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Vol. 9 No. 85 Friday, December 7, 2012 Al-Muharram 23, 1434 AH N150 . . . putting the people first

N152m unauthorisedloan discovered in

COE Ilorin>> PAGE 2 >> PAGE 6

Investigate killingsin the North, ACFtells FG>> PAGE 5

North ‘ll take 20 years to recover from Boko Haram - AbdulsalamiFrom Agaju Madugba, Kaduna

Contd on Page 2

Former Head of State, Gen.Abdulsalami Abubakar,has reviewed the socio-

economic implications of thecurrent security challenges in theNorth regretting that it will take

the region some 20 years torecover from the damage.

Abdulsalami spoke yesterdayin Kaduna when he chaired asession at the Arewa House-organized conference onstrategies for sustainabledevelopment in the north.

According to him, unity hastaken flight from the Northarguing that the developmentgave rise to the conference, aimedat what Abdulsalami described ascleaning up the mess.

“Certainly if there is unity wewouldn’t be here at this

conference, so since there is nounity, that is why the ArewaHouse is trying to galvanize it atthis conference

“It will take 20 years to revivethe North because a lot of socio-economic damage has been done.

“If you go round the areas, that

is when you will appreciate theextent of the damage done to theregion. We have to work togetherto revive it.

“All of us should join hands aswe cannot leave security to the

VP’s residenceto gulp N14bn

BUYING SELLING

$ 154.76 155.76£ 249.412 251.02EURO 202.24 203.54CFA 0.2892 0.3092RIYAL 41.266 41.53

BUYING SELLING

EURO 207 209£ 255 256RIYAL 42 44$ 157 158

CBN RATES

PD INDEX 6th Dec., 2012

PARALLEL RATES

L-R: Vice-President Mohammed Namadi Sambo, Professor Samuel Ohaegbulam, President Goodluck Jonathan, and ProfessorEmmanuel Ayotunde Yoloye, during the conferment of the 2012 Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM) award on ProfessorOhaegbulam and ProfessorYoloye by President Jonathan, yesterday at the State House, in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

The official residence of theVice President will gulp atotal of N14 billion as the

Federal Capital DevelopmentAuthority (FCDA) is nowdemanding for a fresh N7billion for the completion of thepalatial building in addition tothe N7 billion that has alreadybeen spent on the structure.

The FCDA initiallyrequested for additional N9billion which would havebrought the total cost to N16billion but was slashed to N7billion by the Bureau for PublicProcurement (BPP).

Contd on Page 2

. . . Senate kicks

FG bars statesfrom direct

foreign loans

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSNews 2-11

Editorial 12

Op.Ed 13

Letters 14

Opinion 15

Metro 16-18

Business 19-22

S/Exchange 23

Interview 24-25

Islam 26

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Constitutional roles fortraditional rulers will

check insecurity, saysGen. Usman,

Page 37

WE WANTTO HEAR

FROM YOU

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 2

Contd from Page 1

North ‘ll take 20 years to recover from Boko Haram - Abdulsalami

FG bars states from direct foreign loansBy Richard Ihediwa

Contd from Page 1

VP’s residence to gulp N14bn

The Federal Government hasbarred states taking loansdirectly from foreign

institutions without approvalsby the Federal Government andendorsement by the NationalAssembly.

This is just as the Senate hasresolved not to approve loans forstates that failed to appear beforeit to defend the reasons for thecredit facilities they are seekingfor.

Minister of State for Finance,Yerima Ngama disclosed FederalGovernment’s position yesterdaywhen states seeking for foreignloans stormed the NationalAssembly demanding speedypassage of the pipeline projectslisted for them in the MediumTerm External borrowing planpresented by President Goodluck

Jonathan to the federallegislature for approval.

Currently, the NationalAssembly is considering loanproposals amounting to $9 billionout of which states are seeking for$3.39 billion while the FederalGovernment is seeking for a totalof $4.8 billion. The remaining$1.1 billion represents funds fromEurobond and Diaspora bond.

At the hearing yesterday,members of the SenateCommittee on Foreign Loansand Debt maintained that anystate that did not give cogentreasons and satisfactorymechanism for the utilisation ofthe loan would not have itsdemand approved.

Chairman of the committee,Senator Uzamere Ehigie also saidstates that failed to appear beforehis committee to defend theirproposals would not have

government’s approval for theloans. States that have notappeared to defend their ownloans are Ondo, Rivers and Deltastates.

Many commissioners whorepresented their various stategovernments complained of thefailure of the Ministry of Financeto release the fund even whenthey met all the criteria laiddown for the loans.

Speaking at the meeting,Ngama explained that thecurrent loans were differentfrom the ones collected by thenation in the past saying theywere interest free concessionalloans with 40 years repaymentperiod.

He added that all states in thecountry have been banned fromnegotiate for the loanindividually in order to ensurethat the interest rates of the loan

are the same.One of that states that

requested for loans include Imostate with the Commissioner ofFinance, Chike Okaforsubmitting a proposal for $45million and $20 million forerosion management and youthempowerment support projectsrespectively.

Details of the overall loanprofile shows that the FederalGovernment seeks to borrow thesum of $300 million to supportthe provision of the affordablehouses for Nigerians with longterm repayment period.

Also, $200 million will beborrowed to support agriculturein the areas of seeds, fertilizersand agrochemicals. It will alsouse to develop data base andresearch through the West Africaagricultural productivityproject.

government alone.“Every Nigerian is a security

officer. Let us join hands and reportwhat we see so that governmentwill be able to take action, weshould be government’s watchdogs and also watch ourcommunities.”

In his contribution, a formerSecretary of the IndependentNational Electoral Commission(INEC), Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, also lamented what hedescribed as the Boko Haraminsurgency in the north.

As he put it, “the Boko Haraminsurgency is eating up the Northlike a cancer and it will requirebold initiatives by northerners tofind a solution, by influencingboth the insurgency and thegovernment.

“Not all Nigerians arecomfortable with a united andstrong North. Its current positiontherefore is welcome to itsdetractors and rivals.

“They will not lift a finger toheal its wound. This will have tobe done by people in this hall whofeel the pain most.”

A former Governor of Benue

state, Senator George Akume, whochaired another session on valuesand leadership, noted that theNorth is no longer safe for both itspeople and visitors.

According to Akume. “if thereis no peace, development hardlytakes place, no matter thedetermination of the actors.

“The theme of this conferencebears direct relevance to what ishappening in the north.

“I am very sad things arehappening the way they arehappening now. I was in Bornoabout six months ago when myfriend and brother, the Governor,

Kashim Ibrahim gave out hissister for marriage.

“We were about 30 personswho were supposed to go to Bornobut only eight of us decided to go.The others gave different reasonsfor not making it.

“We must imbibe the valuesof honour, respect, integrity, hardwork and determination becausethey have direct bearing on thedevelopment of the North.”

As at the time of this report lastnight, a communiqué was stillbeing awaited from the organizersof the conference which wasconcluded yesterday.

The issues is now raising afresh controversy over theperceived lack of frugality onthe side of the FederalGovernment as the Senate hadrejected the cost withlawmakers describing it as“indefensible”.

The Executive Secretary ofthe Federal CapitalDevelopment Authority(FCDA), Adamu Ismail,yesterday told members of theSenate Committee on theFederal Capital Territory whowere on oversight tour ofprojects in the territory that theconstruction of the VicePresident’s residence wasawarded in 2009 at the cost ofN7billion.

Already, a fresh N2 billionhas been provided for thestructure in the 2013 budgetwith the Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT), Senator BalaMohammed, mounting a stiffdefense for the project despitepublic criticisms.

At the tour, Ismail saidwhile the initial fund has beenused on the super structure, anadditional N9 billion wasneeded to provide furniture,fencing, two additionalprotocol guest houses, abanquet hall and othersecurity gadgets for the onestorey building. Ismail

explained that the newproposal was not included inthe original scope of workwhich is currently beinghandled by construction giant,Julius Berger Nigeria Limited.

Ismail told members of thecommittee that the N9 billionproposed by the FCDA has beenslashed to N6 billion by the BPP.

“We have worked out thedetails and passed to BPP forconsideration. They (BPP) havesent it back to us with theirobservation. We requested forN9 billion but now it came toabout N6 billion”, he said.

But some official of JuliusBerger who were at the toursaid the company charged N7billion for the additional workand not N9 billion.

However, members of theSenate panel outrightly kickedagainst the proposal saying nomore money would beapproved for the building asidefrom the original N7 billionthat was appropriated.

Chairman of the committee,Senator Smart Adeyemi,argued that since a design forthe building was made andapproved by the FCT, based onwhich the National Assemblyappropriated funds, no morefund would be approved for itby the legislature.

He said that the NationalAssembly strongly believes

that the original N7 billionalready appropriated for wasmore than enough, pointingout that there were othernumerous projects that wouldbenefit the people that havebeen begging for funds. He saidthe N14 billion is indefensiblein view of present realities.

Adeyemi said; “Now you areasking us to approve a total sumof about N14 billion and this isjust the Vice President’sresidence. The NationalAssembly is not going toappropriate additional N9billion for the project especiallyat a period in this country wherepeople cannot get “three square

Int’l 27-30

Strange World 31

Revue 32-33

Feature 34-35

Digest 36

Politics 37-39

News Extra 40

Sports 41-44

Leisure 47

Columnist 48

meal.“The N9 billion is far more

than the original cost of theproject. N14 billion to me ishuge for the Vice President’shouse. The reality is that N14billion is indefensible and thatis our submission. In Nigeriathere are still many people withempty stomach. We have to lookat budgeting in relation to theneeds of the people”, he said.

Vice Chairman of theCommittee, Senator DomingoObende, however asked theExecutive Secretary to submitthe additional scope of work forwhich the fund is required tothe committee for properscrutiny.

The FCT Minister had onTuesday defended the budgetsaying that Vice President isstaying in a guest house meantfor visiting heads of statesaying such was not befittingfor the position.

“It became imperative forus to provide accommodationfor the Vice-President.TheVice-President has noaccommodation; certainly youwill agree with me that it isunbecoming for anygovernment not to provideaccommodation for its Vice-President. We will now embarkon the construction of abefitting residence for the vice-president,” he had said.

Vice-President MohammedNamadi Sambo

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 3

The Independent NationalElectoral Commission(INEC) yesterday

announced the deregistration of28 more political parties.

This brings to 28 the numberof political parties in the countryfrom the 63 that contested in the2011 elections.

The latest de-registration isdespite the case filed against thecommission by the sevenpolitical parties it deregistered inApril this year following itsinsistence that they weremoribund and did not meet theconditions to operate as politicalparties.

The Secretary to theCommission, Abdullahi A.Kaugama, in a statement lastnight listed the latest

INEC deregisters 28more partiesBy Richard Ihediwa deregistered parties, though the

statement did not give reasonsfor the decision.

It rather said the decision wasbased on the powers conferred onthe commission by the 1999constitution and the ElectoralAct as amended.

The affected parties includeAfrican Liberation Party (ALP),Action Party of Nigeria (APN),African Political System (APS),Better Nigeria Progressive Party(BNPP), Congress for DemocraticChange (CDC), CommunityParty of Nigeria (CPN),Democratic Peoples Alliance(DPA), Freedom Party of Nigeria(FPN), Fresh Democratic Party(FDP), Hope Democratic Party(HDP), Justice Party (JP) andLiberal Democratic Party ofNigeria (LDPN).

Other are Movement for

Democracy and Justice (MDJ),Movement for the Restorationand Defence of Democracy(MRDD), Nigeria AdvancedParty (NAP), New Democrats(ND), National MajorityDemocratic Party (NMDP),National Movement ofProgressive Party (NMPP),National Reformation Party(NRP) and National SolidarityDemocratic Party (NSDP).

Also deregistered are theProgressive Action Congress(PAC), Peoples Mandate Party(PMP), Peoples Progressive Party(PPP), Peoples Redemption Party(PRP), People's Salvation Party(PSP), Republican Party ofNigeria (RPN), United NationalParty for Development (UNPD)and United Nigeria Peoples Party(UNPP).

NASSmembers notbehind Abujademolition,Reps sayBy Lawrence Olaoye

Lawmakers in the NationalAssembly have deniedspeculations that they

nudge the Minister for FederalCapital Territory (FCT),Senator Bala Mohammed, todemolish estates in order toredistribute lands recovered tothem.

The House ofRepresentatives yesterdayclarified that they are not inany way connected with theexercise.

Deputy Chairman, Housecommittee on Media and PublicAffairs, Rep Victor Oghene, toldnewsmen that the Houseresolved not to dabble into thespate of demolition in the FCTbecause the Senate has alreadybegun investigation into thematter.

According to him, althoughthe House was worried by theseries of demolition involving500 housing units at MinanuelEstates and the threat by theMinister to further demolish 31other estates in the nation'scapital, "It is a norm with the 7thAssembly that if the Senate ishandling a matter, we stay off.

"To say that NationalAssembly members areprospecting for plots, I don't knowabout that," Ogene clarified. Hehowever pointed out that casesarising from the demolition ofthe Minanuel Estate in Abujaare already in the court of lawand that it would be prejudice tomake further comments on thematter.

Several estates andindigenous settlements,including Mpape district, inAbuja have been marked formass demolition by the FCTMinister in spite of publicoutcries. This, it is argued,would further compound thewoes of Abuja residentscurrently under the siege ofhomelessness.

Commenting on the refusalof the House to recognize ArmahOteh as the Director General ofSecurity and ExchangeCommission (SEC) during thebudget defense, Ogenemaintained that the resolutionof the House that the SEC boss beremoved stands.

The House spokespersonpointed out that she had similarcase with the sacked DirectorGeneral of the Bureau of PublicEnterprises (BPE), Ms. BolanleOnagoruwa, whom the Senaterecommended for dismissal.

Vice President MohammedNamadi Sambo yesterdayin Kaduna condoled with

former Head of State, Major GenMuhammadu Buhari (Rtd)over the death of his eldestdaughter, Hajiya Zulaihatu

Buhari.Sambo, who was at Gen

Buhari's Kaduna residence wasaccompanied by GovernorPatrick Yakowa of Kaduna stateand his deputy, Alhaji RamallanYero and other top federal and

state government functionaries.VP Sambo prayed Almighty

Allah for the repose of the soul oflate Zulaihatu as well as granther Aljanna Rirdausi.

He also prayed Allah to grantGeneral Buhari, his entire

Sambo condoles Buhari over daughter's death

Suleja bombings:Court slates Dec20 for trial

A Federal High Court inAbuja has adjourned tillDecember 20, 2012 the

trial of six persons alleged tohave participated in thebombings which occurred lastyear in Suleja, Niger State.

At the resumed hearing ofthe matter yesterday, thecourt was informed that about200 explosive devices wereretrieved from the accusedpersons at the time of theirarrest.

The prosecution witness, anarmy officer whose name wasnot disclosed for securityreasons, told the court that oneof the devices could pull downan entire building if triggered.

While under crossexamination by the defensecounsel, Kevin Emeka Okoro,the witness denied plantingincriminating pictures in themobile phones which wereretrieved from the accusedpersons.

He said, "I can never loadsuch things to incriminatesomeone I do not know andhave never seen until thatday".

Shuaibu Abubakar, SalisuAhmed, Umar Babagana,Mohammed Ali, Musa Adamuand Umar Ibrahim werecharged on five count-chargesbordering on terrorism.

They were alleged to havecaused the death of severalpersons through the use ofimprovised explosives at apolitical rally and at the officeof the Independent NationalElectoral Commission (INEC),in Suleja and Dakwa Village inBwari Area Council of Abuja.

The trial Judge, JusticeBilkisu Aliyu adjourned at theinstance of the prosecutingcounsel, Thompson Olatigbe,who has five more witnesses topresent before the court.

Forgery: EFCC docks one, court orders arrest of anotherBy Sunday Ejike Benjamin

The Economic and FinancialCrimes Commission(EFCC), yesterday has

docked one Ibrahim MohammedKamba before an Abuja High forallegedly conniving with twoothers to forge title documents ofa property located at plot 307 B05Utako District of Abuja.

The two other accusedpersons, Ibrahim MohammedBashir and Barrister SteveImokhe were not in court for theirarraignment.

The trial Judge, Justice A. BMohammed issued a bench

warrant against MohammedBashir, who was to be arraignedon a 12-count charge of fraud andforgery of title documents of theproperty .

Barrister Steve Imokhe andIbrahim Mohammed Bashirwere not in courtfor theirarraignment, as the matter wasadjourned to January 23, 2013for either to arrest Bashir orseparate the charges andarraignedKamba.

After the court granted theprosecution leave to prefercharges against the three accusedpersons, counsel to Imokhe,Abdulamid Mohammed

informed the court that hisclient's inability to appear fortheday's proceedings was as a resultof bad health and hospitalization.

Mohammed Bashir wasneither present in court nor washe represented by a counsel.

Prosecution counsel, C.OUgwu, informed the court of theneed to prefer a separate chargefor Ibrahim Mohammed Kambaand issue bench warrant againstthe other two accused thatdeliberately refused to appear incourt for the arraignment.

Justice Mohammed whileupholding the prayers of theprosecution to issue arrest

warrant on Mohammed Bashirdirected the prosecution toascertain the veracity orotherwise of the claim of ill-health by Imokhe.

The judge also granted theprayers of the prosecution toseparate the charges againstKamba to ensure his separatearraignment if the two otheraccused cannot be present at thenext adjourned date.

Trouble for the trio followed acomplaint by Sanusi Ado Bayero,who had alleged that sometimesin 2006, he applied for and wasallocated Plot 307 B05 UtakoDistrict, Abuja.

Customs and Trade Felicitation Consultant, Valentina Mintahi (left), Comptroller-General, Nigeria Customs Service, Abdullahi Dikko Inde (middle), and other topCustoms officers, at a Single Window demonstration, during the C-G CustomsConference, recently in Katsina.

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

family, late Zulaihatu's husbandand the children she left behindthe fortitude to bear the loss.

Responding General Buhariexpressed his gratitude to theVice President for the visit.

The 40 year old Hajiya

Zulaihatu Buhari died onThursday November 29, 2012,leaving behind her husband,Captain Junaidu Abdullahi andthree children, Amira,Mohammad and a new bornbaby.

PAGE 5PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Mint MD to remain on compulsory leaveBy Abdulwahab Isa

The Arewa ConsultativeForum (ACF), has urgedthe Federal Government

to institute a high poweredcommission to investigate thecontroversial murders thathave happened in the countrysince the insecurity permeatedthe polity with a view tounveiling the truth.

The call is contained in acommuniqué after a meeting ofthe National ExecutiveCouncil of the ACF held onDecember 5th, 2012, at itsNational Secretariat Hall alongSokoto Road, Kaduna, andchaired by the DeputyChairman of NEC, Alhaji SaiduBarda, and deliberated mainlyon matters bordering onsecurity challenges such as actsof terrorism, armed robbery,kidnappings and militant

Investigate killings inthe North, ACF tells FGFrom Agaju Madugba, Kaduna activism in different parts of

the country and by BokoHaram in the North.

The communiqué signed byits National PublicitySecretary, Anthony N. Z. Sani,said that the ACF consideredthe recent killings ofprominent Northerners bygunmen, and particularly theallegations and controversiessurrounding the killing ofGeneral Mohammed Shuwavery seriously.

“All these have been verydisturbing especially in view ofthe fact that nothing has beendone to bring the perpetratorsof the dastardly act to book”. Itstated.

The Forum also noted thedisturbing trend of bombexplosions in the nation’ssecurity establishments, mostrecent of which happened atthe Jaji military cantonment

The Board of the NigerianSecurity Printing andMinting Company

(NSPMC), the Mint hasapproved the extension ofcompulsory leave for theembattled Managing Directorof the firm, Ehi Okoyomon .

A source privy to the board’sdecision chaired by the CentralBank Governor, Sanusi LamidoSanusi which met yesterdaysaid it was unable to take finalposition on the matter, butapproved that Ehi should

continue on compulsory leavefor now to enable auditorscomplete their work.

He told Peoples Daily thatthe verification of cases ofalleged financial malpracticesagainst Ehi admistrastion arebeing handled by the CBNauditors.

The meeting could not makea pronouncement because theauditors were yet to finish theirwork, the source explainedyesterday.

An Executive Director,Ahmed Bamali is functioning inacting capacity.

Fuel queue: ‘FG ignoresoil marketers’ pressure’By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

and said such trend should notbe allowed to continue.

The meeting then appealedto federal government tothoroughly investigate theincident at Jaji and that noblames should be apportionedbefore the conclusion of theinvestigation.

It observed that ACF isconcerned that the authoritiesappear to be taking differentactions for events that areidentical in nature. Suchactions are liable to differentinterpretations, including thelikelihood of injustice andvictimization of officersinvolved.

The meeting alsodeliberated on the impendingnational census and urged allnorthern governors, politicalleaders and traditional rulersto mobilize people for theexercise.

Constitution review: NULGElooks for input abroad

The Nigeria Union of LocalGovernment Employees,(NULGE) Katsina state

chapter has visited Niamey inNiger Republic to study theirlocal governments mode ofoperations to source for inputs inthe on going constitution reviewefforts.

President of the StateChapter, NULGE, Alhaji AliHaruna Kankara stated thisyesteray, during an interactivesession between the union and itsNigerien counterpart, at theGaweye De Niemey Hotel.

He noted that owing to themyriad of problems facing localgovernment operations inNigeria, the union decided tosource for inputs abroad to bettertheir operations.

Kankara added “we haveproblems in local governmentoperations such as the issue ofautonomy and sources ofrevenue. Our national presidentis currently on a visit to fiveEuropean nations to study theirmode of local governmentsoperation”.

In his remark, the CDTN,Chairman, Yossouf Sidibe stressedthe importance of unity amonglabour groups the world over.

The long queue of vehiclesbeing experienced in fuelstations across the

country at the moment wasbecause the FederalGovernment has refused toshift to pressure by oilmarketers in the country, the

Senior Special Assistant toPresident Goodluck Jonathanon Public Affairs, Dr. DoyinOkupe has said.

Addressing a pressconference yesterday inAbuja,Okupe said there wasneed for Nigerians to gothrough the pains at themoment to address the issue of

fuel scarcity ones and for all.Okupe said the fuel subsidy

regime which had been aconduit pipe for

siphoning huge sums ofmoney from the nationaltreasury has been subjected toforensic scrutiny by variousagencies and committees set upby the President.

According to him, by thetime the Petroleum IndustryBill is passed into law, thecountry would havesuccessfully broken the jinx ofbeing a nation where globalbusiness rules and practices areflouted with impunity.

He said President Jonathanhas being working hard to

transform the lives ofNigerians as well as to enhancethe image and prestige of thecountry abroad since he tookcharge of affairs of the countryeighteen months ago.

He said, PresidentJonathan’s administration doesnot believe in arresting peoplefor the sake of playing to thegallery nor does it harbour theidea of deploying anti-corruption agencies as tools towitch-hunt political opponents,which he noted were familiarpractices in the pastadministrations.

While lamenting that thereare limiting factors in the legalsystem which accused personsexplore to scuttle judicialprocess, Okupe saidgovernment has put togetherthe Administration of CriminalJustice Bill 2012 to ensurespeedy dispensation of justice.

R-L: Executive Secretary, National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Dr. Mas'udu Adamu Kazaure,receiving copies of Peoples Daily from Chief Operating Officer, Peoples Media Limited (PML), MalamAli M. Ali (left), during a visit by the management of PML to NBTE, yesterday in Kaduna.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

From Lawal Sa’idu Funtua, InNiamey

Four kerosene racketeers in jigawa NSCDC custodyFrom Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse

The Jigawa command ofthe Nigerian Securityand Civil Defence Corp

have arrested four suspectedkerosene racketeers in Dutse,theJigawa state capital.

Briefing newsmen yesterdayin his office, the NSCDC stateCommandant, MohammadMahmoud Fari,said his menarrested the suspects while on

illegal petroleum products deal atthe NNPC Mega station.

The commandant explainedthat the operation resulted in thearrest of a Peugeot J5 Van withregistration NO. XA 838 GWWwith 342 Jerry Cans of 30 litrescapacity each, filled withKerosene.

He said, among thoseapprehended include Aminu Yau,Sulaiman Mohammad, HamisuUmar and Halilu Sulaiman.

Oil communities demandcomplete right to 13% derivationBy Abdulwahab Isa

The Oil and Gas Communitiesof Nigeria is demanding thatthe 13% derivation revenue

meant for oil producing statesfrom the federation account bedirectly to the oil and gasproducing communities.

The association stated this ina letter addressed to theChairman, Revenue MobilisationAllocation and Fiscal Commission,Engr. Elias Mbam datedNovember 19, 2012 and a copymade available to Peoples Daily.

The body also proposed thatthe payment should be madethrough a national derivationboard whose members shall berecommended for appointmentby the president on the advice ofleaders of oil and gas communities.

The association whichcomprises communities fromBayelsa, Delta, Edo Rivers states

and other oil producingcommunities noted that the 13%derivation fund belongsexclusively to the oil and gasproducing communities.

It said that, the oil facilities, flowstations etc. are located in thecommunities where oilexploration, exploitation andproduction are being carried outcausing monumental degradation,pollution and health hazardadding that the fund was acompensation and reparation forloss of fishing rights and productivefarmland.

The body also proposed that,the composition of NationalDerivation Board (NDB) wouldhave executive chairman,secretary and membersincluding a member from theRMAFC . The chairmanship ofNDB should rotate amongst oiland gas producing states everyfour years.

The former Minister of Worksand Housing, Hassan Lawalyesterday told a Federal

High Court in Abuja that theN43.4 million which is the subjectmatter of his arraignment by theEconomic and Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC) on theallegation of money launderingwas the proceed of his landedproperty in Nasarawa he sold torepay a loan he obtained from theUnited Bank for Africa (UBA).

While adopting his argumentfor a no case submission over his

on-going trial for allegedlylaundering N43.4 million, Lawalsaid he took a loan from the bankto buy a house belonging to formerInspector General of Police (IGP),Tafa Balogun at Asokoro, Abujawhich EFCC had seized and offeredto sell to him.

Lawal said he later sold hislanded property in Nasarawa stateto repay the loan and paid theproceed of that property into hisUBA Plc account that has becomethe subject of money launderingcharge preferred against him bythe anti-graft agency.

Counsel representing the

Ex Minister tells court how EFCCsold Tafa Bolgun’s house to him

former Works Minister, M. A. Odehasked the court to strike out theEFCC charge on the grounds thatthe sale of a landed property cannever constitute an illicit act orillegal source of fund.

He said the evidence ofProsecution Witnesses (PW1, PW2,PW3, and PW5) which wasdiscredited during cross-examinations cannot be consideredby the court, as the evidence of theprosecuting witnesses clearlystated that the transactionsbetween the accused persons andthe bank were normal bankingtransactions.

PAGE 4 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin “PW2 who is a former staff ofthe EFCC said Lawal bought theAsokoro house from the EFCC,while PW3 and PW5 who are staffof UBA said Lawal took loan fromthe bank and used the lodgedproceeds of the landed property soldin Nasarawa state to off-set theloan’’, he said.

But EFCC asked the court todiscountenance the submission ofthe accused.

Justice Adamu Bello howeveradjourned to February 25 nextyear to rule on Lawal’s no caseapplication.

Former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari (left), with other dignitaries praying for the repose of the soul of his daughter, Zulaihatu,during a condolence visit by the management of Peoples Media Limited at General's residence, yesterday in Kaduna.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

Policemen on patrolyesterday ”at about0730hrs” repelled bomb

attack by suspected militants,arresting eight of them who trailedthe police van in a Golf Car.

It was gathered from reliablepolice sources that the attackershurled an Improvised ExplosiveDevices (IEDs) at the movingvehicle, but missed their target asthe van swerved and escaped.

A source told our correspondentthat “the substance wasintercepted by a gallant officer andreturned it to where it was comingfrom and it exploded within a splitsecond”.

It was further learnt that theoperational vehicle and the officersescaped unhurt, adding that theycame under fire from the vicinityof the blast”

The Kano state police imagemaker the ASP Magaji Musa Majiaconfirmed the incident, sayingthat eight persons were arrested.

Police repelattack, arrest 8suspected militantsFrom Edwin olofu, Kano

Jaji bombing: Redeployment has no religious bias - ArmyBy Joy Baba

The Chief of Army Staff,(COAS), Lt-Gen AzubuikeIhejirika has denied

allegation that there wasreligious considerations in thechange in the leadership of theArmed Forces Command andStaff College (AFCSC) andInfantry Corp and Center(ICC),Jaji noting that it is adisservice to the nation to link theactivities of the of the military toethno-religious considerations.

The Army Chief, who wasrepresented by the Director ofMilitary Intelligence, Maj GenAhmed Jibrin stated this whilebriefing journalist at the ArmyHeadquarters, Abuja yesterdayIn response to accusations by theJama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) thatthe changes in AFCSC and ICC hasreligious tinge.

According to Ihejirika, thechange was not a punishmentbut part of measures to enablenew hands tackle lapses,shortcomings and limitationsthat would be identified in thecourse of the investigations.

The COAS pointed out that,earlier attacks on barracks hasprompted the review of policies,measures and standards to beadopted in all military locationsto prevent reoccurrence.

He also noted that nobodyraised the issue of religioussentiments when Headquarters,1 Division was attacked onFebruary 7 this year and theGeneral Officer Commanding,Maj Gen JO Shoboiki, a Christianwas redeployed and replaced by

a Muslim, Maj Gen GarbaAbdulwahab.

Ihejirika said if JNI hadcontacted the military on theissue before making publicpronouncements, adequateexplanation would have beengiven concerning the changessince the group has been noted asone of the organisations in thecountry that has given supportto the efforts of the military incombating terrorism and othercriminal activities in some parts

of the country.“The Nigerian Army is a

professional army that conductsits affairs within given mandate,rules of engagements and globalbest practices; its operationsespecially in the fight againstterrorism, are subjected tothorough planning, scrutiny andsupervision to ensure the safetyand wellbeing of all abidingpopulace with little or nocollateral damage”, the armychief said.

A member of the Nigeria BarAssociation in Tarabastate, Aliyu Ciroma has

been murdered by unknowngunmen yesterday at UnguwarGadi in Jalingo, the Tarabacapital.

Investigation by ourreporter revealed that thelawyer was short six times onthe head, chest and stomach bythe gunmen after breaking into

Gunmen kill lawyer in TarabaFrom Yusha’u Alhassan Jalingo the family compound and

drove off in the victim’s carwhich was later abandonedalong Mararaba-Zing road.

Ciroma was rushed to thefederal medical center, Jalingowhere he was confirmed dead.

The Police public relationofficer PPRO Amos Olaoyeconfirmed the incident but saidthat he was yet to get the detailsof the murder.

Meanwhile, all cases at thehigh court Jalingo have been

suspended for one day insympathy with the murder.

The State Secretary of theNBA Abubakar Maidallailutold our reporter that themembers of the NBA took thedecision to down tools today toenable them join in themourning of their murderedcolleague.

He said such tragedy couldhappen to any one hence theneed for all members to share inthe sorrow.

Ministerinaugurates Rep’s32 boreholes

The Minister of WaterResources, Mrs. SarahOchekpe, has

commissioned 32 motorizedboreholes constructed by Hon.Aisha Dahiru Ahmed, a memberof the House of Representativesrepresenting Yola North YolaSouth Girei Constiturncy.

The Minister, whocommissioned some of theN73.6m boreholes yesterday inGokra in Girei LocalGovernment Area of the state,said the boreholes would assist in eradicating some water-bornediseases in the area.

Ochekpe said: “This is a goodexample of service to one’sconstituency and community. Iwish to appeal to other electedpolitical office holders to emulateHajia Aisha’s efforts atcomplementing the presentadministration’s policy toprovide social amenities toNigerians.

“The water projects executedby Hajia Aisha will improve thehealth of the people in thevarious benefiting communities,because most of the waterassociated diseases which is verycommon in rural areas will nolonger affect the people of thesecommunities.

”Hajia Aisha is a politicalmentor to our young women, sheproved that if women are morein leadership position the welfareof the people and the economy ofthe country will improve fastand the electorate willappreciate democracy.”

Hajiya Aisha said theconstruction of the 32 solarpowered boreholes in all thewards in her constituency washer personal efforts tocomplement the government ofAdamawa State under GovernorMurtala Nyako, to providedividends of democracy to thepeople of the state.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 6

L-R: Special Adviser on Economic Intelligence to the National Security Adviser, Professor Soji Adelaja, National President of NUJ, MalamGarba Mohammed, Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, Managing Director, Aso FM, Malam Mohammed Hassan, representativeof Niger State Governor, Alhaji Danladi Ahmed, and Chairman, NUJ Abuja council, Mr. Chuks Ehirim, during the first NUJ colloquium,yesterday in Abuja. Photo: NAN

FG to establish research devt fundachievements is given by theNigerian state on the statutorily fixeddate of the first Thursday ofDecember.

In line with the requests made bythe Chairman of NNMA GoverningBoard, Prof. Sylvester Adegoke,President Jonathan said: "Ourgovernment will not only study therecommendations in thecommuniqué of the 5th annualforum of the laurets, we will alsocontinue to support your initiativeefforts and solutions to major problemsin our country. The report of thecommittee on the activities of the

NMMA is also being studied by theoffice of the SGF. I will like to assureyou that the Federal Governmentsupports the endowment fund of theNMMA and will take necessary stepsto strengthen the institution."

He continued: "Through the SGF,actions have already commenced onthe proposed NMMA Policy Group andthe establishment of NationalResearch and Development Fund.The government will continue topromote excellence on merit in ourstrive to rapid development andnationhood. In this regard, those whoare honoured will be remembered as

Jigawa awards N2.3bn Feeder roads contractsincluded that of Limawa toGalamawa in Dutse localgovernment area, with a distanceof 2.2Km, and awarded at the costof N68.3 Million.

Adding that the road from Yaloto Unguwan Jibrin in Kaugamalocal government area, which isabout four Km, was awarded at thecost of N86.4 Million respectively.

According to him, a contractsum of N562.3 million has beenawarded for the 36 km's Garki road,

which is also from Jangari to Mokuand Kanya towns, all in Garki localgovernment area, in addition to theroads from Guri to Adiyani, LambarZauma to Mahauta, Dwingi toGwiwa costing N175.1 Million andN195.7 Million respectively.

The commissioner also saidothers are from Gantsa to Tijiyo,Ahoto in Buji local government areaand Ayama to Junction Ayamatown in Auyo local government areaat the contract sum of N107.7

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

N152m unauthorised loandiscovered in COE IlorinThe Kwara State Executive

Council yesterday approvedthe setting up of a Committee

to look into allegation ofunauthorised loan of N152 millionsought by the College of EducationIlorin.

Secretary to the StateGovernment (SSG), Alhaji IsiakaGold, who stated this during a postexecutive council briefing, said thestate government would notexonerate the institution’s councilmembers.

"Council also considered the draftWhite Paper on the report of thevisitation Panels to the 3 PremierState-owned Colleges of Education inIlorin, Oro and Lafiagi. The strikingfeature of the reports was falsificationof admission enrolment;unauthorised borrowing, high-handedness and power tussle withinthe rank and file of the institutions'authorities.

"In view of these, Councilapproved the setting up ofcommittees to look into (i) the DebtProfile of over N152m in the Collegeof Education, Ilorin and (ii) a

committee to check theappropriateness of re-introducingthe IJMB programme in the CollegeOf Education, Oro and Lafiagiwithout losing focus of their primarymandate."

He disclosed that the Council alsodirected the three colleges todiscontinue all degree and outreachcourses and focus on trainingteachers for basic education level.

He noted that instead of theColleges to focus on the training ofprofessional teachers, they werebusy doing another thing whichmade it to derail from its mission.

From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin

The Jigawa state governmenthas awarded contract for tenfeeder roads at the sum of

N2,353,323,766.07 billion in someareas of the state.

Addressing journalists yesterdayafter the state council meeting atGovernment House Dutse, theCommissioner of Information,Youths, Sports and Culture, AlhajiIbrahim Babandi, said the roads

As part of efforts to promoteresearch and otherintellectual endeavours in the

country, the Federal Government iscontemplating the establishment of aNational Research DevelopmentFund.

President Goodluck Jonathanhinted this yesterday while presentingthe 2012 Nigerian National Order ofMerit Award to Prof. SamuelOhaegbulam (medicine) and Prof.Emmanuel Yoloye (humanities) atthe State House.

The Nigeria Order of MeritAward, the highest award forintellectual, academic and creative

From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse Million and N208.4 Million, whilethe roads linking Arbus to Girboboin Kauma local government areawas also given at the cost of N442.1Million.

He also explained that aboutN411.6 Million and N95.2 Millionhad been set aside for theconstruction of roads linkingIdanduna to Kadowawa and Jiborito Garin Alaye and Madachi all inJahun and Kafinhausa localgovernment respectively.

Measles kills5 in KebbiAn outbreak of measles in the

A m b u r s a / K a r d iDevelopment Area in Kebbi,

has caused the death of five childrenand isolation of 187 others.

An official of the Primary HealthCare (PHC) in the area, Malam IsaAbubakar, told newsmen in Ambursaon Thursday that initially, 192children were afflicted by the disease.

He said that state, federal andinternational agencies had intervenedto curtail the spread of the disease andprovided drugs to the victims.

The Chairman of Birnin KebbiLocal Government Area, Alhaji MusaDan-Illelah, who inspected theisolation camp and victims inAmbursa, lamented the death of thechildren because of the scourge.

He said that efforts would be madeto prevent and forestall spread of thedisease to other communities in thestate, especially immunisation ofchildren against the six killer diseases.

He said that drugs and medicalfacilities would be provided at thedesignated place of isolation for thevictims. (NAN)

beckons to serve as motivation andencouragement to youngergenerations of Nigerians.

With our two awardees this year,the total number of Nigerians whohave been honoured with the awardnow stand at only 67, an average oftwo per year. This is a strong pointerto the high standard and merit-drivenevaluation procedures underlying theselection of the winners of the award.

It also underlines our nation'sexpectation that our new awardees,like their industrious predecessors, willhold the banner of creativity andintellectual development."

While speaking on recentflooding that wrecked havoc in someparts of the state, Gold expresseddisappointment of the Council overthe delay in the implementation ofHYPPADEC.

"Council expressed concernabout the delay in the take-off of theCommission despite the enactmentand signing into law of its Act.

"In view of the recent flooddevastation and unquantifiabledamages suffered by thedownstream communities,council felt disturbed by theplight of the thousands of victims.

Yar'Aduamemorial lectureholds tomorrow

Board of Trustees of the ShehuMusa Yar'Adua Foundationwill host the Second Annual

Memorial Lecture in honour of lateGeneral Shehu Yar'Adua on Saturday,December 8, 2012 at the Yar'AduaCentre, Abuja.

The event which would be chairedby the Secretary to the Government ofthe Federation, Senator Anyim PiusAnyim, would commemorate the 15thyear anniversary of his death onDecember 8, 1997.

According to a press release signedby the Director General of theFoundation, Jacqueline W. Farris, anillustrated biography of the lateTafidan Katsina titled, Shehu MusaYar'Adua: Neither North Nor South,East Nor West, One Nigeria, wouldbe presented at the lecture with thetheme: Rebuilding Public Educationas a Bridge to Nigeria's Future.

"Published by MockingbirdBooks, this simple yet poignant storywill serve as an educational tool forprimary school studentsthroughout the country. It tells thestory of a man who stood in theforefront of those demanding atimely handover to democraticallyelected government; a man whotraversed the nation building bridgesof peace, understanding and unitywhich he prized as the hope for thisnation.

In addition to Senator Anyim PiusAnyim, Secretary to the Governmentof the Federation, expected dignitariesat the occasion include former VicePresident Atiku Abubakar, who willdeliver the lecture and former SenatePresident Ken Nnamani, who will serveas Special Guest of Honour. FormerLagos State Governor, Asiwaju BolaAhmed Tinubu, will serve as ChiefLauncher, while Chief Tony Anenih isChairman of the Memorial LectureSteering Committee. Mrs. LolaShoneyin, winner of the 2011 ANAPrize for Children's Literature willreview the book", she stated.

By Abubakar Ibrahim

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 7

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs, Mr. George Ossi, Assistant Controller, NigerianPrison Service, Mr. Chucks Afujue, and Assistant Controller (Welfare), Nigerian Immigration Service,Mrs. Juline Fariku, during a conference in commemoration of the International Day of the Eliminationof Violence Against Women, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

FG blames media forpoor rating on corruptionThe Federal Government

Thursday blamed themedia for the poor rating the

country gets from internationalorganisations on corruption.

Fielding questions from StateHouse correspondents after the

Federal Executive Council (FEC)meeting, the Minister ofInformation, Labaran Maku said the latest TransparencyInternational report which ratedNigeria as the 37th most corruptcountry in the world, was more asa result of negative reportage bythe media than the level of

corruption existing in the system.Maku urged the media and

Nigerians as a whole to project thecountry in good light to the world.

The minister also noted that arecent Gallup Poll which indicatedthat Nigeria was among the topcorrupt nations in the world wasalso a product of interactions with

The Minister of State forForeign Affairs, Prof. ViolaOnwuliri, yesterday scored

the trade relations betweenNigeria and Philippines as ‘quitelow’.

The minister made the remarkat the 2nd Nigeria-Philippines JointCommission in Abuja.

“In spite of the long standingrelations between the twocountries, the economic and traderelations have been quite low,’’Onwuliri said.

“Whilst it is heartening to notethat there have been an increasingnumber of Filipino companiesconducting business in Nigeria,there is yet much to be done toimprove our economic and traderelations,” she added.

Onwuliri, however, noted thatthe two countries had achieved ‘adesirable’ record on their bilateralrelations.

She said that numerousFilipinos had been engaged asexpatriate workers therebycontributing positively to thedevelopment of Nigeria.

The minister also noted thatsome Nigerians were currently inpursuit of taking up jobs in thePhilippines.

Onwuliri described theCommission, which was beingkick- started 27 years after itsestablishment, as significantadding that a new impetus will beintroduced to broaden existingbilateral relations.

“Nigeria and Philippines haveseveral areas for mutuallybeneficial cooperation which willenhance the growth anddevelopment of our two countries,’’she said.

The minister listed the areas toinclude education, health,agriculture, water resources,immigration, culture andtourism, trade and commerce andJustice.

She suggested that thecollective desire and focus of thetwo countries should be to institutefruitful deliberations.

Earlier, Erlinda Basilio,Philippines Head of Delegation,expressed that country’s resolve tofurther strengthen and deepen theexisting relations with Nigeria.

Basilio said that the Pilippineswould discuss regional andinternational issues of mutualinterest.

She also listed other areas ofcooperation to include political,economic, cultural, consular andlabour related sectors.

Nigeria formally establisheddiplomatic relations with thePhilippines in 1962. (NAN)

Minister scoresNigeria, Philippinestrade relations low

Nigerians and negative mediareports.

“If there are areas where thingsare not be done right, journalistsshould follow up. The federalgovernment will continue tosupport all efforts to fight abuses”,he said.

According to him, the anti-graft group drew its conclusionsfrom perceptions of both Nigeriansand negative media reportsbecause they have refused toappreciate that the Jonathanadministration was taking stepsto deal with corruption throughsystematic and institutionalapproaches that are gradually yielding results.

Citing instances of efforts madeby the government in tacklinggraft, Maku listed the prosecutionof those implicated in the fuelsubsidy fraud, investigation intothe pension fund scandal, thegeometric auditing of Ministries,Departments and Agencies(MDAs) and curbing of graft in thesupply of fertiliser and seeds tofarmers.

He said when the Presidentattempted to curtail patronage inthe oil and gas sector byintroducing deregulation of thesector, Nigerians staged a protestwhich crippled activities in thecountry.

Suntai orders reconstitution of Mambila chiefdom

Governor DanbabaDanfulani Suntai ofTaraba state had allegedly

before the air mishap, ordered forthe reconstitution of the MambilaChiefdom.

In a letter dated October 18,2012 which was read at the floorof the Taraba state House ofAssembly yesterday, theGovernor requested thelawmakers to deliberate and passinto law section 12 of the localgovernment by-law to enable theMambila traditional council bereconstituted.

Governornor Suntai informedthe MPs that the MambilaTraditional council shall consistof two ruling houses of Audu Bajuand Muhammadu Mansur whileKaka should produce the Wakiliand Dan’iya.

He also requested the House

to amend the title of the chief ofMambila to be addressed as HisRoyal Majesty, the chief ofMambila and be placed as firstclass chief.

After the presentation of theletter by the Clerk, IsmailuTentason, the memberrepresenting Gembuconstituency Abubakar Jugulde,doubted the genuineness of theletter and said, as therepresentative of Mambila, heand his people were not aware ofthe letter.

Jugulde rejected the letterand requested other members todo so, according to him, in thebest interest of the house.

In another development, theTaraba state Commissioner forInformation, Culture andTourism, Emmanuel Bello has

urged Tarabans to disregard thestory on internet bySaharareporters (an internetnews site) on Governor DanbabaSuntai.

Bello said the story lackedsubstance and credibility becauseit did not reflect the reality on thestate of health of the governor.

Saharareporters saidGovernor Danbaba Suntai hasbrain damage.

Bello said that none of thereporters visited the Germanhospital where the governor is

From Yusha’u Alhassan Jalingo.

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

receiving treatment.The Commissioner told

Journalists that the governor’shealth had improved and he hasbeen speaking with prominentTarabans including his family,adding that preparations havebeen concluded for the return ofthe governor.

Bello however called onTarabans to intensify prayers forthe speedy recovery of thegovernor and his successfulreturn to the state.

According to him, the returnof his aides was a strongindication that Governor Suntaiwould soon come back to the state.

...It’s not true, says MP

183 indigenes performing thisyear’s Holy pilgrimage toJerusalem from Kogi State,

have been tasked to work towardsprotecting the integrity of thenation.

They were equally charged toignore all forms of misconductsincluding bitterness, acrimonyand bigotry.

Kogi State Deputy Governor,Yomi Awoniyi, gave theadmonition at a one dayorientation seminar for thisyear’s pilgrimage organized bythe State Christian PilgrimsWelfare Board.

The Deputy Governor pointed

out that religion emphasisepeace, love and other holyvirtues, and therefore, the government expects harmonyand understanding among allpilgrims.

In his speech, the ExecutiveSecretary, Christian PilgrimsBoard Mr. Eguda said the themeof this year’s pilgrimage-Spiritual Transformation andMoral Rebirth- was aimed at mindrenewal of the pilgrims towardsassisting in the transformationagenda of the state government.

He added that the seminarwould help pilgrims tounderstand the rules andregulations for a successfulpilgrimage.

The Kogi state House ofAssembly yesterdaypleaded with the security

operatives in the state toreinforce surveillance onObajana-Kabba road.

Moving the motion on thefloor of the House duringplenary, Hon Yori Afolabi,representing Ijumuconstituency averred that thesecurity challenges on thatroute has become worrisome.

Afolabi noted that frequentattack on travellers on thatroute has put pressure on thestate and all relevantstakeholders to bail the innocentcitizens from the hazards.

The motion which wasseconded by Hon Shehu Idris ofLokoja 11 state constituencywho said that motorist on theroute in the last couple ofmonths have been groaningunder the menace of armedrobbers.

The menace, he said, has put

travelers under heavy tensionindicative that during thisfestive period many lives andproperty would be in danger.

The speaker ruled that theHouse committee security should be in the positiion to meetthe security operatives toproperly come out with workablesolution.

Meanwhile two bills onvigilante services and otherissues connected thereto andsecurity trust fund has beenpassed to law by the House.

Kogi Assembly seeks more security along Obajana- Kabba roadFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

Awoniyi urges Kogi pilgrimsto be good ambassadorsFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 8

Kano state governor, Engineer Rabi’u Kwankwaso (middle), receiving the governorof the year 2012 housing and urban development award from Senator Bukar Ibrahim(3rd right), chairman, senate committee on lands, housing and urban developmenton behalf of Circuit Maga, on Tuesday, in Kano with them is minister of housing, MsAmal Pepple (3rd left).

L-R: Edo state Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomole, Deputy Speaker, House ofRepresentatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, Chairman, Buyright Africa, Mr. Stan Leo Ekeh, andNational President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar, duringthe launch of Nigerian Employees Digital Welfare Scheme, yesterday in Abuja.

L-R: Acting Executive Secretary, Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC),Professor Charles Onocha, Minister of State for Education, Barrister Ezenwo NyesomWike, Delta state Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, and Delta state Chairman, StateUniversal Basic Education Board, Mrs Pat Ejeteh, during the commissioning of UzoigwePrimary School Asaba, built through UBEC counterpart funding, on Tuesday in Asaba,Delta state.

L-R: Chief of Mission, International Organisation on Migration, Mr. Martin Ocaga,Director, Human Rights Institute, Mrs. Oti Anukpe Ourawah, and Professor Dakas Dakas,during a media briefing on the protection and assistant for internal displaced persons,organised by Civic Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and NationalHuman Rights Commission, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo and NAN

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 9

L-R: Minister ofAgriculture, Dr.AkinwumiAdesina,Minister ofInformation, Mr.Labaran Maku,and Minister ofTransport,Alhaji IdrisUmar, jointlybriefingjournalists oncassava breadafter theirmeeting withPresidentGoodluckJonathan, onWednesday atthe State House,in Abuja.

Photo:Joe Oroye.

We are determined to complete all projects – Gov Yaridevastated road.

He said had the leaders,rightfrom independent to datecontinued from where theirpredecessors stopped in terms ofdevelopment, the nation wouldhave been extremely developed

to complete with any othercountry in the world .

According to the governor, hisadministration was determinedto give the state a befitting look,and general transformation of allthe sectors throughout his tenure.

Yari also stated that everyleader will stand before his Creatorand give an account of hisstewardship in the hereafter, andthus important to do good to thepeople.

The governor further

Kano state government hasspent over N35.8 millionto empower 137 youths

who were given four monthsintensive skills acquisitiontraining on various trades intourism and hospitality-relatedcourses.

The beneficiaries trained inleather works, hospitality ,tourism and ICT among otherthings.

The capital, according toGovernor Rabi’u MusaKwankwaso who spoke at the

graduation ceremony held atGovernment House Kano, wouldbe shared among

the artisans as start upcapital to enable them obtainnecessary facilities andequipment to start theirrespective endeavors.

He explained that studentswho trained in leatherworkswould share N1.5 million; N2.1million would be shared among14 graduates who trained in artand design, while N2.4 millionis to be shared among 16graduates of interior decoration.

Other graduands at theoccasion were 374 youth whoparticipated in NEPAD training,where 40 youth trained onpreservation of perishable items,40 trained on hatchery, 25students trained on animal feedproduction and 20 youth studiedmachine fabrication techniques.

The governor said “Time haspast when governmentemployed all, in fact everyeconomy must be dependent onsmall scale entrepreneurs, thatis why we are encouraging selfreliance”, governor Kwankwasosaid.

He explained that thegovernment established 21institutes to achieve this goaland cautioned the beneficiariesto put the money into proper useas government is now workingto establish a monitoringmechanism to ensure effectiveutilisation of the interventionfunds.

Povertyalleviation:KNSG givescapital totrainees

revealed that honesty, sincerity,justice and fairness were some ofthe qualities of a good leader, andwhoever embrace them, wouldsucceed “because God is always bythe side of righteous people”, headded.

FG to implement new agricfunding policy in 2013The Federal Government is

planning a new agriculturefunding policy that will

guarantee loans at single digitinterest rate to Nigerian farmersfrom 2013.

Briefing State Housecorrespondents after yesterday’sFederal Executive Council (FEC)meeting , the Minister ofInformation, Labaran Maku saidPresident Jonathan made theannouncement during Council aspart of his commitment to theAgricultural TransformationAgenda, adding that governmentwas committed to rescuingNigerian farmers from the presentinterest rate of over 20 percent.

Presenting the success story ofhis ministry in the last one year,Minister of Agriculture, DrAkinwunmi Adesina added that inthe last one year, his ministry hadinstalled 13 new rice mills across thecountry which have a combinedcapacity of 240,000 metric tonnes.

The minister also said that the

distribution of high performanceseeds to farmers across the countrywas perfect while Cassava breadwould from January, be exportedto other West African countriesbeginning with Ghana and Benin.

According to Akinwunmi, themajor policy reform in 90 days wasable to take government offprocurement and distribution ofseeds and fertilizers.

He also said that in 120 dayssince the introduction of e-walletsystem, 1.2 million farmersreceived seeds and fertilisers.

“Nigeria is the first to use thissystem in the world and its successstory has attracted interest from thegovernment of Tanzania and worldbodies like World Bank. We endedthe corruption of four decades inNigeria using this system.”

He also said the government isto supply 10 million mobile phonesto farmers next year and fivemillion of them will be given towomen. This will enable them gettheir information on the seeds andfertiliser.

Adeshina said so far 8.1million

metric tonnes of food has been addedin his first year in office making it41% of the 20 Million Metric tonnesof food he had promised to generateby 2015.

The Council also approved thesum of N478 million for thefeasibility studies for two newstandard rail lines.

The feasibility studies whichwill be awarded to consultants arethe Coastal rail line taking off fromBenin through Sapele, Warri,Yenagoa, Port Harcourt, Calabar,Akampka, Ikom to Obudu CattleRanch with 673km at a cost ofN334 million.

The second rail line of 280kmat a feasibility cost of N144 million,will take off from Ajaokuta throughLokoja, Abaji to Abuja.

Another major issue discussedin FEC was the celebration ofNigeria’s Centenary celebration.

According to Maku, theCentenary celebrations will bemarked to celebrate theamalgamation and greatness ofNigeria as the largest country inAfrica.

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

From Edwin Olofu, Kano

From Salisu Zakari Maradun,Gusau

Zamfara state governorAlhaji Abdulaziz yari hasexpressed his concern over

the negative roles some leadersplay in the discharge of their civilresponsibilities, particularly inthe area of development.

Yari made the disclosure inGusau, the state capital shortlyafter he received a delegation ofelders and traditional rulers fromZurmi local government underthe leadership of the emir, AlhajiAbubakar Atiku who paid him athank you visit over thecompletion of the three-decades

Lagos State Governmentyesterday inaugurated a3.6 kilometre dual carriage

road to serve as an alternativeroute for motorist plying theLekki-Epe expressway “whosedaily activities does not requiremaking use of the toll plaza.”

Also the Lekki ConcessionCompany (LCC), theconcessionaire handling theconstruction of the road, disclosedthat it would commence thecollection of toll at the 2nd tollplaza on December 16th, thisyear.

Speaking at the unveiling, theSpecial Adviser to the stateGovernor on Public PrivatePartnership (PPP), Mr. AyoGbeleyi assured the residentsliving along the Lekki-Epecorridor that the LagosGovernment would not force tollpayment on them.

Gbeleyi explained that thealternative route was newlydesigned to accommodate suchfacilities as street lights,comprehensive drainage system,dual side walk as well as detailedroad signs, which the specialadviser said, were put in place toensure safety and security of livesand properties along the route.

While inspecting the routewhich starts from Chevron Driveand ends at Oluwanisola Estate,Gbeleyi explained that the roadwas not just an alternative routefor motorists who are not willingto pay toll at Conservation Plaza,but a second toll plaza built about10 kilometres away fromAdmiralty Plaza.

Lekki-Epe:Lagos unveilssecond tollplazaFrom Ayodele Samuel, Lagos

Borno records seven new polio infectionsFrom Mustapha Isah Kwaru,Maiduguri

Borno state governmentyesterday expressedworry over the increasing

polio virus infections with sevennew cases recorded recently.

The government said it wasseriously disturbed despite thehuge resources invested by thestate government and otherdonor agencies to curtail thespread of the virus.

The state Commissioner of

Health, Dr. Salma Anas Kolo whodisclosed this at a ministerialpress briefing warned that,unless all hands were put on deck,the virus would continuespreading.

Dr. Kolo observed that therewas urgent need for thetraditional and religious leadersas well as relevant stakeholdersto join forces with governmentto ensure total eradication of thedisease.

The commissioner said,government has embarked on

aggressive enlightenmentcampaigns to educate parents onthe importance of presentingtheir children for poliovaccination.

She also revealed that thestate has recorded over 16,000new HIV/AIDS infections in thelast one year and implored HIV/AIDS victims to avail themselveswith the anti-retroviral drugs andother healthcare facilitiesprovided by government atvarious hospitals and treatmentcentres across the state.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 10

FG distributes relief materialsto flood victims in NigerFrom Iliya Garba,Minna

National Coordinator, Abuja Grassroots Association (AGA), Mrs. Hauwa Aduda (left), addressing members of Girls Guide,during the flag-off of the association, on Wednesday in Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

The presidential committeeon the distribution of reliefmaterials to victims of the

2012 flood disaster has assuredthem of rehabilitation andimproved living standard asthey put the bitter experiencesbehind them.

Speaking during thedistribution of materials tovictims in Lapai, Niger state, amember of the committee andformer Minister of Information,

Prof. Dora Akunyili said theywere yet to spend a kobo out ofthe N15 billion donations so farrealized for their upkeep.

Prof. Akunyili howeverdebunked the insinuations insome quarters that some of thepromises being made to theflood victims in parts of thecountry may be empty or havepolitical undertone.

According to her, "There isnothing political about thiscommittee's assignment orvisit. It is a visit done with the

best intention and we are doingthe work assigned to us by Mr.President to join thegovernment in bringingsuccour to these less privilegedpeople".

According to her, "We aregoing to continue to give themrelief materials, we will ensurethat they are comfortable andwe will resettle them at the endand all the expenditures will bepublished in some nationaldailies for accountability andtransparency".

Akunyili expressed worryabout negative reports aboutdiversion of materials meant forflood victims and advised thoseconcerned to be transparent inhandling the distribution ofmaterials.

Among the items donated onbehalf of both the Aliko DangoteFoundation and the committeeto the flood victims at Yelwacommunity in Lapai LocalGovernment Area includes bagsof rice, salt, cartons of Indomienoodles, Palm oil, sugar,

soap,detergents and 700 piecesof shadda(guinea brocade) and700 pieces of Super Wax amongothers.

Akunyili was accompaniedon the visit by the Niger stateDeputy Governor, Alhaji MusaIbeto and two other membersof her committee whichincluded the Secretary, AlhajiUmar Ghali and the DeputyNational President of theNigeria Union of Journalists(NUJ), Mr. RotimiObamuwagun.

To decongest the prisons andother detention centres inthe country, the Nigeria

Police Force must change ofattitude towards persons arrestedby them, the Director General ofLegal Aid Council (LAC), Mrs. JoyBob-Manuel has said.

Mrs. Joy Bob-Manuel who saidthis yesterday during the handingover of the five year review reportof the Police Duty Solicitor Scheme(PDSS) in Abuja, insisted that thelaw mandates the police to informin writing, every person arrestedand the offences he or shecommitted.

The police, she added, mustallow detainees to have access totheir lawyers, even where suchdetainees cannot afford a lawyer.

According to her, the policeshould call on the legal aid councilto provide legal representativesfor the detainees.

She said the old ways ofinsistence by the police that

Legal Aid boss lists ways to decongest prisons By Sunday Ejike Benjamin detainees' lawyers cannot come in

until they finish interrogating thesuspects, must be amended tocomply with global best practices. "After all, such interrogationshas led some suspects who werejust unfortunate to be where acrowd of people were rounded upor arrested, end up staying for fiveor more years in detentionwithout prima facie evidence toarraign him or her'', the D-G said.

Meanwhile, the former D-G oflegal aid council, Mrs Uju AishaHassan Baba presented the fiveyear review report of PDSS to hersuccessor, Mrs Joy Bob-Manuel fordiscussion and charting the coursefor criminal justice managementin the country today.

''In the course of this review, Iand my team sat throughinterviews, listening to numerousduty solicitors, legal aid lawyers,a chief judge's personal assistant,magistrates, DPO's of policestations in the focal states, andDirectors' of Public Prosecution.We also visited Law firms of

private practitioners, prisonofficials and those incarceratedwithin their custody but washowever not privileged to meetwith those arrested and detained

( the star actors ) at police stationsin three focal states due to thepolitics that police often play whenthey feel threatened by outsidesurveillance", she added.

The Niger StateGovernment hasreiterated its

determination andcommitments towardsproviding qualitative,affordable and accessiblehealthcare delivery services tothe people of the state.

Governor Mu'azuBabangida Aliyu stated thisshortly after signing aMemoranda of Understanding(MoU) between Niger stategovernment and DemocraticPeoples Republic of Korea onhealthcare delivery services.

Represented by theSecretary to the StateGovernment, Mr. DanielClifford Shashere, GovernorAliyu said the presentadministration has constructedadditional General Hospitals inNew-Wuse, Gulu and Nasko inline with health care policies.

The government alsorenovated the existing onesand provided hospitalequipment to meet the healthneeds of Nigerlites.

Governor Aliyu appealed tothe Korean government to assistthe state in the area ofhealthcare capacity buildingwhich plays a very prominentrole in the attainment of theadministrations' vision3:2020.

He said the essence of thecollaboration is to add value towhat the presentadministration in the state isdoing in making Niger state oneof the top three best economiesin the country by the year 2020especially in the health sector.

The Counselor at theEmbassy of Korea, Abuja, Mr.Ri Il Sop had earlier told his hostthat the bilateral cooperationbetween the Korea and Nigerstate would help in actualizingthe states' development goals.

The Akwa Ibom Stategovernment has saidthat it has no intention

to further embark on newcapital intensive projectsuntil the ongoing projects arecompleted.

The State commissionerfor Finance Mr. Bassey AlbertAkpan gave this indication ata Pre-Budget and PublicHearing of the State 2013Budget organized by the StateHouse Assembly Committeeon Appropriation andFinance, which held in UyoWednesday.

The Commissioner said theaction was necessitated byconstraint in cash flow which

Niger govtsigns MoUwith Koreaon healthFrom Iliya Garba-Minna

A'Ibom govt suspends new projectsFrom Mike Etim, Uyo has forced the state

government to concentrate onongoing projects and stopfurther contract in the firstsix months of next year.

He said some of the ongoingprojects like the new OlympicStadium being planned, theTropicana Complex and otherroad construction attract hugecapital commitment whichmakes it impossible for thestate to embark on newprojects.

However, thecommissioner assured thehearing that the governmentwould implement to the letter,every project that was listedin the 2013 budget before theState House of Assemblywaiting for approval.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 11

"When someone tells you thatyou can't do something,perhaps you should considerthat they are only telling youwhat they can't do."Sheldon J.Cahoon: Author,entrepreneurSource:www.smartmoney.com

Quote

Benefits of a current account to a familySome family still resist the

idea of having a current account as they don’t trust

banks or want to keep their moneythemselves.

However there are many ben-efits of having a relationship witha bank or a building society,which can include the following:

First and foremost, they are asafe and secure store for yourmoney, much better than havingit stashed under the sofa for in-stance

The next benefit is that youwon’t have to carry around largeamounts of cash whenever youperform a transaction, as you willrather get a debit card that letsyou pay for things wherever themerchant is accepted (E.g. visa).

Another good thing is thatmany now come with online bank-ing too so you can manage, trackand check on your money online

making it really convenient andeasy to see what you have andwhere it is.

Another common advantageis telephone banking, access to ahuge network of branches at whichyou can make transactions andmore.

You will also tend to get acheque book which makes mak-ing payments easier, though in-deed many are now actually phas-ing out cheques and encouragingcustomers to use other methods ofmaking their payments.

Advantages of a studentbank account

If you are a student, then youshould take advantage of this situ-ation financially.

Have a normal current ac-count? Get it switched over to astudent bank account as soon asyou can.

There are many advantages

of doing this, which include thefollowing:

An interest free overdraft to acertain agreed sum and some-times the ability to increase thislimit.

A better rate of interest thana standard account when yougo over your rate that is agreedon your overdraft

Often you will get access toother benefits too that are bet-ter than on a standard account.

Also of importance is thefact that there are sometimesreally good freebies on offer tothose who sign up for an ac-count, so for instance if youwant a MP3 player but can’tafford one look out for a studentaccount that offers one of theseas the perks of signing up - per-haps not the most solid of rea-sons but a good perk is a goodperk nonetheless.

If you want a bank account andyou are a child then the goodnews is that there are more op-

tions out there than ever. Ratherthan just having a bog standardadult account there are now onoffer a range of bank accountsfrom a large number of providersthat are dedicated to children.These will typically include a nicefree gift or several which is also agood thing.

For those who are under 15,accounts will often have a mini-mal requirement to open so some-thing like 1 will be all that youneed to open it so you won’t haveto save too hard to open it.

They also have nice benefits

Getting a child’s bank accountlike encouraging you to save andgiving you more interest the moremoney that you earn encourag-ing you to get into the discipline ofsaving money nice and early.

They often also give you a con-nect card letting you take outmoney and feel grown up by us-ing a card, something that lots ofyour friends who still rely on cashwill feel a bit jealous about too.

You can also pay money di-rect into these accounts so it willmean you aren’t tempted to blowyour pocket money straight away,so if you want to learn to managemoney responsibly than such anaccount will really be excellent foryou.

How to get more out of yourcurrent account

If you want to get the most outof your current account then youneed to understand how to use itfor maximum benefit.

The key thing is the follow-ing:

-Never get too low or too higha balance in your current ac-count.

-For many, the latter is alwaysa dream so focus on the former.

Don’t get seduced by a nicelooking overdraft amount becausethat money isn’t yours. Never in-clude it in your sums even if thebanks do and say total sum with-drawable is x when really half of

x is an overdraft amount. Now if you can keep your ac-

count running in the black you ishalfway there to sound financialmanagement of your finances.

But next you should ensurethat there is never too much thereeither.

If you have more than sayabout 500 in the current accountin general circumstances (e.g. notpaying a particular bill or thereready for the mortgage paymentand so on) then you will benefitfrom moving the money to a sav-ings account to get lots of intereston it, where it is almost alwaysminimal with standard currentaccounts with large high street

banks. Of course the key is to ensure

there is always enough there tocover the monthly bills that goout else you might move into anoverdraft and get some bankingcharges, so always be careful.

Whether you want to loweryour electric bill to save moneyor save the earth from climatechange, you need to do thesame things. Whatever yourreason for wanting to reduceyour electric bill, you need totake the same simple steps.

First, conserve as much en-ergy as possible before you lookat alternative sources of en-ergy.

Simple ways to lower your electricity bill Heating and Cooling

One of the biggest culprits ofhigh electricity consumption is the heating and cool-

ing of homes. By installing a pro-grammable thermostat that is setat a comfortable temperature andby improving insulation ofhomes, it is possible to dramati-cally reduce your electric bill.

Better insulation in homesmeans checking the attic, thedoors, windows, roof, and floor forair leaks. Also check around ventsfor drafts. If possible install doublepaned windows to help insulateyour home better. An added ad-vantage of insulating your homefor heat is that it keeps out noisepollution as well.

Heating water uses an enor-mous amount of energy. So keep

the water heater thermostat at120 degree Fahrenheit. Also washyour clothes in cold water. Yourclothes will be just as clean andyou will save on your electricitybill.

When on the topic of washingclothes, try not to use the clothesdryer. Use a clothesline or dryingrack to dry your clothes and youwill pay less on your electricity

bill. Your dishes too can be airdried. Also, operate the dish-washer and washing machineonly with full loads. This way youwill save both electricity and wa-ter, thereby doing the world a lotof good.

AppliancesAfter lowing your heating and

cooling bills, try to reduce the en-ergy consumption of the other

appliances. Upgrade your appli-ances to those with an EnergyStar rating. This will ensure thatthey consume the minimumamount of electricity. First re-place those appliances that youuse on a regular basis, before re-placing occasional-use appliances.

Next, tackle your lighting sys-tem. Switch over to energy sav-ing CFLs (compact fluorescentlights) from incandescent bulbs.Though CFLs are costlier than in-candescent bulbs, they last longer- up to 10 times longer. Apart fromthis they consume only a quarterof the energy that an incandes-cent bulb does to produce light ofthe same lumen. Because of thesedouble savings, CFLs are cheaperin the long run.

RefrigeratorAnother way of saving on your

electric bill is to upgrade your re-frigerator. Get a model with thefreezer on top. This is more energyefficient. Also, remember to set thethermostat of the fresh foods sec-tion at 40 degree Fahrenheit andthe freezer section at 5 degree Fahr-enheit. This is enough to keep yourfood fresh, while at the same timesaving your energy.

Residential solar power sys-

temsOnce you have adopted all

these energy conservation meth-ods, go in for a solar power sys-tem. Such a system converts so-lar light energy into electricity.As solar energy is free, you haveno fuel costs. The solar panels lastfor up to 30 years, so that is a one-time investment. There is no pol-lution from such a system, and itcan safely be installed in homes.It is relatively maintenance freeas well - all it needs is an occasionalwash to remove dust. Most solarpower systems pay for themselvesin a period of seven years. So, thisis a great way to save on your elec-tric bill.

ConclusionAs is clear from the above

discussion, it is first necessaryto conserve as much electricityas possible before you go in for asolar power system. This is be-cause solar power systems arestill costly - that is, the initialinstallation costs are high. Itmakes much more sense to up-grade the insulation of yourhome first, than to install a so-lar power system for all the ex-tra energy an uninsulatedhome will consume.

Electric bulb

“

PAGE 12 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Egypt: President Morsi’sdangerous political overdrive

It is one of those political paradoxes.Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, longpersecuted under the autocratic rule

of President Hosni Mubarak, and evenhis predecessor, Anwar Sadat, is todayinvoking the same monster againstEgyptians who toiled to end Mubarak’sreign of terror and put the Brotherhoodin power earlier in the year.

On November 22, PresidentMohammed Morsi of the MuslimBrotherhood caused a stir when heannounced a decree that temporarilyvested him with absolute power, whichno other institution in Egypt canchallenge, pending the enactment of anew constitution that is expected tomake strict Islamic legal code the basisof governance. Not unexpectedly,Egyptian liberals who gave impetus tothe February 2011 revolution that sweptaway Mubarak’s ancient regime areback at Tahrir Square in protest.

We do not think that it is proper,prior to the proclamation or enactmentof the new constitution, that a singleperson should assume absolute power ina civil order. Even Egypt’s respectedmilitary junta which assumed powerfollowing the fall of Mubarak andoversaw the transition to civil order didnot give itself the luxury of absoluteauthority. With protesters at TahrirSquare constantly thumbing on theirnose, even they could not manipulatethe transition process to produce theirpreferred successor. President Morsi’sNovember 22 announcement totemporarily assume absolute power is athrowback to those locust years when

President Morsi has overplayedhis hand, it is agreed, but the

opposition groups should knowthat in unleashing chaos to get athim, they might have produced amonster, with a consequence ofdispatching the revolution to the

political emergency ward

the Mubarak court was in absolutecharge. Even in the temporary absence ofa constitution, there are sufficientlyestablished conventions to draw on indemocratic governance. No wonder thenthat Morsi and his Islamist allies are introuble today. The country has beenstirred up again, this time not by the oldguard wanting to re-assert itself but bythe post-revolution regime wanting toundermine its own legitimacy.

Regrettably, Egypt has been draggedinto an impasse at a time when she needsto move beyond the hubris of itsrevolution to reconstruction. Accordingto the President, he needs to governunder a decree to thwart politicalambushes by the old guard. But to us, thecause of democracy is better served byallowing individual freedoms than areturn to the absolutism of the old order.With President Morsi’s political over-drive, the country is almost at a halt assupporters and opponents try to outdo

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each other in street protests.On his part, the President has

resorted to political subterfuge, the typethat emphasizes “craft, tact and art”instead of democratic accommodation.The Muslim Brotherhood-dominatednational assembly is rushing out a newconstitution and the President has setthe date of December 15 for areferendum to approve it. Meanwhile,the president’s political dust hastouched the judiciary’s raw nerve. Thesupreme Constitutional Court hassuspended sitting, announcing that itwould not sit again until judges canoperate “without psychological andmaterial pressure”.

To us, the controversy stoked byPresident Morsi is completely avoidable.The haste with which he wants to weedout institutions that are not in the grip ofhis political faction is bound to arousesuspicion as to his motive. We also aredoubtful whether reframing Egypt in thepolitical strait-jacket of the MuslimBrotherhood would offer the pluralismthat the revolution both expressed andarticulated.

Egypt can’t afford perpetual turmoilboth for its economic survival andpivotal role in a turbulent region.President Morsi has overplayed hishand, it is agreed, but the oppositiongroups should know that in unleashingchaos to get at him, they might haveproduced a monster, with a consequenceof dispatching the revolution to thepolitical emergency ward.

The two parties must come together tothrash out a compromise.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 16

FCTA to enforce mini busfeeder route operation Jan.14The Transportation

Secretariat of the FederalCapital Territory (FCT) has

announced that the enforcementof mini bus feeder

routes operation in Abujawould take effect from January,14, 2013.

Speaking at a press briefing tosensitise stakeholders and thegeneral public on the decision, theTransport Secretary, EngineerJonathan Achara Ivoke informedjournalists that theimplementation date was shiftedforward, following pleas bytransporters for ample time toprepare for the scheme.

By implication, the Secretarysaid that upon take-off, mini busoperators in territory are expected

By Josephine Ella Ejeh

to operate only on the routesdesignated for their operations.

According to him, theiroperations would be relegated tofeeder routes, that is, they areexpected to pick passengers fromfeeder routes into the city centre.

“The services we want toimplement from January 14,2013 has to do with the feederroutes within the FCT. Thoseoutside the FCT, we don’t have anyproblem with their operation spthey have to continue the way

they are operating”, he said.He explained that the feeder

routes mini bus transportationservice is incorporated in theOperator’s License Scheme of theFCT administration launched inMay 2011.

On the high capacity buses,ivoke said out of the eight highcapacity bus routes within the FCTas contained in the Operator’sLicense Scheme, Nyanya, Ayaand Eagle Square have beendesignated for the Bus Rapid

Services, which would be fullyimplemented next year.

“We are following theimplementation of thetransportation policies of the FCT.We have high ways so we aretrying to use them the way themaster plan has provided for it. Thedesign of the highway is for highcapacity buses so we have toimplement this to ensure thatthings are done properly,” heexplained.

He said the secretariat would

Inhabitants of GwagwaladaArea Council in the FederalCapital Territory (FCT) have

appealed to the FCT Minister,Senator Mohammed Bala torehabilitate neglected roads inGwagwalada.

Some of the residents, whospoke to Peoples Daily inGwagwalada said that so manyroads in the area were not longermotorable.

One of the residents, AlhajiSalisu Yahaya, the headmasterof Islamiyya Primary School inGwagwalada, called on the FCTMinister to rehabilitate the roadlinking Kasuwa Dare- AlhajiNura road to save lives .

Mallam Saleh Lawal, acommunity leader at AngwarHajara also appealed to theminister to repair AngwarHajara road which wasabandoned for so many yearsnow.

Lawal further lamented thatthe people of Angwar Hajarahad been neglected in the areaof provision of basic amenitiessuch as potable drinking wateras well as electricity and urgedthe FCT landlord to come totheir rescue,

Speaking in the same vein, aplumber, Mallam AliyuMohammed Iliyasu popularlyknown as ‘Dantani’ accused theformer chairman ofGwagwalada Area Council,Alhaji Saidu Garba Zuba offailing to rehabilitate AlhajiNura-Angwar Hajara road asthe contract was awardedduring his regime.

On his part, a taxi driver inGwagwalada, Mr. John Samuelsaid that the roads that neededurgent rehabilitation by theminister included sharp cornerroad, town hall road,demonstration primary schoolroad/Paikon motel market road.

“People who ply the roads arenot save, vehicles and hawkersare also at risk, especiallyduring the rainy season”,Samuel said.

continue to sensitise transportersso that next year it could starteffective implementation.

The secretary also seize theoccasion to warn unlicensedtransport service operators,including care hires as they wouldnot be allowed to operate from thetargeted date for implementation.

This was as he urged the publicnot to patronise them for theirsecurity and to ensure complianceto road traffic rules andregulations.

Residents call forrehabilitation ofGwagwaladaroadsBy Usman Shuaibu

Mechanic jailed for inflicting injuries on fellowA 41-year-old mechanic,

Benjamin Idoga, wasyesterday sentenced to

two months imprisonment byan Abuja Senior MagistratesCourt for causing grievous hurton another man.

Idoga, who lives in Masaka inNasarawa State, was chargedwith causing grievous hurtbefore Senior Magistrate

Idaiyat Akanni.

The Prosecutor, CorporalSimon Emmanuel, told thecourt that the complainant,Felix Odey of Mpape, Abuja,reported the matter at the LifeCamp Police Station onNovember 28, 2012.

Emmanuel said that on thesame date, the convict had anargument with the complainantwhere the convict hit thecomplainant with a wooden

plank on his head, which injuredhim on the head.

He added that thecomplainant was rushed to thehospital for treatment andincurred a bill of N3,500 for thetreatment.

The prosecutor said that theaction of the convictcontravenes Section 246 of thePenal Code.

The accused pleaded guilty

and asked the court for leniency.Delivering judgment,

Akanni said offenders must bepunished in order to deter othersfrom similar acts.

She sentenced the convict totwo months imprisonment or topay N2,000 fine.

She also ordered the convictto pay N3,500 compensation tothe complainant for the medicalbill incurred. (NAN)

Man bags six months jail for stealing carAn Abuja Senior

Magistrates’ Courtyesterday convicted and

sentenced one AbubakarMohammed of Kuchigorovillage, Abuja, to six monthsimprisonment for stealing aToyota salon car.

The Magistrate, MrsRosemary Kanyip, who gave thejudgment, however, gave an

option of fine of N2,000 after theaccused had pleaded guilty tothe charge.

Earlier, the Police Prosecutor,Mr Paul Anigbo, told the courtthat the matter was lodged at theLugbe Police Station, Abuja onDecember 1, 2012.

According to Anigbo, oneIliya Ado, the owner of the car,who lives at Block 2, Flat 4, City

Gate Police Station, Abuja,reported the case at the station.

Anigbo said the accused stolethe car with registrationnumber XA 490 KWH fromwhere it was parked onNovember 22 and took it to amechanic in Mabushi to repairthe engine so that he could takeit out of Abuja.

He said the car, painted in

Abuja taxi colour, wasrecovered at the mechanic’splace in Mabushi by some policeofficers.

The prosecutor added thatduring police investigation, theaccused confessed that he stolethe car valued at N350,000.

Anigbo said the offencecontravened section 287 of thePenal Code. (NAN)

A scene of an accident along Sabon Lugbe Airport Road, in Abuja yesterday. Photo: Joe Oroye.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 17

As part of its efforts toeradicate malaria andother related diseases in

the Federal CapitalTerritory(FCT), AbujaMunicipal Area Council (AMAC)yesterday distributed over onethousand treated mosquito netsto pregnant women and nursingmothers in Dutse Garki PrimaryHealth Care Centre.

According to the Chairman ofthe Council, Hon Micha Y. Jiba ,these would go a long way to curb

Pregnant women, nursingmothers get over 1,000 freeinsecticide treated nets

malaria and other relateddiseases affecting mostly thechildren in the society.

Jiba stated this during theflag off program, adding that theadministration has deemed it fitto ensure that residents at thegrass root level under AMAC getsadequate health care delivery inthe council, as part of hisagenda.

He further assured that theother 34 primary health carecentres under the council wouldget their free mosquito treatednets immediately after flag off of

By Adeola Tukuru the program.“What we are doing today is

a continued process and we willensure that other mothers inAMAC ,who didn’t benefit fromthe last distribution gets willbenefit this year ,because wehave enough mosquito nets thatwill go around these women inAMAC, he assured”.

He said the administrationwas ready to empower womenand youths in the council soon.

On her part, the Supervisorycouncilor of Health in AMAC,Hon Josephine Nnodim urged

the women to ensure that theyuse these mosquito nets.

The Head of Department forhealth in AMAC, Dr ModupeAdeyinka said that theEnvironmental DepartmentUnit in the council are goingabout to educated the residentson how to keep round schools inthe FCT to address them onhealth talks.

A beneficiary and also anursing mother, Nkechi Ifeanyilauded the good gesture, saying,she would ensure that themosquito net is used.

The Minister of State forFederal Capital TerritoryAdministration (FCTA), Mrs

Olajumoke Akinjide, has said theadministration would collaboratewith relevant stakeholders toprevent environmental disastersin the metropolis.

Akinjide made this known atKwali, Abuja at the community-based sensitisation workshop on"Sustainable WetlandManagement and LivelihoodImprovement''.

The workshop was organisedby Wetland Advocacy andLivelihood Development Initiative(WALDI), an NGO based in Abuja.

Akinjide, who was representedby Mr Lateef Olawuwo, anAssistant Director in the FCTA,bemoaned the manner people tookenvironmental issues with levity.

According to her, the FCTA willalways support initiatives thatwill impact positively on theenvironment.

"We will continue to supportany initiative that has positiveimpact on our environment, weare also here to make thiscommunity know that we carefor their environmentalchallenges.

"We must work hard to avertfurther environmental disastersin this country, and I am callingon this community to supportprogrammes on environment.''

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) recalls that WALDI hadplanted 3,000 trees of differentspecies around the river bank andwithin the Junior SecondarySchool premises in Wako, acommunity in Kwali Area Councilin the FCT.

NAN also reports that theNGO has embarked on theplanting of grasses as well asseedlings to check erosion anddesertification in Wako.

Also speaking, Alhaji IbrahimUsman, Emir of Wako, Kwalicommended the organisers for theprogramme and expressed hisappreciation SGP/GEF forensuring that his communitybenefitted from the scheme.

Usman assured that thecommunity would henceforthencourage women participationin all environmental issues,adding that the community wouldgive ultimate support to theproject.

The emir appealed to theminister of the FCT to assist thecommunity in addressing theerosion problem which had beentheir major environmentalchallenge.

He said that erosion was athreat to the federal highwayunder construction in the area,adding that it was capable ofwashing the road away.

Earlier, Mrs Esther Okunade,the Executive Director, WALDIsaid that the project was to addressthe basic challenges facingbiodiversity in the area.

Okunade said that thecontinuous washing away of thetrees was a threat to the presenceof soil water. (NAN)

FCTA collaborateswith stakeholdersto preventenvironmentaldisaster

Court dissolves 9-year-old marriageA Grade One Area Court

sitting in Wuse, Abuja,yesterday granted one

Mrs Habiba Ibrahim of ZaudaVillage her request for divorce.

The Judge, QaseemMuhammed, granted thedivorce, following allegations byHabiba that her husband was adrunk who did not provide forher.

“He does not live up to hisresponsibilities, he calls me abarren woman and insults myparents at the slightestprovocation.

“To make matters worse, he

does not observe his five timesdaily prayer because he isalways drunk,” she said.

Habiba told the court that hermarital problems startedbecause she had not been able tobear a child for her husband.

“Our marital problemsstarted after nine years ofchildlessness. He startedbehaving anyhow, one day heleft me at home and went tomarry a second wife secretly. Onanother occasion, I gave himmoney to buy me land and hewent to buy it in his name,“ shetold the court

Responding, Salihu, prayedthe court to grant his wife herrequest.

“Please grant her requestbecause I have begged her andshe refused to change her mind’’.

He told the court that his wifehad not produced any child forhim after nine years of beingtogether, which prompted himto take a second wife.

“I have not known peace inmy home since I married asecond wife because she hasnever liked the idea,’’ he said.

He said it was normal forcouples to quarrel and insult

each other in the process and “theissue of observing prayers or notis personal”.

Muhammed said that thecourt used the concept ofirreconcilable difference ingranting Habiba’s request.

He said that any kind ofdifference between two partiesthat could be changed or wherean individual did not want tochange, could be considered asirreconcilable difference.

He, therefore, held that fromDecember 6, 2012, the marriagebetween Habiba and Ibrahimwas dissolved. (NAN)

Old men displaying their cultural heritage at a function, recently in Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 18

400 patients to benefit from free polio surgeryAn Indian orthopaedic

surgeon, Dr DeepakPurohit, said in Abuja on

Thursday that the India -Nigeria Rotary Polio SurgeryProject team would treat morethan 400 patients.

Purohit made this known inan interview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN),adding that the project wasaimed at bringing poliopatients from affected areas ofthe country to access theservices.

“In this project, we aim totreat no less than 400 patients,whose limbs are affected, correcttheir deformity, so that they willbe able to walk, use their elbowsinstead of crawling.’’

According to him, the projectis free of charge, with the help ofRotarians in India and Nigeriaas well as Rotary Foundation inNigeria.

The orthopaedic surgeon,who is also the projectchairman, said that thetransportation of the patients,treatment, operation andmedicine were free of charge.

“Indian doctors, local doctors,and Nigeria Rotarians as well asthe government agencies areworking interdependently witheach other to give this benefit tothe largest section ofcommunity, who are poor andnot able to afford thetreatment”, he said.

He added that after the polioaffliction, the child craws andlosses his or her dignity, “so weare trying to bring the dignityof the child back, that is whatpolio project is all about”.

“We have selected twohospitals; Federal MedicalCentre, Keffi, Nasarawa andUniversity of Abuja TeachingHospital Gwagwalada FCT.

He said the programme

A young man patronising road side baber, yesterday in Area 1, Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

which started on December 3,2012 would end on December 11,2012.

Purohit said that one of thechallenges the team had wasmoving the patients from thecamp to the hospital down to thetheatre, adding that it was ateam of 25 “so it was a bit hardbringing them due to the way theprogramme is organised.”

“Another thing iscoordinating with the localhospital, because each hospitalhas got its own set of rules, butnow we have been able tounderstand them.

“The local people have beenhelping us a lot especially here,the official has been consideringto give us full support with thehelp of the Chief Medical Director

(CMD) as well as the Keffihospital,” he said.

According to him, the teamhas already done 55 surgeriesand still have a long way to go.

“Three hundred patientshave been examined and about60 are still waiting for surgery,so in coming days, we hope toperform more surgery to meetour target,’. (NAN)

The Federal CapitalTerritory(FCT) chapter ofthe Association of Medical

Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria(AMLSN), has lauded the F CTAdministration (FCTA) for theavailable testing machine calledAdaltis machine, used forscreening blood and bloodproduct for transfusion.

Chairman of the association,Dr Casmir Ifeanyi during aninterview with journalist incommemoration of the justconcluded World AIDs Day saidthat among the states across thecountry, FCT is the only centrewhere the Adaltis machine isavailable.

Dr. Casmir called on otherstate government and stateministries of health to begin totake the cue from the FCTA byacquiring this machine and tohelp in breaking transmissionparticularly where it involvesthe use of blood and bloodproducts.

He explained that Adaltismachine allows simultaneousdetection of HIV-p24 antigen andanti-HIV in human serum orplasma, adding that it is acomparative timing of detectionof primary HIV infection followingsero-conversion have shown thatAdaltis Detect-HIV™ gives bettersensitivity than the current HIVRapid Testing Algorithm.

The Chairman lamented that

the increase of the spread of HIV /AIDS in the country today isbecause most people who go to thehospital to know there status arejudged negative, while they arepositive.

He further explained that thereason for these was because mostof the primary health care centresin the country lacked medicallaboratory scientist.

“This is a huge challenge forus and it requires a political willon the part of FederalGovernment to prevent thisordeal, introducing a Medicallaboratory services at thePrimary Health Care as a keycomponent. There are policypapers from the Federal Ministryof Health in that regard, but it

Laboratory scientists laud FCTA over testing machineBy Adeola Tukuru

has not been implemented”.“What we are saying is that it

is time for the Federal Ministryof Health to collaborate with theMedical laboratory Scientist andother stakeholders in the healthsystem to find the existingAlgorithm against superiormethod of testing and be sure thatwhen you say somebody isnegative that person is trulynegative, he said”.

Casmir said the associationin collaboration with the USAID,Centre for Disease Control of theUnited States (US), PopulationCensus and other agencies haddistributed materials and alsoprovided free HIV testing atcommunity level to mark theWorld AIDs Day.

The Police have arraignedone Ushe Michael ofKarimo Last Gate, Abuja,

before an Abuja SeniorMagistrates Court for allegedtheft.

Police Prosecutor, CorporalDavid Udeh, told the court thatone Anthony Nnondu of Karimo,Abuja, reported the matter tothe Wuse Police Station.

According to Udeh, theaccused picked N18, 000 from

Nnondu’s pocket when he wasboarding a bus at Wuse marketon December 3, 2012.

Udeh added that duringpolice investigation, the sum ofN3, 500 was found in thepossession of the accused.

The accused pleaded notguilty to the charge, saying thatone of his friends “passed moneyto him and that he had no ideahow he got it’’.

Senior Magistrate, Njideka

Duru, granted the accused bailin the sum of N5, 000 and areasonable surety in like sumwho must be resident with thejurisdiction of the court.

She added that the accusedfriend should be brought to thecourt at the next sitting.

“We are aware of crimes likethis and how they areperpetrated by one personpassing a stolen item to anotheruntil they finally get away.

“I hereby wish to see the saidfriend of the accused personappear in court with him forquestioning on the next date ofhearing,’’ Duru said.

She adjourned the case toDecember 19, 2012 for furtherhearing. (NAN)

Conductor, 25, arraigned for alleged theft

One Olamide Olatayo, 42,of Lugbe, Abuja, has beenarraigned before a Gudu

Upper Area Court, Abuja, foralleged cheating and issuing fakereceipt.

The Police Prosecutor, ASPPatrick Obetta, told the court thatone Richard John, of Lugbe,Abuja, wrote a petition to theCommissioner of Police, FCTCommand, on January 14,2012.

Obetta said the accusedinduced the complainant andcollected N450, 000 from him tohire a store at Lugbe market,Abuja.

“The accused, knowing wellthat AMAC had revoked the shopallocations, went ahead to issue afake receipt to John,’’ Obettastressed.

The accused pleaded notguilty to the charges.

The presiding Judge, AdamuWakili, granted the accused bailin the sum of N500,000.

Wakili added that the accusedmust present a reliable suretywho must be resident within theFCT and must have a fixedaddress.

He adjourned the case toFebruary 18, 2013, for hearing.(NAN)

Man, 42,arraignedforallegedlyissuing fakereceipt

PAGE 19PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Management Tip of the DayBe assertive while being yourself

INSIDE

If you're reserved, you'velikely been told you need tobe more assertive at work. But if

that's not your natural style, how canyou still ask for what you need and getwhat you want? Here are three ways:

Start with a success inventory. Tounderstand when your style is effectiveor not, spend a week assessing your

Revamp of NEXIM,NEPC panacea for

Nigeria's vision 2020

- Pg 20BBBBBUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSEmail: aminuimam@yahoo.co.uk Mob: 08033644990

success. Before a meeting, ask yourself,"What do I want?" Then, afterwards,evaluate the results.

Set small goals. Challenge yourselfwith a specific goal. For example, giveyourself a week to initiate three difficultconversations with colleagues. Orpromise that in group discussions forthe next month, you'll speak up within

Public assets lack insurance cover- NAICOM bossCommission (NAICOM), FolaDaniel disclosed yesterday.

He said the Commission alsonoticed that the currentbudgetary provisions forinsurance of government assetsand properties were inadequateor in most cases not made at all.

As a proof for this assertion,he said very strategicgovernment assets had becomean eye sore rotting away afterthey are engulfed by fire becausethere were no insurance policycoverage on them.

Daniel spoke yesterday inAbuja at a sensitization workshop

on implementation of “No cover”rule for insurancestakeholders. He said NAICOMwas committed to implementingthe stricter policy of no premiumno cover to its letter.

According to him, “where theprovisions are made, paymentsof premium to insurancecompanies are either delayed formonths or the funds redeployedto meet other needs byMinistries, Departments andAgencies of government whichis in clear breach of section 50(1)of the Insurance Act 2003”.

He reaffirmed commitment

of NAICOM to addressing thevexed issue of delayed or unpaidinsurance premium which hesaid has attained an alarmingcrescendo which if not tackled,could drive the industry in toextinction.

Daniel urged insurance deskofficers of various organizationsto counsel their organization onthe importance of payingpremium adding that theCommission will not spare anyin the implementation of “Nopremium No cover “policy.

This comes as theCommission announced lifting

By Abdulwahab Isa

Most public assets,especially edificesowned by various tires

of government do not havei n s u r a n c ecover, Commissioner forInsurance and Chief ExecutiveOfficer of the National Insurance

the first two minutes.Build relationships. If you hold

back because you're uncomfortablewith your co-workers, considerinteracting more with colleaguesoutside of work so that you feel moreat ease speaking up.Source: Harvard BusinessReview

suspends sanction on insurance broker

NEXIM Bank to set up a shipping lineBy Umar Muhammad Puma

L-R: Executive Director, Metropolitan Construction Limited, Mr. Tony Fagbuaro, Sector Engineer, Office of Public Private Partnership, Lagosstate, Mr. Taofeek Kelani, Managing Director, Metroplotan construction company limited, Mr. Carlos Franyi, and special adviser to thegovernor on public private partnership, Mr. Ayo Gbeleyi, during the inspection of the alternative road to the toll plaza 2 in Ikota, Eti-Osa localcouncil area of Lagos state, yesterday. Photo: NAN

suspension it slammed on Ibadanbased Prime InvestmentInsurance Brokers Limited in astatement issued by itsspokesperson Lucky Fiakpa.

The lifting of the sanction ishinged satisfactory conduct ofthe Broker during the period ofthe suspension while it haspurged itself of all the infractionsthat necessitated the suspensionof its license.

The company was suspendedfrom doing business as insurancebroker with effect from June 14,2012 following theunprofessional manner withwhich the firm handled the OndoState Government propertyinsurance account.

Nigerian Export-ImportBank (NEXIM) plans toset up a shipping line to

boost trade between Nigeria andother African countries.

Managing Director of theBank, Mr. RobertOrya confirmed during budgetdefense of the House ofRepresentatives committee on

Banking and Currency to defendthe bank’s 2013 budget proposal.

Throwing more light on whyNEXIM plans to float the shippingline, Orya disclosed that it wasfor the purpose of facilitatingtransportation of goods to boththe West and Central African subregions adding that roadtransportation presently usedfor the movement of Nigerianexports posed many obstacles and

bottlenecks.He said “there is need for

NEXIM to set up a shipping linebecause for goods to be shippedto Tema in Ghana from Lagos,it would take not less than 60days for the ship to arrive at itsdestination. The ship would firstof all travel from Lagos to Europebefore returning to Ghana.”

He further stated thatalready Nigerian goods were

widely distributed within theWest and Central African sub-regions.

Orya expressed frustrationover the bank’s efforts to recoverdebts it was being owed across thecountry.

“We have used the Economicand Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC) and othersecurity agencies in the countryand even moral persuasion in ourefforts to recover debts we arebeing owed but still we haven’tachieved much in this regard.”

He lamented that the profitthe bank had made had beeneaten up by huge debt it wasbeing owed.

In his speech at the occasion,the Chairman of the Committeeon Banking and Currency of theHouse of Representatives, Hon.Jones Onyereri ( PDP Imo state),pledged the readiness of the Houseto assist the bank recover its debtsbut insisted that management ofthe bank should providecomprehensive informationabout the debts it was been owed.

The Managing Director ,Federal Mortgage Bank ofNigeria (FMBN) Gimba

Ya’u Kumo said the bank hasrecorded tremendousimprovement on the collectionof 2.5 percent mortgagededuction from N950 millionto about N1.3 billion monthly .

The bank also attainedhigher grounds on request bycontributors for refunds, whichhas moved up from N70million previously to N1.5billion. He spoke recently inAbuja while receiving honoraryaward of patron conferred onhim by National Anti-Corruption Volunteers for hisdedication and transparentapproach he brought to bear inFMBN.

On status of loan facilitygrant to Estate Developers andthe Primary MortgageInstitutions (PMIs), he said thebank recorded tremendousimprovement just as he ruledout the option of sourcing loansfor mortgage purposes from localcommercial banks citing bank’sastronomical interest charges.

Ya’u Kumo said theachievement recorded under hiswatch was a collective efforts ofFMB staf as according to him,“it’s not about me, but acollective effort of FMBN team.Fighting corruption as it is

today is joint task. To win waron corruption, we have to startit on individual level.

He allayed fear in somequarters that estates funded byFMBN could be targeted fordemolition by the Federal CapitalTerritory Administration squad.He said estates funded by FMBNgo through thorough process ofcorrectness of land allocationsand urged FMBN estateoccupant to be calm.

In a remark earlier, Directorof National Anti- CorruptionVolunteers Gabriel Onwe saidthe FMBN boss was selected forhis commitment and selflessdedication to his assignment.

FMBN recordssuccess onmortgagedeductions,monthlycollection hitsN1.3 bnBy Abdulwahab Isa

PAGE 20 PEOPLES DAILY,FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

COMPANYNEWS

$10 Billion ‘HotMoney’ Not Posinga Threat – Sanusi

Nigeria’s financial system isnot under threat fromspeculative investments

valued at about $10 billion,Central Bank of Nigeria GovernorLamido Sanusi said.

Nigeria would still have $36billion in reserves if theinvestments left the country,Sanusi said today at a conferencein Abuja, the capital. Highinterest rates have kept inflationbelow forecast, stabilized thenaira and helped raise foreigncurrency reserves, he said.

“The policy is working” inproviding price stability, the coremandate of the bank, he said.

Nigeria HoldsTalks with Shell,Exxon to Agreeon Oil-TaxReform

The Federal Government isin talks with Royal DutchShell Plc, Exxon Mobil

Corp., and other energycompanies to reach anagreement on tax demandsproposed in draft legislation.

“There’s always the intent totry and strike a balance,particularly from the side ofgovernment,” PetroleumMinister Diezani Alison-Madueke said today at aconference in Abuja. “Thereseemed to be such disparity interms of where we stood on thefiscals.”

MTN, Glo, Etisalatand Airtel May Facemore Punitive Fines– Minister

The Federal Governmentmay levy more finesagainst

telecommunications companiesif their service hasn’t improvedby the time service qualitychecks are made in December,Communications TechnologyMinister Omobola Johnson said.

The telecommunicationsregulator fined companiesincluding MTN Group Ltd.(MTN) and EmiratesTelecommunications Corp.(ETISALAT) a combined 1.17billion naira ($7.4 million) inMay for failing to meetminimum service standards.Nigeria, Africa’s most populouscountry with more than 160million people, is targeting voicepenetration of close to 100percent by 2014-2015.

“Fining isn’t something wewant to do every six months, sowe’re working very closely withthem,” Johnson said in a Nov.26 interview in the southerncity of Warri.

NEXIM, NEPC revamppanacea for Nigeria’s vision 2020Nigeria’s reliance

exclusively on crudeoil resources as a

means of executing herdevelopments is responsiblefor the current stagnantgrowth.

In more ways than one, thesnap but cheap reliance on oilearnings has crashed her outof the 2020 vision race whichit earnestly began withtrappings of fanfare.

It became apparent fewdays ago that the aspiration bymost populous black nation tobe part of top 20 economies2020 is a hoax and meremirage after all.

Nigeria is displaced bySaudi Arabia. Theconfirmation came from noother person but the Director-General of Nigerian EconomicSummit Group (NESG), MrFrank Nweke Jnr- convener ofthe annual forum thatbrainstorms on direction of theeconomy.

Nweke, Tuesday in Abujasaid “based on our projectionsusing the IMF World EconomicOutlook database, our findingsare that Saudi Arabia will bethe 20th largest economy inthe world by 2020, with aGross Domestic Product (GDP)of 1.2 trillion dollars inPurchasing Power Parity(PPP). Nigeria on the otherhand would be the 27th largesteconomy in the world by2020, with a GDP of $864billion in PPP; falling short ofbeing the 20th largesteconomy by a GDP of $316billion,” NESG boss said.

He said Nigeria needed$730 billion to close the gap inorder to become the 20thlargest economy by2020. The Vision 20:2020 isaimed at making Nigeria oneof the top 20 economies by year2020.

But Nigeria does possess allit takes to lead aspiring packof vision 2020nations. However, theopportunity cost of her totaldependent on oil thus robbedher of huge economicattraction offered bydiversification in to non-oilsectors.

The untapped hugeagriculture potentials , vaste n t e r t a i n m e n tsector, manufacturing, agro -processing, solid minerals andservices arepotential Nigeria’s goldmines that deserve all impetusbut relegated to second fiddleafter oil.

The Managing Director/CEO, Nigerian Export-ImportBank (NEXIM) Mr. Roberts U.Orya at a recent interactivesession with mediarepresentatives underscoreshuge potentials imbedded innon-oil sector.

He said Nigeria couldaddress its hugeunemployment challenge by

giving greater attention tonon-oil sector. It remains ahuge source of foreignexchange earnings for thecountry.

The occasion was NEXIMscore card in the last threeyears of Orya on saddle. Hecited Nigeria’s film industryhitherto neglected but beingrepositioned through the bankfunding interventions

He said the bankhas extended loans toeligible companies in all thevalue-chain within thecreative arts andentertainment industryunder the Nigerian Creative

Arts & EntertainmentIndustry Facility Scheme.

Giving a breakdown of thebank’s interventions, he said“as at today, the total fundingsupport to the Industry byNEXIM comprised of N700million and N536 milliondisbursed to six beneficiaryclients”.

An institution establishedfor intervention and financingof non-oil exports, he said thebank in the last three years hass u p p o r t e d N i g e r i a nexporters majorly the smalland medium enterprises(SME’s) with some engaging inGreenfield projects to the tune

of N23.33 billion and issuedGuarantees valued at $27.3Million between 2009 andAugust 2012.

The interventions weremajorly in the bank targetsectors with high growthpotentials such as themanufacturing, agro -processing, Solid Minerals andServices.

E x p e c t e d l y ,the repositioning of the bankby the currentmanagement is said tohave led to variousoperational interventions andthis in effect, has generated/sustained direct jobs ofover 14,358 as at August 31,2012 while its facilitatesgranted has culminated toforeign exchange earnings inexcess of $189.20 millionannually in the last the threeyears.

Of note, Orya said themodest achievementsrecorded by the bank in thelast three years in the area oflending support to the non-oilsector would not have possiblewithout fresh capital injectionby the shareholders.

Besides fresh capitalinjection, it got institutionalsupport through supervisoryand regulatory oversight andguidance from the CBN andFederal Ministry of Finance, agesture that translated to thebank capacity to support thegrowth of the non-oil exportsand complement the exportcredit support of the commercialbanks.

Orya said the bank iscurrently on the vergeof establishing a shipping lineto boost trade between Nigeriaand other African countries.

“ There is need for NEXIM toset up a shipping line becausefor goods to be shipped to Temain Ghana from Lagos, it wouldtake not less than 60 days forthe ship to arrive at itsdestination. The ship wouldfirst of all travel from Lagos toEurope before returning toGhana”, he affirmed recently.

Experts are of the view thatagencies like NEXIM, theNigerian Export PromotionCouncil (NEPC) whosemandates centreon promoting thedevelopment anddiversification of Nigeria’s non-oil export trade are capable ofleading the nation to thedesired spot of being among topeconomies if well funded.

The disclosure with voice of certainty by the Director-General of Nigerian EconomicSummit Group (NESG), Mr Frank Nweke on Tuesday that Nigeria has fallen off thetrack in the race for the top 20 economies in 2020 due to her failure in meeting basicrequirements once more opened the flank for ceaseless calls for diversification of thenation’s resources from oil to the non-oil sector. In this analysis, Abdulwahab Isaargues that a repositioned NEXIM Bank and a well funded Nigerian Export PromotionCouncil (NEPC)- two key institutions in non-oil sector should be encouraged andsupported by government for nation quest as top hub economies to be met

NEXIM boss, Mr. Roberts U. Orya

Giving a breakdown of thebank’s interventions, he

said “as at today, the totalfunding support to the filmindustry by NEXIM com-

prised of N700 million andN536 million disbursed tosix beneficiary clients”.

“

PAGE 21PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Stamp Duties are transactiontaxes imposed on instrumentsexecuted by individuals and

corporate entities in Nigeria. The1999 Constitution (as amended)of the Federal Republic of Nigeriaplaces the responsibility oflegislating Stamp Duty on theFederal Government. It also placescollection of taxes on the concurrentlegislative list, empowering theFederal Government through itsrevenue administration body; theFederal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS) to collect stamp duty feeswhere a company is involved forthe Federal Government and wereindividuals or persons are involvedto be paid collected by a StateStamp Duty Office.

Payment of Stamp Duties isbacked by law, the Stamp DutiesAct 1939 as amended bynumerous Acts and variousresolutions and contained in Vol.22 cap 411 LFN 1990. Note thatStamp Duty is one of the mattersreserved to the FederalGovernment in the ExclusiveLegislative list.

Stamp Duties was introducedin England in 1694. In Nigeria itis presently administered throughthe Stamp Duties Act CAP S.8 LFN2004, which started as the StampDuties Act 1939. Stamp Duties areduties/fee basically oninstruments and it is defined toinclude every written document.The Black's Law Dictionary definesstamp duty as a tax raised byrequiring stamps sold by thegovernment to be affixed todesignated documents, thusforming part of the perpetualrevenue. If a transaction is effectedorally or arises solely from theconduct of the parties and there isno document to stamp, no duty canbe payable.

The Federal Government is theonly competent authority toimpose, charge and collect dutiesupon instruments specified in theSchedule to the Act if suchinstrument relates to mattersexecuted between a company andan individual, group or body ofindividuals. While the StateGovernments shall collect dutiesin respect of instruments executedbetween persons or individuals atsuch rates to be imposed or chargedas may be agreed with the FederalGovernment (FCT Inclusive).

Stamp Duty collection is jointlyadministered by the State andFederal authorities, depending onthe type and nature of thedocument to be stamped. Stampduties are regarded as transactiontaxes, and the rates charged woulddepend on the classification of thedocument. Documents areassessed on their individualcharacteristics.

At the federal level, theadministration of the tax fallssquarely on the Commissioner forStamp Duties through the processof adjudication.

An instrument must be sent tothe Commissioner of Stamp Dutiesfor adjudication.

Optimizing revenue yield from stamp dutiescollection through enforcement of tax Law (1)

Instruments are charged ateither flat rates or ad valorem. Atadjudication, the commissionerissues a certificate. The specialnature of Stamp Duties isillustrated by the adjudicationprocess which enables the correctamount of duty to be determinedby the Commissioners. A dutypayer may require theCommissioners to express theiropinion on the liability to duty orotherwise.

With the assessment, the dutypayer goes to the bank to pay asper the commissioner's evaluation.Once the payment is confirmedand an acknowledgement receiptis issued, the document is thenstamped with the correct stampdenoting the payment.

Legal effect of a stamped

instrument.According to section 19 and

section 22 of the Stamp Duties Act,an unstamped instrument willnot be admissible as evidence in aCourt of Law. This excludesinstruments executed or relatingto property situated or any matteror thing done or to be done outsideNigeria and instruments givenas evidence in a criminal matter.

Terms upon whichinstruments not duly stampedmay be received in evidence

1) Upon the production ofan instrument chargeable withany duty as evidence in anycourt of civil judicature inNigeria, or before any arbitratoror referee, notice shall be takenby the judge, magistrate,arbitrator, or referee of any

omission or insufficiency of thestamps thereon, and if theinstrument is one which maylegally be stamped after theexecution thereof, it may, onpayment to the officer of the courtwhose duty it is to read theinstrument, or to the arbitratoror referee, of the amount of theunpaid duty, and the penaltypayable stamping the same, andof a further sum of two naira, bereceived in evidence, saving alljust exceptions on other grounds.

2) The officer, or arbitrator,or referee receiving the duty andpenalty shall give a receipt for thesame, and make an entry in theproper book kept for the purposeof showing receipts of money andof the amount thereof, and shallcommunicate to a Commissionerthe name or title of theproceedings in which and of thepart from whom, he received theduty and penalty, and the dateand description of theinstrument, and shall pay overto the Accountant-General themoney so received by him for theduty and penalty.

3) On production to theCommissioner of any instrumentin respect of which any duty orpenalty has been paid, togetherwith the receipt, the payment ofthe duty and penalty shall bedenoted on the instrument.

4) Except as aforesaid andsubject to the provisions of Section90(3) of this Act, an instrumentexecuted in Nigeria, or relating,wherever executed, to anyproperty situated or to anymatter or thing done or to be donein Nigeria, shall not, except incriminal proceedings, be given inevidence, or be available for anypurpose whatever, unless it is dulystamped in accordance with thelaw in force in Nigeria at the timewhen it was first executed.

Chargeability of duties oninstruments Stamp Duties arecharged on instruments fallingwithin specified heads of charge.The enforcement of stamp duties

is ensured by the consequences offailure to stamp, which are theincidents of penalties and offencesand inadmissibility of theinstruments in evidence. Theseconsequences apply where aninstrument has beeninsufficiently or incorrectlystamped.

For an instrument to bechargeable, it must fall withinone of the heads of charge andsubsequent legislation. The headof charge is determined by thesubstance of the transactionrecorded in an instrument ratherthan its form and the wordingused by the parties is notconclusive.

If an instrument falls withintwo heads of charge, theGovernment can only levy oneduty, but may choose the higher(Speyer Bros v CIR HL, (1908)AC92). The principles ofconstruction of a taxing statuteapply, inter alia, as follows:

o The onus of proof is on thegovernment to show that aninstrument is within a stamp dutycharge;

o The wording of a charge tostamp duty must be clear andunambiguous and if the languageis clear, the court must give effectto it;

o In a case of real ambiguity,the construction most favorable tothe taxpayer should be given.

o There are numerousexemptions from specific heads ofcharge or from stamp dutiesgenerally. Here the onus is on thetaxpayer to show that theinstrument qualifies for exemption.Form of Stamp Duties Act

The Stamp Duties Act is madeup of three parts;

Part 1: Contains provisionsapplicable to instruments ingeneral and contains the chargingsection.

Part II: Contains regulationsapplicable to particularinstruments.

Here, the heads of charge areshown.

Part 111: Consists ofsupplementary provisions on dutyon capital of companies,miscellaneous items and aschedule.

Organization of stamp dutyoffice.

There are twenty four (24)stamp duty offices of FIRSthroughout the country. Theoffices are closely located to officesof the Corporate AffairsCommission (CAC) because of theneed of stamping Memorandumand Articles of Association, sharecapital and debt instruments.

The Commissioner for StampDuties is responsible for theadjudication process indetermining the correct duty to bepaid. The confirmation of allassessments raised by theAssessment officers as well asreceipts issued, are also part of hisresponsibility.

The Commissioner for StampDuties is also required to ensurethat right rates are charged inaccordance with the law.

FIRS Ag Chairman Alhaji Kabiru Mashi

FIRS Headquaters, Abuja

By Frank Obaro

PAGE 22 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Report of the Petroleum RevenueSpecial Task Force, Nov 2012 (III)1.2.1. The Nigerian Petro-leum Industry

Nigeria is the home to sub-stantial deposits of oil and gasresources. The country'sproven oil reserves totalled37.2billion bbls as of January2010, according to the US En-ergy Information Administra-tion. Nigerian Governmentsources claim that reservesmay actually be as high as38.2billion bbls. However, dueto lack of transparency in re-porting, key statistics onNigeria's hydrocarbons indus-try vary widely and are oftencoloured by different interests.Still, Nigeria's deposits are re-garded internationally as thetenth - largest in the world andthe second largest in Africa af-ter Libya.

Nigeria's oil is prized for itspurity. Export blends areBonny Light and sweet crudes,which require less refining andare thus more lucrative. Theoil typically fetches more onglobal markets than BrentCrude, the global benchmarkoil that is extracted from theNorth Sea.

Despite the fact that thecountry's reserves are sub-stantial, crude oil productionfaces serious challenges such asNigeria's inability to meet itsfunding obligations to the jointventures (JVs). Nigeria alsofaces the challenges which in-clude social unrest in produc-tion areas, wilful damage tothe pipeline network and crudeoil theft to name a few. In2008, Nigeria's output wasenough to rank it as Africa'slargest producer, but since2009 the country's productionhas been occasionally sur-passed by Angola.

Nigeria also has the ninth -largest proven gas reservesworldwide, at about 5.2trn cumeters, according to govern-ment figures. Like its oil,Nigeria's gas is high qualityand low in sulphur. Of the to-tal, 2.7trn cu meters is associ-ated gas mixed in with oil de-posits. Non - associated gas,which is more valuable be-cause it does not require sepa-ration from crude, amountedto about 2.5trn cu meters.

One of the main issues re-lating to Nigeria's gas marketis gas flaring. Before 1999,most gas was flared due to lackof demand. In 2004, both Chev-ron and Sassol signed gas-to-liquid (GTL) agreements andMobil decided to reduce flaringto 10% by 2004. Since then,alternatives to liquefactionand exporting have emergedin the form of electricityprojects, petrochemicalsplants and other industrial

uses. However, supply con-straints have blocked growthin gas use due in part to a lackof distribution infrastruc-t u r e .

These constraints have re-sulted in significant gas flar-ing in Nigeria. The US Na-tional Oceanic and Atmo-spheric Administration show

that Nigeria flared 14.9bil-lion cu ft (10.6%) in 2008making the country theworld's second biggest gasflaring nation after Russia,which burned 40.2 cu ft.

The country's down-stream sector is also plaguedwith various challenges. Ni-geria imports most of its re- fined petroleum products due

to inadequate refining capac-ity in-country. Officials of thePipelines and Products Mar-keting Company Limited(PPMC) submitted to the TaskForce that Nigeria owns four(4) refineries with a combinedcapacity of 445,000bpd. Inaddition, for the purpose ofdistribution, Nigeria has5,120km of pipelines, 23 stor-age depots, 8 LPG depots, 24pump stations, 2 offshore jet-ties (Atlas Cove and Escravos)and 4 Jetties (Apapa, Warri,Okrika and Calabar). How-ever, the four (4) refineriesare in poor shape and cur-rently operate at about 30%capacity due to poor mainte-nance, fire damage, crude oiltheft, and other issues. Domes-tic consumption of Nigeriancrude oil is low - about200,000bpd, or

around 15% of total petro-leum products consumed.

There are well known andfrequently documented chal-lenges to the downstream sec-tor which include frequentwilful damage to the pipelinenetwork, refined producttheft, inadequate storagetanks, high demurrage costs,and alleged fraudulent prac-

Overview

tices relating to governments u b s i d i e s .

The government agencyoverseeing and representingthe interests of Governmentin the oil and gas sector is theNigerian National PetroleumCorporation (NNPC). TheNNPC is the national oil com-pany, but performs severalother functions as well, serv-ing as energy sector regula-tor, joint venture partner inall onshore operations and thenation's primary source of in-come. The Department of Pe-t r o l e u m

Resources, a separate bodyunder the Ministry of Petro-leum Resources, conducts thebidding rounds for explorationblocks and tends to be re-garded as the technical regu-l a t o r .

This introduction gives aglimpse of some of the issuesand the case for change in thePetroleum Sector. The nextsection describes the terms ofreference of the Special TaskForce and the work approachadopted. An internationalfirm of consultants and audi-tors Pricewaterhouse Coopers{PwC} was engaged to supporton the forensic reviews anddata gathering.

President Goodluck Jonathan

Minister of Petroluem, Diezani Allison Madueke

Nuhu Ribadu

PAGE 26 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Another new year andendless repetition (iii)

Allah says:“The number of months In the

sight of Allah is twelve (in a year)-so ordained by Him the Day Hecreated the heavens and the earth;of them four are sacred: that is thestraight usage. so wrong notyourselves therein, and Fight thePagans all together As They Fightyou all Together. but know thatAllah is with those who restrainthemselves”. [Taubah: 36]

In the name of Allah, theBeneficent, the Merciful. AllPraise is due to Allah! We

praise Him and we seek help fromHim. We ask forgiveness fromHim. We repent to Him; and weseek refuge in Him from our evilsand bad deeds. Anyone who isguided by Allah, is indeedguided; and anyone who hasbeen left astray, will find no oneto guide him. I bear witness thatthere is no deity worthy ofworship but Allah, the Only Onewithout any partner; and I bearwitness that Muhammad is Hisservant and final messenger tomankind. May the peace andblessing of Allah be upon His lastand final Apostle, his Household,his companions and all hisfollowers until the end of time.

This time around, we will notrelent our tempo in sorting outsome of the major eventsrecorded during the early days,and may be the recent days ofthe Muslim months. The purposeis to remind us of our pastglorious days, and that we willone day all pass away, to beremembered only by history!

If could remember we havetreated three monts:Muharram, Safar and RabbiThani. Today we will march on.

Rabbi’ II, Rabbi¿ ath-Thani or Rabbi¿ al-Akhir isthe fifth month of the Islamiccalendar. It means ‘’the secondor last spring”. It is thecontinuation of the immediateprevious months.

Like all previous months, therewere series of events that tookplace therein. the following arejust, but few.

Shaikh Khwaja SyedMuhammad NizamuddinAuliya 18th Rabi-ul-Akhir, the725 Hijri. He was the a famousSufi saint of the Chishti Order inthe Indian Subcontinent HadratSheikh Abdul Qadir Jilanee-11th Rabi-ul-akhir: 561 Hijripassed away at the age of 90

Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilaneedeparted from this life at the ageof 90, on the 11th of Rabbi¿ al-Akhir, 561 AH

However, some people,without any Shari’ahinjunction, venerate SheikhAbdul Qadir Al Jilani every 11thof this month. These peoplebelieve that the practice pleasesthe soul of the Sheikh, and inreturn, he will help them infulfilling their worldly andspiritual goals.

Jumâdâ I or Jumada al-

Ula is the fifth month of theIslamic lunar calendar. It means“the first month of scorchedland”. It is the period that wellsdry up ando f t e nc o n s i d e r e dthe pre-I s l a m i c“summer”. Itis a periodexperiencedw i t hparchednessa n dwaterlessnessdue toe x c e s s i v eheat of thesun.

It was the month in which theMessenger of Allah (SAW)married his first beloved wifeKhadijah (RA) at age of 25 years,and 15 years before hisappointment as the last and finalApostle of Islam.

Similarly, the monthwitnessed the death of someSahabas, such as Zaid IbnHaritha (RA), Ja’far Ibn AbiTalib (RA) and Abdullah IbnRawaahah in the processes offighting in defence of the youngIslam in the 8th year of theHijra. Abdullah Ibn Uthman(RA) died the normal death

It was related that AbdulMuttalib, the grandfather of theProphet (SAW) met his death inthis 32 years before the adventof Islam.

Sayed; Koteb, Qutub, thefamous Islamic scholar died onMonday 12th the JumadaAwwal, 1386 A.H. whichcorresponded to October 9,1906.

Sheikh Maududi anotherIslamic luminary passed awayon Monday, Jumada Ula 1324Hijra.

Jumâdâ II, Jumada ath-Thaniya or Jumada al-Akhira. It means “the secondor the last month of parchedland”. It is the continuation ofthe previous month. The sameweather or climatic conditionpersists.

In this month akin to all themonths of the year, many eventstook place which needed ourattention historically. The earlyperiod of Islam saw manyattempts to exterminating itfrom the onset. So, many battlestook place in its defence. Some ofthe ones recorded were, battlesof Salasil took place in the 8thyear of the Hijra. prior to thatmany sariyyah; minor battlesin which the Prophet delegatedpower to some individualSahabas to head the war. Suchminor battles were headed byAbdullah ibn Jahash (RA) in the2nd year of the Hijra, whilethose of Abu ubaidah ibn Jarrah(RA) and Zaid bin Haritha (RA)took place in the 6th year of theHijra.

However, Abu Salama (RA)

died on the 4th day of this monthin Medinah.

Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani died in Jordan on

Saturday 21st of Jumada Thani,1420 corresponding to October2, 1999. He was an influentialSunni scholar of Albanianextraction.

Rajab means “respect” or“nobility”. It is another sacredmonth in which fighting wastraditionally forbidden, evenbefore the advent of Islam. Theword ‘Rajab’ is derived from theword Rajaba meaning “torespect. It is also known as Rajabal Fard or loneliness, because itcomes alone, separated from therest consecutive sacred months.

There are several eventsrelated to this month since theJahiliyya period which havenothing to do with Islam. Eventhough there are no Shari’ahruling regarding these ritualsor practices, a lot of people wentahead to innovate them forworldly gains.

Some of the widely spreadbid’ahs include increasing thetempo of worship throughout themonth of Rajab, celebrating thenight of Isra’ and Mi’iraj from themosque of al-Quds, Jerusalem,every 26th of this month. Somepeople offer sacrificial donationon the 27th of Rajab and thenstanding in voluntary prayerthroughout the night.

In this part of the world,especially old people observefasting of the whole month, andcalled it “the fasting of olds” or of“the clavers”!

Notwithstanding therampant innovations, theMessenger of Allah (SAW)

ascended to Heaven on the 27thof Rajab named the grand“Mi’raaj”

The expedition of Tabuk tookplace in the 9thyear of theHijra. It wasthe last outingin which theHoly Prophet(SAW) tookpart

S h e i k hMawdudi wasborn Friday, 3rajab 1321,correspondingto September25, 1903

H o w e v e r ,many Muslim erudite scholarsof fame and knowledge, passedaway in this month. Some themwere Imams Abu Hanifa (RA)passed away on the 15th of Rajab150 AH, Shafi’i (RA) on the 14thof Rajab 204 AH, Muslim (RA)on the 24th of Rajab 261 AH andAn-Nawawi (RA) on the 14t ofRajab 677 AH. May Allah grantthem everlasting and endlessbliss!

S h a ¿ b â n c o n n o t e s“scattered” or “dispersed”. It wasthe usual period when thevarriious clans and tribes wouldleave their homes and hamlet insearch of water. It was a periodthat everyone was onto himself.

But towards the middle of thismonth, the signs of the comingthe rain would appear, and thehope for life would be rekindledagain!

Just as a farmer prepares for afruitful harvest, so also it will bepreparing us for the coming ofthe month of blessing; theRamadan. The Holy Prophet(SAW) has said, “Sha’baan is mymonth and Ramadan the monthof Allah Ta’aalaa.” [Daylami]

The month of Sha’aban isindeed a very significant periodin Islam. A companion Anas(RA) reported that the HolyProphet was asked, “Which fastis the most meritorious after thefasts of Ramadan” he replied“Fasts of Sha’baan in honour ofRamadan”

Another companion of theProphet of Allah, Usama ibn Zaid(RA) reported that he asked the

Holy Prophet (SAW), “OMessenger of Allah (SAW), Ihave seen you fasting in themonth of Sha’baan so frequentlythat I have never seen youfasting in any other month” hereplied “That (Sha’baan) is amonth between Rajab andRamadan which is neglected bymany people. And it is a month inwhich an account of the deeds (ofhuman beings) is presented beforethe Lord of the universe. So I wishthat my deeds be presented at timewhen I am in a state of fasting”

Despite all the permission tofast any number of voluntaryfasting in this month, yet otherswould innovate. There is thebid’ah of fasting on the 15th dayof this month and standing involuntary prayer throughoutthe night, has no any religioussignificance associated with it.

A significant event thatoccurred during this month wasthe change in the direction;Qibla from Bait-al-Maqdis to theKa’abah. For seventeen monthsafter the migration to Medinahthe Prophet faced the Bait al-Maqdis. Then suddenly Allahchanged the direction towardsthe Ka’abah. Allah says:

“Verily! We have seen theturning of your (Muhammad’s(SAW)) face towards the heaven.Surely, We shall turn you to aQiblah (prayer direction) that shallplease you, so turn your face inthe direction of Al-Masjid- al-Harâm (at Makkah). Andwheresoever you people are, turnyour faces (in prayer) in thatdirection. Certainly, the peoplewho were given the Scriptures(i.e. Jews and the Christians)know well that, that (you’returning towards the direction ofthe Ka’bah at Makkah in prayers)is the truth from their Lord. AndAllah (SWT) is not unaware ofwhat they do.” (Al-Baqarah2:144)

Apart from the change ofdirection of salats, the fasting ofRamadan was also madecompulsory in the year 2 AH onthe 25th of Sha’baan. Also Hafsa(RA) was joined in matrimonywith the Prophet (SAW) in 3 AH,and it was the same month after42 years of marriege, left theworld into the glory of Allah!

Also, the daughter of thebeloved Prophet (SAW) UmmuKulthum (RA) took leave fromthis world, in the 9 AH

Hussain (RA), the grandson ofthe Prophet’s (SAW) was born,four years after Hijri on the 5thof Sha’baan

The 5th year of the Hijrawitnessed the Battle of BanuMustaliq took place. A veryimportant revelation was madein the year 5 AH, in which theverse of ‘sand ablution’‘’Tayammum” was revealed,

Sayed Qutub, died on Tuesday20 sha’aban 1324 equivalent toAugust 29, 1966.

to be concluded next week.

ISLAMISLAMISLAMISLAMISLAMEXPLAINEDEXPLAINEDEXPLAINEDEXPLAINEDEXPLAINED

By Husain ZakariyyaYawale

+234-8052952900 (sms only)islamexplained35@yahoo.com

Apart from the change of direction ofsalats, the fasting of Ramadan was

also made compulsory in the year 2 AHon the 25th of Sha’baan. Also Hafsa

(RA) was joined in matrimony with theProphet (SAW) in 3 AH, and it was the

same month after 42 years of marriege,left the world into the glory of Allah!

“

PAGE 27PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Ghana decides: Profile of top contendersFull Name: John Dramani MahamaParty Affiliation: National DemocraticCongressBorn: 29 November 1958 (age 53)Hometown: Bole, Northern RegionReligion: ChristianOccupation: Communication ExpertCurrent Office: President of GhanaPrevious Office: Vice President of Ghana,Minister of State, Member of ParliamentEducation: University of Ghana, Legon,Institute of Social Sciences, MoscowWebsite: http://www.johnmahama.org

John Mahama

His Excellency John Dramani Mahamais a writer, historian, andcommunications expert, former

Member of Parliament and Minister of State,and sitting President of the Republic of Ghana.Mr. Mahama was born in 1958 in Damango inthe Northern Region of Ghana. His father, Mr.Emmanuel Adama Mahama, was the firstMember of Parliament for the Gonja WestConstituency and the first RegionalCommissioner of the Northern Region duringGhana's First Republic.

Full Name: Dr. Henry Herbert LarteyParty Affiliation: Great Consolidated PopularPartyBorn: 5th February 1954 (58)Hometown: Osu, Greater Accra RegionReligion: ChristianOccupation: Financial ConsultantCurrent Office: Flagbearer, GCPPPrevious Office: Self EmployedEducation: University Of Bath, UKWebsite: http://www.greatconsolidatedpopularparty.org

Dr. Henry Herbert Lartey is Chairmanof the Great Consolidated Popular Party,a champion for the economic

improvement of the people of Ghana, and aninspired Pan-Africanist and visionair withhopes for a United Africa.

Since becoming leader of the G.C.P.P.,Henry has begun travelling across everycorner of Ghana, listening to the stories andthe experiences of the People, talking to themabout their hopes, dreams and expectationsfor the future. It is the same interactiveapproach he has taken during his long careeras a scholar, business man, and as a leadingBlack executive on the world stage. Henry Lartey

Nana Akufo-Addo

Full Name: Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-AddoParty Affiliation: New Patriotic PartyBorn: March 29, 1944 (age 68)Hometown: Kyebi, Eastern RegionReligion: ChristianOccupation: Legal PractitionerCurrent Office: Flagbearer, NPPPrevious Office: Minister of State, Member ofParliamentEducation: University of Ghana, LegonWebsite: http://www.akufoaddo2012.com/

Born March 29, 1944, in Swalaba, Accra,Nana was raised in Ga Maami (AccraCentral) and in the Nima area of Accra.

His father's residence, Betty House at KorleWokon in Accra, was effectively theheadquarters of the country's first politicalparty, the United Gold Coast Convention(UGCC), after it was formed at Saltpond onAugust 4, 1947. Three of the Big Six (foundingfathers of Ghana) were Nana's blood relatives:J.B Danquah (grand uncle), William OforiAtta (uncle) and Edward Akufo-Addo, whobecame the third Chief Justice of Ghana andlater ceremonial President of the Republicfrom 1969-72, was his father.

Full Name: Papa Kwesi NduomParty Affiliation: Progressive People's PartyBorn: February 15, 1953 (age 59)Hometown: Elmina, Central RegionReligion: ChristianOccupation: Management ConsultantCurrent Office: Flagbearer, PPPPrevious Office: Minister of State MP, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-AbiremEducation: University of Wisconsin, USAWebsite: http://www.nduom.com/

Paa Kwesi Nduom

Dr. Nduom was born in Elmina on Sunday, February 15,1953. He was given the name Papa Kwesi Nduom by hisparents, Mr. Joseph Hubster Yorke and Mrs Monica Yorke.

Dr. Nduom was also named Joseph Hubster Yorke Jr. by his parents.Papa Nduom is a well-known name in the Yorke family. The

Yorke family can be found in many towns and villages in Ghanaparticularly in Elmina, Tarkwa and Gomoa Dago. Mr. Samuel Yorkethe grandfather of Dr. Nduom was instrumental in laying thefoundation for what has become St. Augustine's College at CapeCoast in the Central Region of Ghana. Dr. Nduom's mother is one ofthe Mensah-Brown brothers and sisters from Elmina.

Dr. Nduom's grandfather's annual family gatherings that tookplace in Tarkwa when he was alive, was instrumental in buildinga foundation for the extended family interaction, community spiritand caring that he exhibits currently.

Akwasi Addai Odike

Full Name: Akwasi AddaiOdikeParty Affiliation: United Front

PartyBorn: 13th Septem

ber, 1964(Age 48)

Hometown: Adwumakase-Kese, Ashanti Region

Religion: ChristianOccupation: BusinessmanCurrent Office: Flagbearer,

UFPPrevious Office:Education: 'O' Level,Aduman Secondary School

Dr. Nduom was born in Elmina on Sunday, February 15, 1953.He was given the name Papa Kwesi Nduom by his parents,Mr. Joseph Hubster Yorke and Mrs Monica Yorke. Dr. Nduom was

also named Joseph Hubster Yorke Jr. by his parents.Papa Nduom is a well-known name in the Yorke family. The Yorke family

can be found in many towns and villages in Ghana particularly in Elmina,Tarkwa and Gomoa Dago. Mr. Samuel Yorke the grandfather of Dr. Nduomwas instrumental in laying the foundation for what has become St. Augustine'sCollege at Cape Coast in the Central Region of Ghana. Dr. Nduom's mother isone of the Mensah-Brown brothers and sisters from Elmina.

Dr. Nduom's grandfather's annual family gatherings that took place inTarkwa when he was alive, was instrumental in building a foundation forthe extended family interaction, community spirit and caring that he exhibitscurrently.

PAGE 28 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Egypt: Army clearingpresidential palace area

Ivorian PMsays soonerthe better forMali mission

West African states mustdeploy a military forcein north Mali quickly or it

will become increasingly difficult andcostly to oust Islamist groups there,Ivory Coast Prime Minister DanielKablan Duncan said in an interview.

Duncan, a former foreignminister, said that calls fromWashington and elsewhere for a delayin introducing a force of 3,300African troops were misguided as thiswould increase the risk of militantattacks in West Africa and beyond.

The U.N. Security Council taskedWest African states in October withpreparing a plan for militaryintervention to wrest control of northMali from Islamist groups, whichseized control of the vast desert regionfollowing a military coup in April.

In recent weeks, however,Washington has pressed for politicalnegotiations and said any militaryaction would require time. The headof U.N. peacekeeping, Herve Ladsous,said on Wednesday no interventioncould take place before September dueto weather conditions and the need totrain Malian troops and pursue peacetalks.

"Some allies are asking if we needto intervene right now. Our positionis yes, we do, because the longer wewait the more these groups will putdown roots. It will be more difficultafterwards and more expensive,"Duncan told Reuters in Paris, wherehe attended a conference withinternational donors.

Duncan said al Qaeda militantsfrom Afghanistan and Pakistan hadtravelled to Mali to reinforce thegroup's north African wing, al Qaedain the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), oneof several groups controlling northernMali.

Delaying intervention wouldmake it much harder to dislodgethese foreign fighters, who weretraining militants from across theregion, particularly members of theNigerian Islamist sect Boko Haram,he said.

"There is a destabilisation of theregion taking place in Mali," Duncansaid. "We have to get rid of thesegroups. Nor can we tolerate thetraffic of drugs and the taking ofhostages."

Seven French nationals arebeing held in the Sahel region, whichhas also increasingly become ahaven for international organisedcrime groups. France is the mostoutspoken Western advocate ofmilitary intervention.

Duncan welcomed negotiationswith two rebel groups which openedon Tuesday in neighbouring BurkinaFaso, while maintaining thatmilitary intervention wasunavoidable.

Armour tanks used to scare away demonstrators outside the Palace

France's ex-soldiers admit killing IvorianFour ex-French

peacekeepers haveadmitted their role in the

killing of a suspected gang leaderin Ivory Coast in 2005, but saythey acted under orders.

Prosecutors have asked aParis court to jail Col EricBurgaud and his three co-defendants for suffocatingFirmin Mahe to death with aplastic bag.

The Egyptian army hasbegun clearingdemonstrators and the media

from outside Cairo's presidentialpalace.

It follows violent overnight clashesbetween supporters and opponents ofPresident Mohammed Morsi that leftfive people dead and 644 injured.

Most protesters left the area by the15:00 (13:00 GMT) deadline, thoughsome opposition activists remained.

Meanwhile, Egypt's top Islamicbody has called on the president tosuspend his decree claiming sweepingpowers.

The Al-Azhar institution alsodemanded an unconditional dialoguebetween the president and hisopponents.

Jon Leyne in Cairo says this moveby one of the most respected bodies inSunni Islam has put President Morsi -who was largely brought to power bythe powerful Islamist MuslimBrotherhood - under more pressure.

But he adds that it is difficult to seewhat compromise is possible betweenPresident Morsi and the opposition.

The president adopted new Nelson Mandela

presidential palace on Thursdaymorning following the overnightclashes between the pro-Morsi MuslimBrotherhood supporters and hismainly secular opponents.

The head of Egypt's RepublicanGuard said the forces had been sentthere to separate the rivalprotesters.

Following a meeting betweenthe president and militarycommanders, the 13:00 GMTdeadline to clear the area roundthe palace was set. A ban on allprotests in the area has also beenordered.

But the commander of theRepublican Guard, Maj GenMohammed Zaki, said thesecurity forces "will not be a tool tocrush protesters", telling Mena:"No force will be used againstEgyptians."

The Muslim Brotherhoodsupporters left the square beforethe deadline, but a few dozenopposition supporters remained inplace. The scene was calm, however,and there was no sign of any attemptto breach the military's barriers.

French troops helping to rebuild the Ivorian army

powers in the decree on 22 November,and stripped the judiciary of anypower to challenge his decisions.

Mr Morsi, who narrowly wonEgypt's first free presidential electionin June, says he will give up his newpowers once a new constitution isratified.

But there is also controversy overthe proposed constitution. Critics saythe draft was rushed throughparliament without properconsultation and does not do enoughto protect political and religiousfreedoms and the rights of women.

The government insists that areferendum on the draft constitution,drawn up by a body dominated byMorsi-supporting Islamists, will goahead this month despite strongopposition.

Mr Morsi is expected to address thenation later on Thursday.

Four of his advisers resigned onWednesday - three others did so lastweek and the official Mena newsagency reported a further resignationon Thursday.

Tanks and armoured troopcarriers were deployed outside the

11 Mandela'smedical teamfeared killed inair crash

The wreckage of a missingmilitary aircraft believedto be carrying 11 members of

the Nelson Mandela medical teamhas been found in the Drakensbergmountain range, an official said.

The South African NationalDefence Force on Thursday saidthat It appears there were nosurvivors.

The aircraft went missing enroute to Mthatha - near Mandela'shometown in Qunu - on Wednesdayafter experiencing severe weather.

An Air Force statement said theDakota was flying from WaterkloofAir Force Base in Pretoria when itencountered severe weather.

"Unconfirmed reports said theaircraft last communicated withAir Traffic Control when aboveGiants Castle in the Drakensberg,saying they were at 11,000 feet andflying in InstrumentMeteorological Conditions due tothe bad visibility.

"The aircraft never arrived atMthatha Airport,'' the statementsaid.

The modified World War 2Dakota took off from Waterkloof airforce base in Pretoria at about 8 a.m.local time and was scheduled to landin Mthatha two hours later.

France sent a 4,000-strongforce to its former colony after itdescended into a now-ended civilwar in 2002.

Force commander Gen HenriPoncet was sacked following MrMahe's death.

He is not on trial, and deniesordering Col Burgaud to kill MrMahe.

Mr Mahe, whom the Frenchaccused of being a murderer and

a rapist, was arrested near thewestern town of Bangolo in May2005.

He was then suffocated witha plastic bag in the back of amilitary vehicle.

His family has alwaysinsisted that he was innocent,and has been campaigning forthe former peacekeepers to standtrial for his murder.

On Thursday, prosecutorscalled for prison terms of betweentwo and five years for theaccused.

Chief prosecutor AnnieGrenier said the ex-soldiers hadbeen involved in a "cold-bloodedmurder" in a country where theywere supposed to help protectcivilians.

She said even if they acted onorders, it was their "duty torefuse to carry out an illegalorder".

Col Burgaud said Gen Poncetordering the killing with thephrase: "Drive slowly, youunderstand me?"

He understood this to meanthat it would be "best if Mahearrived dead" and he relayed theinstruction to his co-accused, ColBurgaud said.

They include Sgt-Maj GuyRaugel, who suffocated Mr Mahewith the help of CorporalJohannes Schnier.

The vehicle's driver, CorporalLianrifou Ben Youssouf, has alsobeen charged with murder.

French peacekeepers werefirst deployed to Ivory Coastwhen it split between a rebel-held north and a government-held south in 2002.

The conflict ended last yearwhen French and United Nationsforced helped arrest then-President Laurent Gbagbo afterhe refused to accept defeat inelections.

This allowed the winner ofthe elections, AlassaneOuattara, to take power.

French troops are nowplaying a key role in training thenew Ivorian army.

PAGE 29PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Merkel meets Netanyahuamid tense relations

Asia andMiddle East

Israeli Prime Minister BinyaminNetanyahu has been holdingtense talks with German

Chancellor Angela Merkel as plansto build thousands of new settlerhomes on occupied Palestinian landstrained ties with key allies.

On a visit that risks beingovershadowed by the diplomaticstorm, Netanyahu joined Merkelfor a meeting on Thursdaymorning after they had a dinner

late on Wednesday, together withmost of their cabinet ministers.

The Israeli leader arrived fromPrague where he had singled outthe Czech Republic for its "friendshipand courage" as the only Europeanstate to have opposed a Palestinianstatus upgrade at the UnitedNations last week.

Netanyahu's first Europeanvisit since the UN vote came amidmounting international calls forIsrael to drop plans to build 3,000new settler homes in a highlycontentious strip of the occupiedWest Bank near Jerusalem.

He announced the move inreaction to the upgrading of

Palestine to non-member observerstate at the UN and has refused togo back on the decision despitestrong internationalcondemnation.

"Germany abstained fromvoting, which was seen as a slap inthe face by many in Israel, andthat's what Binyamin Netanyahu

said he was disappointed about," saidAl Jazeera's Nick Spicer, reportingfrom Berlin. "When they came andspoke to the press, they were verykeen not to underline theirdifferences."

German daily Die Welt onThursday quoted Netanyahu assaying he was "disappointed" thatBerlin had abstained from votingat the UN despite reported pleas byIsrael to reject the Palestinianresolution.

Indian officials accusedof Kashmir rights abusesMore than 500 members of

India's armed forces areaccused of human rights

abuses in a damning report on conflictin Indian-administered Kashmir.

The alleged offences detailed in thereport by a leading human rightsgroup include custody deaths,abduction, torture and rape.

Army, police and paramilitaryofficers of senior rank are among thosenamed. There was no immediatearmy response.

Thousands have died in a separatistinsurgency in Kashmir since 1989.

The disputed region, claimed byboth India and Pakistan, has seenviolence fall in recent years.

But tens of thousands of Indianarmy and paramilitary troopscontinue to be deployed in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley.

The report's authors say theygathered information from the policeand under India's new freedom of

information laws, as well frominterviews with families and others.

An army spokesman said he wasnot aware of the report.

"If they have sent it to the defenceministry we have not received it so far.We can respond after proper perusal ofthe document," Lt-Col HS Brar, whospeaks for the Indian army'sKashmir-based 15 corps, said.

The 354-page report wascompiled by the Association ofParents of Disappeared Persons(APDP) and the InternationalPeople's Tribunal on Human Rightsand Justice in Indian-administeredKashmir (IPTK).

It has analysed 214 cases of abuseand highlighted the role of officials inthe killing of nearly 70 people and thedisappearances of 8,000 people overtwo decades.

The report names military officialsof very senior rank as "perpetrators",our correspondent reports.

Binyamin Netanyahu(L) with Angela Merkel(R)

Men of the India Army man the streets in the Valley

Asadullah Khalid

Afghan spy chief woundedin grenade attackAfghanistan's intelligence chief has

been wounded in an assassinationattempt in Kabul, the capital.

Asadullah Khalid, who heads theNational Directorate of Security(NDS), was injured in a grenade attackin a NDS guest house, police said onThursday.

The intelligence agencyconfirmed the attack, which has leftKhalid with injuries on the lower partof his body.

"The Afghan intelligence chief hassurvived a cowardly terrorist attackin the city of Kabul," said the NDS in astatement. "The case is underinvestigation."

Bernard Smith, reporting fromKabul, said that the Taliban are

claiming to have penetrated Khalid'ssecurity.

"He was at one of their [the NDS]guest houses at Kabul this afternoonwhen there was an explosion that lefthim injured and needing hospitaltreatment, needing a bloodtransfusion," said Smith.

There were few details onthe nature of the attack.Witnesses heard an explosion.Police said Khalid was woundedby a grenade, but unconfirmedreports by senior government officialssaid it had been a suicide attack.

Neither was his conditionimmediately clear, and there was noimmediate word on what hadhappened to the attacker.

Eastern Iran hit by deadlyearthquake

At least five people havebeen killed by amoderately powerful

earthquake in eastern Iran, sayofficials.

The 5.5 magnitude quake strucknear Zohan in South Khorasanprovince, close to the Afghan border,in the early evening, said the Farsnews agency.

At least 20 people were hurt andmany in the provincial capitalBirjand fled their homes, the agencysaid.

Iran is frequently hit by quakes

- in 2003 tens of thousands of peoplewere killed in a quake whichflattened Bam.

More than 300 people died in twoquakes in north-western Iran inAugust this year.

Tehran University'sSeismological Centre said the latestquake hit at 20:38 local time (17:08GMT), 25km (15 miles) from Zohan.

State TV quoted a local MP,Javad Heravi, as saying it haddamaged rural buildings and cutphone and power lines. Twelvevillages were affected, the TV added.

Search and rescue teams havebeen dispatched to the scene, mediareports said.

PAGE 30 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Obama prepared togo over 'fiscal cliff'

The US Treasury Secretaryhas said the Obamaadministration is

"absolutely" ready for the USeconomy to go over the "fiscal cliff"rather than accept a budget dealthat does not include higher taxrates for top earners.

Timothy Geithner said onWednesday that theadministration believes budgetdeficits are so large that theycannot be closed without boostingtax rates on the highest-earningtwo per cent of Americans. MostRepublicans oppose higher ratesfor any taxpayers.

"There's no prospect in anagreement that doesn't involvethose rates going up on the top twoper cent of the wealthiestAmericans," Geithner said in aninterview on CNBC.

Geithner's commentsimmediately drew fire from a topRepublican senator.

"This is one of the moststunning and irresponsiblestatements I've heard in sometime," Senator Orrin Hatch said.

"Going over the fiscal cliff willput our economy, jobs, people'spaychecks and retirement at risk,but that is what the White Housewants, according to SecretaryGeithner, if they don't get theirway."

Republicans in Congress andObama consumed much ofWednesday talking up theirpositions on the "fiscal cliff" andthough Obama and RepublicanHouse Speaker John Boehnerspoke by phone, neither sideoffered any new compromises inpublic.

Nor was the phone call, ararity, followed by anyimmediate announcement of aface-to-face meeting that has beenwidely anticipated all week andwas explicitly requested early inthe day by House ofRepresentatives Republicanleader Eric Cantor.

Obama has said there could bea quick deal if Republican leadersdropped their opposition to raisingtax rates for those making morethan $250,000 a year inexchange for spending cuts andentitlement reforms.

"If we can get the leadershipon the Republican side to take thatframework, to acknowledge thatreality, then the numbersactually aren't that far apart,"Obama told The BusinessRoundtable in Washington.

Germany tosend patriotmissiles toTurkey

Europe andAmericas

NATO head, Anders FoghRasmussen

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

Marijuanadecriminalisedin WashingtonState

Possession of marijuanahas become legal in theUS state of Washington,

a month after voters opted fordecriminalisation.

From midnight (08:00GMT) anyone aged 21 and overwas allowed to carry up to 1oz(28.4g) of cannabis, butsmoking it in public willremain illegal.

It has been legal for medicaluse in the state since 1998.

A law legalising gaymarriage also came into effectin Washington state onThursday.

On 6 NovemberWashington, Maine andMaryland became the first USstates to back same-sexmarriage in a popular vote,and Washington is the first ofthose to enact the law.

The first same-sex weddingsin Washington are expected onSunday.

Gay marriage is permittedin six states, but those lawswere passed by legislators or bycourts.

Also on 6 November,Washington and Colorado bothvoted to decriminalisemarijuana, which remainsillegal under US federal law.

However, there will benowhere to purchasemarijuana legally inWashington for at least anotheryear.

It also remains unclear howfederal law enforcementagencies wil l deal withliberalisation of drug laws inWashington and - eventually- Colorado.

Any decision to crackdown on states with l iberaldrug laws could affectWashington's plans to raisetax revenues from a licensedand controlled marijuanam a r k e t .

"We're in uncharted waterhere," Seattle City AttorneyPete Holmes said at a newsconference on Wednesday.

"We've struggled withprohibition for a century," MrHolmes said, according to theSeattle Post-Intelligencer.

"It 's going to take sometime to substitute a state-l icensed and regulatedsystem."

Backers of the Washingtonlaw insist i t does notencourage or require anyoneto break federal law.

But a regional federalprosecutor in the state, JennyDurkan, told the Post-Intelligencer that "growing,sel l ing or possessing anyamount of marijuanaremains illegal under federallaw," no matter what statelaw comes into effect inWashington.

The drug remained in thesame category as cocaine,heroin andmethamphetamine, she said,adding that only Congresscould change that designation.

Colombia's FARC peace talks resume in Cuba

Peace talks between theColombian governmentand FARC rebels have

resumed in Cuba, after a week'sbreak.

In a statement, the rebelshinted that there was still along way to go before theycould reach an agreement toend five decades of conflict.

The Colombiangovernment has said a peacedeal should be reached in amatter of months, not years.

It has continued itsmilitary attacks on FARCcamps, despite a unilateralceasefire declared by therebels.

In a statement read beforethe second phase of talks beganin Havana, FARC spokesmanMarco Leon said it was "normalfor the two sides' positions toappear far apart at the start".

FARC negotiator AndrewParis refused to comment on howthe killing of some 20 rebels byColombian military in theweekend would affect thenegotiations.

The government has stressed

Germany has said it approvedparticipation in a NATOmission to deploy Patriot

missiles to help member stateTurkey defend its border againstSyria and will send up to 400 troops.

The foreign and defenceministries said in a joint statementon Thursday that the mandate,which is expected to be presented toparliament early next week, wouldrun to January 31, 2014.

NATO on Tuesday approvedTurkey's request for Patriot missilesto defend its border against Syriafollowing a series of blunt warningsto Damascus not to use chemicalweapons.

NATO head Anders FoghRasmussen said the alliance'sdecision reflected a "steadfastcommitment" to preserving thesecurity of its 28 member states.

The alliance said that Germanyalong with the Netherlands and theUnited States have agreed to providethe Patriot missile batteries, whichwould come under the command ofthe Supreme Allied CommanderEurope (SACEUR).

"Turkey is currently the most-affected partner in the Syriaconflict. It is exposed to a potentialthreat from Syria," Germany'sministries said.

In an interview with Lebanesenews channel Al Manar onThursday, Syrian deputy ForeignMinister Faisal Meqdad blastedNATO's move to deploy the Patriotmissiles, calling the decision"provocative".

"The Turkish move and NATO'ssupport for it is a provocative move,part of psychological warfareagainst Syria," Meqdad said.

"But if they think this will affectour determination to fight theterrorists ... they are wrong."

An explosion in front of theDamascus headquarters for theSyrian Arab Red Crescent killed atleast one person on Thursday,Syrian state television said.

Syria TV said "terrorists from al-Qaeda" blew up an improvisedexplosive device in a car, causingdamage to the organisation'sbuilding. The government and statemedia often refer to opposition rebelsfighting to topple President Assad as"terrorists".

FARC negotiator Marco Leon reads his statement

that the military will continueto fight the left-wing rebels untilthey sign a final treatyrenouncing the armed struggleand agreeing to enter the legalpolitical process.

Chief government negotiatorHumberto de la Calle has said thegovernment will not repeat theerrors of the past, in a referenceto the previous peace talks whichended in 2002.

The government said therebels used a ceasefire agreedthen to rearm and regroup.

Last month, the FARCdeclared a unilateral ceasefireover the Christmas period,lasting until 20 January.

The Marxist rebels haverepeated that no deadline can beset on reaching an agreement,as the talks deal with complexissues.

The negotiations, which werelaunched in Norway on 18October, before moving to theCuban capital a month later,have focused initially on theissue of land reform.

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 31

Zombies a factor in gun salesincrease, gun rights advocate says

It's not just PresidentObama's re-election that'slead to a spike in gun sales.

The living dead are alsoproviding a reason to stock up onfirearms and ammo.

Zombies want your brains, and that's made some people want their guns, according to gun rights advocates.

Housewife spends 25 years building upmassive collection of 1,000 snowmen

My Northwest.com reportsthat, according to FBI data,background checks for guns rose20 percent on Black Friday fromthe same day last year.According to KIRO, one gun

While many householdssigh at the prospect ofdusting their

decorations and untanglingstrings of fairy lights in time forChristmas, one woman isgleefully unpacking hers.

But then Diana Howes'approach to festive furnishingsis slightly unusual.

For the married woman hasgot an army of at least 1,000snowmen in all shapes and sizes

After she bought her firstlittle snowman 25 years ago,she became so fond of her frostyfriend that she's now built up avast array of the ornaments.

Diana rolls out herbattalions of chilly chums atthe home she shares withbemused husband David inBriggate, near NorthWalsham, Norfolk, every Diana Howes and her collection

Pizza hut Launches hand-tossed dough perfume

They're really putting thefur in chauffeur.For the past two months,

animal trainer Mark Vette has beenteaching dogs to drive, New ZealandTV station Campbell Live reported.

The lessons are part of acampaign by the New ZealandSociety for the Prevention of Crueltyto Animals (SPCA), meant to clearup "common misconceptions" aboutrescue dogs.

"Sometimes people thinkbecause they're getting an animalthat's been abandoned, thatsomehow it's a second-class animal,"SPCA Auckland CEO Christine Kalintold the New Zealand Herald."Driving a car activelydemonstrates to potential rescue dogadopters that you can teach an olddog new tricks."

Kalin added that the canines'achievements behind the wheelshows "just how much potential alldogs from the SPCA have as familypets."

All the new drivers are shelterdogs: Monty, an 18-month GiantSchnauzer, was given to the SPCA

when he became too much for hisowner to handle. Ginny, a 1-year-old whippets cross, was rescuedfrom an abusive home. Porter, a10-month old Beardie cross, wasabandoned on the streets.

The dogs trained for severalweeks before hopping into a real car,modified to accommodate theunique needs of a canine driver.

So far, the animals have drivenonly with some human guidance,in the form of verbal commandsand the occasional steering wheelreadjustment.

Next week, star pupil Porterwill take the Mini Countrymanfor a spin -- completely unassisted-- on Campbell Live, the FraserCoast Chronicle reports.

That's not to say the other twodogs haven't made great stridesin their driving as well.

"The way all three SPCArescue dogs have taken totraining really does prove thatintelligent creatures adapt to thesituation they're in," Vette toldthe paper. "It really isremarkable."

Customers who love pizza can now smell like it with Pizza Hut'snew pizza perfume.

rights advocate said part of thereason for the increase is zombies.

"A lot of people appear to bereally enthralled by this," DaveWorkman said. "I've seen lines ofzombie targets, I know one or two

ammunition companies haveintroduced boxes, lines ofcartridges they called zombiecartridges, shotgun shells andrifle shells."

The zombie-themed

merchandise has ushered in anew generation of gun shooters,according to Workman.

Of course, the popularity ofTV's "Walking Dead," heraldsthe coming of a zombieapocalypse for which we mustprepare.

Those sentiments wereechoed earlier this year byTexas gun purveyor CrisParsons in an interview withABC News.

He said products like ZombieMax ammunition (slogan: "justin case") made by HornadyManufacturing fly off theshelves.

"We can't keep it in stock,"Parsons said. "It comes in a cool,colorful box with a Zombie on it."

Clearly zombies are hot withgun fans, but what about otherweapons? Could they too becomethe beneficiaries of a "zombiebump"? Absolutely, according toDetroit Free Press' Eric Millikin.

"Zombies are also sure toincrease sales of machetes,nunchucks, and prostheticchainsaw hands," he writes.

December.The staggering squadrons of

snowmen dominate her kitchen,lounge and stairs, with carrot nosesand button eyes peeping out fromthe most unlikely places.

There are cuddly ones, glassones, candles, fridge magnets, cakedecorations, mugs, tins, atablecloth, snowglobes, snowmenon skis and sledges, tree baublesand wind-up toys.

Now you can smell of"freshly baked, hand-tossed dough" thanks to Pizza

Hut's newest product: pizza perfume.It began as a joke on the

company's Facebook page in Augustwhen Pizza Hut Canada's marketingfirm, Grip Ltd., published a postabout bottling the pizza chain's scent,Business Insider reported.

Thousands of fans commentedasking where they could purchasethe fragrance prompting Pizza Hutto actually make it.

The limited-edition perfumefeatures subtle notes of freshly bakeddough and seasoning, a Pizza Hutspokesperson told Business Insider.It was awarded to fans who wereamong the first to comment on theoriginal Facebook post.

Though only about 100 bottleswere produced, there is a chance theperfume could be sold in storeseventually, the company said.

This isn't the first time a chainrestaurant has tried to break intothe perfume business. Burger Kingdid it in 2008 with its Flame by BKbody spray for men, which smelledlike grilled meat, according to TheGuardian.

Dog behind the wheel

Chief Dog driver doing her thing

PAGE 32 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Queen Aminaaccording to JosRepertory Theatre

With Tobias Lengnan Dapam07036990957

Life of legendary warriorand heroin of NorthernNigeria, "Queen Amina of

Zazzau", was brought live on stageat the weekend in Abuja, by the JosRepertory Theatre.

The play which was directed byPatrick Oteh, and played by 22actors, bothered on how the famouslegendary warrior of the Zariaemirate ascended the throne of herfather and achieved greatness byconquering most of theneighbouring kingdoms and herdeath at the war front whichbrought to the end the ever talkedabout emirate.

The play which started atexactly 7:15pm saw a lot offoreigners, predominantly white,who came to watch the play.

As a form of introduction, aninsight of the play, a narrator,vibrant and eloquent young manin his mid 30s, who spoke like anorator of medieval theatre, and alsodoubled as the spiritual father of theemirate, came forward and dashedhis eyeball on the audience and toldthe them how Amina becamefamous in the emirate.

To set the stage ready, rumblingdrums rolled continuously, just likethose in traditional northern

Nigeria to usher a king or queen topalace. This was followed by a loudcall from the "Sarkin Fada", a talldark young man with heavy Hausaaccent, who always stressed andgave more meaning to thecomments of the queen. His usuallyloud cry paves way for the queen todiscuss urgent issues bothering thekingdom.

The stage depicts a northernsetting, with the elders sitting insemi-circle to attend to matters.

On the discussion of Amina, anaveragely tall refined beauty,enough to set two brothers on warpath, the elders expressed worryabout her recalcitrant attitudetowards marriage, which wasconsented to by the mother. Theelders, most of whom she declinedtheir advances, suggested that shemust get a husband. But Amina whopresented herself as woman-man,got furious and told them that therewas nothing wrong with herdecision. However, after a lot ofaltercation, she agreed to meet thespiritual father to make a choice.

The discussion was not amicablyresolved, when three villagers, as ifhunted by spirit interrupted themeeting to complain about a pitonthat swallowed a child in the river.

This news sent shiver down the spineof the chiefs who said that the snakeshould be killed so that the villagerswill be saved.

At the court of the priest, Aminastood amidst other cult memberswho were dressed in their regalia forritual. She chose the option of joininga cult instead of marriage.

As she peered in to the calabashthat holds her fate, the narratorexplained that she will kill all menthat shared her bed by apportioningpoison to them.

The narrator prefers to tell thefuture to the audience at the expenseof Amina's character. In most casethe character will not be aware ofthe consequences of his action,making his future unknown to him.In her own case, she knew next tonothing about her future.

Meanwhile, her first task was tokill the deadliest snake (Kububuwa).This assignment was the cause of hermother's death. The mother wasstruck by fear, thinking the snakewill kill her daughter.

After Amina was crownedqueen, kings of neighbouringkingdoms brought gifts-includingthe king of Kano kingdom, whosemajor request of marriage shebluntly refused, referring themessenger to some of her admirablechiefs whom she did not consent totheir advances.

As she dressed for war and set toembark on her conquest to Nupe, inthe present Niger state, she appearedon stage, looking gallant and fearless,just like Julius Caesar set out toconquer Gaul.

The war was fought and won.But she showed no sign of fatigue,even as most of her warriorsstruggled to stand on their feet.Amina wanted to move further butthe Waziri opposed, saying it will bedisastrous to have a larger provincewhich will be difficult to maintainshould crises break out.

All the soldiers shared his view,even as they feared her anger.However, the argument was laid torest when the priest said they will beon the brink of destruction shouldthey continue such quest.

When they returned from the

Queen Amina and elders of the kingdom

war, Amina continued her act ofkilling all the men that slept withher by apportioning the poison tothem. This according to theNarrator was for her to always bein control.

However, it did not end asplanned when Amina sent one ofher most trusted maid Mairo, to callAliyu, the greatest warrior of thekingdom- tall and huge, brave likeHector, in the ancient city of Troy.

Mairo, a young girl in her early20s was more concerned about howto win the love of the warrior insteadof delivering the queen's message.

She feared for Aliyu, but warnedhim about the impendingdanger. He refused to believe hissecret admirer despite her pleathat such visits had claimedmany lives.

At the queen's palace, shetrembled at his bold chest, andtold him how she longed to be inhis arms. Aliyu was scared, butbeguiled by her seductive looks,enough to strike even Achilles

J-town based artist,Emmanuella Ma'andik,popularly known as Em, has

said that plans have been concludedfor the release of her new album,

"Another day".Em who made this known to our

reporter in Jos, the Plateau statecapital, added that the new album iscoming with some new flavour to addsome contents that are not commonlyfound in Nigerian music.

The animal health specialistturned artist said she has beenworking assiduously with highlyexperienced producers andmusicians like; Suka, Geniuz and Halof the Nu-page crew, to ensure thebest collaboration in the new album.

"I have been working with thebest hands in the industry torelease a "bombshell". I have spenta better part of my life studyingcollections of master performanceto be outstanding in mycontribution to the developmentof music industry in the country.

"I know that we have come along way as a people, but we stillhave more work to do if the lyrics ofour music will develop instead of justhaving rhythm with no lyrics", theanimal health turned artist said.

The artist, whose voice is said tobe the reminiscence of a violin inspring time, also said that she willnot stop at just projecting the bestvoice in the industry but will beflexible in showcasing her talent inRock music, R and B and gospel.

She called on her fans to startcounting their fingers to December20th, saying, "I will set the stage openand implant scintillating words inyour heart".

Em set to drop new album

Em, J.town artist.

Queen Amina addressing the elders

and render him speechless.The night of bliss came and gone,

the queen gave the warrior thepoison to drink. He left her palacealmost dead but was saved by Mairowho had earlier stolen the antidoteand traded it for her virginity.By Tobias Lengnan Dapam

Nigeriafilms.com hasconfirmed from a topshot in the actors Guild of

Nigeria (AGN) that Nollywoodveteran actor, Enebeli Elebuwa isdead.

The actor, was said to have diedon Wednesday at his Indian hospital.

It further said that the iconic actorwas flown to India few months agoafter battling with a reported partialstroke.

Pa Elebuwadies in Indianhospital, saysAGN source

Pa Enebeli Elebuwa

PAGE 33PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Tonto Dike getsmarriage proposal from5 year old Year OldThough the general

perception towards TontoDike is rather flippant,

there are some people whoappreciate the young lady,especially small children.

Tonto Dike and a five year old kid

Top hollywood actors,OscarIsaac and Jason Clark, areto feature in William

Monahan thriller early nextyears, Hollywood reporter hassaid.

It added that Charles Roven'sAtlas Entertainment is behindthe movie, which Monahan'sHenceforth Pictures is producing.

Monahan, who won an Oscarfor penning the Martin Scorsesecrime drama, "The Departed",wrote the script, whose plotdetails are being kept underwraps although the storyinvolves a desert escape by acriminal.

Monahan is producing withAtlas' William Green. Atlas' AndyHorwitz and Henceforth Pictures'Justine Suzanne Jones willexecutive produce.

Both Isaac and Clarke are seenas rising actors amongst theHollywood crowd.

Isaac was recently seen in Joeland Ethan Coen's Inside LlewynDavis and counts The BourneLegacy, Drive and Sucker Punchas his credits.

Similarly, Clarke is one of theleads in Zero Dark Thirty,Columbia's Osama Bin Ladenthriller that is generating Oscarbuzz and is part of the all-star castof Baz Luhrmann's adaptation ofThe Great Gatsby.

Isaac and Clarke to star in WilliamMonahan Thriller

Johnnie Walker partners with Mode Men onMan of the Year Award

Rita Dominic

This revelation was maderecently by pulse.com, whenit reliably gathered that a 5year old boy demonstrated hisaffections know through hismagic board, where he asked

if Tonto Dike would marryh i m .

Though sweet, it wonderedhow much the 5 year old hasbeen exposed to know so muchabout 'Aunty Tonto'.

Before now, not manywould have really givenRita Dominic the chance

of winning the "Most StylishActress"of the year at the FABAwards where heavyweightslike Omotola Jalade Ekeindea n d G e n e v i e v e N n a j i w e r ealso in the run for the samea w a r d c a t e g o r y .

N i g e r i a f i l m s . c o mr e v e a l e d t h a t m a n y m o v i ef o l l o w e r s w e r e s h o c k e dw h e n R i t a w a s a n n o u n c e dthe winner of the award.

I t a d d e d t h a t R i t aD o m i n i c , w h o m a n y k n e w

Rita Dominic beats Genevieve, Omotolato win FAB Awards' Stylish Actress

as classic movie diva, in herdress s ty le and sense , wass u r p r i s i n g l y a n n o u n c e d a st h e w i n n e r a s a g a i n s t t h ei n i t i a l e x p e c t a t i o n s , w h i l eG e n e v i e v e a n d O m o t o l aw e r e r e c o g n i s e d a s t h em a j o r r u n n e r s f o r t h ea w a r d .

I n t h e male category ofactors, Joseph Benjamin wasannounced the winner of theaward while D'Banj andMo'cheddah were announcedwinners of the male and femaleartistes' categoriesrespectively.

Johnnie Walker, the world'spremium Scotch whiskey ispartnering with Mode Men

for this year's Men of the YearAwards, Nigeriafilms.com hassaid.

It added that this is thebiggest partnership of the year,owing to the pedigree of JohnnieWalker.

The event is a black tie eventthat promises to take guests on aJohnnie Walker journey. Theevent would feature an A-classguest list to grace the occasion,adding that the guests will betreated to the very best ofJohnnie Walker cocktails.

Johnnie Walker will begiving out top range labels towinners at the Men of the YearAwards. These include Blue and

Gold labels.It also said that the most

exciting aspect of the award will

be the Johnnie Walker bar whichwould ensure that guests will feelthe classic ambience thatJohnnie Walker is known for.

2012 Koko Concert is set towow Nigerians who are diehard Koko master fans.

However, pulse.com revealedthat there will be more to lookforward to at this year's editionof the Koko concert, saying thatthe management of the KokoConcert have decided to bringout the "big guns" and haul in thehottest of the stars.

According to the fliers thatare circulating, the host of the

D'Banj pulls out of "big guns" as IdrisElba set to host 2012 Koko concert

show will be none other thanHollywood hottie, Idris Elba.

Pulse.com further said thatthere will be performances fromD'banj's colleagues in music, BigSean and Pusha T, who are alsosigned on to G.O.O.D Music andhis younger brother K-Switchwho is signed on to his musiclabel DB Records.

The event is slated forDecember 27th, 2012, inMetropolitan city, Lagos.

Oscar Isaac Jason Clarke

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012PAGE 34

The episode of catastrophewrought by the last tornadoin the United States of

America can not go out of memoryin a hurry, against the backdropof the flooding that wreaked havocacross Nigeria, prior to the U.S.scenario.

Up till now, many victims inNigeria are still counting theirlosses in terms of destruction tolives and property, and for many,life can never be the same again..

The U.S. has, over time, hadvarious natural disasters mostespecially in form of whirlwinds.

There was HurricaneGalveston in 1900, the Great SanFrancisco Fire in 1906,Hurricane Katrina in 2005 andmost recently Hurricane Sandy,among others.

Hurricane Sandy, forinstance, devastated portions ofthe Caribbean and the Mid-Atlantic and north eastern of theU.S in October.

The storm is rated the largestAtlantic hurricane on recordwith winds spanning 1,800 km.

However, it is important tonote that before the storm, andfollowing the predictions by theweather forecast; citizens hadbeen educated on what to do.

Residents of the area andzones suspected to be affectedwere urged to move from flashpoints while offices, schools andmajor transportation systemswere closed.

According to media report,most workers in the FederalGovernment stayed at homewhile the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency (FEMA)personnel prepared for instantresponse.

Even other states which werenot predicted to be affected bywhether forecast tookprecautionary measures inensuring that residents adheredto several warnings on thelooming danger of the storm.

FEMA Administrator CraigFugate said the agency“stockpiled over 600,000 litresof water and almost half amillion meals, as well as blanketsand cots.

“Large industrial-sizedgenerators are being moved tohelp institutions such ashospitals and water treatmentplants to keep operating once thepower goes out.

U.S. President Barack Obamareaffirmed confidence ingovernment’s preparedness tocontain the situation, assuringthe citizens of safety and care.

By all standards, therefore, itis right to conclude thatadequate arrangements weremade as soon as the forecastersraised the alarm.

Yet, estimates of losses due todamage and businessinterruption stood at 65.6 billiondollars while more than 253people were killed along the pathof the storm in seven countries.

There is a clear difference, ofcourse, in the level of readinessto respond to disasters betweenNigeria and the U.S.

Inadequacies in response

programmes are indicated in theplight of flood victims in severalstates, who have yet to recoverfrom the effects of flooding.

Observers say with adequateresponse programmes, Nigeria’ssituation in the event of anydisaster will better be managed.

Media reports indicate that30 states were affected while 431persons died and no fewer than1.3 million residents in theaffected areas were displaced.

In a response, PresidentGoodluck Jonathan directed therelease of N17.6 billion asfinancial assistance to theaffected states.

Some Nigerians have alsostressed the need for equitabledistribution of the reliefmaterials to victims andeffective monitoring of fundsdisbursement.

Aside this, it is evident fromthe response to the disaster thatthe National EmergencyManagement Agency (NEMA)was overwhelmed by thesituation.

This situation was intense tothe extent that the Director-General of NEMA, AlhajiMuhammad Sani-Sidi, called forurgent action on equippingemergency responseorganisations in the country.

He said that was necessary“especially now that disasterchallenges are on the rise in thecountry.’’

Also, Mr Abdusalami Nasidi,the Director of Nigeria Centrefor Disease Control (NCDC),emphasised the importance ofcapacity-building at thegrassroots to facilitate responseto disaster situations.

He also reiterated effortsundertaken by the NCDC to curbdamaging effects of diseaseoutbreaks, especially thosearising from the effect of the

recent flooding.“Looking at the response of

recent floods that affected mostparts of the country, the resultsare poor and the health systemsare bad; we have to becoordinated to get thingsmoving.

“The establishment of theNDDC is to create a paradigmshift, that is, we are not justpreparing and responding but wehave come together to put up acoordinated and efficient system.

“We established surveillancethrough the Nigeria’s Field

Managing disasters: The U.S exampleBy Temitope Ponle

Residential houses submerged by flood recently in Bayelsa state

Epidemiology and laboratorytraining where we have officialresidents in every state,’’ hesaid..

Supporting the need foreffective response to disasters,the World Bank President, MrJim Yong Kim, says betterplanning will help reducedamage and loss of lives fromdisasters.

“Prevention can be far lesscostly than disaster relief andresponse; distribution ofemergency supplies needs to beorderly, involve local leadership,

and help enhance socialcohesion.

“If it does not, theopportunity cost is huge”, hesays.

In its report on managingdisasters, the bank states thatevery single response during anemergency period is eitherdevelopmental or counter-developmental.

It recalls that thereconstruction of Haiti followingthe recent earthquake has beencomplicated by the haphazardrelief distribution practices.

It states that the ability tomake relief and emergencydecisions and communicate themspeedily to the involved parties isimportant to prevent rumoursand forestall mob action.

In Nigeria, while thepresident and his teamresponded adequately to thedisaster, observers say thatcitizens’ perception to disastersas God’s act must change, whiletheir attitude to the environmentequally needs to be changed.

“ A situation where peoplebuild on the path of a dam or ariver, or when drainages areblocked, can not be an act of Godwhen disasters strike, becausewater must find its level.

“There is also the need forcontinuous campaigns andsensitisation by stakeholders indisaster management, as ourpeople find it difficult to changetheir attitude towardseverything, including theenvironment.

They say all over the world,climate change is manifesting inhuge destruction, and in as muchas we are lucky in this part of theworld that most disasters arecaused by human beings, we canbe proactive enough to containthem.Source: NAN

NEMA D-G, Alhaji Muhammad Sani-Sidi

PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012 PAGE 35

International Day for PersonsLiving with Disabilities’celebration every year on Dec.

3, is an indication that thephysically challenged are anintegral part of of the sociey.

According to the World HealthOrganisation (WHO), 15 per centof the World’s population is livingwith disabilities. a high number byany standard.

In Nigeria for instance, morethan 25 million people live withone form of physical disabilities orthe other, according to statistics.

Analysts, however, stress thatin spite of this number; most ofpersons with disabilities do nothave access to facilities that wouldenable them to conduct their dailyactivities without stress ordiscrimination.

They say many are cut off frommeaningful activities which canmake a difference in their lives. So,there has been intense clamour forthe President’s assent to theNational Disabilities bill , as suchwill address all the challenges ofperson’s living with disabilities.

According to Mr DanladiBashiru, the National President,Joint National Association ofPersons with Disabilities, the lawis the only way that persons livingwith disabilities can be protected.

“We want to appeal toPresident Goodluck Jonathan to

leave a legacy by assenting to thebill.

“The major issue expected tobe addressed is that ofaccessibility to housing andinclusion of the physicallychallenged in policy formulation,’’he says.

Supporting Bashiru’s view, MrRilwan Adullahi, the NationalVice President of the association,says the issue of barrier is a majorchallenge to persons withdisabilities.

“When I was going for acelebration, people had to comeover to help me; what if they hadnot been there!

“There is no means by whichthis issue can be changed withouta law but the bill has been in thecorridor of the governmentwithout assent..

“It will give persons living withdisabilities a sense of belongingand change the lives of severalNigerian citizens with disabilities.

“By the time you as aphysically challenged, haveaccessible life in totality; you willnever feel you are a person withdisabilities,’’ he says.

In her view, Hajiya RabiYusuf, a nurse, pleads with thegovernment to assent to the billwithout further delay.

According to her, as thepopulation of those living withdisabilities increases, governmentshould take appropriate steps at

integrating them in the affairs ofthe governance and other areas.

However, the PermanentSecretary in the Federal Ministryof Women Affairs and SocialDevelopment, Mr George Ossi,says there are certain things thatmust be put in place before thepassage of the bill.

“The ministry is in touch withthe President; there are things hewants to make sure fall into placebefore he signs, by the time hesigns it, the law will be better thanit is today,” he remarks..

He says the ministry isincreasing its advocacy for thephysically challenged and alsoseeking funds from internationalorganisations to help them.

Commenting on the challengesfaced by persons living withdisabilities, the Minister ofWomen Affairs and SocialDevelopment, Hajia ZainabMaina, says the FederalGovernment is concerned.

Maina however states that thegovernment alone does not holdthe key to tackling the challenges,noting that the private sector andindividuals also have key roles toplay in terms of acceptance andnon-discrimination.

“We need to rally support fromall and sundry to ensure that theneeds of persons with disabilitiesin Nigeria are met for fullintegration.

“In this regard, all hands must

be on deck and on my part, I willlend my full weight to makingNigeria and, indeed, Africaresponsive to removal of barriersand creating inclusive andaccessible society for all,” theminister says..

She urges those withdisabilities to rise and pioneer theway for their full inclusionthrough advocacy andpartnerships.

Similarly, internationalorganisations are not relenting inaddressing the challenges.

For instance, UNICEF issensitising the public to the needfor the children of the physicallychallenged to be trained andbecome useful members of thesociety.

UNCEF says: “If we train themnow, and empower them to beindependent of anyone, then wewould have disabled adults whoare indeed enabled.”

In his remark, the ProjectDirector of UNDP-DemocraticGovernance (DGD), Dr MourtadaDeme, says the UNDP iscommitted to strengthening andmonitoring the protection of thehuman rights of persons livingwith disabilities.

He says the UN passed theconvention on the rights ofpersons living with disabilitiesand Nigeria signed the conventionin 2007 with ratification in 2010.

“However, I am aware that in

practice, many people are stillunable to live full lives free fromsuffering, whether purposelyinflicted or arising from neglect.

“Establishing that personsliving with disabilities are entitledto the same basic human rights asthe rest of the population isimportant, ensuring that thebarriers are removed is a majorchallenge worthy of our efforts.

“So, what are theresponsibilities of governments,what are the responsibilities oflegislators, what are our globalresponsibilities,’’ he asks.

Deme says there must berecognition of the special needs ofpersons living with disabilitiesand measures taken to realise thepromotion of their rights.

He says the duty ofgovernment should not just endwith enacting a law as there is theneed to also create awareness toensure the supervision of the fullimplementation of such laws.

The observers’ view is thatwhether or not the bill receives thepresidential assent as expectedsoon, the society should accordpersons living with disabilitieswith all rights and respect, as theyare part and parcel of that society.

Their disabilities should, by nomeans be an obstacle as they haveproved their mettle when giventhe same opportunities as able-bodied persons.Source: NAN.

Persons with disabilitiesclamour for equal opportunities

By Ifeanyi Nwoko

Some physically-challenged persons

PAGE 36 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Brain changes may make older people more prone to scamsactivity in this region.

One of the functions of thisarea of the brain is that it helpsinterpret sensations in the bodythat form “gut feelings,”according to lead authorElizabeth Castle.

“We saw that older adultsdidn’t get the same level of insulaactivation that the younger onesdid,” Taylor said.

“It should be telling them thislooks risky, this looks iffy.”

To Taylor, this suggests thatduring aging this portion of thebrain becomes less responsive,either because it is degrading orbecause the neurons that sendsignals to this region of the brainare not firing properly.

Taylor said her findingscontradict the notion that the

current crop of post-war seniorswas raised during a moretrusting time and are simply toowell mannered.

“That is not it. It’s an age-related trend,” Taylor said.“We’re going to see this withBoomers and Gen Xers.”

Although the study onlylooked at visual cues oftrustworthiness, Taylor saidsome of the same issues may beat work when seniors get takenin by smooth-talking telephonemarketers.

“Cues to deception are carriednot only through the face butalso through the voice,” Taylorsaid. “In a face-to-face situation,people are using a compilationof the cues they see and hear. It’sentirely possible that ananalogous process is going on fortelemarketing.”

The findings appear to agreewith what experts on scams

and the elderly have longnoticed, says Doug

Shadel, Washingtonstate director for

AARP, a nationalg r a s s r o o t s

o r g a n i z a t i o nt h a t

representso l d e rAmericans.

He saidscam artists

have admittedin interviews

that their mainploy is to get their

intended victim“under the ether,” or in

a heightened emotionalstate that puts them off kilter.

“They’re bypassing that

same part of the brain - thefrontal cortex, the part thatmakes you doubt things - andbringing you to the presentmoment where you’re going tomake a rash decision,” saidShadel.

“It’s something that we in thepractitioner world havesuspected for years. But gettingconcrete science behind it isreally important,” added Shadel,a former fraud investigator.

In fact, the findings may helpolder people avoid such scams.

Taylor’s own father was theretired school counselor who gotscammed by the two young men,who were homeless and missingteeth. “He thought they werenice young men and he wasmaking loans,” Taylor said.

And Taylor’s aunt was thevictim of telephone marketerswho convinced her to purchasefake gems.

Given older people’sweakness when it comes tojudging whether a person istrustworthy, Taylor advises toreduce the temptation.

“You want to get people toshut it off before they ever havethe conversation: to hang upwithout talking, to throw themail solicitation away, to not goto the free lunch seminar,” shesaid.

AARP recommends thatpeople never decide to buysomething while listening to asales pitch or reading a mailsolicitation. “Always giveyourself at least 24 hours so thatyou have time to engage yourrational mind,” Shadel said.

Source: Reuters.com

It’s a frequent scenario. Twoyoung con artists walk aretired high school teacher to

the bank and fleece him out of$17,000. But why did the man,in his 70s, fall for it?

It may be that older peopleare less able to identify shadycharacters than younger ones,according to a study by ShelleyTaylor of the University ofCalifornia, Los Angeles,published on Monday in theProceedings of the NationalAcademy of Sciences.

Adults older than 60 lost atleast $2.9 billion in 2010 due tofinancial exploitation - rangingfrom home repair scams tocomplex financial swindles - up12 percent from 2008, accordingto the MetLife Mature MarketInstitute.

To understand why, Taylorand colleagues did a series ofstudies comparing perceptions oftrustworthiness among youngerand older individuals. Theyfound older people tended to misscommon cues that suggest aperson is not trustworthy.

“It’s that ‘uh-oh’ response thatpeople get,” said Taylor, whodirects UCLA’s SocialNeuroscience Laboratory. “Theyounger adults are getting thatand the older adults are not.”

In one of the studies, theresearchers asked 119 peoplebetween 55 and 84 and 24younger people to view a stackof 30 photographs of faces thathad been rated by another labaccording to how trustworthythe individuals looked.Individuals were rated astrustworthy, neutral oruntrustworthy.

When faces in the photos weretrustworthy or neutral, theolder adults’ responses were verysimilar to those of youngeradults. But when viewing facesrated as untrustworthy, theolder adults were less likely topick up on cues.

Next, the team did the sametest with a different group of 44study subjects while their brainswere being scanned in afunctional magnetic resonanceimaging or fMRI machine. Suchtests help show which parts of thebrain are active during certaintasks.

In the younger studysubjects, the brain scans showedsignificant activity in a portionof the brain called the anteriorinsula when they looked atpictures of untrustworthytypes. But in the oldervolunteers, therewas very littleb r a i n

Going to bed an hour earlier each night‘lowers blood pressure in just six weeks’Going to bed an hour earlier

than usual could help toward off high blood

pressure, according to a newstudy.

Researchers found people whowere showing the early signs ofhigh blood pressure were able torestore readings to healthy levelsin just six weeks if they had anextra hour in bed every night.

The study, carried out atHarvard Medical School inBoston, USA, looked at men andwomen who regularly slept foronly seven hours or less a nightand were beginning to haveborderline high blood pressurereadings.

High blood pressure, orhypertension, affects one in fiveadults in the UK and is thoughtto be responsible for half of allheart attacks and strokes.

But despite an array ofdifferent drugs available on theNHS, it’s estimated more thanhalf of all patients have ‘poorlycontrolled’ blood pressure, whichmeans they still have readingsin the danger zone above140mmHg/90mmHg, ameasure of the amount of forceinside arteries when the heart isforcing blood through them and

the force when it relaxes.Lack of sleep and a stressful

lifestyle have long beenassociated with an increased riskof the condition.

But the latest study is one ofthe first to prove that blood

pressure can be brought undercontrol by simply increasingsleep duration.

Researchers recruited 22middle aged men and womenwho either had prehypertension,where their readings were not

excessively high but had beenincreasing and were on target toreach dangerous levels.

The volunteers all claimed tosleep seven hours or less a night.

Over a six week period, 13 ofthe group were told to extend

their sleeping patterns bygetting to bed an hour earlierthan they normally would.

The rest were told to stick totheir normal sleeping routines.

They all wore monitors tocheck their blood pressure round-the-clock and underwent bloodand urine checks too.

The results, published in theJournal of Sleep Research,showed the extended sleep groupmanaged to get at least 35minutes extra in bed.

As a result, their averageblood pressure readings droppedsharply by between eight and14mmHg.

It’s thought too little sleepaffects the body’s ability to dealwith stress hormones that candrive up blood pressure.

In a report on their findingsthe researchers said extra sleepcould soon be prescribed as aremedy for high blood pressure.

‘These preliminary findingshave to be interpreted withcaution. But futureinvestigations should look atwhether increasing sleepduration serves as an effectivestrategy in the treatment ofhypertension.’

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

Time for bed: Going to bed an hour early could ward off high blood pressure, a study suggests

The human brain

PAGE 37PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

What is the highlight ofthe assignment yourcommittee is saddled with?

I was invited to join theNorth-East Forum forPeace and Development

based on those things that arehappening in the North-Eastern region of the country.So, we as elders of this regionfelt concerned. It was a forumthat was actually set-up to lookinto the various problems andissues that are facing thenorth-East region. Along thatline, the initiators invitedsome of us to seat down withthem; rub minds and see howwe can check the developmentwithin the sub-region in otherto find a way forward.

From your interaction,have you been able to find away forward?

The North-East region hasbeen bedeviled with lack ofdevelopment; lack ofindustries, lack of educationalinstitutions and in fact a lot ofthings have been left to decay.So we look at ways we can facethese challenges particularlythe security threat. Thus weare trying to find ways whichwe could collaborate with thesecurity agencies in other tofind answers to the securitychallenges. As fordevelopment, we look at wayswe could partner withgovernment so that we candevelop our industries,agricultural resources as wellas our mineral resources so thatwe can provide employmentfor the youth and the massesin the sub region; and by thatwe can check theunemployment which webelieve contributes to theinsecurity that is prevalent inthe North East sub region.

Have you been able toachieve these goals?

Well, we are just in theprocess of seeing how we can putthings together when the lastmeeting that was supposed tobe a forum where we wouldinaugurate the committees /sub-committees that weresupposed to come up and lookinto the various aspects of lackof development and securitychallenges was stalled. We hadsome setbacks and we had toadjourn the meeting.

What would you say arethe major set-backs thatbrought about theadjournment of theinauguration of thecommittees?

You are aware that the majorstakeholders, who are thegovernors, were not at themeeting due to some reasons andwe were advised to get back tothem, so that if there are somemisgivings, we could sort themout. Certainly, it is the convenersof the Forum that will do thatbecause I am not one of them butI was only invited and havingseen the aims and objective of theForum, I was convinced that itwould assist the sub-region. Sothe conveners have been advisedto go back and make furtherconsultation with the governorsin particular who are the ChiefSecurity Officers of their variousstates and who are the majorstakeholders because withouttheir support the Forum cannot

unfortunate. May his soul rest inpeace. It is very bad for someoneto look at a war veteran whofought to keep Nigeria one, whofought as a commandant duringthe Cvil War, having retiredpeacefully and never got himselfinvolved in politics nor blow anytrumpet about his roles in thewar, even when some emptydrums who did not participatefully in the civil war are talkinghere and there, to end up beinggunned down by some sadists.Unfortunately, these sadists, Idon't even know what to even callthem, whether they are humanor not, ended up assassinatinghim. May God forgive them,because I know they don't knowwhat they are doing?

As a retired militaryofficer, considering thecomplaints about soldiersalleged abuse of humanrights particularly in thestates facing securitychallenges like Yobe andBorno, what is your take onthis?

Well, it is again unfortunatebut if you ask me as a militaryman, what I will say is that youcannot eat your cake and haveit. There is a saying that a childwho will not allow his mother tosleep would not also sleep. So ifyou cause insecurity, you havealready lost certain parts of yourrights. So, whatever the militaryis doing, they are doing it toprovide security. So, we shouldchoose either to tell the soldiersto go back to their barracks andallow anarchy to reign or call inthe soldiers to do what the cando. In the military, there is whatwe call using minimum force,and within that minimum forcethere are bound to be collateraldamages and those collateraldamages is what people callhuman right. Yes, everybodyhas his/her own right but themilitary also have right to selfdefense. They can't go into abattle and allow themselves tobe shot at, bombed at andbecause of human rights youexpect them to sit downwatching. So, I believe thatwhile the soldiers are doing theirduties we should give them themaximum co-operation. Theyare also implored upon toobserve the rules of engagement.For every operation, there is arule of engagement and I amsure the soldiers are very welltrained, they know what theirrules of engagement are, andthey abide by them. I believe by

Major General Yakubu Usman (Rtd).

INTERVIEW

co-operating with the JointTask Force, I am sure the abuseof human rights woulddefinitely be reduced. However,one major point is that thosesoldiers should not be kept on thestreets longer than necessary.Once they finish theiroperation, they should go backto their barracks and let thepolice or whoever is responsiblefor maintaining law and orderto carry-on with their duties.But soldiers have been over-exposed, they are seeneverywhere and that is why tosome extent, people see themand talk anyhow about them.

There are those who stillsay politicians have a role toplay in this present situationof insecurity, do you agreewith that?

Security has so many faces.It has the political face, religiousface and the criminal face. So ifyou talk about politicians orcriminal or religious fanatics Iknow they all exist but I can'tdifferentiate them.

What about otherstakeholders like traditionalrulers, is there any role theytoo can play to bring aboutan end to this problems ofinsecurity?

I have the belief that ourtraditional rulers have a bigrole to play. In fact I am one ofthose who advocate thattraditional rulers should begiven a role even in ourconstitution, because it is notonly when we have problemsthat we start to call upon themto solve the problems. If you givethem a role in the constitutionand such roles includemonitoring people coming inand out of their domains; if theycan check that, I believe we canbring an end to this problem ofsecurity threat in the north eastzone.

What about religiousleaders?

The religious leaders havesimilar roles with thetraditional rulers. I believe thatthe religious leaders have aduty to restrain their followersfrom engaging in any form ofviolence, because I believe thatif we have tolerance, and wepreach love which both Islamand Christianity preach, Ibelieve that peace would reinnot just in North-East but inthe whole country and theworld at large.

move forward.

Why would thegovernors who weresupposed to be the convenersof the Forum refuse to attendthe meeting?

You can go and ask them. Iam not a governor; I am a citizenlike you and like any otherperson, so I don't know thereason.

The major challenge, likeyou have said and like anyother person knows, that isconfronting the region isinsecurity. Recently GeneralShuwa was killed byunknown assailants. How doyou feel about the incident?

It's sad and very

Major General Yakubu Usman (Rtd), a member of the North-East Forum for Peace and Developmentin this interview with our Borno Correspondent, Ahmed Kaigama, bares his mind on the securitychallenges and developmental backwardness in the region and proffers solutions. Excerpts:

Constitutional roles for traditional rulerswill check insecurity, says Gen. Usman

PAGE 38 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

LG polls: PDP to endbad losers' syndrome

message to its Benue and KadunaBenue Chapters on the successes ofthe Local Government Area CouncilPolls held recently in the two statesand sigend by its National PublicitySecretary, Chief Olisa Metuh,hailed the smooth conduct of thepolls whose outcome has oncemore reestablished the fact thatthe PDP is the party of choice and

Parliament calls for democratic culture, good governance in Africa

Kogi State House ofAssembly yesterday atthe plenary urged the

state government to urgentlyconsider the rehabilitation ofthe Akpogu community.

The motion which wasmoved by Hon Salihu Akawu,member representing Lokoja-Kotokarfe state constituencystated that since the last rainyseason, the community hadbeen cut off from the rest of thestate.

"The only road leading tothe only primary school in thearea has since been washedaway allow the school pupilsidling at home".

Akawu's motion secondedby Hon Suleiman Babadoko ofLokoja 1 constituency statedthat most houses in thecommunity had beendestroyed.

Speaker Hon. MomojimoLawal, in his ruling stressedthat the motion was selfexplanatory and requiresurgent attention.

the only vehicle to deliverdevelopment at the grassrootslevel.

Metuh who commended thePDP's dedication to democraticprinciples in accepting the resultsin some areas where the party lostin Kaduna state assured "We arepoised to end the bad losersyndrome in Nigerian politics. In

the areas we lost, we are preparedto go back to the drawing boardand work hard to reclaim them".

The PDP spokesman added"The fact that we are ready toconcede to winners in other partiesshould be a lesson in politicaltolerance to other opposition partieswho see electoral contests as battlesto be won at all costs".

The Peoples DemocraticParty (PDP) yesterdaydeclared that it has resolved

to end the bad losers' syndrome inthe nation's polity by ensuring thatit concedes victory to the oppositionwherever it loses election.

The party in a congratulatory

L-R: GombeState Governor,Alhaji IbrahimDankwambo,DeputyChairman, PDPGombe StateChapter, AlhajiNasiru Aliyu,and caretakerchairman,Balanga LocalGovernmentArea, Mr.Solomon Yaro,during theGovernor'sTour ofBalanga-NorthConstituency atTalase, GombeState onWednesday.

Photo: NAN

KogiAssemblywantsAkpogucommunityrehabilitated

The president said corruptionhad continued to undermine allefforts geared towarddevelopment among membercountries.

Amadi said the AfricanCharter on Values and Principlesof Public Service andAdministration, laid animportant foundation as well asstandards for public administrationin Africa.

He said the integration process

of the continent could only beachieved through economic factorsand legal frameworks such as freemovement of people among memberstates and goods and services.

The Speaker of the Rivers Houseof Assembly, Mr OtelemabaAmachree, urged the body not toderail in its mandate but to remainfocused.

" As the apex regionalparliament, you are the cynosure ofall national and state parliaments

in Africa," he said.The speaker commended the

organisers for choosing PortHarcourt and the state assembly asvenue for the meeting.

" Your choice of Port Harcourt andindeed the Rivers assembly as venuefor the meeting is not an accident.

"It is predicated on our antecedentas a dynamic house, being the onlystate assembly in Africa that hashosted a continental parliament," hesaid. ( NAN)

The President of the PanAfrican Parliament, MrBethel Amadi, on Wednesday

called for democratic culture, goodgovernance and transparencyamong member countries.

Amadi made the appeal at a two-day Regional ParliamentaryMeeting on "good governance inAfrica" organised by theparliament in Port Harcourt.

He said institutional instabilityin the continent deeply underscoredthe need to consolidate the rule oflaw and other positive democraticvalues.

He noted that the AU Charter onDemocracy, Elections andGovernance had laid the basicframework for democracy in Africa.

"This legal document promotesa system of governance that isrepresentative and emergesthrough regular, transparent, freeand fair elections.

" It encompasses our collectiveaspirations to bring to an endunconstitutional changes ofgovernment on the continent andforms the foundation of ourshared values," he added.

The issue of governance,according to him, has posed thebiggest challenge confronting theAfrican continent.

CNPP expresses concern overhigh rate of unemploymentThe National President,

Conference of NigerianPolitical Parties (CNPP) Alhaji

Balarabe Musa, on Thursdayexpressed concern over the high rateof unemployment in the country,saying there was need to adoptanother approach to address theissue.

Musa told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) in Abuja that thenumber of unemployment hadincreased to about 15 million to 20million.

''We have unemployed post-

secondary school graduatesnumbering 15 million to 20 million,how can you have peace in thatsituation?

``This number is more than thepopulation of a medium-sizedcountry, nobody is happy with thedevelopment not even thegovernment.

Musa said the strategy to addressthe issue had to change from onebased on self-interest to one based onpublic interest.

''You know during our time whenpublic interest was primary, self-

interest was secondary, we registeredsome progress, some of it is still visible.''

The CNPP chairman said thatpublic interest should be the overriding interest so that automaticallythe nation could move in the rightdirection, including the developmentof the country's financial system.

On the security situation, Musacriticised the spate of uncertainty inthe nation's security system andcalled for the restructuring of thesystem, which, he noted, wasdrawing the country backward.(NAN)

Oron ethnic group in AkwaIbom on Wednesdaydeclared that it was their turn

to produce the state governor in 2015.Mr Okon Usung, a spokesman for

the group, conveyed the declarationat a news conference in Uyo.

He noted that the Oro nationalityin Akwa Ibom South SenatorialDistrict had never produced thestate's governor since its creation in1987.

Usung stressed that the senatorialdistrict, which had 12 localgovernment areas, was the singlelargest contributor of revenue to thestate coffers.

``We formally declareunequivocally that it is the turn ofAkwa Ibom South SenatorialDistrict, in general, and Oro, inparticular, to produce the nextgovernor of Akwa Ibom State in2015.

``Akwa Ibom Senatorial Districtgenerates the largest percentage ofthe state's revenue.

``It is blessed with oil and gasreserves and other non-oil mineralssuch as limestone, salt, zinc, and ithas an incredible array of aquaticresources.

``Regrettably, in the last 25 yearssince Akwa Ibom's creation, thesenatorial district has not producedany governor; military or civilian,''he said.

Usung stressed that Oro people,who were faithful members of thePDP, the dominant party in the state,should be given a chance to governthe state. (NAN)

Oron peoplewant Akwa Ibomgovernorship in2015

From Sam Egwu, lokoja

By Lawrence Olaoye

PAGE 39PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Nigeria will surmountits challenges - MarkPresident of the Senate,

David Mark, has noted thetrying times Nigeria is

passing through and urged thepeople not to despair but to resortto prayer to almighty God,saying that Nigeria willovercome the challenges.

He said "We are in a difficult

Nasarawa state Governor, Alhaji Umaru Tanko Almakura (left), in a handshake with former Zamfarastate Governor, Senator Sani Ahmed Yerima (right), during a visit by National Rebuilding and Inter-party Contact Committee to the governor, yesterday in Nasarawa. With them is former Yobe stateGovernor, Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim (middle).

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

Senate Committee pledges morefunding for FCTA's social department

The Senate Committee onthe FCT has pledged tocanvass increased

budgetary allocation to the FCTASocial Development Departmentfor expansion of vocationaltraining facilities.

The committee, led by itsChairman, Sen. Smart Adeyemi,expressed satisfaction with thequality and standard of facilitiesprovided at the centre by the

By Lawrence Olaoye Social Development Department.Adeyemi, made the promise on

Wednesday when the committeevisited the Youth Support Centre,Nyanya, as part of its oversighttour of ongoing projects in the FCT.

He commended the Secretaryof the Social DevelopmentDepartment, Mrs Blessing Onuh,for the completion of work at thecentre and said the effort wasworthy of emulation.

He gave the assurance thatthe Committee would work hard

to ensure that more funds wereallocated to the department inthe 2013 appropriations.

``This is what socialdevelopment is all about. Oncethe youth are skilled, theybecome useful members of thesociety.

``I hope what we have seenhere can be taken as example byother states of the federation sothat the youth can be gainfullyemployed and not to get involvedin crimes. (NAN)

Court of appeal, BeninDivision yesterdaydashed the hope of the

Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) flag-bearer in the July14 2012 Governorshipelection in Edo state, Major-General Charles Airhiavbere,to call more witnesses.

Delivering two separatejudgments yesterday, thethree-man panel of Justicesheaded by Justice GeorgeShoremi dismissed the appeals

By Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin brought before the court by theappellant for lack of merit.

The court held that failureby the petitioner to list thewitnesses alongside the mainpetition "added poverty to thepetition".

According to JusticeShoremi, the complaint of lackof fair hearing by thepetitioner was faulty andlacking in merit and thereforeupheld the ruling of the lowertribunal.

In a similar ruling, thecourt held that issues raised by

Airhiavbere in his reply werenew and fresh issues notcontained in the mainpetition. The court ruled thatbringing in such issues wouldtake the respondents bysurprise and would not givethem time to respond.

Justice Shoremi held thatthe paragraphs struck out bythe lower tribunal dealtextensively on academicqualification not contained inthe main petition. He insistedthat the new facts can only beprovided in a petition through

A/Court bars Airhiavbere from calling witnessesan amendment, with acaution that allowing theissues was an infringement ofFirst Schedule of the ElectoralAct 2010 (as amended).

The appellate court saidonly paragraphs 6 and 7 inAirhiavbere's reply arecompetent. "The findings of thelower tribunal are sound inlaw. If the paragraphs struckout are heard, the respondentwill be taken by surprise. Theparagraphs ought to have beenin the main petition. Thisappeal is dismissed".

situation but we will continue topray and I know with prayer,honesty and commitment of allof us, we can overcome. We mustnot despair. We must be resoluteto face the challenges".

He was speaking at the St.Mulumba Catholic Chaplaincyduring a holy Mass celebrated bythe new Cardinal JohnOnaiyekan in Abuja yesterday

morning.Mark, who led Nigerian

delegation to the Vatican towitness the consistory of hisEminence John CardinalOnaiyekan, noted that theCardinal has brought fame andhonour to the nation.

He added that CardinalOnaiyekan has remainedhumble, steadfast and dedicated

in spite of elevation and urged himnot to rest on his oars in thecrusade for peace and unity ofNigeria.

Earlier in his homily, CardinalOnaiyekan implored Nigerians,both rich and poor to havecompassion on one another. Hepreached love and togetherness asa panacea to the intractableconflicts across the country.

The Taraba Governmenthas approved theappointment of Dr Shehu

Baju as the First Class Chief ofMambilla, 10 years after thedeath of the substantive ruler.

Baju, succeeds the late chief,Alhaji Muhammadu Mansurwho died in 2002.

A statement issued by theGovernment House Chief PressSecretary, Alhaji HassanMijinyawa on Thursday inJalingo stated that the actinggovernor, Alhaji Garba Umargave approval for theappointment.

It stated that the appointmentfollowed a reconciliation initiatedby Gov. Danbaba Suntai betweenthe ruling houses of Mansur andthat of Baju, where an agreementwas reached to rotate thechieftaincy stool between them.

It stated that the new Chief,who was born in 1959, was untilhis appointment, the Directorof Veterinary Services in theState Ministry for Agriculture,Jalingo.

According to thestatement, arrangements forthe installation is to beannounced on a later date.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that the tusslefor the Mambilla stool hadlingered in the past 10 yearsdue to disagreement over whoshould take over as the Chief.

NAN recalls that theMambilla Chiefdom has beenwithout a ruler since 2002when the late Mansur diedafter reigning for 42 years.(NAN)

Taraba govt.appoints newChief of Mambilla

Mr Oluseegun Olulade, amember of the LagosState House of Assembly

(LAHA), on Thursday urged theFederal Government tostrengthen the country's electoralsystem, toward achievingcredible elections in 2015.

Olulade (ACN-Epe II),Chairman, House Committee onInformation, Security andStrategy, stated this in aninterview with the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

He argued that the only waythe electorate could haveconfidence in the process wasthrough credible elections.

"I think ,if there is any sectorthat needs to be strengthened, itis our electoral system. Once weget it right at the polls andNigerians can have confidence inthe Independent NationalElectoral Commission (INEC),the country will move forward.

"Once the votes of Nigerianscan count at the end of the day,that means that we have solvedhalf of the problem we are facingtoday," he said.

Olulade argued that grantingfull autonomy to INEC wouldensure good leadership in thecountry.

The lawmaker also chargedyouths to cooperate with relevantbodies toward having free andcredible elections in future.

"Nigerians must come out in2015 elections, not by bullet, butby ballot ,to elect credibleleaders," he said. (NAN)

Lagos lawmakerasks FG tostrengthen thenation's electoralsystem

Gov. Ibrahim Dankwamboof Gombe State has pledgedto provide social amenities for

the people of Balanga North LocalGovernment Area.

Dankwambo gave theassurance on Wednesday when hevisited Talase, the headquarters ofBalanga Local Government Area.

He said that he was in the areato identify the major problemsconfronting the people so as to findlasting solutions to them andaccelerate the area's development.

The governor said that some ofthe people's demands would beaddressed within a short time,while others would be tackledlater.

Dankwambo commended thepeople for promoting peace in thearea and urged them to continueto guard jealously all the projectssited in their area.

The News Agency Nigeria(NAN) reports that representativesof the five wards of the council areapresented their demands to thegovernor during the visit.

The demands includerehabilitation of primary andsecondary schools; electrification,water supply and road constructionprojects as well as the upgrade ofBalanga Dam. (NAN)

Dankwambopledges toprovide socialamenities for LG

PAGE 41PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

the affairs.Though the football federation

had faulted the clubs’ bosses onprocedural grounds, a releasemade public same day expressedits worries over the likelyaftermath of another round ofcrises in the domestic league.

Consequently, the board, whichhas been accused of working inconjunction with the leadership ofthe National Sports Commission tooust Baribote, opted to meet as bodyto deliberate on sundry mattersraised by the agitating clubs.

“Since they had 16 or 17 clubowners, they should have goneto the congress on Thursday andmove a motion to throw the boardout of office if they felt that wasthe right call,” he said.

The football chief said he waspained at the situation as he hadworked hard during his tenureas NPL chairman to make theleague a brand.

The Benin High Chiefconcluded by predicting adangerous phase for Nigeriafootball if “things are not handledin the right manner.”

“Our football will go down thedrain if things are not handled inthe right manner. Let thestatutes be implemented and theNFF must not meddle in theaffairs of the NPL,” he said.

Lagos state commissioner for sports, Mr Wahid Enitan-Oshodi, presenting gift to team Delta after winning goldmedal, during the women table tennis event, at the 18thnational sports festival, in lagos. Photo: NAN

preparation for the competition,saying that it was poised to comeout tops.

The team’s goalkeeper, Abdul

NGO distributes178,000 condomsto athletes, officials… As Exec C’ttee holds emergency

meeting over league crisis today

NPL crisis: Obaseki faults NFF’s truce

Obisia Nwakpa, theimmediate past head coachof the Nigeria Boxing

Federation (NBF), has decried thelow quality boxing exhibited bypugilists at the almost concluded18th National Sports Festival.

The ex-Commonwealth Gameschampion lamented the dearth ofquality boxers at the Games, tagged“Eko 2012’’, noting that there waslittle to cheer in terms of prospectstressing

“I think we are not getting it rightbecause I did not see quality boxersfrom all the bouts I watched. Thisgoes to show that the states are not

developing sports but rather lookingfor short cuts to success in sports,’’the former pugilist said.

Nwakpa noted that many of theboxers might be technically soundbut lacked the stamina a good boxerneeded to excel and added that themissing link was the fact that theircoaches had not worked hardenough.

Nwakpa, who described sportsadministrators as “slave drivers,’’alleged that they had been feedingfat on sports, to the detriment of theathletes.

“The quality of athletes is areflection of what is happening in

the sports sector. How do you expectan athlete that is not well fed to dowell in major competitions?’’ heasked.

The former Head Coach blamedthe National Sports Commission(NSC) for not taking care of theathletes.

“The actors should be the priorityof the NSC because one would haveexpected the commission to keep arecord of athletes discovered in thelast two festivals.

“Our athletes are not well takencare of and we always want to pushthem to do well at majortournaments,’’ Nwakpa said.

18th NSF: Obisia decries low standard in boxing at Games

Supersand Eagles not under pressureto defend Cup, says coach

Isah, urged Nigerians to supportthe team, assuring that withadequate support, the teamwould not disappoint.

The Beach Eagles TeamCoach, Audu Adamu, hasdismissed assertions that

the team was not under anypressure as hosts and defendingchampions of the competition.

The Beach Eagles will featureat the Lagos Cup fiesta along withArgentina, Lebanon and Portugalin the competition scheduled tohold from December 14 to Dec.16 at the Eko Beach in Lagos.

Adamu, who spoke yesterdayafter the team’s training sessionin Badagry, said that the teamwill work hard to defend thetrophy the worthy champions

that they are .“I am assuring Nigerians that

the Beach Eagles will retain theCopa tournament’s trophy. As thehost and the defendingchampions, we will use theadvantages to retain the cup.

“We have never playedLebanon before but have defeatedArgentina twice and we haveunfinished business with thePortuguese. The Portuguesedefeated us in a World Cuptraining early this year inPortugal and we are set for arevenge,” Adamu said.

According to him, the team’s

participation in the Samsungtournament held recently inDubai, had further prepared it forthe Copa Lagos competition.

“At the tournament, wedefeated the current EuropeanClub Champions, Switzerlandand the current AsianChampion, Japan.

“With all that, we are filledwith confidence and we know thatwe will defeat anyone that standsbetween us and the trophy,” thecoach said.

Meanwhile, Olawale Isiaka, theteam’s captain, also assuredNigerians of the team’s

Former chairman of theNigeria Premier League(NPL), Oyuki Obaseki

believes the Nigeria FootballFederation (NFF) is wrong intrying to find a truce in thecurrent crisis rocking theleague’s governing body.

The NPL board was sacked by18 clubs after a meeting inNigeria’s capital, Abuja, onWednesday. Baribote VictorRumson has however continuedto insist he is still chairman of theNPL board which prompted theNFF to wade into the crisis as theyattempt to find a solution to theimpasse.

Obaseki, who was chairman ofthe NPL between 2008 and 2010,said the NFF was wrong to havecalled for a meeting between theclub owners and the Baribote-ledNPL board.

“The NFF must not dictate tothe NPL. They (NFF) have no

right to interfere in the decisionsand affairs of the NPL. FIFA iswatching. They are not doing theright thing. I am very sure peopleare behind them,” Obasekiexclusively told supersport.com.

Obaseki said the club ownerswere backed by the statues to callfor the dissolution of the NPLboard but insisted that they (clubowners) should have waited forthe 2012 congress before makingtheir move to unseat Baribote.

“The congress is backed bystatutes of the NPL to dissolve theboard. But my question is whythey were in such a hurry? The2012 congress had been fixed forThursday and by Wednesdaymorning, they take a decision todissolve the board. Why thehurry?

Aminu Maigari, president NFF

In an attempt to stave off thebrewing crisis in the NigeriaPremier League, the executive

committee of the NFF will meettoday to deliberate on the clubchairmen’s impeachment of theVictor Baribote-led league board.

Peoples Daily Sports recalls thatmuted angst over Baribote-ledboard’s management of the leaguetook a disturbing dimension onWednesday when 16 clubs met inAbuja and subsequently dissolvedthe board and appointed a six-maninterim board committee to run

The Youth Network on HIV/AIDS in Nigeria(NYNETHA), a Non-

Governmental Organisation(NGO), said yesterday that ithas distributed more than 178,000 condoms to athletes andofficials at the ongoing 18th

National Sports Festival.Moses Okpara, Executive

Secretary of the NGO, whodisclosed this during aninterview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inLagos, said that both male andfemale condoms weredistributed at the fiesta.

Okpara said that thedistribution wascomplementary to thecollaborative activities of someagencies working on HIV/AIDSin Nigeria to provide free HIVscreening and counselling atthe sports festival.

“What we are doing is acollaborative activity toprovide free HIV counsellingand screening to bothsportsmen and spectatorsthroughout the national sportsfestival. The National SportsCommission is there. UNICEFhas played a prominent role.

“So also has the NationalAgency for the Control of AIDS(NACA), AIDS PreventionInitiative in Nigeria (APIN), incollaboration with UnitedStates Agency for International

Development (USAID).“The Lagos State AIDS

Control Agency (LSACA), UNPopulation Fund (UNFPA),Society for Family Health(SFH) and the National YouthService Corps (NYSC) have alsocontributed immensely.”

Okpara said that theresponse to the free HIV/AIDSscreening at the variousvenues of the festival and thedemands for condoms at thefiesta had been encouraging.

“When we were conceivingthe whole idea, we werelooking at just reaching out to2,000 people and then 5,000athletes with preventionmessages and then sharing100, 000 condoms.

“But, as I speak to you, wehave surpassed ourexpectations. It has been anoverwhelming experience. Infact, in the first three days, wehad surpassed 3,000 and wehad to get re-enforcement fromUSAID, Abuja,” he said.

According to him, ourcondoms are on high demandbecause people want thecondoms, especially the femalecondoms. Lots of people havenot seen the female condoms.

“They are having a first-hand experience of feeling it,having some and believingthat they can use the femalecondoms,” Okpara added.

PAGE 42 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

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Premier league players depress by NPL impasseSeveral top stars have voiced their discontent over the

present state of affairs in the Nigeria Premier League(NPL). The executive board of the NPL was thrown

out of office by 18 clubs after a meeting in Nigeria’s capital,Abuja on Wednesday.

Baribote Victor Rumson says he is still the chairman ofthe league board insisting that due process was not followedin his “purported removal.”

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has now calledfor an emergency meeting on Friday to resolve issuessurrounding the NPL board and the club chairmen.

Victor Ezeji is one of the most experienced players in theNPL and he believes it is time for the warring parties tosheath their swords.

“When things like this happen, it is the league and the

players that suffer. This will take us nowhere and I hope the issuesare resolved as quickly as possible so we can return and playfootball,” Ezeji told supersport.com.

Warri Wolves’ defender, Ike ThankGod was also disappointed atthe crisis in the league and called for calm to be restored.

“I hear they (NPL, club owners and the NFF) will meet tomorrow.I was getting ready to play the game I love best as we were told theleague will resume this month. I pray everything is resolvedquickly,” he said. Heartland captain, Chinedu Efugh also voicedhis sentiments on the issue. The defender, who captained his sideto Cup success in the last two seasons, said no player in any of theclubs would be happy over the development.

“I can tell you NPL players are not happy. We love football and wewant to play. We feel sad when we hear things like this,” he said.

It now looks highly unlikely that the December 22 kick-off datefor the 2012/13 season will stand.

PAGE 44 PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

It seems indubitable toconclude that there issomething uncanny

about the National SportsCommission (NSC),particularly the office ofthe Minister of Sports andChairman of thecommission.

The commission seemsto have infamousreputation for producing,whether so-calledtechnocrats or politicalappointees, elementsproficient at generatingcontroversies thanimpacting positively onthe sports scene itself.

In fact, in the lastdecades, one would hardlyrecall an occupant of theoffice that did not becomeenmeshed in onecontroversy after another,and with the so-calledprofessionals in thecommission diligentlydigging their graves.

Take for instance,Professor Taoheed Adedoja.Perhaps, he would best be

remembered for hisumpteenth but largelyunrealisable promises andunwittingly providing theprop for a citizen whosealleged act of indescriptionat an international forumbrought no little disdain tothe nation.

A certain Isa Bio came onthe scene. Like Nero, he slepton while Rome burns. One,perhaps, retain faintmemory of Bio's sojourn inthe commission on accountof his lackadaisicalapproach to the NFF crises.

Sadly, his inaction orwhatever consumed him asPresident Jonathan easedthe former Kwara House ofAssembly Speaker off thesaddle. Ask commissionstaff, he was barely missedeven by his avowed stooges.

Enter the Sokoto prince.Well intended at first, buthardly able to march theprevalence of theatricals inadministration andexpertise peculiar with thecommission's top dogs, he

opted to return to his morecomfortable zone:electioneering theatrics.

That threw up BolajiAbdullahi, first onsupervisory capacity andlater in full regalia. Theformer journalist turnedpolitician left none in doubtabout his incisiveknowledge of the hiccoughsin the sports terrain.

Many thought a Danielhas come to Zion. How hastythey were to conclude!Abdullahi has presided overnothing new: Hisadministrative mien, drift,acts, character and visionand mission, are all toosimilar. The only differencebeing the persons and time.His, as were others, has beenall motions withoutmovement. Attempts touproot, dismount, andupstage have remainedlargely kids' gloves, nothingconcrete and hope inspiring.

Recall that Adedoja madea pretense of being unawareof the existence of an

i r r i t a t i n gparallel NFA;e l e m e n t swithout locusstandi even inthe footballconst i tuenc iesyet enjoyed thesupport of thechieftains of thec o m m i s s i o n ,who deployedthem to derailthe NFF.

No, not that the NFF topdogs in themselves weresaints. They never wereand are still not. Bio's IvoryTowerism created thenecessary ambience forsurreptitious elements tooperate and effect whateverchanges they had desired.

Not so Abdullahi, theveteran journalist. No, hehas acted. But what missedkicks! Bolaji has failed in asimple act of unseating anunwanted element. Well,some persons gathered inAbuja to execute a domesticleague board coup. Sadly, ifinebriated by the prospectsof victory mounted therostrum sooner than they

WATCH DOGBy

Patrick Andrewowoidoho_ng35@yahoo.com

ought to and thus left theirflanks bare for the deadlycut .

Who won't given a knifeand the freedom to take aplunge at the spoil? VictorBaribote, the same individualthat fought his way to thethrone but seems unable todiscern what next to do withthe assumed authority tookthe cut. And what cut!

Abdullahi's unfulfilledquest (at least for now) toremove Baribote clearlyexposed theunprofessionalism withwhich Sports Ministers haveacted. They all failed toaccomplish simple task.That in itself is a huge

statement on theircompetence ratio. Nowonder, the commissionhas remained a Peter Pan,perpetually in the woods.

The leadership of theleague board may lackfinesse in theadministration, vision andclout to generate goodwillfor the game. But whatconscious efforts has theminister made to attractsponsors to the league?Why would he choose towield the big stick withoutproviding desirablesuccour? Indeed, what'sAbdullahi's legacy otherthan the same lamepromises, cash of cymbals?

Bolaji Abdullahi’s ignominious mark

Lionel Messi

knee, and have since confirmedthat he had been able to work inthe gym.

The final Group G game wasmeaningless to Barcelona,forcing coach Tito Vilanova todefend his decision to send Mession as a 58th-minute substitute.The No10 went into the gameone goal shy of Gerd Muller’srecord of 85 in a calendar year,but Vilanova denied that playeda part in his selection.

“He’s not focused on breakingthe record that everyone istalking about, if that were thecase he would have playedagainst Alaves (in the Copa del

Rey last week) and the full 90minutes against Benfica.Playing is part of his physicalt r a i n i n g . ”

Vilanova made a host ofchanges for last night’s match,several of them enforced, butMessi’s apparent let-off was notthe only good news on the injuryfront this morning. AndresIniesta, Alexis Sanchez, JordiAlba and Dani Alves all took partin training with the rest of thesquad, while Eric Abidal was ableto return to the field for lighterworkouts .

Barcelona had alreadysecured top spot in their group,

encounter in 2004, but theMexican rallied to outbox hisopponent and eke out a draw.

In their second meeting, fouryears later, Pacquiao knockeddown Marquez in the thirdround, which proved thedifference when he won a splitdecision.

Their third bout was adjudgeda majority decision victory forthe Filipino southpaw, despitehis surprisingly unimpressiveper formance .

“I thought Manny won thatfight,” Pacquiao’s trainerFreddie Roach said onWednesday. “But the booing wasvery loud and very vocal.

“Someone said, ‘Why aren’tyou smiling? You won the fight’.And I said, ‘It’s very hard to smilewhen you’re being booed.’”

Pacquiao acknowledges thathis series of fights with Marquezhad been the defining rivalry ofhis career.

Messi’s focus not on breaking Muller’s record, says Villanova

UNDERCARD ACTIONRON JACKSON writes that

SuperSport viewers will be ableto watch several other top-classfights on the undercard.

The talented Yuriorkis Gamboa,undefeated at 21-0, with 16knockouts, faces Michael Farenas(34-3-4; 26) for the interim WBAjunior lightweight title.

Gamboa, a 28-year-oldCuban, is a former WBA and IBFfeatherweight champion. Hewon a gold medal at the 2004Olympics in Athens and nowlives in Miami, Florida.

It will be his first fight thisyear but he has beaten highlyrated fighters such as RogersMtagwa, Jonathon Victor

Yaya Toure Didier Drogba

The Confederation of AfricanFootball (CAF) unveiled thenames of the three players

who are in contention for the titleof African Player of the Year andthe winner will be announced onDecember 20, in Accra, Ghana.

Manchester City and theElephants’ midfielder Yaya Touré,the 2011 winner, is still in therunning for his second consecutivetitle and will be competing againsthis national team captain Didier

Drogba and CameroonianAlexandre Song.

Playmaker and the younger ofthe Touré brothers will have atough job bagging the trophy for asecond year running, because hiscompatriot managed to dazzleAfrica and Europe during this year,2 0 1 2 .

Didier Drogba was the architectbehind the success of Chelsea in theFA Cup and the Champions Leaguebefore his exile to China, and also

led Côte d’Ivoire to the final of theAfrica Cup of Nations 2012 and toqualification for the 2013 edition,following an epic doubleconfrontation with Senegal.

The third contender AlexandreSong made the big move toCatalonia, to FC Barcelona fromArsenal, his Cameroon’s absencefrom the Afcon 2012 and 2013could prove to be a serious handicapfor the Indomitable Lions’ defensivemidfielder’s chances of success.

African Ballon d’Or: It’s Yaya versus Drogba

Juan Manuel Marquez wantsto celebrate victory overManny Pacquiao, just once.

That is his sole motivation forthe non-title welterweight clashwith his arch-rival in Las Vegason Saturday night.

Marquez has fought Pacquiaothree times, most recently 13months ago in the same MGMGrand ring where they meet onSaturday. But he has not beatenthe Filipino.

“People tell me, ‘You reallybeat him’, in the last three fights,”Marquez, a three-division worldchampion, said on Wednesday.“A lot of people feel I beat him.But I want to have my handraised. I want the judges to reallylook at what they’re doing andget it right this time.”

When they last met, Pacquiaoretained his WBO welterweighttitle with a controversialmajority decision.

On his part, Pacquiao seems tobe growing increasinglyirritated by the Mexican’sinsistence that he won theirprevious three fights,particularly because of thecounter-punching stylefavoured by Marquez, whoserecord now stands at 54-6-1,with 39 knockouts.

“He always claims he won thefights,” said Pacquiao (54-4; 38)who has won world titles in eightdivisions. “So he needs to provesomething .

“You cannot say, ‘Yes I wonthe fight’ when you are alwaysbacking off. If you’re claimingyou won the fight, then youhave to press the action.”

The four-fight rivalrybetween the two almost failed tolast one round. Pacquiao knockedMarquez down three times in theopening round of their first

Marquez needs just one win over Pacquiao to be happy“When you say ‘Muhammad

Ali’, you think ‘Joe Frazier’,” theFilipino said. “And I think whenyou say ‘Manny Pacquiao’, youthink ‘Juan Manuel Marquez’.

Lionel Messi worked out inthe gym as his Barcelonateam-mates trained this

morning, and the Argentiniancould yet be fit for Sunday’smatch against Real Betis despitebeing carried off in last night’sUEFA Champions League clashwith Benfica.

Messi gave Barça a majorinjury scare in Wednesdaynight’s goalless draw, collidingwith Benfica goalkeeper ArturMoraes and then fallingawkwardly in the 84th minute.But the club said last night thatthe 25-year-old had sufferednothing more than a bruised left

And when you say ‘Marquez’,you think ‘Manny Pacquiao’.”

But neither man is expectinga fifth fight, whatever happenson Saturday. The fourth bout,

and they could now face the likesof Porto, Arsenal, AC Milan,Shakhtar Donetsk andGalatasaray in the Round of 16,although Vilanova does not havea preference.

they insist, will be the last.“This is the last fight with

Manny,” said Marquez. “I don’tknow what will happen in thering, but this is the last time.”

Barros, Jorge Solis and DanielPonce De Leon.

Farenas, 28, from thePhilippines, has lost just once inhis past 30 fights.

That was in July this yearwhen he challenged WBA super-featherweight championTakashi Uchiyama. The fightwas stopped in the third roundand declared a technical drawafter Farens was cut over theright eye.

Miguel Vazquez, a Mexicanwith a record of 32-3; 13, willdefend his IBF lightweight titleagainst a 25-year-old Filipino,Mercito Gesta (26-01; 14) whois rated at No 5.

Vazquez, 25, won the vacantbelt in 2010 and has made four

defences.Vazquez, unlike most

Mexicans, is a stylish fighter.Gesta who has been called “thenext Pacquiao”.

Two undefeated fighters,Javier Fortuna (20-0; 15) andPatrick Hyland (27-0; 12) meetfor the interim WBAfeatherweight title.

The 23-year-old Fortuna, asouthpaw from the DominicanRepublic, beat Yuandale Evansand Cristobal Cruz in his pasttwo fights.

Hyland, 29, born Ireland butnow based in Newburgh, NewYork, has beaten the likes ofEmmanuel Lucero, FrankieArchuleta and Carlos Fulgenciothis year.

PAGE 45PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Action during a traditional wrestling (KOKAWA)between team Rivers (blue), and team Taraba,at the 18th national sports festival, in lagos.

Photo: NAN

Olympic gold medallist, Daniel Igali has heapedpraise on athletes who took part in the Greco-Roman wrestling event at the ongoing National

Sports Festival in Nigeria.The 38-year-old said he has identified a handful of

wrestlers during the event won by Team Delta.But Igali is worried that the powerhouses in wrestling

in Nigeria is not evenly distributed following thedomination of Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers in the sport.

“The sports festival is always an avenue to discovernew and young talents. I have seen some very youngwrestlers here who will be groomed for future games.Definitely we will be working with them soon.

“But as much I’ve seen some very good young talentsat this games, it is also of concern that the topperforming wrestlers have come from one particulargeographical region. I would have loved to see thewrestling talents evenly spread across the country’sgeographical regions,” said the former Canadianfreestyle wrestler.

Igali competed for Nigeria at the 1994Commonwealth Games in Canada but stayed back inthe North American nation, where he got citizenship in1 9 9 8 .

At the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney,Australia and 2002 Commonwealth Games inManchester, he won gold medals for Canada in thefreestyle wrestling event. Igali is, at present, the headcoach of the Nigerian national wrestling team.

The Director of Sports, Cross River, Dr Jude Amadi,says the state’s sports development programme isbeginning to yield good results going by athletes’

performances at the ongoing National Sports Festival(NSF) in Lagos.

Amadi said in Lagos yesterday that the programmehad been on for the past two years adding that itsemphasises on talent-hunt at the grassroots levelappears to be yielding positive results.

“In this country today, it is only Cross Rivers Statethat has what we call a comprehensive sportsdevelopment programme, which means going to thegrassroots to discover these young lads and train themto stardom; and, I want to tell you that the programmehad been on for about two years now.

“I want to tell you about the products: the athletesfrom this programme, in swimming yesterday a 13-year-old girl, Abenoka, won silver in the 200 metrese v e n t .

“And, you will agree with me that she swam with hergrandmothers, so to speak; I tell you the truth and Icontinue to tell people that if we continue this way, ifwe do not go back to the grassroots, the gap created inNigerian sports will continue to exist.’’

Amadi urged state governments to pay attention tograssroots sports development as one way of discoveringand nurturing future athletes for the country.

He commended Gov. Liyel Imoke for being steadfastand focused on the implementation of the state’s sportsdevelopment programme, saying that in future, CrossRiver would have the best athletes in the countryhaving laid the foundation for talent-hunt earlier.

The director also said Team Cross River had done wellat the ongoing games, winning 3 gold, 6 silver and 9bronze medals and placing 9th on the medals table.

“I want to tell you that our programme is yieldingdividend and if you go to other sports, especially inathletics, products of our sports developmentprogramme have all qualified for the finals. We arebuilding the future and that is our target.”

Samuel Daudu, Chief Referee of Abula at the ongoing18th National Sports Festival (NSF), on Thursdayurged the National Sports Commission (NSC) to do

more to enhance the promotion of traditional sports.Daudu said in Lagos that traditional sports should be

promoted beyond the country’s borders, to enable it togain international recognition.

Daudu noted that Abula has been upgraded and madeviable for international competitions, adding that the sporthad always been a crowd puller at the ongoing fiesta.

“This is an indigenous sport that has its roots in Lagos,lots of awareness had been created across the countryabout it and people like it so much.

“There has been a lot of improvement in the sport,such that like many other festival events, the standardis very high. I believe the sports would appreciate if it isexported to other countries.

“It is interesting and unifying and if it gets properattention, it would go beyond our continent as arepresentation of Nigeria in the global sports, “ he said.

Daudu commended the high skills that were displayedby both Rivers and Bayelsa players, adding that the

standard surpassed whatwas obtainable at the 17th

edition of the tournament inPort Harcourt in 2011.

“This sport is long overduefor adoption ininternational competitionsand I urge the NSC to lendits assistance in promotingi t .

“This sport is far betterthan most of the sports wesee at the Olympics. It is more entertaining than manyevents at the Olympics, “ he added.

Daudu advised athletes participating in the NSF to behard working, and to sustain the high standards theyhad displayed at the festival.

Team Rivers proved to be worthy winners of the eventat the 2011 NSF by successfully defending its title atthe ongoing Games in Lagos. Team Rivers won the goldmedals in the male, female and mixed doubles events ofAbula.

Plateau State has signified interest in playing hostto the 19th edition of the National Sports Festivalin 2014, supersport.com can report.

Commissioner for Sports Development of Plateau, JamesYakubu revealed that his state has spoken to the NigerianNational Sports Commission, which also doubles as the sports

ministry about the bidding process.Yakubu said he spoke to the sports commission’s director-

general, Dr Patrick Ekeji, who confirmed that no state hasbeen picked as the next host of the sports festival.

“I’m surprised that there are reports that the next host ofthe sports festival has been decided. But that is not true

Igali happy with wrestlers

Official lauds CRS sportsdevelopment programmes

Referee wants international flavour for abula

Plateau joins bid for 2014 NSF because after I spoke to the DG (of the NSC), he told me thatthey have not decided that yet. “So since it is still open, weare also interested. Plateau State has the capacity to playhost to the sports festival,” said Yakubu.

Before now, Cross River had already stated its readiness toplay host to the 2014 edition of the sports festival.

Cross River Commissioner for Youths and SportsDevelopment, Patrick Ugbe, had said the state has thepotential to be a good host. Already, Cross River has a localorganising committee in place for the 2014 games.

northern states.“We do not expect to win

all the games .What weexpect is to move sportsforward in this country.The officiating umpiresshould be fair. Let’s leaveall the games open, so thatthe best teams can showcase themselves.

“And, that is how we canpick, from each state,people that will represent

us in internationalg a m e s . ”

On fair officiating, hesaid that the nation wouldget the best athletes fromthe festival, if officiating ofthe various games wouldbe open and devoid ofbiases.

So far, he said thatathletes had been fantasticbut was quick to add thatprospective talents were

easily spotted where thestandard of officiating hadnot been as good.

“The standard of theathletes as individuals isfantastic. It’s very good.But, if you talk about thestandard of officiating iszero.

“Once you do not allowthe best teams to play, youwill not know and you justasked the question, how we

can pick players for the nextfuture.

“But, How can we do thatwhen these issues of what ishappening is happening.There is bureaucracy insports, the civil service. Theonly way we can have a wayforward, I mean, is to havea genuine officiating team.

“Let the best man win, Ihave been saying that and Iwill remain an advocate forthis, and I will keeppreaching until the bestthing is done.’’

emergence of the besttalents at the Games.

Yakubu said TeamPlateau had done well so farin the Games as it has won 5gold, 5 silver and 17 bronzemedals and are placed 7thon the medals table.

“I am proud of what wehave achieved so far. As atthe records of yesterday,Plateau was placing 7th. Weare leading the whole

... As Commissioner praises team, urges good officiatingMr James Yakubu,

P l a t e a uCommissioner for

Sports Development, haspraised Team Plateau forputting up commendableperformances at theongoing 18th NationalSports Festival.

Also, he urged technicalofficials to stick tointernational best practicesin officiating to allow for the

PAGE 47PEOPLES DAILY, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Quick CrossWord (85)

ACROSS

1 Cofirmation (5)

5 Lashed (5)

7 Long firearm (5)

8 Shelter (3)

9 Absorbent cloth (5)

10 Mamma __, Abba

song (3)

12 Roof’s overhang (5)

13 Company of herons (5)

14 Garish (5)

DOWN

1 Kitting stitch (4)

2 Behind the scene (3-3)

3 Coast on a bike (9)

4 Boundary (4)

6 Jumper (8)

10 Light fog (4)

11 Exploited (4)

Yesterday’s answerSUDOKUSUDOKU

Getting Started

Each sudoku puzzle is a 9 by 9 grid of horizontal and verticalrows, evenly separated into 9 squares with 9 spaces each.Instead of word clues, each puzzle’s solution is determinedby the pattern of the numbers already filled in you. Yousolve the puzzle by filling in the missing digits so that, whencompleted, each row and each square will have all thenumber from 1 to 9; each number will appear in exactlynine spaces within each puzzle.

People enjoy throwing tomatoes to each other during the "VI TomatinaColombiana" festival. Source: Metro.co.uk

Yesterday’s solution

Say what?

Here are some UltraQuick Crosswords.Can you do all threein five minutes? (II)

PHOTO OF THE DAY

SPORTS LALALALALATESTTESTTESTTESTTEST

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

QQQQQUOUOUOUOUOTTTTTABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QUOUOUOUOUOTETETETETEThe President doesn't sit in court to imprison

people. There are institutions set up to do that...Ifthere are areas where things are not being done

right, journalists should follow up.–– Mr. Labaran Maku, Minister of Informmation,reacting to Transparency International's poor

ranking of Nigeria on its corruption index

NOTE: To be read to Donnell byhis Mum; a few hours after he hasarrived Nigeria and shortly beforebedtime; to the accompaniment ofTupac Shakur’s song of a similartitle…..

Dear Donnell,

Welcome to your cot. It wasthe best we could findaround, and welcome to

Nigeria—we are the Giant of Africa!You are probably wondering at thispoint why mum is reading thisletter to you with the aid of a candlein a dimly lit room….

I can explain: it is raining outthere and I am unable to fetch us thenight’s gasoline because of what theweather man called ‘inclementweather’. Coming from Heavenwhere it is all bright lights; andwhere angels serenade you beforebedtime and shortly before you wakeup, in those cadence laden celestialvoices, you could be forgiven forwondering if you have arrived thewrong country.

No, you haven’t. At about thesame time you found your way toour home, your peers landed inSomalia, Afghanistan, Iraq andLiberia. So, it could have been worse,you see. You may want to replacethose clasped fists and furrowed browwith a glint in your eyes at this point.Thank You, baby!

Several years ago when I arrivedNigeria in the ‘80s, I did also feel likeI had ended up in the wrong country.But over the years, I have had toquit expecting my country to changeovernight. I had since discarded thegarb of self-pity. That, my little boy,should be the spirit you carry withyou as you learn the ropes in life.

So, once the rain simmers , Iwould scurry to the petrol stationand fetch us a week’s worth ofgasoline. I say ‘a week’, because wewill ration the petrol to the very lastdrop. Yes, you heard that right! (myapologies for raising my voice there).The Generator will come on at 7pmevery night and go off at 2am— oncewe are certain that the mosquitoeshave fled to other victims in the

your mortal bodies! Your futurebegins today. Several years ago, Iand my generation were also labeledthe “Leaders of tomorrow”. Seewhere that has brought us!

That appellation remains, in myview, a curse. Those who called us“The Leaders of tomorrow” are stillholding onto leadership positionswith the last drops of their blood, asour own future erodes before oureyes.

Actually, my Generationpreferred to play football on thestreets or dirt pitches on polling dayswhile politicians stuffed fake ballotpapers into ballot boxes. On electiondays, we also slouched on the sofas inour living rooms, watching the latestMovies or catching Live Footballaction, while our futures werecollectively compromised and seizedby those who referred to us as the“Leaders of tomorrow”.

We were blessed with some of themost enthralling communicationgadgets you could find in the shopsat the time—Iphones, Blackberrys,Ipads and a host of other handheldwonders, but we never fully utilizedthe powers innate in these gadgetsto make society a better place. Oneof our greatest undoing.

Some members of our generationalso aided the political class insnatching ballot boxes into thebushes, ‘commando-style’, andinflating election figures in favourof a certain political party big wig,subject to a miserly fee. It was anerror of Judgment that cost mygeneration dearly—it was an errorof Judgment that has ensured thatall public utilities have gonecomatose and infrastructuralimprovements exist only in therealms of our imaginations. It was agrave error of judgment that stillrankles to this day.

So, gird your loins and getpolitically active pretty quickly.And talking about loins, Mum hatessagging trousers, and so do I. Andnot just because we think there is areason why God avails everyone ofsome buttocks (to keep their pair oftrousers in place), we also consider itindecent to allow everyone glean thecolour of your briefs from a mile. If

Chelsea midfielder John ObiMikel was yesterdaysuspended for three

matches and fined £60 000 (74320 euros) for clashing withmatch officials following thecontroversial 3-2 defeat toManchester United.

Mikel was reported to havestormed into the officials'dressing room at StamfordBridge after the Premier Leaguematch in October followingaccusations that referee MarkClattenburg had racially abusedthe Chelsea midfielder.

But the FA decided there was"no case to answer" over theallegation Clattenburg said "shutup you monkey" to Mikel and theofficial was clear of all charges.

Mikel had admitted usingthreatening and/or abusiveand/or insulting words and/orbehaviour in the official'schanging room at the end of thegame at Stamford Bridge onOctober 28, said the FootballAssociation.

"Chelsea's John Obi Mikel hasbeen given a three-matchsuspension to begin withimmediate effect and fined £60000 following an IndependentRegulatory Commissionhearing today," said an FAstatement.

"The RegulatoryCommission's independentchairman Christopher QuinlanQC emphasised that theIndependent RegulatoryCommission accepted, as did TheFA, that at the time hethreatened the referee theplayer genuinely believed thatthe referee had racially abusedhim.

"But for that factor thesuspension would have beensignificantly longer.Subsequently The FAinvestigated the allegation thatthe referee racially abused theplayer and found that there wasnot a case for him to answer."

Mikel's suspension will takeeffect immediately, ruling theNigeria international out ofdomestic duty until December26.

The 25-year-old, who signeda new five-year contract withChelsea on Wednesday, will missSaturday's trip to Sunderland,but will be available when hisclub compete in the Club WorldCup in Japan next week.

www.peoplesdaily-online.com

. . . putting the people first

neighborhood and the heat levelshave become bearable.

And we are doing this just foryou; with all the love in our hearts.Before you found your way into ourhome, I was in the annoying habitof pleading with Mum on mostnights to switch off the Generatorshortly after the curtains had beendrawn on her favourite late eveningsoap—‘Tinsel’ and the BBA dailyhighlights.

And ‘No’, we are not mean. Onthe contrary, we mean well for you.I have acquired an inverter whichshould store power for your delightduring the day until we return fromour places of work to get theGenerator rolling at 7pm. Andduring weekends, because Daddyloves Football (and Mum isbeginning to love football too,although she supports a rivalteam—Chelsea), the Generatorcomes on earlier—at 2pm, and keepsbuzzing till 2am.

As you grow older, we maytweak the rules a bit. The Generatormay come on at 4pm on weekdays,just so you can catch the latest on‘Cartoon Network’ or ‘Disney’. Butno more!

While you are at school, pleasedo not let your teachers regale youand your friends with lines like: “Youare the Leaders of tomorrow”. Abhorbeing so tagged with every fiber in

A letter to my unborn child

Mikel handedthree-matchban

you are interested in taking backyour country, you have to look andact the part from the first day.‘Responsibility’ should be yourwatchword.

Avoid candidates who appearduring electioneering campaigns,wearing their ‘shoeless status’, like abadge of honour. Reject acronymslike NEEDS, SEEDS and UBE. Everypolitician who arrives your door-stepwith a sack load of these acronymsand buzzwords like ‘Fresh Air’ and‘Transformation’ and without shoesto boot; was never prepared for officein the first place. Visionary leadersdo not bore the electorate with a pot-pourri of mantra and buzzwords anddo not eat Cassava bread either, trustme.

You are allowed occasional visitsto the Cinema and the Malls duringyour pre-teen and teen years , butplease, reeling out the names ofevery movie and their creepy storylines was not why God brought youto Nigeria. Watch and listen to theNews, engage your peers in civicdiscourses and seek out creativeways to make your country a betterplace.

Like I wrote earlier, you haven’tarrived the wrong country. Not yet.But if you dwell on the mistakes yourMum’s generation and I indulged in,the ‘wrong country’ may well beyour lot. Your chants of ‘Aluta’ shouldnot end within the precincts of theUniversity. You should be able tobring those slogans and deeds fromthe Campus to bear on the politicallandscape.

And as much as I recommendthat you watch Football (because itis the beautiful game and Daddyloves football), remember that life isworth more than the round leathergame. Draw life and manageriallessons from every game you watch.It is a ready excuse I flaunt aroundwhen quizzed on why I am such aFootie addict.

Now, Goodnight Donnell, and dohave a sound sleep. And, while I prayyou sleep like a baby, I urge that yougrow up quickly enough becauseyour Nation needs you—and fast!

Yours Sincerely,Big Daddy.

Jude Egbas

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Published by Peoples Media Limited, 35, Ajose Adeogun Street, 1st Floor Peace Park Plaza, Utako,Abuja. Kano office: Plot 3, Zaria Road, Opposite Kano State House of Assembly. Lagos Office:No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos. Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 803 606 3308.e-mail: contact@peoplesdaily-online.com; pmlnewsdesk@gmail.com ISSN: 2141– 6141

Jude Egbas is one of those youngNigerians who is very passionateabout galvanizing the minds of otheryoung Nigerians to action throughhis timely, satirical and wittyarticles.

One of his most memorablepieces ‘Everybody Loves Abati’,comically captures Reuben Abatiplaying ‘protector’ to PresidentJonathan, and how he graduallylosses relevance after a morevicious ‘watch dog’ is hired.

Trained as a Brand andCommunications Expert, Egbaswork has enjoyed great appeal inthe online media. He was a regularcontributor for Sahara Reportersfor about 3 years, and is currentlythe managing Editor of

ekekee.com: one of Nigeria’sfastest growing blogs tailoredtowards giving younger people a

platform to air their views onsubjects relevant to the growth ofNigeria.

This week, he tells the story ofa father who sends a letter to hisunborn child. Urging the child notto make the same judgment errorshis parent’s generation made, hecompletes the letter by promptingthe child to grow up quicklybecause Nigeria needs him. Thisperhaps is a call for all Nigerianyouths.

It is with pleasure that Iintroduce another young personMr. Jude Egbas, following in thefootsteps of Yemi Adamolekun,Auwal S. Anwar, Elnathan John,Japheth Omojuwa, ZainabUsman, and Ogunyemi Bukola - allyouths that give me hope that futuregenerations will not make themistakes of previous generations.

YOUNG VOICESNNNNNASIR EL-RASIR EL-RASIR EL-RASIR EL-RASIR EL-RUFUFUFUFUFAIAIAIAIAI

ON FRIDON FRIDON FRIDON FRIDON FRIDAAAAAYYYYY

elrufai@aol.com

introduced by

By Jude Egbas