismail told me not to be afraid
that I could make it. That was
how I entered the boat. From
Libya coast to Italy, my eyes
were closed and I kept telling
God in prayers: ”I cannot
open the eyes till I reach my
destination-Italy. And I know
you will prove yourself worthy
again. You have done it last
year and you will do it again.
Last year was battle. This year
would be victory.” It was
when they started saying that
we had reached Italy and
rescuers were coming to take
us that I eventually opened
my eyes.
What happened when you
people reached Italy?
We landed at Italian Island
of Lampedusa around May 26, 2011 where
we spent about three days. After that we sailed
to Genoa on a bigger vessel and were taken to
a migrant camp where they started processing
our documents. Ismail and I were in the same
camp. At the end of the day, I was given one
year Italian document and later ten years
resident permit. They asked me what I wanted
to do and I said I wanted to learn Italian
language and then start schooling. That was
how I was enrolled in a language school and
SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—25
when I got a diploma in language, I decided
to go for primary and later high school. I
studied social sanitation between 2014 and
2019. I took my final year exam in July 2019.
To the glory of God, I am happily married
with two children. We live and work in Turin
and I was planning for my further studies in
medicine or nursing before coronavirus
pandemic came and I decided to wait. I will
continue after the pandemic.
Do you think there are still Nigerians
stranded in Libya?
Yes. Many Nigerians sold as slaves are still
in Libya and other parts of North Africa and
many are still being sold. Majority of them
die in the process while those who survived
what they were put through are still trapped
waiting for the time they can be able to secure
their freedom. The amount we were being sold
is so much that it takes only the grace of God
for people like us to be able to raise money
and pay for our freedom. I believe that not
everybody was lucky as me. Many still work
hard but perish in the process. The kind of
torture Nigerian girls sold as slaves go through
in Libya is unimaginable. There was a recent
video trending on the social media of an Igbo
girl being tortured by the master who
incidentally is also an Igbo man. That
reminded me of what I went through over ten
years ago. That’s the kind of punishment they
give because what they care is about making
money through your body and nothing more.
What will be your advice to young girls
who may be convinced to take such risk?
They should never try it. It’s a risk not worth
taking. I have used every opportunity I have
to tell people that traveling to Europe through
Libya is a suicide mission. There was this
young girl from my village who told me
that somebody wanted to sponsor her to
Turkey so that she would pay N5 million
when she starts working. I told her not to
enter into such agreement that it was a slave
trade. I am using this medium to tell others
the same thing. There are many people like
Ejima going about looking for young girls
to recruit into slave trade in Libya and they
will make all kinds of promises to you while
in Nigeria. The moment you step outside the
shores of this country with no valid
identification and any means of reaching out
to people, you became their
slave.
Why did you decide to go into gospel
ministration while in Italy?
Music has always been my first love and
something I enjoy doing. I recall one particular
day when my late brother called me and told
me that I would be musician. Although, he
did not tell me whether I will be a gospel artist
or secular musician, he prophesied that people
would be hailing me on stage. I was laughing
then because I never envisaged that I will
become an artist
someday.
As a girl child who was forced to part ways
early in life with her mother and faced with
maltreatment in far-away Lagos, music
provided me with consolation. Then, I was
too much addicted to gospel songs of people
like Rosemary Chukwu, Chinyere Udoma etc.
I remember then, that whenever my aunt
played the songs in the morning, I would be
happy and be singing it in my heart as well.
Those songs inspired me to be a gospel artist
so I can share my story and all the things God
had done in my life through music. I want to
let people understand, through my songs that
if you believe, trust and obey God, you will
conquer because God will never let you down.
It’s just a matter of time.
What brand of gospel music do you
represent?
I chose to sing through the heart, what I
believe and what I am in the sight of God and
humanity. As far as am concerned, I represent
light, purity and God’s favour and unfailing
love. If God saw me through one of the
deadliest journeys and by his grace, I am
about to become an Italian citizen because I
believe and trust in him, then He will do the
same for others who believe in him. That is
my message and brand of gospel
ministration. I am channeling my music to
Nigeria because the message in my songs
is mostly needed by my fellow Igbo brothers
and sisters. My predicament started from
Nigeria and so many people are passing
through what is worse than I went through.
So, my goal is to share my story and
testimonies with them so that they can as
well achieve breakthrough. The only means
where I can easily reach them is through
songs. In as much as I cannot see them,
interact with them and possible offer my
help, I believe that my songs will go a long
way in channeling their minds back to God
and in living the right life as true children
of God.
How many songs have you recorded so
far and future plans?
I have recorded about six songs so far with
over 20 songs waiting to be recorded. My
plan is to be able to produce the video for the
songs as well as start work on other songs as
well. It’s my desire to use my songs to reach as
many people that I may not be able to reach
physically and to inspire them to place their
trusts in God. If, I am able to achieve that, I
will be eternally grateful to God because I
believe that God let me live so that people will
learn more about his wonders through me.
That is why I consider myself as Adaeze,
daughter of Zion.

26—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Go to unknown gunmen for their bodies, police tell families
of victims killed in Abia and tagged unknown gunmen
By Steve Oko Aba
Families of victims of the recent
clash between unknown gunmen
and police in Abia State have
asked the police to release bodies of their
beloved ones killed in the aftermath of the
attack for burial.
Unknown gunmen on May 29, invaded
the State Criminal Investigation
Department, CID station located at
Uzuakoli Road Umuahia, and set the
station on fire after releasing the inmates.
Hours after the assailants had fled,
security operatives allegedly raided the
vicinity particularly Ugwunchara area
were they reportedly abducted some
innocent youths.
Some of the innocent youths arrested
and taken away by the security agents
included two cousins - Onyebuchi
Anthony Amadi, 27; and Obinna
Onyebuchi Egekwu, 30; as well as Emeka
Awucha (popularly known as Onye
Photo), 36.
The victims’ bodies were later found at
the mortuary of the Federal Medical
VOX POX
Anthony Okafor, a lawyer from
Agulu: The problem of security is lack of
diligence by the governors. The Houses
of Assembly in the five South East states
should do the needful by enacting laws to
guide security operation in their various
states.The various states in the zone have
their security outfits which are poorly
funded and that is why they cannot even
jointly fund a central security outfit like
Ebubeagu.
Evans Ekwem from Umuchu
There is no cohesive arrangement for
handling security issues in the zone and
on top of that, the governors rushed to
launch Ebubeagu. There should be a law
in each state to guide security operations
and proper arrangement made for the
funding. It is the law that will stipulate
modalities for the funding security. And
when this is done, adequate budgetary
provisions must be made for security.
Retired Nigeria Airforce Officer,
Chief Peter Ezeliora said: “The
South East governors have not shown
seriousness in their handling of insecurity.
I am surprised in what is happening now
such as in Ohaofia where the army is
going into people’s houses and I ask, are
we democracy or military regime?
The governors should be up and doing
and gather themselves. General Umahi
just resigned and the whole thing is in
disarray. They should be united in the
calamity facing us and take security
seriously. They should not fall into the
hands of our enemies, those people they
are relying on.
Insecurity problem in the South East
requires indepth research. The vigilante
groups and forest guards are not deployed
South East governors have failed on security
•Okafor •Ekwem •Ezeliora Udeh
•Daniel
•Benjamin
•Late Emeka Awucha •Late Onyebuchi Amadi •Late Obinna Egekwu
Centre, FMC Umuahia on May 31 where
they were dumped by the security agents
who claimed they were some of the
unknown gunmen killed in a cross fire with
security agents during the attack at the
state CID.
Addressing newsmen yesterday at the
Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ Press
•Chidebere
appropriately. What we have is a show of
guns during burials and that is not
security. Security should be based on
intelligence and not noise, we make noise
too much. The herders know our forests
more than our people
Ohanaeze Youth leader in
Enugu state, Comrade Sunday
Udeh: The South East governors have
not done well in terms of security. Earlier
than now we had clamoured to have
effective security outfit in the south east
and security issue is what you politicize. I
thought that these governors of South East
would have looked inwards to harness the
things we have internally, some of those
ones are already in existence, harmonise
them and be able to come out with
something that can do us well. So in terms
of security they have failed.
EbubeAgu is dead on arrival.and it never
existed. It’s a political tool because if we
have EbubeAgu all these things won’t be
happening, but where are they. They would
have been able to fish out the criminals,
that is to tell you that there is porous
security in the South East.
Iheanyi Daniel Enwerem,
from Ihitte/Uboma Imo State
South East Governors have shown excess
zeal in protecting the lives and properties
of citizens, in terms of rating on insecurity
I give them 70%. They started by making
all Easterners understand that violence
is not the best way to end marginalization
of Igbo in Nigeria,but rather through a
round table discussion. The insecurity is
reducing drastically,as governors have
woken up from slumber to demand for
the rights of our region.
Centre Aba Road Umuahia, one of the
affected families called on the security
agents to release the body of their son for
burial, insisting that he was not an
unknown gunman contrary to claims by
the security agents.
An elder brother to one of the victims,
Chibuike Awucha, 47, from Amagbo
Udensi
Mr. Ono Benjamin, Civil
servant :I am disappointed in the South
East governors over their handling of
insecurity in the zone. They don’t seem to
be serious about the security of their
people. They were unable to finance
Ebubeagu which was the reason the
chairman resigned. Will they wait until
we are all killed before they take action?
Chukwu Chidebere, public
servant: “ It’s one thing to make a
decision and another to implement the
decision. I don’t know why the South East
governors are afraid to implement their
decisions. They banned open grazing but
cows are still roaming our communities;
they formed Ebubeagu but we are yet to
see any Ebubeagu.
Some of them are still afraid of the
powers above that put them in office. The
governors are not protecting their people.
Security people are still harassing citizens
of South East. Why are they quiet while
security agents are intimidating their
people? The brutally that led to#
EndSARS protest is still on in South East..
I think what the governors should do now
is to engage those behind the unknown
gunmen and know how to meet their
demands for peace to reign.
Chief Igwebuike Udensi, public
servant: South East governors have
not lived up to expectations in terms of
securing their citizens. It’s very
disappointing that they could not fund
Ebubeagu. How can the Yoruba have
Amotekun and our own governors are still
telling us stories concerning Ebubeagu.
If we have effective Ebubeagu I’m sure
Ndigbo will not be endangered species
any more”.
Ozuitem in Bende Local Government Area
of Abia State, said that the ordeal of the
family had been made worse by the refusal
of the police to release the body of the
victims for burial.
Narrating the pathetic story of how his
younger brother, Emeka, met his untimely
death, the tricycle operator said the victim
was murdered in cold blood by security
agents who arrested him while returning
from the coverage of a wedding event.
According to him, the victim, a father of
two had gone to cover a wedding event as
a photographer, and on his way back home
he was arrested along with some other
innocent youths and taken away by
security agents.
He alleged that the victims were later
killed by the security agents and labelled
unknown gunmen.
His words: “That day, my brother was
returning from a wedding event. He had
his video camera, two phones and
N35,000 which was given to him for the
production of the work he covered.
“ On his way home the security agents
arrested him at Ugwunchara and took him
away with other boys they arrested.
“ Later on Monday we heard that some
bodies were deposited at the FMC
mortuary by the police. And when we got
there we found him among the corpses.
“ We saw his bag but none of his phones,
video camera and the advance money
paid to him for the job he covered was
there.
“ When we wanted to carry his corpse
the mortuary people told us to get
authorization form the police. We went to
the police, the police said they were not
the people that killed them.
“ They said they were killed by unknown
gunmen and that we should go to unknown
gunmen.
“I’m surprised that police could parade
my brother, a popular photographer in
Umuahia as unknown gunman, and deny
killing him while they arrested him alive.
“ All we want now is that his corpse
should be released to us for burial. The
family is devastated. His two children -
one is in Primary three and the other in
Primary one: who will train them?
“ We don’t know where to locate the
unknown gunmen for their permission to
collect the body of my brother. We want
the Government to come to our rescue and
prevail on the hospital authority to release
the body to us”.
The 47-year old who was intermittently
battling to fight back his tears as he
narrated the pathetic story appealed to
Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu to come to the rescue
of the affected families who he said were
now in confusion.
When contacted, the Police Public
Relations Officer, PPRO, Geoffrey
Ogbonna, said he did not know which
police station the families went to in
search of the letter of authorization.
He said the affected families should not
just make oral application but put their
request in writing.
On the claims by the family that the
victims were arrested alive and later killed
by the police, the PPRO said “it sounds
very strange to allege that police arrested
the victims and later killed them”.

(L-R) Odia Ofeimun (Chair), Maxim Uzoatu, Kayode Soremekun, Kayode
Komolafe, Akin Onigbinde, Banji Ojewale, Ifeanyi Uddin
Guerrilla Editorial Board
A turncoat radical serving in Saro-Wiwa so much that he
the Abacha government once renamed Pita Okute as “Pita
paid us a visit in the office and Dumbrok” and put him as the
we all ran away, dodging to meet leading character who always
with him until he went away! mouthed “silly plot” in his two
The case of Ken Saro-Wiwa books, Prisoners of Jebs and Pita
took so much out of us as we Dumbrok’s Prison.
literally bombarded the reading There was no escaping going
public with editorials, opinions, back to the office to report on Ken
news analyses and so on. Ken’s Saro-Wiwa’s hanging and
bother, Owens, was always condemn the dastardly act in
around during the interventions unstinting editorials. The fact
even as he was also being haunted that Abacha could hang Ken
by the military authorities. Saro-Wiwa despite all the
On the day Ken Saro-Wiwa was international pressure clearly
killed, I was at the National showed that the military goons
Stadium, Surulere watching a could not be bothered.
match between the Nigerian The American ambassador,
Super Eagles and Uzbekistan, Walter Carrignton, once invited
with the then FIFA President Joao us to his Eleke Crescent home
Havelange as the guest of where we urged him to tell his
honour, when one top security home government to seize all the
source called me aside and said: Nigerian assets in USA. The
“They have killed your friend.” ambassador revealed to us that
I was among the first persons the Nigerian assets in America
to learn of the killing of Ken amounted to nothing when
Saro-Wiwa. I walked in a daze to compared to the US investment in
my Ikate, Surulere abode and Nigeria.
somewhat passed out.
It was not in our character to be
I was surprised when I opened dispirited. We continued all the
the door of my apartment early avalanche of attacks on the evil
the next morning only to see the Abacha regime and added all the
journalist Pita Okute sitting on “atmospherics” for good measure.
the staircase. He said he had One day a slip was delivered to me
been knocking on the door since via the office to come and collect a
the night when he heard of Ken’s parcel at Ikeja Post Office. The parcel
hanging in a party and decided was said to have been sent by an
that the only way he could bear Uzoatu, a relation I had never known
the loss was in my company. or met.
Pita Okute became friends with I instantly that was a very cheap
Ken Saro-Wiwa after he had way to try to catch a guerrilla
written in a review of Sozaboy, journalist by the security goons. I
Ken Saro-Wiwa’s novel in “rotten simply tore up the slip and went away
English”, that the book had a to drink a beer in a bar very far
“silly plot”. The review riled Ken away from Ikeja Post Office!
Uzor Maxim Uzoatu
Going to work could mean
your death. It was indeed
a bad time. The June 12,
1993 election won by Bashorun
MKO Abiola had just been
annulled by the military regime
of General Ibrahim Badamasi
Babangida. Nigeria was in deep
crisis and journalism was under
severe assault.
Babangida had to perforce step
aside. The Interim National
Government (ING) under Chief
Ernest Shonekan that was
hurriedly installed by Babangida
was just as hurriedly swept aside
by General Sani Abacha.
The goggled and unsmiling
Abacha did not mince words in
banning almost everything.
Abacha had no stomach for
journalists and journalism.
It was a tough season, but the
publishers of The News
magazine and Tempo tabloid
would not bow the knee to
military intimidation. The neversay-die
journalists set up a
newspaper named AM News,
and constituted an editorial
board under the chairmanship of
the irrepressible poet Odia
Ofeimun. I was involved.
The baptism of fire that
welcomed us was the arrest of our
colleague Kunle Ajibade who
was accused of coup-plotting.
The next thing we saw was that
Kunle who knew nothing about
the story that led to his arrest was
facing a military tribunal. It was
enough to kill the spirit but
somehow we persevered.
The military tribunal passed a
life sentence on Kunle Ajibade
who has since written a book on
his travails entitled Jailed For
Life.
Coming to work in the office at
a nondescript house in the Ogba
area of Lagos was a dicey matter.
Even if anybody called our name,
you just pretended that it wasn’t
you that was being called. It was
a strategy of security agents to
call the name of a wanted
journalist, and if you just turned
to show attention, you would be
promptly nabbed and may end
up in the underground cell in
Apapa.
We were dependent on coworkers
like typesetters to alert
us of any strange fellows around.
Once given the sign, you would
walk past the office and wait until
you were given the all-clear to
make a safe return to do the work
in the office.
My colleagues on the editorial
board were Odia Ofeimun
(chairman), Professor Kayode
Soremekun, Akin Onigbinde,
Kayode Komolafe, Ifeanyi Uddin
and Banji Ojewale.
We used to have solidarity visits
of committed icons such as the
master bard Professor Niyi
Osundare who would wonder
aloud how fast one turned out the
editorial once Odia gave the
marching orders to get the
editorial written in the course of
the meeting.
SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—27
How we can solve our
security challenges
—US-trained security expert
By Ikechukwu
Nmerengwa
A
US-trained security
expert, Chief Iheanyi
Chinasa Frank, has said
that the solutions to the
insecurity challenges facing
Nigeria laid in concerted efforts to
refocus Nigeria on the path of
progress through purposeful
leadership that traverses partisan
politics.
“This is the time of truth. It is a
period to thoroughly examine
ourselves and tell ourselves the truth.
Insecurity is ravaging our country. It
is not that it has not been there before
or that it would not be even in the
best times, but the truth is that it has
gone beyond tolerable levels. It calls
for everyone’s attention,” Chief
Frank said during a session with
journalists in Abuja.
“Boko Haram, rampaging Fulani
herdsmen versus community
residents, armed robbery, banditry,
kidnapping for ransom and ritual
killings are among the latest
challenges. These problems linger
because many of us are living in
denial of the existence and how they
impede development of Nigeria.”
The intention of the ruling party,
Chief Frank said, may be its best,
but raw statistics keep showing that
the country was losing more lives
daily than nations at war. According
to him, the situation was serious
enough for every well-meaning
Nigerian and lovers of democracy
to lend ideas and a voice in the search
or solutions.
He said the answer to insecurity
was political will. “The President has
to admit that the situation is bad,
declare it a national emergency, and
involve more stakeholders and
village chiefs in solving the problem.
Politics is local and Security is also
local. For most times we have seen
the challenge of insecurity as a
failure of governance on the part of
the ruling party. Other parties make
fable references to developments in
this regard, take frequent jabs at the
ruling party, and retreat, feeling
happy they have scored political
points that could bolster their
fortunes in the next general elections.
Challenge of insecurity, especially
when it involves lives is beyond
partisan politics,” he said.
Chief Frank said, “Declaring a
national emergency would go a long
way to change narratives and
disposition. Politicians must agree to
fight insecurity together. Once they
agree, 70 percent of factors behind
insecurity would have been dealt
with. Not all security challenges
require money to solve; a lot of them
just require brain work and local
collaborations.”
His other proposed solutions are:
Going to Mecca and Jerusalem
Uzor Maxim Uzoatu
igerians take so much pride
Nin making pilgrimages to
Mecca and Jerusalem in the name
of religion.
The Muslims and Christians
obviously can never have enough of
acting holy through these
pilgrimages even when they cannot
afford it by paying from their pockets.
I have just heard that the Saudi
Arabian authorities do not want any
pilgrims this time around, and I can
be sure that this would not sit well
with Nigerians intent on making the
tour.
The pilgrimage is now a political
weapon in Nigeria as governors and
even local government chairmen
make it a grand duty of nominating
lackeys to make pilgrimages.
The religious aspect of
pilgrimages is neither here nor there
because some characters are even
encouraged to emigrate in the name
of undertaking the annual
pilgrimages.
The country’s image is thus soiled
and nobody is ever called to order
for arranging the fraudulent fairs.
The organizational racket of the
money-guzzling pilgrimages is a
hard slap on the face of decency and
religious piety.
The pity is that the powers-that-be
appear on the take, which explains
why nothing is being done to redress
the vexatious issue.
Pilgrimages by Muslims and
Christians alike in Nigeria have been
taken to the heights of an industry.
The huge allocation for
pilgrimages every year needs to be
looked into.
One understands religion to be a
common human experience,
happening within a socio-cultural
milieu, but it is ultimately an
individual matter.
In Islam, for instance, it is of
essence that a person making the
pilgrimage to Mecca ought to have
the requisite wherewithal and must
be healthy to boot.
It ought not to be an all-comers
affair. Government involvement in
pilgrimages has turned the matter
into a blatant racket.
This way, the essence of the
pilgrimage has been defeated.
If the pilgrims actually want to
worship God or Allah then
government should stay out of it
totally.
A pilgrimage that requires
personal sacrifice, at least once in
one’s life, has been turned into a
jamboree.
Constitutionally, Nigeria is a
secular state to all intents and
purposes; definitely not a theocratic
state.
The Constitution clearly states that
the government should not be
involved in religious matters.
If Nigeria as a country is truly
following the spirit of the
Constitution, a quango such as the
Pilgrims Welfare Board ought not to
exist.
The pity is that the Pilgrims
Welfare Board was not initiated in
the first instance with religious
motives.
Many Nigerians do not know that
the Pilgrims Welfare Board was set
up at first in the old Western Region
in the 1950s when there was fierce
contestation of power between the
Action Group (AG) and the National
Council of Nigerian Citizens
(NCNC).
The AG felt that the way to counter
the estimated 70 percent of the
Muslim votes then going to the
NCNC was to appease the Muslims
through the setting-up of the Pilgrims
Welfare Board.
There were actually five Christians
in the seven-man committee that set
up the board.
Contrary to what many Nigerians
would have thought, the Pilgrims
Welfare Board was not set up by the
•Chief Iheanyi Chinasa
Frank
.Public enlightenment stop deviant
behaviours, noting that nobody
speaks to the minds of the youth, not
the parents, not the schools, and
unfortunately the faith-based
organisations also fail in this regard.
They emphasise product over process
and discipline. He suggested the
national and state orientation
agencies should build more peacebuilding
content.
.Urgent national development
plan, perhaps a four-year plan which
would require the three tiers of
government (federal, state, and local)
running developmental projects in
key sectors of national life, all at the
same time in mechanised
agriculture with added value. There
could also be small-scale industries
that can turn rice into flour, same for
beans, yam, palm oil, tomatoes,
ginger, groundnut, and cashew nuts.
You can also talk about road
infrastructure, massive housing, and
petroleum refining capacity among
others. All these would create jobs.
.Credit facilities have become
imperative to fund the creative ideas
of millions of Nigerians. Imagine
what would happen where the three
tiers of governments are running
credit facility programmes. When
our governments talk economy they
talk only about fiscal and monetary
policies; they hardly talk about the
productive economy. We must look
at the sectors we can populate with
investors. Manufacturing is the
livewire of any country. The youths
we produce from our institutions
must have avenues for selfactualisation.
.A re-evaluation of education is
important for it to produce skilled
manpower. All segments of our
education require these changes.
Chief Frank said that if
government at all levels accorded
education and employment priority,
the problem of insecurity would be
curtailed.
Sardauna of Sokoto and his party,
the Northern People’s Congress
(NPC).
The sponsorship of party men and
women has since grown in leaps and
bounds in the league of the political
patronage system.
It therefore has to be understood
that the promotion of the pilgrimage
did not emanate through altruistic
or pious reasons. The true adherents
are hardly ever sponsored to the
pilgrimages. Party hacks and sundry
privileged persons happen to be the
so-called pilgrims. It is akin to statesponsored
tourism.
These people are actually tourists,
and their affairs should be
transferred from the Pilgrims
Welfare Board to the Nigerian
Tourism Board.
There have been cases where
persons from different states had
been sponsored to impersonate
persons from other states entirely.
It is akin to lying to God. Must we
bastardize everything in this country?
There is deceit everywhere.
Since religion is a very private
matter, it is very crucial to scrap the
Pilgrims Welfare Board.
The coming on board of the
Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board is
merely a balancing act.
The fact remains that Israel
happens not to be a Christian
country.
Continues
www.vanguardngr.com
on

28—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
JUST as the various political parties
were perfecting plans for their
primaries later this month, PDP
supporters witnessed surprised a
development in their party. A group led
by Chief Chukwudi Umeaba secured a
court ruling sacking the leadership of
Chief Ndubuisi Nwobu. Nwobu, it must
be noted, had succeeded in bringing
peace and uniting members of the party
to the surprise of everybody. At the time
the court ruling was filtering in, the three
man ad hoc delegates congress was
taking place in the 326 political wards of
Anambra State. Umeaba went on to
upturn all decisions taken by Nwobu,
including the results of the three man ad
hoc ward congress. Already, the two
factions have started operating at
different offices while waiting for the
outcome of the decision of the national
leadership of the party.
Umeaba said the National Executive
Committee, NEC, of PDP would be
contacted to fix a new date for the ward
congresses as soon as possible, while his
executive committee would conclude
outstanding responsibilities reposed on
it by NEC and work with all stakeholders
to reposition the party to produce the next
governor of the state..
Going down memory lane, Umeaba said
he was appointed chairman of the state
PDP in leadership brouhaha
caretaker committee of PDP on the 21' of
November, 2017 after the resignation of
Prof. A.B.C. Nwosu who was the chairman
of the party, recalling that the then
secretary of NEC, Senator Ben Obi signed
their appointment letters.
He said: “My committee went into
action immediately by conducting ward
and local government congresses, except
for Awka South, Awka North and Idemili
North local government areas.
“My committee could not conduct state
congress because of the infraction of the
delegates list which was faked, as it did
not emanate from my committee which
is the authentic authority that should
generate the delegate list.
“Due to this generated fake list, my
committee decided to write the NEC of
the party on the inconclusive state
congress and demanded for a new date
for the exercise. In order to keep the
functions of the party afloat in the state
and for a proper state congress to be
conducted fairly, I invoked the powers as
contained in our terms of reference to
suspend the exercise while awaiting the
NEC’s directive.
“However, those who were not disposed
to the transparency and fairness of my
action quickly rushed the party to the
court to vacate the decision of suspension
of the state congress and even the
dissolution of the caretaker committee.
We decided not to be provoked, but to be
law abiding and to follow the challenge
and the confrontation legally and
constitutionally.
“Some people who wanted to cause
confusion went to Nnewi High Court,
which struck out the case and allied with
original judgment of an Abuja High Court
in favour of the caretaker committee. But
to put the records straight, we went back to
Appeal Court in Abuja which granted all
our reliefs/prayers and consequently
directed the parties involved to approach
the High Court for interpretation and
pronouncement of the reliefs and prayers.
“The High Court judgment is very clear
on who is in-charge of PDP affairs and
programmes in Anambra State and that
is me, Hon. Chukwudi Umeaba, the
acting chairman of the caretaker
committee for the party in Anambra
State.
“Therefore, all hands must be on deck
to meet up with the challenges ahead
namely, the state congress, party primary
for governorship election and other
duties that may come from the NEC.”
Get it right this time around, Metuh tells PDP aspirants
Stories By Vincent Ujumadu
CHIEF Olisa Metuh, the erstwhile national publicity
secretary of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has charged
the 16 governorship aspirants of the party to do
everything humanly possible to get it right this time around as
the party could no longer afford to remain outside the governance
of Anambra State after the November 6 election.
Metuh, who recently received a heroic welcome in Anambra
State after his release from detention, assembled the aspirants
at his Nnewi country home and after nearly four hours of rubbing
minds, they all agreed that never again would they allow the
usual bickering in the party, which had led to the party’s loss of
previous elections, to rear its ugly head again.
In a manner that surprised even their aides who waited outside,
the aspirants emerged from the close door meeting beaming
with smiles, an indication that everyone of them was on the
same page.
Speaking after the meeting, Metuh said: “We have listened to
the yearnings of Anambra people that PDP must win the election
and all the aspirants have subjected themselves to that decision.
We have resolved that aspirants will no longer allow anybody
to exploit them.
“In that regard, we have resolved that no aspirant should spend not more than N3000 per
delegate on consultations. We have also pegged money for logistics at N30,000. That way, we have
said no to money politics so that whoever becomes governor will still be able to attend to the needs
of the people.
“If the aspirants or the candidates are made to spend so much money during their interaction
with the delegates, they will find it difficult to meet the expectations of the campaign proper.
“We are, therefore, here with the understanding of our leaders that PDP is now a united party and
there will no longer be character assassination. Everybody will work as a team to ensure victory.”
Metuh said every party member is working hard to ensure that PDP retakes the Government
House in Awka and therefore would not tolerate any obstacle along the way.
Some aspirants who spoke after the meeting welcomed the decision and promised to obey it to
the letter.
One of the contenders for the APGA
ticket for the November election, Sir
Damian Okolo was among those
that picked nomination forms at the APGA
national secretariat in Abuja last week.
Since his entry into the governorship race,
Okolo has been meeting a cross section of
stakeholders in Anambra State. In this
interview, Okolo,a lawyer and estate
surveyor and valuer argues that Anambra
needs a home grown governor who
understands the people and is very familiar
with the state. Excerpts.
How is the mobilization ahead of the
primaries going?
It is progressing very well and our
expectation is that there will be free and fair
primary because that will determine how our
party will perform during the election. We have
been interacting with the delegates and we
are encouraged by the response we are getting
from the various political wards.
What makes you think you will win the
APGA primaries?
By training, I am an Estate Surveyor and a
fellow of the Institute of Arbitrators. I am also
a legal practitioner and by the grace of God,
one of the few Nigerians that had been trained
From left: Mr. Godwin Ezeemo, Chief Chuma Nzeribe,
Dr. Godwin Maduka and Chief Chris Azubogu
at the National Institute for Policy and
Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos. The
people who pass through Kuru are people
trained for good governance.
Over time, I have served in various capacities
in Anambra State and in other parts of the
country. I was the chairman of the Anambra
State Land use and Allocation Committee and
vice chairman of Anambra State Volunteer
Service Agency, which trained people for good
governance. I have been chairman of
Oluchukwu Micro Finance Bank for 20 years
and I am a director of Radio Sapiencia based
in Onitsha. I am also the financial secretary
of Igwe Nnewi Royal Cabinet. I am happy
that all these bodies found me worthy to serve
in the various capacities and all these will
bring to bear in governing Anambra State.
There have been arguments on zoning the
governorship to Anambra South. What is
your view on this?
It is noteworthy that Anambra people have
agreed and decided that Anambra South
senatorial zone should produce the next
governor of the state. In this zone, Anambra
South, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife from Aguata
had served as governor, Dr. Andy Uba, also
from Aguata had gone and Dr. Chinwoke
Mbadinuju from Uli (Ihiala) also served as
Mr. Val Ozigbo said the meeting came at
the right time and that it was what the
aspirants had been expecting.
“As a PDP person, I have always campaigned
against money politics. If we need to have
Anambra of our dream, we should have our
goals right. It’s not about money and we have
decided to concentrate on issues. The people
might not have more money in their pockets
during the campaigns but they will enjoy better
with good governance and enjoy better quality
of life,” he said.
Mr. Godwin Ezeemo, in his comment said:
“I go with what all aspirants have agreed on.
I expect free and fair primary. What PDP needs
to do is to shift from what it used to do in the
past. The large number of aspirant is not a
problem as the people are only exercising their
rights, but only one person will emerge as our
candidate.”
Dr. Godwin Maduka said: “This issue of
monetizing politics should be discouraged.
The mobilization of the delegates was becoming a bazaar and this is no longer
democracy. All the aspirants have done things that can be pointed at and therefore
they do not need to bribe the delegates. Monetizing the process and creating
godfathers do not make any sense. People should be left to vote according to
their consciences, instead of using money to buy people to vote for a particular
aspirant.” For Chief Chris Azubogu, “We should realize that wining the ticket is
not winning the election. After the primaries, we need everybody to work together
to be able to win the election. We should therefore be careful the way we approach
the primaries because that is just the beginning of the election proper. ”
Azubogu however defended the position of aspirants from Anambra South
that one of them should emerge the candidate of PDP.
Anambra needs home grown governor — Okolo
governor from 1999 -2003. The only
time my town, Nnewi, tasted it was
when Mrs. Virgy Etiaba held fort
when Peter Obi was impeached for
three months. So for equity and
fair play, Nnewi should produce
the next governor of the state,
considering the fact that Aguata,
Ihiala and Nnewi are the major
planks of the zone.
With all sense of responsibility,
I have made modest contributions
to the state more than most of the
people aspiring to govern the state.
If I am given the chance, Anambra
people will benefit from my
wealth of experience. At this
point in time, Anambra State
needs someone who is
acceptable in the three
senatorial zones of the state.
As a professional, I do not
regret practicing my two
professions in Anambra State since my
qualification. I could have made more money
practicing in Lagos or elsewhere, but I chose
to establish my company here. In fact, I was
the first person to start Estate Surveying
practice in Onitsha and today, there are many
practicing in this state. Without the
foundation I laid, that could not
have been possible.
When I went to Law School in
1993 my colleagues wanted to force
me to stay in Lagos because they
believed I would make more money
there, but I insisted on coming back
home. I had to convince them to
see the need for me to remain in
the East. If making money was my
main objective, I would have
become a multi billionaire now. But
God had always directed me on
what to do.
Now that this issue of home
grown governor has arisen
many people feel rightly or
Damian
Okolo
wrongly that we need
someone who knows the
terrain well. The added
advantage is that though I
come from Anambra South
senatorial zone, I am very
well known in the Northern senatorial zone
where I practice and in Anambra Central
senatorial zone where I have many
friends. Of all those aspiring to govern
Anambra, I possess more credentials in terms
of rendering service to the people of this state.”

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—29
ANAMBRA 2021: With a good candidate,
APC’ll be unstoppable — Moghalu
•Says I have what it takes to change the narrative in Anambra
By Nnamdi Ojiego
Managing Director of National Inland
Waterways Authority, NIWA, and a
frontline Anambra State
governorship aspirant on the banner of the All
Progressives Congress, APC, Dr George
Moghalu, has been a consistent politician since
and remains one of the few politicians who are
yet to defect to a rival party. He started on the
block of the All Peoples Party, APP, which later
merged with the United Nigeria Peoples Party,
UNPP, to form the All Nigeria Peoples Party,
ANPP. The ANPP teamed up with the Action
Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Congress for
Progressive Change, CPC, and a faction of the
All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, to form
the APC in 2013.
In this interview, Moghal who had served
variously as national publicity secretary of the
APP, ANPP national vice chairman, South-East,
national auditor of the APC, and chairman,
board of directors of Nigerian Communication
Satellite, NIGCOMSAT, spoke on his aspiration,
chances and what he would do if elected.
On his preparation for the poll given the
glut of good aspirants
Every election has two stages - the primary
stage and secondary stage. The secondary is
the main election. However, everyone is
entitled to aspire to be the governor if the person
is qualified. So, I don’t see Anambra as tough
but I see it as a state that has everything, all the
potentials both human and material resources,
in abundance. Therefore, anybody looking for
that position, seeking to be the leader, servant
leader of the people, must be a person who has
the capacity to harness these potentials for the
benefit of the state.
On preparation, I believe very strongly that
power belongs to God and He gives to who He
pleases at His own time. What we do is to offer
ourselves for God to use us. Now, physically,
spiritually, experientially, academically and in
every facet of life, I am prepared. Most
importantly, spiritually. I am personally
convinced that I have what it takes to change
the narrative. Because one of the major
fundamentals, the challenge today in Anambra
State is that people have lost confidence in
their government. So anything you are doing
without bridging that gap between the
governed and the government, you will
continue to have a problem. So I am very well
prepared for the job if it pleases the people that
I serve them at that level.
How about the APC not being well
accepted in the state?
That is actually a very wrong perception. In
the last election in Anambra State, APC came
second over and above PDP, and it wasn’t a
fluke or magic. So when people say that APC
is not on ground or APC is not popular in
Anambra State, it comes to me as a surprise
because there is actually no truth in it when
you take the reality on ground. Otherwise, how
can we come second over a party that has ruled
the state for more than two times?
Now, if you place the candidate that is
acceptable to the people, add it to the current
narrative of what APC government has done
in the South-East, particularly, in Anambra
State, I’m sure, the election is ours to win. So
we are very much on ground.
What are the process that will guarantee
free and fair APC primary?
We have mouthed that. The aspirants have
spoken, the vice president has spoken. The
president, like you and I know, has zero
tolerance for corruption or unnecessary abuse.
The party leadership as presently constituted
has come out to say that they would not
disappoint and I believe very strongly that they
are conscious of the mantra that to whom
much is given, much is also expected. I have
been in party administration for quite a while,
so, if you want to achieve party unity after
election which is usually the cause of failures,
the best way to do it is by providing a level
playing ground for all aspirants, conduct free,
fair and credible primaries so that whoever
wins will know he won fairly and
whoever loses knows he lost fairly.
The moment he/she feels cheated,
the tendency, the likelihood of
working against the party to
prove a point, will be there. So
the only way to avoid all
this is by conducting
credible, free,
f a i r
primaries.
How do
you correct
t h i s
impression
that the
South-East
hates APC?
•Moghalu
That’s
what I was
trying to
explain. You
see, people
give a dog
bad name
to hang it. It
is a wrong
perception.
Therefore, it is incumbent on us who are key
players to change the narrative and once we
present a candidate that is acceptable to the
people, that has reach, and has the confidence
of the people, I can assure you the story will
change. You keep saying that people are
against APC. Then, why did we come second
in the last election? And we lost marginally in
the last election. If we are not acceptable in the
East, I’m not sure we would have even come
third.
Why are you contesting to be the governor
of Anambra State? What are you bringing to
the table?
First of all, I’m bringing experience, I’m
bringing knowledge, and I’m bringing
commitment. The biggest challenge I found
in government today in Anambra State is that
there is a major gap between the people and
the government. The people have lost
confidence in their government. They feel
betrayed, they feel disappointed and they feel
short-changed. So what we need to do now is
to change the narrative, to get them to buy into
the government because the moment you win
back their confidence, 70 to 80 percent of your
problems are solved. Nigerians, particularly,
Anambrarians are willing to be led. What
an average Anambra man demands from
the government is to provide an enabling
environment and they will thrive.
For example, in terms of Community
service, I don’t think there’s any state like
Anambra because the issue of town union
is strongest in the state. What government
needs to do is to do the one the government
is supposed to do. For example, a
government that is well organized can
get all it wants from the markets. But
you have to build a good market.
You have to provide them with
needed facilities at the
market. Good roods, fire
service, warehouses,
parks, and what have you.
By the time you do this,
you will now have the
moral standing to say, ‘this
store, you will pay N10
and people will pay
without even you
demanding for them
because you have done
your bit, and it is
incumbent on them now
to do their bit. But they
cannot do that because
there is no confidence.
There is lack of trust
because, they have been
failed in the past. Government is not only about
building infrastructure. While I agree that it is
important to develop infrastructure because it
helps in building the economy it is not only
about it. It is also about human capital
development, re-orientating our youths, telling
them to change, to come to the reality.
I am one of those who believe that our
educational curricular need to be re jigged
completely.
The emphasis on certificated education is
part of the problems that we have today. What
happened to the government training centres?
Technical colleges, what happened to them?
All of a sudden, we don’t talk about them again.
I grew up in Aba, I knew about the GTC, Girls
Technical College. I knew there was BTC, Boys
Technical College.
Kaizen: Valentine Ozigbo’s secret weapon
By Kanayo Okoye
Like most people, I did not know about
the concept of Kaizen and didn’t pay
much attention when I first heard of
it. I was going through the profile of Mr
Valentine Ozigbo, the immediate past President
and Group CEO of Transcorp Plc,
when I saw it for the first time.
The writeup described him as a Kaizen
Champion, and like most bogus words we
come across, I continued my reading without
prodding further.
All that changed in July 2020 when I
tuned in to an interview Mr Ozigbo granted
with Kpakpando FM in Mbaukwu, Awka
South LGA of Anambra State.
During the interview, the globally celebrated
business mogul spent time explaining the
Kaizen culture and how it was instrumental
in the transformation of Transcorp Hotel.
He highlighted how Kaizen helped improve
service delivery from little things like changing
the time workers switch their shifts to
bigger stuff like budgetary reviews.
Hearing Ozigbo speak about Kaizen with
so much zest, conviction, and assurance
sparked an interest in the topic, and I decided
to undertake a little study.
*WHAT IS KAIZEN?*
Google Translate defines Kaizen as ‘Improvement’.
A proper etymology of the word
explains that Kaizen is a Japanese term that
loosely translates to “change for the better”
or “continuous improvement.” It is a culture
that seeks to improve functions and processes
and aims to eliminate all forms of
waste and redundancies.
After the Second World War, Japan was in
the ashes and needed an urgent revival.
However, any haphazard measure would
not cut it as the world was healing from a
bloody war, and the less-affected countries
like the USA were capitalising on the melee
to assert dominance in technology, commerce,
and industry.
That was when the Plan-Do-Check-Act
concept that guides the Kaizen process was
developed as a culture to steer the country
back to global prominence. With the religious
practice of Kaizen, Japan has become
one of the most advanced countries, despite
the horrific tragedies and Hiroshima and
Nagasaki.
*KAIZEN AND THE STATUS QUO*
“Kaizen is a culture that supersedes every
other culture. It is a culture that challenges
the status quo. Whatever the status quo is,
however beautiful or terrible things are,
Kaizen will make you look for a way to do
better,” Ozigbo asserted during his interview.
In any sane society, words like these should
mean music to the ears of the people. But,
unfortunately, Nigerians are used to ‘suffering
and smiling’. Regardless, we have been
resilient and always find a way to make the
best of any situation. Now imagine the possibility
when we have a leader that is dissatisfied
with the status quo.
*WHAT IS ANAMBRA’S STATUS QUO?*
Despite its vast potentials, Anambra has
continued to punch below its weight in all
areas.
Onitsha, a commercial hub that rakes in
eye-spinning revenue, has continued to deteriorate
as the structures in Onitsha Main
Market are either neglected or poorly maintained.
All that is needed to transform Onitsha
into a world-class commercial hub purposeful
leadership that endeavours to improve
the processes within the market. From
car parks to warehouse arrangements to
overcrowded market roads, Onitsha and environs
can benefit from all kinds of improvements.
Onitsha is just a prototype of the sorry state
of Anambra. Awka doesn’t feel like a state
capital. The tourism industry in Anambra is
moribund. Anambra is home to the highest
number of billionaires in Nigeria, but this
does not reflect in the state’s GDP.
The economies of local governments like
Ogbaru, Awka North, Anambra East, Anambra
West, Oyi, and Ayamelum depend on
agriculture, but the production processes
have failed to improve over the years. As a
result, farmers are producing for consumption,
and none gets processed. If we do not
take proactive measure, this situation will
persist, and we will continue a
cycle of waste and stagnation.
Healthcare and education
are part of the general decay.
Anambra cannot boast of a
functional, world-class health
facility, and none of the numerous
universities in the
state is highly ranked.
The story is the same for
sports development, entertainment,
technology and
manufacturing. These are
industries that rake in billions
of dollars in other parts
of the world. The only thing
stopping Anambra from
reaching those heights is the
eagerness to get better results.
*OZIGBO, THE
KAIZEN CHAM-
PION*
In all his endeavours,
one
thing that
stands him
out is his
knack for
excellence. This trail of extraordinary
achievements is a result of years of practising
Kaizen as a way of life.
In his 17 years in the banking industry,
Ozigbo grew from being an ordinary banker
to an international banking executive travelling
worldwide, opening banks and training
over 1500 bankers. His award-laden
stint at Transcorp Hotels and Transcorp Plc
showed his uncommon vision and a passion
for raising the bar and being a pacesetter.
Ozigbo is an international sports developer
and the Chairman of Feet ‘N’ Tricks
International, Africa’s most prominent promoters
of freestyle football. The company is
responsible for organising the Nigerian Freestyle
Football Championship (NFFC) and
the African Freestyle Football Championship
(AFFC). When he picked interest in the
sport, it was an unknown entity. Within a
few years, Ozigbo has taken the sport to a
•Val Ozoigbo
level never seen on the continent, with
the 2020 edition of the AFFC attracting
21 countries (Even the
CAF Nations Cup is contested by
only 16 countries, as at the last
edition)
Ozigbo has served as Chairman
of Unusual Praise, Africa’s biggest
Catholic gospel concert. His
handling of the event saw the largest
turnout ever, attracting commendation
from church leaders
around the country.
His foundation, the Valentine
Chineto Ozigbo (VCO) Foundation,
has continued to exhibit ingenuity
in the various empowerment
programmes they
have come up with, including
the
#Walk4Health
a n d
#Walk4Peace
series, Mbem
Contest, Oja &
Voice Melody
Competition,
Anambra Talent
UN-
LOCKED, business
plan competitions, concerts, and mentorship
programs.
Even in politicking, Ozigbo has endeared
himself to the PDP delegates with a neverbefore-seen
method. His campaign organisation
has an open-door policy, and he has
a personal relationship with the party leaders
and delegates.
This widespread acceptance is evident in
the massive turnouts that have heralded the
series of town hall meetings he has held with
Ndi Anambra in Lagos, Abuja, and Enugu.
He followed that up with three town hall
events with stakeholders in the three senatorial
zones. In addition, he recently held
five more epoch-making town halls with
delegates, party leaders, and stakeholders
from the 326 wards in Anambra State.
•Kanayo Okoye, a social commentator,
writes from Nri, Anaocha Local Government
Area in Anambra State.

30—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
We contributed money to build market, now they want
to impose N1.2m on us, Anambra traders cry out
By Vincent Ujumadu
THERE is mounting tension at the
popular spare parts market, Nkpor
near Onitsha as the traders are
protesting the alleged imposition of N1.2
million on them for the building of shops on
top of the existing structures in the market.
Their argument is that apart from posing a
great risk to the traders and their customers,
the ultimatum given to the traders to pay
N20000 for forms within one week and the
N1.2 million within three months was height
of insensitivity and threatened a showdown
with the market leaders if they insisted on
forcing traders to pay the money.
Waving placards with various inscriptions,
the traders said the foundation of the
market, which was built in 1989, did not
originally make provision for addition of
another floor on the decked stalls and
wondered why the leadership of the market
had chosen to put the lives of the traders at
risk.
Their spokesman, Chief
Obiora Ofoleh said the most
worrisome aspect of the
situation was that those who
failed to pay N20000 for
forms within one week and
N1.2 million within three
months would be sacked
from the market
He called for immediate
stoppage of collection
because the market was built
by individuals and not by
government.
Ofoleh said: “The Nkpor
new auto spare parts market
is a private market and not
public market and so any
decision to improve or
rebuild the structure should
be made by shop owners and
not any external body at
all. If there is any need to
rebuild or restructure the
He called for
immediate
stoppage of
collection
because the
market was built
by individuals
and not by
government
•The traders protesting at the market
market, the shop owners
must be consulted.
“The market leadership
has no right to set up a
building committee for the
building of the shops
without consulting the shop
owners and if the building
committee must be set up, it
is the shop owners who are
the original developers that
will do that and not the
executive. ”For peace to
reign and to avoid
breakdown of law and order
in the market your attention
is highly needed in order to
avert a major crisis in this
market.
“Of interest to note is that
the shop owners are the
people who dug the borehole
being used in the market.
They also tarred all the roads
in the market and the hall where they normally
conduct their meetings.”
“Why on earth would somebody come from
somewhere to decide how to construct or build
lock up shops upstairs without consulting the
shop owners who are the real developers?”, he
asked.
Saturday Vanguard recalls that before the
relocation of the traders to Nkpor, the traders
were occupying shops at Moore street in the
heart of Onitsha where movement was very
difficult for goods to be cleared.
In 1983, they started mooting the idea of
moving the market to a more spacious place
and eventually bought the large expanse of
land at Nkpor. For the next five years, the
market was under construction and the
contributors were eventually allocated shops
where they occupied.
Because of frequent fire incidents in markets
around Onitsha, the traders decided to deck
all the shops and this had helped as there has
not been any fire incident in the area. Recently,
however, the leadership of the market, in
conjunction with some government officials,
decided to add more shops on top of the stalls.
Most of the traders frowned at it and argued
that additional structures would lead to
cong4stion, thereby inhibit movement of good
and vehicles.
The issue was still unresolved when the
ultimatum was given to the traders to pay
N20000 in one week and N1.2 million in three
months. “Where do they expect traders who
are starting business to get that kind of money
from,” they asked.
Counsel to the traders, Mr. C.B. Ukanze, in a
letter to the chairman of the market, said it
was improper for the leadership of the market
to construct shops on the top floors of the stalls
without reaching an agreement with members
of the market union who contributed money
to purchase the land to build the shops 32 years
ago.
In the letter which was copied to the
Commissioner for Trade and Commerce, the
AIG in charge of Zone 13, Ukpo, the CP
Anambra State, among others, Ukanze
warned those behind the move to construct the
shops to tread with cautionand avoid
breakdown of law and order.our client are not
opposed to construction of lock-up shops
upstairs, rather their grouse is that you are dutybound
to consult them at-the onset about your
plan and if the consent or approve of it, it will
become the general agreement and dueprocess
will be followed, and not this your
commando approached. Anyway, for sake of
peace and progress in the market, our client
are making the following-demands:
Following the controversy being generated
by the issue, the Commissioner for Trade and
Commerce, Chief Uche Okafor said he was
aware of the situation in the market and
promised to meet the traders as soon as
possible.
In the meantime, however, he said that he
had already instructed the union in the market
to suspend action on the planned addition of
shops until all parties met to discuss and iron
out the issues involved.
Making Nigeria Work According To Sanusi
Uzor Maxim Uzoatu
For The Good Of The Nation – Essays And
Perspectives By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi;
ALFA Books, Ikoyi, Lagos; 2021; 509pp
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, former Governor
of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
and the past Emir of Kano, would want
to be remembered as “a man who always spoke
truth to power”. He stresses that he has no
presidential ambitions, but one would not be
surprised to see him manifest at a later date as
Nigeria’s President.
Sanusi ranks amongst the most
controversial of living Nigerians. His book,
For The Good Of The Nation – Essays And
Perspectives, therefore compels considerable
attention. Remarkably, the book does not
include Sanusi’s writings on Finance and the
Economy.
The book is divided into five parts, notably,
Identity, Politics & Democracy; Reflections On
Shari’ah; SLS And The Gender Question;
Islamic Theology and Philosophy; and finally,
Interviews.
For The Good Of The Nation – Essays And
Perspectives has been in the works for ten years,
that is, after the publisher Tunde Fagbenle
approached Sanusi “sometime in 2021, with
the proposal to put together my articles and
papers published largely between 1998 and
2005 in academic books, conference
proceedings, newspapers and internet
websites.” Sanusi’s controversial stints as
Governor of the CBN and Emir of Kano put a
hold on the publication until he “decided the
time is now right for this book to come out.”
In his Preface to For The Good Of The Nation
which Sanusi signed thusly “Muhammad
Sanusi II, CON, 14 th Fulani Emir of Kano,
September, 2020”, the author reveals that the
first time he ever published “anything was at
the age of fourteen, as a Form 4 student in
King’s College, in the 1975/76 session.”
Sanusi’s soul-mate in life as in controversy,
Nasir El-Rufai, supplies the Foreword dated
July 2012, and the words are stirring: “Lamido
is angry about the Nigerian condition and is
unsparing in his exposure
of the hypocrisy of our
political and economic
elite in creating and
sustaining this condition
for their enrichment. He
spares no one, even the
Fulani royalty and
traditional northern
institutions into which he
was born, or the
traditional Islamic clerics,
one of which his illustrious
grandfather and former
Emir was until his death. I
have known Lamido for
nearly forty years, and in
my opinion, every position
he has taken, view
expressed and everything
he has done is driven by a
craving for justice and
equal opportunity for all,
and nothing more.”
The mourned one,
Professor Pius Adesanmi,
who died in the Ethiopia
Air crash in 2019, penned the introduction
dated May 2012 to For The Good Of The Nation
which begins this way: “This book is the book.
It is auto/biography, history, politics, political
economy, identity, and the sociography of
nationhood.” In Adesanmi’s view, “If Sanusi
takes no prisoners in his critique of Northern
society, understandings of Islam, and Northern
political elite, do not expect him to take
prisoners in his critique of Yoruba and Igbo
societies and their respective political leaders
and structures.”
The issue of restructuring is all the rage in
modern-day Nigeria. Sanusi controversially
wades into the matter, noting “that the Igbo
were the prime movers of the first successful
military mutiny which eliminated the political
leaders and senior officers of the North and
West while letting-off those of the East.” He
then follows to formula by indicting the Igbo
and General JTU Ironsi for promulgating the
military Decree 34 of May 1966 that
transformed the
Federation to a Unitary
State. Of course the
North has used the
unitary status over the
years more than all
others to further
prebendalism.
Sanusi condemns the
bigotry and chauvinism
of his fellow Northern
Muslims for raising hell
over President
“Obasanjo’s
appointment of
Northern Christians into
his cabinet”, and then
goes ahead to cite the
instance of “Retired
Christian Generals,
from Takum to Zangon-
Kataf, who find
t h e m s e l v e s
overshadowed by more
junior, but Muslim,
Generals in the North,
take out their frustration
by financing and coordinating religious
conflicts. One of them has already been
convicted once.” History always has its two
sides and more.
In his take of what he entitles “The Yoruba
Factor And Area-Boy Politics”, Sanusi avers
that the Yoruba political leadership, in line with
the view of Balarabe Musa, “has shown itself
over the years to be incapable of rising above
narrow tribal interests and reciprocating
goodwill from other sections of the country by
treating other groups with respect. Practically
every crisis in Nigeria since independence has
its roots in this attitude.”
Sanusi’s litany of charges on the Yoruba runs
thus: “The Yoruba elite were the first, in 1962,
to attempt a violent overthrow of an elected
government in this country. In 1966, it was the
violence in the West which provided the avenue
for the putsch of January 15. After Chief
Awolowo lost to Shagari in the 1983 elections,
it was the discontent and bad publicity in the
South-West which led to the Buhari
intervention. When Buhari jailed UPN
Governors like Ige and Onabanjo, the South-
Western press castigated that essentially good
government and provided the right mood for
IBB to take over power.”
On his topic, “The Igbo Factor And The
Reasonable Limits Of Retribution”, Sanusi
writes: “The Northern Bourgeoisie and the
Yoruba Bourgeoisie have conspired to keep
the Igbo out of the scheme of things. In the
recent transition, when the Igbo solidly
supported the PDP in the hope of an Ekwueme
presidency, the North and the South-West
treated this as a Biafra agenda.” Sanusi then
warns that “the nation is sitting on a timebomb”
because the young oppressed Igbo may
not take the marginalization for much longer
and “will soon decide that it is better to fight
their war…”
In all, Sanusi’s ideas are progressive and on
the side of the masses. He weighs in radically
“on the islamisation of politics and the
politicisation of islam”; rises up “in defence of
Reverend Father Kukah”; dispassionately
intervenes on “politics and Shari’ah in
Northern Nigeria”; and deliberates
insightfully on “Islamic Theology and
Philosophy.”
The revelation, for me, of For The Good Of
The Nation is the depiction of Sanusi Lamido
Sanusi as a feminist. The issue of women in
Islam is one turf where angels fear to tread,
but Sanusi refuses to be deterred. In two and
a half years of becoming Governor of the
Central Bank, he appointed seven female
directors, even as only four women had ever
been appointed directors in the 50 years of
the existence of the Central Bank before his
appointment.
For peace and equity to take over in
Nigeria, committed change-agents like
Sanusi are needed from all sections of
Nigeria, especially in the conservative
North, “to bring together good Yoruba,
Hausa, Igbo, Ogoni and Angas men and
women; good Christians and Muslims; to
run the affairs of this country…”
For The Good Of The Nation – Essays And
Perspectives by Sanusi Lamido Sanusi is a
wake-up call for the rebirth of Nigeria.
Controversial books change nations. Sanusi
Lamido Sanusi is in the great company of
firebrands like Thomas Paine.

Sanwo-Olu rehabilitates four roads
network in Ikoyi
By Olasunkanmi
Akoni
Heavy flow of traffic
associated with the
perennial flooding in Ikoyi-
Obalende area of Lagos State
is now past, with the complete
regeneration of four arterial
roads network in the axis by
Governor Babajide Sanwo-
Olu.
The Governor, on Friday,
commissioned the newly
rehabilitated Thompson
Avenue, Milverton Road,
McDonald Road and Lateef
Jakande Road, which are all
in Ikoyi, Eti Osa Constituency
2.
The roads, which have a
combined length of 3.75km,
were in deplorable conditions,
following the failure of the
aligning drainage channels.
Last year February, Sanwo-
Olu awarded the
rehabilitation project to Julius
Berger Nigeria Plc, with the
aim of solving the persistent
flooding on the roads and
upgrading their designs for
durability.
The projects brought relief
to Ikoyi-Obalende residents,
who turned out in fanfare to
receive the Governor for the
formal handover of the
rehabilitated roads.
Sanwo-Olu said the
delivery of the projects was a
testament to his
administration’s resolve to
improve people’s living
conditions through wellthought-out
policies and
programmes.
He said: “Our
administration is cognizant of
the fact that strategic
investment in infrastructure
is the foundation for long-term
growth. We equally
understand that, provision of
adequate road infrastructure
will generate a strong
economic base for improved
productivity and standard of
living.
“Given the economic
importance of Ikoyi as the real
estate hub of Lagos and to
address the perennial flooding
issues peculiar to the axis, we
formally flagged off the
regeneration work last year
July, comprising upgrade of
the roads and drainage
channels in the area. Today,
it is gratifying to note that, we
have re-engineered and
reconstructed these roads
network for efficiency and
improved traffic flow. We
have also addressed perennial
flooding in the area.”
To further improve traffic
connectivity in Ikoyi, the
Governor, on the spot,
approved immediate
rehabilitation work on three
other arterial roads in the
area. They are Cooper Road,
McPherson Road, and Queen’s
Drive.
Sanwo-Olu disclosed that
similar regeneration projects
were currently being carried
out in other areas of the State,
including Lekki-Epe, Victoria
Island, Alimosho, Kosofe, Ojo,
Lagos Island, Badagry,
Ikorodu and Ikeja GRA. This,
he said, is part of the efforts by
his Government to bring
development to all
communities in the State.
He urged commuters and
residents to protect the roads
from activities that may
damage their features and
designs.
•Solves Persistent Flooding Issues in the Area’
• Governor Flags Off Reconstruction of Another Set of Roads
One of the roads rehabilitated by Governor Sanwo-Olu in Ikoyi, Lagos.
He said: “Maintenance of
these roads is the collective
responsibility of the
Government and members of
the community. We are
ready to collaborate with the
Residents’ Association and
Community Development
Association to develop and
promote local initiatives for
the community to
participate in the
maintenance of this network
of roads to reduce road
damage and infrastructure
theft.”
Special Adviser on Works
and Infrastructure to the
Governor, Mrs. Aramide
Adeyoye, said the projects
were in line with the Sanwo-
Olu administration’s resolve
to connect more communities
and residents with roads.
She said the projects held
considerable socio-economic
benefits for residents living
and working in Ikoyi.
She said: “The
rehabilitation work will abate
the perennial flooding and
erosion usually experienced
within the axis. The roads
will also reduce vehicular
congestion, decrease travel
hours for commuters,
enhance safety and security
along the corridor, and
provide aesthetically
pleasing environment that
will further increase property
value.”
An Ikoyi resident and
member of Governor’s
Advisory Council (GAC),
Mr. Wale Edun, gave a
thumbs up to the Governor
for turning around the roads,
which, he said, were in a
“woeful state” before their
rehabilitation.
“We thank the Governor
for this intervention, which
has brought the long sought
relief back to the area.
Residents can now live
without the fear of flood,”
Edun said.
Hon. Gbolahan Yishau,
representing Eti-Osa
Pro-chancellors want labour
matters removed from
exclusive list
The committee of
pro-chancellors of
state-owned universities
(copsun) has called for the
removal of labour and wages
from the exclusive legislative
list of the constitution to allow
state governments exercise
appropriate control over
their workers.
In a communiqué issued at
the end of its 52nd Quarterly
meeting in Abuja recently,
the Committee presided
over by Mallam Yusuf Ali,
SAN argued that the structure
and operation of the
country’s federalism
about public institutions
established and owned
separately by the Federal
and State governments
under different legislations
have been a major problem
of state universities.
The committee stated
that state governments
should be allowed to negotiate
wages with their
workers, adding that the
rights of trade unions to
demand for welfare of its
members should be based
on employer-employee relationship.
Worried by the instability
in the academic calendars
of the state universities
fostered by incessant
strikes by the academic
and non-academic staff
unions, the Committee
appealed to the Academic
Staff Union of Nigerian
Universities (ASUU) to deemphasise
strikes as the
major tool of negotiation
with the Federal Government.
While observing that the
disruption of the academic
calendars has adversely
affected the quality of
the nation’s universities,
their products and
research outputs, the
Committee said the core
values of education have
been negatively impacted
by the instability in the
university system resulting
in falling standards.
Constituency 2 in the House of
Assembly, described the
projects as “needed catalyst”
to boost socio-economic
activities in the Ikoyi-
Obalende, conveying
residents’ appreciation to the
Governor on the projects.
After the commissioning,
Sanwo-Olu joined residents in
a long trek on the roads to
confirm the quality of work
done by the contractor.
SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021 — 31
Over 73,000 refugees, asylum
seekers in Nigeria — FG
By Fortune Eromosele
THE federal government has said that there are over
73,000 refugees, asylum seekers in Nigeria.
The Federal Commissioner of National Commission for
Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI)
Hajia Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, in a circular, to mark the 2021
World Refugees Day, said the total number of refugees worldwide
are 26.3 million, out of which in Nigeria, 71,400 are refugees,
1,600 are asylum seekers.
In Abuja, she said the total number of refugees and asylum
seekers are 710 and 460. Suleiman-Ibrahim revealed that
Nigeria hosts refugees and asylum-seekers from 17 countries,
including China, Cameroon, Niger, Central Africa Republic,
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Others are Sudan, Turkey, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Liberia, Zimbabwe, Cotre D’Ivoire, Benin Republic and
Togo.
She noted that the Commission is constantly working to
improve infrastructure services and administrative systems to
meet governance challenges, such as incorporating large inflow
of residents. According to her “Welcoming refugees create
opportunities for economic, civic, and social growth. The diversity
of experiences and ideas refugees bring spurs creativity and
innovation.
Onuesoke advises Delta investors
to invest in industrial ventures
By Ephraim Oseji
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain and former
Delta State Gubernatorial aspirant, Chief Sunny Onuesoke
has advised Delta investors to invest in core industrial areas that
will create employable jobs with direct and indirect multiplier
effect concept on the indigenes.
Onuesoke who spoke with journalists in Asaba, Delta state
lamented that Delta state businessmen only invest in gas and
petrol stations, hotels, shopping mall, event centres, illegal
dredging concerns, business centre and petty trading, that can
only employ very few.
“Is not funny that we don’t even have private manufacturing
and production factories in Delta state.? Must it be government
and the politicians we should be looking unto for employable
ventures?, he queried.
He pointed out that if investors invest in industries like Glass
Factory, Breweries, Steel and refineries among others, like it
was in the late seventies and early eighties in the state, it will
create a multiplier effect in terms of large scale job employment,
production of goods and provision of other services for the socialeconomical
development of the state.
“If you go to Lagos or Ogun state, industries or manufacturing
companies are sited everywhere which create job opportunities
for youths. There are different kinds of breweries, manufacturing
firms, food industries and mini oil industries. In that case, people
hardly depend on politicians or state government to provide jobs
for them.

32—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
Lagos, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and
Human empowerment
Stories by Moses Nosike
In 2018, when Chief Solomon
Ogbonna Aguene emerged
as President, Ohanaeze
Ndigbo Lagos, a lot of people
believed he would toe the normal
way of his predecessors. But today
he has changed the narrative. The
present Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos
has gained more popularity both
home and abroad under the
leadership of Chief Solomon
Ogbonna. It now carries more
human face. He has brought the
social cultural group to a
limelight, connecting it to people
that matters in the society and host
community with the likes of
Governor of Lagos state, Babajide
Sanwo-Olu and grand patron of
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos, Ifeanyi
Chukwuma Odi and many more,
who have given the group a new
face via Chief Solomon whom they
trusted can deliver dividend of
good leadership which he has
actually done.
However, a peep into his
leadership style revealed how he
values unity and human
empowerment through the
support of Lagos State
government and Ifeanyi
Chukwuma Odi who are
contributing immensely to the
upkeeping of Ohanaeze Ndigbo
Lagos. So, Igbo indigenes, non
indigenes with host community,
Yorubas have benefited from the
present leadership.
Speaking why he is embarking
on human empowerment since the
inception of his regime, kudos to
Governor Sanwo-Olu and Ifeanyi
Chukwu Odi, he said, “I believe
that everything in life is by grace
of God. God empowers us to
empower our fellow human
beings, those in need so that the
society will be a better place for
all of us to live. I also believe that
a giver never lacks because giving
is part of human service which God
wants us to carry so that He will
bless as many that engage
themselves in service to humanity.
However, the grace of God upon
my life is part of the connecting
rod with the two powerful men
mentioned above, who also
consider the needy ones among us
and that is why they are deeply
involved in human empowerment,
helping the less privileged in the
Group condemns killings, state of
insecurity in South-East
The leadership of the Women
Wing of Ohanaeze Ndigbo
Lagos State Chapter in its recent
emergency state executive
committee meeting had expressed
dismay and disgust over the
killings, alarming state of
insecurity and threat to lives in the
South-East, and therefore calls on
the government of the day to
arrest the ugly situation before it
gets out of hand. The group said
further that during crisis women
and their children suffer more.
The leader of the group, Chief
Mrs Violet Uche Obiora (Onaedo)
said, “as mothers in the society,
we are naturally closer to the
family, as a result, more sensitive
to the emotions, pain and
pleasure associated with the
events which affect humanity, to
which extent, we implore all
mothers, at this critical period in
the history of our country, Nigeria
to rise to our responsibility of
home management, counselling,
instructing our youths, balancing
emotions and most importantly,
praying fervently for Nigeria.
L-R: Gov. Sanwo-Olu; President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos, Chief
Solomon Ogbonnaya and Grant Patron, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos
during empowerment exercise in Lagos .
society. Through me they have
been reaching the masses in some
cases because of their busy
schedule. We have been handling
this human service very well to the
best of our ability, even though
you can’t please everybody. I
listen to my conscience because
whatever we sow, we must reap it
in due season. That is one of the
reasons I ensure that people get
their own share whenever any
good things comes to Ohanaeze.
And we extend it to our host state,
the Yorubas who since I have been
working with majority of them I
have not had problem with them.
Again, to be honest with the
Governor of Lagos state, Babajide
Sanwo-Olu, he is doing well in the
area of empowerment, especially
to Ndigbo in Lagos. As the
President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo
Lagos, I’m in position to tell the
true position of things in our
relationship with the Governor of
Lagos State”.
In his passion and promise to
do more, Chief Solomon
Ogbonna mentioned some of the
empowerment especially given to
some widows. “We have done a
lot to empower the widows reason
been that some of them their late
husbands did not leave anything
behind to cater for their children.
So, those empowerments help in
their children education and
family welfare.
According to him, during
COVID-19, we shared palliatives
both widows, non widows, youths
and old. Also, there was this one
that was shared to many from
Group photo of Women Wing,
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos.
According to Mrs Obiora, no
reasonable or caring mother can
remain impassive when her child
or children are slaughtered for
unjustified reasons. “Women and
children are most vulnerable
during crisis and are unduly
affected emotionally,
economically and culturally.
She said further that in view of
the foregoing, we express our
dismay and disgust over the
alarming state of insecurity and
United Nation anchored by the
Lagos state government. Over 300
women got their shares. Ohanaeze
Ndigbo Lagos also benefited. The
governor has ensured that
members of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo
Lagos are not sidelined when it
comes to empowerment. Very
soon, more empowerment is on the
way and with the governor and
Ifeany Chukwuma Odi. This has
been consistent because Ebele
Anyi Chuks Foundation has done
so much for the society not only in
Lagos but the entire country. So,
we must be praying for them
especially the man with the big
office, the Executive Governor of
Lagos State, Sanwo-Olu.
On the secret of his performance,
Chief Solomon said, “It is said that
seeing is believing. What Ndigbo
did not enjoyed before my tenure,
they are now enjoy it. Even though
out of 12 there must be Judas, but
95% can testify the achievement
of the present leadership of
Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos under my
supervision, compare to my
predecessors. That is why I
promise to do better than my
achievements yesterday for the
interest of Ndigbo and our host
community.
On the relationship between
Ohanaeze and and Lagos state
government, Chief Solomon said
that we have experienced good
relationship with the present
leadership of Lagos state
government under the supervision
of Governor Sanwo-Olu.
read more on
www.vanguardngr.com
threat to
lives and
properties in
the South
East of
Nigeria,
ironically,
the safest
geo-political
zone in
Nigeria
until a
couple of
months ago.
However,
“ w e
condemn in strong and specific
terms the ongoing killings in Igbo
land, whether by the military
operatives or unknown gun men.
There is no gainsaying the fact that
the magnitude of carnage in the
South East today is both
outrageous and desecrating. We
appeal to the authorities
concerned to rise up to their
responsibilities and arrest this
ugly situation before it gets out of
hand. A stitch in time, saves nine”.
Nigeria Security and Civil
Defence Corps decorates
newly promoted officers
It was a cheeful and friendly
atmosphere as the Nigeria
Security and Civil Defence Corps
(NSCDC) Zone ‘A’ Headquarters,
Lagos recently decorated its
newly promoted officers.
The exercise was in order,
sequel to the release of the 2020
promotion by the Civil Defence,
Fire, Immigration and
Correctional Service Board
(CDFICB).
The Assistant Commandant
General in charge of the Zone,
Dr Olasupo Adebayo Solomon,
PhD, MCIA, who carried out the
exercise, decorated the following
ranks, Deputy Commandants of
corps, Assistant Commandants
of Corps, Chief Superintendent
of Corps, DSC, ASC 11 and ASC
1.
During the decoration,
Solomon appreciated God for
Firm launches Chivita Active Zest in
a new Can format
CHI Limited has unveiled Chivita Active Zest, a new and exciting
sub-brand under the Chivita Active franchise. The launch
intends to disrupt the mid-pack segment of the juice category by
fulfilling the growing consumer demand for a healthy on-the-go
beverage to support their active lifestyle without compromising on
great taste, convenience, and enhanced nourishment.
It comes in a premium 330ml Can format, and it is made from a
mix of citrus fruits with all-natural ingredients, no artificial
preservatives, and flavours.
Additionally, Chivita Active Zest is fortified with vitamin C for
immunity support, is a good source of vitamin B1 and D3 for faster
body metabolism. It also contains calcium for optimum bone health,
making it a smart choice to get the right dose of essential vitamins
and minerals for a healthy active life on the go.
CHI Limited Marketing Director, Mrs. Toyin Nnodi, said that the
new Chivita Active Zest premium 330ml Can is designed to provide
a healthy and natural on-the-go option for trendy consumers
desirous of a beverage option that compliments their non-stop active
lifestyle.
“We are excited to introduce the new and exciting sub-brand that
guarantees ease of handling and appeal, which makes it a format
of choice for young consumers. In addition, with its all-natural
ingredients, we are confident Chivita Active Zest will connect with
trendy consumers as the preferred on-the-go beverage companion
of choice for a healthy active life”.
Firm shines at Champion Annual
Awards
Rite Foods Limited, a truly world-class and proudly Nigerian
Food and Beverage Company, Producers of Bigi Carbonated
Soft Drinks (CSD), Fearless Energy Drinks, and variants of sausage
brands, has been awarded brand of the year.
The Awards organized by Champion News Media, Publishers of
Champion Newspapers, was conceived to honour the best of human
resources and institutions in Nigeria. Rite Foods was adjudged the
Best from a plethora of Multinational organizations that are in the
Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) category.
According to Ugo Amadi, Editor, Champion Newspapers who
stated that The Awards is also targeted at acknowledging the
contributions of some of the outstanding individuals, organizations,
agencies, and institutions of both State and Federal Governments
to the development of Nigeria in particular and humanity in general
in the areas of business, politics, culture, social and infrastructural
developments.
Aside from Rite Foods Limited, other organizations honoured at
the Champion Media Awards include First Bank of Nigeria Limited,
African Alliance Insurance, Innoson Motors, Access Bank, NSIA
Insurance, Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), and Dangote
Foundation.
Unarguably, the fastest-growing Foods and Beverages Company
in West Africa, with the vision of becoming the industry’s foremost
conglomerate by 2030.
read more on www.vanguardngr.com
protection and sustaining both
staff and management of NSCDC
in Nigeria.
In the same vein, he extols the
wonderful and unmatchable
achievements of the Commandant
General, Ahmed Abubakar Audi,
PhD, mni. within his first 100 days
in office, even as he prayed that
the good Lord will continue to see
him through in the pursuit of the
corps mandates, especially at this
critical time in our nation.
The Zonal Commander also
seized the opportunity to charge
the newly promoted officers and
other officers present to show
more commitment to work,
discipline in all respect. He also
encouraged them to always
display high level of
professionalism, humility and
integrity in their service delivery.
Group photo of senior and junior officers of NSCDC Zone
‘A’ Headquarters, Lagos during the docoration of newly
promoted officers held in Lagos recently.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—33

34 — SATURDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 19, 2021
FGC Yauri Attack: Troops rescue 5 students,
2 teachers, recover 800 cattle—Army
*Says female student found dead
By Kingsley Omonobi –
Abuja
The Nigerian Army
said on Friday that
troops operating under
the auspices of Operation
Hadarin Daji who
have been on a hot pursuit
of kidnappers and
bandits following an unfortunate
abduction incident
in Federal Government
College, Birnin
Yawuri on Thursday
have so far, rescued two
teachers and five students
after a fierce exchange
of fire with the
criminals.
The rescue followed an
initial encounter with
the abductors in the early
hours of Friday after
trailing the kidnappers
from Yawuri through
Riyao to Sombo community,
where the kidnappers
fled after splitting
into two groups, with
one group conveying the
abducted children, while
the second group conveyed
rustled cattle.
The land troops in conjunction
with elements of
the Nigerian Air Force,
who provided close air
support during the rescue
mission intercepted
the two groups at about
2.30 am and engaged
them in a fire fight leading
to the successful rescue
of the teachers and
students.
A statement by Brigadier
General Onyema
Nwachukwu, Director,
Army Public Relations
said, “The troops also
recovered 800 cattle rustled
by the bandits”.
“The gallant troops are
still on the trail of the
kidnappers in order to
rescue the remaining
abductees still in captivity.
“Sadly, a casualty was
recorded during the exchange.
A female student
was found to have
given up the ghost as a
result of exhaustion.
“The rescued teachers
and students will be
handed over to the Kebbi
State Government.
“The Nigerian Army
appreciates the cooperation
so far from good
spirited citizens and
wishes to solicit for
more.
“The Chief of Army
Staff, Maj Gen Faruk
Yahaya has directed the
Commander to spare no
effort until all the abducted
persons are safely
rescued and reunited
with their loved ones.”
From left Alhaja Iyabode Amisu, Iyaloja Tejuosho Ultra Modern Market Phase
2, Yaba, Lagos; Mr. Edward Stevenson, General Manager, Tejuosho Property and
Development Company Limited; Mr. Guy Murray-Bruce, President, Silverbird
Group; Eze (Dr.) Okechukwu Anorue, Babaloja, Tejuosho Ultra Modern Market
Phase 2 and Mr. Franson Davis, General Manager, Silverbird Cinemas West Africa
during the contract signing between Silverbird Group and Tejuosho Property
and Development Company Limited on the establishent of silverbird Cinema at
Tejuosho Ultra-Modern Shopping Centre, Yaba, Lagos on Friday.
Why 18-yr-old #EndSARS protester who gave birth in
our custody was remanded — NCS
By Dayo Johnson Akure
THE Nigeria Correction
al Service, Ondo State
Command, has explained
why an #EndSAR protester,
Kemisola Oginniyi who gave
birth to a baby in their custody
was remanded.
It said that Kemisola and
three others were remanded “
for conspiracy, arson, riotous
assembly, stealing, and malicious
damage.
Recall that Kemisola who
has been in prison custody
since October 24 last year
gave birth to a baby boy on
June 16.
She was arrested alongside
three others, Ayodele Bukunmi,
Ojo Samuel and Ani Obinna
at remanded at Surulere
prison in Ondo.
The Public Relation Officer/
Legal officer of the command,
Ogundare Babatunde
in a statement made available
to Saturday Vanguard in
Akure said they were arrested
by security operatives who accused
them setting the state
Secretariat of the All Progressive
Congress on fire.
The statement entitled”
Press Statement on Kemisola
Ogunniyi: The Fact In Issue’
said that “The attention
of the Nigerian Correctional
Service, Ondo State Command
has been drawn to the
viral picture of a nursing
mother with her new born
baby being spread in social
media platforms with malicious
intent.
“The lady in question was
remanded in the female custodial
facility by a court of
competent jurisdiction on the
24th November, 2020, for
conspiracy, arson, riotous assembly,
stealing, and malicious
damage and the matter
was subsequently adjourned
to 8th December,
2020 for hearing, and further
adjourned to 9th March,
2021.
“ She was 2 months pregnant
when she was remanded
in the facility and all necessary
medical cares and legal
attention needed was accorded
accordingly within
the ambit of the operational
orders of the service. Her
families and legal representatives
were given access to visit
her as well.
“She fell into labour on Tuesday
15th June, 2021, and she
was immediately moved to
the Ondo state basic health
centre for delivery and she delivered
her baby on the 16th
June, 2021 around noon.
“She was hale and hearty
with the baby and subsequently
discharged and was taken
back to the facility for further
care.
“lt is very expedient for the
general public to know that
the Nigeria Correctional
Service will not unlawfully
hold down any inmate without
the order of court hence,
competent jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, Kemisola lawyer,
Tope Tomekun, in a letter
to the Ondo Chief Judge, Oluwatoyin
Akeredolu insisted
that Kemisola was innocent
of the crime preferred against
her.
Tomekun said that Kemisola
was “on her way to the Federal
University of Technology
Akure (FUTA) to collect
money for her mother’s treatment
when she was apprehended
by the Nigerian Army
on random raiding and handed
over to the Police for investigation.
“She was later alleged to be
part of those who set APC Secretariat
Akure on fire during
the ENDSARS protest that
took place in October 2020.
the need to disregard
the viral pictures and
deceitful information
emanating in the social
media in other to discredit
the service.
“While assuring the
public of the commitment
of officers and
men of the command to
the care and support for
inmates, the State
Comptroller Barr. S D
Kinane wishes to state
that the service is community
friendly and will
not act contrary to the
operational orders and
constitution of the federal
republic of Nigeria
Ḃabatunde said that “
The inmate and her
baby are hale and hearty
in the facility pending
the determination of her
case before the court of •Kemisola with the new baby boy
World Refugee Day 2021:
Over 2.9m Internally
Displaced Persons in
Nigeria — UNHCR
•300,000 Nigerians seek refuge in
neighboring countries
By Victoria Ojeme & Fortune Eromosele
THE United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, has disclosed
that there are over 2.9 million Internally Displaced Persons,
IDPs, in Nigeria.
The Country Representative to Nigeria UNHCR, Chansa
Kapaya, disclosed this to mark this year’s World Refugee Day
and commemorate the signing of #citieswithrefugees
Declaration by the Minister, Federal Capital Territory (FCT),
Mohammed Musa Bello in Abuja.
Every year on June 20 World Refugee Day, is a day observed to
honour , celebrate and remember the millions of people forced
to flee their homes and recognize the strength , courage and
resilience they demonstrate when forced to flee their homes to
escape conflict or persecution.
The day also serves as a platform for UNHCR and partners
around the world to communicate to the world about the plight
of refugees, their need for international protection and the
importance of finding sustainable durable solutions.
According to Kapaya, the number of internally displaced
persons have soared over the years, given the challenges posed
by conflicts in Lake Chad and Nigeria.
She said, “Nigeria also hosts 2.9m internally Displaced
Persons which is of concern to UNHCR. The IDP situation, has
in the past decade been increasing due the escalation of conflict
in the Lake Chad Basin region with cross-border activities of
Non-State Armed Groups causing the internal displacement of
millions in the North-eastern part of Nigeria( 2.2 million) as
well as causing some 300,00 other Nigerian nationals to seek
refuge in neighboring
In her keynote address, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs,
Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya
Farouq, said unequivocally, the people and government of
Nigeria are refugee friendly.
She said “This assertion is based on the fact the country has
not defaulted in implementing all the international protocols
and conventions, such as the 1951 United Nations Convention,
its 1967 Protocols, and the 1969 Organization of African Unity
Convention relating to protection and care of refugees, that she
is signatory.
“Aside from ensuring that all the rights guaranteed Refugees
in the Protocols and Conventions are not denied, the
Government of Nigeria, through the NCFRMI, at the 2019
Global Refugee Forum’s meeting in Geneva Switzerland, made
far reaching pledges and commitments for the inclusion of
refugees, IDPs, and returnees in the national development plans.”
Oil firm to build modular
refinery in Delta community
By Ochuko Akuopha
ONOSE Deep Oil and Gas Limited, has concluded
plans to collaborate with the Federal University of Petroleum
Resources, Effurun, to build a 60,000 bpd modular
refinery at Omavovwe-Agbarha-Otor community, Ughelli
North Local Government Area, Delta State.
Managing Director of the company, Chief Jim Elueni
who made the disclosure in an interaction with newsmen
after a meeting with management of the university,
said the facility could be completed within a year and
eight months. We have actually started construction on
site. He said: “We are here on the existing agreement
we have with the school management to build the 60,000
barrels per day modular refinery, the Russians are willing,
and desirous by our agreement to transfer the technology
of refinery to Nigeria via FUPRE.
“FUPRE is very ready with their engineers and technicians
on ground to be able to take the technology from
there and domesticate the technology of building the modular
refinery.
“We have partnership from Russia and the technology
is super and we would be able to complete it within one
year and eight months.
“The products we are going produce and get from the
refinery ranges from PMS to diesel, kerosene and to third
fuel and gas, bitumen and when we produce that, we
will be able to provide employment to our people and
support the fuel challenges we are having in Nigeria
which will be of enormous benefit to our people.”
Ijaw youths congratulate
Kemepade as Amnesty Head
By Tony Nwankwo
THE Arogbo Ijaw Youth Network (AIYN) has congratulated
Comrade Alfred N. Kemepade who has emerged,
head of Reintegration in the Presidential Amnesty Programme.
Before his new appointment, Kemepade was secretary,
Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide. In a statement
by AIYN National Chairman and former President,
IYDA, Comrade Fiyebo Eperetei Godspower, the group said
the appointment of Alfred Kemepade showed the confidence
and capability reposed on the youths of Ijaw nation
and Niger Delta at large. The group also commended the
efforts of the Special Adviser to the President and Coordinator
of Presidential Amnesty Program, Col. Dikio Miland
(retd), for facilitating the appointment of Kemepade.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—35
Hungary ‘re very combative,
says Deschamps
World champions
France opened
their campaign in brisk
Lovrencsics
fashion with a 1-0 win
Pogba against Germany in
Munich that could have
Euro 2020:
been more convincing, and a
second victory would book
progress with a game to spare.
Hungary, meanwhile, seemed to
be holding reigning champions
Clash of the titans
Portugal in Budapest only to fall
to three late goals, which could
prove costly in a group where the
cliché that “there are no easy
games in international football”
.As Portugal test might against Germany is hugely understating matters.
Hungary come into this match
on the back of conceding three late
goals to Portugal on Matchday 1.
That scoreline felt harsh on a
Hungary side which had withstood
no small amount of pressure
Portugal will be looking to
before growing into the game in
book their spot in the
the second half. There are plenty
knockout round of the
of positives for them to build on,
European Championship with one
but, as coach Marco Rossi says,
match to spare when they take on
Germany in Munich this evening.
Fernando Santos’s side opened
their Euro 2020 campaign with a
France boast t s
3-0 win over Hungary, but
Germany have work to do in
Joachim Low was full of
Group F, having suffered a 1-0 loss
compliments for France’s
to tournament favourites France.
defensive strength after his
Portugal were actually level with
Germany side lost to the world
Hungary approaching the final
champions in their Euro 2020
stages of Monday’s contest in
opener.
Budapest, and it did appear that it
Karim Benzema’s return to
would be a frustrating start to the
section for the reigning
same night.
accompany Kylian Mbappe and
all-time leading goalscorer in
champions.
A Selecao have a strong overall Antoine Griezmann has seen the
European Championship history.
However, Raphael Guerreiro Santos’s side will head into
record in this competition, attacking trident dominate most
made the breakthrough in the 84th today’s clash knowing that a win
reaching the semi-finals in 1984, of the headlines, but the reality is
minute of the contest before would book their spot in the last-
2000 and 2012, while they were that France are a success because
Cristiano Ronaldo came up with a
present in the final eight of Euro of their strength at the back. Until
16 stage of the competition, while
late double - one of which was from
1996 and Euro 2008. Portugal were
they would confirm a position in
this run, France hadn’t gone five
the penalty spot - to make it a
also runners-up on home soil at
the top two if they triumph and
games without conceding in 13
three-goal success for Portugal and Hungary do not overcome France
Euro 2004 and are, of course, the years.
ensure that he would become the in Group F’s other contest on the
holders, having beaten France 1-0 In 2018, with the exception of that
in the final of Euro 2016.
Euro 2020 final at
Wembley: UK ‘ll
allow 2,500 VIPs
enter without
quarantine
T
he UK government will
allow 2,500 VIPs to enter
the country without having to
quarantine them for the Euro
2020 semi-finals and final in
order for the match to be
played at Wembley Stadium.
It comes after UEFA
threatened to move the final
from London to Budapest,
should the UK choose not to
lift the quarantine for 2,500
UEFA and FIFA officials.
According to the Times,
British government ministers
are currently in negotiations to
establish travel exemptions for
these VIPs from the 10-day
quarantine, instead of seeing
the match moved instead to
Budapest, where there will be
no such border restrictions as
of next week.
This quarantine rule has
already seen Wembley miss
out on potentially hosting this
year’s Champions League
final, with the match moved to
Porto instead of London.
Retired Navy commodore
Omatseye Nesiama has
been elected on the board of
Athletics Federation of Nigeria
(AFN). He was elected Friday
by athletics coaches and
technical officials. He defeated
coach Solomon Aliyu with 43
to 33 votes in the election
devoid of rancour unlike the
Sergio Ramos: When I accepted Real’s renewal
offer
er, , it no longer exis
xisted
Ramos
Sergio Ramos has made clear that he reached
a point where he decided to accept Real
Madrid’s offer of a contract renewal, only to then
find out that it was no longer on the table.
Ramos explained the way in which the negotiations with
Real Madrid happened, emphasising that he did not want
to leave the club.
“Many things have happened, circumstances that occur
in life. The first thing I’d like to say is that I’ve never wanted
to leave Real Madrid, I’ve always wanted to stay,” Ramos
explained during his farewell press conference on
Thursday.
“To give details and to be brief, I go back to the lockdown
LaLiga title, which we won and celebrated. After that, the
club offered me the opportunity to extend my contract, but
because of COVID it was put on the back burner.
“In the last few months, the club made me a one-year
offer with a salary reduction. Money was never a problem;
the president knew that I’d made clear that it wasn’t an
economic issue. It was a problem in terms of years; they
offered me one year and I wanted two, it was stability for
my family.
“In the last conversations I said that I accepted and they
told me that there was no longer an offer. I was told that
even though I had agreed to the last offer that was on the
table, I was told that it had an expiry date and I hadn’t
heard about it.”
Tokyo 2020 Olympic trials: Amusan’s quest to quash 100 mh
record ends in disappointment
By Ben Efe
Tobi Amusan’s mission to
rewrite the 100m hurdles
12.44sec record held by Gloria
Alozie was thwarted by
malfunctioning timing devise at the
Athletics Federation of Nigeria
Olympic trials yesterday.
Amusan had dropped 12.55 secs
in the semifinals and asked the
cheering spectators to calm down.
But when it mattered most at Yaba
College of Technology sports
complex, the timing devise jammed
after the final race was flagged off
much to the chagrin of officials and
watching spectators.
Amusan was hand timed at
12.3secs and she was visibly angry
at the development. However, the
devise came back on during the
men’s race, which Oyeniyi Adegoye
AFN: Politics is over
er, , time to rebuild, says Nesiama
first attempt, which was
disrupted in Ilorin.
In a post election speech, he
said, “Time for politics is gone,
we need to make progress in
the sport.
“We have to focus on bringing
some desired technical
changes.
“If the board wishes and I’m
made the technical director, I
will bring some changes (road
map) I had since 2011.”
Nesiama who commands
enviable qualification and post
from the World Athletics (WA)
and Confederation of Africa
Athletics (CAA) technical
departments.
of Customs won with 13.83 secs.
“It was a malfunction, which we
did not envisage, there’s little we
could have done to help the
situation,” said one of the technical
officials.
But former 400m runner Fatima
Yusuf insisted that there could have
been a back up, to prevent such a
predicament.
In the women 200m race, Grace
Nwaokocha ran 22.87secs to beat
Tima Godbless who posted
23.44secs. Olayinka Olajide was
third with 24.16secs.
Jerry Jakpa won the men’s race
with 20.80secs, Gafaru Audi
finished 20.85 secs, while Adelakun
Fakorede finished third with
21.25secs.
The women 400m failed to provide
any excitement as Patience Okon-
George and Imaobong Nse Uko
struggled for form and inspiration
Okon-George clocked 52.24secs,
Knowledge Omovoh was second
with 52.71secs and Nse Uko tapped
at 52.84secs.
The events will continue today.
they need to enact their game plan
for the full 90 minutes, not just 84.
France will be confident of
notching the win that will secure
qualification despite coming up
against a wounded beast in
Hungary in front of a capacity
crowd in Budapest. A repeat of the
togetherness the world champions
showed in beating Germany and
Les Bleus are likely to keep a sixth
consecutive clean sheet in
international football. After
having a strike ruled out for offside
against Germany, Karim Benzema
could score a first international
goal since October 2015.
Didier Deschamps, France coach
said, “They’re a combative and
hard-working team, and very well
organised. I think them having an
Italian coach explains a lot of that!
They’re at home and I’m expecting
them to show the same
commitment they showed against
Portugal. If we win again we’ll be
qualified after two matches. That’s
our first objective.”
t strength in defence
ence
crazy 4-3 win over Argentina,
France were excellent defensively,
led by Benjamin Pavard, Lucas
Hernandez, Samuel Umtiti and
Raphael Varane.
Despite most purists dreaming of
this France side making the most
of their attacking talent, it’s hard
to see them, under Deschamps,
channelling the spirit of the old
team led by Michel Platini.
Deschamps’ approach is clear -
nobody can afford to not defend
for the team.
The squad have followed a very
specific plan so far and Lucas
Hernandez acknowledged how
tough it was, but the results are
showing.
They want to defend well and trust
that goals will come because of the
talent they have. That was seen
against Germany.
France defend from the front.
Benzema won the ball back five
times against Germany, while
Mbappe and Griezmann do dirty
work out wide.
Eriksen
discharged after
being fitted with a
heart-starter
Christian Eriksen is out of
hospital after being
discharged following a
successful operation.
The Denmark midfielder has
been fitted with a implantable
cardioverter defibrillator
(ICD) to regulate his heart’s
rhythm, having suffered a
cardiac arrest on the pitch in
his country’s Euro 2020 opener
against Finland
That left him requiring 13
minutes of CPR, and Eriksen
had been in hospital since that
incredibly distressing incident
six days ago.
The Danish FA also confirmed
that the midfielder has been to
visit his team-mates, and will
now go and return to his
family.
They said: ‘Christian Eriksen
has been through a successful
operation and was today
discharged
from
Rigshospitalet.
‘Today he also visited the
national team in Helsingor - and
from there he will go home and
spend time with his family.’
Eriksen also provided an
update on his recovery and gave
some words of encouragement
to his team-mates ahead of their
final group stage match.

36—SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
No one could have written
a better script for a sports
movie than what is
currently going on in real-life in
The Athletics Federation of
Nigeria, AFN.
As you read this, kindly clear your
mind of any distractions in order
to be able to follow the drama
through the unending twists and
turns that could make a reader
dizzy.
Early this week, the lingering
power struggle in Nigerian sports,
specifically in the Athletics
Federation of Nigeria, AFN, took
a drama-filled turn.
To add to the suspense, the
following occurred shortly after
the intervention of World
Athletics, WA, and the
Confederation of African
Athletics, CAA, the international
bodies to which the AFN is
affiliated. These bodies approve
the statutes under which
association elections are held.
Both bodies had visited and
departed the country, leaving
behind a resolution that assured
all Nigerians that a level playing
field for contestants seeking to be
part of a new executive board of
the AFN, had been created. The
tenure of the last board was to end
on June 14, 2021, exactly 4 years
since the last election, and new
elections were due.
WA had approved that the 2017
constitution of the AFN should be
used for the new elections, setting
aside the 2019 constitution that
had become very problematic
because of the manipulation it
suffered by narrow interests within
Almeria slap
•60m euros on
Sadiq Umar
Spanish side UD Almeria have
refused to accept the €16
million offer from La Liga side
Getafe for the services of Nigeria
international forward Umar
Sadiq Mesbah, according to a
report in the Spanish media.
The 24-year-old attacker was at
his best for the Rojiblancos in the
just-concluded season in the
Segunda Division, where he
managed to score a total of 22
goals for his team in both the
second division and Copa del Rey.
Getafe believe Umar has what it
takes to improve them, especially
on the attacking front. Last
season, they scored just 28 goals
in 38 league matches, conceding
43 in the process and went on to
finish the campaign in the 15th
position.
The Deep Blue Ones managed
just nine wins, 11 draws and 18
losses to finish with 38 points. In
their bid to perform better in the
next campaign, they have
reportedly identified the Nigerian
as a transfer target.
However, according to
Estadiodeportivo, the second-tier
side value the Super Eagle in the
region of €60 million and are not
ready to listen to offers less than
that amount.
The forward is seen as a key
player for Almeria, who are
aiming at getting promoted to La
Liga for the 2022/23 campaign.
Sevilla, who had a decent
campaign in La Liga after
finishing fourth to secure a Uefa
Champions League slot, are
believed to be the front runners for
the services of the striker, since
they are expecting Luuk De Jong
to leave this summer.
The Dutch attacker has scored 10
goals in 69 appearances for his
team. Sadiq is seen as the one who
can offer Morrocco forward
Youssef En-Nesyri stiff
competition in the attacking
department.
the association.
In the past one week, there has
been serious ‘katakata’ in the
AFN. Two different elections were
held with two different
delegations of stakeholders in
Nigeria’s Track and Field
Athletics.
Two different Presidents, backed
by two powerful political leaders
from the same party, the APC, have
emerged, each claiming
legitimacy.
One election took place in far
away Birnin Kebbi, far from any
prying eyes. It had an electorate
of 22 persons. Alhaji Ibrahim
Gusau, the embattled immediatepast
President, was declared the
winner.
The elections were observed and
endorsed by a former Minister of
Sports, who had left office two
years before, and had been
responsible for inaugurating the
put-going board 4 years ago. His
presence at the venue of the
elections plus his verbal
endorsement declaring the
elections as legitimate and
An emotional Neymar scored
his 68th goal for Brazil in
their 4-0 victory over Peru on
Thursday in the Copa America,
which sees him edge closer to the
all-time record set by legend Pele.
He reduced the gap to nine after
his side cruised to victory in Rio.
Official statistics from FIFA,
War in the AFN...an
unending sports drama!
describing a
s e c o n d
election that
was to take
place thw
following day
in Abuja, as a
‘trade fair
event, was a
new, unknown
dimension in
the annals of
Nigerian
sports. Past
Minister’s
usually never had anything to do
with Federation elections, except,
of course, if they had become
stakeholders in the federation
since leaving office, which is not
the case here.
The second election took place a
day later in Abuja, at the head
office of the AFN, inside the MKO
Abiola stadium complex. The
elections were monitored and
supervised by the Ministry of
Youth and Sports. A delegation of
46 stakeholders elected a new
President (unopposed) for the
association, Chief T. Okowa,
whose only credential in Athletics
is a political appointment as
Chairman of the Delta State
Sports Commission, made
possible because he is the younger
brother to the governor of Delta
State.
24 hours after the Abuja election,
the current Minister of Sports,
Chief Sunday Dare, inaugurated
the board in accordance to a
tradition that had been
established in the country for
decades.
Two boards of the Athletics
Federation of Nigeria now exist,
each claiming legitimacy of their
elections.
Alhaji Gusau dangles 2 court
orders from the Federal High
Court and the Federal Appeals
court, both empowering him to
call an Elective Congress of the
AFN, and prevent the Ministry of
Sports from interfering in matters
of the ‘Independent’ federation,
including in electoral matters.
The Sports Ministry dangles the
2017 Constitution of the same
AFN, approved to be used by WA
and CAA, to justify the election
held in Abuja.
To add some spice to the drama,
the acting President of the
Ministry-backed Abuja elections,
Mr. George Olamide, who
assumed leadership of the AFN
after Ibrahim Gusau was
impeached by majority of his
board a few months ago,
summoned the elective Congress
of the Federation. On the day of
the election he was nowhere
around the Congress venue that
he convened. Instead, it was
reported that he had privately
congratulated Ibrahim Gusau for
emerging President of the other
faction.
Investigations have since
revealed that he wanted to be a
contestant in the Abuja elections,
but needed to emerge from the
South-West zonal election to
determine the delegates from that
part of the country. He lost the
zonal elections, blamed the
Sports Ministry for not backing
him, turned his back against them
Neymar closes in on Pele’s goals record for Brazil
.Pele praises him
Neymar and Pele
s o c c e r ’ s
international
governing body,
put Pele in No 1
spot for Brazil
with 77 goals.
Neymar has 68
after he netted the
Selecao’s second
against Peru.
‘It is obvious for
me that this is a
great honor, to be
a part of Brazil
history,’ a tearful Neymar said in
an interview full of squeaky tones
and long pauses after Brazil’s
victory at the Nilton Santos
stadium in Rio.
‘To be very honest, my dream was
to play for Brazil, wear this shirt. I
never imagined I would get to
these numbers.
‘It is very emotional to me
because I went through a lot of
things over these last two years,
difficult and complicated things.
These numbers are nothing
compared to the happiness I have
playing for Brazil.’
Pele, who has followed Neymar’s
career since the younger man’s
first appearances at Santos,
published a picture of the pair on
Instagram.
‘I, like all Brazilians, am always
happy when I see him play ball.
Today he gave another step toward
my record of goals for the
Selecao. And I am cheering for
him to get there, with the same joy
I have since I saw him play for the
first time,’ 80-year-old Pele said.
Joshua ‘ll be too tough for Usyk, , says Oboh
FORMER British and
Commonwealth Light
heavyweight champion, Peter Oboh
has said that the botched all-British
unification mega-fight between the
WBA, IBO, IBF and WBO
heavyweight champion, Anthony
Joshua and his WBC counterpart,
Tyson Fury could still hold after all.
Oboh, who in his active days
fought as a Briton said the Joshua/
Fury fight can hold if only the two
prized fighters can maintain their
winning streak by beating their
challengers in their impending
fights.
Following the collapse of the
Joshua/Tyson unification fight,
Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr
Usyk have until May 31 to agree
terms to a fight or purse bids will be
called; WBO rejected a delay in
ordering this fight from promoter
Eddie Hearn; AJ is now set to fight
Usyk while Tyson Fury takes on
Deontay Wilder again.
Oboh is of the belief that
AnthonyJoshua is going to have an
easy fight against his opponent,
Oleksandr Usyk who is a former
WBO cruiser weight champion. “It
is going to be a walk in the park for
Joshua,” Oboh said, adding “I
cannot see Oleksandr crossing the
9th round with Joshua.”
He insisted that Joshua would be
too strong for his opponent and too
experienced for Mr Oleksandr.
“If Oleksandr happens to win,
then Joshua should retire from
boxing,” Peter Oboh said.
On Fury’s fight against Deontay
Wilder, the former WBA
Intercontinental champion said.
“The Fury/Wilder rematch would
have been a fifty fifty fight bet, but
the psychological effect of the
beating Wilder took from Fury in
their last encounter too much and
it could come to play in favour of
the champion. Wilder is a good
fighter, the scars of the injuries that
Fury gave to him must still be there.
I think Wilder should have taken
a pay off from Joshua and fury,s
camps to allow them fight.”
Oboh
Joshua
in anger, and did not show up for
the Congress he called. To further
muddy the waters and spite the
ministry, he congratulated the
‘winner’ of the second election
whom he been part of ousting from
office.
As the various national teams
prepare to attend the Olympic
Games next month in Tokyo,
Japan, the biggest drama is still
expected to play out.
At the Olympic Games national
federations take a relative back
seat with the Nigeria Olympic
Committee, NOC, being
responsible for registering the
teams and taking thèm to the
Games.
The Sports Ministry officially
leads the delegation and funds the
participation.
That means that the two bodies
occupy the front seats. The
President of the Nigeria Olympic
Committee, Engineer Habu
Gumel, a body that could become
the ‘Joker in the pack’ in this
unfolding drama, was sitting next
at the Sports Minister when the
new board was being
inaugurated in Abuja. His
presence was a clear endorsement
of that faction and marks the
temporary but very significant end
of the road for Alhaji Ibrahim
Gusau.
At the Olympics, national
federations take a back seat. They
do not play any official role
beyond helping their country to
prepare and select the best
athletes.
It is clear that Ibrahim Gusau and
his new board would not get free
tickets to attend the games. To
counter that, he claims to have
just taken delivery of the official
kits for the athletics team from
PUMA, part of the sponsorship
deal which his board had
negotiated with the International
sports manufacturers.
Continues online
www.vanguardngr.com
FG Appoints John
Mikel Obi Youth
Ambassador
The Federal Federal Government
has appointed erstwhile Super
Eagles skipper, John Mikel Obi as
Youth Ambassador to inspire young
Nigerian to strive for excellence.
The event which took place at the
NOC secretariat, National Stadium,
Surulere Lagos on Friday is another
of the Minister’s initiative geared
towards driving a vibrant youth for
national development.
Speaking at the event, Minister of
Youth and Sports Development Mr
Sunday Dare described the former
Chelsea legend as a role model
whose lasting legacies in football
development has continued to have
positive impact on youths in the
country.
The Minister promised to support
Mikel’s vision and vision for sports
development in the country and
assured the Stoke City midfielder of
Federal Government unalloyed
support whenever he choses to
invest in the country.
“ Time will not permit me to say
much about Mikel’s success as a
footballer. He is our legend and a
role model who has continued to
impact the lives of youth positively.
“ It is it my pleasure to appoint you
as Nigeria Youth Ambassador. It’s a
new portfolio and your role as youth
ambassador will be made known to
Nigerians,” the Minister asserted.
In his response, Mikel expressed
delight with his new portfolio and
promised to work with the sports
Ministry to foster youth
development in the country.
“ I feel highly honored to be
appointed as Youth Ambassador of
this country, it is a great feeling. I
am happy with this partnership and
I promise to do my best to encourage
and inspire the youths towards
national development not just in
football but in other sports like
Basketball, Boxing among others”,
said Mikel.
The event was followed by a tour
of the National stadium, Surulere
which is under going rehabilitation.

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021—37

38 — SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
GOtv’s intervention in
Nigerian boxing worthy of
emulation — Wale Edun
Former Lagos State
Commissioner for
Finance, Mr. Wale
Edun, is famous for his
association with boxing in
Nigeria. His non-governmental
organization, Lagos Boxing
Hall of Fame, is widely reputed
for nurturing talents at the
amateur level.
In this interview, he explains
that pay television provider,
GOtv, has rekindled hope in
Nigerian boxing through GOtv
Boxing Night and GOtv Boxing
NextGen Search.
Excerpts:
As an authority in Nigerian
boxing, give us an overview of the
sport on the domestic scene in the
last 25 years?
I think that overall, when you
take the last 25 years, which is
taking us back to somewhere
around the 1990s and even before
then, amateur boxing and even
professional boxing to a lesser
extent were on a decline for most
of those years. Amateur boxing
around 2009, in Lagos in
particular, had a revival when the
then Governor of Lagos State,
Babatunde Raji Fashola,
encouraged a revival of amateur
boxing through the collaboration
of an NGO, Lagos Boxing Hall of
Fame with the Lagos Boxing
Association. That brought into
being the likes of Olaide Fijabi,
Otto Joeboy, Rilwan Oladosu, and
many others, who became the
bedrock of the revival and boost
to professional boxing through
GOtv Boxing Night, which is
strongly supported by Odofin
Adewunmi Ogunsanya, and the
rest of the team at GOtv and DStv.
So, I think from decline, from
being in the backwaters, boxing
has gradually made its way back.
It’s one of the top performers
when it comes to the National
Sports Festival, national
championships and the amateur
level.
These days, there really is no
difference between amateur and
professionals in the real definition
of the sport. What we know as the
sub-professional level has seen a
revival and I think we must request
more funding support to
encourage young talents which
are definitely there. But they need
nurturing and need to be provided
with the facilities. I think there is a
new leadership in the Lagos State
Boxing Association and with the
Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame, which
I’m honored and fortunate to be
Chairman, we are definitely
determined to give our youngsters
that opportunity to excel. The likes
•Wale Edun
of GOtv need to be joined by other
top-flight sponsors. There is
nothing greater than doing well in
the country and supporting the
youths.
In specific terms, what changes
has the involvement of GOtv
brought into this sport. We are
aware that way back, boxers
endured two to three-year
intervals between fights. Apart
from having regular fights now,
what other things have you seen?
Well, I think that is the key. The
key to any sports person is regular
activity and regular competition
whether you are a footballer,
cricketer, swimmer, tennis player
or boxer. What you need is regular
competition as an amateur and as
a professional of course, it’s what
you earn your living by. You want
regular action, so you can be paid
for what you do and I think that’s
what has been brought to the table,
both at the amateur and
professional levels. One leads to
the other; one is the academy for
the other. So, regular competition,
more boxing shows that give
various youngsters something to
dream for. There is nothing like
competition conditions to hone
one’s skills beyond what you do in
the gym. I think the steady flow of
opportunities for amateurs has led
to a steady flow of candidates for
the professional cadre because the
more you have the amateurs, the
more you have the professionals.
To make professional boxing seem
exciting enough to keep attracting
television, to keep attracting GOtv,
what you really need is for the sport
to thrive at the amateur level. It’s
•Edo Boy, unleashes a left hook on an opponent during a GOtv Boxing
Night bout
the same anywhere in the world
and any sport.
The first edition of the GOtv
Boxing NextGen Search, a talent
hunt initiative, took place at the
Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame Gym
and you were in attendance. Four
other editions have followed.
What is your impression of the
GOtv Boxing NextGen Search?
Yes, it’s a tremendous one. It’s
part of the talent search and
scouting system. A similar thing
happens all over the world and
provides people a platform for the
display of raw talents, which need
grooming. GOtv NextGen Search
is a good hunting ground to
identify young people, young
sportsmen, who are ready to be
boxers. And I think it should be
spread to women as well. At Lagos
State Boxing Hall of Fame Gym,
we have two separate changing
rooms and showers for men and
women, so that the young women
are not excluded. I think even at
the professional level, they should
not be excluded.
What hope is there for Nigeria
to produce elite- level boxers in
the nearest future?
I think we have the talent in
bucketloads, as they say. The
median age of the country is 19
and the population is 200 million
or thereabouts. So, you have so
many people that fall into the
categories of around 12, 14 to 20,
24, 25, which are the usual
sporting ages, particularly for
young amateur boxers; for people
who are developing and coming
up. So, we have what it takes in
terms of raw materials. It’s for us
to take advantage of such, provide
facilities, provide encouragement,
provide the stage and the platform.
As I always say, it is not all about
turning professional, it’s not all
about being at the league level. So
much goodness, so much
satisfaction and so many good
traits and characteristics come
about from following a regimen
of discipline, training and pursuit
of the sporting goal. That’s what
gives joy to the majority of young
boys and girls that turn to amateur
boxing. Yes, out of that whole
cohort, you get the elite talents that
excel because they have that
something special, which allows
you mentally and physically to
excel.
We want to see the few do well
for themselves and earn a good
living for their families as well as
project positively the image of the
country. At the end of the day, we
are doing it for the many sports of
which amateur boxing is just one.
We are doing it for the healthy
development of our youngsters.
Adults and those who are dutybound
to do whatever they can to
help the youngsters should do such.
In what other ways can
corporate organisations
intervene in boxing for it to grow
a lot more than it currently is?
Well, as Yorubas would say:
“Owo ni keke eyin rere” (money is
key). Because you have to put
resources behind talent in order
for it to achieve fantastic results in
the end. So really, whether it is cash
or in kind, the corporate sector
must look inwards and count as
part of its corporate social
responsibility the support for sports
and in this case, we are asking for
support for boxing facilities that
are required. Sometimes, the
donor prefers to know that they are
providing these particular items
and they can look at the list of
items from space for gym to
equipment to boxing rings, boxing
gloves and outfits. There is a whole
range of ways which individuals
and companies can support in kind
and of course, a large element is
also cash support. We require
financial support to provide for the
many items that are needed to put
together a successful boxing
programme that will provide all
the wonderful benefits which we
have been talking about.
I can’t wait tot
Nigeria — B
•Says I can be of great help
•Basketball is my passion
By Jacob Ajom
HIS father, Ben Iroha
is a former Nigeria
international,
whose place in Nigerian
football folklore is well
secured. Iroha, a versatile
defender in his days,
belongs to that golden
generation which, in 1994
took Nigeria to global
reckoning, when, from
nowhere, the Super Eagles
emerged as the 5 th best
national football team in the
world and second most
entertaining national team,
according to FIFA.
Intriguingly, the son of this
famous footballer, Ben Iroha
Jnr is not playing football
today. Instead, he has
chosen to chart his own
course and be known
for what he loves to
do best; playing
Basketball.
Naturally, it
would not have
been out of place to
expect that the
former Super Eagles
star’s son, Ben Iroha
Jnr, to take after his
father. “He has the
basic skills of a
footballer, played the
game as a minor and was
even awarded
scholarship by Watford
Football Club in
England,” Iroha said of
his son. “But he
turned down the offer.
He wanted the entire
family to move to
England, if he was to
go to Watford.”
With the Watford
‘distraction’ off his
path, young Ben
Iroha Jnr.
concentrated on his
Basketball and
vowed to take it to
the highest level.
“I started playing
basketball since I
was 10 and hope to
continue playing
the game to as
long as it can take
me,” he said.
Iroha who is a
student of
Texas State
University
explained
why he chose
basketball
instead of
going after his
father’s first
passion, which is
football. “I love soccer too,
but I have a different love
for basketball and I am stuck
with it.”
Although BJ, as his father
calls him, is still playing
College Basketball, he is
enthusiastic about the
prospects of
representing Nigeria
in future, like his
father did in football
in the past. After
watching D’Tigers
(as the Nigeria
national men’s
basketball team is
called) at the
Olympics,
his
passion
for
When I am on
the court I feel
different; the
way I play,
make the
dribble runs
and score, I
always look
forward for
another
opportunity to
do more and do
it better.
the game increased as it
enhanced his dream to wear the
green-white colours of his
fatherland, someday. “I think I

SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021 — 39
play for
Genesis of AFN crisis
en Iroha Jnr
to D’Tigers
can be of big help if I join the
Nigerian team. I can add value to
the national team if I am called
up. I play as a point guard, I can
shoot and score points for the
team. I can also play in the
defence”.
Ben Iroha Jnr, 22 said he is
ready to go professional as he is
training hard to get ready for
trials in Sweden. The invitation
from a Swedish club was
originally meant for trials last
year, but the outbreak of the
Coronavirus pandemic
disrupted the plan.
“The invitation is still
valid,” he cuts in, adding,
“I am planning to go any
time soon.”
“In the beginning,” the
young Iroha Jnr
confessed, “it wasn’t
basketball. I played
soccer and was good at
it. I was pretty good
in soccer and
multiple
academies were
interested in
having me.
Watford, for
one,
wanted
me to go
to
England
and
when it
was time
for me to
go, I
requested
that my
parents,
indeed the entire family should
move with me to England but my
parents said they were not
moving to England with me, I
turned down the offer because I
was scared going there all alone.
I was only 12 then. That was how
I lost the chance of going far in
soccer.”
Ben Iroha Snr, his father who
played for Watford between 1998–
2000 interjected. “I was coach of
Dallas Texas then and Watford
saw clips of how well he was
playing. They called me, ‘Ben
why don’t you give us your son?’
They offered him free
accommodation, free school,
everything. In the team he was a
utility player. When we had
problems in the defence he
would fall back and when we
need goals he would go to attack.
He was everywhere, just like
what Mbappe does for PSG. And
Watford were thrilled and made
the offer. The boy said, ‘Dad, I
love soccer but I won’t go there
alone.’
But how does it feel that your
son jettisoned football for
basketball? Iroha Snr said there
was nothing amiss. “I’m fine with
that because what I did was to
introduce sports to him. I was
only guiding him. He chose to
play basketball, which is a great
sport too. But I would have
loved it if he played
football.”
He said he knew the son
loved basketball more when
“the boy was always eager
to go out for basketball
training that when he
wanted him to go for
football. Training. “When it
comes to basketball, you see
him leaving home by 5 a.m
for training. It’s different
from when I want us to go
out for football training. I
would practically persuade
him before he would go with
me.But I’m happy and my
prayer now is for him to
achieve his dream.”
Back to Iroha Jnr, any
regrets not going to
Watford? He hesitated, then
responded. “Regrets? Yeah,
may be a little bit, but I
don’t dwell on that. I can
only move forward and I am
focused on my basketball for
now.”
Would Ben Iroha love to
see his son play basketball
for Nigeria? “Why not,” he
said, adding, “he loves this
country so much and
playing in Nigeria colours
will be the ultimate.”
BJ’s passion for basketball
was influenced by the
exploits of LA Lakers
superstar LeBron James.
“He is the best because the
way he plays keeps pushing
me to work harder. He is my
role model. I want to play
like him, however, I want to
make my own name rather
than his.” Surprisingly,
despite his admiration for
LeBron James, Iroha Jnr
said he is a fan of Dallas
Mavericks and not Los
Angeles Lakers, the club Le
Bron James plays for.
What has been the driving
force behind his choice of
playing basketball instead of
football? “Basketball is
special to me. It is different
from soccer. The motivation
is, when I am on the court I
feel different; the way I play,
the way I make the dribble
runs and score, I always
look forward for another
opportunity to do more and
do it better. So, the urge to
do it better next time
motivates me a lot.”
Yet he remains passionate
about his academics.
According to young Iroha,
because he is really
dedicated to his basketball,
he goes for training as early
as 5 a.m, trains for about an
hour or two before going to
school. “My major is
Industrial Engineering and
I am left with one year of my
studies.”
He still has fond memories
of his native land, Nigeria
and he confessed. “I love
Nigerian food but my best is
fufu and ogbono soup.”
By Ben Efe
IT wasn’t a surprise when two
presidents emerged after the
Athletics Federation of
Nigeria board membership
elections held Monday, June 14
2021.
The scenerio was the climax of
a saga that has been unfolding
since June 19 2017.
Delta State sports commission
chairman, Tonobok Okowa
emerged president of the
“officially recognized AFN” in a
rancour free election conducted
in Abuja, while Ibrahim Gusau in
Kebbi reestablished himself as
‘Autonomous AFN’ president in a
make belief election where almost
all the States Athletics Association
chairmen were absent.
Perhaps sports enthusiasts in
Nigeria can sit back and expect
more unfolding drama like they
did, when Nigerian Football
Federation president, Amaju
Pinnick had a long drawn battle
with big spending Chris Giwa
during the tenure of Solomon
Dalung as sports minister.
The same Dalung who was
suspected to be the hand
teleguiding Mr. Giwa was in
Kebbi to give Gusau support in
his show of defiance.
Ironically, Dalung was the
architect of Gusau’s chequered
reign in the AFN. During the
election in 2017, Dalung
practically and crudely
eliminated all opponents in that
election paving way for the
smooth emergence of Gusau who
was an absentee vice president
during the reign of Solomon
Ogba as president of the AFN.
Gusau, Dalung and the sports
ministry officials worked in
tandem, until early 2018 when
news broke that a 150,000 USD
grant from the World Athletics had
been misappropriated. Dalung
and some sports ministry staff
were fingered in the ‘sharing of
the money.’
This infuriated Dalung and he
quickly organised AFN members
who were sidelined by Gusau and
his right hand man, Sunday
Adeleye in their two-man ‘AFN
cabal,’ to impeach Gusau. The
plot was successful and vice
president Olamide George
became acting president.
However, this happened just as
Dalung was writing his hand over
notes. He did not win nomination
for a second term as sports
minister. There was a brief
interval before Dalung’s successor,
Sunday Dare took over the reins
at the Sports Ministry.
This lacuna afforded Gusau
some maneuvering space and the
then Permanent secretary in the
Athletes
Sports Ministry, Olusade Adesola
stalled the removal of Gusau, he
called for reconciliation because
according to him, Nigeria was
preparing for the 2019 All African
Games and he didn’t want any
distraction.
However, AFN board members
like Rosa Collins, Brown Ebewele
and Gabriel Okon insisted that
certain conditions must be met for
there to be harmony in the board.
One of such was the removal of
Adeleye as technical director.
Gusau refused saying that without
Adeleye, he couldn’t function and
thus both sides returned to the
trenches.
When Mr. Dare stepped in
September 2019, he was reluctant
to put out the fire at the AFN house.
But after Nigeria’s dismal outing
at the Doha 2019 World
Championships and the
unpleasant technical lapses that
trailed the outing, Mr. Dare
decided to dispatch with Gusau
to save the sport and Nigeria from
further ridicule.
In December 2019 a congress
was called in Abuja and Gusau
was invited to appear to explain
the discrepancies noticed in the
signing of a sponsorship deal with
Puma and other contentious
issues.
But Gusau balked at the
invitation, rather he headed to
Awka in Anambra State to hold a
rival congress. It was there the
Autonomous AFN was born.
Interestingly, people like Mr.
Ogba and Prof. Ken Anugueje who
were on board at Awka withdrew,
after they saw the hand writing on
the wall; most especially after the
Nigeria Olympic Committee
declared the ‘Autonomous AFN’
an abnormality.
Unbowed, Gusau had an ace up
his sleeves. He refused to
surrender the AFN WA
membership code, thus shutting
out any correspondence between
the Abuja AFN and world athletes
ruling body. He also went to court
to seek redress and he got a
favourable judgement. However,
the sport ministry, a defendant in
the case appealed all the way to
the Supreme court, judgement is
pending.
It was at this Juncture, WA and
Confederation of African Athletics
decided to mend fences. And after
deliberations held in Abuja back
in April both parties agreed on a
number of issues. The sticky point
was the AFN constitution. Gusau
wanted his Awka 2019 congress
amended constitution to hold
sway in the conduct of the election.
The idea was rejected by the WA
and CAA, because the congress
that gave birth to the 2019
constitution did not get the
Okowa
Ibrahim Gusau
appendage of majority of AFN
members and the AFN general
congress. The 2017 AFN
constitution was adopted instead.
Gusau and Adeleye refused to sign
on the WA and CAA mediation.
They have since threatened to
drag the WA and CAA to the Court
For Sports Arbitration for
“interfering” in local federation
matters.
However, with the recent election
observers believe that Mr. Okowa
will usher in a fresh start.
“We have seen the last of the
leadership tussle in the AFN
hopefully,” said a member of
newly inaugurated board.
“I believe that Okowa will run
an all embarrassing board. As for
Gusau, he is only riding his luck...
let’s see how far he can travel on
the path he has chosen.
“It is rather unfortunate the
former Sports Minister, Dalung is
pushing Gusau on. They are only
in it because of their shared
interest of seeing Sunday Dare fail
as sports minister.”
However, if reports by an online
media is anything to go by, the
battle, it seems has just begun.
Gusau is said to be nursing a
plan to go to court over the June
14 election, hoping that the court
will delegitimise the Abuja AFN.
“I am going to tell you with all
authority that already we are in
court. We have gotten a date,” Mr.
Adeleye was quoted as saying.

C
M
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SATURDAY Vanguard, JUNE 19, 2021
CROSS WORD PUZZLE
SOLUTION ON PAGE7
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