Why Buhari ordered arrest of Dasuki, others by Vanguard Media Limited

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VOL. 25: NO. 62630

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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Presidency, Senate, PDP in war of words 6 over TSA

Biafra: Count us out, S-South tells 5 agitators

$2.9BN ARMS DEAL:

Why Buhari ordered arrest of Dasuki, others •As 13-man probe committee submits report

By Levinus Nwabughiogu

B U J A — PRESIDENT Muhammdu Buhari last night ordered the arrest of the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki (Rtd), for allegedly siphoning billions of dollars earmarked for arms purchases. In ordering the arrest, President Buhari observed that the actions of the erstwhile NSA

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Panic in Lagos, as security operatives tackle oil thieves 42 Mr & Mrs S-EAST GOVERNORS—From left, Deputy Gov. of Anambra State, Dr. Nkem Okeke, Governors Okezie Ikpeazu, Abia State, Rochas Okorocha, Imo State, and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Enugu State at the South East Governors Forum in Enugu State, yesterday.

SOUTH EAST VOICE

World Bank, NEWMAP inspect villages under erosion threat in Imo See Inside C M Y K

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TABIA PRINCEWILL

Why do we hate Nigeria?

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DEAR

BUNMI

ROTIMI FASAN

I can't keep up with her!

Diezani AlisonMadueke's plea for mercy

COLUMNIST:

Putin vows reprisals over downed Russian plane in Egypt — P41 Economy indices stabilise as GDP improves 8

2 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

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4—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Ogbonnaya, PS(CMO OHCSF); Dr. Joe Abah, Director-General, (BPSR) and Mr. Ochapa Ogenyi, Director, (OSAP, MDG) as members

Terms of reference

CONVOCATION: From left, The Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar III; Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State; Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; an awardee of honorary degree, Prof. Ayo Banjo; representative of the Minister of Education, Prof. Julius Okojie, and Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, at the convocation of the University of Ibadan, yesterday. Photo: NAN

Our economic policy focuses ordinary man — Buhari FG sets up committee to restructure MDAs To roll out programmes, policies, slogans onChange Agenda By Favour Nnabugwu

BUJA — PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said the focus of his administration’s economic policy was to elevate the ordinary man through empowerment and poverty alleviation. He said this in Ibadan at the University of Ibadan’s 67th Foundation Day and award of doctorate (Ph-D) degrees. Buhari, who was represented by Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, the VicePresident, however, said the nation needed creativity and thinking to forestall the imminent collapse of her economy. He said: “In Nigeria, we are confronted with the GDP growth. This time calls for uncommon creativity and thinking on how to forestall the imminent collapse of our economy. “We need to think of how to unravel the morbid ideology of terrorists. How to turn around our economy into that which the people desired. We need to think of how poverty could be reduced and the unemployed in the country empowered.” Meanwhile, the Federal Government, yesterday, set up a 16-man committee to rationalize Ministries, Departments Agencies, MDAs, in line with the government decision to reduce cost of governance. Also, yesterday, the government said it would soon roll out programmes, policies and slogans on the “Change Agenda.” The President said in spite of the fall in the price of oil, the nation still had the hope of a greater future and called on Nigerians to embrace discipline, faithfulness, C M Y K

honesty and strong commitment to the nation’s development for the realisation of that hope.

Need for attitudinal change

The President also stressed the need for attitudinal change in the country, saying that it was a major factor hindering the country’s growth and development. He said that the country was full of talents, creative minds and great leaders but that its shortcoming could be attributed to the character of some Nigerians. He said: “The future of a nation lies on three major poles, namely creativity, technology and character. It is great to note that the most crucial of all is character, which combines resilience, humility and commitment.” Buhari promised that his administration would be more committed to the rule of law, public/private sector development and rapid infrastructure development, adding that the government was determined to develop agriculture and agro-allied industries, and support creative youths. He said: “We cannot bring about the desired development without basic infrastructure. Nigerians have all it takes to succeed.” Similarly, Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State also stressed the need for the people to have attitudinal change. He appealed to the university to take the lead in the promotion of attitudinal change, productivity and sustainable development.

FG set up 16-man c'ttee to restructure MDAs

Meanwhile, the Federal Government, yesterday, set up a committee to rationalize Ministries, Departments, Agencies, MDAs, in line with the government decision to reduce cost of governance. The government had cut down on the number of ministries from 31 to 25. The Federal Government said the 16-man committee is to rid the institutions of overlapping, duplication functions and redundancy within two weeks. The Head of Service of the Federation, Mr Winifred OyoIta, at the inauguration of the committee on the review of the structure of MDAs in Abuja, said the Federal Government was resolute to reduce the cost of governance in order to achieve desired service delivery to Nigerians. She said: “The primary concern of the present government is the effectiveness and efficiency of its institutions for delivering public service to meet the needs of every citizen. During the Federal Executive Council on Wednesday, November 11, 2015, Mr. President announced a restructuring of Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies, reducing the number of ministries from 31 to 25. Similarly, the number of permanent secretaries was streamlined from 42 to 36.” “There is need to establish effective structures for the ministries, including proper absorption of their existing personnel as well as ensuring that they get running without

much delay.” Oyo-Ita explained that the merger of some of the MDAs was to ensure better coordination, improved service delivery and improved implementation of sectoral programmes. She said: “There is no doubt that functions of some ministries and their agencies are expanded, while others are required to realign their focus. “It is a very sensitive national assignment which calls for your time and commitment. That is why we have chosen people of high integrity who would not be influenced by primordial sentiments. This is another unique opportunity for us to re-set the public service to meet the change objectives of the present Government.” “I would like to implore you to bring your wealth of experience to bear on the assignment and work assiduously to ensure proper restructuring and merger of the affected MDAs.”

Members of the c'ttee

Other members of the committee who were selected from retired and serving public officers include: Prof Oladapo Afolabi; Alhaji Isa Bello Sali; Alhaji Bukar Goni-Aji: Chief A. O. Okafor; Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed; Mr. Sylvester Akinsole Arikawe; Alhaji Tukur Ingawa; Mr. A. S. Olayisade; Dr. Habiba Lawal, PS (Science & Technology); Alhaji Mohammed Bukar, PS (GSO, OSGF); Alhaji Mohammed Abbas, PS (EFO, OSGF); Mrs. Nuratu Batagarawa, PS (SPSO, OHCSF); Mr. Innocent K.

On the terms of reference outlined by the Head of Service, the committee is to carry out a review of each ministry’s functions and responsibilities and determine the appropriate functions to avoid overlap, duplication of functions and redundancy; to assess the current organizational structure of each ministry and recommend an improved structure for efficient and effective service delivery; to examine the nominal rolls of the MDAs and make appropriate recommendations for effective deployment of staff. Other terms include: to identify and align all the mandates of the 25 existing MDAs in line with government priorities and Change Agenda; to examine and recommend the distribution of the existing assets and liabilities of the MDAs; to review the operational systems, designs and processes so as to retool and reposition the MDAs for efficient and effective service delivery; and to advise Government on any other matter(s) that would further facilitate achieving the key objectives for the restructuring of the MDAs. Speaking on behalf of the members of the committee, the chairperson, Mrs Ebele Okeke, thanked the government for the confidence reposed in them and promised to complete the task within the time fame give to them.

Programmes, policies, slogans on Change Agenda

Meanwhile, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said his ministry would soon roll out programmes, policies and slogans on the “Change Agenda.” The minister said this at an interactive session with newsmen , yesterday, shortly after he met with the Association of Civil Servants of Nigeria in Abuja. Mohammed said the programme would enlighten Nigerians on the need to positively change their attitude and ensure they do the right things. The minister said the change agenda of the present administration could only succeed if Nigerians decided to change their attitude towards the change mantra. He said that things have changed in the last few months and that Nigerians were now imbibing the culture of change. The minister said President Muhammedu Buhari had demonstrated the virtue of change by instructing his drivers to obey traffic rules at all times. He said the President had adhered strictly to transparency in his fight against corruption. Mohammed said Buhari and the ministers had also imbibed the culture of keeping to time slated for any event by the organiser.

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POCKET CARTOON urged “ well-meaning Igbos to call their children/wards to order to prevent an avoidable crisis.” “We call on the law enforcement agencies to be more vigilant. “We believe in one Nigeria and will do all within our power to protect the unity of Nigeria,” they stated.

A call for peace FORUM—From left: Dr. Myma Belo-Osagie, Managing Partner, Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie; Olorogun Sonny Kuku, President, Bank Directors Association of Nigeria, BDAN; Mr Adebayo Adelabu, Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria and Mr Dotun Sulaiman, Guest Speaker, during the 2015 Stakeholders' forum of BDAN held in Lagos. Photo Lamidi Bamidele.

Biafra: Count us out, S-South tells agitators By Emma Amaize, Emeka Mamah, Innocent Anaba, Anayo Okoli, Nwabueze Okonkwo, Francis Igata & Chimaobi Nwaiwu

YO—THE ethnic nationalities of the South- South geo-political z o n e , Tu e s d a y , denounced demands for Biafra by Igbo in the South-East zone and called for an immediate cessation of pro-Biafra protests on their soil. This came as the South East Governors Forum, SEGF, summoned an emergency meeting of Igbo leaders to discuss the persisting protests by members of the Movement for the

Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, which has paralysed economic activities in the old Eastern region. In a 10-point communique issued at Uyo at the end of a meeting held under the auspices of the Conference of Ethnic Nationalities of the SouthSouth at Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, chaired by HRM, Obong (Dr) EU Ekidem, Ntisong Ibibio III, the Ntisong of Ibibio land, they dissociated the South-South zone from the “so-called Biafra.” Representatives of Ibibio, Efik, Anang, Ijaw, Itsekiri, Urhobo, Ikwerre, Oro, Isoko and several other nationalities attended the summit.

IT'S UP TO YOU BY AYO ADIO

IFE can weigh huge demands on our shoulders but beyond our inadequacies lies the true genius. If we decided to move past what seemed to limit us, that which held us back will become the leverage for our elevation. It's up to you.

TAKE HEART BY ELLA RANDLE

The universe is so well balanced that the mere fact that you have a problem, also serves as a sign that there is a solution— Ella Randle

ON’T see obstacles. See solutions. Too often, we tend to focus on the problems and difficulties along our path. Our mind tends to find whatever we are looking for. If we’re seeking out excuses to fail or to justify our decision not to push forward, we’ll find them – in the form of setbacks, constraints and limitations. But if we obsess about finding a way past any of these restraints and breaking through to the level of success we set out in search of, then magically we discover these solutions. When you feel like giving up. Ask for help and support. We cannot live in splendid isolation.

SAYINGS OF OUR PEOPLE WHAT the dog sees and barks, the sheep has seen for a long time and maintains silence.

Among them were the interim chair of the group, HRM Ekidem, Convener of the meeting and Secretary of the Itsekiri Leaders of Thought, ILoT, Delta state, Barrister Edward Ekpoko, Albert Akpomudje, SAN (Urhobo) and president general of OgbakorIkwerre in Rivers state, Prof A.M Onyeozu. Pastor Nelson CocoBassey (Efik ethnic nationality), Ulap Bidiak Uloh (Oro ethnic nationality), Amechi Ogbonnia (Itsekiri), Obong (D) Ukpong Umoh and Hon Obong Aniedi Ndem were at the conference and signed the communique. The South South nationalities said, “We will not allow any inch of the land of the ethnic nationalities mentioned above and other lands of the South-South to be part of the ill-thought-out enterprise.” “We call for a halt to demonstrations for Biafra on our land henceforth as it touches on the collective sensibilities of our people and could provoke ethnic crisis. “We are not only surprised but shocked that Igbos who returned to Nigeria after the fall of Biafra in January 15, 1970 with tales of woes and horrors can talk about Biafra,” they asserted. They added: “It is in the interest of Igbos that the country of Nigeria is protected as they have more investments outside their homeland.” The Conference called on governors, political leaders and traditional rulers of the South-East geopolitical zone to “speak out now as their silence is becoming eloquent.” Furthermore, the SouthSouth ethnic nationalities

The South East Governors’ position was contained in a communique issued after a meeting of the governors in Enugu yesterday. The communique read by the Governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha after the meeting at the Government House Enugu in the evening said. “The South East Governors met today (yesterday) November 17, 2015, and deliberated on a number of issues and resolved as follows: “To appoint a high level Economic Advisory Committee to harness the economic potentials of the people of the South East working together. “The governors are concerned about the poor state of the Federal Government roads in the zone namely the Enugu – Onitsha, Aba- Ikot Ekpene , Owerri – Port Harcourt, Enugu – Port Harcourt, among others which need urgent intervention by the Federal Government. “On security, the issue of MASSOB/ IPOB, was discussed and they resolved to consult widely with Ohanaeze (Ndigbo), traditional rulers, development unions, clergy, and other stakeholders on how to ensure lasting peace in the zone. In furtherance to this, the South East Governors scheduled an emergency meeting of stakeholders onSunday, November 22, 2015, at Enugu. “Attendance to the emergency meeting include all National Assembly members, all honourable ministers and other invited stakeholders from the zone. “They meanwhile, advised MASSOB/IPOB to continue to toe the line of peace as this is the only way to ensure economic development of the zone.” Those who signed the communique included Governors Okorocha, Ifeanyi Ugwanyi (Enugu); Okezie Ikpazu (Abia) and the Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr Nkem Okeke, who stood in for Governor Willie Obiano. The Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi who lost his mother recently was absent at the meeting and

no reasons were given for his absence. Answering reporters’ questions on which faction of Ohanaeze the governors wished to work with, in view of the disunity within the group, Okorocha said that “whatever is available as Ohanaeze, we will see to it” that they participate. He said also, said that there was no vacuum in the leadership of the governors’ forum as any of them could be chairman. The forum has not had a substantive chairman since the exit of the former Governor of Abia State, Ochendo Theodore Oji, who was now in the senate.

Itsekiri, Warri territories not Biafra—INYC

In tandem with the communiqué issued in Uyo, President of the Itsekiri National Youth Congress, INYC, Esimaje Awani in a statement in Warri, Delta State, yesterday, warned that “Itsekiri and its territories should not be included in any IPOB or Biafran plan.” He stated that Itsekiri were an indigenous ethnic group of Nigeria’s Niger Delta region of Delta State presently resident in the Warri South, Warri North and Warri South West Local Government Areas bordering the Atlantic Coast of Nigeria as their homeland with their only neighbours being the Bini to the North, the Ijaw to the South, the Urhobo to the East and the Yoruba of Ondo State to the Northwest. Awani noted that from about 1490 - 1884, the Itsekiri had an independent political kingdom known as Warri Kingdom that was not subordinate to any of the World Powers in Europe or any African Kingdom, adding that it was in 1894 when the Niger Coast Protectorate was established that it came under the protection of Her Britannic Majesty vide the Treaty of 1884. According to him, by another Treaty of 1894, the Itsekiri remained under

the British until the Colony and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria was created and in 1914, without consultation with the Itsekiri people, Lord Lugard decreed Nigeria into existence and made Warri Kingdom (Itsekiri homeland) part of this enterprise. He said by the map of The Republic of Biafra of May 1967 comprising of Edo and Delta states of Nigeria was never envisioned as a part of Biafra by the legendary Chukwuemeka Dim Ojukwu, saying that the current inclusion of present Delta State, including the Itsekiri National territories of Warri Kingdom without due consultation is preposterous, totally unacceptable and ultimately invalid. “IPOB and Biafra have their rights of agitation for freedom of self determination as enshrined in the United Nations declaration, but other minority ethnic groups not duly consulted and their approval secured should not be dragged along to avoid the mistake that led to the civil war. “The magnanimity of Itsekiri in allowing Igbos celebrate the Igbo Cultural Day in our land should not be taken for granted as we urge IPOB to delist Itsekiri territories and Warri areas from its proposed map,” he said.

Cabal leadership

Spurred by President Muhammadu Buhari’s stance on the indivisibility of Nigeria,a faction of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra,MASSOB,yesterday, asserted that the people of Eastern Nigeria are bent on secession. MASSOB frowned at the skewed structural existence of Nigeria insisting that it favoured no ethnic group rather the ‘cabals’. Factional Director of Information,MASSOB,Mr. Uchenna Madu disclosed this in a statement to newsmen noting that,”Nigeria in the real

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6—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015

Presidency, Senate, PDP in war of words over TSA By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke

RELIEF MATERIALS: Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, receiving relief materials donated by MTN Nigeria at the NYSC IDP Camp, Damare, Adamawa State.

BUJA— THE Presidency and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, were, yesterday, locked in a war of words over the implementation of the Treasury Single Account, TSA, with the opposition alleging discrepancies in figures and facts about the TSA. While the presidency firmly rebuffed insinuations of malpractices in the TSA, the Senate nevertheless insisted on pressing on with its investigation of the implementation of the TSA. Also yesterday, the PDP picked on what it claimed as discrepancies in the accounts of

$2.9bn arms deal: Why Buhari ordered arrest of Dasuki, others Continues from Page 1 brought the nation to international ridicule as the failure to procure the arms incapacitated the military in the face of the insurgency orchestrated by the Boko Haram sect. The order was also extended to several others who were found culpable in the saga. The development followed the release of the interim report by the presidential committee investigating arms procurement. The president had on August 31 set up the 13 man committee to audit the procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector from 2007 to date. A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, stated that Dasuki expended $2,193,815,000.83 on arms, a figure he said did not include grants received by the police and the Department of State Services, DSS, from state governments. The statement read thus: “As part of the findings, the committee has analyzed interventions from some organizations that provided funds to the Office of the National Security Adviser, Defence Headquarters, Army Headquarters, Naval Headquarters, and Nigerian Air Force Headquarters, both in local and foreign currencies. “So far the total extra budgetary interventions articulated by the committee is Six Hundred and Forty Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Seventeen Million, Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighty Five Hundred Naira and Eighteen Kobo (N643,817,955,885.18). “The foreign currency component is to the tune of Two Billion, One Hundred and Ninety Three Million, Eight Hundred and Fifteen Thousand US Dollars and Eighty Three Cents ($2,193,815,000.83). “These amounts exclude grants from the state governments and funds

collected by the DSS and Police. It was observed that in spite of this huge financial intervention, very little was expended to support defence procurement. “The committee also observed that of 513 contracts awarded at $8,356,525,184.32; N2,189,265,724,404.55 and •54,000.00; Fifty Three (53) were failed contracts amounting to $2,378,939,066.27 and N13,729,342,329.87 respectively. “Interestingly, it was noted that the amount of foreign currency spent on failed contracts was more than double the $1bn loan that the National Assembly approved for borrowing to fight the insurgency in the North East. “The committee also discovered that payments to the tune of Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N3,850,000,000.00) were made to a single company by the former NSA without documented evidence of contractual agreements or fulfilment of tax obligations to the federal goverment. “Further findings revealed that between March 2012 and March 2015, the erstwhile NSA, Lt Col MS Dasuki (rtd)

awarded fictitious and phantom contracts to the tune of N2,219,188,609.50, $1,671,742,613.58 and •9,905,477.00. The contracts which were said to be for the purchase of four Alpha Jets, 12 helicopters, bombs and ammunition were not executed and the equipment were never supplied to the Nigerian Air Force, neither are they in its inventory. “Even more disturbing was the discovery that out of these figures, two companies were awarded contracts to the tune of N 3 5 0 , 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 , $1,661,670,469.71 and •9,905,477.00 alone. This was without prejudice to the consistent non-performance of the companies in the previous contracts awarded.” Adesina in the statement added that the former NSA also directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer a certain amount to accounts domiciled in the United Kingdom and the United States. “Additionally, it was discovered that the former NSA directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer the sum of $132,050,486.97 and •9,905,473.55 to the accounts of

Societe D’equipmente Internationaux in West Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America for unascertained purposes, without any contract documents to explain the transactions. “The findings made so far are extremely worrying considering that the interventions were granted within the same period that our troops fighting the insurgency in the North East were in desperate need of platforms, military equipment and ammunition. Had the funds siphoned to these non performing companies been properly used for the purpose they were meant for, thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided. “Furthermore, the ridicule Nigeria has faced in the international community would have been avoided. It is worrisome and disappointing that those entrusted with the security of this great nation were busy using proxies to siphon the national treasury, while innocent lives were wasted daily. “In light of these findings, President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that the relevant organizations arrest and bring to book, all individuals who have been found complicit in these illegal and fraudulent acts”, the statement submitted.

CAC pastors assault Vanguard's Photo journalist in Ibadan

By Ola Ajayi

BADAN—NO fewer than 10 pastors from one of the two factions of the crisis-ridden Christ Apostolic Church have thrown their pastoral callings to the wind and assaulted Vanguard Newspapers' Assistant Photo Editor, Mr. Dare Fasube in the premises of the Federal High Court in Ibadan. Fasube, who alongside others, were at the court when the incident, happened, is still recovering from the trauma of the assault which took place last week Thursday. The church has been enmeshed in a leadership crisis for over two decades and the

crisis has created two factions in the church. They are the General Executive Council and Supreme Council with each faction claiming ownership of the church. The Supreme Council had dragged the other faction to court over alleged forgery of some church documents. After being docked, the former General Secretary of a faction, Pastor Gideon Okegwemeh, and Akeem Mohammed, former Director of Corporate Affairs Commission were coming out of the court room when Mr. Fasube was trying to take their photographs. About 10 men who accompanied them to court descended on

Fasube, asking why he wanted to take their pictures. While trying to focus his lens properly to get the shot of the former director who was trying to cover his face and turn away from the camera, other "men of God" asked him why he was running away and he told them that the journalist wanted to take his picture. The men jumped at Fasube and manhandled him even ashis colleagues told them that he was a journalist and was only doing his legitimate business. All entreaties to the “men of God” who reportedly came from Lagos fell on deaf ears, until the commotion attracted court officials who intervened.

the presidency and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC on the reported meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and officials of the commission. The opposition party alleged that INEC’s denial of the meeting despite affirmation of the meeting by presidential villa was reflective of the lack of trust in INEC’s ability to conduct a free and fair election in Kogi State this weekend. Accusing the administration of double speak in its assertions on the TSA in a press conference in Abuja, yesterday, PDP spokesman, Chief Olisa Metuh said: “The PDP has watched with keen interest some disturbing recent development, particularly, the exchange of words between the National Assembly and the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Executive over the controversies surrounding the handling of the remittances in the Treasury Single Account (TSA) as well as the conflicting statements between the Presidency and INEC on the revelation of secret meetings between the two bodies on Kogi governorship election. “On the controversies trailing the operations of the TSA, the conflicting statements emanating from the federal executive, via the minister of information and the CBN underscore the fear being raised by the Senate that there may have been underhand deals in the process. “Whereas the Senate has ordered its committee on finance and public accounts to investigate the remitting and handling of N2.5 trillion into the TSA, the federal executive, through the minister of information, had earlier informed the nation that the sum of N1.4 trillion has been remitted, while the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) put its figure at below a trillion and announced an estimated collectable amount of N1.2 trillion. “The PDP finds this discordant tune and Monday’s brazen attack by the minister of information on whistle blowers as completely unacceptable and contradictory of a government that rode to power on the garb of ‘Mr. Clean’. “This is in addition to the fact that the firm handling the TSA remittances has been given the leeway to rake millions of naira into unknown purses from fees charged MDAs for training of their personnel involved in the TSA.

“The PDP challenges the present administration to show transparency and be bold and honest enough to come out clear on the remittances and operation of the TSA instead of trying to use the veneer of politics to hide the rot already simmering under the APC administration.”

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015—7

Truck crushes soldier at check point in Bauchi By Suzan Edeh

AUCHI— A M I L I T A R Y personnel attached the 33 Artillery Brigade, Bauchi, Samuel Bulus, has been killed by a truck at a military check point near Panshanu village, along Bauchi-Jos Federal highway, Bauchi State. According to a statement by the Bauchi State Police Public Relation Officer, DSP Haruna Mohammed, the accident which claimed the life of the military personnel, happened on November 16, 2015 at about 9pm. The statement said the truck with number plate DAL 22 YE was driven by a 52-year-old man, one Mohammed Girgiri, . The statement read: ”The accident occurred when the truck driver loaded with cement from Abajana in Kogi State and heading to Damaturu in Yobe State, lost control due to high speed and hit an Army personnel on duty, one Private Samuel Bulus attached to 33 artillery brigade at the checkpoint."

Woman, her 2 kids, 7 others killed in Ebonyi auto accident By Peter Okutu

BAKALIKI—NO fewer than 10 persons, including a mother and her two children, yesterday, lost their lives in a motor accident that occurred at Ogbawusa quarters junction along Abakaliki-Afikpo highway. The accident occurred when an 18-seater bus belonging to Ezza South Local Government Area with number plate, NKE 28LG, rammed into a Chinese company’s truck with number plate DKA 17YF. An eyewitness, Mr. Favour John, who spoke to Vanguard at the scene said: “Accidents happen frequently in this place. The truck was trying to turn from Spera-indeo junction, but the bus driver instead of stopping like others, decided to drive through, unfortunately rammed into the truck. The impatience of the driver led to this accident. The most painful thing was a woman and her two children who died instantly at the scene.” Another eye witness, Mr Victor Ituma, said: “I was just coming out from my house and on reaching the junction, the crane (truck) was turning when the bus rammed into it. The truck driver ought not to turn at the junction. It is very annoying that a truck of such capacity could be turning at this junction. There is need for a revolving light or a security guard at the junction to direct road users.” Reacting, the State Commissioner for Works, Mr.

Fidelis Nweze, who visited the scene of the accident, blamed the accident on the recklessness of the driver. According to him, the state government had designated points

NUGU—THE sleepy town of Umuokara,Orba in Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State, has been thrown into mourning after a man killed his younger brother following a fight between the two. The tragic incident took place midnight, last Friday. Police source revealed that the deceased, Ngwu Sunday, shared the same mother with the suspect, Ngwoke Chukwudi, but had different fathers. Findings showed that the suspect, who is the elder brother, had engaged his younger brother, believed to be about 25 years old, in a fight over a yet-to-be established differences. Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Ebere Amaraizi,DSP, confirmed the incident in a statement and explained that the deceased died as a result of injuries on his head when the suspect hit him with an iron.

“The deceased was hit with a piece of iron on the head, he fell and became unconscious. It was further gathered that efforts made to revive him as he was rushed to a nearby hospital proved abortive as the doctor on duty confirmed him dead. The state command of the Police has commenced a full scale investigation into the incident, with a view to arresting the

•Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic bursar kidnapped

The suspected cultists and kidnappers INSET: Pistol hidden in a loaf of bread.

By Jimitota Onoyume

ORT HARCOURT— FOUR suspected bandits were gunned down during a gun duel with men of the Rivers State Police Command.

suspect who after committing the act took to his heels.” Meantime, operatives of the 9th Mile division of Enugu Police command, in the early hours of November 15, 9th-Mile nabbed a suspected cult kingpin identified as Okey Onee, from Uburu in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.

Attempt to abduct monarch in Bayelsa fails By Samuel Oyadongha

ENAGOA—Attempts by some unknown gunmen to kidnap the paramount ruler of Gbarain Kingdom in Yenagoa Local Government Area was foiled by the combined2 team of community youths and security operatives in the area. The police public relations officer, Asinim Butswat said: “On November 15, 2015, at about 2300hrs, some unknown gunmen stormed the residence

Government Area, Mr Joe Egede, said the mass transit company had been closed down until further notice, threatening to sack all the drivers of the mass transit and employ new ones.

Police kill 4 suspected robbers, kidnappers in Rivers •Arrest bandits who hid pistol in a loaf of bread

Man kills his brother in Enugu By Francis Igata

for diversion for vehicles coming in and out of the state to allow easy flow of traffic within the state capital. Also, the caretaker chairman of Ezza South Local

of HRH Gabriel Akah, the paramount ruler of Gbarain Kingdom, at Gbarain community, in an attempt to kidnap him. Policemen and community youths successfully repelled the attacked. “However, one Antu Onoyo ‘m’ 37years, Obafemi Kayode 27 years and Kayode Adeniji 29 years, all of Gbarain Community, sustained bullet wound injuries and are responding to treatment at the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa.”

This came as the Bursar of the Rivers State-owned Ken SaroWiwa Polytechnic, Bori, in Gokhana Local Government Area, Lilian Nkanbia Davies was abducted. State Police Commissioner, Mr Musa Kimo, said the robbers combined kidnapping with robbery, noting that one of them was involved in a foiled kidnap operation, weekend, around Odili Road area of Port Harcourt. According to him, the kidnappers were forced to abandon their victim, Mr Emmanuel Akujobi, and his Lexus SUV because of the hot chase from Policemen who responded to a distress call. Mr Kimo said another gang of four engaged his men in a shoot-out on Ada George area, saying one AK-47 riffle, police uniform, 50 rounds of 7.62 live ammunition were among items recovered from the bandits. The commissioner, who paraded 21 suspected cultists at the Police headquarters, said they were arrested during different operations by his men in Ahoada West Local Government Area in the last two weeks, assuring that they would be arraigned in court accordingly.

Pistol hidden in loaf of bread

Mr. Kimo who said his men smashed a syndicate that specialized in robbing those who made withdrawals at banks and ATMs, disclosed that two

others were also arrested with a pistol hidden in a big loaf of bread. According to him, the two robbers with a pistol hidden in a loaf of bread, robbed victims in commercial vehicles. “They pretended to be passengers and suddenly they pulled out their guns to rob other innocent passangers. Luck ran out on them and were nabbed by my men,“ he said.

Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic bursar kidnapped

Meanwhile, bursar of the Rivers State-owned Ken SaroWiwa Polytechnic, Bori, in Gokhana Local Government Area, Lilian Nkanbia Davies, was yesterday abducted by unknown gunmen. Vanguard gathered that he was whisked away by unknown gunmen around Yeghe community on her way from work. Public Relations Officer of the state Police Command, DSP Ahmad Muhammad, confirmed the development, saying the Police were making frantic efforts to secure her release, Acting Rector of the school, Dr Onongie Moses, appealed to her abductors to release her unconditionally. It could not be confirmed at press time if the kidnappers had established contact with family of the hostage for ransom.

8—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Economic indices stabilize as GDP inches up By Emeka Anaeto, Economy Editor

AGOS — THERE are indications that the declining trend in nation’s economic health is on the recovery path going by current indices from the National Bureau of Statitistics, NBS, which show a marginal increase in Gross Domestic Product, GDP, in the third quarter (Q3) 2015 against what was recorded in the second and first quarter (Q2 and Q1) 2015. In the Q3, 2015 report released, yesterday, by NBS, Nigeria’s GDP grew by 2.84 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in real terms as against 2.57 per cent growth recorded in the preceding quarter, though lower by 3.38 percentage points from growth recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2014. The GDP rate was 3.86 per cent in the first quarter of this year. Two days earlier, NBS had reported that the nation’s inflation rate has lowered to 9.3 per cent in October 2015, from 9.4 per cent in the preceding month. Both inflation and GDP, the two key measures of economy’s health have been in the negative directions since this year due to massive decline in the nation’s oil revenue, the bottlenecks in the foreign exchange market as well as the relative inactivity in the public sector attributable to lack of full take-off and activity at the federal government level. GDP is the monetary of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period. In the Q3 2015 the GDP at current basic price was N24.313 trillion as against N22.859 trillion in Q2 2015 and N22.933 in Q3 2014. On the other hand, inflation mirrors a sustained increase in the general level of prices for goods and services. The inflation rate was 9.3 per cent in October 2015, slightly down from 9.4 per cent recorded in September 2015. The slight improvement in the GDP during Q3 may be attributed to equally slight improvement in the output of the oil industry as NBS report says that peliminary data on Oil production reflects output at 2.17 million barrels per day (mbpd) up from 2.0 mbpd in Q2. Oil production was also marginally higher to the corresponding quarter in 2014 by 0.02 mbpd when output was recorded at 2.15 mbpd.

Senate asks JAMB to extend validity of results to 3 years Orders it to stop re-assigning candidates to schools not applied To summon registrar to explain lopsided admission By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke

BUJA— THE Senate, yesterday, directed the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, to begin to extend the validity of its results to a period of three years. This was even as it ordered the board to immediately stop its policy of re-assigning candidates to schools they never applied to, saying such policy was contrary to the act establishing the board. To this end, results obtained from the board by candidates seeking admission into universities are expected to last for three years. The red chamber, which order came following a motion entitled: ”JAMB’s New Admission Policy, “ sponsored by Senator Joshua Lidani, APC, Gombe South, which was debated during plenary, also urged JAMB to consult widely with Parents Teachers Association, ASUU and all other stakeholders in the education sector with a view to coming out with a friendlier holistic, comprehensive and sustainable admissions policy. It also directed its Committee on Education to enquire into circumstances surrounding the JAMB policy, including all allegations of favouritism and generally review the power of JAMB vis-a-vis administration and submit findings within one week. Earlier, in his motion, Senator Lidani frowned at the JAMB’s policy of posting candidates to schools, including private universities whose fees, he noted, were beyond the means of the candidates’ parents or guardians, saying in some cases, candidate were posted to universities located far away from their places of abode thus placing additional financial burden on their parents. Lidani expressed worry that although the Federal Ministry of Education had since suspended the implementation of this policy, JAMB was still going ahead with its implementation, thus creating more hardship for parents and uncertainty in the education sector. He said he was concerned given that the policy runs contrary to the letters and spirit of Section 5(1)(C) iii of the JAMB Act, which according to him, requires that JAMB should take into account preferences of the candidates in their choices of schools and the subsequent confusion surrounding the directive that only candidates

whose names were forwarded to the university by JAMB were eligible for post-UTME screening and others would have to go back to JAMB website to find out their new institutions. Senator Lidani expressed concern that since the policy was announced, the board was faced with series of massive protests by parents and candidates of and some organizations like the Association of Tutorial School Operators of Nigeria as well as other numerous stakeholders. He said JAMB, at its 2015 Combined Policy Meeting, held

on July 14, 2015, in Abuja, announced the adoption of a policy whereby candidates of universities with surplus applicants for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations, UTME, were reassigned to other universities with lower number of candidates than their capacities. While noting that JAMB was a board created by an Act of the National Assembly in 1989 to administer a centralized admission for universities, polytechnics and colleges of

education in Nigeria. He further noted that by Section 5(1) (C) iii of the JAMB Act 2004, the function of the board, among other things, was the general control of the conduct of the matriculation examinations for admission into all universities, polytechnics and colleges of education and also include the placement of suitable qualified candidates in the tertiary institutions having taken into account, the preferences expressed or otherwise indicated by candidates for certain tertiary institutions and courses.

FLAG-OFF: From left: President Muhammadu Buhari; Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State; the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Godwin Emefiele and Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh during the official flag-off of dry season rice and wheat farming in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State, yesterday.

FG earmarks $25bn for investment in transport, energy — Osinbajo

SABA—THE Federal Government is to set aside $25 billion (about N4 trillion) for investment in transport and energy sectors in Nigeria. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo announced this at the 4th Niger Delta Development Forum in Asaba, yesterday. Osinbajo said President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration was committed to partnering with the private sector to reduce poverty in the country. According to Osinbajo, the money is being set aside to empower the youths and alleviate poverty. He said: “We will not measure how well we have performed by macroeconomic indicators but by how many

millions of Nigerians we are able to bring out of poverty. “So, collaborating with the private sector, we will impact the youths through agriculture, information technology and skills development in other areas aimed at reducing unemployment in the country.” He urged those concerned with the development of the Niger Delta to protect and instigate development in the region. He urged private sector operators to explore opportunities in the energy/ power sector to drive the small and medium scale enterprises. Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of

Delta State said although the country was passing through “turbulent times,” the region would benefit if they see it as an opportunity to diversify. He asked the forum to provide an overview of the state of natural resource exploitation in the Niger Delta. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Osinbajo was represented at the occasion by Mr Dan Abia, Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). The forum, organised by PIND Foundation, in partnership with USAID-Nigeria, had "Collaborative Efforts for Stimulating Investment and Inclusive Economic Growth in the Niger Delta," as theme.

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Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 9

Fuel scarcity: Be patient, FG tells Nigerians •To check subsidy burden with price-regulatory mechanism from January •149 truckloads of fuel deployed to Abuja, environs — DPR •38m litres lifted across Nigeria — NNPC By Michael Eboh HE Federal Government, yesterday, urged Nigerians to exercise patience over the fuel crisis currently witnessed across the country, while it assured the public that the fuel queues currently witnessed in petrol stations would disappear within the next 72 hours, as it has stepped up activities to ensure a significant increase in fuel supply. Speaking during a monitoring exercise of fuel stations in Abuja, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, also warned that, henceforth, any oil marketer caught hoarding the product, would be forced to dispense all the products in its tanks to motorists for free, while stiff sanctions would be meted out to the marketer subsequently. Kachikwu, who is also the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, said, “There is enough supply within our facilities. Some of the pipeline issues are being addressed. We are moving stock massively. Most of the stations in Abuja have products right now; it is just a matter of time before the queues disappear.

Disappearance of queues “I have also instructed DPR, as they proceed, if they see any station that has the product and is not selling, they shouild sell all the products for free to customers and we will impose heavy sanctions on that filling stations. So sealing them, is not the answer, it is penalising them that matters. I urge Nigerians to be patient, stop panic buying, No need for panic buying, there is product, and we are going to get to everybody.” He further stated that the Federal Government would pay oil marketers the amount owed them as subsidy immediately it secures the approval of the National Assembly. He, however, lamented that sustaining subsidy payments at the current level is a major problem for

the country and it is happening through the magnanimity of the president. FG to review fuel pricing mechanisms to check subsidy burden.To this end, he said, “By January, we will have price regulation dynamics that will enable us address the critical issues for the marketers. We are going to look at the pricing dynamics to see how we are going to sustain supply at the current environment. We are going to look at it to see if we have enough budgetary provisions to deal with those issues. We are working closely with the president and we are going to find solutions to this problem.” Also speaking, Director of the Department of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Mordecai Ladan, assured Nigerians that fuel was available and there was enough quantity to go round the country. He, however, appealed to Nigeria to desist from panic buying, saying that “If we are patient enough, within the next 72 hours, the queues would thin out.” 149 truckloads of fuel deployed to Abuja, environs — DPR: Meanwhile, the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, yesterday, stated that 149 truckloads of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol, were deployed to oil marketers in Abuja and other surrounding states on Tuesday, November 17, 2015. The DPR, in a statement by its Head, Public

Relations, Abuja, Mr. Mohammed Saidu, stated that of the 149 trucks, 99 were dispersed to Abuja, while the rest were deployed to surrounding states. Giving the breakdown of fuel supply to oil marketers in Abuja and the number of trucks allocated to them, the DPR stated that Forte Oil received four trucks; Conoil received 10 trucks; Mobil eight trucks; MRS - seven trucks; NIPCO - six trucks; Oando - 11; Total Plc - 14 trucks; NNPC Retails - 34 trucks and IPMAN - five trucks. The DPR also stated that the immediate environs outside Abuja received 32 trucks while others received 18 trucks. NNPC deploys 38 million litres across Nigeria: The NNPC, however, stated that 38.278 million litres of fuel were dispatched to petrol stations across the country on Monday, November 16, 2015. The NNPC, in its Daily Dispatch Report to Filling Stations, stated that its Suleja depot trucked out 6.62 million litres; Kaduna depot - 1.85 million litres; Kano - 6.15 million litres; Minna - 0.3 million litres; Gusau depot - 3.444 million litres; Mosimi depot -4.2 million litres and Satellite depot - 3.49 million. Others are: Ilorin depot 0.629 million litres; Ore 0.832 million; Ibadan 0.413 million; Gombe - 5.3 million litres; Benin - 0.331 million litres; Port Harcourt - 0.032 million litres; Aba 0.179 million litres; Makurdi - 1.58 million litres and Enugu depot 2.933 million litres.

Realnews Magazine holds anniversary lecture

HE Realnews Magazine and Publications Limited will hold its third anniversary lecture today. Realnews is focusing this year’s lecture on the economy which is currently in the doldrums. All the economic indices in the country now ranging from depleting foreign reserve, depreciating value of the naira, the double digit interest rates, high rate of unemployment especially amongst youth to inflation rate which is now on the increase show that there is need for a rethink

of the economic direction Nigeria is heading, especially in this new civilian administration that most Nigerians want Change. The lecture entitled: “It’s the Nigerian Economy, Stupid”, which will be delivered by Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, a renown economist and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, will take place at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki Expressway, Victoria Island, Lagos.

10 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

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Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 11

Alleged TSA fraud: Ex-Speaker urges Fayose to exercise Gov’s stance, a ploy to conceal fraud —APC restraint By Rotimi Ojomoyela

KITI State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, was yesterday advised to forward evidence of alleged diversion of N25 billion from the Treasury Single Account by President Muhammadu Buhari to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,

EFCC, rather than engaging in frivolous criticisms. This was just as the All Progressives Congress in Ekiti State described Governor Fayose's stance against the TSA as a deliberate ploy to conceal fraud. Ex-Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly and a

Osun signs MoU with IITA on agriculture By Gbenga Olarinoye

SOGBO—IN a bid to make agriculture the mainstay of the state’s economy, the governor of Osun State, Mr Rauf Aregbesol, yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MOU, with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA. The ceremony which took place at the Executive Lounge of the Office of the governor in Osogbo will have the state release 204.39 hectares of land around Ago Owu in the state, to IITA for the purpose of conducting research and

setting up demonstration farms for best farming practices. IITA will also carry out cassava, plantain and other crops multiplication and train Osun youths on modern, commercial and profitable farming. Signing the MOU on behalf of the state government, Governor Aregbesola stated that releasing the farmland to IITA will complement Osun agriculture programme, extending robustly the agriculture value chain and create jobs for farmers, especially the youths that are being attracted to farming.

chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Hon. Femi Bamisile, who expressed disappointment that only Governor Fayose, among the 36 governors, had

B A D A N — PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has said that with the policies put in place by his administration, the future of the country is bright adding that all the challenges being experienced currently would be controlled. According to him, challenges like infant mortality, extreme poverty, insecurity, climate change and the rabid activities of terrorists which militate against the progress of the country, would be controlled. This came just as the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, gave suggestions that could nip the excesses of Boko Haram in the bud. Buhari spoke through the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, during the the Foundation Day ceremony and 67th convocation of the University of Ibadan yesterday. The president also hinted that the budget would focus on technology, power, transportation, access to

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solar power and promotion of entrepreneuship small scale businesses. “The future of Nigeria is bright. Our nation will yield its fruits for her people and make the citizens to live decent lives. By the grace of God, we will succeed,” the Vice President said on behalf of his boss. The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad

By Rotimi Ojomoyela

D O - E K I T I — WORRIED by the spate of kidnappings and terrorism in the country, members of Ekiti State House of Assembly have commenced proceedings that will make the state uncomfortable for perpetrators of the crimes. To this end, two of the three laws that were deliberated upon at the Assembly’s plenary on Tuesday dwelt on curbing of crime. They are Office of the Public Defender Bill (2015) and Ekiti State Kidnap and Terrorism (Prohibition) Bill (2015, which had successfully passed the

Sa’ad Abubakar III, who is now the Chancellor of the university, was conferred with the Doctor of Law at the ceremony. Alhaji Abubakar noted that the activities of Boko Haram insurgents in the North East could partly be blamed on the socioeconomic factor of Almajiri, urging the government to give urgent attention to it.

Buhari tasks engineers on professionalism By Dayo Johnson & Daud Olatunji

K U R E — PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari yesterday, through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Babachir Lawal, charged the Nigerian Society of Engineers, NSE, to instill professional integrity in the practice of engineering in the country. He spoke at the opening ceremony of the NSE engineering national conference held in Akure, the Ondo State capital. He also decried quacks within the profession.

as a fraud meant to deceive Nigerians, saying he would boycott any meeting called by the Federal government to deliberate on the issue.

Ekiti Assembly begins proceedings on anti-kidnapping, terrorism laws

Nigeria’ll overcome challenges —Buhari By Ola Ajayi

consistently attacked the TSA, urged the governor to learn how to exercise restraint. Fayose, on his part, on Sunday, described the TSA

“I urge the Nigerian Society of Engineers and other relevant regulatory bodies to continue to instil professional integrity in the practice of engineering in Nigeria. “Engineers, by virtue of their professional calling, are saddled with the responsibility of building world class infrastructure for any society,’’ he said. The National President of the NSE, Engr Ademola Olorunfemi said that the shortage of infrastructure poses a major challenge to the nation’s economic development and constitutes impediment to the achievement of its targets.

second reading and were passed on to appropriate House committees to scrutinize for final passage. According to a statement by the Specia Assistant (Media) to the Speaker of the House, Stephen Gbadamosi, the plenary, presided over by the Speaker, Right Honourable (Pastor) Kola Oluwawole, witnessed robust debate by the members. Presenting the bills from the order paper, Deputy Leader of Business, Honourable Adeniran Alagbada, lamented the trauma that victims of kidnap and their family members are often subjected to. Also speaking on the Public

Defender Bill, Chairman, House Committee on Information, Honourable Olugboyega Aribisogan, noted that the bill would afford the poor who lack financial capability to pursue their cases and have the opportunity to access justice. In the same vein, Chairman, House Committee on Health, Dr Babajide Omotoso; Honourable Akinleye Ekundayo, Honourable Titilayo Owolabi-Akerele, Honourable Wale Ayeni and Ayodele Fajemilehin, who also contributed to the motions on the floor, described the laws as those that would have direct positive bearing on the lives of the people of the state.

12—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Delta Assembly rejects state Auditor-General nominee By Festus Ahon

SABA—DELTA State House of Assembly, yesterday, rejected the appointment of Mrs Mary BrownNjokamma as the state AuditorGeneral, arguing that the woman had worked for 42 years as against the mandatory 35 years in civil service. Mrs Brown-Njokamma, who had served as Auditor-General (Local Government) for 10 years, was employed in the civil service in 1973. Following the unanimous decision of the House through voice vote, the state government is expected to forward another nominee in her stead while she proceeds on immediate retirement. Meanwhile, the House, during its plenary session, announced the constitution of 28 Standing Committees with the Majority Leader, Mr Tim Owhefere, who represents Isoko North, emerging as Chairman, House Committee on Information. The member representing Ethiope West, Miss Eriathake Ibori, was named Chairman, House Committee on Finance and Appropriation, Chief Dennis Omovie, Warri South II, is the Chairman, House Committee on

DESOPADEC; Mr Anthony Elekeokuri, Ika North-East, Chairman Committee on Public Accounts; while the Deputy Speaker of the House, Mr Friday Osanebi, Ndokwa East, is Chairman, House Committee on Legislative Compliance. Others include Chief Sherriff Oborevwori, Okpe, Chairman,

Committee on Capital City Development; Mr Efe Ofobruku, Chairman, House Committee on Works; Mr Alphonsus Ojo, Ukwuani, Chairman, Committee on Transport; Mr Samuel Mariere, Ughelli North 1, Chairman, Committee on Water Resources; Mr Johnson Erijo, Isoko South II, Chairman,

Committee on Establishment; Mr Timi Tonye, Patani, Chairman, Committee on Health, Mr Daniel Mayuku, Warri South West, Chairman, Committee on Education, and Mr Osi Okocha, Aniocha North, Chairman, Committee on Commerce and Industry, among others.

BRIEFING: From left: Prof. Faraday Orumwense, Vice Chancellor, University of Benin; Prof. Lawrence Ezemonye, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Administration and Mrs O. A. Oshodin, Registrar, during a briefing on the forthcoming 41st Convocation/45th Founder's Day ceremonies of UNIBEN, yesterday.

Agbor to renew ties with Urhobo, Dein assures By Emma Amaize & Theresa Ugbobu

GBOR—THE Dein of Agbor Kingdom, Delta State, HRM Ikechuku Keagborekuzi I, has expressed his willingness to reestablish the relationship between Agbor and Urhobo ethnic nationalities in the state. HRM Keagborekuzi I, who spoke at his palace in Agbor when he played host to the youth wing of Urhobo Progress Union, UPU, led by its president, Ovie Anthony, disclosed that he would embark on a visit to Urhobo leaders and communities, next year, as part of the undertaking. He commended the youths, who came to invite him to the annual national congress of UPU, holding next month, for their thoughtfulness, assuring that he would participate in the congress. The monarch said he was impressed at the level of understanding of Agbor history and culture shown by the visiting youths of Urhobo nation and declared that he would break tradition to confer chieftaincy titles on two youths of Urhobo nation present at the occasion, though it was not the tradition of the palace to confer

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chieftaincy titles on non-Ikas. He, however, stated that his ancestors named a street in Agbor after Jereton Marierie, an Urhobo man, promising to break the

record. The Dein said the visiting youths of Urhobo nation were the best he had seen and interacted with anywhere in Africa, adding that if the

elders and people of Urhobo nation do not value them, he, from the eyes of his ancestors, has tremendous value for them, as they are exceptional.

Court orders Army Chief to remove handcuffs handcuffed the suspect to his from hospitalized suspect hospital bed with military men By Gabriel Enogholase

ENIN—A Federal High Court sitting in Benin, Edo State, has ordered that his earlier directed that the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, and the Commander, 4 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Benin, must remove the handcuffs on a Belgium-based Nigerian, Mr. Daniel Owie, who is currently receiving treatment at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, UBTH, from gunshot injuries, must be obeyed. Mr. Owie, through his counsel, Benjy Iloube, had dragged the Chief of Army Staff and others to court, seeking to enforce his fundamental rights following his continued handcuff to his sick bed by the respondents. Trial judge, Justice Muhammad Lima, had also ordered that the applicant must be produced in court yesterday,

when the matter came up for hearing but was not done. It will be recalled that Mr. Owie was shot on the order of a yet to be identified Army Captain, who alleged that the applicant was an armed robber and had wanted to snatch his car along Ihama Road in Benin. The Army Captain was said to have taken the applicant to UBTH, for treatment and had

guarding him since then. Justice Liman who reaffirmed the order of the court, told counsel to the defendants, Mr. Samuel Birisibe when the case came up for hearing that the order must be obeyed as the matter before him was a weighty one and directed the counsel to tell the respondents the implication of disobeying an order of the court.

EGCDF commissions N244m projects in Delta State, respectively.

HE Egbema Gbaramatu C o m m u n i t i e s Development Foundation, EGCDF, under the Chevron Nigeria Limited-sponsored Global Memorandum of Understanding, GMoU, has commissioned 14 projects worth over N244 million in Gbaramatu and Egbema communities in Warri SouthWest and Warri North Local Government Areas of Delta

At the commissioning of the projects which include, walkways, teachers' quarters, solar-powered water scheme, guest houses, town hall, shoreline protection and sand-filling projects, two 200-horse power passport and 19 speed boats, Chief Michael Johnny, Chairman, EGCDF, said the projects were expected to meet the yearnings of the people.

UNIPORT ASUU demands release of kidnapped colleague By Davies Iheamnachor

ORT HARCOURT— LECTURERS in the University of Port Harcourt, UNIPORT, under the auspices of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, have called for the immediate and unconditional release of their colleague by his abductors. Dr. Eebah Lebari, who teaches in the Department of Management, Faculty of Management Science, in UNIPORT, was abducted on October 17, at the entrance to his residence in Mbuoba area of Port Harcourt while returning from work. The gunmen were said to have allegedly traced their victim, Lebari, from his office to his residence where he was blocked at the gate and forcefully whisked away at gunpoint. One month after his abduction, his family and ASUU in the institution have expressed worry that no contact had been made with the kidnappers. Addressing newsmen, yesterday, the UNIPORT ASUU Chairperson, Prof. Anthonia Okerengwo, condemned the act of violence and kidnap directed at lecturers.

Ogbueshi Ogeah passes on

R Francis Ogeah, father of Chike Ogeah, immediate past Commissioner for Information, Delta State, is dead. Dr. Ogeah, a distinguished medical doctor, philanthropist and community leader, died in Lagos on November 15, 2015. He is survived by his children, grandchildren and a great grandchild.

Late Dr. Francis Ogeah

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—13

Women protest over Oshiomhole’s comment against Igbinedion By Gabriel Enogholase

ENIN—WORRIED by the recent outburst of the Edo State governor, Mr Adams Oshiomhole, against the Esama of Benin Kingdom and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, chieftain, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, women from across the state under the aegis of Concerned Edo Women, yesterday, took to the streets of Benin to protest the governor’s attack on the Igbinedion family. The women who were half nude and clad in red attires expressed their displeasure over what they described as “disrespectful utterances by the governor on the Bini chief and father of the erstwhile governor of the state.” They said the insults were uncalled for, noting that the language employed by the state governor was worrisome and offends the Bini nation, who are very respectful people. They adored the sterling lifestyle and qualities of their son and Esama of Benin, Chief Igbinedion. Some of the women who said they decided to show solidarity with the patriarch of the Igbinedion family, were half nude, armed with various placards with inscription such as “Oshiomhole, you are always insulting your elders”, “Go and beg for forgiveness,” “Nemesis will catch up with you,” among others at the city centre. The protesting women in their hundreds, took the peaceful

protest to the Kings Square and other major streets in the state capital, they also visited the Emotan Statue, where they stopped briefly to express their sadness before the traditional chief priest, who, while addressing them, spoke in Bini dialect in solidarity with the women and applauded their effort for deeming it fit to resist evil and rebuke the governor for his statement against the Esama

of Benin Kingdom. “We are women and as mothers, sisters and aunts to Chief Igbinedion, we say no to any form of disrespect to his person. We cannot see evil in the land and support it. We are against the action of the governor particularly on Chief Igbinedion and his household. We want the governor to apologize to the Esama. All we are asking the governor is to stop

insulting elders from Benin Kingdom, so that we do not completely go naked and place curses on him,” they said in Bini dialect. On his part, the priest of the Emotan Statue, while receiving the women, said the protest was a welcomed one as nobody, regardless of his position in the state should insult Bini chiefs and elders.

TRADE MISSION: From left: Vice President, Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce, NBCC, Mr. Alan Davies; Vice President NBCC, Mrs Theresa Ananyi and the Special Duties Adviser, NBCC, Mr. Uwamai Igein, at the just concluded NBCC’s trade mission to United Kingdom.

PDP alleges plan by APC to rig Bayelsa gov poll Allegations false and unfounded — APC By Emem Idio

ENAGOA—THE Bayelsa Restoration Campaign Organisation of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the December 5, governorship election has raised alarm over alleged plot by the All Progressives Congress, APC, to rig the forth coming governorship election in the state. Addressing newsmen yesterday in Yenagoa, the Director of Publicity of the campaign organisation, Jonathan Obuebite, alleged that moves were on by the APC to compromise Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, officials and security agencies to give APC victory in the election. He also alleged that the APC was working with two Northern governors and some important persons in the Presidency to achieve the objective of rigging the Bayelsa governorship election, adding that the party had made military and police uniforms and distributed same to thugs to intimidate and

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harass voters on election day. He said: “We have unearthed a dubious plan to compromise INEC Bayelsa office to give authentic result sheets to APC leadership during the election which will then be used to rig the election. “However, we can confirm that this plan has been rebuffed by INEC officials since it borders on criminality, hence we conclude that this was why the APC has been chorusing lack of cooperation by INEC in the state. If we may ask, what manner of cooperation do they want from INEC in Bayelsa State? “Besides the above nefarious and unpatriotic acts, we have also discovered that APC in Bayelsa State is busy cloning and buying up permanent voter cards, PVCs, which they hope to use to distort the outcome of the election by falsifying result of the card reader as well as compromising the card readers that would be sent to PDP strongholds throughout the state.”

Sylva allegation

dismisses

Meanwhile, the Sylva-Igiri Campaign Organisation has described the allegation by the Restoration Campaign Organisation of the PDP that the APC was plotting to rig the December 5 governorship election as “false and unfounded.” Reacting, yesterday, the Director of Media and Publicity, Sylva-Igiri Campaign Organisation of the APC, Chief Nathan Egba, said it was shocking that the PDP would quickly turn around to raise the allegations that the APC had put before the security agencies to investigate the Serieke Dickson-led government. He said: “There is, of course, no truth in the allegation that our party is planning to rig the election in connivance with security agencies and other institutions like INEC. This is the thinking of a sinking ship and a loser. “Our reaction to what the PDP has said is very simple.

Every single thing they are alleging against the APC is precisely what the campaign organisation of the PDP is doing. “What they are trying to do is to deflect attention from their plans, realizing that their plans had been exposed. “For instance, we have called the attention of the security agents to the activities of a senior INEC official in Bayelsa State who is working closely with them to compromise the election. The said official was used to rig the last National and state Assembly elections in the state.”

Oyegun blames Biafra agitation on bad governance By Levinus Nwabughiogu

BUJA—THE National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun, yesterday cited bad governance over the recent past as responsible for the agitation for Biafra. Receiving the immediate past governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Anambra State, Mr. Tony Nwoye, at the APC national headquarters in Abuja, Odigie-Oyegun also dispelled insinuations that the APC was determined to foist a one-party state on the country. Nwoye, who led a faction of the PDP loyal to him to the APC National Chairman, said that those aligned to him have decided to leave the PDP upon the reign of impunity that he said was characteristic of the party. He claimed to have the blessing of party leaders in Anambra State such as former VicePresident Alex Ekwueme, Chief Arthur Eze and Chief Emeka Offor, in the move to the APC. Receiving Nwoye and his supporters into the APC, Odigie-Oyegun expressed happiness that the SouthEast has risen to embrace change, urging them to rally round President Mohammadu Buhari. According to him, bad governance was responsible for the agitation for the sovereign state of Biafra long after the civil war.

14—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015

YORUBA UNITY FORUM PAYS TRIBUTE TO LATE HID AWOLOWO PHOTOS: SHOLA OYELESE

From left: Amb. Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosumu, Rev (Mrs) Tola From left: Chief Kehinde Sofola, SAN, Ambassador Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosumu, Oyediran, Sen Femi Okurounmu, and Chief Ebenezer Babatope. Rev. (Mrs) Tola Oyediran, and Chief (Mrs) Bola Doherty,Treasurer, Yoruba Unity Forum, during the Yoruba Unity Forum's day of tributes for late Mama HID Awolowo at Ikenne, Ogun State, yesterday.

From left: Chief Emmanuel Adelana, Senator Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Bolanle Gbonigi, and Sen. Anthony Adefuye.

From left: Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Mr. Niyi Owolade, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, and Chief Supo Sonibare.

From left: Mrs Abimbola Akinloye-Oguntunde, Chief Cor nelius Adebayo and Chief Ayo Adebanjo at the event.

Biafra: Count us out, S-South tells agitators Continues from Page 5 existence favours no ethnic group but only the cabals,politicians,high profile personalities. Biafranism is deeply rooted in consciousness of every Igboman and major ethnic groups in the South-South geopolitical zone. “The Biafran referendum that will be conducted by the United Nations,UN,will testify to our popularity and acceptance by Biafrans. We view the Nigerian Army’s decision to hit Biafran protesters as a rancour of jittery and dislocated institution. “Non-violent Biafra agitators are very much disappointed and amazed that the Nigerian military will descend so low in threatening the non violent Biafra agitators. The military should not heat up the polity. The threat from the Army is a wrong signal to Nigeria because the current Biafra is heavily rooted outside Nigeria. We shall remain non-violent in our pursuit for Biafra.” MASSOB went further to describe Buhari’s second coming as a vendetta mission, and he has not hidC M Y K

den it from the way he is marginalizing the South East . “As the President of Nigeria, he can never openly agree that there is something wrong with the unity of Nigeria, but in his mind and in the mind of his people, oneness of Nigeria is now a thing of the past and President Buhari himself is promoting division with his recent appointments and the ones he did some months ago. “In the last six months of President Buhari’s administration, he has not hidden his hatred for the South East. Even his northern brothers are supporting him and have refused to call him to order over, the type of marginalization the South East has been witnessing in the past six months of his administration or thereabouts. “President Buhari is not pretending about it, and his Northern brothers are equally not pretending, if they have a way of exterminating or wiping the South East out of Nigeria, they will do that, but it is not going to be easy for them, and so they should

stop deceiving Nigerians that they stand for oneness of Nigeria, they are not at all interested in one Nigeria” he said. Negotiating Kanu’s release Meantime, the youth wing of the Igbo apex socio-cultural group, Ohaneze Youth Council [OYC] has said that it would convene a meeting of Igbo youths stakeholders next Tuesday in Enugu to seek solution to the wave of protests in South East and parts of South South by pro-Biafran groups. Meanwhile, the Council has urged President Buhari to ignore those urging him to declare a state of emergency in the South East zone over the wave of protests by Biafran agitators, saying that anybody recommending declaration of state of emergency or military engagement as the best solution to the escalating protests for self-rule by Biafran groups is deceptive and economical with the truth. OYC said it decided to call the meeting as a result of the failure of an earlier stakeholders meeting scheduled yesterday by

South East Governors initiated by Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State. A statement signed by the National President of OYC, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro and the Secretary, Okwu Nnabuike, said named those expected at the Enugu meeting include youth leaders of all communities in Igbo land, including Igbo-speaking communities in Delta and Rivers States and representatives of MASSOB and Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB]. A case for discontinuation of protests In a similar vein, the Abia State government has urged the groups, notably The Indigenous Peoples of Biafra IPOB and (MASSOB) to discontinue their protests, saying that their message has been communicated and their voices heard nationally and internationally. The government advised the groups to engage the Federal Government in dialogue rather than street protests which it said could be hijacked by trouble makers and detractors. Abia government also warned that the entire South East could not afford mili-

tancy at this period of time and urged the groups to change their strategy. According to the government, the pro-Biafra groups have made their statement on their demand for the release of Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, the Director of Radio Biafra and believed that the message has reached the highest places of power. A statement issued by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu’s spokesman, Godwin Adindu said that “Government observed that though the protest [on Monday] has been largely peaceful in Abia State without any incident of violence, it actually disturbed the socio-economic life of the state, hence the need for the pro-Biafra groups to change strategy from street marches to peaceful negotiation with the Federal Government. Faulting Army’s riot act A human right group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law, Intersociety yesterday faulted the Nigerian Army for threatening to crush members of

Indegenous People of Biafra, IPOB who are currently protesting in all parts of Southeast and Southsouth zones over the continued detention of its leader and Director of Radio of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu. It stated that the stern warning was totally misguided, vexatious, shallow, dubiously intended and constitutionally incoherent, adding that it was also grossly misdirected, as it ought to have been directed to the Boko Haram terror insurgents who have severally disclosed their intention to violently destroy the country’s existence sociolegal system and put in place radical Islamic theocracy. According to Intersociety, “We wish to warn and remind the leadership of the Nigerian Army not to forget that there still exists International Criminal Court and other formidable local and international mechanisms through which its commanding officers found engaged in “brutal suppression or quelling” of ongoing peaceful and non violent protests shall be held accountable for crimes against humanity”.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—15

Ford produces first made in Nigeria vehicle By Jonah Nwokpoku with agency reports

DINNER: From left, Isaiah Haruna, Country Portfolio Lead, Cardiovascular, Pfizer Nigeria and East Africa Region; Bukola George, MD/CEO Healthplus Pharmacies; Olumide Akintayo, President, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN; Bayode Akanbi, Country Portfolio Lead, Men and Women Health, Pfizer Nigeria and East Africa Region, and Olakunle Ogunlowo, Country Portfolio Lead Pain/CNS, Pfizer Nigeria, at the dinner/award ceremony of the 88th Annual National Conference of the PSN sponsored by Pfizer, in Abuja.

Adeosun meets W/Bank, AfDB, IMF country directors …asks for sustained assistance By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

HE MINISTER of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has met the Country Directors of the World Bank, Rachid Benmessaoud ; IMF, Gene Leone; and the African Development Bank(AfDB) Dr. Dore Ousmane with a view to maximizing the working relationship between the country and the development finance institutions. She met separately with each of them in her office,

in Abuja, yesterday. It was learnt that the minister asked for a sustained cooperation and assistance from each of the organizations which have been undertaking various developmental projects and programmes towards the socio-economic advancement of the nation. She was said to have assured the heads of the institutions in Nigeria that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration was determined to ensure a prudent utilization of all resources at its disposal

and that it would treasure assistance from them. Mrs. Adeosun was also said to have expressed federal government’s plans towards diversifying the nation’s economy with a view to paying greater attention to the solid minerals sector and agriculture, while increasing power sector capacity in order to create more opportunities in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, MSMEs sector. World bank’s Benmessaoud was said to

Nigeria discovers 44 mineral deposits in 500 locations

HE MINISTRY of Solid Mineral Development on Tuesday said 44 different types of minerals had been discovered in 500 locations across the country. Mr Sanusi Jubril, Head of Mineral and Metal Promotion Centre of the ministry, announced this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja. Jubril said the minerals could be used for industrial and domestic purposes, adding that

more would soon be discovered as research continued. According to him, Nigeria is blessed with copper that can be used for electrical appliances. “We have the rare minerals mainly used for high-tech and they are available in abundance in Nasarawa, Zamfara, among others. “We have kaolin deposit across the country in abundance for industrial use; it is used for the production of papers, paints, rubbers, drugs,

tyres and pens, among others. “Gypsum is also a mineral meant for industrial use such as building plaster, prefabricated wallboards, cement manufacture and for agriculture. “We have limestone, coal, lithium, platinum, granite and gold, among others,” he said. He said that coal could be converted to coal-briquette to warm the rooms during harmatan and could also be used for cooking, adding that it could generates more heat than charcoal.

have told the minister that the organization has been a long-standing ally of Nigeria in her development efforts and that it would diligently work towards a successful implementation of all its projects in the country.

MERICAN CARMAKER, Ford said yesterday that its new assembly plant in Nigeria had built its first vehicle and would produce an initial 10 units a day for the Nigerian market. In a statement, Ford’s sub-Sahara chief executive, Jeff Nemeth said: “The facility will accommodate one shift and will produce an initial 10 units per day for the Nigerian market, creating approximately 180 direct and indirect jobs.” Recall that Ford Motor Company in August, 2015 announced plans to start assembling its best-selling Ford Ranger pickup truck in Nigeria by October, 2015. Ford had said that the move was part of its expansion in Africa and the Middle East. The Nigerian assembly plant which will be in partnership with the Ford dealer, Coscharis Motors Limited is the first outside South Africa, where Ford produces the Ranger for 148 markets.

Priority market The President/CEO of Ford Motor Company, subSaharan Africa, Jeff Nemeth had said: “Nigeria is a priority market for us in sub-Saharan Africa. Depending on how Nigeria develops over time, we are potentially looking at using our Nigerian plant to service West Africa,” he told Reuters news agency on Tuesday. He added that, “The auto market in Nigeria has huge potential but retails only a small amount of new vehicles annually.” According to him, “The sector is dominated by imported used vehicles, while limited financing for consumers to buy new vehicles and the absence of an industrial policy that would encourage suppliers to set up in Nigeria have stunted growth.” The plant located in Ikeja, Lagos will assemble the Ford Ranger using parts and components imported from South Africa. The plant will have the capacity to assemble up to 5,000 units annually, which will be sold in Nigeria.

16—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Community mourns Elder Nwosu

HRISTIAN COMMUNITY including National Holy Ghost Church of Christ, Oko and Christ Disciples Mission, Aba will, on November 19,2015, in Oko, Orumba North Local Government Area, Anambra State, begin the burial rites of late Elder Raphael Nwosu, who passed away recently. Until his demise, Nwosu devoted his time to the service of God through alms-giving, evangelism, among others. Lying in state at his country home will takem place on November 19, 2015, followed by interment same day.

Late Elder Nwosu

We didn’t outlaw Eze Ndigbo in Diaspora —Ohanaeze •Calls for immediate restructuring, Nnamdi Kanu’s release By Clifford Ndujihe

MBRELLA BODY of Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has denied outlawing Eze Ndigbo in the Diaspora, saying that what it prohibited is any Igbo operating as a traditional ruler outside Igboland. The move was part of decisions taken at the special meeting of Igbo cultural organizations in Lagos with the PresidentGeneral of Ohanaeze World-

wide, Chief Gary Enwo Igariwey on November 15 and 16. Clarifying the issue yesterday, Chief Guy Ikokwu, Second Republic politician and a member of Imeobi, the Ohanaeze inner caucus, who was also at the meeting and signed the communique, said ‘’the meeting considered the burning issues of the nomenclature of some Igbo cultural leaders and the current Biafran demonstrations by our youths. "The meeting resolved that youths should maintain their

current non-violent posture, but should ensure that no miscreants for whatever reason financial or whatever take the laws into their hands pending a resolution of the crisis." The governors of the South-East states and other stakeholders and leaders were urged to ensure the immediate release of the youth leader of IPOD, Prince Nnamdi Kanu, who had been granted bail by the Nigerian Court to be free from incarceration. The governors were also urged to immediately canvass with the

Ekweremadu raises alarm on assassination bid By Joseph Erunke &Henry Umoru

A statement issued by his special adviser on media, Mr. Uche Anichukwu which recounted the HE DEPUTY President of incident read thus: “The Deputy President of the the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, yesterday alleged Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, an attempt on his life by a light escaped suspected assassination skinned foreigner suspected to be attempt, Tuesday. “The attempt occurred at about a mercenary. The attempt which has been 10:00am between Apo Flyover reported to the police involved and Dantata Construction repeated failed attempts to crash Company’s yard, close to the Old into Senator Ekweremadu’s Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) official vehicle which was in a Headquarters junction on his way convoy from his residence to the to work. “The suspected assassins who National Assembly complex operated in a tinted, whiteyesterday.

coloured Mercedez Benz AMG E63 without a plate number, were chauffeured by a long-bearded light skinned foreigner, apparently a mercenary. “The vehicle, which was positioned by the Apo Bridge, on noticing that the Deputy President of the Senate’s convoy took the right turn to join the Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway instead, made a turn. The occupants attempted to attack the convoy, but were blocked. The driver violently broke into the convoy and they made several frantic attempts to attack the Senator’s official car."

Presidency for the immediate restructuring of the country into true federalism as advocated by the 2014 National Confab. He continued: ‘’On the issue of the Eze Ndigbo, it was agreed that the word ‘Eze’ is a common title in Igbo land which is generally reserved for those who had been initiated culturally. Such people attach the word ‘Eze’ which means ‘leader’ just like the Hausas in the diaspora call their leaders ‘Seriki’. ‘’However, the cultural name ‘Eze’ does not mean the person is a traditional ruler in any of the towns or villages in Igbo land. Only those who have been crowned as traditional rulers can be referred to as Igwe or Obi or even Eze of a territory. No other person can use such appellations.’’ Therefore, the organisation as stated in the communique has directed that no Eze Ndigbo or Eze Igbo or Eze Udo in the Diaspora like Lagos and other territories outside Igbo land can be referred to as His Royal Highness or His Royal Majesty or otherwise. Any contravention will be visited by severe sanctions including ostracism. They are therefore only cultural leaders not kings.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 17

S a former student of the Sorbonne University in Paris, who also lived not too far from the location which was savagely attacked a few days ago by extremists hiding behind the false cover of religion to strike fear in the hearts of the world, I am deeply traumatised and affected by the attacks. One of the fallen also happens to be a fellow alumnus of the London School of Economics, an institution whose motto, “know the causes of things”, has deeply influenced and guided my thought process. There has been some criticism of Nigerian handling of the affair on social media. Many rushed to proclaim their solidarity with the French yet conveniently ignore the losses endured by the Nigerian army, the civilian casualties (both Muslim and Christian), all victims of Boko Haram whose attacks seem to have become, in the eyes of many Nigerians, just another part of life in this country. A disturbance we pray not to encounter, nothing more. I have heard some say it is more difficult to sympathise with the North because of the paucity of information available and that urban dwelling Nigerians cannot identify with the suffering of rural Nigerians. I am disgusted by the childishness behind this view but more so by what it reveals: Nigerians simply follow trends. We’ve had the originality or capacity for introspection sucked out of us.

Certified illiterates The global view we try to adopt by endorsing #PrayForParis is just another way of showing, as Pat Utomi says of people who attend schools, gain certificates, but have neither the skills nor critical thinking to show for it, that many in this country are nothing more than certified illiterates. What separates Man from animals? Empathy, compassion, sympathy for the trials of others even when those concerned do not look like us or their woes do not immediately or directly affect us. We ape all that the West does, cry for its losses yet we are completely, ironically, desensitised to damages and bereavements closer to home. Boko Haram’s victims number in the tens of thousands yet we care more about a hundred or so foreign deaths. Needless to say, I’m unimpressed by our brand of “hash-tag activism”. To be quite honest, I don’t believe the dead, the bereaved, the long suffering masses of any country whether African or Western should compete for the short attention spans, short lived status updates, tweets or well-meaning but profoundly misguided and confused prayers of our social media using elites who don’t know who they are, what their purpose is or why they should truly care about any of this. While we pray and wail, ordinary people in France have C M Y K

tprincewill@yahoo.co.uk

Why do we hate Nigeria? begun organised resistance to fear and tyranny. We organise little more than forms of entertainment, deadening our minds and senses to the stark realities that surround us. Why should the West care about our pain if we, who are the cause of much of our own misfortune, do not care about each other, our fellow citizens? This brings me to my real focus: Why do we hate Nigeria? I can bet everyone reading this is loudly proclaiming their patriotism and love for this country, even if many of our daily actions do not reflect this. The short answer would probably be because most people secretly feel Nigeria does nothing for them: after all, we provide our own healthcare, water, electricity, security. As the state is divested of its functions all that is left is on paper, “for show” attachment or commitment to Nigeria. Those who travel have no respect for their passport: being a Nigerian doesn’t open doors. Many resent Nigeria, deep down, the same way one would despise an uncaring parent who never sought to provide for the home. But I have one message for those who feel this way, no matter how understandable given the selfishness and greed of decades of misrule and mismanagement: there is no Nigeria without Nigerians, only

Minister of Defence, Dan-Ali

we can make or undo this country. We should then ask: what does it mean to be Nigerian? We know next to nothing about our own country. Many of us do not know or understand the culture or heritage of neighbouring ethnicities, let alone understand their identity beyond clichés. The roads are so bad one can’t comfortably visit many parts of Nigeria and insecurity feeds into the paranoid, hateful psyche some have embraced. Paris is commonly called “the city of love”, some point to its cultural significance as a way to explain why Nigerians in particular, who flock to Paris to sight-see, would be so affected by the attacks. In this case, we must begin to change the narrative about Nigeria.

Celebration of culture

Beyond banal celebration of our culture and trite efforts to re-brand Nigeria, we must first of all get Nigerians to believe in themselves and their country; if we don’t believe in Nigeria, why should others believe in us?

whose community spirit and can-do attitude fight the typically Nigerian “you can’t” mantra. I hope that Lai Mohammed’s legacy will be to enable the use of communication for social change. If we are bound by fear to navel-gazing and selfabsorption, seeing only the reflections of our shared humanity in wealthy Westerners, then it must be Lai Mohammed’s mission to ensure that the stories of all communities under siege from religious or sectarian ignorance are told. Mr President, Honourable Minister, give us a soul! If we cannot yet move around at will, give us something we can identify with, a narrative with real underpinnings and consequences for our development because right now, we have passports but no real country.

I look to our new Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, to do this. Beyond banal, clichéd celebration of our culture and trite efforts to rebrand Nigeria to the international community, as was done in the past, we must first of all get Nigerians to believe in themselves and their country. If we don’t believe in Nigeria, why should others believe in us? We must build awareness of the good within Nigeria without plunging into denial about the bad: ostriches don’t make great nation builders. We must also engage with and encourage those who do good, reward and celebrate them for doing so to fight the perception that only

Lai Mohammed evil-doing pays. In fact, government should go a step further by creating a nation of social entrepreneurs, people

E expressed concern over the resurgence of extremism and ethno-religious conflicts in Nigeria. Personally, I believe the world is falling apart because there are no more real narratives in politics. All that matters in the world today is personal ambition, greed at the expense of the poor masses. Religions still have narratives but even those have cut themselves off from their prophets’ initial intentions. Jihadism, like the money seeking capitalism,which has taken hold of many churches today, is about control, dominion and influence, not God or religion. Will this new administration intelligently debate these crossborder issues, which now pose security challenges? The Ministry of Information will need to explain issues to Nigerians so that they don’t get clarifications or false enlightenment from false prophets or politicians across Nigeria.

Speaker Lagos State House of Assembly

UDASHIRU Obasa reportedly said, at a conference, that women are “violated because of the dresses they wear”. These remarks are reminiscent of the Western and misogynistic middle ages, a time in Africa where paradoxically, women were much freer than they are now. He also seemingly indulged in the same macho, victimshaming and blaming which discourages women from reporting abuse for fear no one will believe them. He was quoted as saying:”We should guard against false propaganda as some reported cases of violence against girls and women have proved nonexistent.” Rather than excuse misconduct from rapists and other abusers, both politicians and civil society should be saying that wrong is wrong, no matter what would-be form of

temptation is witnessed. Although some would gleefully reduce Nigerians to animals, let us stand firm against the erosion of our values and most of all, against the desire to cease to see the humanity in our fellow man.

Dressed to tempt? *Tabia Princewill is a strategic communications consultant and public policy analyst. She is also the cohost and executive producer of a talk show, WALK THE TALK which airs on Channels TV.

18 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 FOLLOWING on the heels of the successful peace pact between the presidential candidates of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Goodluck Jonathan, and the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari in the run-up to the 2015 general elections, a similar deal for peaceful polls has been brokered for the candidates of the eighteen contending political parties in the Bayelsa governorship poll, which comes up on December 5, 2015. The deal, packaged and signed under the watchful eyes of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman’s representative, Mrs Amina Zakari, representatives of the United Nations Development Programme and heads of federal security agencies in Yenagoa, the state capital on November 10, 2015, saw the two main candidates, Governor Seriake Dickson of the PDP and former Governor Timipre Sylva of the APC committing

Bayelsa election peace deal themselves to the terms of the agreement to ensure peaceful conduct before, during and after the election. It will be recalled that the National Peace Committee, made up of former presidents of Nigeria and respected, eminent citizens, along with international stakeholders, had forged a deal for a violence-free general election on two occasions. This went a long way in minimising conflict, though it could not be altogether eliminated. It helped in ensuring one of the most successful elections and transfers of power in the history of the country, whereby a sitting

president conceded victory to the opposition and handed over power peacefully, an act that brought Nigerian democracy lots of accolades and esteem from all over the world. We expect the contenders, especially Dickson and Sylva, who have governed the state, to exercise utmost statesmanship and high sense of responsibility, emulating the noble conduct of former president, Jonathan, who incidentally, is from the state. The Bayelsa election should be used as a platform to show the world that the state is the home of genuine democrats that the whole nation

should look up to. We expect that a similar pact should be signed, not just in Kogi State where a governorship election is coming up on November 18, 2015, but everywhere there is a major election in the country. We hope that these peace pacts and total adherence to them by political actors will form part of our unfolding democratic and electoral culture in the same way that election debates appear to have taken root. The days of elections being openly declared by otherwise respected political actors as “do-or-die” affairs should be a thing of the past. Politicians must conduct their campaigns in a civilised and lawful manner and thereafter submit themselves to the wishes of the electorate, bearing in mind that those who lose elections today can always come back tomorrow more fortified, to try their luck.

OPINION The hand of Esau, voice of Jacob on Edo streets BY DAN OWEGIE

AST week, the Edo State Government alerted members of the public that “some political thugs operating under the guise of civil society groups and students of some tertiary institutions have concluded plans to cause public disturbance and nuisance starting from Monday, November 8, 2015 in Benin City.” The Government said the alert was for members of the general public to be wary of such ill-conceived, politically-motivated and needless protest aimed at causing breach of public peace. Such an alert was what any responsible government needed to do when it gathers intelligence of plot to destabilise the state by any group whatsoever so that innocent citizens are not made to suffer from the greed of a few selfish politicians who would always use miscreants or street urchins to shatter the peace of the public in pursuance of their inordinate political ambitions. Just like the cry of the witch at night and by morning a child dies, some misguided elements after collecting huge sums of money from disgruntled politicians took to the streets of Benin on Monday last week, targeting the seat of power in the state. As expected, their so-called protest grounded commercial activities in and around the premises of the Edo State House of Assembly, King Square, Sapele Road, Reservation Road/Golf Course Road, Dennis

Osadebey and Edo State Government House roads. Innocent citizens plying their businesses in these environs were prevented from doing their businesses. Market women and traders in Oba Market and Ibiwe Street, a commercial nerve centre of the city, were said to have hurriedly closed their shops and business premises for fear of being attacked by the street marauders. To perfect their mischief, the masterminds of the protest recruited disengaged Edo Yes staff to swell their numbers and made them to protest against their sack by the state government almost six months after they were stopped from their temporary jobs. The PDP top politicians also hired some women who claimed they were landladies feigning they were annoyed at the introduction of the Land-use charge, a law enacted by the State House of Assembly with representatives from all parts of the state. A clinical autopsy of the so-called protest shows that some persons who disguised themselves as members of civil society organisations were simply hired with huge sums of money by top leaders of the opposition PDP in the state to foment trouble and attempt to make the state ungovernable because they have found out that their usual trade in Nigerian politics of

What Edo people saw on the streets last week was the hand of Esau but the voice of Jacob

stealing public funds have been blocked both in Edo State by Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s popular government and at Abuja by the Change servant-leader President, Muhammadu Buhari. So, clearly, what Edo people saw on the streets last week was the hand of Esau but the voice of Jacob. The shameless politicians hiding behind the scene, like cowards that they are could not come out to protest by themselves for fear of being lynched by Edo people, hence their resort to recruiting vulnerable citizens and miscreants to do their bidding on the streets. It is important to emphasise that the Oshiomhole administration has a clearcut focus for the peace-loving people of Edo State and cannot be distracted from carrying out its legitimate responsibilities in line with its electoral mandate freely given to it by the great people of Edo State. Equally important is the fact that Comrade Oshiomhole enjoys massive political will in the state and there is no doubting the fact that he also has the courage to confront anyone who intends to make the state ungovernable by whatever guise and in whatever form. Fingers are already pointing at a particular governorship aspirant of the opposition PDP and his paymasters who are mobilising the urchins and providing the financial muscle for them to misbehave on the streets of Benin. Let it be made clear that the Oshiomhole government that Edo people know would not fold its hands and watch political thugs masquerading as civil society organisations attempt to breach the peace of the public or embark on actions untoward and

unbecoming of civil society organisations. The tolerance posture of the Oshiomhole government must not be misconstrued for weakness. Already, the trouble makers are alleged to have penetrated tertiary institutions in Edo State with their ill-gotten wealth to continue to cause a breach of the peace enjoyed by Edo people. To forestall any possible breakdown of law and order and possible breach of public peace, the Edo State Police Command recently issued a warning against alleged plans by unknown groups to carry out violent protests in Benin using students of tertiary institutions. It is equally important to sound a note of caution to parents and guardians to ensure that their children and wards are prevented from being enrolled into the army of destabilisation so that they do not have cause to regret whatever may befall any student who allows himself to be caught in the ensuring cross fire with law enforcement agents. Any student who do not listen to the whistle of the master will surely have him/herself to blame. Edo people need peace and peace that government has provided must be enjoyed to the fullest. Edo people need to join hands with our Comrade-Governor in his effort to bring the dividends of democracy to teeming majority of our people. He needs the collective prayers and support to enable him carry out the lofty business of government which he has been providing this past seven years. • Mr. Owegie, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, wrote from Benin, Edo State.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—19 —19 Send Opinions & Letters to: opinions1234@yahoo.com

Diezani Alison-Madueke’s plea for mercy F

INALLY, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, Nigeria’s Petroleum Resources minister until six months ago, seeks to be understood by Nigerians. The former highflying minister, one of the most influential in the Goodluck Jonathan administration, seems to be begging Nigerians for forgiveness, or at least for some slack in their criticism (or is it hatred of her guts?). Of course, Madueke did not actually ask Nigerians to forgive her. Those are not her exact words, but the intention is quite clear in the series of conversations she has had in the last couple of weeks with celebrity journalist, Dele Momodu. She seems to have come to a belated realisation of that Achebean warning to all misguided leaders that nobody wins a war against their own people. Nigerians have in the last several months been treated to salacious tales of the former minister’s attempt to escape the law, even when there was no pending indictment against her or before her actual arrest in the United Kingdom. But the story out there was that she had been faking ill-health, specifically a

life-threatening battle with cancer of the breast. This was after all attempts by her, the rumour mill had it, to have an audience with President Muhammadu Buhari were allegedly rebuffed by the then president-elect. Jonathan was hardly out of office before Madueke bade the government goodbye, leaving for the United Kingdom. She was suddenly away from the public gaze. For a woman who appeared to relish the spotlight, her absence was immediately obvious. Shortly after would the cancer rumour surface. Nobody had any proof of this or further news of her until she was suddenly flung back into the spotlight by news of her arrest in the UK. Aggrieved Nigerians felt vindicated that they had been proven right about their long held view that Mrs. Alison-Madueke had corruptly enriched herself during her time in office. This while hundreds of millions of her country people suffered abjectly as a direct consequence of the looting unleashed on the Nigerian treasury by she and her ilk. Although a public officer she lived and conducted herself like royalty on Nigeria’s bill. She travelled by chartered flight with family

members, Nigerians heard. A lot was said of and about her but she appeared to scorn the rabble rousing she must have taken complaints and allegations against her for. She simply had no time for Nigerians, not even to ‘set the record straight’ as some of her colleagues in the public eye would say. All of this until her infamous arrest in the UK, followed by lurid tales of extravagant living. But as an alibi, the Madueke family employed the services of a lawyer to state their side of the story. It seemed then that her thick skin was beginning to soften up. Having denied all the allegations swirling about her, her attorney then let it out that her presence in the UK was to attend to her health that was being ravaged by cancer. Now it was official. While this ‘official’ revelation appeared to win her some sympathy, the vast majority of Nigerians were definitely not sold on the cancer story. It appeared to them a sob-tale directed at winning sympathy for one of those who didn’t care if they lived or died. There was no

Ultimately what matters in life are those little things that money can only pretend to buy: the love of those who matter to us, including those we serve as public office holders

Addressing fad of huge corporate fines by regulators bigger cost. The similarity in the condition By Adewale Okoya

S the new reality of cost of doing business in Nigeria begins to dawn on A operators in the private sector of the economy

and potential foreign investors, it is imperative for the new managers of the economy to take another look at the raft of huge fines doled out by various regulatory authorities to major players in the private sector in recent time. They need to embark on this exercise in earnest before investors, local and foreign, begin to see the trend as a deliberate and sinister ploy by the government to shore up its revenue base as oil prices continue to fall in the international market. Before it gets out of hand, the Federal Government should be reminded that businesses left Lagos State in droves and relocated to other states and neighbouring countries when the state government embarked on a drive to augment its internally generated revenue by aggressively pursuing operators in the private sector for the payment of all manner of taxes and introducing fines that were considered outrageous at the time. The state had adopted this method when the Federal Government decided to withhold part of the state’s monthly federal allocation over a disagreement on the formation of additional local governments, LGAs, outside the constitutionally approved LGAs. The huge fines placed on minor infractions like traffic offences or major ones like failure to remit taxes due to the state caused some uproar at the time but the state insisted on having its way. The relocation of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG, Company to Port Harcourt was the biggest blow to the state at the time. At the federal level, the consequence of what is now being described as regulatory rascality is bound to carry a C M Y K

of the finances of the Federal Government today and that of the Lagos State Government between 2004 and 2007 implies that the current spate of huge fines may not be mere coincidence. It will be a grave miscalculation for the chieftains of the All Progressives Congress, APC, from Lagos State who, to all intents and purposes, wield considerable influence in determining the direction of the Nigerian economy today to believe that they can duplicate the survival strategy adopted in the troubled days of their conflict with former President Olusegun Obasanjo at the federal level. Instead, Nigeria’s economic managers must recognise that the need to ease the burdens on businesses has become even more imperative. Burdensome regulatory environment is anathema to the emergence of a stronger private sector. Undoubtedly, businesses will only thrive in an environment where salutary regulatory controls are in place. But the parallel between the timing of huge fines on businesses by regulatory bodies and the experience of businesses in Lagos State about a decade ago brings to mind the suggestion that the fines may be an ingenious bid to survive the dispensation of tight fiscal policy and diminishing budgetary funding from the federal purse. It is incontestable that the contribution of the private sector to the growth of the economy may be affected if regulators become overbearing and are left

Nigeria’s economic managers must recognise that the need to ease the burdens on businesses has become even more imperative

touch of remorse in Mrs. Madueke’s rebuttal of the allegations Nigerians had made against her. She appeared to want their sympathy while trying to show that she had been right and they all had been wrong all along. Her alibi would not wash for many. But it appeared to have opened a window through which she could speak with the world. It is in an apparent attempt to build on this that the Dele Momodu angle entered the picture. In the first part of that encounter between the journalist and the ex-minister that took place in a London hideaway, the latter was portrayed as a reluctant interviewee whose minders would rather not see hold the interview. The whole encounter was made to look like a chance occurrence rather than the scripted plot it is turning out to be. Momodu succeeded in getting Nigerians to believe, even if they didn’t accept, that Madueke was indeed an ailing woman. His description of her appearance contrasted radically from what Nigerians knew of the woman. Yet, it looked like she would leave everything at the point in which her meeting with Momodu ended in London without any further desire to convince anyone. It seems thereafter that Mrs. Madueke was convinced of the positive effect of that bit of her story Momodu tantalised the world with. It won sympathy for her surely, even if some of it sounded quite tongue-in-cheek. And so she went for an encore. Her surrogates put a call through to Momodu fixing a meeting. This time they agreed to what amounts to a more involved interview even if, according to Momodu, no recording device was permitted. Her shrivelled looks that Momodu only de-

unchecked. The huge civil penalty of N100 million slammed on Coca-Cola Nigeria by the Consumer Protection Council, CPC, in 2014 caught many unawares and set the stage for the current spate of huge fines. The penalty, heavy-handed even by CPC standard, contravened the CPC Act which recommends a N50, 000 fines as the highest penalty for the kind of infraction that necessitated the fine. Because Nigerians were not informed whether Coca Cola Nigeria paid the hefty fine or not, it seems other regulatory bodies were emboldened by the development and may have adopted the practice as part of their set-up to award punitive penalties against business concerns. Recently, the Financial Reporting Council, FRC, fined Stanbic IBTC N1 billion and requested that the CBN and the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, investigate the bank and KPMG Professional Services for “financial misstatements.” The council also suspended the registration of four directors of Stanbic IBTC and that of its audit engagement partner, KPMG Professional Services, until KPMG’s innocence is ascertained. The four directors suspended are Atedo Peterside, Sola DavidBorha, Arthur Oginga and Dare Owei. The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, also imposed a N1.04 trillion on the South African telecoms subsidiary of MTN in Nigeria for failing to disconnect 5.2 million unregistered SIMs on its network. In another development, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, imposed a N4 billion fine on Skye Bank Plc and N1.87 billion on First Bank for failing to render appropriate returns on accounts of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC. The CBN also fined UBA N2.94 billion for concealing a portion of the energy corporation’s fund. UBA was sanctioned for also refusing to remit the deposit of the energy firm into the Treasury Single Account, TSA, as directed by the Federal Government. All the banks have paid the fines.

scribed in the first interview is now accompanied with at least one graphic image that has gone ‘viral’, to borrow Momodu’s own words about the social media impact of the first interview. She debunked all allegations of corruption and alleged romance with Jonathan and her cat and mouse relationship with Patience. Truly, no one who knew Alison-Madueke would not feel some pity for her. She is indeed a mere shadow of her vivacious self. Her new look is a resounding rebuke of any primitive acquisition of wealth. It is a sad reminder of the vanity that is all material possession, including the wanton fixation on so-called good looks or beauty. Ultimately what matters in life are those little things that money can only pretend to buy: the love of those who matter to us including those we serve as public office holders, good health and the peace of mind that comes with all of these. Mrs. Diezani sees now that the opinion, if not the love, of the ordinary people matter. For too long she and a few like her in power treated the voice of the people with little or no respect. For too long, she saw no purpose in showing herself amenable to public opinion. All of that makes her latest desire to be seen in a better light look a bit too belated. Many are already fixed in their opinions. And justifiably so. As they argue, if Mrs. Madueke wants their sympathy she first must give back to Nigerians what they believe she has taken. Her alibi is neither here nor there for as long as many see her as a beneficiary of the inhuman Nigerian system that has no respect for the ordinary people. What Nigerians want is justice, not the death of Mrs. Madueke.

Another major player in the private sector, Guinness Nigeria Plc, joined the rank of multinational victims of regulatory fines as it was fined N1 billion by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, for alleged infractions relating to the destruction and re-validation of expired raw materials without prior approval. According to Reuters, Diageo, owners of Guinness, said it did not fully understand the basis for the fine, nor the particular regulations infringed but was in talks with NAFDAC to resolve the matter. Curiously, a review of the NAFDAC Act shows that the highest penalty that it can charge for the infraction against Guinness Nigeria is N100, 000 per infringement. If this is so, does it then mean that Guinness Nigeria committed 10,000 infringements before NAFDAC decided to act? This is most unlikely. NAFDAC, like other regulatory agencies, must understand that multinational companies play by a different set of rules and except where the Chief Executive Officer is criminally inclined, they subscribe to a strict code of corporate governance. The administration President Muhammadu Buhari has given enough indication that it will no longer be business as usual in ministries, departments and agencies of government. It will be unwise to latch on to this disposition to scare away serious investors. Nigeria must avoid a situation whereby major business concerns that are engaged in legitimate dealings would begin to wonder who is next in line for huge sanction by a regulatory body. According to Rita Ramalho, 2015 Doing Business report lead author, World Bank Group: “Although Nigerian enterprises face regulatory obstacles, implementing business-friendly reforms will allow local entrepreneurs use their time and resources more efficiently and thus become more competitive.’’ •Mr Okoya, marketing executive, wrote from Lagos.

20 —Vanguard, WEDNESDAY WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

How lover boy killed girl friend in acid attack By Peter Duru, Makurdi

T was a love story that turned awry, leading to the death of 27 -year old Ladi Moses. Ladi was allegedly bathed with acid by her supposed angry boy friend who was overwhelmed by jealousy and envy.An ex-student of Government Secondary School, Barkin Ladi, Plateau State, Ladi met her untimely death after the deadly attack a few days ago. Vanguard Metro, VM gathered from an eyewitness that the deceased was attacked by a young man popularly called “Baba” at the old Nigeria Prison Service Yard in the Wadata area of Makurdi town where she lived with her parents until her death. According to the source, the duo had been in secret romance over a period of time until the relationship went sour. The source explained that the love birds had carried on despite accusations and counter accusations of infidelity by both parties. However, efforts were made by friends to resolve their differences when it became obvious that the said Baba was getting desperate and restive about the crisis, yielded no positive results.

Positive results ”Actually we thought that they had resolved their differences until the unfortunate incident that led to the death of Ladi which no one envisaged. From what we heard, on that fateful day, Baba called her out of the house around 7pm in the guise that he wanted to discuss an important issue not knowing that disaster awaited her. Unfortunately when the lady approached him, he engaged her in a heated argument which led to a struggle between them. We heard that it was in the heat of the quarrel that Baba removed a bottle containing a chemical suspected to be acid, from his pocket and poured the contents on the lady who instantly screamed and fell to the ground,”the source recounted. Continuing, he said, “He (Baba) immediately fled the scene and left the lady who was screaming and wailing for help. The passers-by who were unaware of what was happening, ran for their lives C M Y K

because we all know that Wadata is an area in Makurdi town that is known for cult activities. It was neighbours who heard her cry, that rushed to the scene to see what was happening. But before their arrival, Baba had fled and disappeared from the area. She was immediately rushed to the nearby Makurdi Federal Medical Centre where she was admitted for treatment. But after a while, went into coma and eventually passed on.” The source told VM that when the unfortunate incident filtered into town, the vigilante group in the area mounted a search for Baba. “He was eventually arrested at one of the motor parks in town when he was about boarding a taxi out of Makurdi town. The vigilante group arrested and handed him over to the police at ‘A’ Division, Wadata, where he was detained to enable the Police carry out their investigations and interrogation,” he added. According to the source, Ladi did not survive the first degree burns as she died two days after her admission in the hospital, inspite of efforts by the medical personnel to save her life.When Vanguard Metro visited the home of the deceased, her heart -broken parents were still in shock and unable to speak on the incident. When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Matthew Oku, who confirmed the attack, said the Command was yet to received situation reports from medical doctors who treated the deceased lady. Oku however assured that the Police were investigating the unfortunate incident, promising that the law would take its full course in the matter.

We heard that it was in the heat of the quarrel that Baba removed a bottle containing a chemical suspected to be acid, from his pocket and poured the contents on the lady

•Ladi in hospital before her death

Ogun pledges to complete ongoing road projects By Jude Njoku

HE Ogun state Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite, an architect, has assured residents of the state of the resolve of the the present administration to complete all on-going road projects it embarked upon across the state before the expiration of its tenure in 2019. The Commissioner also pledged the readiness of the Amosun-led government to open up some new roads which he assured would also be completed within the stipulated period. The Commissioner according to the Ministry’s spokesman, Mr. Ayokunle Ewuoso gave the assurances during the 2015 budget performance visit to the

ministry by the members of the House Committee on Works and Infrastructure led by its Chairman, Mr. Olayiwola Ojodu. “New roads with socioeconomic importance or advantage to our people have been identified. There are so many roads that are on ground; of course some of them will have to be prioritised according to funds available. People are saying that are all these roads going to be abandoned especially the ones that were marked for the urban renewal. I want to say that all these statements are mere imaginations of the people because I am almost too certain that these projects will not only be completed, we will start new ones. Some of these roads are 75 to 80 percent completed,” he said.

Adegbite who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Kayode Ademolake, an engineer explained that out of about N21billion budgeted for the ministry, only N18 billion is meant for road projects. According to him, the agency has spent N1.5 billion so far. Speaking on the recently completed ultra modern shopping mall built by the government at Shapon in the Abeokuta South Local Government Area, the commissioner assured that government would be fair and just in its allocation. He disclosed that allocation to traders would commence as soon as all the necessary papers are completed. Responding, the Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Ojodu commended the ministry for a job well done.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

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Rejection of Nigeria’s non-oil products to EU to drop—SON By Franklin Alli

TRAINING: From left, Director, Product Certification, Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Mr. Bayo Adegun; Director General, SON, Dr. Joseph Odumodu; Deputy Director, Standards Development, SON, Mrs Chinyere Egwuonwu and ACP-EU-TBT project, Lead Expert, Dr. Geoffrey Visser at the inception meeting of SON with key experts for the ACP-EU programme on Capacity Building/Training on Standardization in Lagos.

Shippers Council, Shipping Association divided over cargo tracking that the shipping agencies are only creating disaffection HE Nigerian Shippers’ among stakeholders, especially Council, NSC has faulted the organised private sector by the Shipping Association of promoting falsehood that ICTN Nigeria (SAN) the umbrella will add to the cost of doing body for almost all shipping business. lines operating in Nigeria of He explained that before distorting facts regarding the approving the ICTN, the International Cargo Tracking Federal Government had seen Note (ICTN). the enormous revenue leakages ICTN is a global advanced that were going on, both in the cargo information system on all importation of dry cargoes and imports and exports. the exportation of wet cargoes. Speaking through the Bello said that, apart from Executive Secretary of the blocking revenue leakages, the ICTN implementing agency, ICTN is also needed for NSC, Mr. Hassan Bello, said security reasons. Countering the argument of SAN concerning who bears the administrative cost 115.35 1.00 of ICTN, Bello said that the ICTN cost $3,369.00 -0.15 does not come with additional cost to $15.03 -0.10 importers or exporters, rather the administrative cost is to be paid by 44.16 -0.40 the shipping lines, whom he said had 41.22 -0.52 for long inputted the cost in the bills CURRENCY BUYING CENTRAL they give to DOLLAR 196 196.5 197 consignees in POUNDS 298. 3316 299.0927 299.8537 Nigeria. EURO 211. 484 212. 0235 212.563 FRANC 195. 6674 196.1665 196.6657 “The shipping YEN 1.5984 1.6025 1. 6066 lines have been CFA 0.3013 0.3113 0.3213 billing importers WAUA 269.7934 270. 4817 271.1699 and exporters for it, RENMINBI 30.749 30. 8279 30.9068 and they don’t want RIYAL 52. 2625 52.3958 52.5291 to let go, they have SDR 270.4996 271.1897 271.8797 KRONA 28.3384 28.4107 28.483 been hiding such cost on the final CBN Exchange Rate as at 16/11 /15 bills given to

By Godwin Oritse

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Nigeria importers to pay,” he added. SAN had last week issued a public notice in which it raised alarm that the “implementation of International Cargo Tracking Note (ICTN) by the Nigerian Shippers Council will entail an additional cost for importers in Nigeria”. But the Shippers’ Council reacted sharply by accusing SAN of deliberately deceiving Nigerians and mischievously pitching importers against the government. The ICTN, Bello said is already part of payments that are already being made by importers to the shipping lines or the carrier. According to the Council, “Whether the Shippers’ Council introduces cargo tracking note or not, shipping companies will continue to collect this taxation, the $25 per container and all the other listings are expected to come from the already existing freight taxation collected by the shipping lines on Nigerian freight. The ICTN comes out of payments that are already collected or payable per consignment, it is already included as part of the consignee’s payments.” He accused the shipping lines of forming a cartel and taking advantage of many West and Central African nations.

Before approving the ICTN, the Federal Government had seen the enormous revenue leakages that were going on, both in the importation of dry cargoes and the exportation of wet cargoes

HE Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON, has said it foresees a significant drop in the rejection of the country’s non oil exports to the European Union any moment from now. This optimism is hinged on the ongoing training of 70 staff of the agency over the next eight months by the EU, on requirements for exporting of local honey, cocoa, millet, rice, sorghum and gum arabic to the EU markets. The EU is the main destination for agricultural goods from Nigeria but most of these commodities are rejected because of non-conformity to EU standards. Speaking during a meeting to herald the commencement of the training, SON Director General, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, disclosed that the project is being facilitated by lead experts, Dr. Geoffrey Visser from South Africa, and a Nigerian Dr. Yinka Jayeola, adding that “60-70 staff of the agency have been selected to undergo the training and in turn, they would train exporters in the key sectors.” Dr. Odumodu commended the EU for playing a major role in ensuring that the quality infrastructure Nigeria needs to access international market is in place. He noted, “Today, we are the next buyer within the international community, buying 80 percent of what we are consuming and we sell less than 20 percent of what we have the capacity. And most of what we sell, we didn’t add value to them. That is why it is gratifying to see that Federal Government’s budget from 2016 is looking at diversifying our economy. “One thing I would like to say is that if we want to drive our economy, then we must have created the right quality infrastructure to support exporting our products to international market. That is why the SON has been in the forefront of leading the campaign for a robust quality infrastructure in Nigeria.

Robust quality infrastructure “It is a thing of joy that the EU Technical Barriers to Trade, TBT, programme for Africa and other parts of the world has come to Nigeria and I am excited about this because, sometimes, when you talk about standardizations there is always something to add to what you know. At SON, we focus on market driven standards in the areas of energy, power, and agricultural produce because these are the areas the Federal Government is focusing on in the future. Nigeria has the potential, and all we need to do is to harness the potential and we will get there.” Regarding SON’s position on the links between the capacity building and the Economic Partnership Agreement, EPA, between the EU and the ACP countries, Odumodu said: “Nigeria is not at the point where we can sign the agreement. It makes sense. What we are doing today is to build us to a level where we can be in a position we can consider the agreement but as it is today, it is not feasible. You don’t put people in different levels and expect them to sign agreements to open up borders because it will not be a level-playing field and competition will be one sided.” Mr. Bayo Komolafe, Director, Standards Development, SON, stated: “We requested for the training from EU in 2013, and after series of meetings it has come to reality today. The training is intended to help African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries to conform to the requirements for their goods to be accepted by the EU countries. What we are witnessing today is the technical assistance, through the training of SON’s staff. SON is constantly seeking ways to develop its workforce in line with global best practices.” Lead Expert, Dr. Geoffrey Visser, said “ It is a very ambitious project, considering what Nigeria has to gain in the long run, in terms of more markets, more sales, better infrastructure to increase and improve productive capacity, training opportunities and knowledge transfer. It is a kind of training the trainer so that they can transfer the knowledge to others.”

22 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

It is a fact that as part of efforts to erase the negative perception which has plagued it over the years, the insurance sector has embarked on series of awareness campaigns to educate the public about its rebranded image

INSURAN

Ogun, NCRIB partner on disaster management O

GUN State Government has affirmed its readiness to partner insurance brokers in the area of disaster management and enforcement of Section 64 and 65 of the Insurance Act 2003 on insurance of public buildings. Ogun State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Adewale Oshinowo, made the affirmation while receiving the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers, NCRIB, delegation to the State Secretariat last week. Oshinowo said that it is important to engage insurance professionals in risk management. He said that in view of the recent incessant building collapse and other forms of disasters across the nation, it is expedient for the state, which prides itself as the economic hub of the nation due to its proximity to Lagos, to partner with insurance brokers to win more investors. According to him, government could be saved of unnecessary hassles of dolling out the meagrely acquired fund of the state to compensate victims of insurable disasters when insurance professionals could handle same at a very minimal cost. He however enjoined brokers to think out of the box and be more creative in

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developing products that would directly impact lives of the masses. Meanwhile, the NCRIB President, Mr. Kayode Okunoren, who led the NCRIB delegation on the courtesy visit, applauded the Ogun State government under the administration of Senator Ibikunle Amosun for the human and physical transformation which has been recorded in the state since his assumption of office.

Economic development According to him, no nation could have sustainable economic development by making insurance its last consideration. According to him, funds from insurance constitute a large percentage of investible reserves of most progressive nation apart from guaranteeing peace of mind which was germane to progress. Okunoren regretted that the law on insurance of public buildings that was promulgated to protect citizens against losses is not being adhered to by most states. He therefore solicited the support of the State in the area of compliance with the law on public building and disaster management through insurance.

STRATEGISING: From left, Mr. Victor Dike, Managing Director, Quick Projects; Mr. Wale Onaolapo, MD/CEO, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc; Prof. Pat Utomi and Ugochi Odemelam, Executive Director, Sovereign Trust at the 2016 budget/strategy session for the underwriting firm.

Is your insurance claims meant to defraud your insurer? Stories By Rosemary Onuoha F you have a genuine insurance claim to make from your insurer as a result of a loss you suffered, be rest assured that your insurance company will settle your claims. However, if your intention is to defraud your

insurance company, then be ready to bear the consequences. It is a fact that as part of efforts to erase the negative perception which has plagued it over the years, the insurance sector has embarked on series of awareness campaigns to educate the public about its

rebranded image. Accordingly, insurers have shouted it to who cares to listen that they now pay claims as and when due. Surprisingly, there has been increased number of fraudulent claims in the insurance industry because some persons are capitalising on the new image of the

SA Insurance pays N1.5bn claims, earns ‘BBB’ rating S

TANDARD Alliance Insurance Plc has said that it paid a consolidated claims amounting to N1.5 billion in its nine months’ operations in 2015 just as it has received a ‘BBB’ rating from the South Africa-based Global Credit Rating (GCR) in recognition of its ability to settle verified claims promptly. A breakdown of the above consolidated sum indicates that Standard Alliance was responsible for a total of N801.1m claims while the balance of N714.2m was paid out by its life subsidiary, Standard Alliance Life Assurance Ltd. The claims which were paid out between January and end of September this year to affected policyholders spread across fire and special peril, aviation, marine, motor, oil and energy, general accident, bond and engineering classes of

general insurance as well as the group and individual life policies. Head of Corporate Communications, Mr. Nelson Egboboh, explained that a total consolidated sum of N2bn was paid out by the company and its life subsidiary as claims to affected general and life policyholders during the same period in 2014.

Affected policy holders He explained that the company ’s commitment to settle genuine claims to the tune of N1.5bn despite the pervasive economic hard times businesses were experiencing was in keeping faith with the organisation’s renewed commitment towards settling claims to affected policyholders, noting further that the company recognizes that the best tool to

win and retain customers was its good records of a sound claims administration. Meanwhile, Global Credit Rating, has rated the company “BBB” in recognition of its claims paying ability. Passing a remark in its conclusive report released in October, the rating body observed that the general business underwriting company’s “gross claims rose slightly during the review year, underpinned by the rise in volume of business written,” adding that “although a notable increase was reflected in the oil and gas class, management confirmed that those are related to claims incurred in prior year.” It further observed that “the insurer made increased provisioning across all classes of business which saw the net claims rise by 12% to N1.2bn in 2014 financial year.”

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

industry to defraud insurers. An operator said “The ongoing awareness being created about the ability of insurers to pay genuine claims has improved the perception of the sector by the public. As insurers, we are not shying away from our responsibilities. But the number of fraudulent claims we are receiving now is on the increase. “It is a fact that as we approach recession people are going to get very smart. We are bound to see a rise in fraudulent claims as some unscrupulous elements would want to bully their way into the sector and introduce one or two measures to defraud insurers and then disappear.”

of the contract.” In essence, policyholders should take time to study their insurance contracts very well to ensure that they don’t send a negative signal to their insurer should they mistakenly make a wrong claim. Managing Director of Custodian Life Insurance, Mr. Larry Ademosu said that insurance consumers must ensure that they read through their insurance contracts properly to enable them know what they stand to benefit from their insurance policies. Ademosu said that many insurance companies have stopped writing contracts in small prints, contrary to what

Contract of insurance If your intention is to defraud an insurance company, know that the insurer has every right to repudiate your insurance contract, according to Section 55(2) of the Insurance Act, 2003 which states thus, “Notwithstanding any provision in any written law or enactment to the contrary, where there is a breach of term of a contract of insurance, the insurer shall not be entitled to repudiate the whole or any part of the contract or a claim brought on the grounds of the breach unless- (a) the breach amounts to a fraud ; or (b) it is a breach of fundamental term

If your intention is to defraud an insurance company, know that the insurer has every right to repudiate your insurance contract

is obtainable in time past where insurance contracts are characterised by small prints and jargons. According to him, insurers now write their contracts in simple and plain language which anybody can easily understand; hence, policyholders should ensure that they read their policy documents very well. Mrs. Ekaete AugustineEdet, said that no business today can afford to ignore two very important people which are the customer and the competitor.

Customer service Augustine-Edet said “Organisations that focus hard on the quality of service they provide grow faster, sometimes twice as fast as the competitor in the market place.” While asking what is customer service?, AugustineEdet said, “It is the act of taking care of the customer’s needs by providing and delivering professional, helpful and high quality products and service. It is also about treating customers with respect, individuality, and personal attention. On handling customer complaints, Augustine-Edet said, “When a customer complains, look at it as an opportunity to improve.”

WORKSHOP: From left, Art Professor, Mark Kross; Drama Instructor, Ronya Man; SPAN Founder and Festival Director, Sarah Boulos; Music Academy Director, Bright Gain and Dance Instructor, Jackson Obinna, during the SPANFEST 2015 Art Workshop at SPAN Hub, in Lagos. Commenting further, the rating agency reported that “on a net basis, the insurer’s risk base is fairly well spread across lines of business,” pointing out that the company’s “2015 reinsurance programme is mainly led by well rated counterparties, including African-Re and Continental Re, with each covering 40% of cession.” C M Y K

While confirming the adequacy of the company’s technical reserves, the report observed that “the insurer’s financial statement pertaining to 2011-2014 have been prepared in line with IFRS with 2010 presented according to the previous NGAAP standard.” It noted that the company was growing its business amidst

increasing competitive dynamics over the years, stating also that the company was focusing on penetrating the retail market as it intends to “significantly increase the contribution of consumer lines to overall portfolio going forward.”

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In essence, policyholders should take time to study their insurance contracts very well to ensure that they don’t send a negative signal to their insurer should they mistakenly make a wrong claim

Premium Pension boss harps on health improving lifestyle

ANAGING Director and Chief Executive Officer of Premium Pension Limited, Mr. Wilson Ideva has emphasised the need to adopt health-improving lifestyles to enhance the achievement of both organisational and industry goals. Ideva said this at the company’s management retreat in Lagos with theme “Lifestyle Modification for Peak Performance.” Ideva said, “A positive balance sheet and consistent good returns on investment without a foundation of good health anchored on positive and healthy lifestyle is like building castle in the air. We are also recommending positive lifestyles and accordance of high premium to health to all our clients and retirees whose longevity would impact positively on our business.” The retreat which was facilitated by the Byron Institute dwelt extensively on the need for executives to modify their lifestyles to ensure peak performance. It identified that stress of all kinds and causes are major factors affecting performance in work places. It also emphasised the importance of recognising and paying adequate attention to mental health and also developing strategies for personal wealth creation as it impacts positively on financial stress management. The high incidence of sudden death among executives in the country was decried during the retreat while members of staff were enjoined to adopt healthy lifestyle which encompasses healthy eating habit, physical exercises, relaxation and proper organisation of activities. Yoga, a spiritual and ascetic disciple which includes breath control, simple meditation and the adoption of specific bodily postures was highly recommended for mental control and wellbeing. Apart from lifestyle modification, Dr. Charles Cudjoe, the president of the Byron Institute harped on the need for regular medical check-up and awareness creation to facilitate early detection of health challenges.

Reinsurers could be hit with severe losses

EINSURERS could be hit with worse-thanexpected losses after a major event because worsening terms and conditions have increased their risk exposures. Industry analyst, Taoufik Gharib, of Standard & Poor’s Rating Services, stated this at the PwC/Standard & Poor ’s Reinsurance conference at the Hamilton Princess. Some reinsurance executives have suggested that after years of pricing declines, rates could be near a bottom. But Mr Gharib warned reinsurers could still be getting worse deals in terms other than price. “Reinsurance pricing continues to fall but the magnitude of the decline is less severe than it was in the past,” Gharib said. “However, terms and conditions are worsening — and that is like a price decline, when you’re charging the same price or slightly lower and covering more risk.” He gave the examples of onshore energy or terrorism risks being tacked onto property catastrophe

reinsurance coverage. “The exposures become larger so when there is a loss, it could be larger than expected and that could hurt reinsurers down the road,” he added. He said industry leaders were thinking defensively as they aimed to navigate tricky market conditions, according to ratings agency Standard & Poor’s. “The reinsurers believe that size is becoming increasingly important to efficiently compete globally, to get to a certain level of capital, product offerings and distribution to give them all the options available to navigate through this very competitive marketplace,” Gharib said. “They are coming up with defensive strategies, like M&A to enhance their product offerings and balance sheets and help themselves to continue to be resilient and relevant.” The return on equity expectation for the typical international diversified reinsurer was in the range of 8 to 10 per cent, Gharib said. “Executives will focus on 15 per cent but that is not achievable in this environment. Enterprise risk management was as important as ever for reinsurers in this market environment.”

Send comments & enquiries to insuranceandyou@yahoo.com

24 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Aguero ‘ll make Iheanacho a better player — Toure Y

•Iheanacho

Champions Enyimba target Rangers quartet N

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ewly crown l e a g u e champions Enyimba have plan to sign four players from ‘Oriental’ rivals •Onoriode Rangers led by striker Bobby Clement for the new season. A very reliable source at •Okoro the Aba side disclosed that the management of Enyimba hopes to keep the bulk of players who help win a seventh league title at the weekend, but it will also like to get some quality additions. Enyimba targets in Rangers are •Madu Odah Onoriode, Christian Madu, Bobby Clement and Osas Okoro, who shone like a million stars in a dogged fight to maintain their top- believe will fit into our plans for flight status. “There is no doubt next season,” said the source. that we are very happy with our “Sure we have spotted great performance in the concluded talents from other clubs and very season but we have to start plans soon, we hope to get their for next season now, hence services. We have targeted four management has started players from Rangers and they negotiations with players who we will soon be in Aba.”

aya Toure insists Manchester City ’s Nigeria youngster Kelechi Iheanacho is perfectly placed to continue his rapid ascent. Kelechi Iheanacho made another step forward in his burgeoning career when he played the final 36 minutes of Nigeria’s goalless draw with Swaziland last week to earn his international debut. It is the latest achievement in the rapid ascent experienced by Manchester City’s 19-year-old wonder kid following his promotion to the club’s first-team squad this season. Despite his country’s media obsessing about him since his breakthrough as the star name of Nigeria’s Under-17 World Cup triumph of two years ago, national team boss Sunday Oliseh seemed to be a late convert to the idea that he is ready to mix it with the big boys, only calling him up as a last-minute addition for the World Cup qualifiers and saying: “I initially called up 23 players but I am adding Kelechi Iheanacho to the list immediately.” But one person already convinced of his ability and potential is City team-mate Yaya Toure. Sergio Aguero’s likely return to the fold for the Blues’ clash with Liverpool on Saturday following injury is set to limit

Iheanacho’s opportunities in that fixture, though he will be hopeful of another place on the bench. But Toure insists the youngster is ideally placed to learn from the Argentine master. And he backs manager Manuel Pellegrini’s decision to elevate him and other youngsters such as Patrick Roberts, Pablo Maffeo and Manu Garcia from the junior ranks. “Credit to Pellegrini as well because the lads are training lots with the first team,” he said. “Kelechi has been able to see Aguero every training session and try to work like him. It’s fantastic, I’m very happy for him. “I always say when you put a good player in a great team with good players around him then they will always perform well.” Toure believes Iheanacho - who already has two first-team goals to his name against Crystal Palace in the Premier League and Capital One Cup - has the intelligence and ability to become ‘one of the top players’. And he believes he is in the ideal environment to do so.“When I started at Barcelona it was always easy to play with great players and learn as well,” he added. “They help you to progress. He’s young and still learning.

NNL moves Super Four play-offs T

he Management of the Nigeria National League (NNL) has announced a shift in date for the commencement of

•Inyama

the Super Four Play offs. The season ending tournament is to determine the over-all champions in the abridged four-division format of the League. Secretary of the NNL, Lawrence Katken said the Super Four will now take place Friday, 27th through to Sunday 29th, November, 2015 as against the earlier scheduled period of 18th 20th November, 2015 . Venue remains Abuja. The reason, according to Katken, is to allow participating Clubs ample time to prepare for the

•Toure

•Aguero Tournament. “We received complaints from the clubs involved asking for an extension of time to enable them get ready and we saw the need to oblige them. We planned to round off the season before the Annual General Assembly (AGA) of the Nigeria Football Federation, which will now hold in the month of December. It is okay by the NNL; we are still committed to organizing a befitting Super Four for our League.” Lawrence Katken was quick to add that the NNL regrets the inconvenience(s) the development may cause participating Clubs, noting however, that the teams involved and their StateFootball Associations have been duly notified.

•Mur

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 25

Owumi praises Wolves players, Delta

AC Milan return still possible for Ibrahimovic

latan Ibrahimovic’s will be the source of constant speculation between now and the end of the season, but the latest set of reports have AC Milan as the favourites to recapture the talismanic Sweden legend. According to a report from Corriere dello Sport, Milan still harbour interest in Ibrahimovic, who is set to be available on a free transfer when his Paris Saint-Germain contract expires in the summer. Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport last week, Ibrahimovic revealed he had the chance to return to his former club over the summer but that it wasn’t what he wanted at that particular moment in time. “Last summer there was a great offer from Milan. If I had said yes, a deal would have been completed,” he said. “However we didn’t reach that point as it wasn’t what I wanted. However I am grateful to Milan. They are the best club I’ve ever played for, and I’ve played for a lot of important teams.”

•Ibrahimovic

arri Wolves CEO, Davidson Owumi, has heaped plaudits on players of the club •Owunmi as well as their financier, the Delta State goverment for ensuring they qualify for the African Champions League. He highlighted the roles of the players for showing commitment despite the hiccups experienced during the campaign. The Warri club supremo further credited the fans and their financier, the Delta State government for supporting the team all through the season. He, however, recognises that there is work to be done ahead of their first-ever appearance in the apex club competition in Africa and believes that the club’s qualification to feature in the African Caf Champions League next season will boost the profile of the Nigerian side.“This is a special moment for the club and we are happy to have achieved this because last season we finished in third and this time we have finished in second which is an improvement. “I must commend the players for showing total commitment and determination in the face of a very difficult season. We had our ups and downs in the season but the players stood firm and were never distracted by the challenging period.

Mata: Spain squad is still in shock

Wenger calls for tougher drugs testing A

•Mata

uan Mata admits the Spain squad are still “in a state of shock” following the terror attacks in Paris last Friday. The European champions’ friendly clash with Belgium in Brussels yesterday was postponed as a result of security concerns in the wake of the shootings and bombings in the French capital, which resulted in 129 fatalities. Speaking shortly after the Royal Belgian Football Association had confirmed the news, Mata revealed he and his team-mates are still shaken by the incident but are endeavouring to “move forward”. “The security measures show respect, but everything was done quietly. There’s a sadness within but we’re trying to do things normally, we must move forward,” the Manchester United man told Cadena COPE. “It’s difficult to explain what happened, we’re in a state of shock. Sadly, these things happen more and more often. “We need a little more dialogue and understanding in order to wipe out these things. “When we learned about it, it was a feeling of disbelief. We’re sportsmen, footballers, but also part of society and this type of thing affects us as it does everyone.”

Paris attack will not stop Murray

ennis star Andy Murray said he will travel to Ghent, Belgium, next week for the Davis Cup final despite the heightened security risks due to the Paris terrorist attacks. “I don’t want to live my life in fear each time I step onto a tennis court,” he declared. Murray survived the mass shooting at Dunblane Primary School in Dunblane, Scotland, in 1996. The eight-year-old Murray hid while a madman murdered 16 of his schoolmates and one teacher before turning the gun on himself. Ghent sits only three-hours away from Paris, where terrorists slaughtered 130 people last Friday in six separate attacks.

•Wenger

Klopp hands Enrique a chance to resurrect career

ose Enrique has been handed a surprise opportunity to resurrect hisLiverpool career by manager Jurgen Klopp. The Spanish full-back, whose last game for the Reds was against Bolton Wanderers in January, looked set to leave Anfield at the end of the summer transfer window after being frozen out and ordered to train alone by Brendan Rodgers. However, the Daily Mail’s Merseyside football reporter Dominic King understands Enrique will be integrated back into the main group once he returns from injury. The 29-yearold, who joined the Reds from Newcastle United in 2011, has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since Klopp replaced Rodgers at the start of October. The German coach might be prepared to give Enrique another opportunity after Joe Gomez was ruled out for the remainder of the season with a serious knee injury last month.

•Enrique

rsenal manager Arsene Wenger called for the introduction of blood tests to stop players doping. The Frenchman had claimed he had seen “many” teams use performanceenhancing substances throughout his career. Wenger said he was unhappy with the current level of testing, expressing surprise at the lack of positive tests. “I’m not satisfied with the level of testing because I believe blood tests should be done,” he told beIN Sports. “If you want to go into a bit more sophistication you have to do blood checks.“Urine checks are superficial and not deep enough to say absolutely sure that we have no doping problem in football. “I think no and I wish no but on the other hand, can you have 740 football players at a World Cup and come out with zero alert on any doping? It’s a little bit surprising. “I hope it is true but I think to be completely sure about it, you want to go into deeper tests.”

‘No Real Madrid enquiry for Lewandowski’

obert Lewandowski’s representatives have denied that Real Madrid have •Lewandowski enquired about the prolific Bayern Munich frontman. A report over the weekend in Madrid paper Marca quoted Lewandowksi’s polish agent Cezary Kucharsky, claiming there was interest from the La Liga giants, but he has now denied that is the case. Kucharsky told Polish paper Sportowe Fakty: “Since Robert signed the contract at Bayern [in January 2014] we have not talked about a transfer with representatives of Real Madrid.” C M Y K

26—VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

DIARY Regional Economic and Financial Forum for Arab States Bahrain, South East Asia November 29, 2015 •Danbatta, NCC EVC

N1.04TRN FINE:

Cape Town, South Africa November 1719, 2015

NCC, MTN play hide and seek on deadline day

Preview New gloves let users feel temperature in virtual reality

Mexican company Vivoxie has created Power Claw, a pair of gloves with an interface that stimulates the skin and allows the sense of touch in cyber worlds. The device generates sensations of heat, cold, vibration and roughness of objects in a virtual reality simulation. The gloves are complemented with Oculus Rift glasses. Leap Motion software was also implemented to identify the user’s hands in different simulations.

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•Phuthuma-Nhleko, CEO MTN

AfricaCom 2015

•Stakeholders kick, query •Deadline extension indefinite? •Negotiations endless? By Prince Osuagwu

HE tension and high anticipations trailing the N1.04 trillion fine the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, imposed on MTN Nigeria and the November 16, 2015 payment deadline, melted in utter confusion, Monday, as both the commission and the telecommunications company released very little information on whether the payment was made or not, on deadline day. While MTN Group issued a statement, addressing its shareholders, intimating them of ongoing negotiations with the Nigerian government on the issue, the NCC went into memory lane with its own statement, explaining why it imposed the fine. Neither MTN in its 4-paragraph statement or NCC in its 19paragraph press statement paid much attention to the deadline which all Nigerians were looking forward to. Even as most of the NCC’s reasons for the fine were already in public domain, the commission failed to provide adequate information as to whether MTN has paid the fine or not, what manner of negotiations were going on between the two parties and apparently when the new deadline would be. Stakeholders kick: Some Nigerians, who felt they were

taken for granted in such a sensitive issue, queried why it would take MTN Group based in South Africa to tactically reveal that the deadline has been shifted. A Lagos based Valued Added services provider, Mr fatai Adebayo said “ I still cannot believe that on deadline day for an unprecedented fine of this nature, the NCC has rightly imposed on MTN, the commission itself has refused to say what is going on or make statement on way forward. It even took the parent company of the offender, for us to know there are negotiations going on and therefore the payment was not made.

Material development It seems MTN is winning in this case, with a strategically executed Public Relations plan. It obviously should not be the case. NCC should wake up and speak more on this saga.” Negotiations continue: The MTN statement, reads “Shareholders were advised in previous SENS announcements that the Company would update shareholders on all material developments on this matter. Shareholders are advised that the Executive Chairman of the Company, Mr Phuthuma Nhleko, has personally met with the

Nigerian authorities to continue the ongoing discussions with them regarding the fine of N200,000 for each unregistered subscriber, the fine, the equivalent of US$5.2 billion imposed on MTN Nigeria by the Nigerian Communications Commission NCC. These discussions include matters of noncompliance and the remedial measures that may have to be adopted to address this. Although the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC set a deadline for payment of the fine by Monday, 16 November 2015, shareholders are advised that the Nigerian authorities have, without prejudice, agreed that the imposed fine will not be payable until the negotiations have been concluded. “ MTN iscommittedtoresolving the matter together with the NCC as soon as possible and will

Neither MTN statement or NCC paid much attention to the deadline which all Nigerians were looking forward to.

continue to update stakeholders of any material developments regarding the afore-mentioned fine via SENS. Accordingly, shareholders are advised to continue to exercise caution when dealing in the Company’s securities until a further announcement is made”. We acted in public interest- NCC Meanwhile, the commission has restated that the fine was imposed in public interest. The lengthy NCC statement, signed by its Director Public Affairs, Mr Tony Ojobo, reads: “Following the sanctions placed on MTN Nigeria, by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), members of the public have expressed diverse interest as to what actually transpired. The fine was a result of violation of Section 20(1) of the Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulation of 2011.

Subscribers regulation Section 20 (1) of Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulations 2011 states that: “Any licensee who activates or fails to deactivate a subscription medium in violation of any provision of these Regulations is liable to a penalty ofN200,000.00 for each unregistered but activated subscription medium.” The fine of N1.04Trillion on MTN Nigeria by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) was done in the interest of the public which has been at the receiving end of security challenges. Consequent upon the overwhelming evidence of noncompliance, and obvious disregard to the rule of engagement by MTN, the NCC had no choice but to impose the sanctions. MTN, in a letter on November Continues on page 28

VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—27

How to raise money for a good cause online M

By Laju Iren

ONEY makes the world go round. And with the hustle to get it, you would think that many people would not be willing to give it away. That’s not entirely true. Even in this 'wicked 'world, human sympathy still thrives, making it possible for genuine causes to receive funding. Social media has offered an unprecedented opportunity for charity organisations and individuals in need to get the support they need at the least cost to them. However, the right approach determines which fund raising causes bear fruits, and which ones go largely unnoticed. The first step is to ensure that your cause is sincere. You might think you aren’t harming anyone if you claim to raise funds for an orphanage that doesn’t exist or to treat an ailment that is only a figment of your imagination. But you are. By being dishonest, you are taking away the opportunity for people who are in dire need to be helped. Another thing you must do is to start from your own circle of influence. Why should strangers from other parts of the world donate to your cause when your friends have not seen the need? On Facebook, tag your friends in a photo, flier or banner that tells them about your cause, be sure to accompany your photo with a well-written, interesting piece telling them what your cause is about, why they should help out, and what they can do to help. Encourage your friends to

Keyboard spread the word as well. Depending on your budget, you can set up a page and pay Facebook to promote your cause. You could also decide to make a short video to be uploaded on Youtube, and an even shorter video for instagram. The emphasis is on the word ‘short.’ Don’t make people feel that they have to spend a lot on data, and then give towards your cause as well. You could go a step further by providing subtitles for your video so that even people who do not speak the same language can

Are you raising money for a sick person? Make sure his/her medical records and a signed affidavit from his/ her hospital are available

understand. For twitter, be sure to get a catchy hashtag and get friends and friends of friends to use it. If you know people who are famous or ''internet famous, now is the time to cash in on such relationships. Be sure to affiliate yourself with credible organisations. Are you raising money for a sick person? Make sure his/her medical records and a signed affidavit from his/her hospital are available. Is your campaign to help build a local borehole, get the local government chairman and community leaders to lend a voice to your campaign. If you are trying to help Internally displaced people, reach out to the Nigerian Red Cross and the National Emergency Management Agency. Also affiliate yourself with credible sites such as rsvp.com'.ng,gofundme.org crowdrise.com, justgiving.com, change.org among others. Another thing you must do is to set up an online payment system. People are more likely to give towards your cause if they can do it at the click of a button. Also, be sure to get the contact details of donors and send them gift certificates and financial reports.

Tracking traffic in Nigeria through Twitter

OR a country ranked as Africa’s most populous region, it is no surprise that traffic in Nigeria is a budding issue for its citizens. A trip to the local grocery store – that should take an hour - can take triple the time due to the traffic congestion in the country. The reason for the growing volume of traffic can be attributed to a plethora of issues including; high numbers of privately owned vehicles and poor infrastructure. Although these issues are apparent, rather than complaining, Nigerians have found ways to manage their activities around traffic patterns. They plan their trips through several applications running o@Gidi_Traffic provides Nigerians with live updates of areas in the country experiencing high levels of traffic, through crowd sourced updates posted on its Twitter page. With over 400,000 followers and over 500k C M Y K

Tweets, @Gidi_Traffic has been providing live traffic updates to Nigerians around the country since 2011 through follower updates. The main aim of @Gidi_Traffic is to alert drivers of high traffic areas, it also lends itself as a platform for answering inquiries from anyone who requires information on any subject of interest. Although the app relies largely on crowd sourced updates, the page provides videos of gridlocked areas. These videos are very useful to individuals looking for real time validation of the traffic situation. @Tsaboin is a traffic monitoring Twitter account that was developed to help Lagosians b e a t traffic. @Tsaboin provides links to its main website for users to view traffic cams and up to date updates on traffic in Lagos. Through its Twitter feed, @TrafficChiefNG provides

followers with traffic updates. @TrafficChiefNG provides its followers with updates on pending issues pertaining to traffic. Recently, @TrafficChiefNG launched a petition #NoMoreTrafficRobbery to help curb the issue of traffic robberies. The aim of the #NoMoreTrafficRobbery is to garner government intervention in eradicating traffic robberies.

Yes Mobile introduces free insurance on all phones, computers

NNOVATIVE mobile phone retail chain, Yes Mobile has announced that it was launching an innovative insurance scheme on all phones and computers bought by its Customers. Yes Mobile said it partners with AXAMansard Insurance PLC to provide the new insurance scheme. The CEO of Yes Mobile- Mr Foluso Ogunwale explained that his customers are now able to en- •Ogunwale joy insurance cover not only on the damaged screens of their mobile phones which is sometimes as high as 50% of the original cost of the phone; but also provides insurance cover for phones damaged by liquid intrusion. In its commitment to make this innovative service common, Yes Mobile is offering complimentary free insurance on devices bought. Ogunwale explained that Yes Mobile was providing improved spread payment plan for customers to purchase phones and make payment within a period of 6 months. This initiative is being executed in conjunction with a 3rd party partner firm – Page MFB. The spread payment plan offered by Yes Mobile promises to be fast in processing time and tailored to be convenient for customers. Ogunwale added that Yes Mobile, driven by its conviction that customers deserve more value for money, explained that with Smart Phone penetration of just 30% in Nigeria, Yes Mobile is committed to delivering more smart phones to customers through excellent customer experience and innovative services.

Blackberry considers withdrawal from hardware market

By Emmanuel Elebeke

GLOBAL leader in mobile communications, BlackBerry says it is considering plans to withdraw its hardware division if the android-powered Blackberry Priv plan falls through. Blackberry CEO, John Chen in the latest market report, admitted that the company’s hardware division may be on its last warning with the upcoming Android-powered BlackBerry Priv, with the company more or less betting the factory on the change of operating system. Chen said that BlackBerry needs to start making a profit in hardware next year, or he’ll need to start making some tough decisions about its future. “Otherwise, I have to think twice about what I do there. A ‘‘business case” would need to be found for BlackBerry to continue making devices at all,’’ he added. He however, expressed confidence that switching to Android, starting with the launch of the Priv and even - if widely-reported rumours are correct - providing Android for older devices, such as the BlackBerry Passport, could be a very positive way forward: “Android in the enterprise is a very under-served space. “With our connections, our accounts, our security know-how, this has expanded our market. The market wants privacy and security, and they also want apps,” said Chen. Continuing, Chen explained that the major reason BlackBerry is still in the handset market is because “there’s added value in BlackBerry’s end-to-end mobile solution, and a market that is under-served”. While it may feel like the horse has long bolted for BlackBerry, as many street suppliers took Blackberry 10 devices off the shelves way back in the summer 2014, Chen’s aid: Android is a good one: Computing recently put out a request for end-user companies who have built their mobile policies on the Android infrastructure, and have so far had absolutely no firms comfortable going onthe-record to say that they run their company on Android.

28—VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Tech firm holds ICT fest By Richard Udofia

355.2m smartphones shipped in Q3 2015 By Emmanuel Elebeke

ATEST technology market forecast by the International Data Corporation IDC Worldwide quarterly mobile phone tracker, has indicated that technology vendors shipped a total of 355.2 million smartphones worldwide in the third quarter of 2015. This figure is recorded as the second highest level for a single quarter as worldwide volumes reach 355.2 million smartphones. The report noted that the rise represents 6.8 per cent increase from the 332.6 million units in the third quarter of 2014, marking the second highest quarter of shipments on record. The IDC report noted that the 3Q15 shipments were slightly below IDC’s previous forecast of 363.8 million units, largely due to slightly lower than expected iPhone shipments, as well as android flagship introductions from several top-tier OEMs with price points outside the consumer sweet spot.

Accordingly, the Program Director with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, Ryan Reith, said ”The vendor landscape and product offerings are really unique at the moment as many markets are seeing consumers become more aware of alternative buying options when it comes to paying for their smartphone. “In mature and subsidized markets, wenowhaveawiderangeofoperators offering equipment installation plans (EIP), as well as early trade-in options. At the same time, the number of unlocked/off-contract offerings has increased significantly and it’s slowly starting to resonate with consumers. Withinthesemarketsthesemoveswill put pressure directly on Android OEMs with offerings that are greater than $500.” Also, the research manager, Mobile Phones, Anthony Scarsella, noted that ”The third quarter placed a substantial emphasis on flagship

devices as vendors tried to outclass each other in both features and design. “New flagship models translated to fiercercompetitionatthehigh-endformost players as many will try to challenge both Samsung and Apple for a place among the elite."

Check Point extracts computer threat with sandblast solution By Emeka Aginam

HILE cyber threats continue to evolve causing more harm than good in organizations around the world, Check Point has introduced advanced sandblast solution to help businesses defend against these sophisticated threats. Speaking last week in Lagos at a breakfast meeting themed: ''Advanced threat mitigation strategy' and organized by DataGroup IT for Chief Information Officers, CIOs and Chief Information Security Officers, CISO, the Security Engineer of Check Point, Justice Anyai told the gathering that more malware were found in 2014 than in the previous 10 years combined. Noting that traditional security is still reactive, he said that breaches are still happening because traditional approaches protect from known threats. According to him, 40% or organizations download unknown malware as 200,000 threats were found daily. He noted that organizations needed Check Point Sandblast solution as it catches more malware. proactive prevention and complete integrated protection. SandBlast, Anyai explained offers cutting edge sandboxing capabilities to detect threats before evasion techniques could be used, making this solution the best line of defense against undiscovered exploits, zero-day and targeted attacks. He said that the solution is an unprecedented real-time prevention against unknown malware, zero-day and targeted attacks. “We just raised the bar for sand boxing solutions. Organizations need to deploy to stay ahead of virus attack increasing by the day”he said. Key advantages of Check Point SandBlast, according to him included: *Best catch rate of unknown malware (as also reflected in the latest NSS BDS

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results) *Evasion-resistant detection to stop attacks attempting to circumvent the sandbox *Immediate delivery of safe, reconstructed content via Threat Extraction, allows deployment of SandBlast in full prevent mode, not simply as detection *Complete threat visibility with integrated threat prevention and security management *Automatic sharing of newly

identified malware profiles through ThreatCloud *Availability as both a cloud-based solution, or as on-premise appliances, among others. Check Point SandBlast zero-day protection, he explained is an innovative solution that stops unknown malware, zero-day and targeted attacks from infiltrating networks. The solution, he further explained is based on new CPU-level exploit detection technology to identify threats earlier, before malware has an opportunity to deploy evasion code.

S a way of bridging the gap between Nigeria and her global counterparts in areas of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) challenges, Mascot Information and Technology Solutions has concluded plans to hold the maiden edition of Nigeria ICT Fest. Managing Director of Mascot Information and Technology Solutions, Mr. Agbolade Omowole said: “we are in the midst of a technological revolution and Nigeria is fortunate to be included on the cutting-edge of emerging technologies such as robotics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, biotechnology and genetic engineering which can be of help to Nigerians.” Whilst most of these technologies are being developed at silicon valley, california, USA, and other technologically developed regions of the world, there is need for Nigerians and Africa as a whole to embrace these emerging technologies. According to him, the need for Nigeria and Africa as a whole to be at global centre stage when it comes to ICT informed the idea behind organizing Nigeria ICT fest. The maiden edition of Nigeria ICT Fest will pull technology thought leaders including transhumanists, technology futurists and bioethicists to Nigeria to discuss emerging technologies and how they can be used by Nigerian industries, organizations and institutions to aid her socio-economic development. He said that the event is scheduled to hold on the 4th and 5th of December, 2015. On the 4th of December 2015, the event is scheduled to hold at Magrellos Eatery at Plot 776, Along Oba Babatunde Onigbanko way, Festac Link, AmuwoOdofin, Lagos, and attendance is free. On the 5th of December 2015, the event is scheduled to hold at Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel, 1A Ozumba Mbadiwe Avenue Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria. Speakers for the event include David Pearce (UK British Philosopher), Ben Goertzel (Artificial General Intelligence expert based in Honkong), Engr. Y.S.O Abdul (Aeronautic Engineer based in Nigeria), Micah Redding (President, Christian Transhumanist Association, USA), Mira Kwak (Network Security Expert, Korea), Agbolade Omowole (C.E.O, Mascot Information and Technology Solutions), Victoria Ibezim Ohaeri (Director, Spaces for Change), Adaora Asala (MD, EasyTaxi Nigeria), and Abiodun Mabadeje (Human Capital Development Expert).

N1.04TRN FINE: NCC, MTN play hide and seek on deadline day Continues from page 26 2, 2015 admitted the infraction and pleaded for leniency. The Commission has acknowledged this and is looking into their plea without any prejudice to the fine. The fine remains but the appeal and other engagements with MTN may affect the payment deadline. The fine that was imposed on MTN was the second within two months after the operators were given a seven-day ultimatum to deactivate all unregistered and improperly registered Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) Cards. While others complied, MTN did not. On August 4, 2015, at a meeting of all the representatives of the Mobile Network Operators (MNO), with NCC, major security challenges through preregistered, unregistered and improperly registered SIM Cards topped the agenda after which Operators were given the ultimatum to deactivate such within seven days. On August 14, 2015, three days after the ultimatum expired, NCC carried out a network audit; while other Operators complied with the directive, deactivating improperly registered SIM Cards on their networks, MTN showed no sign of compliance at all. Recall that four (4) Operators; MTN, Airtel, Globacom and Etisalat, were

sanctioned in August for none compliance with regards to the directive to deactivate the improperly registered SIM Cards. MTN got a fine of N102.2Million, Globacom N7.4Million, Etisalat N7Million and Airtel N3.8Million fine. Others complied while MTN flouted the fine. Based on the report of the compliance Audit Team, an Enforcement Team which visited MTN from September 2 – 4, 2015 wherein MTN admitted that the Team confirmed that 5.2million improperly registered SIM Cards were still left active on their network; hence, a contravention of the Regulations was established. Consistent with the Commission’s enforcement process, MTN was by a letter dated October 5, 2015, given notice to state why it should not be sanctioned in line with the Regulations for failure to deactivate improperly registered SIM Cards that were found to be active at the time of enforcement team’s visit of September 15, 2015. On October 19, 2015, the Commission received and reviewed MTN’s response and found no convincing evidence why it should not be sanctioned for the established violations. Accordingly, by a letter dated October 20, 2015 the Commission conveyed appropriate sanctions to MTN in accordance with Regulations 20(1) of the Telephone

Subscribers Registration Regulation 2011, to pay the Sum of N200,000.00 only for each of the 5.2million improperly registered SIM Cards. The statement further averred that: In order to ensure proper identification of telephone subscribers with their biometric data and in line with international best practice, the Commission came up with a framework for the registration of telephone subscribers in Nigeria. (Nigerian Communications Commission Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulations 2011). The above Regulations were developed with the full participation of all key industry Stakeholders including all Mobile Network Operators (MNO) in 2011. The Commission on its part has a statutory responsibility to monitor and enforce compliance to the rules, more so, when national security is at stake”. The statement explained that, National interest is paramount because when lives are lost they cannot be replaced. However, a Nigerian technology reporter who became miffed over this development blurted out: “from this statement, some of us are of the opinion that even the NCC has committed infraction by agreeing to stay deadline just for the sake of negotiation that is clearly unknown to the 2011 SIM Regulation on which, ab-intio, it relied upon to impose the fine.

VANGU ARD, WEDNESD A Y, NO VEMBER 18, 2015—29 ANGUARD, WEDNESDA NOVEMBER

I'm worried my manhood's not hard like rock Dear Bunmi, O YOU have an idea of how hard a penis is supposed to get? My erection is never exactly like a rock, although I have normal orgasms and can make love without any problem. Should I be worried? Lai, by e-mail.

I can't keep up with her! Dear Bunmi, Y CURRENT girlfriend wants sex every night

and I don't keep up. I have these feelings she’s a nymphomaniac. We’ve been

I don’t fancy being left on the shelf Dear Bunmi, ’M IN my mid-30's and would love to settle down and have a family. Some months ago, I’ met a man I thought was “The One’. At first we were just friends but our relationship developedinto something more. One night, he was due to take me to a mutual friend’s party when he cancelled, saying he was going out with his wife! I’ was shocked’ and’ saddened that he’d’ thought I was the kind of woman who’d go out with a marriedman, I can’t help wondering if this is all that’s left for me. Is it too late for me to find a good man who isn’t already attached?

Mefissa, by e-mail.

Dear Melissa, I advise you forget about netting an eligible man and concentrate on just enjoying your life. Of course there are good honest men out there but don’t go looking for them at social gatherings or clubs. Instead, get out there andjoin groups where like-minded people might hang out. Believe me, the right man will find you when you don’t look desperate. Continue to go out with well-meaning friends, but be wary of men they want to pair you up with - you alone know what you want!

Mourning a child’s sudden death Dear Bunmi, AM a 38-year-old mother of three. Three years ago, my eight-year-old son had what we , thought was the common malaria, but were later told the fever had affected his brain and we lost him as a result. My husband and I had always wanted three children, so after my son’s death, we tried for another child and now have a nine-month old baby. In spite of this new arrival, I still haven’t gotten over the death of my son. We had a special bond and I miss him terribly. I often wondered how he would have turned out by now. His death was, and still is, like a knife turning my stomach. My pain remains heartbreakingly raw. Will I ever learn to live with my loss as friends kept on telling me? Deronke, by e-mail.

child’ is always sad, grief ceases to be overwhelming and you learn how to cope with it. Never be afraid to acknowledge the existence of your dead child to others. Your other children even the very young - need to be told what happened, often in simple terms. Allow them to be involved and given choices. As they get older, they will experience the death of their brother or sister in different ways, and should be given the opportunity to share this. Friends can make a huge difference to bereaved families by proactively making contacts, asking how they can help and most important - enabling them to talk about their child.

Dear Deronke, We ‘ve all heard the cliches when it comes to grief: Time heals... Things will get better ... You’ll smile again. But when it involves the death of a child, many parents find that despite months, years or even decades passing, the pain remains raw. Apart from urgent counselling when trying to cope with bereavement, a renowned counsellor advises grieving parents to follow these guidelines: You may find that to begin with you have no idea how you are going to cope and that you can only just get by from day to day. As time passes this changes and, while the death of your

Dear Bunmi, THOUGHT I had a good relationship with my mother-in-law but I noticed she started becoming cold towards me when I had my second child, who is a boy. My husband is her only child and doesn’t want to hurt her feelings by not talking to her. She’s fallen out with virtually everybody in the family. She’s divorced from her husband because he had children by another woman. Whenever there is a family do, she insists she wouldn’t attend if her ex -husband is invited. They have been separated for over 20 years. I see her ending up as a sad, old, lonely and bitter

together a couple of months and there is no sign her ardour is slowing down. It’s great to have a woman who is so into me but I’m finding it hard to keep up with her demands. Sometimes it’s difficult to get an erection and I’m even wondering whether men can fake an orgasm like women do. Segun, by e-mail

Dear Segun, Looks as if your body is struggling to keep up with your woman’s nightly demands and this is not a surpassing sign. Everybody is entitled to a night off and you need to give your body a little love and attention too. Most relationships start with a passionate few months. But eventually you need to settle into a routine where sex fits in with the rest of your life. This doesn’t mean you fall out of love with your partner - quite the opposite. Part of the function of so much initial sex may be to condition the brain to your new lover. It’s been proved that when you have sex, two hormones are released - oxytocin and vasopressin - which are thought to form strong and deep emotional bonds between you. If these bonds are strong enough, you should be able to cut back the time you spend having sex. But that’s where the problem lies. What is satisfying to one person may not be to the other. It’s possible your girlfriend’s demands are due to feelings of insecurity about your relationship. If so, making her feel secure will allow your relationship to settle. I don’t think you should worry too much about erection failure. If you’re attempting sex that frequently then the problems could be your body’s way of asking for a rest.

My mother-in-law is such a grouch!

woman. I just feel sorry for her and wish I could help her. Aminat, by e-mail.

Dear Aminat, Your mother-in-law had been allowed to get away with her selfish behaviour for a long time and changing that is almost impossible. You can’t confront her either since your husband will not back you up. Your children need their grandfather and you should include him in their upbringing. It is her choice. If she decides to stay away. As much as possible though, show her you care for her, but don’t let her get under your skin.

Dear Lai, Physical factors include your age, how tired you are, what medication you’re on, whether you’ve had too much to drink or indulged in drugs and how often you recently had sex.

Then, there are emotional influences, but I can safely bet you haven’t lost a wink of sleep worrying about this! The fact remains that erections are as fickle and individual as their owners. Some men’s penises are so hard you would think they were cast in concrete! Others could finally bed the woman of their dreams and still only fly half-mast. The rest hover somewhere in-between, which is sort of where it sounds that you are. So I wouldn’t worry if I were you.

Some men’s phallues are so hard you would think they were cast in concrete! Others could finally bed the woman of their dreams and still only fly half-mast. The rest hover somewhere in-between, which is sort of where it sounds that you are. So I wouldn’t worry if I were you.

Is this all marriage means to him? Dear Bunmi, N THE last few years, my marriage was so troubled that I recently asked my husband for a separation. He’s now seeing another woman and I can’t believe he could move on that quicldy. We only separated four months ago. Even though I initiated the separation, I couldn’t have meant that much to him for him to have quickly found a new replacement. Was the affair on before we separated? Chris, by e-mail.

Dear Chris, Breaking up is a hard emotion to cope with - particularly if your

ex finds love again soon after. Your ex-husband may feel that he did all he could to save the marriage and your rejection has made it easier for him to move on. Guilt may be making your situation harder as you were the one that forced the break-up. Your ex may have found true love with his new squeeze but it’s more likely he’s looking for a bit of loving sympathy in the arms of this new woman. If his moving on has made you think again about your divorce, I suggest you have a word with your ex. I’m sure he’d be happy to review the situation.

How do I cope with menopausal stress? Dear Bunmi, ’M 53 and going through the menopause. I feel so tired most of the time and my husband is getting sick of me being moody always. Our love life has fallen apart as I don’t feel turned on most of the time. Can you help? Shakirat, by e-mail.

Dear Shakirat, The menopause is a big change in a woman’s life. You have to psychologically adjust to the end of your fertile years but there are difficult physical

changes too. At the menopause, the level of the female hormone oestrogen falls in your body. This makes you feel tired, moody and can affect your sex life too. Many women lose their libido or require more foreplay to get them sexually aroused in bed. There is treatment to manage the most difficult symptoms of the menopause, such as hormone replacement therapy. Why don’t you have a word with your doctor? In the meantime, log on to menopausematters.co.uk for more information on the subject.

Share your problems and release your burden. Write now to Dear Bunmi, Vanguard Newspapers, P.M.B 1007, Apapa, Lagos, or bunmsof@yahoo.co.uk

30—VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Jummai Alhassan T

ARABA state governorship candidate Jummai Alhassan had been celebrated on the Nigerian blogosphere earlier in the year as she battled with her PDP counterpart for the State house. Nigeria was sad when she lost, but now she rules the space once more: This time on account of controversy after the Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja annulled the election of Darius Ishaku as the governor of Taraba State and declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the April 12, 2015 governorship election. Alhassan, already a minister-designate, had approached the tribunal with claims that the election was flawed. The Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice Danladi, relying on the report of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ruled that Governor Ishaku was not properly nominated as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the governorship election. INEC said that the PDP didn’t conduct any primary election for the Taraba State Governorship Election. The tribunal then returned Alhassan of APC as the duly elected Governor of Taraba State, having secured the second highest votes during the election. Commentators are bitterly divided.

Taiwo Sobamowo nurse, as she really was not a medic at all. Apparently, Sobamowo used the identity number of an actual nurse with a similar name in order to get a job at Peachtree Christian Hospice in Duluth, Georgia, where Brown died in July. Arresting papers list her as the person in charge for Brown's care but have not said whether Brown's livelihood was impacted by Sobamowo's lack of training.

OING viral on the Nigerian blogosphere is the story of a Nigerian American, who was one of the nurses who treated a comatose Bobbi Kristina Brown in the last month of her life. 32-year-old Taiwo Sobamowo was arrested in North Carolina on charges of impersonating a

The Maryland board began investigation in January 2014 after the District of Columbia Board of Nursing issued a warning that Sobamowo had impersonated a nurse to work at a hospice facility in Washington. Bobbi-Christina Brown, the 22year-old daughter of singers Bobby Brown and the late Whitney Houston, died July 26 at Peachtree Christian Hospice in Duluth, Georgia.

Ada Igonor

N announcement released by the management of First Consultant Medical Centre that their staff, the Ebola survivor Doctor Ada Igonoh, has given birth to a baby girl at the Greate El-Monte Community Hospital in California, United States, trended on blogosphere in the last week. According to the announcers, Dr. Ada, who had been under medical surveillance since the conception of her child, is healthy and her baby has been certified Ebola-free.

Dieziani Allison Madueke

NNOVATIVE publisher, Dele Momodu, this week laid to rest controversies surrounding the health of former Nigerian Petroleum minister, Dieziani Allison Madueke, with a narrative of his encounter with her in London. The narrative has gone viral in the Nigerian social media space. Her firm grip on the President was palpable, he writes. There were reports that Madame Diezani was battling with the much dreaded

Iesha Thomas

CHICAGO woman, Iesha Thomas, is trending as the first Midwest patient to receive a successful stem cell transplant to cure her sickle cell disease without chemotherapy in preparation for the transplant. The transplant technique is relatively uncommon and is a much more tolerable treatment

Remi Lagos

RIENDS of deceased fashion designer, Remi Lagos, continued to eulogize her via social media on the occasion of the third anniversary of her death in the last week. Remi my darling, remembering you today as always!. You were beautiful both in and outwards!. You saw beauty in everything!!. One of the very few GENUINE people I ever knew. “We love and miss you!! Writes a friend, fast food frontliner Folasade Kassim. Iconic Nigerian fashion designer, Oluremi Osholake, better known as Remi Lagos, passed on at 51 at a Harley Street Clinic in London having been diagnosed with cancer some time back.

C M Y K

breast cancer. Not a few said she was merely pretending in order to escape justice. She had undergone surgery and chemotherapy on several occasions and was being prepared for radiotherapy. Indeed, she had slipped into both natural and induced coma which lasted five days on July 28, as steroids she was receiving had inadvertently raised her sugar level abysmally. Her doctors declared her condition a near-miss. All my sources said it would be unfair and unthinkable for a reporter to invade her privacy in that state. The Diezani before me was not the ebullient woman I used to see on television and in newspapers. Her head had become a Sahara desert of sorts almost totally bald with a sprinkle of freshly growing hair all grey. She requested to sit on a classroom chair as her back was hurting badly and she could not sit so low. Wow, what a terrible time she must be having, I almost screamed out but cautioned myself. Sitting across from me was a woman who was a shadow of herself, almost like an apparition or ghost. The status quo remains with regards to public sensitivity. One commentator writes: A real sorry state. But where is the beef (money) or is it insensitive to ask?

for patients with aggressive sickle cell disease who often have underlying organ disease and other complications as the procedure initially allows a patient’s own bone marrow to coexist with that of the donor. Since the patient’s bone marrow is not completely destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation prior to transplant, part of the immune defense survives, lessening the risk of infection. The goal is for the transplanted stem cells to gradually take over the bone marrow’s role to produce red blood cells. Thomas, 33, had her first sickle cell crisis when she was just 8 months old. Her disease became progressively worse as an adult, particularly after the birth of h e r daughter. S h e

has spent most of her adult life in and out of hospitals with severe pain and has relied on repeated red blood cell transfusions. Her sickle cell disease also caused bone damage requiring two hip replacements.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015—31

Leave the Ijaw alone (2) This is the second instalment of the piece which was first published, Monday. In that edition, Cole argued that Alamieyeseigha was hounded to death because he was a minority nomination. Now, By Dele Cole comes Deziani who obviously had no AM on record as saying that the job was too big for interest in becoming her, just as Jonathan’s job, turned president but supremout to be too big for him. She ely interested in Mr. inherited a broken NNPC, totally Goodluck, if the unfit for purpose. She had no one periodic scream of to advise her on what to do; those patience is to be who advised her became instant believed. If she had enemies. She worked in a presidential ambition President Muhammadu Buhari kleptocracy and there was no she hid it very well. But there was no cause for her to distinguish herself in that group except doubt that she was the most be told, they were no worse than maybe excel in their peculiar powerful minister and to cross their counterparts the nation over. her was to lose your job. Her Indeed if they were to speak calling. Her appointment confirms a mooring was strong in the about how much help they gave simple fact- the International Oil presidency and she strengthened to the PDP then more people Companies (IOC) are inherently them with other familiar would join them in their lonely in an antagonist relationship relationships. That Patience was cells in prison. The South-South with the NNPC. This is not that unable to unseat her is an lacks political cohesion, political bad but one cannot keep going indication of her strength. Every power and political gravitas. to the ones who regulate to pick other minister who crossed her They never learnt how to build the head of NNPC. Her had reason to apologize. Her power structure, seduced as they knowledge of the business was strength was with Mr. Jonathan were by the praise singers who skimpy but does she deserve her and once he lost the election she came with lorries to carry away was totally at sea with a host of the loot from South-South. The present treatment? area remains the least developed To answer such question we enemies. She never tried to build a in Nigeria, to the shame of all have to delve into history. Oil power base or a constituency those who held power from the convinced, as most of her area. colleagues were, that PDP would win that election. How could they Clear lose with a war chest of trillions? jealousy My point, however, is not to defend her but to point out the The Ijaws are weak politically. sorry state of the South-South They are larger than the Tivs or geopolitical area since the Idomas or Igallas all of whom are demise of Alams, Ibori and Odili. better politically organized than These three were in charge of the Ijaws. The Ijaws suffer from funding PDP and its coterie of the clear jealousy of other groups PATRICK DELE COLE politicians. They were no more who continue to exploit them and corrupt than all other governors, which though no more than 10% all politically exposed people who their divisions. If one is blessed, of GDP produces over 90% of worked a system that was mired as the Ijaws are with oil, then a certain jealousy of that wealth funds for the federal government in corruption. cannot be ignored but look how which then divides the proceeds If this is so, why the miserably poor the people are among the 36 states. The concentration on punishment of governors of the nine oil people from South-South? Ibori, and how despoiled their area has producing states are the super Alams, Igbinedion, Deziani etc. been? Who is the rich Ijaw man? stars of Committee of Governors (Peter was able to get an How many of them have been in the oil business and profited from (COGs). injunction to stop inquiries into it? The Federal Government had As far back as 2001 when oil his affairs otherwise he would prices started to rise, the political have been in the soup also). If a policy that all industries Mecca of politicians was Port all of Nigeria was corrupt, why established in a state would Harcourt, Uyo, Asaba, Yenagoa, select for opprobrium only those attract a 10% ownership for the etc. No political party holds from the South-South? There was State housing the Industry. Thus, conventions anywhere else but a South-South NSA who died an Anambra got 10% of Anamco. in these states and in Abuja ignoble death. Nearly all the Lagos 10% of Volkswagen (VW) where the tab was picked up by politicians from the area are in and 30% of Julius Berger (JB). the oil producing state flight because no one would Oyo – 10% of Leyland, Bauchi – Governors. These states had protect them. I do not want the 10% of Styr, Kaduna 10% of governors who all wished to mistaken impression that I Peugeot etc. Does Rivers State progress further to be President condone the corruption of South- have 10% of the fertilizer plant, or Vice President; all were South politicians, but if the truth 10% of petro chemicals, and 10% of the refineries? Does Delta own promised such reward for 10% of the steel plant, 10% of the funding the party. refinery etc? When these There is nothing in this world questions are asked a perfectly simpler than blowing up the ego sensible answer is given – the of an already egotistical governor. refinery, the fertilizer plant and The governors were the building petro chemical are product of oil blocks on the tracks to the which is 100% federal property. Presidential race and there was On the face of it, this sounds If all of Nigeria no lack of supporters egging reasonable until you consider the them on. It was indeed for this was corrupt, why word property? What does it reason that made the President mean? If you can give Kano, refuse to name a minister for oil: select for Lagos, Oyo, Anambra etc 10 perinstead he named an adviser opprobrium only cent of a factory – is that not who lived in Vienna and came property? My point is that the those from the from the north. Had he been alive sins of a few Ijaw people cannot Mr. Buhari would have had a South-South? be used as the explanation of fight on his hands to get the their character. The second point

Nigeria

is that they are politically weak and exploited and what other groups get away with the Ijaw somehow cannot get away with the same sins. If all are thieves the Ijaw have stolen no more than others. Moreover there is more to the Ijaw than the horrible examples those who held office and stole had displayed. There are many Ijaw that have served the Federal and State Governments without descending to the depths of those being charged at the moment. Those Ijaw include W.O. Briggs, Dr. Nabo Graham Douglas, Prof. Tam David West, Prof. Tekena Tamuno, Chief Dappa Biriye, Mr. Ajumogobia, Melford Okilo, and countless many more. Finally the Ijaws condemn with every inch of their being the failures of their own sons and daughters. But they demand, as the Holy Book says, that you remove the beam in your eyes before you can see the mote in mine. I have been accused of being like Mark Anthony making a speech after Caesar ’s assassination “I come to bury Caesar, and not to praise him.” As far as corruption is concerned Mr. President must use the same broom to sweep it out in both the PDP and the APC. We wait with baited breadth. The oil that feeds the Federal Government is mainly from Ijaw land and waters. Has anyone thought of how much it would cost to clean these lands and waters? The reality is that when the oil dries up, the IOCs will pick up and leave. This has been the lot of small powerless people the world over – look at what has happened to Southern Liousiana where the blacks and poor whites live.

School in canoes Less than 30 years ago there was one petrol station in Yenogoa in the whole of Bayelsa. There was none anywhere else: any in Buguma, Tombia, Bakana, Abonnema, Okrika, even Bonny. None in Brass, Nembe, Oporokuma etc. In all these places till today Kerosene, which is their main fuel for cooking, costs more than anywhere else in Nigeria? Children still go to school in canoes and buildings are still on sticks jutting out of the water. There is nowhere in Ijaw land with potable water to drink. We drink from wells. The toilets are still at the water side, next to where they bathe. This degree of poverty is no excuse for the excesses of our ministers and Governors who obviously have not learnt the art of hiding their wealth. The people are just emerging from ravages that insect

parasites visit on their hairs, their legs and feet – lice, jiggers etc. The men have to go further afield for fishing; the women sell next to nothing. Yet their culture is rich and calls for wealth. The Chiefs are so poor that they are no better than beggars and their Local Government Chairmen know this and treat them with the ignominy beggars deserve. Chiefs go to parties with plastic bags to carry away food and drinks. The elegant chief's dress many see when these chiefs go to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Asaba, Yenogoa – are a chimera – a phantom of an age long gone to, which they pretend to succeed. No serious Ijaw man stays in his village – to do what? He may have a decent house in Port Harcourt, Yenegoa, Asaba, Warri and visits home like a holiday maker at the weekends to see what he can get. If an Ijaw man is president or governor he will try to sleep with five or six women every two or three hours of the day. He will drink, usually with his friends, with complete abandon. It is not that he does not realize the weight of his office. He does. But it does not matter to his psyche. We drink with one glass out of a basin of home-made spirit. If it is a woman and she has money she will spend it like water. She will order containers from China that will seat for six years without opening it. If she sees still new things she will order more; she has no recollection what she has ordered or how much.

Failure to stop insurgency She will beg her husband to kingdom come for more money for more orders. If she is rich enough she will buy houses in almost all cities and may never enter one of them. She will have no idea where her documents are. All the above is obviously a caricature. Even so, given the resources he so abundantly has, if Nigeria’s law on minerals were different, the Ijaws would react differently. In conclusion, the Ijaws have to stop being small minded and come together. The Federal Government destroyed an Ijaw town which today remains destroyed. If we apply the same rule, how much of the North East, Niger, Abuja, etc. would be destroyed, flattened, because of Boko Haram? The Ijaw were being punished for failure to stop an insurgency. The Ijaw are consumed by small minded jealousies: Okrika vs Ogoloma vs Bakana; inter chieftaincy fights in Bonny and Finima; Abonnema vs Buguma, Nembe vs Brass and so forth. These divisions’ saps Ijaw power and make them open to exploitation. Their land is polluted, their rivers are non habitable, their people remain the poorest; the pollution in Ijaw land cannot be ended given decades of pollution by oil and gas; their livelihood is precarious. And now to the rest of Nigeria, the Ijaw are saying that no one has the right to ask an Ijaw man “what have you done with the money we gave to you.” When last I checked, you cannot give me what is mine.

32 —Vanguard,

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

‘WHO's 2020 health for all, a mirage without change of unhealthy behaviours — SCIENTISTS By Chioma Obinna

ITH Nigeria topping the Sahara African countries with highest burden of parasitic infections, scientists have warned that unless there are concerted efforts to change unhealthy behavioural activities that cause the bulk of human parasitic diseases, the World Health Organisation's , WHO, 'Year 2020 Health for All' will be an illusion. The scientists maintained that in the face of lack of a funding and environment where the gap between the rich and the poor widens daily, the change has become absolutely necessary, where people savour undercooked meat and meat products, eat with dirty hands, eat unwashed fruits and vegetables with a strong but false assumption that 'germs don't kill black man'. The Scientists at the 6th Annual Scientific Conference with the theme: "Ending the Communicable and Non-Communicable Diseases Divide in Nigeria" also condemned unhealthy behaviours such as keeping dogs to eat faecal wastes and dumping of wastes indiscriminately, urinating and defecating at every available place and allowing domestic animals such as pigs, goats to roam freely in homes. In her lecture entitled “From Paraistes to Parasites: A Parasitologists Expedition", Director, Dr Olaoluwa Akinwale, submitted that such unhealthy activities fuel incidences of parasitic infections. Akinwale who dismissed the notion that parasitic infections are more prevalent in tropics affirmed that incidence of many parasitic infections such as schistosomiasis (snail fever) and malaria has increased rather than decreased in recent years. Noting that humans are hosts to nearly 300 species of parasitic worms and over 70 species of protozoa, she said infections caused by parasites constitute major human health problems throughout the world. "Parasitic infections such as

LECTURE: From left, Delta State Commissioner for Health, Dr Nicholas Azinge; Air Commodore Edward Akinwale; Head, Public Health Division, Nigeria Institute of Medical Research, NIMR, Dr Olaoluwa Akinwale,and Director General, Prof. Innocent Ujah during the 6th Annual Scientific Conference of the institute in Lagos. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and roundworm (strongyloidiasis) have increased in importance as a result of the AIDs epidemic." Disclosing that 29 million Nigerians suffer from Schistosomiasis, 34 million from whipworm infection and 106 million at risk of elephantiasis, called for an option of behavioural change activities that would attract minimal financial demand from government. She called for massive education on safe hygiene practices and assimilation of health - related information with a view to inculcating sustained healthy behaviour. "Government should see the occurrence of parasitic diseases like schistosomiasis and other parasitic infections in the present century as a social defect and formulate appropriate policies and political will to address them.

To achieve a holistic control of these parasites, the head, Molecular Parasitology Research Laboratory Public Health Division, NIMR, urged government to develop a broad based strategy that combines good planning, policy consistency, with a progressive improvement guideline supported by strong structure for its implementation. Earlier in his address, the Director General of NIMR, Prof Innocent Ujah said the theme of the lecture was informed by the growing need to close the gap between Communicable and Non Communicable Diseases, NCDs, as well as recommend policies that can be developed in such a way that the government would respond appropriately to both diseases to the benefit of Nigerians. Stating that NIMR was limited in funding and human resources,

he said by harnessing and synergising its activities and programmes they would spend less and get more in return. "We are also trying to meet up with the new Strategic Development Goals, SDGs, approved by the United Nations. We believe that there is need to look at vaccine preventable diseases and other non communicable diseases," he said. He also said that in Nigeria today, there is significant dual disease burden of communicable and NCDs which provides new challenges and new opportunities to enact responsive changes in research and policy. Speaking, the Delta State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa who was represented by the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Azinge, noted that there is need for the country to focus more on NCDS.

Your life in their hands -- Anaesthetists in Owerri T

HIS week Anaesthetists from all over Nigeria are gathered in Owerri for their annual conference. For a start the word " anaesthesia " itself is a mouthful, not only for patients, but for other doctors as well. What does it mean? In simplest terms, anaesthesia means......no sensation. This is not the same as analgesia...which means "no pain". During anaesthesia, all sensation, including pain, is (supposed to be) lost. History records that an early Anaesthetist, whilst giving a new gas for a dental extraction, ended up putting both the patient and the dentist to sleep. He then pulled out the tooth himself and quietly left the room, leaving the two people there to wake up and wonder what had happened. Some go back to Biblical times to observe many times where a supposedly "deep sleep" was induced in certain people. You can even go back right to the beginning of creation, according to the Bible, where "Adam was put into a deep sleep and a rib taken to create Eve". What do they do? In many parts of the developed world the role and importance of Anaesthetists has been long recognised and the specialty is highly respected. Developments in anaesthesia has facilitated the ingenuity and success of today's highly complex surgical procedures. Sensation, that is used to be rendered to zero using gases, can now be totally suppressed using intravenous methods alone. Nerves of the body can be located and injected with medications that block their activity and block pain. It is now even possible to visualise these nerves by bouncing sound waves off them, thereby increasing

doctor@lagospainclinic.com accuracy and reducing complications. I owe my entire career to the great teachers I had at the University of Ibadan thirty years ago. These were skilled and dedicated men and women who imbibed a clinical and professional dignity to a fledgling specialty which, at that time, commanded little accolades. In the technology of the developed world, it was a surprise to them in the UK that my 'basic" Nigerian training could shine. What I find, see and experience on my return home now is a bit different. The decay in health infrastructure has dealt Anaesthesia a devastating blow. Residency training as a whole is, according to the residents themselves, in disarray. I am befuddled to see a junior doctor, coming out of NYSC, being pushed into a career of (perceived) need, rather than one of personal choice. I see hitech anaesthesia machines, dispensing anaesthetic gases long been condemned in other countries, still being administered to Nigerians, because of cheap cost. All this has impacted on surgical services. It has affected morale and

effectiveness of Anaesthetists. It has affected delivery of care to Nigerian patients. This group of doctors meeting in Owerri, working silently, without many of the drugs and facilities I had abroad, without applause, deserve a little, just a little, more support from all stakeholders. Perinatal and maternal mortality in Nigeria remains among the highest in the world. People die from complications of basic surgery; complications like bleeding and infection. If material and human resources were to be directed at our peri-operative services, Nigeria's health indices will improve immediately and significantly. The WHO published recommendations in 2009 to curb the rising incidence of death and mishaps in surgeries around the world. Over half of their ten suggestions is under the control of anaesthesia.“Anaesthetists have great expertise in peri-operative services.....ie before, during and after the actual operation. Anaesthetists were the original, and still remain, the pioneers of Intensive Care. Over 75 percent of doctors who specialise in Pain Medicine in the USA, and nearly all of them in the UK, are Anaesthetists. As the Anaesthetists gather this week in Owerri, they need to look inwards too. The NSA needs to, not only reevaluate the training of its residents and the retraining (CPD) of Consultants, they must also regulate and monitor ethics and standards within the specialty. The role of this small, seemingly unglamorous (I disagree), but vital medical specialty, cannot be underestimated in any healthcare system. Your (physical) life is truly in their hands.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015—33

Edo PDP scores Oshiomhole low on 7th anniversary By Gabriel Enogholase

ENIN—EDO State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has scored Governor Adams Oshiomhole's seven years performance in office as below average. State chairman of the party, Chief Dan Orbih, who addressed journalists in Benin while reacting to the self adulation of the governor on his performance, said that available records showed that N928 billion accrued to the state in the past seven years but only N268 billion could be accounted for in terms of projects execution and payment of salaries. He called on Oshiomhole to return the balance N660 billion unaccounted for to the state coffers, even as he advised the governor to return the sum of N42 billion he allegedly collected to address “serious security challenges.” Orbih scored Oshiomhole's administration zero in the areas of sports development, human capital development, youth employment, security amongst others. The PDP state chairman who said that it was ridiculous

for Oshiomhole to trace his failings to his predecessor, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, alleged that the Edo State Government planned to recruit thousands of youths ahead of next year ’s governorship election only to sack them after

the election. “I call on the governor to take full responsibility for his failure in government. Edo people will not accept latter day’s excuses of why he has not performed. “We are curious to know what

he has used N660 billon for. Apart from occasional Greek gifts of SUVs and cash to political travellers, there is nothing the governor has done with the money. It is a serious matter,” he said.

NDDF FORUM: Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State (left) being received by the Executive Director, Partnership Initiative in Niger Delta, Mr. Sam Daibo, on arrival for the Niger Delta Development Forum 2015, in Asaba, yesterday. Photo: Nath Onojake.

NDDF to foster growth in Niger Delta By Festus Ahon

SABA—THE 2015 Niger Delta Development Forum, NDDF, has opened in Asaba, Delta State, with a resolve to foster socio-economic growth in the region. Addressing newsmen, Programme Director of the Founder for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta, PIND, Dr. Dara Akala, said the forum was out to build peace through conflict resolution in the region. Disclosing that the forum was building partnership to attract investors to the area, Akala said they had grown several small and medium scale enterprises in the region. Saying that they were working with cluster groups of farmers to build capacity and increase productivity in fish and cassava farming, he

noted that the activities of the group were being funded by Chevron. He added that they had held sessions in America and the

United Kingdom where investors were won and attracted to the region. According to him, the three days forum would afford

Edo 2016: Onaiwu joins governorship race By Simon Ebegbulem

ENIN—THE Director General of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Governors Forum, Mr Osaro Onaiwu, has joined the 2016 governorship race in Edo State, saying he intends to improve upon the achievements of Governor Adams Oshiomhole. His entrance has increased the number of PDP governorship aspirants in the state to five. Other aspirants include Senator Ehigie Uzamere, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Chief Solomon Edebiri and Matthew Iduoriyekemwen. Speaking to journalists after visiting the former governor of old

Bendel State, Dr Samuel Ogbemudia, where he disclosed his intension to run for the 2016 governorship election, Onaiwu said he wants to bring his wealth of experience to serve his people, admonishing aspirants in the state to tell the people what they intend to do rather than embarking on campaign of calumny. He said: “I am home to use my

SABA—AN All Progressives Congress, APC, group in Delta State, Rescue Delta Media Group, RDMG, has congratulated the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, on his well deserved appointment by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The group, in a statement by its Director of Strategic Political Communication, Dr Fred Oghenesivbe, described Kachikwu as a man of uncommon aristocratic dignity, a legal icon and a technocrat of international repute in the oil industry. Dr. Oghenesivbe charged Kachikwu to adopt an open door policy so as to truly represent the interests of all Nigerians from the

experience to work for my people, the experience I gained in working with governors since 2007. I worked with 36 state governors while I work with 13 governors at the moment. I believe that with the experience I gained from working with these governors, it is time for me to come home and impact that knowledge on our people."

DTHA: Odibo urged to withdraw suit against Uviejitobor

HIEF Moses Odibo, candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the Delta State House of Assembly election for Udu state

Delta APC group hails Kachikwu's appointment By Onoja Innocent

participants the opportunity to exchange ideas on how the region could be developed.

six geopolitical zones, adding that by so doing he would write his name in gold and erase doubts in the minds of Deltans that his choice was influenced by ethnic politics. The group commended Kachikwu for his impressive performance during his screening at the Senate and urged him to be a friend and supporter of the APC Delta political family.

constituency, has been urged to withdraw his suit challenging the victory of Mr Peter Uviejitobor at the Court of Appeal in the interest of Udu Local Government Area of the state. A socio-political forum, Orhuwhorun Elite Forum, OEF, in a statement by its Public Relations Officer, Mr. Kelvin Salowor, said that the essence of governance was to deliver dividends of democracy which Uviejitobor was already doing since his assumption of office. Describing him as a leader per excellence, the forum urged the petitioner to put the interest of Udu people first.

5-year feud in Ugborodo resolved By Tare Youdeowei

A R R I— THE five years old internal strife that had sectionalized the oil-rich community of Ugborodo in Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta State, has been resolved. The reconciliation which took place at the Ode-Ugborodo town hall saw brothers formerly torn apart by internal feud gather for a meeting facilitated by Pa. J.O.S. Ayomike in company of two leaders of the town, OlajaOrori Benson Omadeli and Eghare-Aja, Pa. Wellington Ojoghor. The feud was caused by the factional groups jostling for the control of the resources accruing to the community which hosts Chevron tank farm and EPZ projects. Pa. Ayomike called for unity amongst them so that they can, with one voice, fight for and demand legitimate rights from the companies operating in their area, stating that Chevron and other companies operating in Ugborodo were owing the community money running into several millions of naira. Thanking Pa. Ayomike for the peace initiative, Ugborodo community leader, Mr. Isaac said, “The reconciliation meeting is the greatest thing that has happened to the community in recent years."

We’re determined to diversify our economy —Okowa By Kelechukwu Iruoma

ELTA State governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has said that the diversification of the state economy from oil dependent to non-oil export was his administration’s desire and goal. Okowa stated this in Lagos at the 2015 Lagos International Trade Fair. The governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Information, Mr Patrick Ukah, said the state’s participation in the trade fair was a testimony of his administration’s desire to stimulate the rapid growth of the state’s economy. His words: “Our participation in this year’s event is a testimony to Delta State Government’s desire to stimulate growth by way of accelerated development of commerce and industry, revitalization and diversification of our economy."

34—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

MINISTERIAL APPOINTMENT:

N75bn controversy, Obi speaks at last

Anambra ALGON sets agenda for Ngige

HE FORMER Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has finally broken his silence on the controversy raging over the actual amount he left in the coffers of the state when he left office. His response came via a text message we sent after several unanswered calls. His reply: “Let me put the records straight concerning the unnecessary controversy over debt and the 75 Billion Naira in investment & cash my

By Enyim Enyim

NITSHA—THE Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, Anambra state chapter yesterday tasked the minister of labour and employment, Senator Chris Ngige to ensure that the federal ministry he has been appointed to take charge would be beneficial to Nigerians irrespective of ethnic or religious leanings. This was contained in a two-page communique endorsed by the chairman and secretary of the group, Chief Uche Ezeliora and Chief Edwin Agbadiuno respectively and made available to the Vanguard. The group challenged the former governor of Anambra state to re-enact the good works he did in Anambra state while he was governor between 2003 and 2006, a legacy he left in the state that has not been surpassed by his successors at the federal level. “ Indeed, Dr. Chris Ngige as governor and senator did well and has continued to do well to the delight of Ndi Anambra and Nigerians in general. ‘ We are pleased with his selfless service to mankind, passion and vision and finally urge him to keep the flag flying now he is a minister of the federal republic in- charge of labour and employment.”

government left. I left office almost two years (over 600 days) ago and I will not comment on the statements of my successor, or his proxies. “All I can confirm is that we never borrowed from any bank in Nigeria, issued any bonds or owed any certificate for jobs executed when we left office. We handed certified accounts statements. Whatever we said we left is properly documented. Copies of same were made public at an event in Women

Development Centre, Awka. The Managing Directors of the three banks in which the respective sums were domiciled and the incumbent governor were in attendance. Should it be that the government has lost or misplaced its own documents, it can approach the banks. I will also make myself available within 48hrs, complete with my own copies of the documents; as I still have them. “I will not be seen as working against the progress of Anambra

ENUGU: Labour unions want FG to release

bail-out funds By Francis Igata

NUGU—THE Joint Public Service Negotiating Council,Trade Union Side, Enugu State Council has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria,CBN,to release the approved bailout fund to Enugu State Government to enable the state offset the arrears of salaries for non-permanent staff, pension and subventions for government parastatals, boards and agencies. The council equally commended the Enugu State Governor,Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for his administration’s

consultative approach in the preparation of the 2016 budget and efforts to sanitize some errant government agencies in the state in order to reposition them for efficient and effective service delivery. In a statement jointly signed by its Chairman and Secretary, Comrade Igbokwe Chukwuma Igbokwe and Comrade Theo O. Obasiani, the council expressed worries that “the prolonged delay since the announcement of the approval of the bail-out fund is affecting the social and economic lives of the workers”. It regretted that the non-release of the fund has brought untoward

hardship to the workers as “creditors kept harassing, insulting and threatening them on the grounds that they have paid”. According to the statement, “the council strongly condemns the non-release of the fund to Enugu State Government and calls for immediate release of the fund to the state to enable her discharge her statutory responsibilities to the workers. The continuous devaluation of the naira, galloping inflation which weakened the purchasing power of the national currency has made the nonrelease of the fund counterproductive.”

Petrol now sells at between N140 & N170 in Imo By Chidi Nkwopara

WERRI—PRICE of premium motor spirit, PMS, yesterday hit an all time high of between N140 and N170 per litre, following the worsening scarcity of the petroleum product in Imo State. Investigations also revealed that transport fare had doubled since the current price hike was introduced by petroleum marketers in the state. With the exception of the Nigerian National Petroleum

Corporation, NNPC, mega station situated along Onitsha Road and Ebere Links located along Port Harcourt Road in Owerri, all the other filling station operators claimed they had no PMS to sell to the suffering motorists. Vanguard investigation revealed that while the NNPC mega station strictly maintained the official pump price approved by the Federal Government, all the other filling station slammed whatever they liked on motorists. The long queue of vehicles

waiting to get the extremely scarce commodity at the NNPC mega station yesterday, stretched from the Onitsha Road location of the station to Nworie River along Maria Assumpta Road. A commercial vehicle driver, who simply identified himself as Rufus, lamented that vehicle owners were paying high fees for a litre of petrol. “Some filling stations in Owerri that had fuel for sale, sold it at between N140 and N150 per litre, but the story is different outside the state capital, as the

ashola is an achiever in Lagos with limited resources, let PMB mobilise him and I strongly think that he will deliver. May God give them all good health and wisdom to put the rightful smile Nigerians deserve. Mr Tunde Julius, Engineer

product goes for as high as N170 per litre”, Rufus fumed. The driver expressed regret that those charged with responsibility of regulating, monitoring and enforcing the price regime of petroleum products, have sadly abandoned their job. In his own reaction, a youth leader in Owerri, Mazi Damian Nze, expressed worry that “unless something very urgent was done to redress the ugly situation, we may end up having a bleak Christmas and New Year festivities in the state”.

By Bartholomew Madukwe (08102479985) nwamad@yahoo.com

PEOPLE SPEAK

State, a state I did everything possible to put on the right track. All I can tell you is that I will earnestly continue praying for my successor to build a better Anambra State for our children. “ My heart bleeds whenever Anambra is on the news for the wrong reasons.I am also earnestly praying for the President of Nigeria to build a better Nigeria. I am presenting Nigeria as a most attractive investment destination in Africa to my class at Cambridge University at 2p.m. today (yesterday)“ It would be recalled that Anambra State government had called a press conference on Saturday and alleged that Obi left a debt of over 100 Billion for his predecessor. His Media aide, Mr. Valentine Obienyem described the claim as untrue, challenging Anambra State government to publish the contracts and the names of those being owed. He further called on Association of Anambra Accountants to set up an independent committee to look into Anambra finances as at March 17th, 2017 to ascertain the actual amount Obi left in the treasury, insisting that Anambra State is looking for justification for the massive loans they had concluded to take from financial institutions.

On Fashola’s portfolio in Buhari’s govt

e is truly an achiever, God should grant him good health and wisdom to transform these three critical sectors entrusted to him. PMB did well by giving him this daunting task; he is the only one for now that can handle it. -Mrs. Morayo Simeon, Worker

ay God grant him the strength and knowledge to execute his duties in a great way, and I hope that NASS will not frustrate him. Fashola is equal to the task of being Minister of Power, Works and Housing. -Mr. Ismaila Aremu, Businessman

never knew people would still like Fashola to handle housing, especially in Lagos State. He had been handsomely rewarded for all his hardwork as governor of the most populous state in Nigeria. -Miss Regina Osakwe, Banker

o man can be perfect, so I think Fashola is worthy of the three in one position handed him by President Muhammadu Buhari to take his anticorruption war to the next level. -Mrs. Ifeoma A y a m b u b a , Businesswoman

a g o s S t a t e government, under the leadership of Fashola, demolished many houses in Lagos, turned some landlords into squatters and some had to return to the village. What is next for him? Miss Juliet Ogochukwu, Student

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015—35

Gov Ishaku launches Taraba Rescue Project

Why PPP initiative is needed in tourism devt — NIHOTOUR boss By Caleb Ayansina

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

ALINGO— Amidst legal fireworks surrounding his continuity in office, Governor Dairus Isiaku of Taraba State has launched his administration’s economic blueprint , tagged “Taraba Rescue Project.” The public presentation of the mission statement took place in Jalingo at the swearing in ceremony of his newly appointed commissioners. This came on the heels of the judgment by the Taraba State Governorship Election Tribunal which sacked him from office. A chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Mr. Osborne Adi, told journalists in Abuja, that Taraba Rescue Project would be the platform for the state’s economic and social development of the state. The governor explained that Taraba rescue project would serve as the road map for his administration and would also form the basis upon which the state’s 2016 budget would be built. Governor Ishaku charged his commissioners to see their appointments as call to service as drivers of the rescue mission whose reality would not be compromised under whatever guise. He urged the people of the state to accord his administration the desired support and cooperation in order for him to deliver to them the dividends of democracy which he promised during the electioneering campaigns. Meanwhile, the decision of the tribunal to remove Ishaku has continued to attract criticisms from various political leaders in the states, who have described it as a miscarriage of justice. At a gathering in Abuja, Musa John, former Nigerian envoy to Trinidad and Tobago, faulted the tribunal, saying as a former PDP governorship aspirant, he was aware that the party primary held in Abuja where he actively participated when the security situation in Jalingo, the state capital could not be guaranteed for such an event. According to him, since all the other aspirants that participated in the Abuja party primaries did not object to the emergence of Ishaku, the tribunal was wrong in its decision that declared Sen. Aisha of the APC winner of the election.

INSPECTION: From left, Alhaji Kabiru Mohammed, Chief of Staff to Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN; Munir Abiola, General Manager, Projects, FAAN; Silas Agara, Deputy Governor of Nasarawa State; Dr Ibrahim Idris, Director, Planning Research & Strategy, FAAN; Governor Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State; Saleh Dunoma, Managing Director, FAAN; and Remi Aromiwura, General Manager, Land, Water & Survey, FAAN, during the inspection tour of Lafia airport project by FAAN top management.

We can't pay workers' salaries, Benue govt declares By Peter Duru

AKURDI—THE Benue State Government has openly declared its inability to pay workers’ monthly salaries because of the harsh economic situation that has taken its toll on the finances of the government. Vanguard learned that the government has opted to alternate the salaries given the drastic drop in its revenue. Confirming the development,

Special Adviser to Governor Samuel Ortom on Media and ICT, Tahav Agerzua, said yesterday in Makurdi, the state capital, that the governor and state labour leaders, weekend, reached an agreement that the federal allocation for October and November 2015 be merged to pay all workers in the state their October salaries. Tahav said: “The agreement was reached after both parties reviewed the drastic drop in the October

PTD urges Buhari to probe N14.58b Jebba-Mokwa road contracts By Chris Ochayi

BUJA— PETROLEUM Tanker Drivers, PTD, branch of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the abandoned N14.58 billion contract for the rehabilitation of Ilorin-JebbaMokwa-Birnin-Gwari-Kaduna road. National Chairman of PTD, Salimon Akanni Oladiti, who made the call while speaking with journalists in Abuja, regretted that members had suffered untold hardship on account of the deplorable state of the highway, which had become a source of agony and death trap for motorists and other road users. The immediate past administration of President Goodluck Jonathan approved the contract for the rehabilitation of the highway project in November 2013 to the tune of N14.58 billion. The then Minister of Works, Mr Mike Onolememen, told journalists after the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting presided over by exPresident Goodluck Jonathan

that the FEC approved N42 billion contracts for the rehabilitation of roads across different states of the federation. Onolememen explained that, “council also approved contract No. 6210 for the rehabilitation of Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa-BirninGwari-Kaduna road section 1 in the sum of N14.58 billion.”

allocation to the state which was inadequate to pay salaries for the month. "They weighed the option of paying some Ministries, Departments and Agencies while the others would wait for next month but chose the option of merging the allocation for two months to pay for one, so that all workers would be on the same page. "The parties also considered internally generated revenue options and agreed that it was imperative to look inwards and beef up internal revenue generating sources as a permanent solution. "That agreement was signed by the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, State chairman, Godwin Anya, and Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, Secretary, Torkuma Ifan, who stood for the unions while the Secretary to State Government, Mr. Targema Takema, signed for the state government." Vanguard learned that the parties agreed that the arrangement would subsist until the financial situation of the state improved.

BUJA — THE National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, NIHOTOUR, has said tourism potentials in Nigeria are huge and require collaborative efforts between government and private sector to tap the huge resources for national development. Director General of NIHOTOUR, Mrs. Chika Balogun, who described the tourism sector as a goldmine, insisted that the sector “is capital intensive, thus requires both the government's contribution and the experts input in the private sector to move the industry to its desired stage.” In this vein, the International Tourist Choice Ltd is collaborating with the National Tourism Development Corporation, NTDC, Bwari and Kwali Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, to establish Bwari Tourists Village International along Ushafa axis and Kwali International Sport Tourist Centre to promote sports tourism. Speaking at the International Investment Tourism Forum, in Abuja, Balogun said government was unable to make much progress despite abundant tourism potential in the country, due to limited resources, adding that joint efforts of private and public sectors “can lead to rapid development of the tourism industry in the country.” The Managing Director of the International Tourist Choice Ltd, Henry Ogboi, said the two projects, open for other investors’ participation, were designed to create one million jobs using tourism and agriculture as an alternative to oil exploration.

Three Crowns Milk introduces Cook Like Mine competition

HREE Crowns Milk, from the stables of FrieslandCampinaWAMCO, is set to reward its consumers with the introduction of ‘Cook Like Mine’ competition from November 9 till December 11, 2015. The ‘Cook Like Mine’ competition has been designed to run in two phases. First phase is via the online platform where consumers are asked to send in their recipe and a picture of a meal they have made with Three Crowns Milk to threecrownscompetitions@gmail.com, while the second phase (offline

platform) involves a practical preparation of the meal where final winners would be selected and rewarded with fantastic prizes. The first stage of the competition, entry phase, would last for three weeks from November 9 to 27, 2015. After which five lucky participants would be selected based on the creativity and presentation of the picture of the meal sent. The second phase of the competition, which would take place on December 11, 2015, would require the five participants to cook the actual meals they entered with at the

grand finale. Speaking on the competition, Senior Brand Manager, Three Crowns Milk, Mrs. Maureen Ifada, explained that the Cook Like Mine competition is another platform in which the brand aims to engage and also appreciate its esteemed consumers for their continuous loyalty and patronage. Ifada added that the winner of the competition would be going home with a side-by-side double door refrigerator, the first runner up would get a chest freezer, second runner up will get a washing machine and the third and fourth runners up would be rewarded with a microwave oven each.

36—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

INCEPTION MEETING: From left—Director, Product Certification, Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON, Mr. Bayo Adegun; Director General, SON, Dr. Joseph Odumodu; Deputy Director, Standard Development, SON, Mrs Chinyere Egwuonwu, and Lead Expert, ACP-EU-TBT project, Dr. Geoffrey Visser, at the Inception Meeting of SON with key experts for the ACP-EU programme on capacity building/training on standardization in Lagos.

UNVEILING: From left—Managing Director, Dees Travels and Tours Ltd, Mr. Daisi Olotu; Chief Operating Officer, Ajala.ng, Mrs Omolua Nwoke; Head, Retail Banking Group, Skye Bank Plc., Mrs. Nkolika Okoli; General Manager, Tour Brokers International, Mrs Odion Chigbufue, and Mrs Olufunke Yerokun of Pasture Travels and Tours Ltd, at the unveiling of a strategic partnership between Skye Bank and the travel agencies on travel finance in Lagos.

DINNER/AWARD: From left—Olayinka Subair, Commercial Director, Pfizer Nigeria and Ghana; Bukola George, MD/CEO, Healthplus Pharmacies, and Winston Ailemoh, Marketing Director, Pfizer Nigeria and East Africa, at the dinner/award ceremony of the 88th annual national conference of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, sponsored by Pfizer in Abuja.

VISIT: Mr Charles Gerard of Corporate Affairs Department, Vanguard Media Ltd, with students of Diadem College, Ifako, Gbagada, Lagos, during a visit by the students to Vanguard Newspapers, Apapa, Lagos. Photo: Shola Oyelese. C M Y K

WALK FOR SIGHT: From left—Dayo Aderugbo, Head, Corporate Affairs, Brand & Marketing, Nigeria and West Africa, Mobola Faloye, Chief Risk Officer, Mrs Bola Adesola, MD/CEO all of Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria, and Dr. Jide Idris, Lagos State Commissioner for Health, at the 9th Annual Standard Chartered Bank walk for sight exercise in Lagos.

VANGUARD'S BEST NEWSPAPER AWARD: Princewill Ekwujuru of Vanguard Newspapers (left), recieves Vanguard's Award as the Best Newspaper of the Year from Prince Tunde Adedoyin, President, Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria, OAAN, during the Brand as King International Award 2015 in Lagos. Photo: Akeem Salau.

LAUNCHING: From left: Mr. Rasheed Salawu, Director, CWG 2.0; Mr. Chidiebere Asiegbu, BDM, Openshopen.ng and Mr. Tayo Oduwole, Head, Innovations, CWG Plc., at the launch of Openmall.ng in Lagos.

BRIEFING: From left—Ishaya Bako, Director, Chioma Çhigul'Omeruah, Genevieve Nnaji, Oris Erhuero, Chinny Onweghenu, Executive Producer, and Wangi Mba-Udokwu, Regional Director, West Africa, Mnet during the briefing on T.E.N's Road to Yesterday movie premiere in Lagos.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—37

US trains media advisor to govs in 17 states By Prince Okafor

HE PUBLIC Affairs Section of the US Consulate in Nigeria, has commenced a four day training of Chief Press Secretaries and Media Advisors of Governors of the 17 states in southern Nigeria. Speaking during the opening ceremony of the training workshop which according to the embassy’s Public Affairs Diplomacy Officer, Dehab Gebreab, is funded by the people of the United States, in response to Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari’s request to help train spokespersons at both the federal and state level, in effective press office operations. A particular emphasis will be placed on countering radical narratives and helping you to create a strong network of colleagues throughout the Government of Nigeria.

Women protest planned concessioning of health facility By Chidi Nkwopara

WERRI—ISHI Ogwa Umunneato autonomous community was completely shut down, yesterday, as hundreds of aggrieved women protested the planned concessioning of the medical facility in the area. The embittered women who carried fresh green leaves, also sang all manner of derogatory songs as they marched round the community before terminating their protest in the medical facility.

Why NASS must pass NIEP bill into law —Ezemonye By Tare Youdeowei

ENIN CITY—THE newly elected National President of the Nigerian Environmental Society, NES, Prof.Ikechukwu Ezemonye has stressed the need for the National Assembly to pass the National Institute of Environmental Practitioners, NIEP, bill, saying the passage of the bill will help secure not only oil producing communities, but the general environment. Ezemonye, who also is the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration) at the University of Benin UNIBEN, stated this in his acceptance speech, shortly after his election at the 25th AGM/Annual Conference in Owerri, Imo State. While expressing his appreciation to his colleagues for electing him as President, Prof. Ezemonye noted that the task of protecting the environment must be pursued aggressively, asserting that his administration had concluded plans to liaise with the legislators with a view to ensure the passage of the NIEP bill which is before the National Assembly.

While recalling that the medical establishment in their area, which was on the verge of being concessioned by Governor Rochas Okorocha, was built through self help effort and handed over to government. Explaining their grievance to newsmen, the Vice President of the Women’s Wing of the Community Development Union, Mrs. Iheoma Njoku, appealed to the state government to resist the temptation of

pursuing anti-people policies. “The health sector is not a profit making venture. Government should rather equip the health centre in their community, so as to effectively serve the needs of the rural dwellers instead of concessioning it to profiteers”, Njoku said. She complained bitterly that while public power supply to the community had since turned into a huge luxury, the roads in the area are in very bad state.

38 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Taraba Tribunal judgment was judicial theft — Governor Ishaku ON the heels of the tribunal judgment that upturned the result of the Taraba State governorship election, Governor Darius Ishaku, the standard bearer of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in this interview reacted to the judgment and issues bordering on the fate of the opposition in the country. Excerpts By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor

ERE you shocked by the tribunal judgment that you were not validly nominated as the candidate of your party? The verdict was not only a surprise but total disappointment in view of the fact that the main issues before the tribunal were not considered except for the promotion of trivialities. As a matter of fact, the issues before the tribunal were purely election issues, but regrettably, the tribunal in its judgment picked a pre-election issue. By this singular act, one can easily conclude that certain interests are coming to bear in the judgment. It is a calculated attempt to deprive me of the people’s mandate to lead them. I contested the primaries under the platform of the PDP and won. I was presented with the party’s flag as a mark of recognition as its candidate for the last polls. Therefore, it will be out of place for someone or the tribunal to insinuate in its judgment that I never contested the primary or I was not validly the candidate of the party. Why didn’t the PDP primary take place in Taraba? Truly speaking, the PDP primaries did not hold in Taraba. The PDP resolved to conduct the primaries in Abuja the Federal Capital on security grounds.

Security challenges Emphatically, during the period of the primaries, Taraba was experiencing security challenges which as a result informed the conduct in Abuja to avert any breakdown of law and other. What is the correlation of that with the decision of the tribunal to also sit in Abuja? I must confess that the action of the tribunal to shift its sitting from Jalingo the Taraba State capital as provided for by the Electoral Act to Abuja on security grounds is not different from what the PDP did during the conduct of its primaries. In view of the foregoing, I feel justified. Issues of insecurity are not issues that can be taken for granted because human lives cannot be compromised for anything, election inclusive. INEC claimed that it was not present at your primary and therefore could not confirm that you indeed held a primary. Do you think this played a role in the tribunal verdict? Although, I don’t think the testimony of the INEC official at the tribunal played a role in the verdict, but I am optimistic there was a ploy to undo me by bringing into play the issue of primary and leaving out the election which is the main issue at stake. Sometimes actions like this, exhibited by the tribunal on this case, leave more to be desired as justice was thwarted C M Y K

outright to promote certain interests at the expense of democratic principles. Do you share the sentiment of some in your party that the APC is trying to muscle out the opposition by unfair means? Yes, I share this sentiment in view of the prevailing circumstances. There is growing anxiety across the nation particularly by the PDP supporters that the APC ruling government is scheming hard to muscle out the opposition party by unfair means, hence quashing of the elections of its candidates in Rivers, Taraba and Akwa Ibom states. Apart from the use of the tribunal there are also other unfair means such as use of anticorruption agencies to hunt down PDP members. This scenario is not healthy for the nation’s nascent democracy. Many people expected you to appeal but do you really think you have a good reason to appeal? It is true that many people expected me to appeal the judgment on the grounds that it does not reflect justice as provided for in law. As a result of this action coupled with my personal conviction that justice was not given by the tribunal in my case, I have decided to appeal the judgment to get justice as well defend the people’s mandate at the polls. Believe me, the action of the tribunal was totally a judicial rape which could also be called judicial rascality given the antics of such judgment. APC said PDP is paying for impunity and this is responsible for the tribunal verdicts. Do you think that is a correct reading? The insinuation by APC that PDP is paying for impunity is false. PDP laid the foundation for sustainable

•Ishaku: I will not accept judicial theft democratic practice on the principles of law and good governance and as such cannot be accused of impunity after losing power to the APC despite the characteristics and other factors that came to play during the last election. What are you reservations about the actions and pronouncements of the tribunal in your case? My reservations are that I won the election overwhelmingly and cannot afford to allow any individual or group of persons to bring me down through manipulative tendencies to deny the people the benefit of democratic governance.

Democratic governance

The verdict was not only a surprise but total disappointment in view of the fact that the main issues before the tribunal were not considered

If issues raised at the tribunal conform with the rule of law on the conduct of the elections, it would have been an issue to consider but where a judicial theft is being promoted is highly unacceptable. Do you suppose that your challenger aroused passion among Nigerians because she is a woman? It may be one of the factors responsible for the support Aisha Alhassan who contested the election with me is receiving, but I want to say that the much propaganda her supporters are making on the issue in the media, especially the social media which had so much promoted falsehood on the issue among others reasons are contributory factors. As a matter of fact oftentimes, the issue of religion is another factor her supporters are using

to attract sympathy from different quarters for her. What is your message to your supporters? My message is simple and direct. Since election is not made to divide or fan embers of disunity or disaffection among the people, but a means of selection or election of leaders for effective leadership for the attainment of developmental goals, it therefore behooves on the people to remain calm and law abiding during and after every issue involving litigation. I am appealing to the people of Taraba state to adhere strictly to the rule of law which guarantees peaceful living beneficial to all and sundry. I will not relent in pursuing peace with all men, including my enemies so that a platform which will guarantee good development will be actualised. Election petitions apart, what has changed in Taraba since you became Governor? I have restored water supply in the state capital, raised the power supply from 2 MW to 18 MW, ensured peaceful coexistence among the various communities who were hitherto ravaged by communal and ethno-religious feuds, mobilized construction firms to resume work on the Jalingo, Kona and Bali-Serti to Gembu roads among others. What is your assessment of President Muhammadu Buhari so far? I assess him as a man who wants to also contribute his own quota for the development of Nigeria for posterity, hence his policies and programmes even though they are yet to mature.

VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 39

2015: KOGI DECIDES

DPC tasks INEC chairman on credible polls By Clifford Ndujihe

•Yakubu: Assures that votes will count

•Arase: Foils rigging plans through impersonation

INEC to deploy 3 natl commissioners, 11 RECs •We’ve foiled politicians ‘ plan to use police uniform for rigging – Arase •Card readers configured, tested, charged and ready By Boluwaji Obahopo

ATIONAL Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, yesterday said the commission will deploy three of its National Commissioners and 11 Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) for the conduct of the November 21 governorship election in Kogi. This is coming as the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase warned political parties to desist from sewing police uniform for thugs for the purposes of manipulating the Saturday election in the state. The duo disclosed this in Lokoja while speaking at the Governorship Election Stakeholders’ Forum. Prof. Yakubu said the deployment was in line with the Commission’s resolve to ensure free, fair and credible election in the state. “The three National Commissioners will be saddled with the duty of monitoring the election in the three senatorial districts of the state namely; Kogi East, Kogi West and Kogi Central.

across the state while the sensitive materials are already in safe custody of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and will be deployed on the eve of theelection in the presence of all stakeholders. He also assured of INEC’s neutrality in the conduct of the election, “Only people of Kogi can choose who their governor will be and nobody else. Our duty is to deliver free, fair and credible election,” he said. He restated the Commission’s earlier stand on the use of smart card readers and permanent voter cards for the Kogi election, stressing that those without PVCs will not be allowed to vote just as he called on prospective voters who are yet to collect their PVCs to do so in order not to be disenfranchised. Card readers configured, tested, charged and ready “All the smart card readers to be used for the election have been charged, configured, tested and confirmed okay. The Commission has made provisions for over 700 smart card readers as back up in case any of

Necessary arrangements “The Commission attaches much importance to the conduct of the Kogi election especially being the first under my watch. All necessary arrangements have been put in place to ensure conduct of free, fair and credible polls. “The Jega-led INEC had raised the bar of the electoral process in the country and Nigerians expect nothing short of that but rather want improvements in the Kogi and other subsequent elections.” Yakubu said all the nonsensitive materials for the election have been deployed C M Y K

All necessary arrangements have been put in place to ensure conduct of free, fair and credible polls

the machine malfunctions.” The Forum had in attendance, the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, all the five INEC National Commissioners, the AIG in charge of Zone 8, representatives of political parties and their candidates, civil society organisations and representatives of the various security and paramilitary agencies in the state. We’ll ensure adequate security – Arase Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase on his own urged the Kogi electorate to come out enmasse and exercise their rights on November 21 without fear of molestation as adequate security arrangements have been made by the Police. Arase said the Police hierarchy has deployed adequate personnel for effective security before, during and after the election. “The 21 units of mobile policemen have been deployed to Kogi to man security in each of the 21 local government areas of the state in collaboration with the 6,000 policemen already on ground in the state,” he said. Arase warned those allegedly sewing police uniform to use in committing electoral malpractice to steer clear of the polling units on Election Day as anyone not properly accredited to monitor the election as a security agent would be ruthlessly dealt with. He charged all policemen deployed for election duty to respect voters’ rights, stressing that all acts of misconduct including intimidation and threat to voters by security personnel will not be condoned. He, however, said that the military will not directly be involved in election duties but will be assisting in the protection of critical national institutions on the election day.

HE Democratic People’s Congress, DPC has called on the new Independent National Electoral Commission Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu to ensure that November 21 governorship polls in Kogi and that of Bayelsa on December 5 are credible. DPC National Chairman, Rev. Olusegun Peters, in a statement, said the conduct of both polls ‘’will test the competence and integrity of the new INEC boss, Professor Yakubu and the APCled Federal Government. DPC demands a level playing field for all the political parties contesting these

elections. As electoral umpire, INEC must remain neutral and avoid being used by dominant parties in government that had produced a charade called election in the past.’’ Peters urged Yakubu to ‘’formulate and implement policies that will promote, strengthen and deepen the nation’s multi-party democracy particularly opposition parties. INEC is constitutionally charged with the enormous responsibilities of monitoring political parties’ activities, updating voter register and conducting free, fair, credible and acceptable elections. ‘’The integrity, credibility and neutrality of the electoral umpire are essential in boosting Nigerians’ confidence in our political process.

PDP to COAS, IG: Call Your Men to order in Kogi By Gbenga Oke

OVERNOR Idris Wada has called on the Chief of Army Staff COAS, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai and the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, to call their men deployed to the state to order ahead of the Saturday election. Wada in a statement issued in Lokoja yesterday through his Chief Communications •Wada: PDP candiate Manager, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, warned the candidate of the APC, Abubakar Audu to desist from his current tactics of deliberately fomenting trouble to brighten his electoral chances. “The current threat of mass arrest of members of PDP in the run up to the Saturday’s election by the APC, using the instrumentality of the military and connivance of the police has already created tension and panic in the state,” the statement alleged. “In their efforts to weaken the PDP supporters in Kogi State and give the APC an unfair advantage at the polls, several of our supporters have been threatened and we consider this a crude way of giving an unfair advantage to the APC”. Shaibu said. Continuing, he said, “ we are using this opportunity to call on the military and the police hierarchy to order their men that have been drafted to Kogi to act professionally and fairly so as not to send a wrong signal to all Nigerians and the international community about the role of the of the military at the forthcoming governorship elections in Kogi”

40 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

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VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 41

PARIS ATTACKS: Police search suspects’ premises

Terrorism can be defeated with unity of purpose—Ambode

•Commiserates with France

OLICE probing Friday’s attacks in Paris have been searching premises they believe were used by the attackers. A car rented by Salah Abdeslam, the suspected eighth gunman who is now the subject of an international manhunt, is also being inspected. He or his brother Brahim, named as another attacker, are thought to have rented a flat and two hotel rooms. The so-called Islamic State (IS) group says it carried out the multiple attacks in which 129 people died. Officials say that 117 of the victims have now been identified. A Belgian-registered black Renault Clio was found parked near Montmartre in northern Paris. After police sealed off the area and ensured there was no booby-trap, the vehicle was towed away for forensic examination. Investigators believe the car may have been used to bring the attackers to and from Belgium, from where French authorities say the attacks were organised. Images on French media of one of the hotel rooms being examined show syringes and tubes which

By Charles Kumolu

•Mohamed Abdeslam, brother of one of the suspects, who told a French TV thus: “I was not involved in any way” could be bomb-making interview to a French TV equipment. station in which he called Follow the latest live on Salah to turn himself in. updates Salah Abdeslam is On Tuesday French believed to have fled across media reported that a the border to his native French jihadist, Fabien Belgium. Belgian police Clain, had been identified have released more pictures as the voice in a recording of him. Salah and Brahim’s issued by Islamic State in brother Mohamed which it said it had carried Abdeslam gave an out the attacks.

Putin vows payback after confirmation of Egypt plane bomb

RESIDENT Vladimir Putin vowed to hunt down those responsible for blowing up a Russian airliner over Egypt and intensified air strikes against militants in Syria, after the Kremlin concluded a bomb had destroyed the plane last

Charlie Sheen confirms he is HIV positive

OLLYWOOD star Charlie Sheen has confirmed he is living with HIV in a US television interview. “I am here to admit that I am HIV positive,” he said. The former star of sitcom Two And A Half Men appeared on NBC’s Today show, ending days of intense media speculation. Sheen revealed to Matt Lauer he had paid “enough to take it into the millions” to keep people from going public about his illness. “I have to put a stop to this onslaught, this barrage of attacks and of sub-truths,” he said, adding he was diagnosed four years ago. He said when he revealed his HIV status to friends “the truth became treason”, leading to “blackmail and extortion and

a circle of deceit”. “I trusted them, they were in my inner circle and thought they could be helpful. My trust turned to their treason,” he said, adding a prostitute took a picture of his medication and threatened to sell it to newspapers. I think I release myself from this prison today,” he said.

Britain to recruit nearly 2,000 spies to counter ISIS

HE UK has announced it will expand its domestic and international spy agencies by recruiting 1,900 new intelligence agents in the wake of attacks in France and the Middle East.

YEMEN: Exiled President Hadi returns to Aden

EMEN’S exiled President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi has returned to the southern city of Aden to supervise a new offensive against the rebelheld area of Taiz, officials say. It is not clear how long Mr Hadi intends to remain in the country. He made his first visit to Aden in September,

month, killing 224 people. Putin ordered the Russian navy in the eastern Mediterranean to coordinate its actions on the sea and in the air with the French navy, after the Kremlin used longrange bombers and cruise missiles in Syria and announced it would expand its strike force by 37 planes. “We will find them anywhere on the planet and punish them,” Putin said of the plane bombers at a somber Kremlin meeting broadcast on Tuesday. The FSB security service swiftly announced a $50 million bounty in a global manhunt for the bombers. Until Tuesday, Russia had played down assertions from Western countries that the Oct. 31 crash was the work of terrorists, saying it was important to let the official investigation run its course.

having fled the country six months earlier in the face of advances by Houthi rebels. At least 5,600 people have been killed in the past eight months of fighting. A Saudi-led Arab coalition launched an air campaign in March, followed by a ground offensive, to push back the Houthis and reinstate Mr Hadi’s government.

David Cameron, UK prime minister, made the announcement on Monday during the G20 meeting of the world’s leading economies in Turkey. He called on the states to band together to cut off financing to proscribed entities, particularly the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group. Cameron said the attacks in Paris on Friday, which left 129 people dead and hundreds more wounded, could have happened elsewhere in Europe, and the threat posed by ISIL and its supporters was widespread.

AGOS State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode has described the terrorist attack in Paris as an act of brutality on the civilised world and humanity, noting that terrorism can only be defeated globally with unity of purpose. Ambode, in a condolence letter sent to the Ambassador of France to Nigeria, Mr. Denys Gauer, said the French people have demonstrated that like other challenges plaguing humanity, terrorism should not be politicised. The letter which was

signed by the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, reads: “On behalf of the government and good people of Lagos State, I wish to express our heartfelt condolences to your good self, the French government and the entire French citizens over last Friday’s terror attacks in Paris. “The dastardly act was no doubt an attack on the civilised world and humanity and we share in your grief. Whether the strike is within the city, through plane hijack or in traffic, terrorists speak the same language of force,

violence and suppression. “But the civilised world should not only resist terror, we must defeat it by every means possible. And this is why the whole world is standing behind France at these trying times to say no to terror and every form of extremism.” While commending the French courage and resilience against the terror attacks, Ambode acknowledged that by standing up in unison to condemn terrorism, the French people have demonstrated that like other challenges plaguing humanity, terrorism should not be politicised.

UK doctor, nurse guilty of enslaving Nigerian for 24 years

DOCTOR and his nurse wife have been found guilty of keeping a man as a slave for 24 years at their home. Ofonime Sunday Inuk, now 40, told Harrow Crown Court that he arrived in the UK from Nigeria in 1989 when he was 14 and made to look after the couple’s home and children. Emmanuel and Antan Edet, from Perivale, north west London, were found guilty of three slavery and cruelty charges. The couple, who had denied the charges, are due to be sentenced on 18 November. During the case, Mr Inuk told the court he had been promised an English education, but was instead made to work, with the warning that if he left the house or went to the police he would be arrested for being an illegal immigrant. The court heard he had made attempts to escape and spoke to the police in 2005, but was left “a bit dejected” after being told by an officer it was a “family

•Emmanuel and Antan Edet, from Perivale, north west London, who were found guilty of three slavery and cruelty charges. matter”. Ten years later he contacted the Metropolitan Police again when he saw media reports about modern slavery and realised the life he was being made to lead was wrong. He also emailed the

Guinea’s last Ebola patient recovers in Conakry

HE last known Ebola patient in Guinea, a 21day-old baby girl, has recovered at a treatment centre in the capital,

Rescued Tanzanian miners lived on insects for 41 days

IVE gold miners have been rescued in western Tanzania after being trapped underground for 41 days, while 12 others are still missing, police say. The artisanal miners survived by eating roots, soil, frogsandcockroachesandare receiving treatment at hospital. The group had gone underground to rescue 11 other miners when they became trapped, police said. Many people search for gold in unregulated mines in remote areas of Tanzania in the hope of becoming rich. This is one of the longest periods that miners have

charity Hope for Justice, which in turn contacted Scotland Yard to co-ordinate his release. Prosecutor Damaris Lakin told the court: “Emanuel and Antan Edet have cruelly robbed this victim of 24 years of his life.

remained trapped underground. In Chile, 33 were rescued after 69 days in 2010 in an operation which gained worldwide attention. Efforts by local people to rescue the Tanzanian miners were abandoned last month after about a week, as hopes of finding them faded, reports the BBC’s Alice Muthengi from the main city, Dar es Salaam. But faint cries alerted other miners working nearby that the group was still trapped underground, and search operationshurriedlyresumed at the mine in the northwestern Shinyanga region.

Conakry, health officials say. A spokesman for Guinea’s Ebola co-ordination unit said two tests on the baby had been negative. Guinea will be declared officially free of Ebola if no new cases are reported in the next six weeks. The epidemic, which began in Guinea, has killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa. Neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia have already been declared Ebola-free. The baby has twice tested negative, but will remain under special observation at a centre run by Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) as she was born the day her infected mother died. MSF is anxious to monitor her as if she does survive, she will be the first baby born to a mother who has died of Ebola to live beyond several days.

42—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 , 2015

Over 30 killed in Yola bomb blast

ORE than 30 people were killed Tuesday when a bomb blast occurred at a Motor Park in Yola, the Adamawa state capital. The explosion happened at about 8:20 pm (1920 GMT) in the Jambutu area of the Adamawa state capital, although it was not immediately clear whether it was caused by a suicide bomber or an improvised explosive device. “So far, we’ve recorded about 32 dead and about 80 injured,” said Sa’ad Bello, the Yola coordinator for the National Emergency Management Agency. The Red Cross and state police gave a slightly lower toll of 31 dead and 72 injured. In October, 27 people were killed and 96 injured in a blast at a mosque in Jambutu, while in September, seven people died and 20 were injured by a bomb left at the displaced persons camp visited by Buhari last week. Two suicide bombers blew themselves up at one of Yola’s main markets in June, killing 31. There have also been multiple raids in the north of the state, near the group’s Sambisa Forest stronghold across the border in Borno.

ExxonMobil invests N9.2bn in Nigerian varsities By Amaka Abayomi

AGOS—SEVEN new maps have been published by the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency, through the University Partnering Programme, UPP, of Esso Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited, EEPNL, an affiliate of ExxonMobil, justasExxonMobil has invested over N9.2 billion in Nigerian universities. The UPP, which started with six varsities, was introduced in 2007 as a means of supporting Nigerian varsities in providing Geoscienceacademicinstruction comparable to their counterparts inadvancedclimes. Speaking at the launch of the maps at the 2015 Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists conference in Lagos, the General Manager, Exploration, EEPNL, Mr. Andrew Ejayeriese, said the new maps signify the outstanding success of an innovative social investment vehicle that was introducedtohelpimproveonthe quality of Geoscience education inNigeria. C M Y K

Panic in Lagos, as security operatives tackle oil thieves L

By Evelyn Usman

AGOS—RESIDENTS of Festac Town in Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos were yesterday, rattled by sporadic gun shots from the creeks on 7th Avenue which lasted several hours. The shooting as gathered ,were from militants suspected to have raided two banks on 7th Avenue, where a nursing mother was felled by stray bullets, last month. The militants were reportedly at the verge of vandalising a pipeline belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC but the attempt was foiled, as a joint team of military men and police officers from Area ‘E’ ‘Command, Festac, who got wind of their presence swooped on them, thereby leading to a gun battle which reportedly forced the militants to bolt away. Vanguard reliably gathered that the security agents routed the militants hideout discovered in the creeks. Apprehensive residents who concluded that the shooting could be another bank robbery, reportedly sent text messages to their relations and security agencies. Most of those living within the coastal area , reportedly fled their abode, while others remained indoors for the better

part of the day, for fear of being hit by stray bullet. Police sources hinted that the joint operation which lasted until 3.30pm was led by Area ‘E’ Commander and Festac Divisional Police Officer. Police sources described the shooting simply as a joint operation with the military, saying there was no cause for alarm. The operation as gathered, would continue until criminals were completely

dislodged from the creeks. It was also gathered that the operation was not restricted to the waterways around Festac Town alone. As at 4pm, the military, comprising men of the OP MESSA and the Navy were combing other coastline areas,while the policemen returned to their respective jurisdictions. According to a senior police officer at Area ‘E’ command, “There is no cause to fear. The

shooting is not from robbers as speculated. It is a Joint operation between the Military and the Police. It is aimed at sending warning to miscreants that this place is a no go area.“ Spokesman for the Lagos State Police Command, Joe Offor, confirmed the shooting. He explained that “there was shooting from the creeks early this morning (yesterday). Police and the Military entered the place to beef up security,“ he said, adding that no arrest was made.

VISIT: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (right) and Minister for Science & Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, during a visit to the Governor in Lagos, yesterday.

Gen Williams decries influence of religion in N-East crisis •Asks Buhari to replace Women Affairs Ministry with Ministry of Family Affairs L

By Innocent Anaba & Abdulwahab Abdulah

AGOS—GENERAL Ishola Williams (retd) has decried the influence of religion in the crisis in the North East of the country, while also calling on religious leaders to help impress on their followers the need for peace for the smooth functioning of the society. He also asked President Muhammadu Buhari to replace the Ministry of Women Affairs with a Ministry of Family Affairs if the government is to effectively address the root causes of violence and Internally Displaced Persons in the North-east of Nigeria. At a media roundtable on the root causes of violence and Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, in the North-east in Lagos, yesterday, he said; “We need to urgently redefine politics and power and the linkage between the two with money. In addition, faith, beliefs and action require two-pronged approach: Counter narratives in terms of beliefs, and guidance and role models in terms of action without politics. It is also important to emphasize family (e.g.) Ministry of Family Affairs instead of Women Affairs) with emphasis equally on girl-

child and boy-child. We cannot continue to ignore the key role of boys and young men in perpetrating conflict.” The roundtable was organised by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, in collaboration with the Ford

Foundation and chaired by Justice Samuel Oseji of the Court of Appeal, Lagos. According to General Williams, “We must transform the hands that kill, maim and destroy into hands that can save and rebuild. We must do away

with all the jargons in terms of peace-keeping, peace-making, peace-building, conflict transformation, etc and come up with innovative sustainable framework for crises/conflict prevention and mitigation at local and national level."

Ajimobi, labour agree on ‘staggered' payment

WORKERS SALARIES:

By Ola Ajayi

BADAN—GOVERNOR Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State and the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress have agreed that salaries of workers in the state will be settled using “staggered“ mode of payment. This implies that consideration will be given to junior staff from whatever monthly revenue the state gets while the senior staff will be taken care of thereafter. The option of staggered payment of salary was taken as against downsizing of workers and cut in salaries.

This was disclosed yesterday by the State Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Waheed Olojede, while delivering a lecture in Ibadan. Olojede, who was represented by the Secretary General of the union, Mr. Kofo Ogundeji said a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, had been signed by both parties.

He said out of the three options, all parties agreed to the first option adding that they had to face reality of the current financial predicament of the state. The MoU was signed by representatives of the state government and that of the workers including members of the Joint Negotiating Council, JNC.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—43

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44 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

2018 FIFA W/Cup qualifiers

Egypt knock Chad hard

GYPT strolled into the final round of the World Cup qualifiers with a 4-0 home win over a jaded Chad side which had just arrived in Alexandria in time for the game, with repeated flight delays back home leaving them with minimal preparation for the crucial match. Chad barely had time for the routine pre-match warm up at Borg El-Arab Stadium in Egypt’s second largest city and they were ripped to shreds by a vibrant Egypt side who vowed to make up for a stunning 1-0 first-leg reverse in

N’Djamena on Saturday. Egypt, who scored all goals in the first half, basked in the support of some 25,000 fans at the 86,000-seat stadium for the first time since hosting Senegal in Cairo in November last year, as a crowd ban was partially lifted by Egyptian authorities. The hosts went 2-0 up inside the first 10 minutes to overturn the first-leg deficit, with Basel midfielder Mohamed Elneny opening the scoring and Ahly ’s Abdallah El-Saied notching his first goal in 13 international appearances.

Congo thrash Ethiopia

ONGO emerged as victors after beating Ethiopia 2-1 at home in their second leg clash of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers yesterday afternoon at Stade Alphonse Massamba-Débat in Brazzaville. Goals in each half by

•Thievy Bifouma

Francis N’Ganga and Thievy Bifouma gave the hosts the deserved win and put them through to the group stages of the qualifiers. The Red Devils are through to the next stage of the qualifiers en route to Russia 2018 after their gutsy 4-3 first leg victory (6-4 on aggregate) over Ethiopia in Addis Ababa last Saturday. Although the Bidvest Wits man, Getaneh Kebede netted first last week, he once again found the back of the net, putting the visitors in the lead in the 28th minute. However, with three minutes in the second half, N’Ganga levelled the scores, cancelling out the South African-based player’s goal.

Don’t criticise my team— Bafana Bafana coach

AFANA Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba has once again urged his critics to get behind the team as they look to reach the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The South Africans booked a place in the third round when they beat Angola 1-0 yesterday earning a 4-1 aggregate score. However, Mashaba still fights a continuous battle against his critics – more often than not for what they perceive to be incorrect selection criteria. “My appeal is for people to give me a chance as the coach of this team,” he said. “You have given me the responsibility to run it, and there is no way I could select the team

and play negatively … there is no way. “I stayed the whole week with these boys at training and I look at them playing and people would start saying ‘Why not so and so and why so and so?’, and ‘why didn’t you take so and so out?’

Fighting Hard... Ghana’s Black Stars' striker, Andre Ayew (R) in action.

Ayew, Wakaso see off Comoros G

HANA edged into the third round of World Cup 2018 qualifying with Mubarak Wakaso and Jordan Ayew on target in a 2-0 victory over Comoros in Kumasi. Comoros, sat 147 places below Ghana in the FIFA rankings, held Avram Grant’s side to a goalless draw in the first leg and were hoping to pull off a shock result in the return fixture. Despite their well-organised display, Wakaso’s first-half free-kick was added to by Jordan Ayew in the closing stages after Comoros had been reduced to 10 men. The game began at a high tempo, but Emman-

uel Agyemang-Badu failed to give Ghana an early lead when he sliced a powerful shot wide from no more than 10 yards out. Comoros looked dangerous on the counter-attack and Ali M’Madi’s 25-yard strike forced an unorthodox save from

Brimah Razak. But Ghana’s nerves were eased in the 18th minute when Wakaso curled a 20-yard free-kick into the top corner, leaving Salim Ben Boina rooted to the spot. Midway through the half Andre Ayew’s cross from the left was headed

Cameroon dismiss Niger in Yaounde

HE Indomitable Lions of Cameroon are through to the next round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers after their goalless stalemate at Stade Omnisport Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaoundé on

Tuesday afternoon. The Central Africans are through to the group stages following their 30 first leg win away to Niger and therefore go through on a 3-0 aggregate result. Although the hosts were

Libya too strong for Rwanda

IBYA are through to the group stages of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers after beating Rwanda 3-1 on Tuesday afternoon at Stade Régional de Nyamirambo

Cole Alexandar... Bafana Bafana player

narrowly wide by Asamoah Gyan, the captain failing to double his team’s advantage. Grant’s side monopolised possession but struggled to create further opportunities against the well-organised Comoros.

in Kigali. Following Tuesday’s score, the Libyans have registered a 4-1 aggregate score after walloping their Rwandan opponents 1-0 in the first leg last week. A brace by Mohamed Elmonir and a goal from Mohamed Ghanodi were enough to give the Mediterranean Knights a ticket to progress to the next final round of qualifiers. Although the hosts, Amavubi, were looking to use their home advantage and overturn last week’s result, they failed to create scoring opportunities in the opening half allowing the hosts to grab an early lead. After Elmonir’s strike in the 36th minute, the hosts

managed to level the matters on the stroke of half time through Jacques Tuyisenge ensuring both sides went to the tunnel on equal grounds. However, in the second stanza, the visitors took the lead when Ghanodi converted with just three minutes into the second half. As the match progressed, Libya ensured they killed the game when they netted their third goal of the encounter when Elmonir completed his brace in the dying minutes of the clash. With the hosts becoming frustrated, the visitors managed to hold onto their lead and finished the match as victors thus booking their spot in the group stages of the qualifiers.

favourites going into the clash after their 3-0 demolition of the hosts last week, the Menas surely came back prepared for this one despite also failing to bag a single goal. At half time, both nations were still locked at 0-0 and the second half began with the home supporters hoping to see goals from the hosts, however, it wasn’t to be. After 55 minutes, it seemed certain that both sides were going to struggle to break the deadlock after struggles in the final third of the field where attacking players were not decisive enough.

•Stephan Mbia

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Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015 — 45

Eagles peck stubborn Swaziland twice! BY JOHN EGBOKHAN

spectacularly hit free kick by Moses Daddy-Ajala Simon and a sublime volley by Efe Ambrose yesterday edged a wasteful Super Eagles side to an hard-fought 2—0 win over Swaziland in a second round second leg 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia match in Port Harcourt. On a day the Eagles squandered scores of chances at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, they were still able to hold out for the allimportant win to progress to the group stage of the CAF qualification series for the next World Cup. And for the first time since taking over the Eagles, Coach Sunday Oliseh took bold decisions by relegating

regular starters, Mikel Obi of Chelsea, Elderson Echiejile of Monaco and Godfrey Oboabona to the substitutes bench In their places, Oliseh handed starting places to Sunshine Stars midfielder Paul Onobi, Chima Akwa of relegated Sharks and Abia Warriors captain and defender, Austin Oboroakpo. Having been held to a barren draw in the first leg four days back in Lobamba, the three-time African champions were well aware of the proposition they were facing as anything but an outright win would spell doom for Nigerian football. For a country still seething over the team’s failure to qualify for the last Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, only a progress to the next round of the World Cup qualifying campaign would assuage an insatiable fans, who packed the Adokiye Amiesimaka

stadium to see their stars rain in the goals against the Swazis, who however, stood firm, foiling Eagles scoring attempts. th As early as the 11 minute, Odion Ighalo laid a pass to Moses Simon, whose tame shot was easily stopped by Gwedu in goal for Swaziland. On 28 minute, captain Ahmed Musa failed to break down the Swazis defence led by Shibusiso Bolani. Still probing for the opener, Ogenyi Onazi’s precise pass for Ighalo, was sent wide by the Watford striker on 30 minute. It was the best scoring chance by the Eagles in the first half. And a minute later, Sylvester Igbonu saw his shot go agonisingly wide as Eagles got closer to opening the account. And to the surprise of the fans, Swaziland launched a counter a minute later, slicing open the Eagles defence

as goalkeeper Carl Ikeme watched with awe as Sinosa Sadhile blew a gilt-edged opportunity to put the visitors in front. That was the best chance of the first half. It ignited the Eagles to launch their own attacking forays but the likes of Ighalo, Simon, Musa, Igbonu all failed to make the most of the chances. Namibian referee stopped the match after four minutes of injury time. On resumption of the second half, Igbonu, combining well with the

creative Onobi in midfield was hacked down close to the box of the Swazis. It was 51 minutes on the clock as the duo of Igbonu and Simon stood behind the ball, with fans at a loss as to who was going to hit the ball. Simon, who plays for AAA Gent of Belgium went forward, struck the ball and it weaved and landed at the back of the Swazi net. First goal for Eagles as fans went wild to celebrate the curtain raiser. Coach Oliseh was relieved at last. His gamble had paid off. He also took out Musa and brought in Obafemi Martins.

Simon was also replaced with an homebased player. They begged for more but Swaziland curtailed the Eagles. They also tried to catch the Eagles on the break with Ikeme being called to the rescue eight minutes from time when a Swazi player hit a long-range shot that was goalbound. In the closing stages, defender Efe Ambrose capped a good game with a brilliant goal for the Eagles. Igbonu was the provider as the Eagles put daylight between themselves and their foes to notch a deserved 2-0 win.

LMC Sanctions Giwa FC, 2 players

IWA FC of Jos and two of its players have been sanctioned by the League Management Company (LMC) for their roles in the abandoned match day 38 fixture in Lafia against hosts, Nasarawa United. The Jos-based side had refused to continue with the game on 34th minute forcing the Referee to call of the match at the expiration of the first half thereby breaching article 13.26 of the Framework and Rules of the Nigeria Professional Football League. The players, Amos Gyang and goalkeeper, Nojeem Raji had on separate occasions refused to retire to the dressing room after being expelled for initial violent

behaviours. Giwa FC was fined N3, 000, 000 , a deduction of three points and forfeiture of three points and three goals to Nasarawa United for the abandoned match. For assaulting a ball boy, Gyang was charged for breach of article C1 for violent conduct amounting to misconduct, contrary to the principles of sportsmanship and capable of bringing the league to disrepute. On the second charge of breach of article C8, he was charged for refusal to refusal to retire to the dressing room after being sent off the match by the Referee. He was fined N50, 000 on the first count and suspended for two matches on the second count. Goalkeeper Raji was

Siasia Continues from BP those who kidnapped his mother to free her to allow him focus on winning a ticket to next year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Madam Ogere Siasia, 72, was, according to coach Siasia, abducted in the village of Odoni, Bayelsa State, by three men on motorbike. She was the only one at home in his village taking care of his father, who is visually impaired. Former Nigeria coach Siasia said: “Right now I am confused, from the story I got, three men on motorbike stormed my parents’ house in my village Odoni in Bayelsa State, shot sporadically into the air before taking my old mother away on a bike. “What do they expect from me? I don’t have money, I am right now on national

duty, and need all the time to concentrate on this very important national task, so I beg them to please release my mother so that I can concentrate on this task of qualifying the U23 national team for the men’s football event of the Rio Olympics.” Siasia confirmed that the incident has been reported to the police in Bayelsa State in the Niger Delta, where kidnapping for a ransom is common place. The Nigeria Football Federation has also appealed passionately to kidnappers to release the old woman. On learning of the unfortunate incident on Tuesday morning, NFF President Amaju Pinnick was downcast. “This is quite disturbing. We are just preparing for a crucial 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match, and the U23 boys are already in

banned for six matches for breach of article C1 of the Framework and Rules of the Nigeria Professional Football League which cited him for failing to show respect for the decision of the Referee, when he punched the Referee in the face amid protests by his teammates. He was thus cited for conduct contrary to the principle of sportsmanship and capable of bringing the League to disrepute. On the second charge, Raji was cited for breach of article C8 of the Framework and Rules of the Nigeria Professional Football League, for refusing to leave the field of play after he was issued with a red card and sent off by the Referee. He was therefore suspended for two matches.

The Gambia for a pre-Cup of Nations training camp. Why this?,” Pinnick asked. “All we can do is to appeal to the kidnappers to free Samson Siasia’s aged mother. Samson is on a critical national assignment presently and the last he needs is this kind of distraction.” Meanwhile, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Asinim Butswat, while confirming the kidnap, said Madam Beauty Siasia, was abducted at about 2am on Monday by three unknown gunmen. “They went to the residence of one Mrs Beauty Siasia 72yrs, at Odoni Community in Sagbama LGA, and abducted her to an unknown destination,” he said adding that the command had intensified efforts to rescue the victim and arrest the suspects.

46 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

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Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015—47

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Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

Siasia begs kidnappers to free his mother U

-23 coach Samson Siasia has begged Continues on Page 45

Eagles peck stubborn Swaziland twice! •Fly into group stage

World Cup qualifying results Rwanda Libya Cameroon Niger Congo Ethiopia Ghana Comoros Nigeria Swaziland Egypt Chad Ivory Coast Liberia Tunisia Mauritania

TUSSLE . . . Super Eagles striker, Odion Ighalo vies with a Swaziland’s opponent during their Russia 2018 World Cup qualifing second leg match at the Adokie Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt. Nigeria won 2-0.

•Oliseh

1 3 0 0 2 1 2 0 2 0 4 0 3 0 2 1

•Siasia

Page 44

Ghana beat Comoros 2-0 Cameroon dismiss Niger in Yaounde

Egypt crush Chad 4-0 LMC Sanctions Giwa FC, two players — Page 45

•Dikko

QUICK CROSSWORD

TODAY'S

PUZZLE

FRI DAY'S FRIDAY'S

ANSWERS

ACROSS 1 Swift (5) 5 Crowd (6) 8 Alcove (5) 10 Gambling-house (6) 11 Thin (4) 14 Temple (6) 15 Undertake (7) 18 Child (3) 19 Spike (3) 21 Isthmus (4) 23 Wrath (5) 24 Prophet (4) 27 Number (3) 29 Males (3) 31 Supplant (7) 32 Cold (6) 34 Story (4) 35 Shrewdness (6) 38 Apportion (5) 39 Athlete (6) 40 Subject (5)

DOWN 2 Meadow (3) 3 Puzzle (6) 4 Can (3) 5 Assist (4) 6 Monster (6) 7 Start (6) 9 Permission (7) 12 Consume (3) 13 Observe (4) 16 Ascended (4) 17 Keen (5) 20 Renovation (7) 22 Fashionable (4) 24 Undergo (6) 25 Discharge (4) 26 Recover (6) 28 Detective (6) 30 Nothing (3) 33 Expensive (4) 36 Bed (3) 37 Tree (3)

YESTERDAY'S SOLUTIONS ACROSS: 1, Scream 5, Demean 8, Frighten 9, Drip 10, Wig 12, Coped 15, Sum 17, Lea 18, Rip 19, Spa 20, Rogue 21, Ilk 22, Dog 23, Art 24, Eye 26, Owned 29, Err 33, Safe 34, Narrator 35, United 36, Treaty.

DOWN: 2, Corgi 3, Edge 4, Motto 5, Dense 6, Mode 7, Adieu 10, Waste 11, Glade 12, Cargo 13, Pagan 14, Dread 15, Spite 16, Maker 25, Yearn 27, Waned 28, Egret 30, Roost 31, Deft 32, Wade.

How to Play Sudoku

lace a number (1-9) in each blank cell. (No line can have two of the same number). Each row (nine lines from left to right), column, (also nine lines from top to bottom) and 3 X 3 block within a bold block (nine blocks) contains number from 1 through 9. This means that no number can appear twice in any block, column or row. No mathematics is involved – no adding, subtraction, division or multiplication, just plain logic and your imagination. Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa. Phone: Newsroom: 018773962. Deputy Editor: 01-4548355. Advert Dept Hotline: 014544821. Abuja Advert Hotline: 09-2921024. E-mail: editor@vanguardngr.com, news@vanguardngr.com, letters@vanguardngr.com. Advert:advertproduction@yahoo.com Website: www.vanguardngr.com (ISSN 0794-652X) Ag.Editor: EZE ANABA. Phone: 01-7742861, All correspondence to P.M.B. 1007, Apapa Lagos.

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