Peoples Daily Newspaper, Monday, May 07, 2012

Vol. 8 No. 31 Monday, May 7, 2012 Jimadal Akhir 16, 1433 AH N150

www.peoplesdaily-online.com

JTF raids militants’ hideout in Kano, kills 5

Contd on Page 2

French polls: Sarkozyout, Hollande in

Oshiomhole’s aide: Policeoffers N10m bounty

>> PAGE 2

Residents flee Taraba as‘fake’ soldiers kill 5

>> PAGE 3 >> PAGE 4 >> PAGE 6

Strange men visit DailyTrust top executive’sresidence

. . . putting the people first

Indicted coys areJonathan’s financiers,alleges SNG

Subsidy scam

…As gunmen kill 3 in MaiduguriFrom Edwin Olofu, Kano &Mustapha Isah Kwaru, Maiduguri

The Joint Military TaskForce (JTF) in Kanoyesterday raid a suspected

militants’ hideout killing five inthe process.

JTF spokesperson Lieutenant

Ikedichi Iweha who spoke on phonesaid security operatives raided ahideout of the militaants in Hotoroarea of the metropolis, followinga tip-off.

Iweha disclosed that the

militants were killed while theJTF was trying to arrest themand some of them were arrested.

Peoples Daily gathered thattwo persons were killed by somegunmen in the area on Saturday,

who came on a motorcycle andshot them while residents ran forsafety.

“As I speak to you now, ourmen are carrying out a thoroughsearch of the place “, he said.

Meanwhile,some residents ofGwange ward and environs inMaiduguri, the Borno statecapital, have fled their homes forfear of possible arrests and assaultby security operatives or reprisalsattacks by suspected militants.

This followed Saturday

L-R Vice-President Mohammed Namadi Sambo, Kaduna State Governor, Mr.Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, and the Emirof Zazzau, Dr. Shehu Idris, during the commissioning of Umaru Musa Yar’adua Almajirai Bilingual Model BoardingPrimary School in Sabon Gari, Zairia on Saturday.

The Save Nigeria Group(SNG) has alleged that theindividuals and corporate

bodies indicted in the report of theHouse of Representatives ad hoccommittee that investigated thesubsidy scam are big financiers ofthe presidential electionscampaign of President GoodluckJonathan.

Some of the 69 companiesindicted in the report includedFolawiyo Energy Ltd, Total Plc, APPlc, A-Z Petroleum Ltd, AcornNigeria Plc. Northwest Petroleumand Gas, and Oando.

The allegation was containedin a statement by the Group’sNational Secretary, Mr. YinkaOdumakin, in response to a pressstatement of Mr. MohammedAdokie, the Attorney General ofthe Federation and Minister ofJustice, calling for theunderstanding and patience ofNigerians regarding the

From Ojebola Matthew, Lagos

Contd on Page 2

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSNews 2-11

Editorial 12

Op.Ed 13

Letters 14

Opinion 15

Metro 16-17

Business 19-22

S/Exchange 23

S/Report 24

Newsxtra 26

Education 27

Health 29

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Presidency singsdiscordant tunes overHouse subsidy report,

Page 37

WE WANTTO HEAR

FROM YOU

International 31-34

Strange World 35

Digest 36

Politics 37-40

Sports 41-47

Columnist 48

PAGE 2 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012

Strange men visit Daily Trust top executive’s residence

Indicted coys are Jonathan’s financiers, alleges SNG

JTF raids militants’ hideout in Kano, kills 5Contd from Page 2

Three suspicious men intheir late thirties lastFriday visited the Abuja

residence of a top executive ofMedia Trust Limited, publishersof Daily Trust titles, threateningthe security guard to open thegates for them.

This is coming just few daysafter a video clip purportedly fromthe Boko Haram, showing livefootage of ThisDay bomb attack,threatened to attack more mediahouses and their staff whichincluded the Daily Trust.According to the Chief SecurityOfficer (CSO) of Media Trust,Colonel Muktari Garba, the threemen went to the residence of thepublisher around 10am lastFriday, trying to confirm from thesecurity guard on duty, Mr.Agada, whether the house “wasthe one that belongs to the chiefexecutive of one of the newspapersin Abuja.”

When the guard said no, themen who came in a posh ashHonda Civic coupe, withregistration number BL 927 RBC,changed their story.

They told the guard that thehouse was actually put up for saleand they were potential buyerswho were there to inspect it. Theguard said that when he refusedto open the gates for them, anargument ensued among thethree visitors, one saying that “itis the house, so let us just go” andthe other saying “let us stay andsee if we can inspect the

compound”.According to him, the men are

likely to be from the Igbo ethnicgroup “because when they werearguing among themselves, theywere speaking in Igbo languageand I got all what they weresaying because I can speak Igbo.”

Colonel Garba said that the menwent to the house at a time whenthere was virtually nobody around

morning’s gun battle betweenmembers of the sect andoperatives of the Joint MilitaryTask Force (JTF) at a weddingceremony, which left threecivilians dead, while twopersons in the wanted list of thetask force were apprehended.

Our correspondent whovisited the area yesterday,reports that hundreds of peoplewere seen leaving with their

belongings as fierce looking andwell armed soldiers were seenguarding the house where thewedding took place. Allvehicles and people going inand out of the area weresubjected to thorough searches.

Further investigation alsorevealed about 40 percent ofthe houses were locked upwhile the entire area wasdeserted with low vehicular

and pedestrian movements asthose who were yet to leaveremained indoors.

Similarly, some residents ofneighbouring Budum,Hausari, Abbaganaram andGidan Yashi, have abandonedtheir homes.

A cross section of theresidents told ourcorrespondent that they wererelocating to safer places to

avoid assault, as the soldierswere allegedly intimidatingand molesting innocent peoplein their quest to arrest thegunmen.

However, Spokesman of theJTF, Lt-Col. Sagir Musa toldnewsmen that there wasnothing to worry about becauseof the presence of troops in thearea, saying the measure wasonly aimed at safeguarding thepublic from possible attacks.

Contd from Page 2prosecution of those “foundwanting” in the fuel subsidyprobe.

According to SNG, it is “a fact”that the AGF, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, the Minister ofPetroleum; Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister for Finance;Mr. Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, theGovernor of the Central Bank,and almost all current and formerhigh ranking officials who havebeen indicted by the report wereall presidential appointees andwell-connected members of thePDP.

“Using buzz words such as‘difficult’ and ‘tedious’, the SGFwould want to convince Nigeriansthat the process of investigationand prosecution cannot beachieved quickly, he said.

“We disagree and would liketo remind Nigerians that oursuspicion of intentional delay inthe name of protractedinvestigation and prosecution is acalculated campaign against theright of Nigerians to demandjustice through demonstrations orstrike action was the reasonbehind our request for anindependent prosecutor,” headded.

The group, however,maintains its request for theappointment of an independent

prosecutor on further reasoningthat the fuel subsidy prosecutioncould not be trusted to the AGF orthe anti-graft agencies overwhose activities he hasinterference powers because ofapparent personal and politicalconflicts of interest.

In addition, SNG submittedthat a protracted investigationindicated by the AGF waspointless at this time because thead hoc committee’s report asamended by the House ofAssembly has establishedconvincing cause for severalcriminal violations upon whichimmediate prosecution could bebased.

“The political conflict ofinterest in the fuel subsidy probeis so glaring that it could not bedisputed even by the AGF, thereason why it was totally omittedby his press release. That conflictof interest is factually based andcannot be underestimated.

“The highly probableintermeddling and influence of theparty on the prosecutorialwillingness of the AGF has beendocumented by the fact that thePDP came out swinging,threatening brimstone and fire onthe PDP members of the ad hocCommittee, prompting thechairman of the committee todeclare that if because of the report

the PDP withdraws its support forhis gubernatorial ambition, so beit”.

The SNG said that the AGF’spress release requesting patiencebecause of the need for furtherinvestigations “confirmed oursuspicion of the unwillingness orthe inability of the AGF to timelyprosecute those indicted by thereport”.

It added that for one, as alawyer, the AGF ought to knowthat immediate prosecution isappropriate where probable causeof wrongdoing has beenestablished.

“The ad-hoc Committee wasnot frivolous. It was based onverifiable facts, documents andsworn testimonies of witnesses”,the statement read.

“The veracity of some of thesworn testimonies and documentshas been admitted even againsttheir own interests by some of theindicted parties.

“For instance N999 millionwere issued by his office 128 timewithin 24 hours as an attempt tobypass regulations againstwriting cheques of over a billionNaira or more.

“It is also undisputed; in fact,there is admission that monieswere disbursed from thefederation account in violation ofthe constitutional appropriation

provisions. So, we should ask,what clearer evidence ofwrongdoing does the AGFintend to reveal by aprotracted investigation?

The SNG, however, chargedthe NBA to “recommendseveral morally reputablelawyers out of which thePresident may choose one ormore to lead the prosecutionand the person or persons sochosen must be armed with thepower of subpoena in order tohave access to witnesses anddocuments”.

Reacting to the allegationmade by the SNG that thoseindicted in the subsidy probewere those that fundedPresident Goodluck’s 2011presidential electioncampaigns, Chairman House ofRepresentatives Committee onMedia and Public Affairs, RepZakari Mohammed said he wasnot in any position to commenton the matter. According tohim, “whoever made theallegation should prove. “It isnot within my capacity to sayanything on that.”

However, Presidentialspokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati,could not be reached last nightfor comments. Calls and smsput through to his cell phonewere not answered.

“except the unarmed private guard,cleaners, among other housemaids.The children have left for school andtheir parent also left for work.”

The CSO said that the motive ofthe people became suspiciousbecause “there was no any signpasted in the property to indicatethat it was for sale. Also, the menwere not accompanied by anyestate agent.”

Withdraw JTF, Potiskum residents tell FGFrom Auwal Ahmad, Gombe

Four days after the killingof about 60 people atPotiskum cattle market in

Yobe state by suspectedgunmen, indigenes of Potiskumtown have called on the FederalGovernment to withdraw theJoint Task Force (JTF) from thearea.

Resident in the area whospoke to journalists accused thesecurity agencies includingsoldiers and policemen of notdoing enough to protect them.

Also speaking with newsmenthe chairman of the Movementfor Justice of Nigeria (MOJ) Yobestate chapter, Zakari AdamuMakere, said “when we talk ofpeace, we are not only talkingabout the absence of war but theabsence of fear anxiety, danger;in other words peace reflectsthat security-friendly systemthat frees individuals andgroups of peoples from fears anddangers of losing suchinalienable human right aslife, liberty, and property”.

According to him, the

people noted with dismay theunabated and continuing actof repression by the militaryand police in particular in theway and manner they resortto reckless and unnecessaryshooting at the slightestprovocation.

Makera expressed disgustthat the very security mensent to ensure law and orderin Potiskum are the samepeople that have turned theirguns against the civilianpopulation they are detailed toprotect.

PAGE 3PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012

Federalism: Northern Christiansadvocate 6 regional structures

By Isa Abdulwahab

As part of its efforts atresolving the securitychallenges plaguing the

country, Northern ChristiansElders Forum (NORCEF) wants theexisting six geo-political zones tobecome regions.

“Each zone will manage itsresources and pay tax to theFederal Government as it was inthe 1960 and1963 Constitutionand the Federal Government willtake off its hands from education,agriculture, water resources,industries, mineral resources,

research and technology, health,power generation, women affairs,youth and sports, works andhousing,” NORCEF suggested in acommuniqué at the end of itsnational executive committeemeeting in Kaduna.

The communiqué signed bythe group’s Chairman, EvangelistMathew Owojaiye, and Secretary,Iliya Yusuf, said that the FederalGovernment would be solely incharge of Defence, Foreign Affairs,Customs and Aviation, under theproposed structure.

According to the communiqué,“the regions and the Federal

From Agaju Madugba, Kaduna Government will share Judiciary,the Police and Information Ministry.

“All the federal parastatals andministries that siphon trillions ofnaira every year, will be scrappedand wastages and outright lootingof public funds will be a thing ofthe past.

“Each region will develop at itsown pace and the FederalGovernment will get less than 30percent what it is getting now andtaking power at the centre willbecome less attractive.”

Condemning what it describedas attempts to make Nigeriaungovernable, the meeting decried

the deterioration of security in thecountry especially in parts of thenorth with incessant attacks,bombings and shooting of innocentpeople especially at places of worship.

The communiqué said, “wecall on the Federal Government torefuse to be intimidated and toshow that they are notintimidated, by bringing thesponsors of Boko Haram to justice.

“Security forces claim theyhave arrested so many membersof Boko Haram. Have they notgathered enough information tomove against the sponsors whowant to make this country

ungovernable if they are not inpower?

“We send a strong objection tothose who are using Sardauna’sname to project themselves.Sardauna had Dr. Barau Dikko aChristian as his personal physicianand Chief Sunday Awoniyi aChristian as his Secretary.

“We hereby call on thenorthern elders and the MuslimUmmah to call Boko Haram toorder.

“The members of Boko Haramare not spirits… How come villageheads and traditional rulers claimnot to know them?”

The Newspaper Proprietors’Association of Nigeria(NPAN), has expressed

shock at the level of damage on theAbuja office of ThisDay newspaperas a result of the April 26 suicidebomb attack.

NPAN’s vice president, AlhajiKabiru Yusuf, who led otherexecutive members of theassociation on a solidarity visit to Mr.Nduka Obaigbena, the publisher of

ThisDay on Saturday in Abuja,bemoaned the level of destruction.

Yusuf, who is the publisher ofDaily Trust newspapers, condemnedthe attacks on the media, describingthe development as an attack on themasses. He said the scene of the blastwas horrible, adding that only timecould heal the shock.

Yusuf noted that the mediaconstituted a forum for publicdiscourse, wondering why themedia should be singled out forsuch vicious attacks.

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi The NPAN vice-president,however, said the associationwould soon make public its positionon the recent attacks on the mediaby the Boko Haram sect.

Responding, Obaigbenathanked NPAN for its solidarity,while commending Nigerians andthe international community fortheir goodwill and concern.

He noted that the solidarityvisits had provided a soothing relieffor the organisation since the bombattack on April 26.

Obaigbena pledged thatThisDay would continue to offer acredible platform for thedissemination of information to thecitizens.

Other proprietors on whoaccompanied Yusuf on the visitwere Mr. Sam Amuka, publisherof Vanguard newspapers; Mr. SamNda-Isaiah, publisher of theLeadership newspapers; andMalam Wada Maida; Chairman ofPeoples Daily newspapers, amongothers.

ThisDay attack: NPAN shocked by scale of destruction

The Conference of NigeriaPolitical Parties (CNPP),South-west zone has asked

President Goodluck Jonathan to bepro-active on the securitychallenges facing Nigeria.

Speaking in a communique

read to journalists by its chairman,Alhaji Yinka Olona at the end of itsexecutive council meetingyesterday in Ibadan, heemphasized the need for PresidentJonathan to ensure peace andstability across the nation.

"The South West CNPP is of theview that the time has come for

From Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan the Federal Government to put afinal stop to the activities of theBoko Haram in the overallinterest of the nation and itspeople".

Olona stressed further thatthe South-west CNPP at themeeting also advised PresidentJonathan not to allow the report

of the House of Representativesad hoc committee on fuelsubsidy probe be swept underthe carpet, adding that theSouth-west coalition would nothesitate to kick-start “thegreatest protest against hisgovernment,” should thegovernment do otherwise.

Insecurity: CNPP wants Jonathan to be pro-active

FG staff yet toget April salary

The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation(OAGF) has admitted

that some civil servants areyet to receive their Aprilsalaries.

It however attributed the delayto “the late holding of theFederation Account AllocationCommittee meeting (FAAC) andthe introduction of a new softwarewhich is meant to facilitate easypayment.”

To ensure that the affectedcivil servants are paid soon, Dodostated that “all role players in theministries, departments andagencies (MDAs) have startedcollecting details of civil servants’concerned and retaining samefor immediate assistance andfollow up with their respectivebanks.”

Nicholas Sarkozy lost his bidto be re-election as Frenchpresident yesterday

following his defeat by FrancoiseHollande.

Vote-count results announcedafter polls closed yesterday night,confirmed by exit polls conductedby three organisations, showed51.9 percent of voters backed Mr.Hollande and 48.1 percentsupported Mr. Sarkozy – astronger result than recentpresidential elections.

As the news broke, thousands ofsocialist supporters cheered outsideParis’s Bastille, the traditionalgathering-place of the left,celebrating a shift fromconservative to left-wing leadershipthat has not taken place since 1981when François Mitterrand, France’sonly other socialist president, wonhis first victory.

Mr. Sarkzoy quickly concededdefeat. “The French people havemade their choice... FrançoisHollande is the president of Franceand he must be respected,” he toldsupporters.

Source: The Mail

French polls:Sarkozy out,Hollande in

L-R: National General Secretary, Nasrul-Lahi-l- Fatih Society of Nigeria (NASFAT), Alhaji Luqman Adedeji, NASFAT National President,Alhaji Sherif Yusuff and Chief Missioner, Alhaji Abdullahi Akinbode, during a press conference on “Islam and Peaceful Co-existence ina Contemporary Multi-Religious Society,” at the Weekend, in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012PAGE 4

Subsidy scam: 17 morecompanies to appear before Reps

Oshiomhole’s aide: Policeoffers N10m bounty for clues

meant to make Nigeria aninvestment destination andprovide the potentials for socio-economic development.

Also, the Minister for Works,Mike Onolememen, said Nigeriahas enjoyed a rewardingpartnership with the World Bankin the area of road developmentprojects which has contributedimmensely to the rehabilitationof numerous black spots alongvarious sections of the highwaysand will serve as an impetus for a50% reduction of road crashes inNigeria.

According to him, WorldBank is presently funding theconstruction of six pedestrianbridges at strategic locations inthe FCT to add value to saferroad use in the metropolis andurged the global financialinstitution to replicate the safecorridor project in other parts ofthe country.

Meanwhile, the FRSC CorpsMarshal, Osita Chidoka, said thatthe World Bank consultants werein Nigeria for a review of the FRSCenforcement capacity, in linewith the World Bank Safe corridorproject which seeks to infuse roadsafety components into roadconstruction and rehabilitation inNigeria.

Chidoka, said “under the safecorridor project which is beingoverseen by the World Bank,Global Road Safety Facility,Arrive Alive Road Safetyinitiative, the FRSC and the RoadSector Development Team,Federal Ministry of Works, theWorld Bank sought to transferfunds and human potentials fromcountries of high income capacityto countries of low and mediumincome capacity as part ofmeasures to engendercommitment for road safetywithin global circles.

New number plate to combat terrorism, DG SSS

The Director-General of theState Security Services(SSS), Ekpeyong Itah, has

described the new number plateproject as a catalyst in the effortto combat terrorism and othernational security challengesfacing the country.

Itah, who made this knownduring an advocacy visit by aWorld Bank Road SafetyConsultant, expressed delightwith the World Bank initiative ofintegrating safety components onroad rehabilitation andconstruction in Nigeria, saying itwill add value to trafficenforcement and properidentification of vehicle owners,across the country.

A statement issued byDeputy Corps Public EducationOfficer (DCPEO), Bisi Kazeem,added that the innovations were

Feud: Youths backNESREA against NCC

Following the recent clashbetween the NigerianC o m m u n i c a t i o n s

Commission (NCC), and theNational EnvironmentalStandards and RegulationsEnforcement Agency (NESREA)over alleged breach ofenvironmental laws, a groupknown as League of PatrioticYouths of Nigeria has describedNCC’s action as anti people.

In a statement jointly signedby its President and Secretary,Salisu Ngomba and MondayAiwherioba, the leaguecondemned varioustelecommunication operators inNigeria for irregularities in theirservice provision.

It said: “they have beenripping members of the public offwithout anyone doing anything

L-R: Director-General, National Teachers' Institute (NTI), Dr. Aminu Ladan Sharehu, presenting asouvenir to the Emir of Kano, His Royal Highness Dr. Ado Bayero, when he visited the monarch in hispalace to discuss ways of ensuring quality teacher training in the North-east and North-west zones,at the weekend, in Kano. Photo: NAN.

The Chairman, HouseCommittee on Media andPublic Affairs, Mohammed

Zakari, has disclosed that another17 companies have been invitedby the House Ad Hoc Committeeinvestigating the oil subsidyscam, adding that the Housewould not allow any pressurefrom any quarter to deter it fromimplementing the report of thecommittee.

Zakari who spoke withjournalists in his country home,Baruteen, on Saturday after hehad distributed fertilisers tofarmer ahead of the cultivationseason, noted that Nigerians needto learn from the mistake of theirpast leaders by ensuringaccountability.

The House image-maker, whodid not mention the names of thecompanies involved, said the

present House knows whatNigerians want, stressing thatthe executive does not haveabsolute power not to implementthe report.

Zakari, who is representingBaruteen’Kaima federalconstituency at the House ofRepresentatives, maintained,“We have done our best as far aswe are concerned. We have ouroptions, but you don’t place allyour cards on the table and I justwant to assure all Nigerians thatPresident Goodluck Jonathanwill implement the report”.

He further said thatderegulation of the oil sector wasthe best option for the country,also said that present leadersmust move forward from the eraof isolation from their people andmove closer to them with all theresources within their disposal.

He noted thatoverdependence of the nation on

From Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

The police authorities haveoffered N10 million rewardto anyone with information

that will lead to the arrest of thekillers of Comrade OlaitanOyerinde, Principal Secretary toGovernor Adams Oshiomhole,who was killed in the early hoursof Friday, May 4, 2012 byunknown gunmen.

Deputy Inspector General ofPolice, Force Headquarters,Abuja, Peter Gana, whoannounced the N10 millionreward in Benin City yesterday,

when he visited Edo Stategovernor, Comrade AdamsOshiomhole at State’s House,Benin City, vowed to fish-out thekillers of Mr. Oyerinde.

The DIG, said he was in BeninCity to complement the efforts ofthe state police command.

“We have opened threetelephone lines for the public toassist in the investigations. Thegovernor of Edo state, ComradeAdams Oshiomhole has offered aN10 million reward to anyonethat can lead to the arrest of thoseresponsible for the death of thegovernor’s aide,” he added.

about it; they charge exorbitantfees, treat customers who aresupposed to be kings withimpudence and disdain, and evencut off important calls midwaywithout any explanation.”

“Where was NCC all thiswhile? NCC was more interestedin collecting billions to handleregistration of subscriber bases,something that have noimmediate impact on the public,”it said.

It also lauded NESREA for itsintervention, adding that thelives of millions of Nigerians wasmore important than pleasing“selfish” few citizens who aremainly after their profits.

The league, however, called onthe various telecommunicationservice providers in the countryto always act right and inaccordance with the existinglaws.

The National EmergencyManagement Agency(NEMA) has confirmed

that no human life was lost but38 poultry birds were killed and17 houses destroyed during amassive inferno that occurredon Saturday afternoon when apetrol tanker fell and spilledpetrol along Kaduna-AbujaExpressway.

The incident which alsoaffected a mosque at GangariVillage of Niger state, wascaused by the tanker driver’sattempt to avoid collision withanother long vehicle before itfell, spilling petrol in the area.

Before the fire outbreak,rescue officers and volunteerswere mobilised to the scenewhere they warned residentsand motorists to move away, asthey evacuated the old and theweak.

In another development, astatement issued in Abuja byNEMA said that the agency hasdelivered relief materials to thevictims of the recent windstormthat pulled down a church,killing 22 worshippers and

leaving many others injured inAdamgbe, Vandeikya localgovernment area of Benue state.

According to the statementalso, the agency has deliveredbuilding materials to assist in therehabilitation of the St FinbarrCatholic Church and COCINheadquarters that were affectedby separate bomb blasts in Jos,Plateau state and assortedmedicament for the treatmentof those injured in theincidences.

Director General of NEMA,Muhammad Sani Sidi,represented by the DeputyDirector, Relief andRehabilitation, Mike Adeyanjuwhile presenting the reliefmaterials to the Benue stateGovernor, Gabriel Suswan, atthe premises of the damagedchurch, said the items alsoincluded building materials toassist in the rehabilitation of thebuilding.

Responding, GovernorSuswan thanked the FederalGovernment for coming to theaid of the victims based on therequest of the state government,assuring a judicious distributionof the items to those affected.

Tanker inferno: NEMAsays 17 houses destroyedBy Ikechukwu Okaforadi

From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin crude oil has worsened theeconomy at the detriment of othersectors including agriculture.

While distributing fertilisersto the farmers, Zakari said hisaction was not politicallymotivated but it was part of hisresponsibilities in assisting hispeople who are predominantlyfarmers.

He added that all the 10 wardsacross Baruteen localgovernment would have theirbags of the product, urging themnot to re sell the product since itwas distributed to them, free ofcharge.

While commending the Repmember, the chairman of theCouncil, Alhaji Lafia Aliu,described Zakari as the truerepresentative of theconstituency, stressing that sincehe got the ticket to the House, hehas not abandoned his people likeprevious representatives.

By Mohammed Kandi

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam


I know nothing aboutBoko Haram, says Bakare

Congress for ProgressiveChange (CPC) vicepresidential candidate and

Convener of the Save NigeriaGroup (SNG), Pastor TundeBakare, has said he knows nothingabout the terrorist sect BokoHaram.

Pastor Bakare who spokeyesterday at his Latter RainAssembly, Lagos during theSunday service condemned those

linking him and CPC presidentialcandidate, Gen Mohammadu.Buhari to the terrorist sect.

Critics at various time linkedthe terror group to the CPC teamsaying it was a ploy to destabilisePDP government.

Bakare’s words: "May I notescape if I know anything aboutBoko Haram. May the judgementof God come upon me. But if I don't,may those who are saying it comeface to face with Jehovah."

L-R Mrs. Dike Appolonia, Mrs. Ann Nkechiyere Udugun, Mrs. Margaret Akinshola and Mrs. AlheriYusuf at the Awareness campaign for market women at market square, Kabusa Village in Abuja onFriday by the Nurses and Midwives Council of Nigeria. Photo: Joe Oroye

Authorities of the Kwara StateUniversity (KWASU),have ordered all the

students who had registered fortheir Rain Semester courses beforethe student unrest started, toresume classes for thecommencement of examinationson Tuesday, May 8, 2012.

The Registrar of theinstitution, Mrs. ModupeAkinrinmade in a statementissued yesterday and madeavailable to journalists, stated

that only students with evidenceof completed registration shouldresume at the campus.

"Following the disruption ofacademic activities at theuniversity which culminated inthe temporary closure of theinstitution on Wednesday, 2ndMay 2012, senate, at its sixthemergency meeting held on Friday4th May, 2012, considered the issuein all ramifications and decided asfollows.

"The Rain SemesterExaminations of 2011/2012academic session will start on

From Olanrewaju Lawal,Ilorin Thursday 10th May 2012 and endon Thursday 17th May 2012; onlystudents who are duly registered forthe rain semester should return tothe campus as from Tuesday, 8thMay 2012.

"Students who paid to the banksafter the deadline would have theircase considered at its next regularmeeting. For emphasis, only studentswho have registered for courses in theRain Semester are requested to returnto the University campus on Tuesday8th may, 2012,and write theirExaminations as from Thursday10th May ,2012.

KWASU closure: Only registered students to resume for exams

The Managing Director ofthe Lagos WasteManagement Authority

(LAWMA), Ola Oresanya hasdisclosed that the consultancyservices of the authority hasgone beyond Lagos state, in itstask of providing professional,efficient and sustainable wastemanagement and disposal

services to the general populace.Oresanya dropped this hint

when he featured on thepersonality interviewprogramme of the Oyo StateCouncil of the Nigeria Union ofJournalists (NUJ) tagged "HotSeat".

The LAWMA boss whilereeling out series of waste towealth programmes of theagency in Lagos state, said the

From Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan state is the largest producer ofcompost, which is suppliedthroughout Nigeria and to theFederal Government through itsagriculture ministry.

He said such efforts gearedtowards environmental friendlysociety, has given the state anedge through its second-to-noneinnovations in waste recyclingactivities, renewable energy,and unique model in managing

LAWMA extends operations to 30 states, 4 foreign countriesand recycling waste in Nigeriawhich had made the state togenerate electricity through theconversion of waste materials.

Oresanya also said apartfrom giving Lagos state a generalfacelift through the building ofof ultra modern recreationalparks, the authority has equallyextended its services to 30 of the36 states in the country andbeyond.

Foreign countries whereLAWMA has its presence tilldate, according to him, are theCity of Johannesburg,Freetown in Sierra Leone,Accra (Ghana) and AddisAbaba.

Oresanya said for any statein Nigeria going outside thecountry to secure the servicesof foreign firms on wastemanagement and recycling,such a state would be wastingthe scarce resources withinbecause Lagos has through itsinitiatives shown to the wholeworld that it was capable ofturning the nation's solid wasteto wealth.

There are indications thatthe students of theUniversity of Ibadan may

start paying for power consumedon campus from the next academicsession.

The Vice Chancellor of theuniversity, Professor IsaacAdewole, who disclosed this tonewsmen during facility tour withthe pro-chancellor of theinstitution, Chief WoleOlanipekun, said the universityunder the present circumstances,could not supply more than 10hours of electricity, adding that if

N500m on infrastructure: UIstudents may pay for electricityFrom Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan the students are making case for 18

hours power supply, they should beready to pay for it.

He maintained that the decisionto recall the students back to campuswould be taken by the senate of theinstitution after all the newlypurchased generating sets havebeen fully installed to supply power.

"If the students are asking for 18hours, we may have to sit down andnegotiate it from next session. Thereis nothing free. You may have topay for it. But as for resumption, Ido not know when you are comingback on campus but we are makingfrantic efforts to see that youresume, " he stated.

Muslims have beenurged to wage arigorous campaign to

reactivate the dying glory of thereligion by imbibing the habit ofreading and learning to beupright.

The call was made at theweekend by the Chairman/

Muslims urged to imbibereading, learning cultureBy Maryam Garba Hassan Managing Director of De Minaret

International, Abu MazeedatilKhayr Bn Sa'eed, publishers anddealers on Islamic books, at itssecond edition of a four-day lectureand exhibition of more than65,000 titles of Islamic books andvisuals in Abuja.

He said the exhibition wasorganised as a corporateresponsibility to the entireMuslims and to stimulate inMuslims the spirit of reading andthat it is an opportunity forMuslims to own rich Islamiclibraries.

According to him, De MinaretIslamic Stores was established 10years ago to persuade Muslims tocultivate reading habits, addingthat the religion of Islamcommenced with a command toProphet Muhammad to read theQur'an, indication that Islam is allabout knowledge and good deeds.

"It is a common knowledgethat the modern world is sick andNigeria is also suffering frommulti-dimensional ailments.Islam is however best placed torescue her. But how can we,adherents of Islam, rescue theworld when we know virtuallynothing about Islam? How can wesolve Nigeria's problems when wehave equally misunderstood ourreligion", he lamented?

He however, urged the Muslimto know and practice the religionthe way it is, adding thatchanging anything order thanwhat Allah says in the Qur'an andthe teaching of the Prophet ofIslam can give it a new meaningand confuse the Ummah.

From Ayodele Samuel, Lagos

Residents flee Taraba as ‘fake’soldiers kill 5 businessmen

Residents of Dananachavillage at Gassol localgovernment area of

Taraba state have begun to fleefollowing the killing of fivebusinessmen in the area bygunmen suspected to be fakemilitary officers on Saturdaynight.

The uniformed gunmenaccording to the police,abducted five people in thevillage and tied their handsthen shot them dead.

Taraba state policespokesman, ASP Ibiam

Mbaseki, told our reporters onphone that investigations havesince commenced on thekilling, "The police are stillinvestigating to ascertain ifthe people are real soldiers andfrom which unit; we havecontacted Abuja to link withArmy headquarters."

He argues that "If they weregenuine military men, theywould have contacted us beforecarrying out such an operation,but we don't know where theycame from".

He said the corpse of thevictims has been release torelatives for burial.

According to an eyewitness,

the five people killed inDananacha were business menand they were killed byunknown militants in armyuniform.

The witness said there istension in the area as residentsnow live in fear of theunknown, "we had to leave thevillage because anything canhappen there", he said.

When contactedgovernment spokesman,Hassan Mijinyawa said thestate government is yet tocomment on the matter, "wecan't speak on it now; bytomorrow we may release ourstatement", Mijinyawa said.

From Ayodele Samuel & Yusha'uAlhassan, Jalingo


Bad governance is fuelling2015 debate , says ACN

L-R: Chairman, Bauchi state House Committee on Women Affairs and Child Development, RifkatuDanna (l) with representative of wife of Bauchi state governor, Hajiya Talatu Barwa testing sewingmachines during an Integrated Grassroots Empowerment and Skill Acquisition Support Programme forwomen in Giade LGA of Bauchi state on Saturday. Photo: NAN

Mohammed, that a governmentthat fails to perform has created aconducive atmosphere forrumours that would overheat thepolity.

''Mr. President, we in the ACNare not bothered about whether ornot you plan to run in 2015. Whatconcerns us now is how to alleviatethe collective suffering of theNigerian people, who haveexperienced more pain than gainin one year of youradministration, and have yet toreap the fruits of democracyalmost 15 years of the country'sreturn to constitutional orderunder your party's watch.

''If we must be frank, this pastone year has been like four for

Nigerians who have beensubjected to untold hardship andthe effects of a catalogue of badand inconsistent policies. Asgovernance takes the back seatand meaningless politickingbecomes the order of the day,many wish the four years of youradministration will just pass byfast to give them the opportunityto make a better choice ofleadership. This is what is drivingthe 2015 debate,'' it said.

ACN reminded the Presidentthat his administration started offon a wobbly note, when it flew a“satanic kite” on tenure elongationthat backfired and quickly erodedwhat many called the goodwillthat ushered him into Aso Rock.

The Action Congress ofNigeria (ACN) has said therecord mediocre

performance of the JonathanAdministration and its policyinconsistencies, more thananything else, are fuelling theongoing debate on whether or notthe President will seek re-electionin 2015.

Reacting to a presidencystatement over the ''growingfurore in political circles and themedia'' over the President's allegedambition for 2015, the party saidin a statement issued in Lagosyesterday by its NationalPublicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai

From Ayodele Samuel, Lagos ''This was followed by the ill-advised fuel subsidy removal thathas now turned into a fiasco; thepoorly-managed aftermath inwhich peaceful protesters werecrushed by gun-totting soldiers,even in a democracy; theunprecedented corruptionrevealed by the fuel subsidyprobe, and an equally-horrendouslooting of the public treasury inall sectors.

''Add this to what is arguablyan all-time low supply ofelectricity that has thrown vastswath of the nation's landscapeinto darkness, the risingunemployment, worsening stateof infrastructure and monumentalinsecurity of lives and property,

and you have a ready mix ofingredients that will easilyoverheat a polity,'' the party said.

It said the situation has beencompounded by the discordanttunes from those close to thePresident.

''While some said he will surelyrun in 2015, others said he has notyet made up his mind. This isreminiscent of the situation inother spheres Top governmentofficials attribute the Boko Haramcrisis to different causes, andconflicting signals are being sentout now on whether those indictedin the fuel subsidy probe will beprosecuted or not. These are thecauses of the growingdisillusionment in the polity,'' ACNsaid.

The party advised thePresident to shun “the palacejesters masquerading as hisadvisers” and restore hope to hiscompatriots, saying three yearswas a long enough time to make adifference, even if the first year hasall but been frittered away.

The Minister of Information,Mr. Labaran Maku, hasdescribed the activities of

members of Jama’atu AhlisSunna Lidda’awati Wal-Jihad,also known as Boko Haram, as“a shame and anembarrassment to the North”,with the development of theregion taken back for decades.

The minister made hisfeelings known in a speech hedelivered weekend at thefoundation laying ceremony ofthe federal governmentsecretariat, in Lafia, Nasarawastate.

Maku observed that with thefrequent burning of schools,markets and the destruction oflives by members of the dreadedsect, “the North is being taking

off the map of places whereinvestors can go, wheredevelopment can go”, urgingthe citizens, community,religious and traditionalleaders, to be proactive in theirquest to bring peace back to theregion.

The minister who expressedgratitude to PresidentJonathan for commencingwork on the federal secretariatin Lafia, as well as the Tunga-Awe road, Lafia-Doma road,Nasarawa-Karshi road, theconstruction of a power stationin Lafia and the federaluniversity, stating that theJonathan administration hastaken agriculture as the mantraof national development, withthe federal government poisedto create 3-5 million jobs in thesector before 2015.

Boko Haram an embarrassmentto North, says MakuFrom Ali Abare Abubakar, Lafia

The Leprosy Mission ofNigeria (TLM), Kebbistate branch, has

concluded arrangements for aday’s training programme forsome selected journalists fromprint and electronic media onhow to reduce leprosy stigmaand discrimination in the stateand Nigeria at large.

A letter signed by the Officer,TLM, Kebbi state, Mrs. AmanyiJulia Ajuma states that one ofTLMN strategy was to helpindividuals develop resources torecover from social andeconomic fallouts of leprosysaying “we invest in children’seducation, income-generationactivities and vocationaltraining, helping people to leadas full a life as possible afterleprosy’’.

The training which comes upon Wednesday May 9 , 2012 atthe City Guest Inn, Gesse Phase1, Brinin Kebbi, would sensitise

media practitioners in Kebbistate on how to reflect societalvalues, reinforce or reducestigma and discriminationagainst lepers.

Ajuma further explained

Leprosy: Training workshop for Kebbijournalists May 9From Ahmed Idris, Brinin Kebbi

that the Leprosy Mission is anInternational Christian Charity,founded in 1874 inspired byChrist’s Ministry of Compassionto people suffering from leprosy,with services across 28 countriesworldwide aimed at “bringinghealing and restoration to peopleaffected by leprosy’’.

Gombe state governmentto spend about N1 billionfor the payment of

compensation on the dualisationof four-township roads in the statecapital

Governor Ibrahim HassanDankwambo disclosed this duringthe flag off of compensationpayment to affected people atDawaki quarters of Gombe localgovernment area.

The governor who wasrepresented by his deputy, Mr.Than’anda Jason Rubainu saidthat the compensation of thoseaffected by the road constructionwas in tandem with the policy ofthe administration which accordspriority to citizens’ welfare.

Dankwambo further said thatgovernment has given 30 daysultimatum to affected persons toremove their valuables to paveway for the construction work tobegin in earnest.

Gombe spends N1bn on compensationFrom Auwal Ahmad, Gombe

Kogi state governor, CaptIdris Wada has chargedpublic officers to always

abide by the oath they take atassumption of office to dischargetheir responsibilitiesaccordingly and with the fear ofGod.

He gave the charge weekendin Lokoja during theinauguration of the newlyappointed Acting Grand Khadifor the state Sharia Court ofAppeal, Justice ZakariyaIdakwoji at the Government

House.Speaking after the

administration of the Oath ofOffice, the governor said that theoath should serve as a constantreminder to public office holdersthat they could not afford to failin the responsibilities bestowedon them by the people.

He said that the appointmentof Idakwoji following “theretirement and glorious exit ofJustice Suleiman Olorunfemi asGrand Khadi of the state” was inline with the provisions ofsection 276(4) of theconstitution.

Kogi appoints new Grand KhadiFrom Sam Egwu, LokojaGovernor Ibrahim Gaidam

of Yobe state hascondemned the recent

attack on the Potiskum cattlemarket, urging the people notto relent in prayers for thetermination of the current stateof insecurity across the country.

He made the call when hevisited victims of lastWednesday’s cattle marketattack by suspected gunmenwhich claimed 60 lives anddestroyed properties worthmillions of naira.

“I call on our security andintelligence personnel to domore and to carry out more

intelligence operations to fishout and stop criminals beforethey carry out their criminaland violent activities”, he said.

The governor announcedthe setting up of a panel tocomprise senior governmentofficials and officials of thecattle market association toundertake an assessment of thedamage with a view to gettingit re-built by the stategovernment.

Gaidam said governmentwould pay all the medical billsof the injured victims admittedat the General Hospital andpledged support for families ofthose that lost their lives duringthe attack.

Gaidam condemns Potiskum attackFrom Auwal Ahmad, Gombe


4

2 3

1

2

3L-R: President, Association ofProjects Development Practitioners(APRODEP), Mr Micheal Ale;Director, Projects Development andImplementation, University of Ibadan,Dr Femi Omololu; Vice President,APRODEP, Mr Thomas Omofaye andProfessor of Industrial/ProjectEngineering, Oliver Charles-Owaba,at a seminar on projectsdevelopment and implementation inIbadan, at the weekend. Photo: NAN

L-R : Lady Captain Grace GramoYanet presenting award to first ladyof Kaduna state Mrs Amina PatrickYakowa during a golf tournamentheld at Kaduna gulf club weekend.Photo: NAN

1L-R: Special Adviser to ChiefEconomic, Dr. Ogho Okiti, ChiefEconomic Adviser to the President,Dr. Nwanze Okidegbe, and SpecialAssistant to Chief Economic Adviser,Mr. Kingsley Obiora, during a MediaInteractive with Business Editors onthe State of Nigerian Economy, at theweekend, in Abuja. Photo:Mahmud Isa

4

Traditional dancersentertaining at the Ilum OTarok annual culturalfestival in Langtang,Plateau state, at theweekend. Photo NAN


I’m yet to decideon 2015 - Jonathan

In the wake of persistentrumours that PresidentGoodluck Jonathan

may already be strategisingto succeed himself in 2015,the President has come outto say he is concentrating onthe job at hand for now.

The President whoreacted through a statementby his spokesman, Dr.Reuben Abati, over theweekend lashed out atpoliticians who takeadvantage of the rumours toheat up the polity.

“The pointless,diversionary and verydistractive hue and cryabout the President’s alleged

ambition to seek a secondterm in office is becomingincreasingly disturbing bythe day with headlines suchas “Jonathan’s 2015ambition can break upNigeria” and “Jonathan’s2015 ambition fuelinginsecurity,” now regular farein our newspapers and on theinternet.

“For the avoidance ofany doubt whatsoever,President Jonathan wishesto reiterate that his primaryconcern and the focus of allhis efforts now, just about ayear into the four-yeartenure for which he waselected in April 2011, is todeliver on his promise ofpositive national transfor-mation.

“The President’s solepreoccupation as the nationmoves towards the firstanniversary of hisadministration on May 29,2012 is to continue to giveeffective and purposefulleadership that will steerNigeria towardsovercoming its immediatesecurity and developmentalchallenges," the statementread.

It continued: “Nothingcould be farther fromPresident Jonathan’s mindat this point in time than the2015 elections. ThePresident has definitely notdirected or authorised anyindividual or group tolaunch any campaign on hisbehalf.”

By AbdulrahmanAbdulraheem

V i c e - P r e s i d e n tM o h a m m e dNamadi Sambo at

the weekend commissionedthe second almajiri bilingualboarding school in Zaria.

President GoodluckJonathan had earlier onApril 10 flagged off thescheme with thecommissioning of AlmajiraiModel School in Sokoto.

The Federal Govern-ment initiated theprogramme as one of themeasures to rid northernstreets of school-age beggarspopularly called Almajirai.

All the 19 states in thenorth are expected to benefitfrom the programme, alongwith Edo and Oyo states atthe cost of N5 billion.

Speaking in Zaria onSaturday, Sambo explainedfurther that the Almajiraieducation represents aneffective partnershipbetween the federal andstate governments in theprovision of qualityeducation for the teemingpopulation of Almajirai whohad remained, for so many

decades, outside the formaleducation system.

According to him, themodel institutions weredesigned to integrate andsynchronise basic educationeffectively with Islamicdisciplines.

As Sambo put it, “theattainment of our nationalgoals and objectives,especially in the educationsector cannot be completewithout taking intoaccount the plight of over9.5million Almajirai,especially in the northernstates of Nigeria.

“The spectre of youngpeople and vulnerableschool-age children, bowl inhand, roaming the streets ofour towns and villages,begging for the means oftheir daily sustenance, doesnot only place a moralburden on our nationalpsyche but portends adangerous problem.

“It is also important tonote that the second phaseof the programme iscurrently underconstruction, while theFederal Government andthe Islamic DevelopmentBank (IDB) have signed a

$98 million bilingualeducation deal to assist thecountry towards meetingthese noble objectives.

“Let me assure you thatthe Federal Governmentwill continue to provide aviable and effectiveframework for integratingour national educationsystem as well as evolving astrategic partnership withall relevant stakeholdersbearing in mind that thisgeneration of school-agechildren and indeed futuregenerations deserve nothingless from us.

“As we are all aware,since the inception of thisdemocratic dispensation in1999, governments atalllevels in the countryhave continued to give theeducation sector priorityattention.

“The realization of the factthat education is the bedrockof any meaningfuldevelopment in any givensociety has increasedtremendously, hence the needto expand access to qualitativeeducation in our dear nation.

“It is for this reason thatthe Universal BasicEducation (UBE)programme was launchedin Sokoto in 1999.”

From Agaju Madugba,Kaduna

Sambo commissions almajirimodel school in Zaria

Potiskum traders protest checkpoints

Following the killing of60 people by gunmenat Potiskum cattle

market last week, traders inthe town have protested the“stop-and-search” exercisebeing conducted by soldierson motorists at checkpointsnear the burnt cattle marketon Damaturu road.

An eyewitness told ourreporter on telephone that at9:30pm Saturday aroundproblem started when

traders in a pick-up van werestopped at a checkpoint 250metres from cattle marketby men of the JTF but thetraders protested that thecheckpoints were neitherserving the interest of thepeople nor protecting life andproperty.

The soldiers, accordingto a resident, took to theirheels, fearing that theangry traders could be thegunmen that attacked andbombed the market, killing60 people, adding that the

From Auwal Ahmad, Gombe market was attacked andbombed for three hours, butnone of the soldiers andpolicemen on duty was ableto confront the gunmen.

Confirming the protests,Yobe state PoliceCommissioner, MosesOnireti said there was anargument between soldiersand traders at a checkpoint,and it resulted in someresidents and tradersattacking soldiers andpolicemen at their dutyposts.

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012 PAGE 11

Benin monarch kicks overkillings in EdoFrom Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

Benin monarch, Omo N’ObaN’Edo Uku AkpolokpoloErediauwa, has expressed

discontent over recent killingsahead of Edo state governorshipelection in July this year.

The Benin monarch expressedhis displeasure when he grantedaudience to Governor AdamsOshiomhole at his palace in BeninCity.

According to the Oba, “when I

heard the news of the death of yourprivate secretary, Mr. OlaitanOyerinde on IndependentTelevision, I was shocked. We leaveeverything in the hands of God.We will keep on praying”.

He therefore appealed to thepolitical actors to play the gameaccording to the rules.

Earlier, Comrade Oshiomholehad narrated the ugly incidentwhere three journalists died in hisconvoy.

According to the governor, “we

have sent a petition to theCommissioner of Police in which weinformed him of the meeting held atthe residence of the godfather wherethey took a critical evaluation of theforth coming election”.

“They agreed that it wasimpossible to win. They thenresolved to take series of actions tointimidate my person and ifpossible eliminate me. At thatmeeting, they said they will killunder the guise of armed robbery.They will kidnap and few weeks to

the elections they will detonatebombs in parts of the state to scarevoters, “he said.

The Governor told the Oba thathe invited the commissioner ofpolice and impressed on him theneed for a thorough investigationinto the convoy crash in which heescaped elimination.

Restating his determination toproceed with his re-electioncampaign flag-off scheduled forFriday, Oshiomhole said: “lastweek, we postponed our re-electioncampaign flag off because of thosewho died in the convoy crash. Wehave decided not to postpone thisone because we do not know whattheir plans may be next time”.

President GoodluckJonathan on behalf of theGovernment and people of

Nigeria, has commiserated withthe Prime Minister of Israel, Mr.Benjamin Netanyahu, over thedeath of his father, ProfessorEmeritus, Ben-Zion Netanyahu.

The President in a letter ofcondolence to the Israeli PrimeMinister, noted that the lateNetanyahu who died at his homein Jerusalem at the age of 102, willbe remembered among otheraccomplishments, for hisinvaluable contributions to theestablishment of the State of Israel.

President Jonathan enjoinedthe Netanyahu family and allIsraelis to take consolation in thereality that though the death ofthe late national hero is painful,he lived a truly worthy andexemplary life.

Jonathancondoles withIsraeli leaderover father’sdeathBy Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

President GoodluckJonathan has expressedsadness over the death of

Nigeria’s legendary striker,Rashidi Yekini at the age of 49.

The President who describedYekini’s death as untimely andunfortunate, noted that Nigeriawould forever remember hissuperlative performancesespecially at the African Cup ofNations in Tunisia in 1994 and theWorld Cup in the United States in1994.

“It was a delight watching hisfast-paced, goal-bound moves atinternational football competitionsas he was feared by goal-keepersand defenders alike,” the Presidentrecalled, adding that Yekini also“epitomised patriotism, discipline,hard work, commitment andhumility.”

“President Jonathan whileexpressing regret that illness mighthave held Yekini down fromimparting his football expertiseand skills to the youngergeneration of footballers after hisretirement from active play,enjoined his family, fans andNigerians to continue to cherishthe memories of the high points ofYekini’s career", a statement signedby Presidential spokesman, Dr.Reuben Abati said.

The President alsocommiserated with the Yekinifamily, the government andpeople of Kwara state and allfootball enthusiasts, and prayedthe Almighty to grant thebereaved the fortitude to bear thepainful loss and peace to the soul of"one of Nigeria’s most prolificfootballers”.

…pays tributeto Yekini

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam

Former Vice President AtikuAbubakar has said the deathof football legend, Rashidi

Yekini, is a huge loss to the country,considering his invaluable role inputting Nigeria on the map ofinternational soccer fame andglory.

Reacting to Yekini’s death in astatement in Abuja on Saturdayby his Media Office, the former VicePresident said the late SuperEagles’ prolific scorer was a rarestar that dominated his game,

forcing even his rivals into silentadmiration of his mercurial skills.

According to the former PDPpresidential aspirant, Yekini’ssingle-minded commitment toexcellence propelled him to stardombeyond his wildest dreams of glory.

With 34 goals in 54 appearancesfor the Super Eagles, Atiku said Yekinihad left no one in doubt of his

incredible skills in the beautiful game.He called on the Federal

Government and the NationalAssembly to immortalise the latefootballer.

Meanwhile, the former VicePresident has condemned themurder of Governor AdamsOshiomhole’s private secretary,Comrade Olaitan Oyerinde by yet-

to-be identified gunmen.He noted that the rate at which

human life is becoming so easy tosnuff out is not only intolerable andembarrassing but also a directchallenge to law and order.

He therefore urged the Federaland state governments to redoubleefforts to stem the threats ofcriminality in the country.

Atiku eulogises Rashidi Yekini, condoleswith Oshiomhole over Oyerinde

From Uche Nnorom, Makurdi

Former governor of Benuestate and Senatorrepresenting Benue North-

west senatorial district, ChiefGeorge Akume has expressedcondolence with the people andgovernment of Edo state overrecent tragic incidents includingthe death of journalists in anauto-crash involving thegovernor’s convoy; and theassassination of the governorspersonal secretary.

A statement issued by senatorAkume and made available to our

correspondent, reads: “I receivedwith shock the tragic news of youraccident and write to extend toyou, the sympathies of my familyand those of the good people ofBenue North-west SenatorialDistrict.

“With the efforts you are makingin the development of Edo State, thetemporary set-back occasioned bythe accident will no doubt bedevastating and indeed verypainful. We however, urged you tobe thankful to God for sparing yourlife; and may the memories of theaccident be the tonic that will propelyou to do more. Be assured of ourcontinued prayers”.

Akume condoles with Oshiomholeover attacks

From Lawal Sa’idu Funtua, Katsina

A former Director-General ofthe National Youth ServiceCorps (NYSC), Brigadier

General Maharazu Tsiga (rtd) hasadvised youth to resist thetemptation of being used toperpetrate evil in the country.

Tsiga gave the advice inKatsina while presenting a papertitled “The role of Nigeria studentsand youth in nationaldevelopment” on the occasion of hisinvestiture as Icon of Developmentby the National Association of

Katsina State Students, (NAKAS).The former NYSC boss warned:

“The politicians that want to useyou as thugs are no better thanyou. If you are focused anddisciplined, most of you here wouldbe president, governors andministers in the near future. Soplease don't waste your lives".

Similarly, Tsiga admonishedstudents and youth in general toshun vices such as drug abuse andtrafficking and indolence, whichhe argued kill the spirit, vision andmission of any youth involved inthem.

Resist being used to perpetrate evil,ex-NYSC boss advises youth

Secretary toGovernment of theFederation,Senator AnyimPius Anyim (right),welcoming WorldBank’s road safetyconsultant, Mr.Minze Beuving(left) while CorpsMarshal/ChiefExecutive Officer,Federal RoadSafety Corps(FRSC), Mr. OsitaChidoka looks induring anadvocacy visit bythe World Bankroad safetyconsultant,recently in Abuja.Photo: Mahmud Isa


Delta state governor, Dr.Emmanuel Uduaghanhas called on critics of the

Asaba International Airportrunway extension valued atover N7.4 billion to seekclarification on the project as thetopography in the

area allocated for the airportrequires intense leveling of a hillas well as filling up of a rivervalley to achieve the prescribedstandard that could secureapproval for big aircraftoperations by the Nigeria CivilAviation Authority (NCAA).

Dr. Uduaghan who spoke inan interview with reporters afterassessment of work at the

runway extension site at thestate airport in Asaba, explainedthat the contract for the levelingof the hilly part of the airportrunway was awarded in 2011,and not necessarily for thepurpose of the recentlyconcluded South-south Summithosted in the state.

The governor explained thatrather than tear the projectapart through uninformedcriticism, critics shoukd see howthe airport modeled to be thebest in Nigeria could acceleratethe development of the statesaround it.

“The Asaba Airport has ahuge role to play in the socio-economic development of thestate in many areas. We also

considered the cargo activity atthe airport, which is why weembarked on the airport.”

Uduaghan said “We wantedto build an airport with arunway length of between 3.4kilometers and four kilometers;unfortunately, there is noterrain in Asaba area that couldgive us such stretch of land , thetopography here in Asaba is mainly either hills, or low lands, rivers with adjoining valleys.With all the directions andtechnical survey that was done,for the airport, we got where weare now which gives us twoterrains, the hill on one side andthe river on the other side.”

According to him “We haveto make do with what isavailable with serious heavyengineering work, there is also abridge on the runway course, wedealt with that, we had a

Uduaghan clears controversy on costof Asaba Airport runway expansion

From Suleiman Idris, Lagos runway which could takesmaller planes, convinced thatit was good enough, but we arelooking at expanding it longer sowe could take bigger cargoplane...”

Also speaking, the director ofhighway services and chairmanimplementation committee ofthe Asaba InternationalAirport, Engineer DonatusUmukoro, explained that withover 50 heavy duty equipmentdeployed at the project site, thecontractors will soon completethe leveling of the hills near therunway.

Engineer Umukoro describedthose opposed to the project costsas merely acting based oninsufficient knowledge of thevolume of work to be done tobring the runway and othercritical facilities at the airportto prescribed standards.

Members of the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) during their weekend visit to Thisday office over the recent bombattack on its office in Abuja and Kaduna. Photo:Mahmud Isa

The Managing Director of theNigerian AirspaceManagement Agency

(NAMA), Engr. Nnamdi Udoh,has stressed the need for unionsand management relationship inorder to move the aviation sectorto a greater height.

Speaking at the firstquadrennial branch delegateconference and election of officersof Air Transport Services SeniorStaff Association of Nigeria(ATSSSAN) NAMA branch overthe weekend in Lagos, Engr. Udohurged unions to see managementas partners in progress as nothingcan be achieved in an atmosphereof industrial dispute.

According to the NAMA boss,there must be a symbioticrelationship between workers,unions and management toensure industrial harmony in thesystem as it was the only way toachieve positive results.

“There will always be need forcollaboration between NAMA andthe unions and the unions will berelevant to NAMA throughcollaboration”.

In his speech, the nationalpresident of ATSSSAN, ComradeBenjamin Okewu, said with theelection of officers to run theATSSSAN branch of NAMA, it hasopened a new chapter inmanagement/ labourrelationship.

Comrade Okewu, urged themanagement of NAMA to ensurethe implementation of workerswelfare as that will guaranteeindustrial peace in theorganisation.

NAMA bosssues forindustrialharmonyFrom Suleiman Idris, Lagos

…sets for AISautomation

The automation of thedepartment of AeronauticalInformation Service (AIS),

will soon been completed followingthe arrival of equipments for thefull automation.

Comrade Paul Igene, nationalpresident of AeronauticalInformation Service of Nigeria(AISAN) who disclosed this inLagos over the weekend whilecommenting on the world AIS Daycelebration, said antennae forseven airports across the countryhave arrived.

According to Comrade Igene,the NAMA management underEngr. Nnamdi Udoh has assuredof the full automation of thesystem with the commencementof that of the international airportin Lagos.

The AISAN presidentexplained that it has been adifficult task working manuallyin bringing out flight plansespecially with shortage of staff inthe department, “With AISautomation, it will make the jobeasier for us and it will be real timeinformation”.

Comrade Igene explained thatthe test run of the e-flightplanning system was currentlyon adding, that some airlines havestarted keying into the system.

Unity Bank Plc says it has244 branches across the36 states in the country

and the Federal CapitalTerritory.

Dismissing insinuations thatit is a regional bank, a director ofUnity Bank, Alhaji GimbaIbrahim, noted further at theweekend the banks shareholderscut across all parts of the countryeven as he explained that thebank is a conglomeration of ninebanks including the defunct Bankof the North.

Ibrahim spoke on the occasionof Unity Bank’s special day at thejust concluded 33rdedition of theKaduna International Trade Fair.

According to him, “beforenow, Bank of the North used to beowned by the northern statesgovernments but now, Unity

Bank comprises nine banks, so,the interest of the northern statesgovernments has beensubstantially diluted.

“Majority of shares of thebank is now in private hands andin fact, the CBN has even directedthat government should not ownmore than 10 percent in anybank and we are working veryhard to achieve that.

”Unity Bank is representedacross the country. It is just aperception of some people that itis a regional bank because it ispossible that people are stillthinking of Bank of the North.

“This is Unity Bank althoughBank of the North is one of thefounding fathers. We have 244branches in 36 states and Abuja.Some of the other banks callingthemselves national banks do nothave more than 100 branches”,he said.

‘We are not a regional bank’From Agaju Madugba, Kaduna

Motorcyclists havecontinued theiroperations in Jos and

Bukuru metropolis of Plateau inspite of the ban by the stategovernment imposed.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that thestate government on May 4b a n n e d c o m m e r c i a lmotorcyclists from operating inJos and Bukuru.

The Commissioner forInformation, Mr. AbrahamYiljap, who announced the banat a news conference, cited thesecurity situation in the statecapital as reason for the action.

Yiljap said: “the order is withimmediate effect and that meansthe law enforcement agencieswill be expected to comply withthis law by checking those whomight want to disregard it in anyway”.

He said the government hadembarked on the purchase ofadditional 300 cabs and 500tricycles for distribution to

citizens of the state to ease thetransportation problems.

A check by NAN revealedsecurity operatives had notstarted the enforcement of theban.

T h e m o t o r c y c l i s t s h a dappealed to the state governmentto rescind its decision in order tosave them and some of theirpassengers, who live in remoteareas of the town.

Mr. Danjuma Yusuf, anoperator, told NAN yesterdaythat “we are doomedif government goes ahead toenforce the ban.

Yusuf said that the ban wouldthrow operators into theunemployment market as thepalliatives would not go round the2,000 commercial motorcyclistsin the metropolis.

Meanwhile, the law banningcommercial motorcycleoperations in the state capital waspassed and signed into law byGov. Jonah Jang in April 2010.(NAN)

Motorcyclists in Jos defy ban

PAGE 12 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7P, 2012

Breathing life into our stadiaStadium facilities across the

country are provided toimprove the standards of

sundry sports engaged in by theprecocious talents that abound inNigeria. Besides, as interest in sportsgrows, the federal and stategovernments, and in some few cases,local councils, build stadia, often atstupendous costs, to meet the growingneeds of the sporting population.

Such was the case with the firststadium built by the British colonialgovernment in Lagos in 1930 - theKing George V Stadium, laterrenamed Onikan Stadium. Then camethe ultra-modern multi-purposeNational Stadium, Lagos, built in 1973by the General Gowon Administrationto host the second All Africa Games.Today, only a handful of states are yetto build their own stadia.

Sadly, as with most publicstructures in Nigeria, years of neglecthave left the facilities at most stadia amere shadow of what they once were.This is particularly so with the playingpitches, a good many of which are notconducive for playing good football.So deplorable are these pitches thatwatching Nigeria’s domestic league ontelevision could be nauseating - verymuch unlike foreign football pitchesthat cable television beams into ourhomes.

Recently, as part of the effort todevelop the game and stimulatecrowd patronage of domesticmatches, many governments, someboosted by FIFA technical support,have resorted to the use of astro turf,popularly called artificial pitches, to

“Peoples Daily recalls thatJulius Berger Plc had initially

been contracted to maintain theNational Stadium, Abuja but theNational Sports Commission

(NSC) assumed thatresponsibility because of the

exorbitant costs submitted by thegiant construction firm. Today,

the facility has almost beenovergrown with weeds, and

power cable vandalisation is ascommon as power outage

EDITEDITEDITEDITEDITORIALORIALORIALORIALORIAL

provide the needed lush green playingturf. But even artificial pitches are notimmune from the lack of maintenanceculture.

The National Stadium, Lagos, forinstance, has remained uncared for,for years, the millions of Nairareportedly sunk into it,notwithstanding. Except for theU.J.Esuene Stadium, Calabar and the

Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, thestory is the same for the rest of thestadia in the country, includingLiberation Stadium, Port Harcourt,Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu,Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Ibadan,Tafewa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi, all ofwhich are federal property.

Peoples Daily recalls that JuliusBerger Plc had initially been contractedto maintain the National Stadium,

Abuja but the National SportsCommission (NSC) assumed thatresponsibility because of theexorbitant costs submitted by thegiant construction firm. Today, thefacility has almost been overgrownwith weeds, and power cablevandalisation is as common as poweroutage.

The National Stadium, which hasremained without electricity sinceNovember on account of a N2mindebtedness to the Power HoldingCompany of Nigeria (PHCN), is in nobetter condition. The Tartan tracksare worn out, the changing rooms arean eyesore, seats are broken and theparameter fencing is rickety, all thiscombining to diminish the hithertoaesthetics of the stadium.

We are, therefore, delighted by theresolve of the House ofRepresentatives Committee on Sportsto embark on a tour of these nationalassets to ascertain the huge amountsso far expended on their constructionand renovation. Peoples Daily hopesthat the tour will not be a wild goosechase, but a genuine effort to providethe lawmakers with the appropriateinformation that may allow them toappropriate the needed funds for therehabilitation and maintenance oftheir facilities.

We urge the government tostrengthen the capacity of theNational Sports Commission toeffectively supervise and maintainthese facilities, or alternatively,entrust that responsibility to theFERMA or any other agency that cando the job well.

OUR MISSIONOUR MISSIONOUR MISSIONOUR MISSIONOUR MISSION OUR PEOPLEOUR PEOPLEOUR PEOPLEOUR PEOPLEOUR PEOPLECHAIRMAN

MALAM WADA MAIDA, OON, FNGE

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

ALI M. ALI

GM PUBLICATIONS

ABDULAZEEZ ABDULLAHI

MANAGER, ADMINISTRATION

HASSAN HAMMANYAJI

EDITOR, DAILY

AHMED I. SHEKARAU

ACTING EDITOR, WEEKEND

RICHARD IHEDIWA

HEAD, ADVERT/MARKETING

HUSSAINI ABDULRAHMAN, CNA

“To be the marketplace of ideas and theleading player in the

industry by putting thepeople first, upholdingthe truth, maintaining

the highestprofessional andethical standards

while delivering valueto our stakeholders”

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DIRECTOR/ EDITOR-IN-CHIEFRUFA’I IBRAHIM


Taking the analysis further,it can be argued that withrespect to Edo, that the

capacity of the party (ACN) tocontinue to hold on to the stategovernment will be determinedby factors that include post 2012aspiration of Comrade AdamsOshiomhole and how the partystructures is able to respond tothem. A second factor would bedetermined by the process andquality of potential successor toComrade Adams in Edo. Unlikethe situation in the South Westwhere the influence of politicalleadership in the region can bedeployed to guarantee sustainedpolitical control, in the case of Edo,the situation is fluid. Therefore itcan be predicted that if the presentsituation is retained, the ACNmay only be guaranteedsustained control of the SouthWest.

In the case of CPC, weakadministrative system and poorpolitical management, ifunresolved will remain a disasterand continue to undermine theparty’s electoral prospects even inthe North. Assuming it is able toaddress these problems, it may beable to win many statesgovernments in the region,especially the North West. It willhardly be able to go beyond theNorth. In fact, even in the contextof the North, it can be argued thatthe CPC will not be able to makegood electoral impact in Plateau,Benue, Taraba and to some extentKogi and Kwara. Therefore, on itsown, the CPC cannot go beyondbeing an opposition party.

A question that can readily beasked is: can’t the ACN alignwith other groups in the Northapart from the CPC? It is possiblebut there is no guarantee that

such an alliance can produceelectoral victory. This is onaccount of the nature of thepolitics of CPC. The reality is thatit (CPC politics) has all thecharacteristics of mass rebellion.It doesn’t respect convention orprocedure and thrives on abandwagon strategy. It reachesits peak on Election Day. Prior tothat day, everything appearsnormal and political rallies, otherthan the ones organized by CPCcan attract good crowds.However, on Election Day, thiswill pave way to intimidation,especially if Gen. Buhari is apresidential candidate. To be fairto Gen. Buhari, one must pointout that this happens without hisprompting. It is just a reflectionof his mass appeal in parts of theNorth. In so many ways, itprovides legitimate and excellentresponse to PDP’s strategy of votebuying, ballot box snatching andrigging.

The very nature of thisreality produces a two-wayelectoral contest between the CPCand PDP in many parts of theNorth, especially North West.The experience of Benue,Adamawa, Jigawa and Kogistates under the ACN and Plateauunder the Labour Party showedthat it is possible to also produce atwo-way contest between the PDPand other parties, apart from theCPC. It is possible with very goodstrategies that would have toadopt some of the less noble anticsof PDP and the rebellious

approach of CPC.Do we have politicians outside

the PDP and CPC that can provideleadership in this direction? Theyare very limited. There ishowever, the prospect ofappropriating some politiciansthat may fail to achieve theirpersonal aspirations to emerge ascandidates on the platforms ofPDP and CPC. Pursuant to theiraspirations, they can find theirway to the ACN and contest. Thiswill translate into a situationwhere the ACN will rely onsecond hand candidates for 2015elections in many parts of thecountry outside the South West.The CPC will also rely on secondhand candidates in many partsof the country outside the North.Coupled with its poor resourcebase, if unresolved, would alsolead to a situation where they(CPC) will depend on second handcandidates mainly from PDP tobe able to contest the 2015elections in many states in theNorth, including areas where theparty (CPC) is strong.

Recommendations –Conclusion

There is certainly a brightprospect for the opposition partiesled by the ACN and CPC to defeatthe ruling PDP in 2015. This isonly possible on account of anegotiated union under the jointleadership of Asiwaju Tinubu andGen. Buhari. The joint leadershipwill be founded on a pillar ofneutrality that precludes the two

of them from aspiring forPresident. One of the objectives ofprecluding Asiwaju Tinubu andGen. Buhari from aspiring forPresident is to build confidence inthe new union and nurture astrong base for popularparticipation in the ACN/CPCunion.

In the context of the new ACN/CPC, the leaders of the unionrepresented by Asiwaju Tinubuand Gen. Buhari need to givepriority attention to matters ofparty organization and disciplineof members as a prerequisite forensuring that the governments tobe produced by ACN/CPC unionare regulated and controlled basedon an agenda of providing servicesand promoting nationaldevelopment. As much as it isimportant to emphasize thequality and credentials of thecandidates of the ACN/CPC union,the quality and credentials of theparty leadership is equallyimportant.

In the light of the advantageof ACN/CPC union facilitating theemergence of new politicalatmosphere that can promotenational reconciliation, peace andunity, this in itself is enoughincentive to require the sacrificeof the aspirations of our leaders.The challenge is essentially howthis is translated intoprogrammatic agenda of the newgovernment under ACN/CPCunion, which can be addressed byensuring that nationalreconciliation, promotion of

peaceful co-existence and theunity of the country are includein all political campaign agendaof the ACN/CPC union.

In addition to nationalreconciliation, promotion ofpeaceful co-existence and theunity of the country, there areother issues bordering onmanagement and diversificationof the economy, employmentgeneration and povertyeradication, etc. This calls for clearcommitments based on anegotiated internal party debateand contestation. The practice incontemporary Nigeria is tocontract consultants whonormally develop party policiesthat hardly go through internalprocess of debate. In order toconsciously promote a differentpractice would require initiativein this regard.

Finally, the issue of partyfunding is critical to the new idealbeing envisioned. So long asfunding for the new party will bedriven based on desire to promotepersonal aspiration, it willundermine its democratic thrust.The first test for the leadership ofthe union of ACN/CPC will be thestrength of funding arrangement.Suspicions that normally resultfrom the challenge of managingpersonal aspirations are potentialthreats to viable and prospectivefunding arrangements.

ConcludedSalihu Moh. Lukman can bereached [email protected]

2015 manifesto of Nigerianopposition politics (VI)

By Salihu Moh. Lukman

There is a genuine impulse toappreciate the interventionof Mrs. Stella Oduah, Minister

of Aviation, on the alleged“deliberate discriminatory” airfares imposed on Nigerianpassengers by some foreign airlines– with British Airways presumablythe main culprit – and salute herguts for exhibiting a remarkablesense of patriotism. Hers is the kindof zeal and sense of purpose which,Nigerians would no doubt agree, isdemanded of public office holders ofwhatever description in anynormal government, and which isunquestionably more compelling ina severely misgoverned countrythey call their own.

Except that the story wouldhave been different if the firmnessand decisiveness she had shown sofar had been aimed at mattersaffecting the lives of “ordinaryNigerians”, to borrow thedemeaning vernacular whichNigeria’s pompous elites regularlyuse in describing their lessprivileged compatriots. It is almostsuperfluous to state here that, inconstructing the architecture of anenvisioned modern society, thosewho hold the levers of power inNigeria and their collaboratingdecision makers in governmentoffices hardly put the oppressed

masses in the frame. Unlike whendealing with matters affecting theprivileged few, our dear officialsdemonstrate neither the presenceof mind nor the slightest urgencywhen it comes to issues affecting theunderclass.

Though there are many, justtwo examples will suffice for now.The first is still very fresh: thepromptness with which a so-calledsubsidy was withdrawn from petrol,just when evidence of the huge fraudsurrounding its existence was beingunmasked. The resulting increasein the price of one litre of petrol led toa corresponding rise in the prices ofall goods and services. The richmake nothing of this, but the vastpoor, who barely survive on $2(N300) per day, have since the veryfirst day of the year, been furtherconsigned to a life of unendingpoverty.

The second example goes backto the days of former PresidentOlusegun Obasanjo. Because theAbuja-Lokoja-Okene highway, thebusiest route to the southern part ofthe country, is plied mostly by thepoor who have no means of tastingthe convenience of air travel, it istaking almost eternity to convertthat highway to a dualcarriageway. As Nigerian leadersand their rich friends hardly travelthat route, they have displayedcrass sloppiness in fixing the road

and sheer insensitivity to the plightof its users. The result is that thechaos goes on unabated as innocentlives of promising citizens continueto terminate at every inch of the ill-fated highway. If Arc. MikeOnolehmeme, Minister of Workswhose remit is to fix the roads, hasdeployed the same energy Mrs.Oduah summoned to confront theworries in her somewhat exclusivedepartment, the answer is obviousin the current state of Abuja-Lokoja-Okene road.

Therefore, it does not come as asurprise that Nigerian senators,widely despised for theirunrepressed greed and parasiticpropensities, not to talk of theirdisdainful attitude towards thepeople they claim voted for them,quickly latched on to the aviationminister’s protestation of what shesees as unfair price of air ticketspurportedly imposed on Nigeriansby some foreign airlines, notablyBritish Airways. Of course not forany reason other than because theybelieve that their irritatingprodigality and the filthyoverindulgence of the Nigerian eliteis being threatened, the senators, atthe end of a rambling deliberationof a motion moved by Senator HopeUzodimma, chairman of the senatecommittee on aviation, joyfullymandated the committee toinvestigate the issue.

The bone of contention is the airfares BA charges for its Abuja-London, Lagos-London and Accra-London routes. The question beingasked is: why should passengerstaking off from Abuja or Lagos toLondon on BA flights pay higherfor tickets than the passenger onAccra-London flight despite the factthat the journey from Accra islonger by 40 minutes? Since theprobe began, the senate committeehas virtually drowned the nationin the noise of this disparity. It’s asif no other airline flies to Londonother than the British carrier. Butknowing this senate, it is hard notto expect its occupants to alwaysput the wrong foot forward. Theyhave conveniently overlooked thesharp practices of local airlineoperators and, instead, turnedtheir searchlight on foreign lines,accusing BA and to some extentVirgin Atlantic, of “grand rip-off”not only on the matter of flightcharges, but also on taxes due tothe Nigerian government.

But if these lawmakers knewany shame at all they would beworking seriously towards re-awakening some of the extincticons of Nigeria’s past glory. One ofthem is the once ubiquitous NigeriaAirways. The senators should bynow be thinking of how to ensurethat their government - whichmakes no pretense of its pride in

signing up to the aggressive andmerciless prescriptions ofcapitalism - put the country’s flagcarrier back in the skies within thenext three months. That is one ofthe ways they could begin to settlescores and win back self-respect in afiercely competitive world. Not bybasking in the luxury of Abuja,gorging themselves on freebies andbelching sour grapes over chargesby foreign airline operators who saythey are in business anyway.

Our senators are not to be foundsweating, dissipating energy onpro-poor issues or matters thatwould fast-track the attainment ofa society where all citizens enjoyequal social, political and economicrights and opportunities. Theywould rather devoteunconscionable time on redherring, and only that which theyknow would ultimately redound totheir benefit. As rural folks often askin pidgin English in moments ofanger, Which kain senators be dissef? Again the answer to thatquestion can only be found in theexceptional decline in the qualityof life of the overwhelming majorityof the people beginning since 1999.

For instance, everyday on thestreets of Abuja, poor tradersstruggling to lighten thedevastating burden of badgovernance are being chased

Senate and the fuss over air faresBy Godwin Onyeacholem

Continued on page 15


Abubakar Tsav: Predating on Gen Azazi

Peoples Daily welcomes your letters, opinion articles, textmessages and ‘pictures of yesteryears.’ All written

contributions should be concise. Word limits: Letters - 150words, Articles - 750 words. Please include your name anda valid location. Letters to the Editor should be addressed

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WRITE TO US

Before the USA underPresident Barack Obamafinally closed in on the Al

Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden,in Pakistan in April 2011, theUnited States’ hot pursuit of theterrorist leader had lasted 10years after September 11. Evenbefore then, USA’s covert andovert operations to unveil alQaeda had been on for more thana decade. But the will, courageand determination of a nation inretreat from al Qaeda terrormission finally busted the mythof its leadership. When GeneralMcArthur made the now famousstatement” I shall return,” it wasat the time of pain, retreatingfrom the ferocious assault on hisarmed

forces which nearly routedthem from the Philippines. It wasthe same McArthur who returnedto the same spot and sealed theallied victory of the Second WorldWar. So will it be with Nigeria andBoko Haram.

When tacticians and Generalssuch as Azazi, Nigeria’s NationalSecurity Adviser speak, it requiresthe reflection of all before predatingtheir message. It is in this respectthat Abubakar Tsav and his

peripheral grandstand to catch theflashes of the media platform bycalling for Azazi’s sack.

Abubakar Tsav’spronouncement that a Four StarGeneral, whoafter years ofservice tof a t h e r l a n d ,should be sackedon account of hisp h i l o s o p h i c a ltantrums, reflectsvery badly on thePolice Force of his

time whichallowed hisdefault promotionto the rank of aCommissioner.No wonder hisbosses then, suchas the reveredInspector Generalof Police, Ibrahim Coomassie didreflect negatively on his

demotion in the Force. For aman so lightly esteemed by thecountry’s Police Force to seek areinvention of his role in thecountry where his disgracefulservice record stares, requires aquick reprimand.

Firstly, no Nigerian President

or even Local Government CouncilChairman would undertakeAbubakar Tsav’s spurious outlook.His record as a Policeman is therefor all to check. There is nothing

in his record of service that addedvalue to the Force. Not even at theminuscule level of securitymanagement such as the state.

When General Azazi, the NSAreflected on the siege confrontingthe country at the South-SouthEconomic Summit, he was doingso as a General and Statesman. Hisreference to the PDP was a

mainstream argument. Hecouldn’t refer to the ANPP, ACN,APGA or any other political partywhich is in the periphery of poweroccupation. The evolution of the

PDP from ap a r t i s a norganizationinto whatlooks like ano r g a n i s e dc r i m enetwork hass p i r a l l e dmuch ofN i g e r i a ’ sn a t i o n a lcrisis. Azazipreferred thelove ofcountry to thelove ofp r o f i t a b l ep a r t y

partisan platform on which he isstanding as National SecurityAdviser. If anything, he hasmodelled himself as a referencepoint for brutal frankness. Ourbeloved President, Goodluck EbeleJonathan, will need an innerroom conferencing with theGeneral and those similarlypersuaded, for the country to

access the correct securitymanagement mould that isneeded for now.

Azazi’s command height: -Four medals, Four Stars, formerArmy Chief, former Chief ofDefence Staff, and now NationalSecurity Adviser should not belightly esteemed by unknownquantities such as Abubakar Tsav.Nigeria is a reality and not a mythto be played with by empty headedfake commentators such asAbubakar Tsav. His fake anticorruption posture is well knownand anchored around self-seekingopportunism. The selfcontradiction of his posture inshielding corrupt governmentsand individuals in his home state,Benue, for a profit, is well known.Like his types, when the gravy heis seeking is gone, and he is calledyonder, there may be little toreflect about in respect of a manwhose life was full of sound andfury signifying nothing.

As with the USA, Nigeria’ssearch for solutions to the BokoHaram phenomena shouldcontinue until we have a date withthem as did the USA with al Qaeda.Terfa Taga is reachable [email protected]

Continued on page 15

Despite some genuinecomplaints by someelements in the country,

evidence are bounds that Nigerianshad breathe a sigh of relief in the oilsector since President GoodluckJonathan mounted the saddle ofleadership as the President of Nigeriain May 2011. Before Jonathanresumption of office reports ofscarcity of petroleum productsmostly petrol was talk of the town.Kerosine was out of the commonman rich, while gas was nowhereto be found. Vehicle owners queueall day long waiting for petrol, whileothers did night vigil at the petrolstation.

Evidence also abound thatduring the military regimes, therewere incidences of pipelinevandalism by unpatriotic citizenswho made dubious gains from thepetroleum resources includingpetrol, kerosene and gas and in somecases fire outbreaks from suchvandalized pipes claimed severallives and lost of property runninginto billion of Naira.. The pipelinevandalism persisted unabateduntil the Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation, (NNPC),was left with the option ofcompletely shutting down thenation’s refineries most of whichwere not properly maintained atthe time. As a result, Nigeria whichis the fourth largest crude oilproducer within the Organizationof Petroleum Exporting Countries,OPEC, could no longer produce fuelfor local consumption.

During Olusegun Obasanjoadministration, fuel queue whichwas a major relic of the dark days ofthe military regimes held sway ashoarding, adulteration and blackmarket selling of productscontinued. When PresidentYar’Adua’s came into office, his

government initiated measures torevive the moribund refineries butcould not achieve much as thepetroleum industry in the countrywas already in a stage of comatose.

Determined to reverse theembarrassing trend, PresidentJonathan took the bull by the hornsimmediately he assumed power byinitiating several reforms toreposition the upstream anddownstream sectors. Part of thereforms was to engage an expert inthe oil industry to pilot the affairs ofthe Petroleum Ministry. Heappointed Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke. Until her appointmentinto the federal cabinet as Ministerof Transport in 2007, Mrs. Alison-Madueke who hailed fromPresident Jonathan’s home stateBayelsa, was the first femaleExecutive Director in ShellPetroleum Development Company(SPDC). She moved to the Ministryof Mines & Steel Development inDecember 2008 from where shewas appointed Minister ofPetroleum Resources in April 2010.President Jonathan appointedDiezani Alison-Madueke based onher good understanding of thepetroleum sector and thetremendous cooperation she enjoysfrom chieftains of the oil industry.

Within the period of PresidentJonathan, the nation’s crude oilproduction has been consistentlymaintained above the budgetedproduction level of 2.3 millionbarrels per day. This is direct falloutof the amnesty programme whichhas now allowed for the renewal ofproduction activities in wellshitherto shut-in as a result of theNiger Delta crisis. Effort atincreasing the nation’s stock ofcrude received major attentionunder Mrs. Alison-Madueke withthe escalation of oil explorationactivities in the Inland SedimentaryBasins especially in the Chad Basin.

Already the Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation and theFederal Ministry of PetroleumResources are concludingarrangement for contract award foradvanced seismic data acquisitionand processing.

In all, the seven in-land basins ofBida, Gongola, Sokoto, Anambra ,Dahomey , Chad and Benue arebilled to benefit from theprogramme. Yet the drive toincrease the nation’s crude and gasreserve is not limited to the In-landBasin. As part of the effort at growingthe capacity of the NigerianPetroleum Development Company,(NPDC), eight producing blockshave been assigned to the company.With special support by thePresident for NPDC’s operatorshipof the blocks, the impact has beentremendous on the NPDC’s growthaspiration with current productionnow averaging 80,000 barrels perday.

At the midstream sector gassupply for power generation andindustrial use has been sustainedwith supply outstripping demandboth in the Western and Easternaxes. Available records indicate thatthe volume of gas available for powergeneration is unprecedented in thehistory of oil and gas in Nigeria.Renewed efforts at ensuringrelevant Gas Supply PurchaseAgreements are being executed inorder to encourage upstream gasdevelopment. Report has it that asat the last count-Three Gas Supply& Purchase Agreements (GSPAs)have been signed among buyers,gas suppliers and AggregatorCompany (Egbin / Shell / Chevron/ PanOcean). Contracts for thecritical pipeline infrastructure forgas supply to Alaoji, Olorunsongohave been awarded with projects’completion in 2012. Uponcompletion, this would lead to theavailability of additional gas to

generate extra 2000MW ofelectricity.

The Brass LNG project is beenfast-tracked, while theimplementation of the critical gasprojects as encapsulated in the GasRevolution was given a boost withthe visit of the investors (Xenel ofSaudi Arabia and Nagajurna ofIndia) to the proposed site at Koko,Delta State for the 1.3 metric tonnesper annum Petrochemical and 1.3MTPA fertilizer plants. There hasgenerally been increased investorconfidence in the Gas Revolutionwith additional gas utilizationprojects being pursued. Theseinclude:2.75 metric tonnes perannum Dangote Fertilizer plant inEdo State, 2.4metric tonnes perannum Brass Fertilizer plant inBayelsa State, 1.34 metric tonnesper annum Indorama Fertilizerand 1.2MTPA methanol plants atEleme, Rivers State and 450, 000tonnes per annum methanol plantat Onne, Rivers State amongothers.

As for the downstream sector itis evident that products supply hasbeen sustained nationwide througha combination of offshoreprocessing, SWAP arrangementsand increased domestic refining.The first 100days has seen the re-streaming of Kaduna Refinery andsustained operation of WarriRefinery. The issue of keroseneavailability has been tackledthrough NNPC direct distributionprogramme. The integrity of keyproduct pipeline infrastructure(Kaduna-Kano, Kaduna-Gusau,Kaduna-Suleja) has been re-established. The impact of this isthat more products are nowavailable in inland depots, whichwill enable faster interventionwhen necessary.

Beside the aforementionedachievement of the FederalGovernment in the oil sector,

sustained efforts at increasing localrefining capacity, throughrevamping the existing refinerieswith a view to increasing theircontribution to national demand ofpetroleum products is on-going. AnNNPC team is currently in Japanto conclude the engagement of theoriginal Engineering ProcurementConstruction, EPC contractor forPort Harcourt Refinery which willbe the first to be so rehabilitated.

Already the Nigerian ContentInitiative signed into existence onApril 22, 2010 by PresidentGoodluck Jonathan is designed toensure that Nigeria achieves themuch desired In-country capacityin the oil and gas industry. Thiswould guarantee that a hugechunk of the estimated $20 billionannual industry spend domicile inthe country for the benefit ofNigerians and indigenous NigerianCompanies and Service Providers.Under the watch of the President,the Nigerian Content DevelopmentBoard, NCDMB, which has theHonourable Minister of PetroleumResources as Chairman of theGoverning Council has ensured theescalation of the historic use of made-in-Nigeria pipelines by Exxon Mobilrecently at its Edop – Idoho Offshorefield, secured the placement of over100 kilometers of pipelines ordersin Nigeria ’s only pipemanufacturing company, SCCAbuja, ensured the increase of in-country fabrication tonnage from1,000,000 in 2009 to 1,200,000currently and an advanced talkswith Jiangsu Yulong of China toestablish 250,000 tons per annumLSAW Pipe mill in Nigeria

As for employment in the oilindustry, the Federal Governmenthas developed the Nigerian Oil andGas Employment and TrainingStrategy, which has resulted in the

President Jonathan: Clearing the rot in oil sectorBy Ifeanyi Nwabugu


Who is Gen Azazi working for?

Continued from page 13

The office of NationalSecurity Adviser is a verysensitive one in the United

States of America, a country whosepolitical system we like to mimic.The man who occupies it is usuallya close ally of the President. Theymust have an identicalunderstanding of what constitutesnational security and threats to it.

In the US, most national securityadvisers come from the academicor military establishment; peoplewho have made careers in militaryand or strategic studies. In Nigeria,it is clear that our Presidents prefermen with military or at least policebackground (remember GamboJimeta and IBB) as nationalsecurity advisers. This is quiteunderstandable as the office controlsall the service chiefs and othersecurity agencies – both known andunknown to the public.

Given this tradition, GeneralAndrew O. Azazi is eminentlyqualified to hold the office. He had along career in the military as anintelligence officer before he becamethe General Officer Commandingthe One Mechanized Division withits headquarters in Kaduna. He wasalso at a time the Chief of DefenceStaff.

Even before he became the NSA,Gen. Azazi had a huge large volumeof classified security information athis disposal. His appointment tothat office has crowned it all. ThePresident has no other person toturn to for advice when there is asecurity threat to Nigeria than theNSA. He is supposed to be better

informed than the President himselfon such matters.

So far it has worked smoothly(seemingly so) between PresidentJonathan and Azazi until theGeneral decided to rock the boatrecently at the South-southmeeting in Asaba, Delta state. Partof his speech at the public meetingamounted to a spirited indictmentof the PDP as the mastermind of theongoing climate of insecurity inNigeria. In his own words: “Theissue of violence did not increase inNigeria until when there was adeclaration by the currentpresident that he was going tocontest. PDP got it wrong from thebeginning. The party started bysaying Mr. A can rule, and Mr. Bcannot rule, according to PDPconventions, rules and regulationsand not according to theConstitution. Is it possible thatsomebody was thinking only Mr. Acould win, and if he did not win, hecould cause a problem in thesociety?”

Coming from the NationalSecurity Adviser, this is indeed aserious charge, more so when it isdirected at the ruling party. Inother words, the National SecurityAdviser has accused the rulingparty (more precisely PresidentJonathan) of playing EmperorNero. History tells us that Nero wasthe Emperor who was busyenjoying music when Rome, hiscity state, was burning.

There could be nothing moreserious than this charge. If Azaziwere still in uniform, his speech

would have been better renderedafter the classical music on our radioand the ‘Fellow Nigerians’ thatnormally precede theannouncement of a coup d’etat. Ihave made a diligent study of MajorChukwuma Kaduna (1966) andMajor General Buhari speeches(1984) and I find nodifferent betweenwhat they said afterthey terminatedcivil democraticrule and what Azazitold the world inAsaba. The duojustified theiractions, putting theblame ofincompetence andthe wrenchingordeal which thenation was goingthrough at the doorsteps of oliticians.

In Asaba, Azazi did more thanChukwuma and Buhari. He did notblame politicians across the board -he blamed the ruling party, thePDP. He did not spare even thePresident, the man who employedhim. In his very words, GoodluckJonathan’s declaration to run forPresident exacerbated the violencewe are facing today!

How does the JonathanPresidency work? What is the roleof his chief security adviser in thisbedlam, our modern day Tower ofBabel? Is he a master spy whodelivers cold and unemotionaladvice to his employer, our numberone citizen or some kind of rabblerouser? Given the sensitive nature

of this speech, did the NSA clear itwith the President before goinggaga?

I ask this question because thespeech was not delivered in ZakiBiam or Talata Mafara or Iwo. Itwas delivered in the heart of theNiger Delta, the President’s and the

NSA”s primeconstituency.

If the speechdid not throwany light on theworkings ofJ o n a t h a n ’ spresidency, itdemonstratedto us just howdeep Azazireasons ons e c u r i t ymatters. Howcan he tie the

violent Boko Haram campaigns toPDP politics and the emergence ofGoodluck Jonathan as President?This NSA has a proclivity fortrivializing very serious andfundamental national problems.

If his well paid spies did not tellhim, let me give him thiselementary information – free.Boko Haram came into existencebecause an ANPP governor used aharmless Islamic sect to garnersupport against the PDP. When thegovernor, after victory at the pollsfailed to implement ‘full Sharia’ asthe sect had been promised, theyfell apart. The governor then usedthe police to brutalize members ofthe sect and kill their leader, in coldblood. How then can Azazi reduce

Emmanuel Yawe08024565402

[email protected]

the well founded grievances of thesect to a PDP and north /southstruggle for power?

When a president is surroundedby people with skewed and foggyideas, he is bound to be in thepathetic situation our President isin. Obasanjo threatened to imposea state of emergency in Bayelsa in1999 because of an event which tookplace in Joba, a town in Rivers state.He massacred people in Odi;cordoned off a whole senatorial zoneof Benue state and murderedhundreds of unarmed civiliansthere – all on the advice of hissecurity chiefs. Yar’ adua wasmisled to wage war against BokoHaram instead of finding apainstaking political solution.

I believe the present president isalso poorly served. Security is not aquestion of acquiring armaments,no matter how massive. It is not aquestion of voting huge sums for thepurchase of gadgets no matter howsophisticated. Security is aboutpatriotism on the part of leaders,security operatives and the people.How can the Nigerian people bepatriotic when their leaders andsecurity operatives are not?

I recall sadly that while Azazi wasGOC of One Mechanized Division inKaduna, a large stock of arms werestolen from the armoury there andsold to Niger Delta militants. Thesearms were then used to kill Nigeriansoldiers, abundantly.

Now, as National SecurityAdviser, expressing such disturbingviews, one is left to wonder who thisAzazi is working for.

absorption of over 5,000 engineers,geologists, welders and other skillsets into the industry and formedthe basis of a national skilldatabase. Nigerian Contentactivities have already generatedover 30,000 direct and indirect jobsand will surpass 300,000 withinthe next four years

Jonathan short period ingovernment has witnessedsustained interaction with theNational Assembly to ensurepassage into law an oil reformlegislation known as PetroleumIndustrial Bill (PIB) that will standthe test of time to the benefit ofNigeria , and give fair Return onInvestment. Regulatory Controland Monitoring Considerableefforts have been made under thewatch of Mrs. Alison-Madueke toensure effective regulatorycompliance in the Nigerian oil &

Gas industry in the areas ofenforcement of flare penalty of$3.50/1000scf to discourageflaring and encouragecommercialization of the gas thatis being flared, the launch of the“Offshore Safety Permit (OSP)” toaccount for the safety andcompetencies of personnel whoembark on swamp, offshore anddeep offshore duties in line with theexpectation of the NigerianContent Policy, the establishmentoffshore training centre within theNigeria and completion of a pilotscheme of the National Productionand Monitoring system (MPMS)aimed at ensuring independentreal time production monitoringand accurate productionaccounting.

The massive transformation ofthe NNPC, the passage andimplementation of the NigerianContent Act, the push for the

passage of the Petroleum IndustryBill, the implementation of the Gasmaster plan as well as achievementof improved relations with criticalstakeholders across the oil and gasvalue chain, were among practicalmeasures through which theadministration has ensuredunprecedented stability in thesupply and distribution ofpetroleum products across thecountry.

Many Nigerians are of the viewthat the petroleum sector underJonathan’s presidency has beenrecording giant leap forward to thebetterment of the country andapart from boosting the nation’searnings from oil, employmentopportunities had been increased.Within the past one year that theNigerian Content Act was passedinto law, over 30,000 directemployments and trainingopportunities had been created for

Nigerians, making the sector thehighest employer of labour.

However, these commendableefforts require sustainability toenable Nigerians continue tobenefit from the reforms beingimplemented by the newadministration of PresidentJonathan. Therefore, the need toretain Mrs. Madueke in thePetroleum Ministry to continuewith the ongoing reforms cannotbe overemphasized. Heradministration having shown somuch commitment andsympathy to the sector should beallowed to implement ongoingprogrammes that have succeededin restoring the confidence ofNigerians and foreign investors inthe sector.

President Jonathan hascontinued to demonstrate hiscommitment towards improvingthe lives of Nigerians by ensuring

that their basic needs are withintheir reach. In the petroleumsector, the administration hasclearly shown within the past oneyear that Nigerians can enjoypetroleum products without beingexploited by dubious marketerswho had made life unbearable forthe citizenry for several years.Since this relief came through theinstrumentality of Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s leadership acumen inthe Petroleum Ministry and withthe enormous challenges aheadthat requires an expert tosurmount, the status quo shouldbe maintained so that variousprogrammes lined up to ensurestability of the petroleum sectorare not eroded by putting a squarepeg in a round hole in the newadministration.Ifeanyi Nwabugu writes fromLagos08035292549

around, arrested, beaten, andextorted by a gang of thugs andarmed policemen dubbed task force,who drive around the city in trucksfull of seized wares. This is a commonoccurrence at any time of the day.

The senators are aware of thisbrazen robbery and criminaldebasement of their less privilegedcompatriots, yet it has not occurredto the conscience of any of them totable a motion that would not onlylead to the passage of a resolutioncondemning this odiousundertaking, but would also usherin an investigation with a view to

bringing it to an end. So comfortableare they that they easily forget thatthis was the same type of attitudeon the part of callous state officialsthat ignited the flame of therevolution now sweeping across theArab world. Nigerian senatorsrather find succour in the idle,misleading refrain that “it cannever happen here”.

An upper legislativeparliament of boastful characterselected, or more appropriatelyselected, “to make laws for the good

governance of Nigeria” has seennothing wrong in the scandalouscost of property in Abuja. Theycertainly are not ignorant of howextremely difficult it is to secureaccommodation in the city. Theyare aware that a modest two-bedroom apartment is alreadypushing towards N5m or (about$31,000) annually in many areas.

But since they are among themajor owners of property, oursenators are not going to be patrioticenough to legislate against

themselves and fellow landlords inthe interest of the general good. Ifthey do not already know, someoneshould tell them that there issomething untoward in trying toforce a foreign airline, or anycompany for that matteroperating in Nigeria, to reduce theprices of their products while thesenators themselves ignore the cryof Nigerians over skyrocketingrents imposed by fellow citizens. Itdoes not make sense.

In the end there can’t be

Senate and the fuss over air fares

President Jonathan: Clearing the rot in oil sector

anything cheerful about a senatethat fails to deploy its full voice torestore crumbling infrastructure inevery sector. Senators have thepower to make things happen. Butgreed and selfishness won’t let theseones. That is why they won’t feelany pain of humiliation if Nigerianhospitals are so decrepit that theirpresident, David Mark, hastily flewto Israel for medical treatment. Solong, distinguished senators.

Godwin Oyeacholem is ajournalist based in Abuja

Continued from page 14


FCTA to create Area CouncilGeographic Information System

As part of its effort towardsrepositioning the six areacouncils for better

performance, the FederalCapital Territory (FCT)administration has said thatplans are in progress to create anArea Council GeographicInformation System (ACGRIS).

The Minister of State for theFCT, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide,who disclosed this, said the planis aimed at improving thedelivery of land records servicesin the area councils.

"Similarly, the FCT hasworked out a sharing formula inthe land allocation processbetween the area councils andthe FCT administration, as away of incorporating the areacouncils in the landadministration system," sheadded.

This was as she explained thatthe plan was designed to makegood the FCT administration'spartnership policy with the areacouncils to speed up the processof physical development of theentire territory.

On environmentalsanitation, the minister said theStrategic Focus Committee isworking to domesticate the Cleanand Green Greater AbujaInitiative( launched by heroffice last year)in the areacouncils by devising ways ofintegrating existing localmechanisms like the 'Yanbola'(waste evacuators, in thelocal parlance) boys into theenvironmental sanitationframework.

She continued: "In the samevein, village heads in the areacouncils would be given a direct

mandate to superviseenvironmental sanitation intheir various communities.Community and neighbourhoodenvironmental sanitationcommittees would be formed andsmall grants given to them forthe purpose of logistics, whilecorporate bodies will be requiredto get involved in communityenvironmental efforts".

According to her, in keepingwith its accountability thrust,

the administration is goingbeyond periodic auditing of theaccount of the area councils bythe Auditor-General of FCT AreaCouncils.

"We are going beyond routineauditing to engage an externalauditor to regularly embark onvalue-for-money audits toensure that we get value for theresources being committed tovarious projects in the FCT areacouncils," she said.

Mr. John Auta, the ActingDirector, ForestryDepartment, Federal

Ministry of Environment, hassaid that tree planting was theprimary solution to climatechange.

Auta, who made this knownin an interview with the Newsagency of Nigeria (NAN) inAbuja on Sunday, said treeplanting was the major strategyto addressing climate change inNigeria.

He said: ``Carbon trading isone of the major products of

afforestation'', noting thatNigeria had not met the Foodand Agricultural Organisation(FAO) recommendation of 26per cent forest cover to nations.

Auta said thatenvironmental problems such asdesertification and erosion couldbest be controlled byafforestation.

He attributed the continuouseffect of climate change tomassive deforestation, stressingthat human-induced globaldeforestation was responsible for18 to 25 per cent of global climate

change.“Tree planting, be it

economic or ornamental, canreduce the effect of climatechange to its barest minimum,due to carbon trading.''

The acting director decriedthe attitude of the public towardafforestation, pointing out thatthe recent distribution of treesto states for afforestation did notyield the desired goal.

“We have distributed millionsof trees to states for people to plantbut the people are demanding formoney before they plant.

Tree planting primary solution to climate change – Auta“It appears some of these

people do not appreciate theimportance of afforestation and Ibelieve that they are the samepeople that will benefit from theprogramme. ''

He cautioned against recklessfelling of trees for timber,stressing that the continuousdeforestation would lead to loss ofsome of the forest species.

“The essence of giving largeportion of land for vegetation isto produce good environmentthat is healthy for humanhabitation. '' (NAN)

By Josephine Ella

A 31-year old man, JerryOyeneke, on Fridayappeared before an Abuja

Chief Magistrates' Court chargedwith misappropriation of N800,000 meant to buy a transformer.

The accused is charged withcriminal breach of trust, cheatingand misappropriation.

Police prosecutor AbuAkponachi told the court thatone Alade Toyimbo of Area 8,

Man in court for allegedly misappropriating N800,000

Scrambling for kerosene at NNPC Mega station, at the weekend, in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

Food vendors operating inLugbe, a satellite town inthe FCT, say the onset of

the rainy season has impactednegatively on their business.

Some of the food vendors spoketo a correspondent of the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) onSaturday, after the heavy downpour in the early hours of theday.

Blessing Auta, a food vendor,said her regular customers whonormally turn out early in themorning could not do so due tothe rain, leaving her with lowsales.

Auta said she wascontemplating changing toanother business or moving toher hometown till the end of therainy season.

“Normally I make huge salesin the morning, but today as Ispeak to you I can count thenumber of customers who haveeaten here. The rain has forcedmany of them to stay away.

“All the food I cooked will bewasted. Now, I don't know anyother small business to do. Ithink I will go back to my villageto work on my family farmland.''

Elizabeth Egbo, another foodvendor, disclosed that she wastaking steps to adjust herbusiness in line with theprevailing times, stressingthat`` business must continueeven while it rains.''

Egbo spoke to NAN whilebusy erecting a temporaryshelter in place of her food stallpulled down by rain storm.

“You can see that I am tryingto arrange this small place formy customers. Whether we likeit or not rain must fall.

“So I have made up my mindthat even though patronage islow, I must find a way to survivebecause I don't have any otherwork than this one.

“I thank God some of mycustomers still came to eat inmy place after the rain, but Ihave to reduce the quantity offood I prepare to reduce waste,''she stated.

Another food vendor, whogave her name as MadamAdeshetu, said she hadconcluded arrangements topurchase two canopies to shieldher customers from the rain.

“Business requiresplanning and I have alreadydeposited money for thesupply of canopies, which I willuse to cover my customers.

“I believe that many peoplewill patronise me once they areguaranteed of protection fromthe rain. ''

A GSM call centre operator,Malam Mustapha, howevertold NAN that the rainy seasonwas a boost to his business.

“Many operators,especially those from thenorthern part of the country,have travelled to theirhometown for the plantingseason.

Rainy seasonaffects foodpatronage,says Vendors

...Integrates ‘Yan bola’ into environmental sanitation frameworkShe urged the members of

the House of RepresentativesCommittee on FCT AreaCouncils to expedite action on thepending Bills affecting the areacouncils in the House, especiallythe Bill for Act to provide for theSystem, Structure, Composition,Functions and Finance of the FCTArea Councils, saying this wouldenhance the statutory positionof the area councils andstrengthen their revenue base.

Garki, Abuja, reported thematter at the Garki PoliceStation on Sept. 26, 2011.

He said Oyeneke (said to bea staff of PHCN), was contractedin August 2011 by Toyimbo tofacilitate the procurement of anew 200KVA transformer asthe old one had started tomalfunction.

Abu said Oyeneke agreed tobring a new transformer at the

cost of N800,000.He added that on Sept. 9,

2011, Oyeneke installed arefurbished transformer``which blew up'' when it wasenergised, damaging thecables, feeder pillar and otheritems.

Abu said the accusedmounted two refurbishedtransformers at different occasionsand they failed to function.

The accused pleaded not guiltywhen the charge was read to him.

Chief Magistrate OkeaguAzubike granted the accused bailin the sum of N500,000 and twosureties in like sum.

He ordered that the suretiesmust be responsible Nigerians andmust reside within the jurisdictionof the court.

The case was adjourned to May24 for further hearing. (NAN)


Stones crushers at work at Lugbe New Extension, Abuja.

Iron welders plying their trade at the Aco Estate, Abuja. A young iron bender at Gosa village in Abuja

Bricklayer doing what he knows better at Federal Housing Estate Abuja. Photos: Joe Oroye

A man taking a ride in the truck not minding the risk of falling off; he was captured alongChurch Gate, in Abuja, recently.


The First Lady, Mrs PatienceJonathan, says the FCTand its environs will notice a

change in driving culture on theroads and highways soon withwomen as commercial drivers.

Jonathan made the statementin Abuja on Friday at theinauguration of Lady ChauffeurTraining Scheme (LCTS) by theNational Directorate ofEmployment (NDE) incollaboration with Women forChange and DevelopmentInitiative.

The collaboration is aimed attraining female drivers, startingwith 200 women.

`Ì am confident that when thisfirst batch of 200 ladies completetheir training, Abuja and itsenvirons will notice a change indriving culture and attitude on theroads and highways.

``These young ladies areexpected to become change agentsby bringing the feminine virtuesof caring, carefulness and of coursepatience to bear on the way we

Lady drivers: Abuja will notice achange in driving soon - First Lady

conduct ourselves on the road,'' shesaid.

The president's wife expresseddelight that NDE had``consistently and vigorouslypursued the task of creating jobsfor our teeming unemployedyouths through training invarious skills.

``This is in line with my NGO'sobjective which, since inception,has graduated more than 4,000trainees who were trained free andgiven starter packs to enablethem to begin on their ownbusiness.

`Ì, therefore, urge you ladiesto put in your best and embracethe training with all sense ofresponsibility.

`Ì assure you that this two-month intensive training willcontribute immensely to yourempowerment,'' Jonathan said.

Earlier, the Minister of Labourand Productivity, Mr EmekaWogu, said that the training wasaimed at empowering the women.

Also, the Director-General of

NDE, Malam AbubakarMohammed, said the occasion was`ànother milestone for NDE, withspecial emphasis on women, whoare the most vulnerable in thesociety.

``Please maintain disciplineduring your training and I assureyou that you have the job already.''

In his goodwill message, theCorps Marshal of the Federal RoadSafety Commission, Mr OsitaChidoka, said ``you ladies havechosen a noble profession.

``This is because it isimperative for people to move fromplace to place and we know fromour statistics that there is a highernumber of men involved inaccidents than women.''

Mr Wilson Alade, the FCTDirector of the Directorate of RoadTraffic Services, said ``thisinitiative is unprecedented andwe're in support because womendo things patiently.''

Mr Tunji Tolani, the ManagingDirector of the Abuja LeasingCompany, said ``we have

obtained approval from theMinistry of Finance topurchase customised pink cabsunder the Pink Cab Schemedesigned for women.

Meanwhile, Miss OlubayodeLilian, a trainee, said `Ì feelencouraged, I reallyappreciate it and I think thiswill be a good opportunity forunemployed young women.''(NAN)

The Federal Capital Territory(FCT) Administration is topartner with the United Nations

Industrial Development Organization(UNIDO) and Japan InternationalCorporation Agency (JICA), to recycleseized rickety and abandoned vehiclesin the territory.

The FCT Minister, Senator BalaMohammed made this disclosure,when the UNIDO representative toNigeria/Regional Director, Dr. PatrickKormawa, paid him a courtesy visitin his office.

He said that the collaboration,apart from helping to cleanse theenvironment, will create wealth andemployment opportunities for theresidents of the Federal CapitalTerritory.

Senator Mohammed reiteratedthat all impounded rickety,abandoned vehicles and commercialmotorcycles deposited at the AbujaAuto Pound will be a veritable sourceof the needed raw material for kickstarting the collaboration.

According to the minister, "thislofty Joint Venture Partnership is anadded impetus to the TransformationAgenda of President GoodluckJonathan' and that 'it will be up scaledto touch on other areas that willbecome a basis of succour to the lessprivileged in the Federal CapitalTerritory".

He remarked that thecollaboration would be fashionedon an already existinginstitutional framework anddirected the FCT PermanentSecretary, Engineer AnthonyOzodinobi to immediately fine-tune the grey areas.

This was as he also directed thatthe Abuja Technology Village,Transportation Secretariat, AbujaInvestment Company Limited,Land and Economic Planning,Research & Statistics Departmentsrespectively, key into the entireproject to provide all the neededfacilities for its smooth take-off.

Furthermore, he called on theJapanese Government to support theFCT Administration in rehabilitatingthe commercial sex workers arrestedand taken off the streets of Abuja toenable them contribute moremeaningfully to the society at large.

FCTA to recycleimpoundedrickety vehiclesBy Josephine Ella

Justice Ufot Inyang, of theFederal Capital Territory(FCT) High Court sitting in Apo,

has awarded the sum of N150,585,450 million damages againstthe Nigeria Police and the Federalgovernment for unlawful murderof late Mrs. Doris Okere, by a policeofficer, in Mpape, Abuja.

Inyang, while delivering hisverdict, in the N400, 184,000 suitfiled jointly by the widower, Mr.Eugene Okere and son, ChidieberePromise Okere, through Barr.Eze Onyekpere, against thealleged killer, Inspector Generalof Police (IGP) and AttorneyGeneral of the Federation (AGF)as 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondentsrespectively, on Friday, declaredthe killing as unlawful.

Mpape killing: Court awards N150 million damages to victim’s family

According to the judge,evidence admitted in the courseof the trial shows that thecircumstance of the deceased'sdeath was brutal and unlawfulas she did nothing to warrantsuch treatment by the allegedtrigger- happy police officer,which he said forced the victim'sfamily into unnecessary traumaand deprivation of her love andcare as a mother and wife to theapplicants.

"The action of the officer isunconstitutional and a grossviolation of the deceased's rightto life as guaranteed undersection 33 of the 1999 Nigerianconstitution as amended, Article4 of the African Charter onHuman and Peoples Rights and

Article 3 of the UniversalDeclaration on Human Rights1948 respectively", he said.

In his declaration, the judgeentered judgement in favour ofthe applicants accordingly,N70, 000,000. , N60, 000,000and N20, 000,000 as general,exemplary and special damagesrespectively, against the 2ndand 3rd respondents.

On the no cause of actionmotion filed by the counsel to theAGF, Bashir Isah, at hearingstage, the court ruled that thereis a reasonable cause of actionagainst all the respondentsseverally and jointly given thecircumstance of the matter asthe alleged killer in question isan employee of 2nd and third

respondents..In addition to the monetary

reward, the court ordered therespondents to pay the sum ofN500, 000 and N1, 585, 450 forthe cost of litigation, burial andsundry expenses respectively, infavour of the applicants as wellas awarded N30, 000 damagesagainst the 3rd respondent forfailed attempt to exonerate theAGF of any wrong doing or caseto answer in the suit.

Also the judge frowned at theinability of the 1st respondent toappear in person or legal in thecourt, to offer any explanationin the matter after having beenserved with the court processesin prison, which he said has legalimplication in the matter athand.

Reacting to the Judgement,

Traffis gridlook on Mararaba-Abuja Road, yesterday, due to securitiy checks. Photo: Mahmud Isa

… We’ll appeal judgement-policeBy Stanley Onyekwere

Police arraign2 motorcyclistsfor theft,criminaltrespass

Two motorcyclists, IbrahimIdris, 22, and NasiruAbubakar, 20, were on

Friday arraigned before an AbujaMagistrates' Court on a three-countcharge of joint act, criminal trespassand theft.

The Prosecutor, Cpl. SimonEmmanuel, told the court that thecase was reported at the Life CampPolice Station, Abuja, by AlhajiDanladi Mohammed of StrabagQuarters, Life Camp, Abuja, on April29.

He said that Mohammedreported that on the same date, theaccused persons invaded his houseand made away with his tricycle(Keke NAPEP) which was parked inhis garage.

Emmanuel said that the arrestof the accused was made possible bya team of policemen.

The prosecutor added that theoffence was contrary to sections 79,349, and 287 of the Penal Code.

The accused pleaded not guiltyto the charges.

However, the Magistrate, HajiyaSadiya Mayana, granted theaccused bail in the sum of N5,000with a surety in like sum.

She said the surety must have aknown address and must be residingwithin the jurisdiction of the court.

Mayana adjourned the case tillMay 7 for further hearing. (NAN)

counsel for the applicants, Barr.Kalu Onuoha, hailed thejudgement, describing it as athorough and well thoughtverdict capable of checkmatingthe menace of illegal killinginnocent citizens by securityofficers in the country.

"I think by the time this judgegoes out and the police get tounderstand that the court hasstarted awarding exemplarydamages against them forunlawful killing of persons in thecountry, they would sit up",Onuoha expressed.

Similarly, the widower, Mr.Okere, said the judgement gives himand members of his family somesense of justice over the unjustlybrutal and untimely murder of hislate wife and the mother of one yearplus son at her prime.


Management Tip of the DayHow to reach your enemy

third party whom your enemytrusts. A common ally mayconvince him of the benefits ofworking with you.Wait for the right time.Sometimes people need timeand space before they can seeyour side. Put offcommunication until the right

opportunity presents itself.Recognise when to goelsewhere. The effort ofconverting a rival is sometimesso great that you’re better offfocusing your energy onanother relationship.Source: Harvard BusinessReview

INSIDE

Flight schedule

LOS-ABJ: 07.15, 11.40, 14.00,16.30, 17.00, 17.20, 18.30.

ABJ-LOS: 07.00, 09.30, 10.30,11.15, 16.15, 19.15, 19.35

ABJ-KANO: 18.40

KANO-ABJ: 08.35

ABJ-SOK (MON): 09.35

SOK-ABJ (MON): 11.35

LOS-ABJ: 06.50, 13.30, 19.45

ABU-LOS: 07.30, 13.00, 14.00, 19.00

LOS-ABJ: 07.02, 08.10, 12.06,15.30, 17.10

ABJ-LOS: 07.20, 09.36, 13.05, 14.40

LOS-ABJ: 9.45, 11.45, 2.45

IRS AIRLINES

AIR NIGERIA (MONDAY - SUNDAY)

DANA AIRLINES (MON - SUN)

AEROCONTRACTORS (MON - SUN)

ABJ-SOK (FRI): 10.10

ABJ-SOK (WED/SUN): 11.20

SOK-ABJ (FRI): 12.00

SOK-ABJ (WED/SUN): 13.20

LOS-ABJ (SUN): 12.30

LOS-ABJ (SAT): 16.45

ABU-LOS (SUN): 10.30, 14.30, 19.30

ABU-LOS (SAT): 18.30

ABJ-LOS (SAT/SUN): 13.05, 18.00

LOS-KANO: 08.10

KANO-LOS: 11.25KANO-ABUJA: 11.25

ABUJA-KANO: 10.08

ABJ-LOS: 11.30, 3.45, 4.45

LOS-KANO: 6.15LOS-KANO (SAT/SUN): 16.30KANO-LOS: 07.30

KANO-LOS (SUN/SUN): 10.30

Having enemies in theworkplace is oftendestructive. Ideally you

should try to work with yourrival instead of against him.But if your collaborative effortsfail, try one of these strategiesinstead:Find a common ally. Seek a

BUYING SELLING

CFA 0.2929 0.3129• 203.0283 204.3407£ 250.1808 251.798RIYAL 41.25 41.5167$ 154.7 155.7

CBN 3rd May, 2012

EXCHANGE RATES

PARALLEL RATES

BUYING SELLING

£ 243 257RIYAL 43 45$ 154 159

Insecurity hin-dering busi-

ness in Nigeria

- Pg 20

Email: [email protected] Mob: 08033644990

BBBBBUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSS/N BENEFICIARIES SUB-TOTAL (N)1 FG (52.68%)

States (26.72%)L/govt Councils (20.72%)Derivation (13% of Mineralrevenue-oil/gas)Value Added Tax (VAT)& Transfers 613.697 billion

FAAC allocation for the month of April 2012 PPPRA sanctions Swissenergy company, NIMEX

R-L: Minster of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Minister of Information, Malam Labaran Makudiscussing after their meeting recently with President Goodluck Jonathan at the State House, Abuja.

MTN Group, Africa’slargest mobileoperator, reported on

Friday a 4 percent rise insubscribers for the first quarter,helped by increases in tits keymarkets of South Africa, Nigeriaand Iran. MTN, which is

currently the target of alawsuit from rival Turckcell,said in a statement itssubscribers totalled 170.6million at the end of March,from 164.5 million at the end ofDecember.

The number of subscribersrose by around 3 percent in

Nigeria and South Africa, whileits customers in Iran increasedby more than 6 percent.

Iran has been a significantmoney-spinner for MTN,although it has also broughtserious controversy. Turkcell issuing MTN for at least $4.2billion in a U.S. court, claiming

MTN reports 4% rise in subscribers

In its determination toentrench transparency andaccountability in the

downstream sector, thePetroleum Products PricingRegulatory Agency (PPPRA) hashammered NIMEX PetroleumLtd, an oil trading companyfrom Switzerland.

The Executive Secretary ofthe PPPRA, Mr ReginaldStanley, confirmed the sanctionin an interview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inAbuja on Sunday.

Stanley said that the Swissfirm refused to submitimportant documents on itsoperations in Nigeria.

It will be recalled thatStanley last November, vowedto enthrone a regime oftransparency in thedownstream, warning

petroleum marketers “to shapeup or ship out of the industry”.

He said that NIMEX wassanctioned for failing to providedocuments relating to itsshuttle vessels, which loadedfrom the mother vessel as wellas its documentation on thecumulative load-outs.

He said that NIMEX wastherefore, “suspended fromsupplying cargoes to Nigerianmarketers under the PetroleumSupport Fund (PSF) scheme,pending the provision of thenecessary documents’’ byNIMEX.

The PPPRA chief said thatindependent cargo inspectors,who superintended the receiptof the products from NIMEX,would also be sanctioned, iffound to be culpable.

Stanley said: “all marketers

are hereby warned that witheffect from May 3, 2012, allpurchases of premium motorspirit from Messrs NIMEXPetroleum shall not be processedfor PSF claims. ”

In a related development,Swift Oil and Gas Ltd, Lagos,was directed to provide requireddocumentation on “originals ofdischarged documents’’, knownin the industry as shore-tankcertificates.

“Swift Oil was also requiredto make available detailedtruck-out of its oil discharges aswell as a comprehensive bankstatement, detailing lodgmentsin respect of the sale of thedischarges. ’’

Stanley said that Swift Oilwould be sanctioned if it failedto provide the documents.(NAN)

The Federal Mortgage Bankof Nigeria (FMBN) is set to clear pension arrears owe

pensioners after a thoroughverification exercise.

A statement issued at theweekend by the banks’spokesperson, Mr. SimeonAgada says the sum total of N364million has beenearmarked to clear pensionbacklog .

The amount FMBNstatement says, was arrived atafter a joint pensioners’verification exercise conductedin April by the FMBNManagement and series ofconsultations between the Bankand its pensioners as well as

with National PensionCommission (PENCOM)officials and independentpension consultants.

FMBN Managing Director,Mr. Gimba Ya’u Kumoconfirmed that the Bank hadpaid N145,434,341.71 inApril, 2011 while the balanceof N218,151,512.57 would bepaid in two installments ofN109,075,756.28 in May2012 and N109,075,756.28 inAugust this year.

The FMBN Managementhas increased the pensioners’monthly pay by 25 per cent,and this became effective sinceApril 2011 when the first batchof pension arrears ofN145,434,341.71 was paid.

Kumo enjoined FMBNPensioners to team up with theBank’s Management in its driveto provide affordable shelter forthe generality of Nigerians whoare contributors to theNational Housing FundScheme.

The FMBN had under theNational Housing Fund (NHF)Scheme and through capitalmarket operations, financedthe delivery of more than61,000 housing units to NHFcontributors in various parts ofthe country.

It recently witnessed thelaying of foundation stone forthe construction of a housingestate consisting of 450 housingunits in Gombe State by GombeState Property Investment andDevelopment Company.

By Abdulwahab Isa

FMBN earmarks N364mto clear pension arrears

MTN used corrupt practices andpromises of weapons to win itslicence in Iran.

Turkey’s largest mobileoperator initially won the bid forthe Iran licence in 2004.Tehran later backed out of thedeal and awarded the businessto MTN in 2005. MTN has saidthe case has no legal merit.

Shares of MTN were up 1.4percent as at Friday.


COMPANYNEWS

Nestle rewardsshoppers’patronage inLagos

Nestle Nigeria Plc, one ofthe global leadingnutrition, health and

wellness companies has givenback to loyal customers in Lagosstate.

AfDB’s portfolioin Nigeria nowN224bn

The African DevelopmentBank’s (AfDB) portfolio inNigeria currently stands at

$1.4 billion (about N224billion)for a total of twenty sevenprojects, excluding operationsthat have already beenapproved by its board but not yetsigned. Announcing this onThursday in Abuja.

Balance of tradebetween Nigeria andSouth Africabeneficial

The governments of SouthAfrica and Nigeria areimplementing a variety of

measures to strengthen thehistoric bilateral relationshipbetween the two sister Africancountries.

WECO placesNigerian systemsintegration practiceon global stage, winsaward

Cisco has unveiled itsAfrican EnterprisePartnerAward Winner for 2012,

recognising Weco Systems forunequalled performance in thecontinent during its annualGlobal Partner Summit held inSan Diego, California, USA.

Bharti Airtel rakes in$4.1bn revenue fromAfrica

Bharti Airtel Limited hasannounced its auditedconsolidated International

Financial Reporting Standards(IFRS) results for the fourthquarter and year ended March31, 2012.

Chellarams supportsYmedia go greeninitiative

The campaign for agreener and cleanerenvironment in Nigeria

and the world over, is graduallyreceiving the attention of boththe public and private sectors ofthe Nigerian economy. This wasevident at the recently heldLagos energy seminar, organisedby Ymedia, in partnership withits public and private partners,including Chellarams Plc.

Earnings Report for Banks

Inflation rates from Apr, 2011 to Mar, 2012Max = 12.6%, Min = 9.3% for period in display.Current Inflation rate = 12.1% Source:CBN

Source:Pro-share Nigeria

L-R: Chief of Staff/Head, Corporate Division, The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Bola Adeeko;Executive Director/Chief Risk Officer, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Mrs. Remi Odunlami; Executive Director,Market Operations and Technology, NSE, Mr. Adeolu Bajomo and Group Managing Director, First Bank ofNigeria Plc, Mr. Bisi Onasanya at the First Bank of Nigeria Facts Behind the Figures presentation on thefloor of the NSE on Friday.

Interbank rates up on treasury bills salesNigeria’s interbank

lending rates jumpedthis week to an average

of 13.91 percent, from 11.83percent last week, after thecentral bank of Nigeria (CBN)issued about N90 billion

($572.79 million) worth oftreasury bills to mop up excessliquidity.

The CBN conducts such openmarket operations (OMO)regularly as part of measures tocurb inflation and control money

supply.Traders said the CBN has

been conducting OMO for thepast week after about 300 billionin budgetary allocations wasdisbursed to governmentagencies, in a move to reduce

CBN to sellN145.05bntreasury bills

Nigeria plans to issue145.05 billion naira($922.12 million) in

treasury bills ranging from 3-month to 1-year maturities at itsregular monthly debt auction thisweek, the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) said last Wednesday.

The apex bank said it wouldissue 32.05 billion naira in 91-daypaper, N53 billion in 182-day billsand N60 billion in 364-day billsthis Thursday.

The CBN issues treasury billsregularly to reduce moneysupply, curb inflation and helplenders manage their liquidity.

Yields at the previous auctionfell across the board, driven bystrong demand from offshore andlocal institutional investors,traders said.

impact of money supply on pricestability.

“As long as this continues,cost of borrowing will graduallyinch up,” one dealer said.

Dealers said the marketopened with a cash balance ofabout 131 billion naira onFriday, compared with 331.81billion naira last week on Friday.

The secured Open Buy Back(OBB) climbed to 13.50 percentfrom 11.50 percent last week,150 basis points above thecentral bank’s 12 percentbenchmark rate, and 3.50percentage points above theStanding Deposit Facility (SDF)rate. Overnight placementtraded at 14 percent, comparedwith 12 percent last week, callmoney closed higher at 14.25percent, from 12 percent lastweek.

“Other cash outflows toforeign exchange purchases andother transactions are expectedto further drain liquidity fromthe system,” another dealersaid.

InsecurityhindersbusinessinNigeria,says UnityBank MDManaging Director of

Unity Bank, AdoWanka, said in Kaduna

over the weekend that theinsecurity in the country washampering business growth.

Wanka, who was representedby a director in the bank, AlhajiGimba Hassan, made thestatement at an event to markUnity Bank's day at the ongoing33rd Kaduna Internationaltrade fair.

He said incessant crises hadgreatly affected business growthin all spheres, and reiterated thecommitment of the bank topartnering the private sectorand farmers to grow theeconomy.

The managing directorcalled on the government,particularly northern leaders, totackle the insecurity problem toimprove the economy of theregion and nation’s in general.

He said the bank was offeringa new service, Unity Holy Trippackage, a savings accountdesigned for prospective pilgrimsto enable them get BTAallowance and 50 per cent creditfacilities.

“We arrange visas, get themairline bookings on time, andaccommodations with a lowinterest rate loan.''

Wanka said the bank has 244branches across the country.(NAN)


Eterna Oil’searnings topN41bn

Eterna Oil, an indigenousintegrated energycompany operating in the

upstream and downstreampetroleum sector, has reporteda 190.5% growth in headlinerevenue that topped N 41billion, up from N 14 bn in theprevious financial year end inits recently released its auditedfinancial statements for theyear 2011.

Zenith BanksN19.2b PAT

Zenith Bank has released itsfirst quarter financialstatements, announing

that it made N72.4 billion inGross Earnings betweenJanuary and March this year,up 33% from the N 54.3 billionit made at the end of March2011 .

Access Bankrealises N 62 bnrevenue in Q1

Access Bank earnings areup 143% to N 62 billionfrom N25.8 billion at the

close of Q1, 2011.The bank recently joined theleague of top-tier banks in thecountry with its acquisition ofIntercontinental bank.

Skye Bankraises N16bn inbonds

Skye Bank has raised $100million (about N16billion)in debt from a

multilateral institution at afloating coupon rate of 6.3percent for seven-years to boostits capital, its chief executiveKehinde Durosinmi-Etti hassaid.

DMO to issueN210b, N290bbonds in Q2

Nigeria plans to raisebetween N210 billionand N 290 billion

($1.33 billion – $1.84 billion)in sovereign bonds rangingbetween three and 10 years inthe second quarter of the year,the Debt Management Office(DMO) has said.

AGMs scheduled inmarket next weekCAP Plc 9th May, 2012

CadburyNig Plc 9th May, 2012.

INVESTORSNEWS BEAT

Source:Pro-share Nigeria

Reps probe committee summonsOtedola, Dangote, Soludo, othersThe House of

Representatives ad hoccommittee probing the

near collapse of the capitalmarket on Friday summoned thePresident of Dangote Group,Alhaji Aliko Dangote, formerFinance Minister, Dr. MukhtarMukhtar; Mr Femi Otedola, MrOba Otudeko; former Governor,Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, theExecutive Vice Chairman ofNigeria CommunicationsCommission(NCC), Mr. Eugene

Juwah and the ExecutiveSecretary of Department ofPetroleum Resources(DPR) toappear before it unfailinglytomorrow to answer questions.

This is coming as theembattled Director-General ofBureau for Public Enterprises(BPE), Ms. Bolanle Onagoruwaopined that part of the ways tobolster the stock market in thecountry would include the needfor NCC to as a matter of policybefore issuing licence totelecom companies to ask them

to get listed on the stockexchange.

To this end, the Chairmanof the panel, Hon. Ibrahim El-sudi, said that the House wouldpursue the listing of telecomcompanies and every publicliability company on the stockexchange in other to boost theliquidity in the capital market.

Ms Onagoruwa, whilebuttressing the need for theNCC to get the telecomcompanies listed explainedthat telecoms companies all

NSE All Share Index inches up by +2.52%The Nigerian Stock Market

sustained uptrend for thethird week in a row just as

profitable transactions continuedto permeate theNigerian bourseamid unrelentingbargain activitieswhile the Exchangenotified all quotedcompanies that the1st QuarterF i n a n c i a lStatements for 2012is expected to beI n t e r n a t i o n a lFinancial ReportingStandarad (IFRS)Compliant asStatements that donot meet withs t a t u t o r yrequirement willnot be recognized asappropriately filedand will not be presented to themarket.

Furthermore, the keybenchmark indices maintaineddowntrend by -0.29% to open thefirst trading day of the week

negative as sell pressureoutweighed bargain hunting in

some sectors across the mainboard while market retraced inthe second session to close in thepositive territory by +1.39% as

market breadthclosed veryimpressive.

The bullscontinue to dominatemarket activities asbargain huntingcontinued tooutweigh sellpressure in the thirdsession just as NSEASI firms up by+0.84% to maintainn o r t h w a r d smovement as marketYTD performancestands at +8.72%.

C o n v e r s e l y ,trading activities onFriday closednorthwards as

sentiments remained positive.

Consequently, the keybenchmark indices inches up by+0.57% while market closed theweek with aggregate gain of+2.52%.

Further analysis onacquiring banks sincetransaction date showed thatthe share price of Access Bank Plchas recorded 36.97% gain,followed by FCMB with 43.08%gain while Union Bank Plc leadsthe chart with 108.61% gain.However, Sterling Bankrecorded -2.36% loss while ETIclosed positive with +0.26% gainrecorded.

However, the All-ShareIndex in the week under reviewmoved up by +2.52% to close at22,665.99 as against an upbeatby +1.62% recorded last week toclose at 22,109.44.

In the same vein, the marketcapitalization in the weekappreciated by N177.49 billion(US$1.18 billion) to close atN7.22 trillion(US$48.17billion) as againstappreciation by N112.55 billion(US$750.37 million) recordedlast week to close at N7.05trillion (US$ 46.99billion).

The total volume traded inthe week closed at 2.44 billionunits valued at N20.74billion(US$138.23 million) comparedwith 1.96 billion units valued atN17.23 billion (US$114.87million) exchanged in 23,547deals last week. The volumetransaction in the week whencompared with the previous weekdata moved up by +24.79% asagainst downwards movementby -4.24% recorded last week.Weekly value also went up by+20.33% as against positiveposition of +9.54% recorded lastweek.

First Bank set to re-list as a holdingcompany, customer base hits 8m

First Bank Nigeria Plc saidon Friday that it hasconcluded plans to delist

First Bank Plc from the NigeriaStock Exchange in order to re-list the holding company.

Disclosing this in at the floorof the NSE while presenting thefact behind the figure, theGroup Managing Director andChief Executive Officer of the

bank, Mr Bisi Onasanya saidthat the delisting and re-listingof the holding company will goa long way to benefit itsshareholders.

According to him, “ theshareholders will get their sharesin equal proportion. There is noway that the shareholders willbe short changed,” he assured.

He further reassured thebrokers that the bank “for nowis not thinking of share

over the world were beinglisted on stock exchange,maintaining that such movewould positively affect thecapital market of the country.

Addressing the committeeon privatised companies by theFederal Government, the BPEboss said that the companiesthat were privatized weresupposed to be listed on the stockmarket, stressing that therewas no policy on ground tocompel such companies to beenlisted on the stock exchange.

reconstruction.”He said that the non

performing loan of the bankstood at 2.6 per cent while thebank had 100 per centperforming loan.

He further said that thenumber customers of the bankhad hit the 8 million from 6.3million in 2010 and 7.7 millionin 2011, adding that it was anindication that the bank is aglobal and the best bank.

From Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos


Dangote charity soars to N16bn in Q1

The Pan Africanconglomerate- theDangote Group- has jerked

up its philanthropic profile as itscharity work between 2011 andthe first quarter of 2012 isnearing N20billion, a statementfrom the group said.

The group had intensified itsCorporate Social Responsibility(CSR) programmes across Africa.

The statement said in the firstquarter of 2012, the groupmaintained its philanthropictempo as it doled out $500,000to victims of explosion in Republicof Congo.

"The Dangote IndustriesLimited has also donatedN100millon to the University ofScience and Technology, Wudil,Kano within the first quarter,"the statement added.

The statement said the group

had supported the NationalYouth Service Corps (NYSC) witha million naira within the firstquarter of 2012.

The statement quoted thepresident of the group AlhajiAliko Dangote in an interviewas saying that he is determinedto intensify his charity works,and as well create jobs for manyAfricans.

"About this philanthropy, Ithink from this year, I

By Aminu Imam personally want to take it veryseriously. I want to be muchmore aggressive than what wehave had in the past.

"We already have afoundation which will do allthese things, but I am trying tosee what we can do to encourage,not only Nigerians, but otherAfricans," Dangote said.

He added: "I am not going togive all my money to charity,but I am going to try my bestand give part of that money tocharity. I am working hard onit,"

Last year, the group pumpedover N1billion into therehabilitation of some Nigerianuniversities.

As part of the group'scontribution to empowerment,it had given out N600million towomen in Kano State.

With tentacles in 14 Africancountries, Dangote has been

Traders in Potiskum protestat military checkpoint

adjudged as one of the biggestemployers of labour outsidegovernment in Africa.

In February, PresidentGoodluck Jonathancommissioned the group's Ibeseplant with an annual capacityof six million metric tons. Theplant will also create jobs forsome 10,000 people.

The conglomerate currentlyprovides about 40, 000 job andpay about N50 billion in taxannually.

Dangote's charity effort hadbeen extended to African andAsian countries.

Victims of famine in NigerRepublic had been given overN120million, while floodvictims in Pakistan got$2million from the Dangotegroup.

The conglomerate hadexpended a N15.5billion in 2011as part of its CSR work.

Following the killing of 60people by gunmen atPotiskum cattle market

last Wednesday, traders inPotiskum, Yobe state haveprotested the “stop and search”exercise being conducted bysoldiers on motorists atcheckpoint near the burnt cattlemarket long Damaturu road.

An eyewitness told ourreporter on telephone that onSaturday, around 9:30pm problem started whentraders in a pick-up van werestopped at a checkpoint 250meters from cattle market bymen of the JTF but the tradersprotested that the checkpointsneither serves the interest of thepeople nor protect lives andproperty.

The soldiers, according to aresident, took to their heels,fearing that the angry traderscould be the gunmen thatattacked and bombed themarket, killing 60 people,adding that the market wasattacked and bombed for three

hours, but none of the soldiersand policemen on duty was ableto confront the gunmen.

The traders said that with allthe checkpoints mounted in thetown, including the one near thecattle market, gunmen enter thetown with these weapons andterrorised the market withoutanyone being caught or shot bythe Police or soldiers who weresent to protect lives andproperties but that 60 peoplewere killed and several wereinjured.

Confirming the protests, theYobe Police commissioner, MosesOnireti said there was anargument between soldiers andtraders at a checkpoint and thatit resulted into some residentsand traders take law into theirhands by allegedly attackingsoldiers and policemen at theirduty posts in Potiskum.

Potiskum local governmentarea is among the localgovernment were imposed stateof emergency by the Federalgovernment and send JTF totaken over the security issuesfrom the state government.

From Auwal Ahmad, Gombe

Airtel to showcase Nigeria’s largest 3.75Gnetwork at ICT Congress

Leading telecommunicationsservices provider, AirtelNigeria said it has finalised

arrangements to showcase thelatest data and Internet offeringson its newly upgraded 3.75Gnetwork at this year’s edition ofthe West African Informationand Communication Technology(WAFICT) congress.

The ICT congress, scheduledto hold at the Eko Hotel, Lagosfrom tomorrow, May 8th toThursday, May 10th, thecompany told journalists it willprovide a credible platform tofurther demonstrate its exciting

and innovative data offerings,adding that Airtel currently hasthe largest 3.75G network inNigeria, covering all the 36states and Abuja.

Speaking on the company’ssponsorship and participation atthe ICT congress, ChiefExecutive Officer and ManagingDirector of Airtel Nigeria, RajanSwaroop said the telecomoperator is excited to bepartnering with WAFICT,saying that it will use the forumto exhibit some of its latest valuepropositions in its data/Internetproduct’s segment.

“We commend the organisersof WAFICT; Airtel is always

From Suleiman Idris, Lagos

happy to be part of WAFICT.Indeed, WAFICT is a leading ICTcongress just as Airtel is a productleader and trail blazer in all themarket it operates. In Nigeria, wecurrently have the largest 3.75network because of ourcommitment to delight telecomsconsumers across the country.Definitely, we are takingNigeria’s largest 3G network tothis year’s WAFICT,” he said.

Organisers of WAFICT 2012congress and exhibition say theevent will open new horizons,introduce new technologies andprovide greater insights forgovernments and regulators inthe sub-region, to benefit fromnew trends and potentials in thetechnological arena.

Kano boosts transportationwith 1,500 vehicles

The Kano state governmenthas procured 1,000 taxicabs and 500 buses to boost

transport services in Kanometropolis.

The state Commissioner forWorks, Housing and Transport,Alhaji Abba Yusuf, told newsmenin Kano on Saturday that thegesture was part of thegovernment’s efforts to provideemployment in the state.

He said the vehicles whichwould soon be launched by Gov.Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, wouldalleviate the transportationproblem being faced bycommuters in the state capital.

“This is part of government’seffort to provide subsidised andcheap public transport services

for the public,’’ he said.According to him, the state

government has also provided 15additional buses to the statetransport company, to enhanceits operations.

“With government approval,the company has initiated thefirst passenger Health InsuranceScheme, in partnership withZuma Health Insurance” he said. “A passenger will pay only N50per trip and receive the sum ofN190, 000 medical care in theevent of an accident and N200,000 in case of death.”

Yusuf said the stategovernment had also refurbishedmany grounded vehicles of thetransport company to enhance itsservices.

R-L: President, National Union of Postal and Telecommunications Employees (NUPTE), Mr. SundayAlhassan; Head, Contact Centre, Spanco Nigeria, Mr. Shailesh Mohan; Head, Human Resources, SpancoNigeria, Mr. Digvijay Srivastava; Comrade Mamman of NUPTE and Chairman of NUPTE, Spanco Branch,Foluso Taiwo during a Memorandum of Understanding Signing Ceremony between Spanco employeesand NUPTE, recently, in Abuja.

Power outage: Jos PHCN CEO urges patience,promises better days

The Jos ElectricityDistribution Companyyesterday called for “a little

more patience’’, promising betterdays ahead for consumers in thestate.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports the call followedcomplaints and protests byconsumers in the state.

“We understand the concernsof the customers but we want tocall for a little more patience,’’ MrsVera Osuhor, the Chief ExecutiveOfficer (CEO) of the company, saidin Jos.

“The factors militating against

stable power supply in Jos zone arebeing addressed and the resultswill soon be here. ’’

Osuhor told NAN that powergenerated by the private and theState Government would soon beadd to the 130 mega wattsavailable for sharing in the zone.

According to her, the zonerequires a minimum of 260 megawatts to meet demand that isconstantly on the rise.

The CEO said that a 1x7.5 MVApower transformer was also beingupgraded to serve the 1x15MVA,33/11KV transformer at BauchiRoad injection substation in Jos.

Other included four 1x7.5MVA 33/11Kv injectionsubstations, which were nearingcompletion at Lamingo Dam,Stadium Area on Zaria Road,Maraban Jama’a, as well asBarkin-Ladi, all in Jos andenvirons.

According to her, the PHCN isworried over incessant poweroutages and has taken necessarysteps to end the menace and ensureenough electricity to the Nigerianeconomy to stability.

She, however, deniedallegations that PHCN wasdeliberately holding on to prepaidmetres so as to exploit itscustomers. (NAN)

PAGE 24 PAGE 25PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012

Leaving a legacy isn’tabout sharing money, saysGovernor Kwankwaso

How did you managethe challenges ofre-election in 2011?

In 2011, we contested andwon the election; all that wesaw in 2011 was a result ofwhat we did in 1999- 2003and the people decided thatour four- year-tenure was farbetter than the eight years ofthe other party and came outen mass and supported us. Iam happy to say that thePeoples Democratic Party(PDP) won the election inKano state.

Since taking office in May,201, I have had time to seethe mistakes that we madethe last time and to see whatmistakes the immediate past

government made in the lasteight years and so we went outfully prepared to govern thestate. We knew what to do andwe kept on moving; we aredetermined, we believe wehave taken so much from pastexperiences and now it is thetime for us to check the drift.

You’re noted for yourfinancial prudence, withyour critics even callingyou tight-fisted. How areyou able to generateenough income to fund theprojects you haveembarked upon in view oftheir huge capital-intensive nature?

We inherited debts of overN77 billion and several

hundreds of millions ofdollars, but I am happy thatwhen we took over, we decidedto draw a line; we said look,we are not in a hurry to lookat this debt because once weopen the can we don’t knowthe types of worms that willcome out. Instead, we decidedto leave it there but there areseveral other things like theover 4billion hotel bills owedto Tahir Hotels and two otherhotels; we are not in a hurryto face these, that is why wedecided to move forward; thatis why between 29th May,2011 and the end of the year,we were able to do all theprogrammes we now have onthe ground. By God’s grace,

the opening balance of thisyear’s budget is N20.5 cashand that shows that despitethe fact that there are somany competing demands,we can raise some money. Yes,there are many problems butthe biggest, in my opinion, isdishonesty, not only of theleaders but everybody, evenjournalists, farmers,businessmen, clergymen,everybody. We need toaddress the issue; thisproblem of corruption cutsacross all strata, not only thebank MD or his deputy but alsomessengers and evencustomers. Unless we decideto be honest with ourselves,

we should be honest, weshould be upright, we shouldwork hard to make sure thatwe move our state forwardand that was why we decidedon our own that we should getsomeone who has alreadyshown the light on thedirection in which we wantto move and that is why wehad a mentor, a leader calledAminu Kano.

What are the majorachievements recorded interms of capitald e v e l o p m e n tprogrammes?

The achievements arethere for everybody to see. We noted that Kano, being the

“We should be upright, we should workhard to make sure that we move ourstate forward and that was why we

decided on our own that we should getsomeone who has already shown thelight on the direction in which we want

to move and that is why we had amentor, a leader called Aminu Kano

most populous state in thecountry, is so congested, withso many people concentratedon a small area of land. Youknow, philosophers say thatcities, when they are toocongested, are like a humanzoo. That was why we had toopen up new areas and the lasttime I remember buildingcities or new places with infrastructure was a verylong time ago and that is whywe thought that there is thatneed for us to create thesecities; we have Kwankwasiyacity as well as other cities. We

have gone very far in theprovision of infrastructure;we are going to provide all theamenities of any model city,ranging from a five-star hotelto a conference centre to theGovernor’s Lodge; the roadsare being dualized, withdrainage, water,communication andeverything we can think of. AtKwankwasiya city most of theplots were allocated and mostof the people have filled it; weare paying over 4milllionnaira per plot and we havedesigned the building type, wewant people to build; we wanteach house to be at least one-storey building and weprovided contractors oversome couple of weeks ago; wehave many other facilitiesthat we can talk of and thestate government has decidedto sell all the governmentproperties to those occupyingthe houses which were builtmany decades ago.

Initially, they were wellmaintained but now, thegovernment has no money tomaintain civil servants’generators and such facilities.I told the civil servants thereis no discount rate and if youwant to buy, you buy and thatthese houses were owned bythe people of Kano state; we arejust holding them in trust forthem. We have got consultantswho have almost finished theirjob. When we are finished withthis one we’ll go to another cityand build houses for those civilservants and any citizen ofKano state who is interested.As a government, we knowthat even if you are not fromKano state you cannot take thehouse to your village anddefinitely, now it will bebetter, and along the line ifyou are maintaining it youare improving the economy.

If this arrangementsucceeds, by the grace ofGod, many people will owntheir houses and this inaddition to the houses beingbuilt by the Kano StateHousing Corporation andother organisations inaddition to privatedevelopers. If you go to Kanonow, you will see a lot ofdevelopment that is goingon; we have all the mainroads leading into Kano -Hadejia road, Zaria road,BUK road; now, we want toput in additional roads,lanes, beautify the roads andinstall traffic lights and weintend to put measures onthe roads to control themovement of people comingin and going out of the state.We are also makingprovision for theagriculturalists; we areproviding trailer lanes/parks. We have providedenough contractors who areworking on this. We have allthe infrastructure andfacilities for people to go inand patronise those places; somuch is happening in thearea of infrastructure and weare working very soon, maybe this month or next toaward contracts for theconstruction of a fly-over andthat will cover the silverroundabout, Kofar Nasarawaroundabout, Radio Kanoroundabout, and Obasanjoroundabout, all of them inthis quarter. We have themoney; we have the budget,now it is just the details weare finalising; we havecontractors working on thesoil text. So in terms ofinfrastructure we are reallyworking hard. We have doneso much in the last one yearor so and we are movingforward; we want to ensure

that, by the grace of God,when we are leaving by 2015,Kano will be a better placethan it is.

Have you been able tomake any meaningfulimpact in terms of theprovision of water in thestate?

On water supply, we haverecorded a significantimprovement. There is agreat linkage between waterand electricity because we useelectricity to power ourpumps. We have importedpipes which we are layingover a distance of 52kilometres to have a dam andwe have also purchased a pipewhich is 1,000 millimetresand we will lay it fromChallawa waterworks toGoron-Dutse to replace the onethere which has been there foralmost a century. I havedirected that a lot of waterpipes be added to the presentones we have to bring morewater into the city and,therefore, we want moreextensions to other areas of thestate which don’t have waterso that at the end of the day,we will have potable andsufficient water in the state.

Between 1999 and 2003you have developed newleaders from your state.How have you been able toget this winning strategy?

In Nigeria, there is notmuch sense of history; if thisgentleman who is yourdeputy is treacherous to youand he leaves your paper togo to the next paper, youknow who he is but in thiscountry somebody will betreacherous at point A; Mr. Z

will take him to think he is agood man; there is no goodone among treacherouspeople; if one is treacherous,he is treacherous; if you puthim under your arm, justwait for your turn and youwill see it when it come. Whatis more important is I cannotremember any oneparticular person whosucceeded in treachery. Itmay look like you aresucceeding when you aregoing up, up but that is theunlucky one and eventuallythe whole thing will collapsebecause the higher you go,the greater the bang whenyou fall and that is theposition. You see, I don’t toomuch worry about whatcritics are saying andanytime when you tune intothe radio watch thetelevision and nobody iscriticizing me something iswrong.

Recently someonecriticized me in the Blueprintfor allowing Chinese andIndians to go to Kantin-Kwari

market. Now, as a governor,who am I to stop Chinese andIndians from coming toNigeria? Now, we aresending many people to Chinafor their masters degree; ifyou want to sell textilematerials, go ahead, wecannot just sit here and saynow they are taking over 50 -60 of our market. This is whywe are sending our peoplethere; we want them to learntheir language, to be exposedand think like graduates.

What do you have tosay to your critics?

I learn a lot fromcriticism. The first time theywent to Radio Kano andabused us, they wanted meto stop them but I said no, letthem go ahead and do it. Yousee, it is just like if in thisyour building, if they say thepaint is not good, what do youdo? You change it, but if theysay it is supposed to be on theother side of the road, theyare wasting their time andyou just have to ignorethem. If they look at you and

“Those who believe in us believe in ourideology and that is why we have other

parties; and then you will find out at the endof the day, they will go to where they belong,because if you take me to their party it is liketaking me to prison because whatever they

say is good is what I don’t believe in andwhatever they say is bad I don’t believe it

and that is what we call democracy

Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso

The recent award bestowed on Kano state Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso by theCentral Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as the “Best governor in poverty alleviation and empowerment”is a testimony to the strenuous efforts at developing the state through job creation, women andyouth empowerment, agricultural re-invigoration, educational development and economicrestoration. In an exclusive interview Kwankwaso granted to with Peoples Daily’s Editors,the governor shares his plans for the transformation of Kano’s economy. Excerpts:

Kwankwaso

we will continue to run intoproblems; of course, those whohave the opportunity tohandle the resources ofgovernment and otherorganisations are people thathave got a better example, butif you want to test the lowerones, go and keep your moneyjust there and go and washyour hands and come back,you will be disappointed andshocked because by the timeyou go back you will hardlyhear anyone asking who hadleft his money there. We havedecided as a government that

say it should be so and giveyou the basic reasons whichare positive enough and youare convinced by them, thenyou can adapt. But whentheir complaint is baselessand unrealistic, you justignore them and do yourbest. We enjoy criticism,more so we have otherparties.

In 1999, everybody cametogether because we wantedto kick out the military butwhen we came in, we camewith a different ideology andas we move ahead we stillhave to fight. I believe thatyou cannot leave any legacyby giving sharing out topeople. That is whereideologies come in; if you goto America, and a Democratis speaking or a Republican isspeaking you can tell who issaying what, because it isdeep inside. When you go toBritain it is the same. Whenone party is speaking theyneed not tell the opposite partywhat they mean and whatthey should say in return.Those who believe in usbelieve in our ideology andthat is why we have otherparties; and then you will findout at the end of the day, theywill go to where they belong,because if you take me to theirparty it is like taking me toprison because whatever theysay is good is what I don’tbelieve in and whatever theysay is bad I don’t believe it andthat is what we calldemocracy. This is where weare and as the people continueto criticise, at the end of theday, by the grace of God, thetruth will prevail.


Tribal daredevils are just inches from deathduring bizarre bungee-jumping ritual

These are the incredibleimages of men and childrenwho quite literally have a

head for heights - as they risk theirlives in a bizarre bungee jumpingritual.

The bonkers tradition calledLand Diving sees young men andboys climb to the top of a wooden

Daring: The ritual on Vanuatu is considered a rite ofpassage for young men, who have just two pieces of vineattached to their ankles

By Ted Thornhill tower and throw themselves off ithead first, with only pieces of treevine preventing them from certaindeath.

The tribal daredevils have justtwo pieces of vine tied to eachankle, which acts as a bungee cordas they plummet towards theground from the top of the 30fthigh tower.

The wooden towers are built on

a hill and as the person jumps theplatform beneath them gives wayand leaves them swinging by theirankles just inches from the ground.

The unusual tradition takesplace during April and May in theSouth Pacific Island of Vanuatu.

It is known locally as theNaghol and is considered a rite ofpassage for young men on theisland.

Photographer Steve Davey waslucky enough to witness the landdiving take place on the island andsaid it was a great experience tobe able to capture the ancienttradition on camera.

The 46-year-old from Brixton,London said: ‘I’ve always wantedto see land diving since I watchedit on a David Attenborough

documentary when I was a childand it was fascinating to finallywitness it in person.

He said: ‘Land diving is a realpart of the island’s culture, thewoman dress in traditional dressand the elder men chant as themen dive from the top of thetower.

‘The tower is just pieces ofwood tied together with vines, ittakes between two-three weeks tocreate and features a series ofplatforms at different heights.

‘It can only be used oncebecause the platform is designedto crack and give way when youjump from it.

‘There are boys only aboutseven or ten years old doing it,they start from the lower

Inches from death: The menare jerked back just abovethe ground

platforms and the men leap fromthe top.

‘It’s quite haunting to witness,you watch it knowing people havedied doing it before and that’salways in the back of your mindand then you hear the crack off theplatform as they jump, it’sincredibly scary.

‘There’s no set science to it, it’squite easy for it to go horriblywrong.

‘If the vines around yourankles are too short you coulddislocate your ankles, if they’re toolong or they snap you could killyourself.

‘But it’s something they hold inhigh regard and it’s quite specialto watch.’

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

Celebration: Land Diving isa part of the island's culture,with the elder men chantingas the ritual takes place

Danger: The ritual isextremely risky with somemen suffering dislocatedankles and others havingdied


Academic activity resumes in Ambrose Ali Universitywhile scavenging for water, theAmbrose Ali University (AAU),Ekpoma in Edo state, has re-opened for academic activities.

The Spokesman for theinstitution, Mr ChrisAdamaigbo, confirmed tojournalist that the universitywill be reopened on Monday.

He said that academicactivities commenced onMonday when the universityactually re-opened, adding thatthe students were expected tosettle down and faced theirstudies squarely.

“Government has done a lotto ensure that things movesmoothly in the institution andwe expect that students wouldreciprocate by facing theiracademic activities.”

It would be recalled that theinstitution was closed downfollowing the death of two femalestudents who fell into a wellwhile fetching water.

Five other students were alsoinjured in the incident when thewell, located at the KudiratHostel of the institution, cavedin with the seven students at

about 7:30 am on that day.The incident generated

spontaneous reactions from thestudents, who staged a massprotest demanding animprovement in their livingconditions.

The protesting students hadblamed the death of theircolleagues on the dilapidatedfacilities at the institution.

Meanwhile, during theclosure, the institution’smanagement had rehabilitatedand reconstructed facilities atthe students’ hostels.

The management of FederalPolytechnic, Oko,Anambra state, has

ordered students of theinstitution to resume onWednesday after five weeks ofclosure.

The institution was shut onthe 25th of March following riotsinvolving students and youthsfrom community during whichsome persons were wounded andproperty destroyed.

In a statement issued by thePublic Relations Officer of theInstitution, Mr ObiniOnuchukwu, said the decision tore-open the school followed thesubmission of an interim reportby the panel of investigation inthe matter.

“We regret that the situationhas seriously disrupted theacademic calendar and mostworrisome is the threat ofwithdrawal of the institution’saccreditation for all programmesby National Board for technicalEducation, the control body.

“Furthermore, the situationis capable of affecting ourstudents’ from participations inNational Youth Service CorpsProgramme, IndustrialAttachment and the admissionof new students. Our Atanicampus is also yet to matriculate.

“It is worthy of note that theresumption does not foreclosefurther deliberations andnegotiation for payment ofreparation as the panel only

Okopoly reopens on Wednesdaysubmitted interim report, whilea meeting of the expandedmanagement has beensummoned to also look into thematter,” the statement said.

The management therefore,advised all students in Atani,Ufuma and Oko campuses toreturn on Wednesday to resumelectures on Thursday, May 3rd,urging the lecturers to resumeimmediately so as to completetheir lectures scheme forexaminations to begin.

It also appealed to Oko youthsand all those whose propertywere affected, including thosewho suffered different degrees ofinjuries, to remain calm to allowpeaceful conclusion ofoutstanding issues.

The Registrar of the newly-established FederalUniversity, Kashere,

Gombe state, Abubakar Aliyu-Bafeto, has disclosed that theinstitution is set to commenceacademic activities soon.

Aliyu-Bafeto, who disclosedthis in Gombe in an interviewwith newsmen, also recalled thatthe Minister of Education, Prof.Ruqayyatu Rufa’I, had inspectedthe infrastructure at theinstitution.

He said the minister washappy with the quality andprogress of work done so far at thesite.

Aliyu-Bafeto said when theuniversity was established, theFederal Government provided acheck-list of the necessaryfacilities to be put in place toensure a successful take-off,adding that more than 90 percent of those facilities had beenprovided for the institution.

He explained that the

postponement of academicactivities earlier scheduled forApril 30 was due to a directivefrom the Federal Ministry ofEducation to wait until after theminister’s inspection of thefacilities.

Aliyu-Bafeto listed thefacilities provided at theinstitution to include Library,water supply, laboratories,lecture rooms, sporting and otherrecreational facilities, students’hostels, students’ centre amongothers.

According to him, since theminister has inspected the projectand given them a pass mark,academic activities will sooncommence at the institution.

It would be recalled that 318pioneer students of theuniversity were offeredadmission to study in twofaculties, while the universitywas recently given N1.5 billionby the Federal Government forthe facilities.

Gombe federal universitytakes off soon, says registrar

Jigawa bans use ofmobile phones in schoolsJigawa state Ministry of

Education has banned theuse of mobile phones by

students in the secondary schoolsacross the state.

Prof. Haruna Wakili, the stateCommissioner for Education,announced this at a meeting withPrincipals and Zonal Directors ofEducation at the GovernmentUnity Secondary School, Ringim.

The commissioner alsoannounced a ban on the use of

vernacular during school hours,charging principals to ensurecompliance with the ban by theirstudents at all time.

He said that any student foundusing mobile phone or speakingthe mother-tongue should besanctioned by the schoolauthority, pointing out that theintroduction of French languageand entrepreneurship subjectshad also posed challenges to theeducation sector.

Earlier in an address ofwelcome, the PermanentSecretary in the ministry,Malam Abdullahi Hudu,expressed satisfaction with theturnout of principals at themeeting.

In his remarks, the Chairmanof the state chapter of All NigeriaPrincipals of Secondary SchoolsConference, Malam HussainiAbdullahi, commended theministry for the decisions.

L-R:Minister ofState forFCT, ChiefJumokeAkinjide,andMinister ofEducation,ProfessorRuqayyatuAhmedRufa'i,during theirmeetingwithPresidentGoodluckJonathan onthe state ofeducation,at the StateHouse,recently inAbuja.Photo:Joe Oroye

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi withAgency report

The Sokoto StateGovernment has set up afive-man committee to

authenticate the certificatesissued by the state Polytechnicand the Shehu Shagari Collegeof Education, Sokoto.

A statement signed by thegovernor’s Special Adviser onHigher Education, Prof.Gajam Ardo, said that thecommittee comprised theDeputy Director of HigherEducation, Alhaji UsmanDogon-Daji as Chairman andAlhaji Abubakar Mainiyo,Assistant Director of HigherEducation, as its Secretary.

According to thestatement, the committee is tocollate and verify complaintsregarding the genuineness ofthe certificates issued by theaffected institutions.

These certificates includedthe ND, HND, PolytechnicDiploma, NCE and Degrees.

The release stated thatcomplaints must be sincerewhile the complainants mustidentify themselves in full.

It said that all submissionsshould be verified tocheckmate admissionracketeering in theinstitutions. (NAN)

Sokoto moves to authenticateinstitutions’ certificates

Gov. EmmanuelUduaghan of Delta statehas stated that the state

government has set aside N1billion for the payment ofprimary school teachers’minimum wage arrears.

Uduaghan, while addressingworkers at the May Daycelebration ground in Asaba,explained that though it was theresponsibility of the LocalGovernment Councils (LGCs) topay the minimum wage, thestate had taken up the burden.

He said that presently, therevenue allocated to the localgovernment was barely enoughfor it to pay its workers.

“It is for this reason that allthe governors are asking theFederal Government to reviewthe allocation formula andrelease more money to the LGAs.

“We have arrears of theminimum wage to pay to theteachers and we have set asideN1 billion to start payment withthose that have been verified.”

Uduaghan also said that issues

of contributory pension funds,differences in the minimum wageand tax administration wouldsoon be resolved, adding thatwhatever the difference would bepaid back.

Earlier, the state NLC andTUC Chairmen, WilliamsAkporeha and Sam Dietakerespectively, commended thegovernor for being labour-friendly, urging him to do more.

They also appealed againsthanding over of more schools tothe missionaries and called forprompt payment of promotionarrears for teachers and workersin general.

Delta to pay teachersminimum wage arrears

After six weeks of closure dueto the rampage thatfollowed the sudden death

of two students from theuniversity who fell into well


Adelabu, of not being fair tostudents of the Faculty ofEngineering, arguing that thestudents should not bear theconsequences of theaccreditation problem.

The student, therefore, urgedthe university management toexpedite action toward ensuringthat more lecturers wererecruited to teach in the twodepartments to avoid furtherproblems in the university.

Reacting to the situation, the

Information Officer of theuniversity, Mr Waziri Garba,blamed the protest on theleakage of the accreditationpanel report whichrecommended that thedepartments be merged.

He appealed to the studentsto be calm, adding that theuniversity management hadnot deliberated on the report.

Garba said the universitymanagement was fullycommitted to the interests of the

UniAbuja students protestmerger of departments

students and would protect it atall times.

He assured them that the sixmonths period given to the ViceChancellor for the accreditationof the faculties would not beexceeded.

Meanwhile, some studentswere injured at the mini campusof the university, following clashbetween the protesting studentsand the policemen deployed tobeef up security at the campusgate.

The Secretary General of theAssociation of Senior CivilServants of Nigeria

(ASCSN), Mr Solomon Onaghinon,has called on the FederalGovernment to employ qualifiedteachers into the 104 UnityColleges across the country.

Onaghinon who told newsmenin Lagos that the development wasworrisome and needed urgentattention, also said that there wasan urgent need for thegovernment to quickly interveneby recruiting fresh graduates to fillthe gap created by the ageing andretiring teachers.

He however, identifiedcorruption as a major challengeconfronting the colleges, addingthat it had contributed to the slowprogress recorded in them.

“The endemic corruption thathad eaten deep into the fabrics ofthe nation has also crept into theseinstitutions.

“I remember there was a timean internal enquiry was set up tolook into the sudden disappearanceof about N1.5 billion meant for theupgrading of these schools, whichnever got to its destination“, hesaid.

He pleaded with thegovernment to show more interestin the administration of the collegesin order to ensure transparencyand accountability.

“I want to commend the effortsof the current Minister ofEducation, Prof. Rukayyatu Rufai,in ensuring that the schools areback to their old glorious days.

“My appeal is that she shoulddo more by recruiting freshgraduates to teach core subjects inthese schools.

“It is no longer hidden thatmajority of these colleges are facingdearth of qualified teachers invarious subjects and this does notspeak well for our children who areleaders of tomorrow“, he said.

Onaghinon decried a situationwhereby Parents TeachersAssociations (PTAs) of the collegesnow resorted to hiring and payingteachers to complement theexisting ones.

“But at the same time we havealso found out that even theseteachers recruited by the PTAs aregrossly underpaid and as a result,they might really not bemotivated“, Onaghinon said.

FG tasked onquality teachersfor Unity Colleges

The Kebbi State Chapter ofthe Academic Staff Unionof Secondary Schools

(ASUSS) has alerted the StateGovernment on the drasticdecline in students’performances in examinationsin the state, saying it isattributable to the shortage ofteachers and the neglect of thefinancial plights of teachers.

The state’s Chairman of theassociation, Mr Ibrahim Garba,told newsmen in Birnin Kebbithat population explosion insecondary schools had affectedstandard.

“The student-teacher ratio isabsolutely high and moreteachers and schools are requiredto remedy the situation,” hestated, lamenting that the 27per cent and 2.5 per centinducement and the TeachersSalary Scale (TSS) for

professional and non professionalteachers had not beenimplemented.

“Dialogue on payment of 30per cent motivationalallowances had collapsed andteachers have been demoralisedover the decision of governmentto pay N5,000 flat ratemotivational allowance,irrespective of the grade leveland experience of teachers.

“And we are not happy thatour salaries had been reduced to57 per cent.”

Garba said thatimprovement of welfare,deployment, good teachingenvironment and reduction ofthe high student-teacher ratiowould improve students’performances in examinations.

Meanwhile, in reaction to thisdevelopment, the Kebbi stategovernment has expressed itsdetermination to adopt freshmeasures to improve students’performance in external

Almajiri school pupils in classroom

ASUSS raises alarm over massfailure by Kebbi students

examinations.The state’s Commissioner for

Education, Alhaji AbdullahiKamba, made the promise at ameeting with directors,supervisors and inspectors ofschools in Birnin Kebbi.

He said that teaching andlearning facilities, as well asinfrastructures would beprovided in schools, assuringthat classrooms would bedecongested to bring them in linewith global standard of student -teacher ratio, adding thataccommodation for teacherswould be improved.

He said that facilities werebeing provided to aid students’performance in externalexaminations because of theincrease in enrolment.

The commissioner said thatefforts would be made to ensurethat supervisors and inspectorsof schools were regular in theiractivities to improve teachingand learning.

The Jigawa Government hasearmarked N869. 8 millionto renovate 206 schools

damaged by rainstorm in thestate.

The Commissioner forInformation, Youths and Sports,Alhaji Babandi Ibrahim, madethe announcement whileaddressing newsmen after thestate’s Executive Council meetingon Wednesday in Dutse.

Ibrahim explained that thefund for the rehabilitation of theschools was sourced from the 2011first and second quarters of thejoint State Universal BasicEducation Board (SUBEB) andUBE counter fund.

Jigawa earmarksN870m to renovate206 schools

Academic activities wereparalysed at theUniversity of Abuja

(UniAbuja), following students’protest over alleged plan tomerge two departments in theFaculty of Engineering,including the departments ofCivil and ElectricalEngineering.

Our reporter who visited theinstitution reports thatmovement in and out of thecampuses was restricted, as theprotesting students had lockedthe gates.

Security was beefed up in thetwo campuses, with hundreds ofarmed policemen deployed toman the gates at the mini andpermanent sites of theuniversity.

Students were seen in groupstrekking out of the campuses, asthe movement of motorcycleoperators within the campuswas also restricted.

Some of the students faultedthe move by the universitymanagement to merge theDepartments of ElectricalEngineering with that of CivilEngineering on grounds of highcost of accreditation.

They accused the ViceChancellor, Prof. James

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi withAgency report

The Senior Staff Associationof Nigerian Universities(SSANU), Western Zone,

has stated that it would not relentin its demand for theimplementation of the 2009agreement with the FederalGovernment.The union statedthis in Ibadan at its third weeklyrally held to press home itsdemand on the 2009 agreement.

The union also requested thepayment of backlog of itsallowances and approval of 65-year-retirement-age withabrogation of 35 years period.

The National Vice President(West) of SSANU, Mr AlfredJimoh, told news men that theassociation had given anultimatum to the FederalGovernment on the 2009agreement.

"We are conscious of the factthat strike and violence are notthe best alternatives to pressinghome demands.

"This rally is about the non-compliance of our 2009 FGN/SSANU agreement. Specifically,we are talking about an aspect ofthe agreement that is creatingtension among our members.

“This has to do with the non-implementation of earlieragreement, among which isresponsibility allowance, call/shift duty, overtime work andtour allowances, field trip,’’ hesaid.

UI SSANUcontinuesprotest over2009 agreement


It seems fatty and sugarysnacks trigger the samepleasure centres in the brain

as drugs which could explain whymany people just can’t stopthemselves bingeing on the bitsand pieces. It could also lie behindthe obesity epidemic.

It is not just unhealthy foodthat has a significant effect onhealth and behaviour.

Your brain weighs just 3lbs orso, a fraction of overall bodyweight but it gobbles up about 20per cent of your daily calorieintake. A brain-healthy diet isessential for keeping yourmemory and intellect sharp andyour mood buoyant.

Here, we look at the latestthinking on nutrition and thebrain and the foods that help aswell as those that hinder.

Food that boostconcentration

Good powers of concentrationdepend on keeping the messagesflowing freely between braincells. These cells need oxygen tofire up and send a message andthey get it from blood sugar.

Simply ensuring anadequate and steady calorieintake throughout the day istherefore the first step to keepingfocused and alert. It is notenough; however, for the signalsto be generated, they also haveto be sent from one cell toanother.

This is done by nerve fibres.Just like electric wires, thesefibres have to be insulated so themessages flow. In order to buildthese sheaths, the brain needs afatty substance called myelin.

Omega-3 oils (found mainlyin oily fish, but also in walnuts,pumpkin and flax seeds) helpbuild and maintain myelin. Thismay be why fish oil supplementsseem to boost children’s mentalperformance, although studiesshowing this are controversial.

Top tip: Eating regularlythree meals a day helps you toconcentrate also supplementingit with snack on walnuts andseeds.

Foods that lift your moodOur feelings, like all mental

activities, involve a franticexchange of electrical messagesbetween the brain cells.

The information is carriedbetween the cells by chemicalscalled neurotransmitters andthese play a key role in yourmood.

One of the keyneurotransmitters is dopamine,the ‘ feel good’ messenger. Risinglevels of dopamine give youenthusiasm, drive and pleasure.Falling levels are liked to a senseof emptiness, sadness, irritationand boredom.

Sugary and fatty foods causea surge of dopamine. However, aquick dopamine high isinvariably followed by an equallysharp drop, so to keep buoyant allday you are better off eating slowrelease, protein-rich foods.

Another way of ensuring asteady production of dopamineand a continued good mood is tosupply your brain with

precursors. These are themolecules which it uses tomanufacture dopamine.

One important precursorcalled phenylalanine is found inbeets, soya beans, almonds, eggs,meat and grains.

But if you really need a quickmood-boost, chocolate isespecially effective at pumpingup dopamine. That’s because itcontains anandamide, a fatmolecule that resembles theactive substance found inmarijuana.

Another neurotransmitter,called serotonin, helps you feelserene and content, combatinganxiety. A carbohydrate snackwill raise your serotonin levelquickly, but it will also make yousleepy, so again, it is better to keepthe level steady.

To manufacture serotonin,the brain needs tryptophan, asubstance found mainly in eggsand meat the good news is thategg breakfast will supply yourbody with serotonin buildingblocks to last the day.

Caffeine makes you stayalert

Caffeinated coffee is a classicremedy for sleepiness, but thereis an art to using it properly. Itseffect is down to the way it bindsto certain cell receptors in thebrain.

These would normally soakup a substance that turns offelectrical activity, making youdrowsy. Caffeine effectivelyblocks this substance, therebyencouraging your brain cells tobe more active, giving you aburst of energy.

Too much caffeine however,produces nervousness because

Eating the right foods canimprove your memory

the pituitary gland at the base ofthe brain interprets this spurt ofactivity as warning of anemergency.

It then instructs the body toproduce the ‘fight or flight’hormone adrenalin. So whileyou’ll become more alertinitially, and your brain maywork better and faster, you mayalso feel anxious cancelling outyour ability to think clearly.

Carbohydrates can alsoprovide an energy hit becausethey create a surge of glucose.This in turn causes the body torelease the hormone insulinwhich makes you feel drowsy.

Vegetables help improveyour memory

Our ability to rememberthings depends on getting braincells to make new connections.

They do this best when theyare highly excited, that is whywe tend to remember eventswhich happen when we arefeeling emotionally orintellectually stimulated.

There is one key messenger inthe brain which keeps brain cellsexcited, it is acetylcholine.

In fact, drugs which mimicthe effect of this chemical havebeen found to boost memory inpeople with Alzheimer’s.

This key chemical is madefrom choline, which is found ineggs, liver and soya beans.

Vegetables such as cabbage,broccoli and cauliflower also seemto help memory. Researchersfound people who eat these dobetter than peers on memorytests.

TOP TIP: Eggs could make areal difference to your memory.Eat them regularly.

Last week, we noted that toprevent overuse ofantibiotics, there are some

recommended home-remediesyou can use for simple ailments.We looked at honey, salt, meattenderizer, ice cubes and oatmealuse for a variety of ailments. Findbelow more remedies you can trysafely at home:

Peppermint teaUsed for indigestion,

stomachache and headaches.The oil found in the

peppermint leaf and its stemscalms the muscles of the digestivetract, allowing gas to pass moreeasily and relieving indigestion.Steer clear of peppermint tea,though, if your pain is caused byreflux—you’ll know from theacidic, burning feeling in yourchest. (It can actually aggravatethis problem by relaxing the loweresophageal sphincter, which letsstomach acids flow back into theesophagus.)

Prepare a cup of peppermint-leaf tea and drink up.

GingerUsed for cold symptoms and

queasiness including motionsickness and morning sickness, aswell as to aid digestion.

Ginger calms the stomach andalleviates cold by increasingcirculation and perspiration.Several studies have shown thatit counteracts travel sickness andnausea.

Prepare a cup of ginger tea byboiling three to four slices of freshginger in a cup of water for about10minutes. To make the tea reallyyummy, add lemon and honey.Alternately, chew on fresh gingerto prevent nausea. To aiddigestion, make a tea with ginger,dried orange peels, cloves androsemary.

A Glass of WaterUsed to hiccups, cold

symptoms, detoxifying and, ofcourse, rehydration.

Drinking water or juice willprevent dehydration and keepyour throat moist. This alsorelieves cold symptoms. Youshould drink at least 8 to 10 eight-ounce glasses of water daily. Thisincludes all fluids- water, sportsdrinks, herbal teas, fruit drinks,or even chicken (or other) peppersoup. Additionally, water flushestoxins and waste from the bodyand transports nutrients to wherethey are needed.

For hiccups, get a small glassof water, hold your palms overyour ears in such a way that noair can get in or out, whiledrinking as much of the water asyou can without taking in airthrough their nose or mouth.

Baking SodaUsed to reduce acne (or

pimples), whiten teeth and

Other home remedieseven doctors use

relieve itching.Baking soda dries up the oil on

the skin, speeding the healing ofexisting blemishes andminimizing the occurrence offuture acne break outs. Also,because of its alkaline nature,baking soda dissolved in water,penetrates tooth enamel, releasesfree radicals that help scrape offyellow or brown stains on theteeth. It also lightens andbrightens teeth by removingplaque, prevents tooth decay andfreshens the breath. Baking soda,also, relieves all kinds of itching –rashes, chicken pox, heat rash,nettle stings, and even vaginal oranal itching.

Baking soda works on skineither added to bathwater or as apaste rubbed on the skin Thiswater-baking soda paste can alsobe used to brush the teeth forwhitening effects. To vary theeffects, add salt or toothpaste, andfor a very strong whitening effect,use with hydrogen peroxide tobrush your teeth. HOWEVER,baking soda can damage toothenamel if used too frequently.Whiten your teeth with bakingsoda for only a couple of times in amonth, or a maximum of once aweek.

AcupressureUsed for nausea and pain relief.Below your wrist is a point you

can press to relieve nausea. The‘how’ is not very clear but up tosix studies have shown that itworks. On the inside of your wrist,find the groove between the twolarge tendons that run from thebase of the palm to the elbow.About two inches below the wrist,press down hard with a thumb orfinger for a minute or two untilthe spot feels somewhat achy.Mild queasiness can be relievedimmediately. More intensenausea may take up to 20minutesof repeated pressing.

Another acupressure point,this time for pain, is the fleshbetween the thumb andforefinger. Find a spot about aninch into that triangle wherethere is some muscle and squeezeuntil it aches. Repeat 2-3 times orhold for a few minutes. This iseffective for relieving pain in thehead or neck. But it can relievealmost any pain by releasingendorphins, the body’s naturalpain-killers.

A Note of WarningAlthough many remedies are

effective, they CANNOT replaceyour doctor. If symptoms persistfor up to 3 days, you should seeyour doctor. This is especiallyimportant with children. Ifsymptoms persist in a child formore than a day, or the childseems to be getting worse, see adoctor immediately.

WWWWWellnessellnessellnessellnessellnesswith

Charity Omenka

[email protected]

Omega-3 oils (found mainly in oily fish, but also in walnuts, pumpkinand flax seeds) are good 'brain food'


NACA begins verification of Round 9HIV and AIDS projects nationwide

President, Nigerian Medical Association, Dr. Idris Omede, Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer,National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Ado Muhammad (centre) exchanginggreetings with Polio victims, during the walk against polio, yesterday, in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

The National Agency for theControl of AIDS (NACA)says it is carrying out

verification of all Round 9 HIVand AIDS projects to facilitateproper collection and analysis ofdata on the scourge nationwide.

Dr James Anenih, AssistantDirector, Research Unit,Strategic Knowledge and

Management Department in theagency disclosed this in aninterview with the Newsmen lastweek in Gwagwalada AreaCouncil FCT Abuja.

He said, “Nigeria is currentlyimplementing the consolidatedGlobal Fund Round 9, this projectis a verification project that is whyit’s appropriately termed`Facility Data Audit’, we are thePrincipal Recipient (PR) of globalfund.”

“We are doing a 100 per centverification of all the datasubmitted in the last two yearsthroughout the country and alsoto identify monitoring andvaluation issues in the facilities.“We tryTo ratify these issues,where we can ratify them, if weare not able to ratify out in thefield, we now refer back to thenational level and try to addressthese issues at the national

level.”He said such process would

help the country scale-up thePrevention from Mother to ChildTransmission (PMTCT).

Anenih said that the agencyhas been carrying outsensitisation and advocacyprogramme to create moreawareness on the availability ofPMTCT especially at thegrassroots.

He added that the agency isdoing more on communityinvolvement anddecentralisation of services.

He said data to be collectedwould cover a wide range ofareas, including patientmonitoring and evaluation toolsas well as the programmonitoring and managementtools.

Also the verification wouldidentify and correct the

Monitoring and Evaluation (Mand E) technical issues and alsomake recommendations for M&Esystemic issues identified at thesites.

The director said the teamwould collect data on keyoutcome and impact indicatorsfor cohort analysis as well as newPMTCT indicators for the periodunder review.

According to him, theexercise will also identify if thereare trained competent M and Erecord officers at the site and toverify that appropriate nationaltools and guidelines areavailable and being used at thesites.

According to reports, StMary’s Catholic HospitalGwagwalade and Kwali GeneralHospital in the FCT were amongthe Global Fund sites visited sofar. (NAN)

The Nigerian MedicalAssociation (NMA) hasadvised doctors in the

country to always indicate drugreaction on patient’s hospitalfolder or card.

The Chairman of the FCTchapter of the association, DrNicholas Baamlong gave theadvice in an interview with theNewsmen recently in Abuja.

The American College ofAllergy, Asthma andImmunology (ACAAI) describeddrug reaction as a problem causedby a drug that patient or doctordid not expect.

Any prescription or non-prescription drug can cause aproblem, reactions can occurbetween medications. Most drugscause trouble by working on thebody chemistry.

It stated that rarely,somebody’s immune system mayreact to a drug or to a chemicalthat the body created from thatdrug.

This type of reaction,according to ACAA is called ahypersensitivity reaction.Allergic drug reactions are onetype of hypersensitivity reaction.

Baamlong said it wasnecessary for medicalpractitioners to inquire from thepatient his or her drug reactionbefore prescription. “It is verynecessary that every practicingclinician should ask his patientbefore prescribing any drugswhether he reacts to any drugs atall.

“And once the patient admitsto reacting to a particular drug,you indicate it either on the folderor on the patient’s card such thatanywhere the patient goes to,such drug cannot be prescribedbut unfortunately most of us maynot really take our time to askabout drug reaction.”

He said the FederalGovernment had put in placestrategies to ensure that medicalpractitioners put such practices inperspective.

Baamlong added that suchprocedure formed part of theagenda of the association’scontinuous medical education toensure compliance bypractitioners. (NAN)

The Nigerian MedicalAssociation (NMA) hascalled on the Federal

Government to step up effortstowards the eradication of polioin the country, noting thatNigeria has no reason to livewith polio if other less endowedcountries could kick out thevirus from their shores.

The association’s President,Dr Idris Omede, stated this inan interview with theNewsmen recently on thesideline of a ‘Walk against Polio’organised by the association.

Members of associationstaged a ‘walk against polio’starting from the Eagle squarealong Shehu Shagari way toTranscorp Hilton and back tothe Eagle square in Abuja.

It was reported that about200 members of the association

took part in the walk.Omede, however, told

Newsmen that Nigeria’snumerous health problemscould only be effectivelytackled one at a time. “Polio hasbeen on the front burner for avery long time and it is sopainful that out of so manycountries of the world, Nigeriais one of the three countriesthat is polio endemic.

“This is not a good scorecardfor us, and so, if there isanything that can be done toget it out of the way it will nowgive us time to concentrate onother things.

“Every year we pick aparticular condition that isprevalent to talk about it andsee what we can do about it,”he advised.

Omede said that the

association’s focus on polio is intune with the prevailingrealities in the health sector.

He added that Nigeria is notinvolved in any war or struckby natural disaster and so is ina better situation to fullyeradicate polio.

The NMA’s president saidthat the walk was informed bythe need to draw the attentionof government and Nigeriansto join in the fight against polio.

According to him, it isworrisome for someone with asharp brain to be restrainedfrom achieving his goal as aresult of the effect of polio.

“If we can get polio out of ourway, which we know is possibleby looking at the countriesaround us, then, we canconcentrate on other things,”he explained. (NAN)

NMA advises FG to step up efforts against polio

NMA advisesdoctors toindicate drugreaction onpatient’smedical folder

Eating fish and other foodscontaining omega-3 fattyacids may lower the risk of

Alzheimer’s disease, new researchsuggests.

The oily compounds, whichcombat inflammation, appear tolower blood levels of a proteinlinked to Alzheimer’s, scientistshave found.

Researchers in the US studied1,219 people over the age of 65who were free of dementia.

Participants were askedquestions about their diet, andhad their blood tested for beta-amyloid.

The protein clumps togetherin the brains of people withAlzheimer’s and is one of the keyhallmarks of the disease.

Blood beta-amyloid levelswere found to lower with greaterconsumption of omega-3 fattyacid.

A daily intake of one gram ofomega-3 above the averageamount consumed by the studyparticipants was associated witha 20% to 30% reduction in beta-amyloid.

Levels of the protein in theblood are believed to reflect thosefound in the brain, indicating aprotective effect from consumingomega-3 rich foods.

Lead researcher Dr NikolaosScarmeas, from ColumbiaUniversity Medical Centre inNew York, said: ‘While it’s noteasy to measure the level of beta-amyloid deposits in the brain inthis type of study, it is relativelyeasy to measure the levels of beta-amyloid in the blood, which, to acertain degree, relates to the levelin the brain.

‘Determining through furtherresearch whether omega-3 fattyacids or other nutrients relate tospinal fluid or brain beta-amyloidlevels, or levels of other Alzheimer’sdisease-related proteins, canstrengthen our confidence onbeneficial effects of parts of our dietin preventing dementia.’

The scientists, whose findingsare reported in the journalNeurology, looked at 10 nutrientsincluding saturated fatty acids,omega-3 and omega-6 fattyacids, mono-unsaturated fattyacid, vitamins E, C, B12 and D,folate and beta-carotene.

Other nutrients besidesomega-3 fatty acids were notassociated with different bloodlevels of beta-amyloid.

The link between omega-3and blood beta-amyloidremained the same afteradjusting for a range of potentialinfluences, including possessionof a version of the APOE known toincrease Alzheimer’s risk.

Omega-3 fatty acids aremostly found in oily fish such assalmon, herring and mackerel.Lower amounts can also be foundin nuts, some vegetablesincluding Brussels sprouts, kaleand spinach, and vegetable oils.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

Eating fish mayreduce risk ofAlzheimer’s bylowering levels ofprotein linked tothe disease


Iran leader visits ‘anti-imperialist’ friendsIf past visits to the region are

anything to go by, IranianPresident Mahmoud

Ahmadinejad’s five-day tour ofLatin America will probably befull of bombastic rhetoric, butshort on concrete, new policydevelopments.

As tensions heat-up over Iran’snuclear programme, andsanctions choke economic growth,Ahmadinejad is visitingVenezuela, Cuba, Ecuador andNicaragua, countries that – in hiswords – “resist the oppression ofthe United States”.

The Latin America tour,which began on Sunday, comesagainst a backdrop of diplomaticsparring between the US and theIslamic Republic over newWestern sanctions and threatsfrom Tehran about stopping oiltraffic through the strategicallycrucial Strait of Hormuz.

“They [the US] accuse us ofbeing warmongers,” Venezuela’sPresident Hugo Chavez said onMonday, after a prolongedembrace with his Iraniancounterpart.

Ahmadinejad, heaping praiseon his host, said: ”Despite thosearrogant people who do not wishus to be together, we will uniteforever.”

The US State Departmentdescribed Iran’s mission to LatinAmerica as a “desperate” searchfor friends.

Populist diplomacySymbolism, rather than

concrete agreements, will be thethrust of Ahmadinejad’sdiplomacy, said Philip Giraldi, aformer CIA counter-terrorismspecialist who currently leads theCouncil for the National Interest,a Washington-based lobby group.

“It is a bid to create a basis ofpolitical support among nations inLatin America who are believedto be estranged from the US,”Giraldi told Al Jazeera. “I thinkthe tour is aimed at the domesticmarket in Iran. The sanctions arebecoming quite crippling;(legislative) elections are comingup (in March) and this is a push-back to show Iran does indeed havefriends.”

On the surface, the two leadersdo not have much in common:One leads the Islamic Republic ofIran and the other calls himself a“Christian socialist”. But Chavezand Ahmadinejad clearly havepersonal chemistry.

"I think there is a real affinitybetween the two leaders, whichdoesn't have so much to do withunderlying ideologies," saidAlexander Main, Latin Americaspecialist at the Centre forEconomic and Policy Research."Both have a strong populiststreak, a rejection of elites and a

Chavez says there is "no proof" that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons as he welcomes Ahmadinejad

ANALYSIS

“I think there is a real affinity betweenthe two leaders, which doesn't have

so much to do with underlyingideologies," said Alexander Main,

Latin America specialist at the Centrefor Economic and Policy Research

belief in connecting to the poor."Whether populist politics

translate into actual policies -particularly in Iran - is debatable,Main said.

Despite his recent bout ofcancer, Chavez is politicallystronger than his Iraniancounterpart, who is beholden to apowerful clerical establishmentand the country's SupremeLeader, Main told Al Jazeera.

Ahmadinejad, who has visitedLatin America more frequentlythan US President Barack Obama,is on his fifth trip to Venezuela.

Since taking office in 2005, theIranian leader has opened six newembassies in the region and someUS officials have raised concernsabout the Islamic Republic'sgrowing diplomatic footprint.

US fearsWikiLeaks cables from 2009

warned of Iranian plans to mineuranium for its nuclearprogramme in Venezuela.Manhattan's former attorneygeneral, Robert Morgenthau,fretted about "Iranian nuclear andlong-range missile threats, andcreeping Iranian influence in the

Western Hemisphere".Venezuelan banks have also

been used to circumventsanctions on Iran, and some USofficials allege that Hezbollahfighters - backed by Iran - havebeen setting up operations inVenezuela.

"I know the intelligencecommunity looked seriously atallegations that Iran was usingVenezuelan banks to laundermoney for terrorist activities andto buy uranium," said Giraldi, theCIA veteran. "It came up withlittle or no evidence."

While there is not muchevidence of nefarious dealings,Ahmadinejad and Chavezcertainly do enjoy criticisingUncle Sam with rhetoricalflourishes.

"Venezuela and Iran want tobe able to show they have abroader alliance to balanceagainst the US," Greg Weeks,professor of political science at theUniversity of North Carolina, toldAl Jazeera. "If Iran starts reallygetting punished by sanctions,Venezuela won't be able to save it.When push comes to shove, the

value for each country isrelatively small."

Just days beforeAhmadinejad's visit, the USexpelled Venezuela's consul-general to Miami, after a SpanishTV network broadcast adocumentary that allegedIranian, Venezuelan and Cubandiplomats had discussed cyber-attacks against the US.

Economic promises"Iran's track record has been

bad," said Gary Sick, a scholar atColumbia University's MiddleEast Institute who served on theUS National Security Council inthe 1970s and 1980s. "He(Ahmadinejad) arrives, makesnewspaper headlines, says 'We aregoing to build a port there and anindustrial plant here', and neverfollows through."

More than 100 developmentprojects have been announcedduring previous visits, but manyof them have not gotten off theground. Brazil, South America'sbiggest economy, is notablyabsent from Ahmadinejad's trip.

"Most of the countries thathave signed agreements with Iranhave very little to show for it," Sicktold Al Jazeera.

Pledges in 2007 and 2008 tobuild a $350m port in Nicaraguaand an oil refinery in Ecuador, forexample, have yet to materialise.

Yet, some developmentprojects have actually been builtdue to the "south- south"cooperation extolled by populistleaders.

"Iranian-designed tractors areall over the Venezuelancountryside and have been usedas part of internationalcooperation efforts, in Haiti for

example," Main said. The twocountries have also beencooperating to build low-incomehousing.

An Iranian-made oil tankerwith the capacity to carry 113,00tonnes, the first of its kind to bebuilt in the Middle East, will bedelivered to Venezuela inSeptember, Iran's ISNA newsagency reported recently.

Iran may not be famous for itsmanufacturing prowess, but Iranand Venezuela have co-operatedfor decades through OPEC, theOrganisation for PetroleumExporting Countries. Both areseen as hawks favouring highprices - and this relationship goesback two decades, beforeAhmadinejad or Chavez arrivedonto the political scene.

Oil marketsIran is the world's fifth-biggest

oil producer, pumping 4.2mbarrels per day. Venezuela isnumber 13 with 2.4m barrels perday, according to CIA figures.

"Venezuela and Iran can callfor higher prices [within OPEC],but they can't get the Saudis toplay along," Mark Katz, a professorof government at George MasonUniversity who studies the MiddleEast and Latin America, told AlJazeera.

During one of Ahmadinejad'sprevious visits to South America,Etemaad-e Melli, a reform-minded newspaper in Iran, calledthe Venezuelan, Ecuadorean andNicaraguan presidents, "left-wingfriends, good for coffee-shopdiscussions but not for setting oursecurity, political and economicpriorities".

From a security perspective,the stakes have only increased."Iran sees these sanctions beingimposed by the US congress as theequivalent to a military blockage,"Sick said.

Oil sales account for about 80per cent of Iranian export revenueand 50 per cent of thegovernment's budget. Sanctionstargeting the industry amount toan "existential threat" for Tehran,Sick said.

Military confrontation in theStrait of Hormuz wouldinvariably rattle energy markets,sending prices rising rapidly.Ironically, this instability couldbenefit Venezuela by increasingoil revenue.

"The potential of oil productionbeing disrupted has more of aneffect on oil prices than anythingIran is doing at OPEC," ProfessorWeeks said. "Iran right now canget a boost by ratcheting uptensions with the US. "

In this regard, co-operationbetween Venezuela and Iranmight mean something moresubstantial than shakycommercial agreements, stern-looking presidential honourguards or bear hugs between self-proclaimed anti-imperialists.


Egyptian military detains300 protesters after unrest

including a number of journalists,will be held for 15 days whilethey're investigated for their partin the clashes.

But the authorities havemoved to defuse the situation alittle by saying they are releasingall the women who were arrested;activists say less than 20 womenhad been detained.

The head of the ruling militarycouncil, Field Marshal MohamedTantawi, on Saturday attendedthe public funeral in Cairo of thesoldier killed in the unrest.

Friday's arrests came afterprotesters tried to break throughan army roadblock to reach the

ministry, in Cairo's Abbassiyadistrict, resulting in clashes withthe army which lasted severalhours.

The area is now reported to becalm after a curfew was imposedon Friday night. Saturday'scurfew comes into force at 23:00local time (21:00 GMT) andending at 06:00 local time(04:00 GMT) on Sunday.

The protesters had beenangry at the generals' failure toprotect a demonstration onWednesday which came underattack from armed men,resulting in the deaths of at least20 people.

Field Marshal Tantawi attended the funeral in Cairo of the soldier killed in Friday's unrest

Rival Sudansagree to AUroadmap

Sudan has endorsed theAfrican Union's (AU)roadmap to avert an all-out

war with South Sudan, though itinsisted on retaining the right to self-defence.

Earlier on Thursday, SouthSudan said it had accepted the AU'sseven-point roadmap that called fora cessation of hostilities.

Based on the seven-pointroadmap, the two countries haveuntil next Tuesday to restart stallednegotiations and three months toreach an agreement.

The AU is trying to get the twosides to again negotiate the countries'shared border, citizenship mattersand oil revenue sharing.

The UN Security Council onWednesday unanimously passed aresolution threatening Khartoumand Juba with sanctions if theyfailed to silence the guns and resumetalks within two weeks, endorsingthe AU's deadline of May 8.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministryissued a statement on Thursdayaccepting the AU plan as well as theUN resolution. But with its referenceto self-defense, the Sudanesestatement also implied possiblecontinued conflict.

The statement said Sudanwished the other side would fullycommit to stopping hostilities andwould withdraw its troops fromdisputed areas so that Sudan coulddo the same.

The foreign ministry also saidKhartoum was committed to a long-standing peace with the South andhoped Juba would cooperate withthe AU and Security Councildecisions.

The AU's plan also calls for Sudanand South Sudan to withdrawtroops from contested areas andresume talks with the aim ofresolving all outstanding disputes.

Neither can afford a protracted,full-blown conflict but distrust runsdeep between them, especially afterthe South gained independencefrom its northern neighbour lastJuly under a 2005 peace deal thatended two decades of civil war.

The breakaway left tens ofthousands of South Sudanesestranded as foreigners in Sudan.Sudan's government initially gavethem until April 8 to get the rightpapers or leave.

The Sudanese governmentissued a May 5 departure deadlinefor up to 12,000 South Sudanesestuck in the port of Kosti, hoping toleave by Nile barge. But Khartoumthen halted river traffic because itsaid South Sudan was using it totransport weapons to rebels.

The May 5 deadline promptedan outcry from the United Nationsand the International Organisationfor Migration. The government saidlate on Wednesday the SouthSudanese now had until May 20 toleave.

About 300 people are stillbeing detained afterdeadly clashes between

protesters and security forces inthe Egyptian capital, Cairo,military sources said.

Violence outside the defenceministry on Friday left one soldierdead and hundreds wounded.

A curfew will be in force in thearea around the ministry onSaturday night for the secondnight in a row.

The violence comes less thanthree weeks before presidentialpolls.

Military prosecutors say thatthe 300 people detained,

Tuareg rebels and Islamistfighters took control ofTimbuktu, a UN heritage site,after a military coup in March.

Unesco said the town'scapture could endanger its"outstanding architecturalwonders" .

Residents said armed menfrom the Islamist group Ansar

Dine threatened locals going toworship at the grave of SidiMahmoud Ben Amar.

"What you are doing isharam! (forbidden). Seek helpfrom God directly rather thanthe dead," one of the gunmensaid, according to a residentquoted by the Reuters newsagency.

A local politician, El HadjBaba Haidara, told Reutersabout the atttack:

"They attacked the grave,broke doors, windows andwooden gates that protect it.They brought it outside andburn it," he said. "This tomb issacred, it is too difficult to bear."

A local official said thefighters had threatened todestroy other saints' tombs,according to the AFP newsagency.

Strict Islamists regard shinesas idolatrous, while someMuslims, especially Sufis,regard them as an accepted partof Muslim worship.

On its website, Unesco, theUN's cultural agency, saysTimbuktu is the location of three

great mosques dating back to the14th century, as well 16cemeteries and mausoleums.

Founded in the 12th Century,Timbuktu became wealthy atthe nexus of important tradingroutes for salt and gold, reachingits apogee in the 15th and 16thcenturies.

It became a major intellectualand religious centre, and stillhouses tens of thousands ofmanuscripts, some dating backcenturies.

Rebels demandingindependence for a Tuareghomeland and fighters of AnsarDine, which is said to be linked toal-Qaeda, took advantage of thechaos that followed the Marchcoup to overrun the northernhalf of Mali.

The coup leaders in Bamakosaid they had toppled PresidentAmadou Toumani Toure becausehe failed to give sufficientsupport to troops battling Tuaregrebels in the north.

Under internationalpressure, they later handed backpower to a civilian government,but remain influential.

Mali Islamist militants ‘destroy’ Timbuktu saint's tomb

Islamist fighters said to belinked to al-Qaeda havedestroyed the tomb of a local

Muslim saint in the Malian townof Timbuktu, officials and localssay.

The gunmen attacked theshrine and set it on fire, sayingit was contrary to Islam,according to the official.

Timbuktu is the site of three great medieval mosques, Unesco says

Nevertheless, manyEgyptians will applaud the toughway these clashes have beenhandled - they are longing, aboveall, simply for a return to law andorder, and to normality.

One lawyer, Ragia Omran, toldthe Associated Press news agencythat the roundup was one of thelargest mass arrests to take placeunder the ruling military council,which took over after HosniMubarak was toppled as presidentlast year.

Since then, Egypt has seenregular protests against thecouncil, who many say has failedto bring about democratic reform.


Chaotic start to opening of 9/11 trialKuwait-born Pakistani who wascaptured in 2003 andtransferred to Guantanamo in2006, four other men face trialover their alleged roles in the2001 attacks.

They are Waleed bin Attash,Ramzi Binalshibh, Ali Abd al-AzizAli and Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi. All five men could facethe death penalty if convicted.

It was not until more thanseven hours into the disruptedand prolonged hearing thatprosecutors even began readingthe charges against the men. It tookprosecutors two-and-a-half hours toread the portion of the charge-sheetdescribing the hijackings, althoughthey did not read the appendixlisting the names of all 2,976 peoplewho were killed.

Another hearing has been setfor June 12.

The judge, Army Colonel JamesPohl, said it would be at least a yearbefore the trial started.

As the arraignment got under

way, the defendants removed theirearphones and refused to listen to atranslation of the judge's questions.

Mohammed declined to answerthe judge's questions about whetherhe was satisfied with his US militaryand civilian lawyers, while lawyersfor all defendants complained thatthe prisoners were prevented fromwearing the civilian clothes of theirchoice

At one point, two of the mengot up and prayed alongside theirdefence tables. Binalshibh thenstood up and shouted at the judge:"You are going to kill us and saythat we are committing suicide."

"There were a lot of disruptionsand objections and attempts todiscuss motions throughout themorning session, which lastedabout three-and-a-half hours,"said Al Jazeera's Rosiland Jordan,reporting from Guantanamo.

"Defence lawyers were verykeen to make it clear early on thatthey were not just going to followprocedure without questioningthe process in the bargain."

The detainees were largelyunresponsive while the chargesagainst them were being read out,

Chaotic start to hearing of 9/11 suspects at Guantanamo Bay

France votes inpresidential runoff election

French voters are going tothe polls in a presidentialrunoff that could see Socialist

challenger Francois Hollande unseatincumbent Conservative NicolasSarkozy .

The country's 46 million votersare voting at polling stationsyesterday, after a bruisingcampaign that has seen both menlabel the other as a liar.

The first polls opened in overseasterritories on Saturday and the lastpolls were to close in Franceyesterday.

Political speeches and newopinion polls have been banned sincecampaigning officially ended onFriday night, with the last pollspublished before the deadlineshowing Hollande having a slightlead over the president.

Our corresponded in Hollande'sbase in the town of Tulle said thatthere seemed to be a sense ofcertainty there that Hollande wouldwin the election.

"They're pretty much - when youlook around and talk to people -convinced that he's set to be the nextpresident of France," said AndrewSimmons.

"There's that much optimism inthe socialist camp right now. It'smuch more unified."

Sarkozy has spent the last weekenergetically campaigning, in aneffort to woo over voters of theNational Front's Marine le Pen , afar-right nationalist who wasknocked out in the first round ofvoting but refused to endorse eithercandidate's campaign.

Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland,reporting from Paris, said voterturnout there has been slightly lowerthan the national average of justunder one-third, but that it wasexpected that more would show uptvote on such a decisive day.

"Certainly in his last campaignrallies, President Sarkozy was aspumped as ever, really, givingevery last drop of energy to thosecrowds of loyal supporters who turnout for those kind of events," said

sometimes listening, but at othertimes reading the Quran orspeaking to each other or theirlawyers.

Saturday's hearing is the firsttime the five have been in courtin nearly three-and-a-half years.US President Barack Obama puttheir previous tribunal on hold ina failed effort to move the case tocivilian court.

Mohammed has mocked thetribunal and said in previous courtappearances that he welcomedexecution.

"The military commission thatis trying Mohammed and his fourco-defendants is itself extremelycontroversial," our correspondentsaid.

"Military commissions havebeen used in US history, prior to this,but usually they involved peoplewho were actually soldiers fromanother country's military.

"These men were not acting onbehalf of any specific state or nation,so there has been a lot of criticismabout them being tried in thissetting."

Steven Kay, an internationalcriminal lawyer in London, told Al

Jazeera Mohammed had beensubjected to "waterboarding", orsimulated drowning, by USinterrogators more than 180 timesand that confessions extractedthrough torture would bedisregarded.

"Statements obtained bycoercion cannot be used asevidence. However, the laws donot say that evidence obtainedby coercion is inadmissible," hesaid.

"I'm afraid this wholebusiness since George Bush[Obama's predecessor]introduced the military trials hasgone out of control.

"If the Americans had gonedown the proper and orthodox pathwhen dealing with these suspectedterrorists, and provided a justicesystem that was coherent, rationaland based upon sound principles,they would not be in the mess thatthey are in now."

The trial is being broadcast onclosed-circuit TV at selectedlocations for families of September11 victims, survivors andemergency personnel whoresponded to the attack.

Five men accused ofplanning the September11, 2001 attacks on the

United States have refused to entera plea after appearing before amilitary court in GuantanamoBay.

The defendants, includingKhalid Sheikh Mohammed, who isaccused of masterminding theattacks, faced a disorderly 13-hourarraignment on Saturday underheavy security at the US base inCuba.

The five opted to plead neitherinnocent nor guilty, but ratherto defer their plea to a later date.

The accused face charges thatinclude terrorism and 2,976counts of murder for their allegedroles planning and aiding theattacks by hijackers aboard fourairliners which destroyed theWorld Trade Center in New Yorkand damaged the US defencedepartment headquarters at thePentagon, near Washington DC.

In addition to Mohammed, a

Rowland.With the gap between the

candidates the narrowest sincecampaigning began, Sarkozy hasvowed a surprise, while Hollandehas cautioned against assuming hewill be France's first Socialistpresident since Francois Mitterrandleft office in 1995.

Voter turnout in the first roundwas high, at around 80 per centaccording to official figures, and bothrun-off candidates have called oncitizens to make their votes count.

Hollande, who has billed himselfas a consensus builder, voted in hisprovincial political heartland Tullein central France, while Sarkozy wasvoted in Paris' 16th arrondissement.

"It's going to be a long day,"Hollande told reporters gathered towatch him vote. "It's up to the Frenchpeople to decide if it's going to be agood day."

Sarkozy declined to comment toassembled television crews.

If he loses, Sarkozy will becomethe first French president sinceValery Giscard d'Estaing in 1981 notto be re-elected for a second term.

France has a strict ban onpublishing result estimates until allpolls close, but foreign media websitesare expected to publish predictionsbefore then.

Those found to be breaking thereporting restrictions will face a fineof 75,000 euros ($98,153).

Hollande won the April 22 votewith 28.63 per cent of the votes toSarkozy's 27.18 per cent, and bothcandidates have been fighting for thevotes of those whose candidates failedto make the run-off.

Le Pen, who won almost 18 percent in the first round, has said shewill cast a blank ballot, and has calledon her supporters to do the same.

Jean-Luc Melenchon , the LeftFront's candidate, however,endorsed Hollande's candidacy andcalled on the 11 per cent of voterswho backed him to vote to unseatSarkozy. Francois Bayrou , thecentrist candidate, has also backedHollande.

Francois Hollande (R), Socialist Party candidate for the 2012 French presidential election, waves as heleaves with his companion Valerie Trierweiler after casting his ballot in the second round in Tulle, yesterday.


Clinton calls forBangladesh political calm

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) meets with Bangladesh'sPrime Mininister Sheikh Hasina

The US Secretary of State,Hillary Clinton, hascalled on Bangladesh's

political parties to end their mostrecent bout of discord, andpressured the county'sgovernment not to undermine theeffectiveness of micro-lenderGrameen Bank.

Bangladesh has beenparalysed by weeks of strikes andprotests, and at least five peoplehave been killed since Elias Ali, aprominent opposition leader,disappeared last month.

yesterday, Clinton said thatthe unrest had undermineddevelopment and was scaringaway foreign investors.

She appealed to Bangladeshisto respect the rule of law, andcalled for a governmentinvestigation into the case of themissing politician, as well asallegations of a brutal crackdownon dissent.

"There needs to be total rule oflaw, with no impunity," Clintontold a town hall meeting in Dhaka,the Bangladeshi capital.

Clinton said that she toldSheikh Hasina, the primeminister, and Khaleda Zia, theleader of the opposition, that theymust overcome years ofanimosity, particularly as thecountry prepares for elections in2014.

Aleppo blast:'kive killed' innew Syria unrest

A blast on the outskirts ofSyria's second city Aleppohas killed at least five people,

opposition activists said.The blast went off in a car wash

in the Tall al-Zarazeer district, theSyrian Observatory for HumansRights said. Activists say thebusiness was linked to pro-Assadmilitias.

At least four people were killedin the city on Thursday whensecurity forces raided a student hallof residence.

In Damascus, two blasts onSaturday caused damage but no-one was hurt.

It is not known whether thepeople hurt in the Aleppo explosionwere civilians or members of thesecurity forces, an Observatoryspokesman said.

An activist of the rebel FreeSyrian Army in Aleppo toldReuters news agency that thegroup carried out the attack on thecar wash, which it said was beingused by a pro-regime militia.

"We placed a bomb inside a car,"the activist Ali al-Halabi said,adding that he had seen sevendead bodies and several morewounded at the scene of the blast.

Earlier reports said theexplosion had targeted a passingbus.

One of the explosions inDamascus was caused by a bombplanted under a car in al-Thawrastreet, a key thoroughfare.

The blast damaged ninenearby vehicles and left a craterin the street. However, there wereno casualties either from that blastor another one in the capital.

Bomb attacks are now a regularoccurrence in Damascus andAleppo, which have otherwise beenspared the worst violence of theSyrian conflict.

Violence has continued in Syriadespite a ceasefire betweengovernment and the oppositionforces which forms part of a peaceplan mediated by the UN and ArabLeague envoy, Kofi Annan.

An advance party of UNmonitors is already in the countryto supervise the truce, and theUN's peacekeeping chief, HerveLadsous, has said he hopes 300observers will be on the ground bythe end of May.

While the violence not asintense as it was before the plancame into effect, there seems littlehope the full-strength monitoringteam can bring about sufficientcalm for any kind of political talksto start, source said.

"I told them I wish you couldfigure out ways to work together,you need to work together to get anelection mechanism in place," shesaid.

"What you need is nationalunity," she said. "The people haveto demand that."

Clinton also warned thegovernment not to interfere in thefunctioning of pioneering micro-lender Grameen Bank, saying thatit was a key driver of economicgrowth in the South Asian country.

Sje met with Grameen's oustedfounder - Nobel Prize-winningeconomics professor MohammadYunus - and later voiced strongsupport for the organisation, whichhas fallen out of favour withBangladesh's ruling party.

"I have followed the dispute overGrameen Bank from Washingtonand I can only hope that nothing isdone that in any way underminesthe success of what Grameen Bankhas accomplished," Clinton told theaudience at the public question-and-answer session.

"I highly respect MohammadYunus and I highly respect the workthat he has done and I am hoping tosee it continue without being inanyway undermined or affected byany government action. Thatwould be unfortunate."

Clinton is the first senior USofficial to visit Bangladesh since

2004, and has used the trip tobolster Grameen and Yunushimself, who was sacked as thebank's chief last year after thegovernment declared that at 71years of age, he was beyond theofficial retirement limit.

Yunus' supporters say that hewas removed as part of a politicalvendetta by Hasina'sgovernment's against a potentialfuture challenger to her rule.

The government has not yetnamed a successor as head of the

bank.Around 10 million

Bangladeshis, mostly poorwomen, have been benefited bysmall credit offered by theGrameen. The beneficiaries saythe money immensely helpedthem fight - and largely come outof - poverty.

Clinton is a personal friend ofYunus and met with him forabout 45 minutes at the USambassador's residence beforethe town hall meeting.

Japan shuts down last nuclear reactorHundreds of Japanese

demonstrators havebeen marching to celebrate

the last of the country's 54 nuclearreactors being switched off.

The crowd gathered at a Tokyopark on Saturday said that theywere not concerned aboutgovernment warnings that thereactor shutdowns will lead toelectricity shortages.

One of three reactors at theTomari nuclear plant, on thenorthern island of Hokkaido, hasgone offline for routine maintenancechecks, meaning that for the firsttime in decades there is not a singleactive nuclear reactor in the

country.After the earthquake and tsunami

on March 11 last year set off meltdownsat reactors at the Fukushima Daiichiplant, no reactors that have beenstopped for maintenance have goneback online.

The government requires thatnew tests on withstandingearthquakes and tsunamis be carriedout on all reactors.

It also requires that local residents'approval be sought before reactors arerestarted.

The Hokkaido Electric Powercompany, which runs the Tomariplant, said that control rods would beinserted to halt the chain reaction in

the reactor on Saturday, and thata "cold shutdown" would occur onMonday.

It is the first time since the1970s that the resource-poorcountry has been without anyform nuclear power. Until themeltdowns at Fukushima, Japanwas generating a third of itselectricity at nuclear power plants.

Last month, Kansai ElectricPower, which supplies mid-westernJapan, including the commercialhubs of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe, saida hot summer could see supply fallnearly 20 per cent short of demandafter the shutdowns.

Kyushu Electric Power,

covering an area further west, aswell as Hokkaido Electric Power,also said they will struggle as airconditioning gets cranked up inJapan's sweltering summer.

The country's nuclear disasterforced tens of thousands of peoplefrom their homes in an area aroundthe Fukushima plant - some ofwhom may never be allowed toreturn.

"A new Japan with no nuclearpower has begun," said GyoshuOtsu, a 56-year-old monk whojoined a Tokyo protest againstnuclear power held in front of theindustry ministry, whichsupervises the nation's powerutilities.

"Generating nuclear power islike a criminal act as a lot of peopleare still suffering," said Otsuwearing white Buddhist clothes. "Ifwe allow the situation as it is now,another accident will occur."

South Korean bar blaze kills nine

Nine people were killedand a further 25 injuredafter a fire swept

through a karaoke club inSouth Korea's southeasternport city of Busan, Seoulnational broadcaster YTNreported.

The blaze broke out in oneof the 28 rooms at the karaokelounge on the third floor of asix-storey building onSaturday night.

The local Yonhap News

Agency quoted police officials assaying that most of the victimsdied from inhaling toxic gasesand smoke, which made itdifficult for the people to find theexits. The victims included threeSri Lankan men, reported to bemigrant workers.

Around 20 fire engines and100 firefighters were mobilisedto battle the fire, Yonhap Newsadded.

The cause of the fire is underinvestigation.Depth coverage one year after triple disaster

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, MAY 1, 2012 PAGE 35

Cyclist invents amazing new bikelock alternative - his loyal dog Li Li

‘Mystery’ blue sheep appear outside Germany’s Schwerin Castle

This unusual flock of sheepare doing their best tostand out from the crowd

after being spotted in Germanypainted head-to-toe in darkblue paint.

It's in a sheep's DNA to followthe crowd but it appears this

This canine might not looklike a typical guard dogbut his diligent work

looking after his owner's bikewhenever he goes off to runsome errands has seen himbecome a minor celebrity inChina.

LI Li the golden retriever,known locally as the BikeHugging Dog, is regularlyspotted by passers-by on the sideof the road, sitting patientlywith the pedal-driven vehicleto prevent it from being stolen.

There's no need for theowner of this modest piece oftransportation to lock up hisbike when he hits the shops -knowing he can rely on hisloyal best friend to stay behindand keep watch.

Sitting upright on his hindlegs, the pooch can be seengripping onto the bike using hisfront legs before its ownerreturns, even happily posingfor photographs while waiting.

The retriever then leaps onto the back of the bicycle as hisowner prepares to cycle away,before barking loudly to let himknow he's sitting comfortablyon the back.

Over 80,000 users havewatched the funny clip onvideo-sharing website YouTubein less than two days, where ithas racked up hundreds of likes.

One user said: 'What a cooldog! He really deserves his ownseat'

While another mocked therecent internet craze'breading', saying: 'Only dogscan do this. Cats are too busyputting bread on their heads.'

Li Li guards the bike

Li Li hitches a ride on the back of the bike The duo cycle away (Pictures: YouTube/ ALCREW)

collection of colourfulcharacters, seen here outsideSchwerin Castle, want to breakthe mould.

While the true legend of theGolden Fleece has beenshrouded in mystery forthousands of years, this tale

may have a slightly moresimpler explanation.

The herd of blue plasticsheep were created by Germanartists Rainer Bonk andBertamaria Reetz as part of amobile art installation.

Artificial blue sheep have

been popping up in towns,cities and field across theworld to promote 'toleranceand solidarity'.

Every sheep isindistinguishable from thenext and, according to theartists, help transcend thepeaceful message that 'all are

equal - everyone is important'.The project has been

touring the globe for over threeyears, stopping off in morethan 50 cities along the way.

A blue sheep is left behindin each city they visit whereit remains as a peaceambassador.

Feeling blue? A flock of blue sheep They aim to transport the peaceful message that everyone is equal (Pictures: AFP)


Why eating carbohydrates canhelp you to shed the poundsa week.

“It’s not the 7lb a week somediets promise,” she says. “But ifyou stick to the plan, it will stayoff. It can also be tailored to suityour lifestyle.

“If you normally go for aChinese on a Friday night, makethat your high-carb day. But ifyou normally cook a Sundayroast, make the end of the weekyour high-carb day. You have tomake it work for you.”

The good news is the dietshouldn’t only help you shedpounds. Cutting out sugar willreduce your risk of life-threatening diseases includingdiabetes and heart disease, you’llhave more energy and a betternight’s sleep.

Here, Danni explainsexclusively to Sun Health how it allworks.

Danni’s top tipsCUT OUT SUGAR: Banish

anything with added sugar fromyour kitchen. Sugar encouragesthe body to store fat.

STAY HYDRATED: Drinkat least eight glasses of water aday to enable your body tometabolise fats effectively. It’s notuncommon to think you’rehungry when actually it’s thirstyour body is suffering from, sodrink a glass of water before eachmeal to avoid over-eating.

CUT OUT SALT: Not onlydoes excess salt contribute to highblood pressure and heartproblems, it also contributes tofluid retention.

GO EASY ON BOOZE: Thelower your alcohol intake, theeasier it will be to lose weight.Alcohol contains seven caloriesper gram and these calories willbe burned first by your body. Socalories from fat and glucose willnot be used until the energy fromalcohol has been burned off. Butyou don’t have to cut it outaltogether. There are some healthbenefits from drinking red wine.

WATCH TEA ANDCOFFEE: Fluids often getoverlooked where diets areconcerned. But a 250ml servingof skimmed milk contains 11g ofnet carbs and these all add upwhen you’re drinking tea andcoffee throughout the day.

What takeaway?CHINESE: Plain spare ribs,

chicken satay or clear chickensoup are all good choices forstarters. For the main course, thebest options are beef, chicken orfish with a soy or black bean sauceand steamed veg. Lychees fordessert. NO white rice or noodles.

INDIAN: Chicken tikkakebab, chicken tikka masala,jalfrezi, curried vegetables.

Banned listBANISH foods with added

sugar, including sweets, icecream and fizzy drinks. Also bancrisps, white pasta, white bread,pizza, sugary breakfast cereals,foods high in saturated fattyacids such as butter, cream and

Cutting out carbohydrateswhen you’re trying to slimis bad for the brain.

Scientists found that peoplewho cut them out completely doworse in mental tests than thoseallowed some pasta, bread andpotatoes.

Telly health and fitness expertDanni Levy — who worked onSky’s Bigger Than Britney — saysthis is because they are anessential source of energy and theonly form of fuel used by thebrain.

She has developed a neweating plan called the PyramidDiet which promises to help youlose pounds every week and it’salready a hit with celebs.

Imogen Thomas tried the dietat one of Danni’s bootcamps inMarbella and Daybreak’s AnnaWilliamson lost a stone on it —going from a size ten to a six.

Zoe Tyler from Loose Womendropped even more, down from a16 to a 12.

The plan is in a three-daycycle. Day one is high carbs soyou can eat almost as much asyou like. On day two you limityour intake of carbs and on daythree you cut them outaltogether.

And so long as you are carefulabout what you order, you caneven have a curry or Chinesetakeaway.

Danni says: “The PyramidDiet is a rotational eating planwhich offers a structured,lifetime approach to food.

“It is probably the mostbalanced diet to date and workson a principle of varying theamount of carbohydrates we eat.Contrary to popular modernbelief, depriving your body ofcarbohydrates can actually leadto a significant slow-down in yourmetabolism. So you rotate yourcarbohydrate consumption tokeep the metabolism elevated.

“Carbohydrates are not theenemy. Severe carb-depletioncan lead to fatigue, nausea,mood-swings, breakdown inmuscle tissue, weakness, dizzinessand bad breath.

“If that’s not enough toconvince you to include ahealthy amount of carbs in yourdiet, you need to know that mostweight-loss achieved by cuttingcarbs is simply water-loss.”

However, Danni does advisecutting out all processed carbs,including white bread,doughnuts and white pasta.Sugar is also banned. She says:“Before you dial the local pizzadelivery, I’m afraid to say ameat-feast and chips or a hot dogwith onions is not on the menu.Processed carbs are strictlyforbidden.

“But there are lots of foods youcan enjoy. You can still have aroast dinner, a curry or aChinese.

“Think of the Pyramid Diet asa little like interval training on atreadmill. Most of us would preferto alternate three minutes’running with three minutes’walking for half an hour than do30 minutes’ solid running.

“Think of the no-carb day asthe sprint, the low-carb day asthe jog and the high-carb day asthe walk in the park.”

Stick to it and Danni believesmost of us would lose at least 4lb

carb limit in place, you are byno means obliged to hit it. But gotoo low and you will simply bere-living no-carb day. It isessential you do not do this, asthe Pyramid Diet is a three-daycycle and it is not intended as ano-carb regime.

Example meal planBREAKFAST: Fruit and

fibre yogurt pot (16g ofcarbohydrate).

SNACK: Half a cup of cottagecheese and fresh fruit (20g).

LUNCH: Tuna and egg salad(0g).

SNACK: 30g cashew nuts(5g).

DINNER: Chicken breastwith cajun sweet potato, broccoliand spinach (25g).

DESSERT: Almond buttercookies.

It’s no yolk ... tuna and eggsalad for lunch

OrBREAKFAST: Two slices of

granary bread with a 4-eggomelette (25g).

SNACK: Apple with low-fatcottage cheese (10g).

LUNCH: Good-carb stir-frywith chicken (2g).

SNACK: Natural live Greekyogurt (8g).

DINNER: Salmon fillet withgreen beans and cajun sweetpotato (25g).

Day 3THIS is called a no-carbs

day but really everyone canhave up to a total of 20g – butno more.

DANNI SAYS: If the idea ofhaving no carbs makes yourpalms sweat, please relax. Youwill find your body adapts to thehigh, low, no-carb cyclenaturally and will crave fatsand protein on Day 3, so youshould find it relatively easy tocut out stodgy carbs such asbread, rice, pasta and potatoevery third day.

You’re not expected to be adietary nun and for this reasonyou have an allowance of 20g ofcarbs on no-carb days, excludinggreen, fibrous vegetables whichare unlimited.

Don’t exceed 20g whateveryou weigh. Cheat just a tiny bitand you won’t keep your bodyguessing.

Because you won’t beconsuming calories fromcarbohydrates, you will need toincrease your intake of fats andproteins.

If you drink tea or coffee withmilk you will need to take thisinto consideration. An averagehot drink with a splash ofskimmed milk will give youaround 1g of carbs. Because yourbody will be in fat-burningmode, you are encouraged tomake the most of no-carb day.

Remember, your body’sinsulin levels will be low, whichwill allow for super fat-burning,so why not take a swim or go for along brisk walk?

Source: TheSun.co.uk

Diet plan ... Danni's new book

relatively highand you shouldf e e lc o m f o r t a b l ysatisfied allday. There’s noneed to feelguilty – aftera l l ,carbohydratesare the onlyform of fuelused by thebrain, soyou’re alsostocking up ona good healthydose of brainfood.

T h ePyramid Dietis all aboutchoosing theright carbs toput into yourbody, notcutting themout of your life.

Examplemeal plan

BREAKFAST:Made with 40gporridge oatswith a dash ofc i n n a m o n(20g).

SNACK: Wholegrain ricecakes with natural peanut butter(20g).

LUNCH: Chicken breast with100g brown rice and salad (30g).

SNACK: Banana (30g).DINNER: Salmon, broccoli

and sweet potato (25g).DESSERT: Fruit salad (15g).Oaty goodness ... porridge

for breakfastOrBREAKFAST: Two slices of

brown toast with natural peanutbutter (30g).

SNACK: Small fruit-salad pot(20g).

LUNCH: Tuna and bean saladpot (10g).

SNACK: Natural Greekyogurt pot (5g).

STARTER: Smoked salmonplatter with brown bread (25g).

DINNER: Sirloin steak withvegetables, mushrooms andtomatoes (10g).

PUDDING: OrganicChocolate cookies (8g).

Day 2THIS is a low-carbs day.

You can eat 0.5g per pound ofbodyweight, so if you weigh10st (140lb) your allowance is70g.

DANNI SAYS: I’ve often beenasked what the point of low-carbday is. There are several goodreasons for slotting the low-carbday in between the two extremes.

Day 2 allows for enjoymentwithout over-indulgence. Low-carb is the best day for exercise.They are the only days on whichyou are advised to perform bothcardiovascular and resistanceexercise.

Although there is an upperDiet guru ... TV fitness expertDanni Levy

full-fat cheese; breaded chickenand croutons.

Day 1THIS is a high-carbs day. You

can eat 1g of carbohydrate perpound of bodyweight, so if youweigh 10st (140lb), yourallowance for the day is 140g.

DANNI SAYS: Most of youwill find Day 1 of the three-daycycle by far the easiest and themost enjoyable.

Your carb intake will be


In the process of compilationof the report of the House ofRepresentatives ad-hoc

committee that investigated thenation's subsidy regime,insinuations were rife that therewere attempts to doctor thedocument before it was laid at theplenary. These allegations wereconstantly shot down by theeffervescent chairman of thecommittee, Rep Farouk Lawan. Hisposition was constantly beingadumbrated by the ever vocalChairman of the House Committeeon Media and Public Affairs, RepZakari Mohammed.

Prior to the submission of thereports, members of the committeeadmitted that they were underintense pressure from the power-that-be from the Presidency and theoil cabal to water down the outcomeof the investigations with a view toexonerating the 'big fishes' and savethem from the likely publicopprobrium expected following themouth gaping revelations made bystakeholders at the investigativehearings.

Allegations were rife that hugeamount of money was offered themembers of the Committee by theoil cabal in order to tamper withoutcome of the investigations. Dr.Al Ahmad, a member of thecommittee confirmed that theywere severally offered money tosuppress certain facts from reflectingin the reports. Although theChairman of the Committeeadmitted that there weretremendous pressures on them fromseveral quarters to tamper with thereport, he said they were resolute inensuring that the rots embedded inthe oil sector are exposed.

In spite of all the distractions, thepanel completed its assignments andsubmitted its damning reports atthe plenary for consideration.Though the report was eventuallysubmitted and considered in atension soaked plenary, it appearsthat the process of rubbishing thereports by certain individuals mayhave begun.

First, some seventeen companiesthat participated in the 'subsidybazaar' threatened to sue the Houseshould the recommendation askingthem to refund monies into thegovernment coffers be passed by theHouse. Although the committeeclaimed that they refused to appearbefore the committee to defend theiractions before the panel, thecompanies argued that they werenever invited officially as they wouldnot take newspapers'advertisements as official invitation.

Based on the argument, theHouse in the course of itsconsideration gave another twoweeks for the 17 companies toappear before the Lawan's panel to

Presidency sings discordanttunes over House subsidy report

FEATURE

Hon. Aminu Tambuwal

defend their roles in the subsidyregime. Although many politicalcritics find this decisionobjectionable, common sensehowever dictated that thesecorporate bodies should be heard outin order to gauge the level of theirculpability in the subsidy scam.

Observers believed that theentire report would have beenrubbished had the lawmakerscommit the singular error of passingthe recommendation that the 17companies be made to refund thefunds. Spokesperson of the House,Zakari Mohammed in a chat withnewsmen over the matterexplained that the House chose toback down on the panel'srecommendation on the 17companies because it would not wantany of the indicted companies toutilize the window offered by thejudicial process to render all energiesput into the probe a nullity.

The report also recommendedthe prosecution of some heavypolitical figures including the formerChairman of the Peoples DemocraticParty (PDP), Chief Amodu Ali, whochaired the Board of the PetroleumProducts Pricing RegulatoryAgency (PPPRA) at the time of thescam; the incumbent Governor of

Gombe state, Alhaji Ibrahim HassanDankwambo, who was theAccountant-General of theFederation as well as some officialsin the Petroleum Ministry and theNigerian National PetroleumCorporation (NNPC).

But, critics are curious of the factthat no place in the report was theincumbent Petroleum Minister,Mrs. Allison Dieziani-Maduekerecommended for sack in spite ofevidences linking her office to thescam. This is even more so whenthere were insinuations that theHouse was under intense pressuresfrom the Presidency never to overtlyindict the woman.

Apart from the alleged pressuresfrom the Presidency, several Non-Governmental Organisationsorganized rallies within the precinctsof the National Assembly to warnthe panel against indicting thePetroleum Minister as they allegedthat she was being victimizedbecause she is from the Niger Delta.Observers believed that the panelmay have caved in to the demandsof the ethnic jingoist to satisfy thepower-that-be which, it was learnt,had warned the lawmakers againstexposing the woman to publicridicule.

Another action taken by thelawmaker that made the public toraise an eyebrow was the decision ofthe lawmakers to drop Dankwambofrom the list of those originallyrecommended for furtherinvestigations by the nation's anti-graft agencies and probableprosecution. Dankwambo wasrecommended for furtherinvestigations for approving therelease of the sum of N999 million128 times to the PPPRA within 24hours!

This is coming on the heels of theaffirmation of the recommendationthat the services of the three privateaccounting firms handling theaccounts, Akintola Williams,Deloitte and Olusola Adekanola andPartners be discontinued forprofessional incompetence.

While equally approving theblacklisting of the accounting firmsfor the next three years, thelawmakers recommended that theybe prosecuted for their negligence inthe handling the nations' oil subsidyaccounts.

Although Rep Abike Dabiri-Erewa moved that the formerAccountant General be outrightlyindicted for the approval of thewithdrawal of over N127 billionfrom the government coffers within24 hours, others argued that itwould offend the principle of fairhearing since the Gombe governorwas not invited to appear before thecommittee to give his own side of thestory.

In a letter written to the House,Dankwambo made efforts to explainthe situation when he stated "I wishto state in very clear terms that theOAGF does not have the power tomake payments on its own. TheOAGF only releases funds toMinistries Departments andAgencies (MDAs) after dueauthorization by the Hon Ministerof Finance.

"Payments to beneficiaries and all

necessary documentations inrelation to such payments isentirely the responsibility of theMDAs. More so, the OAGF is notinvolved in the management of thefunds of the MDAs and therefore doesnot authorize payments toindividuals dealing with the MDAs.The PPPRA is no exception."

He told the committee that theOAGF was not in any position toknow those who benefitted from theN999 million paid 28 times. "Thus,if N999 million was paid to fuelsubsidy beneficiaries in 128 timeswithin 24 hours, totaling N127.8billion, it is undoubtedly made bythe PPPRA, which is a self-accounting agency," he stated.

He however concluded that thematter would not have arisen if hehad been invited to giveclarifications on the matter.

Based on the imperative of theprinciple of fair hearing, the clauseseeking for further probe ofDankwambo's roles in theoutrageous withdrawal was deletedand this raised the suspicion incertain quarters that certainpolitically vulnerable people werethe target of the probe.

With the consideration of thereport over and resolutions passedfor executive actions, there havebeen discordant tones coming fromthe Presidency on the possibility ofimplementation of the resolutions.While the Presidential LiaisonOfficer, Senator Joy Emordi, toldthe world that the governmentwould implement the resolutions ofthe House by arresting andprosecuting the culprits, otheraides to President GoodluckJonathan, including his SpecialAdviser on Media and PublicAffairs, Dr. Reuben Abati and hiscounterpart on Political Affairs,Alhaji Ahmad Gulak, haveclassified the report as mereadvisory with no force of law.

The PDP, through astatement by its NationalPublicity Secretary, Chief OlisaMetuh, hailed the Reps and vowedto ensure the implementation ofthe House resolutions even as theEconomic and Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC) has said itwould only use the resolutions asaccessories and pieces ofinformation in its independentinvestigations into the subsidyscam.

In the same vein, theAttorney General of theFederation and Minister ofJustice, Mohammed Bello Adoke,at the weekend declared that thegovernment would not spareanyone found culpable in thesubsidy scam. He however stated"Nigerians must howeverappreciate that in dischargingthis onerous responsibility,government must be guided by therule of law and due process asrequired of any democraticallyelected and responsiblegovernment."

“Allegations were rife that huge amount ofmoney was offered the members of theCommittee by the oil cabal in order to

tamper with outcome of the investigations.Dr. Al Ahmad, a member of the committeeconfirmed that they were severally offered

money to suppress certain facts fromreflecting in the reports.

By Lawrence Olaoye

President Goodluck Jonathan


CPC criticized the statementfrom the Attorney General of theFederation, Mr MohammedAdoke, where he reportedly saidthat the indicted persons in thesubsidy report will not be triedyet until other anti-corruptionagencies have carried out theirown investigations.

The party argued that Adokehas expressed the stance of the

PDP led FG on this matter,saying that the public shouldexpect nothing other than anoutright termination of thereport.

"It is our belief that this isa carefully-woven plot is to usethe guise of the'comprehensive investigation'by the FG-appointed headshipof the anti-graft agencies toextirpate any form ofpunishment for thecriminality against theNigerian nation." Thestatement pointed out.

In addition, the partyexpressed dismay over what itcalled 'irresponsible aloofness'by President Jonathan, sayingthat under his watch, thenation has staggered under theweight of 'humongouscorruption'.

The party maintained thatno more 'comprehensiveinvestigation' is needed otherthat the report of the ad hoccommittee before first writingto those, who have been

indicted to have beenoverpaid or paid withoutdelivering petroleumproducts, to refund thosemonies.

It also insisted that theLawan-led investigativepanel, to the perception of theNigerian people, carried outan incisive, patriotic, andcourageous investigation intothe critical sector of the nation'seconomy.

CPC therefore called on thepresidency to implement thereport with equal patriotism,noting that Nigerians are eagerlywaiting to see the sincerity of thefederal government's promise tofight corruption starting with thesubsidy report.

While pointing out that theindicted people are the president'sacolytes, whom he seeks toprotect by giving them 'soft-landing' through thegovernment's unending'comprehensive investigation',CPC reiterated its determination,as a progressive party, to worktogether with Nigerians to ensurethe full implementation of thesubsidy report.

CPC accuses PDP of plot to kill subsidy report

Congress for ProgressiveChange (CPC) has raisedalarm over an alleged plot

by the PDP led federalgovernment to terminate thereport of the Faruk Lawan led adhoc committee on subsidyregime, calling on Nigerians toprotest very loudly against suchmove.

In a statement issuedyesterday from the party'snational headquarters in Abuja,

Lagos ACN warns opposition against violence take-overBy Lawrence Olaoye elections where ideas determine who

gets eventually chosen by theelectorates. It says that coming almostimmediately after a strange accidentwhere the Governor narrowlyescaped assassination, the murder ofOyerinde has every imprint of therising culture of desperate politickingthat has seized the opposition in EdoState since the invincibility of thecandidacy of Governor Oshiomholebecame obvious. It advises that nostone should be left unturned to fishout the perpetrators of this heinousmurder and bring them to justice.

“While we may not foreclose thereason for such a callous act, we suspectpolitical motives for this dastardly actand warn that those who continue towrite the history of the country’spolitics in blood will not escape the

wrath of God. Coming almostimmediately after the strangeaccident where the governor escapeddeath by whiskers, and the attemptmade on the life of the Edo StateCommissioner for Information, LouisOdion, we are beginning to alignourselves with the allegation by theGovernor that the freak accident wasan assassination attempt on him. Wewant to join the Oshiomholegovernment to insist that a killer squadis on the prowl in Edo for the purpose ofsecuring political advantage and weinsist that this must be given theprompt attention it requires byrelevant state security agencies.

“We however see the killing ofOyerinde as a brutal and callous actby the fiends who believe that theiropponents need to die for them to get

whatever they want. We see the brutalkilling of Oyerinde as a culmination ofa bloody culture of politicaldesperation that is seizing opponentsof the governor who have no answerto his stellar performance as Edogovernor these past three and halfyears.

“Lagos ACN notes that Oyerindewas a strategic planner, a greatthinker, a committed labour activistand a vital and important arm of theOshiomhole government and successstory in Edo these past three and halfyears. We see his death as a brutalwaste of human industry and acolossal loss to humanity. We see hisbrutal killing as the topping of a defteffort to pull Edo State back to theregrettable pith of darkness fromwhich it emerged last three years. We

The Lagos State chapter of theAction Congress of Nigeria(ACN) has warned those who

may want to win the forthcominggovernorship election in Edo statethrough killing and assassination thatthey would be made to bear the bruntof their dastardly act.

The party issued the warning as aresult of the brutal assassination of thePrincipal Secretary to the Edo StateGovernor, Comrade AdamsOshiomhole, Comrade OlaitanOyerinde, who was murdered in coldblood by yet to be identified assassins.

In a release signed by the LagosState Publicity Secretary of the ACN,Joe Igbokwe, the party says the ACNinsists on level playing ground in all

want to assure them that they willnever ever get to realize their bestialdesire.

“We wonder what the killers ofOlaitan gained in that bestial act otherthan the satiation of their primitivedesire to take out yet another vital andstrong arm of the Adams Oshiomholegovernment and campaign. Weassure them that they would not getto realize their ultimate intent. Wewant to warn that allowing thecontinued sustenance of the culture ofbloody political war faring willcertainly lead to the doom of thecountry’s democracy as themonumental insecurity andintractable national malaise we aresuffering from today, stems from suchanimalistic resort to bloody means ofsettling political issues.

House member accuses Kogi ANPP candidate of desperationappeal asked the appellate courtto revisit its earlier judgment anddeclare him as winner of the April9, 2011 House of Reps election.

In a 19-paragraph counteraffidavit in opposition to Okedi’sappeal, the Reps member saidthat the judgement of the court ofappeal now sought to be varied hasrun its full course.

‘’The judgement of this courtwhich ordered the retrial does notcontain any accidental slip oraccidental mistake and the saidjudgement fully expressed theintention of this court.

‘’There is no power in this courtto alter or vary its judgementwith a view to giving acompletely different judgementas sought by the applicants.

‘’I conscientiously believethat the applicants have broughtthis a application out offrustration and desperationseeking by all means to depriveme of the mandate that wasfreely given to me by theelectorate.

‘’That it is in the interest ofjustice to refuse this application’’,he said.

A member of the House ofRepresentatives, Rep IsmailHusseini Inah representing

Idah Federal Constituency of Kogistate has told an Abuja divisionCourt of Appeal that the appeal ofan All Nigeria Peoples Party(ANPP) candidate, Sam AdejohOkedi, asking the appellate courtto revisit its judgment was borneout of frustration and desperation.

The ANPP candidate whoapproached the Appeal Court forthe third time has in his latest

L-R: Gen. Joshua Dogonyaro (rtd), his wife, Esther and the Minister of Water Resources, Mrs. SarahOchekpe at the Ilum Otarok Annual Cultural Festival in Langtang, Plateau state, at weekend.

(NAN)

I constituted two c’ttees to ensuregood governance, says Wada

prepared him adequately for thetask of governing.

“You will recall that on Jan.27, I was sworn-in as governorof Kogi following the SupremeCourt ruling that terminatedthe extended tenure of theimmediate past administrationof Alhaji Ibrahim Idris.

“I assumed this responsibilitythree clear months ahead of thescheduled hand-over date,’’ thegovernor stressed, saying that itprovided him the opportunity todesign a development blueprintwith inputs from Kogi indigenes.

“Today, we are celebratingthe first one hundred days of ouradministration with a veryclear guide on the choices tomake to foster ourtransformation agenda for KogiState.”

He expressed gratitude to thepeople for the support given tohis administration, saying theachievements recorded so farwere made possible by thesupport and goodwill.

Kogi Gov.Idris Wada hassaid that he constitutedtwo major committees on

assumption of office to ensuregood governance and meet theyearnings of the people.

Wada stated this in abroadcast in Lokoja at theweekend as part of activitiesmarking his 100 days in office.

He said the governmentconstituted a ‘Think-Tank’shortly after his inauguration `toensure that we institute a wellguided, inclusive, sound Thecommittee, he said, was chargedit with the responsibility ofoutlining strategic developmentpolicies and programmes forimplementation within fouryears.

“I also constituted atransition committee todocument the state of affairs inthe state to provide us with abearing for smoothimplementation of ourdevelopment programmes,’’ hesaid, adding that the twocommittees had since submitted`Ì promised in my inauguraladdress to run your affairs bysubjecting ourselves to thehighest ideals of good governanceand I did say that hard work,integrity, discipline,transparency andaccountability would be ourwatchword.

“That is exactly what wehave pursued with all the vigourand resources at our disposalsince the day we assumed office.”

Wada said his assumption ofoffice three months ahead of time

From Sam Egwu, lokoja

…Calls for protestBy Ikechukwu Okaforadi

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin


Insecurity: House c’tee warns military against excessivenessHouse of Representatives, havereceived several complaints fromresidents of the affected areas onthe alleged molestation,harassment and to some extentextra judicial killings of innocentcitizens by the security agentsdeployed to combat the insecurityplaguing such areas.

Mutawalle pledged that thecommittee would do an in-depthinvestigation on the allegationraised in a motion by a member ofthe House from Yobe state on theharassment of innocent residentsof Potiskum after an attack on a

market by unknown gunmen thatkilled more than 50 people.

He assured that as the motionwas referred to the committee forinvestigation, all those involvedwould be identified and sanctionedappropriately, saying, "anyonefound to have acted outside the ruleof engagement will beappropriately sanctioned to serveas a deterrence to others."

The lawmaker lamented thatthe excesses of the security agentshave fixed the residents of theaffected areas "between the deviland blue sea," as according to him,

the attitude of the lawenforcement agents havecompelled the residents to preferbeing dealt with the insurgents.

"it is this kind of attitude thatmake residents not to cooperatewith the security agencies byproviding information on theinsurgents, as you can only assistsomeone who is ready to be friendlywith you and protect your life.There is no way the residents willhelp the security agents if they arenot treated any better than thosethey were supposed to be protectedfrom," he said.

R-L: Former Minister of State for Education, Dr. Jerry Agada, Special Adviser on Media to the Senate President, Kola Ologbondiyan, Chief ofStaff to the Senate President, Senator Anthony Manzo, Igoche Mark and wife, with the celebrant baby David, during his one year birthdaycelebration, at the weekend, in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

party.The party members waved

brooms -- the party symbol -- andchanted songs to mobilise theelectorate to vote for the party inthe July 14 election.

The ACN governorshipcandidate, Gov. AdamsOshiomhole, and his runningmate, Dr Pius Odubu, spoke aboutthe party’s achievements in the

state.They urged the people to ask

the previous state governmentswhat their achievements were towarrant their votes.

Oshiomhole, who thanked thepeople for their steadfastness andsupport for his administration,assured them that the partywould do more if voted intopower.

ACN initiates governorshipelection campaign in EdoSympathisers and members

of the Action Congress ofNigeria (ACN) at the

weekend in Benin defied the earlymorning rain to attend theparty’s campaign for Edogovernorship election.

The campaign, which tookplace at the Museum Ground,was coordinated by Chief TomIkimi, a national leader of the

The House Representativescommittee on NationalSecurity, Intelligence and

Public Safety has expressedconcern over the allegedexcessiveness of the military andother security agents deployed tosome trouble areas across thecountry.

In a statement yesterday inAbuja, the chairman of thecommittee, Rep Muhammad BelloMutawalle (PDP-Zamfara) saidthe committee, and indeed the

Pesident GoodluckJonathan on Saturdayadvised politicians and

the media not to overheat thepolity over the politics of 2015presidential election.

In a statement issued by DrReuben Abati, the SpecialAdviser to the President onMedia and Publicity, Jonathanexpressed deep concern overthe growing furore in politicalcircles and the media over hisalleged plan to seek re-electionin 2015.

“What began as anirritating distraction somemonths ago, appears to havenow assumed a life of its own,dominating political discoursein the country, with all kindsof mischief-makers andopportunists latching on to itto heat up the polityunnecessarily.

“The pointless, diversionaryand very distractive hue andcry about the president'salleged ambition to seek asecond term in office isbecoming increasinglydisturbing by the day.''

The president expressedworry over reports innewspapers and on theInternet, with captions such as“Jonathan's 2015 ambitioncan break up Nigeria '' andJonathan's 2015 ambitionfueling insecurity''.

He said that the president'sprimary concern was to deliveron his promise to provide apurposeful leadership thatwould help to overcome thecountry's security anddevelopmental challenges.

“Nothing could be fartherfrom President Jonathan'smind at this point in time thanthe 2015 elections.

“The president hasdefinitely not directed orauthorised any individual orgroup to launch any campaignon his behalf.

“As he has repeatedlywarned on many occasions,even during the last nationalconvention of the PDP, theinordinate ambition of a fewself-centred Nigerians andtheir obsession with thepolitics of succession in 2015must not be al lowed todistract the nation.

“It must also not beallowed to distract thenation's current leadershipfrom the task of dealing withthe more urgent issues ofdevelopment and the safetyof Nigerians in all parts of thecountry. ' '

He urged the political classand the Nigerian mass mediato give elected leaders, at alllevels, the opportunity todeliver on their promises tothe people.

Jonathancautionspoliticians,media againstoverheatingpolity

commence on Thursday, May17 with a Service of Songs at6pm at the NationalEcumenical Centre, in theCentral Business District ofAbuja.

On Friday, May 18, 2012,the body of Dr. Daboh willdepart Abuja for Benue state,where there will be a stop-overin Makurdi before proceedingto his Tse Mker residence alongKoti Yough road in VandeikyaLGA for a Christian Wake Keep

at 8pm.The final interment is

scheduled to take place at DrGodwin Dabo'AdzuanaCompound in Tse-Mker onSaturday, May 19, 2012 at10am.

Until his death at the age of70, Dr. Dabo'Adzuana, whoshot to national limelight in1974 from relative politicalobscurity, was the Chairman,Presidential MonitoringCommittee on Fuel Subsidy

Prominent politician,businessman and self-styled anti-corruption

crusader, Dr. GodwinDabo'Adzuana, who died onMarch 15, 2012, is to be buriedon May 19 in his Tse-Mkervillage, in Vandeikya localgovernment area of Benuestate.

According to the burialprogramme released by hisfamily at the weekend, thefuneral of the for formerchieftain of the ruling PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP), will

By Lawrence Olaoye

Implementation.A life member of the

Newspaper ProprietorsAssociation of Nigeria (NPAN)and Nigeria Guild of Editors(NGE), Dabo'Adzuana will alsobe remembered for publishingthe defunct Icharegh'va andThe Broom newspapersbetween 1985 and 1993,which sought to expose anddiscourage corruption andsharp practices among publicoffice holders in the country.

Godwin Daboh for burial May 19

By Lawrence Olaoye

``We will do even more foryou if you give us your mandateagain because we are yourservants,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that severalmusicians, including thelegendary highlife musician, SirVictor Uwaifo, entertained thegathering with some of theirpopular songs.


The Senate will help inproviding constitutionalpowers to the country's

traditional rulers, Sen. ItaEnang, Chairman of the SenateCommittee on Rules andBusiness, assured on Friday inAbuja.

Enang gave the assurancewhen he played host totraditional rulers from AkwaIbom, who were attending thenational conference oftraditional rulers in Abuja.

He said the Senate'sConstitution Review Committee(CRC) would ensure that the role

of traditional rulers was givenconstitutional backing.

`Àt the Senate ConstitutionReview Committee, we havedecided that the issue of theauthority and powers of thetraditional rulers will beelevated and put in theconstitution.

``What we are doing on thisin the constitution is to elevateit beyond the position of beinga normal law to that of being aconstitutional provision.

`Ìf we do not give aconstitutional backing to it,then it will still be taken that

the job of traditional rulers islimited to what is provided forthem by the House of Assemblyof their respective states,''Enang said.

He hinted that the CRCwould soon call for thesubmission of memoranda onthe role of the traditionalinstitution and other areas thatrequired constitutionalamendments.

`Ìn the next two weeks, youwill see advertisements by theCRC of the Senate, calling formemoranda on this subject.

``This will enable you to

submit your position paper onwhat your role should be, vis-a-vis the role of localgovernments, stategovernments and the role ofother strata of administration,'' Enang said.

The Rules and BusinessCommittee chairman alsoannounced that the Senatewould soon consider a proposedbill to further provide traditionalrulers with specific areas ofconstitutional authority.

''I want to also inform you thatSen. Abdullahi Adamu ofNasarawa state has proposed abill to give traditional rulers inthe country specific roles,'' he said.

The Senator commended theAkwa Ibom monarchs for the co-operation they were giving to thestate government.

Edidem Ime Inyang,Chairman of the State Council ofTraditional Rulers, praised thelawmakers for their plan to givethe traditional rulers specific rolesin the polity.

The paramount ruler of IbionoIbom expressed joy over thedevelopment and pledged theloyalty of the traditional rulersto the three tiers of government.(NAN)

Senate backs constitutional role for traditional rulers

ACN initiates governorship election campaign in Edo

L-R: Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Gombe State Governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Hassan Dankwanbo,PDP National Chairman, Dr. Bamanga Tukur and Senator Danjuma Goje, during the Inauguration of the Speakers Conference, at theWeekend, in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

The Peoples DemocraticParty (PDP) has assuredthe people that it would

be at the vanguard of ensuring

that those indicted in themismanagement of thenation's petroleum subsidy beprosecuted.

Obviously reacting to theultimatum issued by the CivilSociety Groups demanding forimmediate prosecution of thoseindicted by the House ofRepresentatives investigationsinto the nation's subsidy regimethat indicted some people, theNational Publicity Secretary ofthe party, Chief Olisa Metuh,

in a statement made availableto newsmen called on thecoalition of the Civil SocietyOrganisations to shelve itsplanned civil action as theirdemand aligns with the standof the Party on the matter.

"The demand of the CivilSociety Groups is alreadyreflected in the resolution of theNational Working Committee ofour great Party. As the Party inpower; the one controlling boththe Executive and the

Legislative arm of government,our position is that the culpableshould face the full weight of thelaw. This must however, be incompliance with due process soas to make sure that only theguilty suffers," Metuh said.

According to him, the partywill continue to upholdtransparency and the rule oflaw in its determination to leadby example, even as hedescribed describing its positionas "the ultimate ingredients for

PDP backs prosecution of subsidy scam culpritsthe realisation of thetransformation programme ofthe federal government."

The statement furthercalled on the Civil RightsGroups to give considerabletime for the law to take its fullcourse. "In this light, we mustallow government to articulatethe findings of the House ofRepresentatives and engendernecessary legal actionsthrough the appropriateagencies of government."

By Lawrence Olaoye

Against the backdrop of recentthreats by the Boko Haramsect to attack Lagos, the

National President of the OduaPeoples Congress, Otunba GaniAdams, has advised the sectmembers not to throw the nationinto another civil war.

He urged the group to embracepeace in the interest of the country.

Adams, who spoke to reportersat a ceremony organised tocelebrate his 42nd birthday, saidhe did not believe Boko Haramcould attack Yoruba people in thesouthwest, saying it was impossiblefor the sect members to carry outattacks on the region.

He said no Yoruba person wouldhabour criminals to massacreinnocent people.

"We believe in secularity ofNigeria in the southwest. We haveChristians and Muslims and peoplethat believe in traditional religionsin Yoruba land. No group disturbsthe other and definitely, I don't seea situation where we will have areligious violence in thesouthwest. It will take an externalaggression from groups like BokoHaram to come and cause havocin the Yoruba land.

"We don't have any issue withthem and I don't see any reasonwhy they will come and plantbombs in Yoruba land. If they doso, that will trigger a lot of crises inNigeria because there will be areprisal to that," the OPC leadercautioned.

OPC warns BokoHaram againstattacking LagosFrom Ayodele Samuel, Lagos

Sympathisers andmembers of the ActionCongress of Nigeria

(ACN) at the weekend in Benindefied the early morning rainto attend the party's campaignfor Edo governorship election.

The campaign, which tookplace at the Museum Ground,was coordinated by Chief TomIkimi, a national leader of theparty.

The party members wavedbrooms -- the party symbol --and chanted songs to mobilise

the electorate to vote for theparty in the July 14 election.

The ACN governorshipcandidate, Gov. AdamsOshiomhole, and his runningmate, Dr Pius Odubu, spokeabout the party's achievementsin the state.

They urged the people to askthe previous stategovernments what theirachievements were to warranttheir votes.

Oshiomhole, who thankedthe people for their

steadfastness and support forhis administration, assuredthem that the party would domore if voted into power.

``We will do even more foryou if you give us yourmandate again because we areyour servants," he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that severalmusicians, including thelegendary highlife musician,Sir Victor Uwaifo, entertainedthe gathering with some oftheir popular songs.

The PDP in Edo has denied anycomplicity in theassassination of Mr

Oyerinde Olaitan, the PrincipalPrivate Secretary to Gov. AdamsOshimhole.

The state PDP Chairman,Chief Dan Orbih, made the denialat a news conference on Saturdayin Benin, saying that the partyhad no hand in the killing of thegovernor's aide.

He rejected the allegation anddescribed it as ``malicious'',saying that it was designed totaint the image of PDP.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) recalls that Olaitan wasassassinated in his house in Beninin the early hours of Friday.Orbihnoted that Oshiomhole gave a 14-day ultimatum to the Edo StatePolice Command to find Olaitankillers, adding that he did evennot wait for the 14 days to elapsebefore levelling allegationsagainst PDP members.

He urged the InspectorGeneral of Police to call thegovernor to order.

Edo PDP deniesany complicity inassassination ofOshiomhole’s aide


Rashidi Yekini’s Portuguese club Vitoria Setubal will pay theirlast respect to the fallen star in their final game againstBenfica. The 48-year-old Yekini, who died Friday in Nigeria,

was buried on Saturday in his hometown, Irrah in Kwara State.Yekini enjoyed his best spell at a European club at Vitoria

Setubal. He scored 90 goals in 108 appearances for the modestPortuguese club between 1990 and 1994.

According to the former Nigeria youth international TernaSuswam, who now features for Vitoria Setubal, the club plan tohonour Yekini by wearing black arm bands and observing aminute silence.

“The players wish to honour Yekini by sporting black arm bandsand observing a minute’s silence in our next game against Benficathis Sunday. This is also our last match of the season but themanagement will have to approve it,” said Suswam.

“Yekini was a legend at Setubal and the news of his death has

Peter Odemwingie, Eaglesplayer

carve a niche for Nigeria at theUSA 1994 World Cup in theU.S,” he said.

Abubakar said Yekini wouldbe best remembered for hiscelebration of Nigeria’s firstWorld Cup goal, which hescored.

Also, the FCT chapter ofSWAN, on its part, said it wouldremember with fond memoriesYekini’s great contributions tothe rise to greater heights of thecountry’s football.

“We, therefore, wish to joinhis family members and eventhe rest of the football familiesin mourning this great footballicon,” the body said in astatement by its Chairman,Kayode Adeniyi.

The FCT SWAN called on theleadership of the NigeriaFootball Federation (NFF) andeven the federal governmentto ensure Yekini’simmortalisation.

Nigeria and South Africaare in talks for a proposedinternational friendly

between the Super Eagles and theBafana Bafana, likely in June.

Both countries are scheduledto take part in the 2014 FIFAWorld Cup qualifying in June.

The Nigeria FootballFederation (NFF) and the SouthAfrica Football Association(SAFA) have been discussing onthe game after an initial date ofFebruary broke down followingthe Super Eagles involvementin the 2013 Africa Cup ofNations qualifying againstRwanda in Kigali.

A top official of the NFFinformed a wire serviceyesterday that no agreementhas been reached on the date orvenue with the South African FAon the proposed friendly.

“No agreement has beenreached yet,” the official said.“But I can confirm that talks are

still ongoing with the SouthAfrica Football Association. Youknow there was a proposal to playthe match in February but thatdate clashed with our team’sNations Cup qualifier againstRwanda.”

Nigeria play in two 2014 FIFAWorld Cup qualifying gamesagainst Namibia and Malawiand face Rwanda in the returnleg of the 2013 AFCONqualifying, all in June.

Bafana, Eagles eyeconfrontation

VitoriaSetubal tohonour Yekini

Nigeria’s futsal footballnational team havequalified for the final

round of the 2012 FIFA FutsalWorld Cup African qualifierswithout kicking the ballfollowing Gabon’s withdrawalfrom their second round fixture.

The first leg tie of the secondround fixture was billed foryesterday in Lagos, the GabonFA informed the NFF of theirwithdrawal from the fiesta.

“Several letters written to theGabonese Football Federation bythe NFF in the weeks leading to

the first leg went un-replied. Butlate on Friday there was a tersemessage that the team could nottravel to Nigeria as a result oflack of funds,” it said.

The statement also saidNigeria’s Coach OladunniOyekale, who had been traininghis players in preparation for thematch, was disappointed.Oyekale had on Thursday picked12 players to meet Gabon.

The Nigerian side is nowthrough to the final round andwill await a tough fixtureagainst either Tunisia or Egypt.

The Bafana Bafana of SouthAfrica have two World Cupqualifiers against Ethiopia andBotswana in same month.

Kano Pillars have paid outN53 million to offset partof the signing-on fees of

the players and coaches overthe past three seasons.

Pillars spokesman IdrisMaikaba confirmed yesterdaythat the payment will coverthe final 20 percent balance ofthe contract fees for the 2009/10 season and 15 percent of lastseason.

It will also take care ofanother 15 percent for thecurrent, which totals 45percent as they had earlierbeing paid 30 percent for thisseason.

“The general manager, AbbaGaladima, told the players thathe hopes this payment willmotivate them for theremainder of the campaign.He therefore urged the playersto tighten their belt for thechallenge ahead,” Maikabadisclosed.

Pillars tumbled from top spotin the Nigeria Premier Leagueafter they lost 2-1 at ShootingStars and they further slippedto fourth in the standings afterthey lost 2-0 at local rivalsKaduna United.

On Wednesday they face adaunting challenge at second-placed Enyimba.

The Secretary to the NigerState government, Mr.Daniel Clifford Shashere has

warned players of Niger TornadoesFC against complacency or risk thewrath of the state government.

Instead of being lackadaisical,

Shashere urged them to be loyaland committed to the task ofwinning laurels for the state andthus reciprocate the government’sgesture towards them.

He read the riot act over theweekend when he visited theplayers at their permanent campin Minna and insisted the playersshould be dedication and discipline

if they must be secure the top threeplacement on the NPL log at theend of the league.

“Let me warn all of you here thatthe Niger State government willnot accept failure. We are aware ofall your problems, but you mustbe totally loyal to the club and showsome high level of discipline if youreally want to remain in this club.

We are not going to tolerate anyact of disloyalty from any playerhenceforth,” he warned.

“We are now in a critical positionand all hands must be on deck fromthe players, coaches and thesupporting staff to make sure thatthe team would not be relegated,be within the top brackets,” headded.

FIFA Futsal World Cup: Nigeria sealfinal place without kicking a ball

Tornadoes management warns playersFrom Iliya Garba, Minna

The Federal Governmentshould consider the lateRashidi Yekini for a post-

humous award,the SportsWriters Association of Nigeria(SWAN) have suggested.

SWAN National President,Saidu Abubakar, in a condolencemessage, said the award wouldserve to immortalise Yekini, whoscored 37 goals in 38 matches forNigeria and is accredited as thebest forward Nigeria ever had.

Yekini, who hailed from Irrain Kwara, died at the age of 48on Friday from an undisclosedillness at an unnamed hospital.

The SWAN Presidentdescribed the late Yekini assecond to none and a footballerwho stood taller among his peersand playing mates.

“He led Nigeria’s glorious daysin football when the SuperEagles ruled Africa in 1994 bywinning the Africa Cup ofNations. He then went ahead to

...SWAN wants FG’s post-humous award for Yekini

Pillarssplash outN53 millionto pay debts

Rasheed Yekini when he scored Nigeria’s first world cup goal

really shocked everyone here. All the papers here reported it andpeople gathered to talk about his exploits while he was at the club.”

Vitoria Setubal lost 1-0 at Academica Coimbra Saturday onSaturday. They are 11th on the table with 30 points from 29matches.


Eight Northern states are billed totake part in the 9th editions of theFCT Aso table Tennis Clubs for male

and female categories at the Old ParadeGround, Abuja beginning from May 9 to13. The participating states are Benue,Nasarawa, Kwara, Kogi, Niger, Plateauand Kaduna and the FCT

Making this known in Abuja, presidentof the club, Dr Olusegun Ajuwon, said thisedition of the competition is open to allthe states in North Central, adding thatspecial invitation has been extended tothree other states.

Ajuwon said two national tennisplayers have been invited to demonstrateshowcase their skills stressing this ismeant to ginger greens to develop interestin ping pong. According to him, the clubwants to use the competition to encouragefresh talents as well as search for talentsthat would be quickly developed forsubsequent national sports fiesta.

“We are happy to organize the 9thedition of the FCT Aso table Tennis Clubwhere eight states from the Northernstates precisely from North Central, willparticipate. We are also happy that wehave invited three others states to add tothe glamour of competition.

“We are also happy that veteran andprofessionals in the game of tennis haveagreed to demonstrate their skills beforethe young ones who are coming into thegame. “We have promised to reward thewinner with N50,000 in each categorybecause we are doing this to encouragethem and also show how much we lovethe game, “he said.

Police Machine FC over the weekend atOld Parade Ground, Area 10 Abujadefeated defending champions and

back-to-back winners, FC Abuja to clinchthe FCT Challenge Cup on 4-3 penalties afterthe game ended one apiece at full and extra-t ime.

The Police Machine FC, who are currentlyplaying in Nationwide League (amateur),surprisingly defeated the Nigerian NationalLeague club who were the 2006 and 2007champions.

Meanwhile, Coach of the police team,Mukaila Ali, attribute the team’s success topatience and the commitment of theplayers, while his FC Abuja counterpart,Friday Christopher, blamed fatigue arisingfrom their league games for the loss.

“I am happy we have won the matchbecause that was my target. I alsocommended my players for their patienceand commitment throughout thecompetition. I am very happy to lift thetrophy for the first time in FCT ChallengeCup for the Nigeria Police,” Coach Ali said.

“We were gallant in defeat. In fact, welost the match because of fatigue, you weplayed series of matches in the nationalleague and my players were tired. Theydid not disappoint me, I am grateful tothem,” FC Abuja coach said.

While commending the 40 clubs thattook part in the competition, the FCT FAChairman Alhaji Musa Saeed Talle, said thetournament was success because the FCTfeatured the second highest number of clubsin the whole country.

Further, Talle assured FCT residents thatthe 2012 FCT league will be decentralizedto all the six Area Councils, stressing thatsome football academies in the Territoryhave agreed to collaborate with the FA toorganize U-13 soccer competitions withinthe councils.

The government and people of CrossRiver State, have promised theGolden Eaglets best of hospitality to

enable them concentrate on the job athand during second phase of the closedcamping exercise , which began thisweekend.

Accordingly, the team and officials areto be camped at the Princeville Hotel.

This was revealed by the State’sCommissioner of Sports, Mr. PatrickUgbe, who said the state rejoices in theprivilege of hosting the Eaglets and wouldtherefore do everything to ensure thatthey were comfortable and in the frameof mind to perform to Nigeria’sexpectation.

Ugbe, a seasoned broadcaster, said itwas incumbent on the state to rally

behind the Golden Eaglets so as to supportthe aspirations of all Nigerians inensuring that the team qualifies for theupcoming African Under-17Tournament to be hosted in Morocco nextyear.

According to him, His Excellency,Governor Liyel Imoke, has generouslyagreed to host the team in line with hispolicy of supporting the development andgrowth of sports in the country. CrossRiver State with its J. Esuene Stadium, isregarded as one of the best sports centresin the country and it is also the traditionalhost of the annual Obudu Mountain Raceamongst other sporting events.

“We are very ready to host the GoldenEaglets and they are going to enjoy thebest when they come here,” said Ugbe

with his trademark smile. “GovernorImoke has ensured that we provided allthat is necessary so that the team’scamping exercise would go on withouthitches and all our people are lookingforward to having the National Under-17 team here.”

Speaking in the same vein, Mr. PhillipObaji (Jr), the chairman of the state’sFootball Association’s Media/MarketingCommittee, said they would doeverything within their capacity toguarantee that the Golden Eaglets havea successful camping period at the CanaanCity.

“ The honourable sports commissionerhas duly informed our FA board thatGolden Eaglets would be here in Calabarand we are happy about this developmentas such we would mobilize our people togive the team necessary support,” Obajiadded.

Floyd Mayweather (jr) earned $32 mfor defeating Miguel Cotto on pointsafter 12 energy sapping rounds.

The American veteran won the WBAlight-middleweight title by winning thefight at the MCM Grand Garden Arenaby unanimous decision 117-111 on twocards and 118-110 on the third.

Hand speed and his almost legendarydefence enabled Mayweather to hold offthe aggressive Puerto Rican, who hadcome in as WBA “super” champion.

Mayweather, still undefeated after amemorable fight, had to use all his talentsand experience against an opponent whopushed him all the way, often into thecorners and on the ropes.

But Cotto, 31 years old, who threw byfar the most punches, just could not getenough to land on Mayweather.Mayweather later said Cotto was thetoughest opponent he has fought.

“You’re a hell of a champion. You’re thetoughest guy I ever fought. He’s a toughcompetitor. He came to fight; he didn’t

just come to survive. I dug down andfought him back,” Mayweather told Cottoafter their WBA light-middleweight titlebout in Las Vegas on Saturday night(Sunday Morning Nigerian time).

“When you fight on pay-per-view youhave to give the fans what they want,and that’s excitement,” Mayweathersaid. Cotto was guaranteed his biggestpurse yet, $8 million

Mayweather used his speed andaccuracy to win a unanimous decision.He rocked Cotto in the final round toremain unbeaten in 43 fights. But itwasn’t easy, with Cotto fighting until thefinal bell.

Although, there were no knockdownsin a fight, however, there were manyblows that did enough damage to leavemarks on both boxers. Mayweather bledfrom the nose for most of the second halfof the bout and Cotto was cut on the headabove the left eye early in the fight.

Mayweather, who is 35 years old,improved his record to 43-0, with 26

knockouts. Cotto’s dropped to 37-3; 30.Earlier the crowd saw another brilliant

fight when Saul Alvarez beat Sugar ShaneMosley 119-109, 118-110 and 119-109 toretain his WBC super-welterweight title.

Alvarez, who is only 21 years old buthas already built up a professional recordof 40-0-1, with 29 knockouts, was too fastand aggressive for the 40-year-old formerchampion.

Mosley brought back memories ofbrilliant performances earlier in hiscareer and gave the youngster one of thehardest fights of his career. In the end,however, his record dropped to 46-8-1,with 39 knockouts.

In a welterweight bout, Jessie Vargasbeat Steve Forbes 100-90, 97-93 and 99-91 over ten rounds.

Vargas is still undefeated after 19bouts, with 9 knockouts. Forbes, a formerchampion, dropped to 35-11; 11.

Carlos Quintana improved to 29-3; 23when he knocked out DeAndre Latimorein the sixth.

Cross River state govt promisesEaglets best hospitality

8 Northern states totake part in FCTtable tennis tourneyBy Albert Akota

Police Machine win30th edition of FCTChallenge Cup

Mayweather earns $32million for beating Cotto

Floyd Mayweather (jr) Miguel Cotto

a girl from Anambra and a boyfrom Enugu. I believe they willdo well in future if furthergroomed,” he said.

The coordinator promised thatthe competition would be anannual event even as JohnnyIgboka, a national coach in trackand field, thanked theCommission for giving youths theopportunity to show their talents.

Emmanuel Utobo, the EbonyiState Director of Sports, advisedyouths to always come out todisplay their talents in anycompetition.


REULTS

Men’s 100m1. Su Bingtian (China) 10.042. Michael Rodgers (U.S.)1 0 . 0 53. Kim Collins (St Kitts andNevis) 10.07Men’s 800m1. Job Kinyor (Kenya) 1:47.052. Amine El Manaoui(Morocco) 1:47.913. Andreas Bube (Denmark)1 : 4 8 . 1 9Men’s 110m Hurdles1. Liu Xiang (China) 13.092. Omoghan Osaghae (U.S.)1 3 . 3 33. Ronald Brookins (U.S.)1 3 . 6 9Men’s 400m Hurdles1. Takayuki Kishimoto(Japan) 49.312. Johnny Dutch (U.S.) 49.523. Nathan Woodward(Britain) 50.38Men’s 3000m Steeplechase1. Jairus Kipchoge (Kenya)8 : 1 8 . 0 62. Conseslus Kipruto (Kenya)8 : 1 9 . 4 93. Roba Gary (Ethiopia)8 : 1 9 . 6 2Men’s 4 x 100m Relay1. Australia 39.002. China 39.023. Japan 39.03Men’s 4 x 400m Relay1. Japan 3:04.152. Australia 3:06.963. New Zealand 3:09.66Men’s Long Jump1. Yohei Sugai (Japan) 7.982. Ignisious Gaisah (Ghana)7 . 8 13. Kim Deok-hyeon (SouthKorea) 7.59Men’s Pole Vault1. Yang Yansheng (China)5 . 3 22. Hiroki Ogita (Japan) 5.323. Jordan Scott (U.S.) 5.32Men’s Hammer Throw1. Dilshod Nazarov (Tajikistan)7 7 . 3 42. Pawel Fajdek (Poland) 76.313. Markus Esser (Germany)7 6 . 2 9Men’s Javelin Throw1. Genki Dean (Japan) 81.432. Yukifumi Murakami(Japan) 80.263. Stuart Farquhar (NewZealand) 77.35Women’s 100m1. Allyson Felix (U.S.) 11.222. Melissa Breen (Australia)1 1 . 3 83. Chisato Fukushima (Japan)1 1 . 3 9Women’s 400m1. Amantle Montsho(Botswana) 50.522. Joanne Cuddihy (Ireland)5 1 . 7 83. Mary Wineberg (U.S.)5 2 . 3 6Women’s 800m1. Alem Gereziher (Ethiopia)2 : 0 5 . 8 62. Sianne Toemoe (Australia)2 : 0 6 . 2 23. Bethany Praska (U.S.)2 : 0 6 . 9 0Women’s 100m Hurdles1. Yvette Lewis (U.S.) 13.082. Michelle Perry (U.S.) 13.113. Ayako Kimura (Japan)1 3 . 3 1Women’s 4 x 100m Relay1. Japan 44.292. China 44.473. Japan B 44.93Women’s Long Jump1. Saeko Okayama (Japan)6 . 6 72. Cornelia Deiac (Romania)6 . 5 13. Karin Mey Melis (Turkey)6 . 5 0

Enugu State has won eightgold, six silver and twobronze medals to emerge

winners of the maiden Late DrAkanu Ibiam AthleticsChampionships for secondaryschools.

The championship arrangedfor states within the NationalSports Commision (NSC) South-East Zone I, saw Anambra camesecond with four gold, six silverand four bronze medals, whileEbonyi won only six bronze

medals to clinch the thirdposition in the competition thatwas concluded on Saturday inEnugu.

The Coordinator, NSC South-East Zone I, Stanley Okebugwu,said the championships weresuccessful with greatsignificance and added that hewas impressed with theperformance of the youthselected from secondary schoolsin the zone.

“I am happy that thechampionships were successful.At least, we are able to discover

China’s Olympic hope LiuXiang stepped up hispreparations for the 110-

metres hurdles at the LondonGames with a victory at theSeiko Golden Grand Prix meetin Kawasaki, Japan, yesterday.

Liu, the 2004 Olympicchampion and 2007 worldchampion, clocked 13.09seconds to finish .24 secondsahead of Omo Osaghae of the

United States. American RonaldBrookins was third in 13.69.

“Considering there was somewind and rain today I amsatisfied with the time,” Liusaid. “This was my first outdoorrace of the season, so it was agood result.”

Looking ahead to London, headded: “For all athletes, theOlympics are special. There area lot of strong rivals so you just

have to concentrate on yourown conditioning andtraining.”

Liu’s victory follows a flawless60-metre hurdles final in 7.41seconds at the BirminghamGrand Prix in February to finishalmost a tenth of a second aheadof world record-holder DayronRobles in their first meetingsince last year’s worldchampionships.

Allyson Felix of the UnitedStates won the women’s 100-metre race on Sunday in 11.22,finishing .16 seconds ahead ofMelissa Breen of Australia.Chisato Fukushima of Japanwas third in 11.39.

“It was a bit crazy with theweather but I just tried to stayfocused,” Felix said. “You neverknow what can happen in amajor competition like thiswhen the conditions aren’tideal.”

Felix, a two-time Olympicsilver medalist over 200metres, said she is working hardto win the gold in London.

“I don’t feel desperate, I feelvery motivated,” Felix said.“I’ve had a lot of time to thinkabout being a silver medalist.It’s definitely something thathas been making me work hardand hopefully it was all cometogether.”

China’s Su Bingtian beatAmerican competition to winthe men’s 100-metre race in10.04, finishing .01 secondsahead of Mike Rodgers, with KimCollins third in 10.07.

Liu wins 110m hurdle race in Japan

Enugu wins 1st Akanu Ibiam AthleticsChampionships

relay team, finished a distantsecond in exactly 10 seconds.

Bolt was disqualified from lastyear’s 100 final at the worldchampionships because of a falsestart, but was not perturbed bythe delays.

“A couple of false starts willthrow you off, but I stayedfocused and went out there andexecuted as best as possible, soI’m just happy with myself,” hesaid.

Although pleased with thelast 50 metres of the race, thelanky sprinter, who owns worldrecords of 9.58 seconds in the100 and 19.19 in the 200, saidhe must continue to work onthe first phase of the shorterrace.

“I always try to work on myfirst 40 metres because the last40 metres is always the bestpart of my race,” he said. “Soover the season as I get more fitand get more fluent it willdefinitely get better.”

Blake also added a season-leading performance, one of fourin the meeting. The world 100champion clocked 19.91 secondsin the 200.

“Bolt erased my world lead inthe 100 so I though I would set aworld lead in the 200,” theJamaican said.

Top performances of the yearalso came in the women’s 100and 400.

“It’s a good start, I would say,”said Bolt, who erased theprevious season-leading time of9.90 by his training partner andworld champion Yohan Blakethree weeks ago.

“I feel better than last year, soI’m definitely happy withmyself. I don’t think myexecution was perfect, but Ithink for my first race it wasgood,” Bolt added

Michael Frater, a member ofJamaica’s world record 4x100

Bolt erases Blakes’ time, sets year’sfastest 100m recordJamaican Olympic

champion Usain Bolt heldhis nerve after two false

starts by competitors andpowered to the year’s fastest 100metres at the JamaicaInternational Invitational onSaturday.

The 100 and 200 world recordholder clocked a dazzling 9.82seconds in his first individualrace of 2012, exploding from theblocks to take control at 40metres.

World champion CarmelitaJeter took the shorter race in10.81 seconds, finishing aheadof Kelly-Ann Baptiste of Trinidadand Tobago, who ran 10.86.Jamaican Olympic silvermedallist Kerron Stewart wasthird in 10.98.

“I feel good with that win,”Jeter said. “I know there’s somethings I didn’t do right and I’msure my coach is going to get onme, but it’s a long season.

“Right now I just have to stayhealthy ... to stay humble, stayfocused ... I can’t get ahead ofmyself, I can’t get big-headedbecause you never know who isgoing to show up.”

Jamaican Novelene Williams-Mills, the 2007 world bronzemedalist, held off US worldindoor champion SanyaRichards-Ross in the last 50 towin the women’s 400 in 49.99seconds.

Richards-Ross, who had theprevious world leader of 50.18,took second in 50.11.

Jamaican Brigitte FosterHilton, the 2009 worldchampion who struggled in2011, appeared to have regainedher form in the 100 hurdles,winning in 12.51 seconds.

The time was just 0.02 behindthe world leading performanceof 12.49 by current worldchampion Sally Pearson ofAustralia.

Liu Xiang Allyson Felix Amantle Montsho

Jairus Kipchoge

Bolt


The Lagos State TaekwondoAssociation onWednesday, in Lagos,

vowed to set new records at the18th National Sports Festivaltagged “Eko 2012 Games” inLagos.

The association’s Chief Coach,Peace Ogunnowo, disclosed thiswhile speaking with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) on thepreparation of thetaekwondoists for the Nov. 27to Dec. 9 fiesta.

“We are going to put ourentire prowess into display to setnew records by having a cleansweep of medals at the festival.

“To achieve this, we willensure that we select the bestteam that will excel at thefestival and with the support ofthe state government we haveno reason to fail,” she said.

She gave an assurance thather team would improve on thetwo gold and two silver medalsit won at the 17th edition of thefestival in Port Harcourt lastyear.

The chairman said thatpreparations were in top gear toimprove the skills andknowledge of technical officialsand the taekwondoists in theassociation through a series ofseminars and competitions.

She added that theassociation would hold a two-daytechnical seminar andcompetitions for coaches,referees, judges andtaekwondoists from May 4 toMay 5 at the Mobolaji JohnsonSports Centre, Yaba.

According to her, thefacilitator for the technicalseminar is Emmanuel Peters, asenior Nigerian taekwondoreferee and a former 2002Olympics silver medalist.

She said that the programme,which is being sponsored by thestate government, wouldgreatly benefit technicalofficials and taekwondoistspreparing for the festival.

The coach furher gave anassurance that moretaekwondoists who could makethe festival

would be discovered at thecompetition.

Ogunnowo lauded the stategovernment for the provision ofmodern equipment and kits tothe association.

Athletics Federation plans U-18 competition to curb agecheating Dateline: Lagos.

Lagostaekwondoset fornewrecord atsportsfestival

Foreign experts predict bright futurefor wheelchair tennis in Nigeria

The Parliamentary StaffAssociation of Nigeria(PASSAN) has elected new

officials into its Central WorkingCommittee to run the affairs ofthe association for the next threey e a r s .

The election, which was heldin Makurdi, Benue State, at theThird Triennial NationalDelegates Conference, saw theemergence of Fatai Jimoh as its

president, Bala Hadi, deputynational president, HadizaMohammed, as zonal vicepresident FCT, Umar YusufKasim, vice president NorthC e n t r a l .

Similarly, Yakubu Suleiman,vice president North East, NuraAbdulkadir, vice president

North West, Onwuama Frank,vice president South South, C.C.Abangwu, vice president SouthEast, and Rotimi Micheal, vicepresident South West, whileOlolade Oyeyipo was electedSecretary General.

The newly elected executivecommittee was inaugurated by

the Senior Legal Officer of BenueState House of AssemblyBarrister Wando Aondonana.

The new leadership is to pilotthe affairs of the association aswell as organised theforthcoming ParliamentaryGames scheduled to be held inAbeokuta, Ogun State in July.

Mr Alfred Ale, thePresident, CyclingC o m m i s s a r i e s

Association of Nigeria, has urgedgovernment at levels andprivate firms to support thedevelopment of the sport.

Ale said at a seminarorganised for commissaries atthe Obafemi Awolowo Stadiumthat neglecting cycling was thebane of its development.Commissaries are umpires incycling just as Grade One

referees in football.“Nigeria does not have to lag

behind in the application of therules and regulations because itis the same all over the world,”he said.

He disclosed that Nigeria hadonly produced two internationalcommissaries in the last 30years Brig. Abdul Kadir and Rev.Moses Iloh, adding that both ofthem had retired. Iloh was aformer President of the WestAfrican Cycling Federation.

“Having Internationalcommissaries will afford thecountry the opportunity ofattending world cyclingcongresses and producingmembers of InternationalCycling Committees.”

Ale said the association waslooking forward to participatingin the forthcoming NationalSports Festival scheduled to holdin Lagos from Nov. 27 to Dec. 9.

The seminar, according tohim, was organised to acquaint

the commissaries with the rulesand regulations of cycling.

Meanwhile, in a separateinterview, Mr Joseph Olaitan,the Comptroller of Immigration,Ibadan Command, assured thecommissaries of support fromthe Nigerian ImmigrationServices (NIS).

Olaitan said that the NISwould support the developmentof cycling. “Sports helps a lot inbuilding a healthy body and asound mind,” Olaitan said.

President cycling association pleads for govt, private sector sponsorship

PASSAN elects new executive

Suzie Dyrbus, anInternational TennisFederation (ITF) instructor,

says Nigeria has the potential tobe among the leadingwheelchair tennis playingnations of the world.

Dyrbustold yesterday inLagos, that wheelchair tennishad recorded tremendousgrowth in the country and that,if sustained, it would bring inlaurels .

The instructor from Englandspoke with NAN on the sidelinesof a training course, organised

by the John CruyffFoundation, UK, to develop thesport in the country.

Athletics Federationplans U-18 competitionto curb age cheatThe Athletics Federation of

Nigeria (AFN) says it willorganise an U-18 athletics

competition for secondaryschool students as part of effortsto tackle age cheating and todevelop the sport.

Yusuf Alli, an official of AFN,said yesterday in Lagos that thecompetition would hold fromMay 10 to May 12 at the YabaCollege of Technology Sportscomplex, Lagos.

Alli explained that thecompetition would aim atcurbing age cheating inathletics because manyathletes often reduced theirages in a bid to stay longer insport, a situation which he said,was counter-productive for thec o u n t r y .

“We are organising an U-18competition from the 10th to12th in Lagos this year. I canassure you that if you are over

18 years, you will not takepart. And you must be inschool; we want to have thedatabase of these athletesbeginning now.”

The AFN official noted thatthe database of the talentsdiscovered at thechampionships would be keptfor reference purposes, addingthat the talents would bemonitored and groomed tos tardom.

He said: “When we arefocusing on winning age groupcompetitions for a long time,that brings in the cheating.People that are 25 years old,20 years old running in U-15or U-17 competitions - I thinkis the bane of not only athletics,but all other sports.

“I think once we go back toschool sports, which is thegrassroots, you will see thatathletes will last a long timebecause they are young. Ithink this should be our focus;to me, it is the down payment;down payments are our youthprogrammes; we must holdthem tight.

“We should not try to win atthat lower age competition; weshould just try to go out thereand compete. Eventually theywill train and they will learnand they will do well in thefuture. ”

He, however, expressedoptimism that the country hada lot of talent waiting to beidentified and nurtured for thegreatness of the country.

“The standard of the game isquite impressive because I sawthe Nigerian team at the WorldTeam Cup qualifiers in Kenyaand they played so well,” shesaid .

Dyrbus was delighted with thecommitment which the coachesand players exhibited to thetraining course

“‘I have been to several Africancountries under the same projectand I can tell you that there are

potential stars in the country.“The enthusiasm, I mustemphasise, is great and what thecountry needs is adequateexposure of its players byattending internationaltournaments which would helptheir game to improve,” she said.

Dyrbus promised that the ITF,as a follow up to her report,

would in the next few monthsdonate wheelchairs, racquets,balls and other tennis materialsto fast-track the development ofthe game.

The instructor also appealedto corporate bodies to help indeveloping the game throughthe procurement of equipment,and sponsoring tournaments.

Bolaji Abdullahi, SupervisingMinister of Sports Idara Otu, Nigeria’s Olympic medal hope


Pictorial

a

b

c

d

e

f

g

a. Manchester City and Manchester United will go intothe final day of the season level on points. City recordeda huge 2-0 win at Newcastle before United beat Swanseaby the same scoreline, leaving Roberto Mancini's menwith an eight-goal advantage ahead of next week's gamewith QPR.

b. Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay praised RobertoDi Matteo's efforts after he led the team to FA Cup glorybut remains insistent that no decision will be taken on hislong-term future until the end of the season.

c. Floyd Mayweather holds off Miguel Cotto to take theWBA super welterweight title and maintain hisundefeated record.

d. Newcastle finish bottom of the Premiership and facepossible relegation despite a 14-10 win over Wasps atAdams Park..

e. Masters champion Bubba Watson will miss the PlayersChampionship at Sawgrass after taking a month off fromgolf to spend time with family.

f. Andy Murray is forced to pull out of the Madrid Open,which starts on Sunday, after suffering a back injury.

g. The West Indies' preparations for their Test seriesagainst England continue to be affected by availabilityconcerns.

SPORTS LALALALALATESTTESTTESTTESTTEST

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Published by Peoples Media Limited, 35, Ajose Adeogun Street, 1st Floor Peace Park Plaza,Utako, Abuja. Lagos Office: No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos,Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 803 606 3308. e-mail: [email protected]: 2141– 6141

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012

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to hear — Herberto hear — Herberto hear — Herberto hear — Herberto hear — Herbert t t t t AgAgAgAgAgararararar

United taketitle race towire after win

A politician is someone whobelieves you don’t have to foolall the people all the time. Justduring elections - StanleyDavies

President Umaru MusaYar’adua died two years ago.Most of the footprints he left

have been virtually swept off thelandscape by horrendous setbacksin governance, and it will amountto speculation over whether hewould recognize the nation he lefttwo years ago. To be sure, he was inlarge part an architect of much ofwhat we have in our hands today,but would he approve of thestructure he helped design? In away, this would summarize thedilemma in the political life of latePresident Yar’adua: great vision,poor execution and severelycompromised outcomes.

The Yar’adua legacy in his 8-year tenure in Katsina state is beinghotly disputed. The rump of hisloyalists say his successor andtrusted ally, Ibrahim Shema, hasre-written Yar’adua’s script.Shema’s people say he is buildingon the solid foundations of Umaru’slegacies, and he has no apologiesfor writing his own script. KatsinaState is today one of the bulwarksof the PDP machine in the nation,but its political clout and economicprogress have been highjacked byforces outside the state, and thenorth. The schools and roadsUmaru built of such high qualityare failing in many parts, and theconsiderable number of enemiesand adversaries he made when hesat tightly on public funds havefound their ways into favour. Thestate struggles to put something onthe ground after paying salaries,and it must be costing more thanan arm and a leg to preserve thedifficult control of the PDP over thepolitical terrain in Katsina, and thedisposition of Shema himself as aman who counts pennies beforeparting with them must be makingit even more difficult to keep theCPC at bay.

But it is at the federal levelwhere Yar’adua started with theappearance of a man determinedto make a relatively clean breakwith history that even moreprofound changes have occurredin the last two years. Against themost vociferous resistance, hedenounced the elections thatbrought him to power, and pledgedto reform the electoral process. Hefollowed through with a credibleeffort under the Justice LawalUwais committee, but abandonedthe process when it became clearthat a reformed electoral processwas going to take too manycasualties, with his own party, thePDP as the biggest. He declared hisassets publicly, and set alarm bellsringing when all politicalappointees thought he would judgethem negatively if they did not dosame. He did not. His was a

symbolic gesture to send a messagethat he would fight corruption, andwould be a servant leader. Heraised hopes around the mantra ofrule of law as his fundamentalconcern, and said times withoutnumber that a corrupt leader couldnot be a good leader.

Those flashes of hope andcourage were swamped by forcesfar stronger and more entrenchedthen President Yar’adua. Far fromfighting corruption, corruptionfought back under his watch. Hisbaggage included some of hisclosest advisers who had manyhands in tills; scandalously-corrupt former and serving publicoffice holders who hadsubstantially bankrolled hiscampaign; and schemingpoliticians who saw weaknesses ina good man who trusted too much,and made enemies too easily.

His brilliant mind and nativeintelligence showed brightly in hisinitial conception of his agenda; butit became a victim of a past whichhad just dug in. He thought hecould address the crippling problemin the Niger Delta by a master-stroke of granting amnesty topeople who had made billionsthrough crime, hiding behindgenuine communal concerns, anda radical reform of the entire oil andgas sector. Against advice whichexposed the deep-rooted linkagesbetween politics and militancy inthe Niger Delta, he embarkedupon an expensive and potentiallydangerous amnesty programme.Today, there are hints thatbeneficiaries of the programme arebeing groomed to provide thebackbone of a skilled manpowerwhich the south-south could use,in the event that the region has tochart a course on its own. The

Petroleum Industry Bill (P.I.B)which was knocked together atgreat pains by Rilwanu Lukmanand his team has many versionstoday; and may never see the lightof day, no thanks to the potentialfor vicious resistance against whichthe late President was warned.Massive corruption and a lethargicbureaucracy frustrated his plansto expand the power sector. Hisgreat vision for reform of the landadministration system in Nigeria,for agriculture and water resourcesand road and rail networks wasblunted by indifference beyond hisimmediate, small circle, and apublic service which servedcorruption more than it served thepublic.

President Yar’adua wanted tobe his own man, but was shackedall around. He was the product of apolitical campaign which wasfunded by people he detested evento be in the same room with. So hepreferred not to know how he got tothe Villa. He wanted his party, thePDP, an institution which will winthe Nobel Prize in subverting thedemocratic process to toe the line ofhis mantra of the rule of law, butthere were too many debts to settle;too many interests to pander to;and a godfather who was verymuch around and verydemanding. He had a mostprofound respect for PresidentObasanjo, and was thereforereluctant to unplug many of thelatter’s decisions and schemes, yetthey offended much of his definitionof good governance, and themanner he defined his ownadministration. In the end, heneither pleased Obasanjo norhimself. Behind him, or over hisshoulders, he had the constantpresence of Atiku Abubakar,another elder he respectedtremendously, but who is now apolitical rival; and of GeneralMuhammadu Buhari, a politicianhe knew only too well, and whoretained the potential to uproot hisdisputed victory for a long periodduring his presidency.

His circle expanded ornarrowed with his health. He hada group which became obsessedwith protecting his failing healthand personal dignity and theintegrity of his office by all meansnecessary, and unnecessary. Healso had others in the group whosaw in his failing health andstubborn streak an opportunity to

Umaru Yar’adua: Flashes in the dark

Manchester Unitedensured the race forthe Premier League

title will go to the final game ofthe season as they beat SwanseaCity 2-0 at Old Traffordyesterday few hours afterleaders Man City defeatedNewcastle with same goalmargin.

But it proved to be a bitter-sweet day for the reigningchampions, who will start assignificant underdogs to clinchan unprecedented 20th title asrivals Manchester City close inon their first top-flight crownsince 1968.

Manchester United willtravel to Sunderland, who havenot beaten them in the leaguefor 15 years, spanning 19attempts, while City will beoverwhelming favourites tobeat a relegation-threatenedQueens Park Rangers side whohave won just three times onthe road this season.

The Premier League titlehas never yet been decided ongoal difference, but there isevery chance this season thatit will.

United will have to betterCity's final day result to finishabove their near them.Victories for both – barring amathematical miraclecourtesy of an unlikely nine-goal swing – will spark hugecelebrations in the blue half ofManchester.

Defeat left Swansea in 12thplace, with only one victory intheir last eight league matchesgoing into their final game athome to Liverpool.

Meanwhile, Ten-manTottenham Hotspur spurnedthe chance to go third in thePremier League yesterday aftera 1-1 draw at Aston Villa, forwhom a point all but assuredtheir top-flight survival.

Tottenham are a pointadrift of Arsenal in fourth placeahead of Saturday's final fixturesand fifth-placed Newcastle are apoint behind also.

Chelsea could snatch thefinal spot for Europe's elitecompetition that wouldnormally go to the teamfinishing fourth if they beatBayern Munich in this season'sfinal.

use his authority to their ownbenefits. Long before the nationbecame aware that his failinghealth was becoming a major issuein governance, a small clique hadpositioned itself around him. Thefacade of normalcy was carefullyorchestrated, and a determinedeffort was made to keep his deputy,Vice President Goodluck Jonathanas far away as possible from thePresidency. A weak president waspersuaded to approve a shoot-at-sight order on his way, literally,out of the country, when the BokoHaram insurgency hadoverwhelmed the police in BornoState in 2009. Today, the nationlives with the consequences of thatdecision. A weak President waspersuaded to approve a policy ofremoving public officers fromservice against the basic rules of theservice, with claims that the policywill radically transform the service.Today, hundreds of senior officersare being retired at the verymoment when they are mostneeded, and the fundamentalbreach which that decision causedin the manner it violated sanctifiedvalues of the service is being madeworse. The public service iscollapsing at an alarming rate; thepension scam, and the subsidyexposé are symptoms of the failureof the public service to protect thepublic and political leaders againstcorruption and impunity and maybe just the tip of the iceberg.

Almost to the day, the Presidentwho took over after Yar’adua diedis grappling with worsening levelsof corruption and insecurity. Hehas had a public falling-out withhis National Security Advisor(NSA) over the causes of the BokoHaram insurgency, but the nationis being told that it has failed toreally understand the NSA. Theproblems, we are being told, is thatYar’adua’s kith and kin have beensponsoring an insurgency againstPresident Jonathan, even thoughhe, Yar’adua, a northerner, hadalmost single-handedly engineeredthe amnesty programme in theNiger Delta. Thousands ofYar’aduas fellow citizens, majorityof them Muslims, are dying dailyat the hands of an insurgencywhich says his administration isresponsible for having their leaderkilled illegally, and they willcontinue to wage war against theNigerians State and Christians whooffend Islam. The nation is alreadyin the grip of opening skirmishestowards 2015, even though basicissues around the 2011 electionsand the post-election violence havenot been addressed. The nationYar’adua thought he could give anew lease of life is showing signs offailure due to unspeakable levels ofcorruption, unprecedented threatsto national security, and a weakleadership. All told, the periodduring which Umaru MusaYar’adua was President of Nigerialooks just like flashes in the dark.

Late Umaru Musa Yar’adua

FIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENMINUTESMINUTESMINUTESMINUTESMINUTES

[email protected]

withDr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed

. . . putting the people first

Documents

Peoples Daily Newspaper, Monday, May 07, 2012