Vol. 8 No. 8 Tuesday, April 3, 2012 Jimadal Ula 12, 1433 AH N150

WWW.PEOPLESDAILY-ONLINE.COM

PAGE 3

Again, EFCC bungles trial ascourt frees Erastus Akingbola

I N S I D E

Kogi senatorsvow to exposeex-Gov Idris

3 die infresh Josviolence

Power equipmentabandoned inports since Sept2011

Edo: Gunmenabduct RepsMinority Whip’sfather

NFF notautonomous,says minister

>>PAGE 4 >>PAGE 6 >>PAGE 6 >>PAGE 41>>PAGE 3

Jonathan under fireover church ‘gift’

R-L: Yobe state Deputy Governor, Engineer Abubakar D. Ali, and Minister of State for Health, Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate,during the minister's visit to the Government House, yesterday in Damaturu.

Contd on Page 2

Exorbitantair fares:Reps threatenBA, othersBy Lawrence Olaoye

The House of Representatives yesterdaythreatened to sanction British Airways(BA), Lufthansa, Air France/KLM, Virgin

Atlantic, Delta Airlines and other internationalairlines operating in the country, unless they reducetheir air fares.

This is coming as the government disclosed thatthe report of the negotiation on the review of the airfares between Nigeria and British authorities wouldbe concluded by middle of the year.

Although the BA Country Director, Kola

From Francis Iwuchukwu, Lagos

A Lagos based non-governmentalorganisation (NGO), Socio-EconomicRights and Accountability Project, (SERAP)

yesterday, petitioned the Chairman of the Economicand Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr.Ibrahim Lamorde, to begin investigation into theallegations that Abuja-based Italian constructioncompany, Gitto Construzioni Generali NigeriaLimited (GCG) gave to President Goodluck Jonathan

Contd on Page 2

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSNews 2-11

Editorial 12

Op.Ed 13

Letters 14

Opinion 15

Metro 16-17

Business 19-22

S/Exchange 23

S/Report 24

Defence 28

Agriculture 29

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PAGE 2 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Exorbitant air fares: Reps threaten BA, otherContd from Page 1

Gunmen kill SSS officer in MaiduguriFrom Mustapha Isa Kwaru,Maiduguri

Jonathan under fire over church ‘gift’Contd from Page 1

as ‘gift’, a 2,500-seat churchbuilding in Otuoke, his village inBayelsa state.

In a petition signed by SERAP’sExecutive Director, AdetokunboMumuni, the group said, “We areseriously concerned that given thehuge sum of money involved andthe timing of the church building‘gift’, the acts may amount to a bribeto the government by aconstruction company that hassought and obtained huge contractsfrom the federal government.

“Procurement and investmentagreements corrupted by this kindof ‘gift’ invariably lead to increasedcosts not only in higher prices butalso in needlessly expanded andultimately inefficient projects.

“Both the acts of giving andaccepting the disguised bribeundermine the institutions andvalues of democracy, ethical valuesand justice, and jeopardizessustainable development and therule of law.

“The acts also hurt thegovernment and ordinaryNigerians who may suffer as aresult of bad execution of projectsby GCG.”

SERAP urged the commission toexert its mandate, power, andresources to ensure that theallegations were fully andeffectively investigated, thefindings of the investigationpublished and the company andother suspected perpetrators heldliable.

In its recent editorial commenton the matter, ThisDay said, "... itis patently inappropriate forPresident Jonathan to haveaccepted the Greek Gift andproceeded to make a light show ofit".

It noted that: "Section 6 of theCode of Conduct for Public officersembodied in the First Schedule ofthe 1999 Constitution and the Codeof Conduct and Tribunal Act (CAPC15) Laws of the Federation ofNigeria, 2004, indeed frown at

what the president did. The Actstates: "A public officer shall not askfor or accept any property orbenefits of any kind for himself orany other person on account ofanything done or omitted to be doneby him in the discharge of his duties.For the purposes of subsection (1) ofthis subsection, the receipt by apublic officer of any gifts or benefitsfrom commercial firms, businessenterprises or persons who haveCONTRACTS (emphasis ours) withthe Government shall be presumedto have been received incontravention…unless thecontrary is proved.”

The controversial gift came tolight when President Jonathancommissioned the church afortnight ago and called on theChristian community to continueto pray for the leadership of thecountry via a press statementissued by Reuben Abati, SpecialAdviser (Media & Publicity) to thePresident, on Sunday, March 18,2012.

The President who made theappeal while performing theGround-Breaking ceremony of his2,500-seat capacity St. Stephen’sAnglican Church, Otuoke,Bayelsa state hoped it would becompleted by mid-2015.

President Jonathan saidthat he did not spend hispersonal money in building thechurch in his village andthanked all his “friends” whocontributed towards thebuilding.

The Anglican Bishop of OgbiaDiocese, Rt. Rev. James Oruwori,in his sermon, commendedPresident Jonathan and hisfamily for building a house ofprayer for the Lord, noting that“wise men build houses ofprayer.”

“He also declared that thedetractors of this administrationwould always fail because thechurch is always praying”, thestatement by Abati quoted BishopOruwori.

Olayinka was evasive when askedto explain the rationale for the highcharges Nigerian passengers aremade to pay in comparison withtheir counterparts in other Africancountries, especially Ghana, theHouse Committee on Aviationchaired by Nkiruka Onyejeocha,currently investigating thediscriminatory charges,threatened to send the companyparking should it insist on chargingthe high fares.

Lawmakers and the DirectorGeneral of the Nigerian CivilAviation Authorities (NCAA), Dr.Harold Demuren, expresseddismay over the hidden taxes(including $508 fuel surcharge)and discriminatory chargestotalling $969.24 imposed onNigerians by BA, as well as violationof extant laws.

Onyejeocha, faced with thereluctance of the BA official to makeconcession said, “You must reduceyour fares; if you cannot reduceyour fares, we will impose sanctionsbecause Nigerians are suffering andyou are not treating us well. We areinterested in price reduction, if youare not going to do that tell us andwe will impose sanctions, we are notinterested in your story of demandand supply”.

She explained that the publichearing was aimed at compellingNCAA and other relevant agencies,including airline operators, toensure a reduction of fares chargedon customers, and also compelinternational airline operators to

improve their services and adherestrictly to international bestpractices.

She said, “Nigeria is a freemarket economy but the arbitraryair fare charges in Nigeria, youmust admit is one of the highestwithin the West African sub-region.Within the last few months, airlinesflying international and domesticroutes have increased their farestime without number and in mostcases, without prior and adequatenotice to travellers. We as a nationmust curb and resist this trend.

“These arbitrary air fares areexploitative, particularly asNigeria’s aviation fuel is one of thecheapest in the market as againstwhat is obtainable in countries likeChina, India, Ghana, United Statesof America, among others. We havediscovered that Nigerians payhigher to travel to places likeEurope and America, while othercountries attract cheaper fareseven when the distances from thesecountries are farther than Nigeria.

“This exploitation must not beallowed to continue, moreimportantly as Nigeria is one of themost lucrative routes in the worldwith a minimum of over 1,000passengers coming in and out on dailybasis” , she stressed.

President of the Association ofTravel Agencies in Nigeria, AminuAgowa, who confirmed thediscriminatory charges imposed onNigerians, disclosed that travellingtickets worth over $1 billion wereraked in by airlines last year withoutcorresponding profits to the 600

licenced travel agents.Agowa explained that the hidden

taxes constitute 50 percent of the totalcharges imposed on travellers, addingthat most of the tickets displayed bythe foreign airlines through theinternet were not attractive. Heequally lamented that foreignairlines do not pay commission toagents requiring them to furtherrequest for service charge from theirclients.

The NCAA director general, in hiscontribution, accused the travelagents of also indulging in sharppractices.

NCAA in its computation titled‘Regional imbalance from globaldistribution system - Amadeus’showed $4,239.27 fare variance onfirst class flight fare charged betweenGhana and Nigeria; $1,055.22 farevariance on business/club classbetween Ghana and Nigeria; $92.02fare variance on premium economybetween Ghana and Nigeria, whileeconomy class was $233.13 lowerthan fare charged in Nigeria.

Demuren said: “We have done thestudy and we have all the figures; wehave the details. We have been onthis for the past two years and thatevery Nigerian that has been rippedoff must be paid back. I want to begthe House of Representatives to takeon the travel agents because they arethe technically involved. They willtell you the tickets are not available;of course it is the normal practice inbusiness, but it’s unfair”.

He added: “Specifically, bothairlines (British Airways andVirgin Atlantic) colluded to fix the

passenger fuel surcharge in amanner that eliminated orsuppressed choice and competitionand the Nigerian public are thevictims of this conduct while bothairlines reaped huge profits fromtheir misconduct. In addition, bothairlines deceived Nigerians andused unfair methods in procuringthese huge revenues in theirbusinesses.

“For these violations, theNCAA imposed monetarypenalties and a decision thatpassengers who were exploitedmust be compensated. Withrespect to NCAA’s factualallegations and findings that bothairlines engaged in deception,collusion (price fixing) and unfairmethods of competitions, the panelfound that all the allegations weresufficiently established byoverwhelming evidence...”

According to him, in 2008,over 17,769 cases were handledby NCAA Consumer Protectionofficer in 2008; 23,768 casesreported and handled in 2009and progressively increase in2010 and 2011 out of which98,354 complainants have beencompensated.

While responding to theallegations, Mr. Olayinka, whofailed to provide answers to all thequestions posed by the lawmakers,insisted that he could not provideanswers in breach of European Anti-Trust Regulation.

Olayinka identified demandand supply, competition and seasonas major determinants of BA fares.

Gunmen suspected to bemembers of Boko Haramyesterday shot dead an

officer of the State Security Ser-vice (SSS) at a barber's shop inMaiduguri, the Borno state capi-tal, a senior official in the ser-vice disclosed.

The security source toldnewsmen that: "Yes, he waskilled today (yesterday). Andthat is all I can tell you for now,"Ahmed Abdulhamid, the statedirector of the SSS in Borno, saidon the phone without givingdetails.

Some security sources saidthe SSS agent was attached tothe joint military task force

(JTF) deployed to fight the BokoHaram insurgency.

Residents of Bayan area ofMaiduguri, where the shootingtook place said the officer washaving a haircut when twogunmen stepped into the shopand shot him dead before flee-ing.

Gunmen shot dead a localgovernment official at his

house in in the same area inMaiduguri on Sunday. Thegunmen fled with his car andremained at large.

An attempt to hold indirecttalks between the group andthe government last monthcollapsed, with the mediator,Dr. Ibrahim Datti Ahmad, pull-ing out over leaks to the media.

PAGE 3PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Again, EFCC bungles ascourt frees AkingbolaFrom Francis Iwuchukwu, Lagos

In another case of legal blunderby the anti-graft agency,Justice Charles Archibong of a

Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi,Lagos, yesterday dischargedformer Managing Director andChief Executive Officer (CEO) ofIntercontinental Bank Plc (nowAccess bank), Dr. ErastusAkingbola of the amended 26-count charges preferred againsthim by the Economic andFinancial Crimes Commission(EFCC) over financialimpropriety.

Apart from discharging him,Justice Archibong dismissed thecharges and barred theprosecution from appearing beforethe court or another judge of theFederal High court over thematter on what the court termedserious and professionalincompetence of the prosecutionteam made up of five SeniorAdvocates of Nigeria (SAN).

The judge directed theAttorney General of theFederation (AGF) and Minister ofJustice, Mohammed Adoke (SAN)to disband,sack and debrief the

present prosecution team,comprising of five SANs and theirrespective firms from handling thematter for serious abuse of courtprocess and incompetence in theirprosecution of the charges againstAkingbola.

The court held that theprosecution team is “a drain in thepublic purse, a fact the AGF shouldbe mindful of now if he was notbefore”.

“This prosecution team havechosen to pursue a campaign toscandalise the court, whichamounts to serious and professionalincompetence in the prosecutionof the accused.

“This prosecution team or anypart of it shall not be given furtheraudience in this court in relationto the charges against the accusedeither before this presiding judgeor any other judge of the FederalHigh Court, for the reason I havegiven in the foregoing.

It would be recalled that lastweek, Justice Abubakar Umar ofan Abuja High Court also struckout a suit filed by EFCC againstthree persons named in theHalliburton bribery scandal forlack of diligent prosecution.

The EFCC arraigned a formerPermanent Secretary in the Officeof the Head of Service, AlhajiIbrahim Aliyu, retired AVMAbdullahi Bello and MohammedBakari of the Urban Shelter Ltd.,on a nine-count charge borderingon corruption and bribery.

They were alleged to have usedtheir companies; IntercellularNigeria Ltd., Sherwood PetroleumLtd and Tri-Star Investment Ltd.to benefit from a $7.5 millionHalliburton bribe.

Justice Umar struck out thesuit after the EFCC Counsel, MsKauna Pindam, prayed the courtto grant the commission anotheradjournment to enable it to arraignthe accused persons.

Umar refused to grant theadjournment but reminded theEFCC of an order he gave onJanuary 23 that the commissionshould be ready to arraign thethree suspects named in the 180million dollars Halliburton briberyscandal unfailingly.

“I gave the long adjournmentto allow the EFCC to interface withits U.S. sister agency in utilisingsecurity information you said yougot.

“I warned the EFCC that uponits failure to arraign the accusedtoday, I will strike out the case andwrite to the Minister of Justice tolodge a complaint about theattitude of the commission.

“I remember I also warned theEFCC and the accused counsel toadhere to the specific details of theorder or suffer certain penalties fornot following the instructions.’’

Umar warned the EFCC not toexpose the judiciary to ridicule.

“I have checked my records andin the past one year, since February17, 2011 when I granted leave tothe prosecution to arraign theaccused; they have not done so.

“It has been over a year nowand still the EFCC is coming upwith excuses; the EFCC shouldknow that if it is not ready toprosecute and bring cases toconclusion, it should not apply forleave of court to arraign anybody.

“The EFCC should know that Iam answerable to the NationalJudicial Council and what will Isay is the reason why this case hasbeen at arraignment stage for thepast one year?

“I therefore strike out the suitfor want of diligent prosecution.’’

From Edwin Olofu, Kano

Five persons including twomembers of the Boko Harammilitants and two women

were killed in separate gun attacksin the Kano state capital yesterday.

Two women were killed by themembers of the joint military taskforce in Kano. The women, whoseidentities could not be ascertainedas at press time, were allegedly hit

by stray bullets at the Panshekaraarea of the city when somegunmen attempted to attack a JTFcheckpoint.

But eyewitness account saidthe two women were killed bytrigger- happy soldiers who openedfire on a car that refused to stop atthe Panshekara roundabout’s JTF

checkpoint.Peoples Daily equally gathered

that in another attack carried outin Sheka, a remote part of the city,two members of Boko Haram sectwere killed by their colleagues,apparently to avoid exposing them.

The dead Boko Haram memberswere arrested by members of the

public in Sheka and sensing thatthey were about to be handed overto the police, their colleagues stormedthe area on a motorcycle and killedthem on the spot.

Spokesman for JTF, andPublic Relations Officers for 3Brigade, Kano, Lt Ikedichi Iwehaconfirmed the incidents at Sheka

but denied that soldiers killed thewomen.

“Residents of Sheka thismorning arrested two membersof the Islamic sect but in theirattempt to alert the police over thearrest, some members of the sectstormed the area on motorbikeand shot the two arrestedmembers to death before fleeingthe scene to an unknowndestination.

5 killed in separate attacks in Kano

By Ali Alkali

Senators from Kogi state,Senator Smart Adeyemi(PDP Kogi West) and Senator

Nurudeen Abatemi-Usman (PDPKogi Central) have yesterdaythreatened to take formergovernor of Kogi state, AlhajiIbrahim Idris to the cleaners if he,again, dares to claim credit forwhat he did not do.

The senators were angry overIdris’ claim in an interview withNigerian Tribune newspaper onSunday that he was instrumentalto their elections to the NationalAssembly.

Addressing a press conferenceat the National Assembly todebunk Idris’ claim, the Senatorssaid “the blanket declaration byIbrahim Idris that he wasinstrumental to the elections ofmembers the National Assemblyfrom Kogi state was a blatant lie.”

According to Adeyemi, “forthose of us who went through therigours and the pains of contestingprimary elections and generalelections, we take serious objection

to that statement from AlhajiIbrahim Idris. In the first instance,what he said was not true. To putit bluntly, he lied.”

One after the other, the twosenators narrated how the formergovernor did everything he couldto scuttle their ambitions to runfor the Senate.

Adeyemi said, “I contested theprimary election, and indeed thegeneral election, with one of his ablelieutenants, former commissionerof local government in Kogi state,TJ Faniyi; and you all know therelationship between the chiefexecutive and whoever presidesover local government ministry.They used the resources of the stateto challenge us. Alhaji IbrahimIdris, along with his cohorts, madeefforts to pressurize the nationalsecretariat of the PDP to conduct myprimary election in Lokoja, the statecapital, contrary to the regulationsthat all senatorial elections must beconducted at the senatorialheadquarters. Thank God that mypeople were behind me. My electionwas annulled twice until the thirdone that I was able to win”.

On his part, Senator Abatemi-Usman said, “much as we do notwant to join issues with AlhajiIbrahim Idris because he is thefather of one of us and one of ourcolleagues, Muhammed Idris whois a member of the House ofRepresentatives, keeping mutewill go on record as agreeing withwhat he said.

“Clearly, Muhammed Idriscould not have run or won thatelection without the help from hisfather, which is natural. But toextrapolate that help for his childto cover all of us, is somethingdifferent. I seat before you to sayvery clearly that on Friday lastweek, March 30th 2012, theSupreme Court of Nigeria finallydischarged with the last caseagainst me instituted by IbrahimIdris through his sponsoredchallenger of mine,” said Abatemi.

The senators challenged theformer governor to tell Nigerianswho, in the National Assembly,apart from his son, he has helped.“The third Senator is from ANPP,who has he helped?”

The Senators warned that ifIdris wants media war they areequally ready for the task, saying,“he should not push us to remindthe people of Kogi state themaladministration and thefinancial misappropriation thattook place in the last nine years inKogi state under Alhaji IbrahimIdris.

“If he wants media war, we areready for him. We will take him tothe cleaners and the court of publicopinion”, they said.

Senators threaten warwith ex-Governor Idris

L-R: Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former Oyo state governor, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, formerSecretary to Oyo state government, Chief Layiwola Olakojo, and wife of Senator Ladoja, Alhaja MutiatLadoja, during a reconciliatory parley at Ladoja’s residence, yesterday in Ibadan. Photo: NAN

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 4

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday began a week-long break from hisusual work routine.

The President will howeverremain in Abuja during theperiod and continue to deal withall essential affairs of state.

According to the President’sspokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, hewill return to his regular officeroutine after the Easter holidays.

Jonathangoes on leave

had the requisite expertise,experience and qualificationmore than any other candidate,to lead the topmost globalfinancial institution.

onathan also called fortransparency in the entireelectoral process. “As a pre-eminent developmentinstitution, the World Bank iswell-positioned to play animportant role in partneringwith developing countries topromote growth, tacklepoverty and uplift livingstandards.

Accordingly, the leadershipof the institution matters

Jonathan steps up support forOkonjo-Iweala’s World Bank bidBy Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

L-R: ASUUPresident,ProfessorUkachukwuAwuzie, Vice-Chancellor,Nasarawa StateUniversity,ProfessorShamsudeenAmali, andChairman, NeedsAssessmentCommittee ofNigerian PublicUniversities andExecutiveSecretary,Education TrustFund, ETF,ProfessorMahmoodYakubu, duringthe committeevisit to theuniversity, atweekend in Lafia,Nasarawa state.

greatly and must be chosenwith utmost care.

It matters even more in acomplex, increasingly inter-connected global environmentcharacterised by volatility anduncertainty.

It is for this reason that thereis a resounding call to ensure anopen, transparent and merit-based process in the election ofthe World Bank President,which our country aligns with,and which has been promisedby the G-20 countries as well asthe World Bank’s DevelopmentCommittee,” a statementsigned by Presidential

spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abatisaid.

President Jonathan statedfurther that: “I am firmlyconvinced that Dr. NgoziOkonjo-Iweala’s leadership willbe beneficial, both to the WorldBank and to its principalstakeholders.

I also believe that it wouldbe immensely beneficial toAfrica and the developing worldat large. Nigeria urges that hercandidacy receives fairconsideration in an open,transparent and merit-basedprocess, which should beembraced by all stakeholders.”

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

As the race for the positionof World Bank presidencyheats up with Nigeria’s

Minister of Finance, Dr. NgoziOkonjo- Iweala among the topcontenders, President GoodluckJonathan yesterday broke hissilence and declared thecountry’s support for theHarvard-trained economist.

The President whilethanking other African Heads ofState and Ministers of Financeas well as regional groups forsupporting Okonjo-Iweala’snomination, argued that she

The Senate has revealed thatit is looking into thedesirability and legality or

otherwise of plea bargain laws aspart of its total legal sector reformin conjunction with the NigerianBar Association, NBA.

Senate President David Markmade this known yesterday whileopening a one-day public hearingon ‘The Plight of Persons AwaitingTrial in Nigeria Prisons’ organizedby Senate Joint Committee OnJudiciary, Human rights andLegal Matters; Interior; and PoliceAffairs.

Represented by the SenateLeader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba (PDP Cross River) Mark saidthe Senate is worried that eventhough the EFCC Act hasprovisions for plea bargain, “thepublic perception is that pleabargain has been used not to servethe end of justice but more to protectthe big men in our midst who havecommitted crimes far moreheinous than those awaiting trialsin our prisons.”

Senate President David Marksaid he was aware that “Section180, sub section 1, of the CriminalProcedure Act provides forsituations where you have anumber of charges, and somebodyhad been convicted for the mostserious of these charges for the othercharges to be dropped.

“Those who are for plea bargainsay that plea bargain has its originin that provision. Those who areagainst say the same criminalprocedure provides that youcannot compound felonies; andthat plea bargain amounts tocompounding felonies. But in theEFCC act, there is very clearprovision for plea bargain.

“But the issue is not whetherplea bargain is desirable at this timewhen we are looking for creativeways to reduce the number ofinmates awaiting trials in ourprisons. I think the issue is how pleabargain has been used. Had it beenused to meet the ends of justice?How come it is only the high andthe mighty in the society who arebeneficiaries of plea bargain? “heasked.

Mark assured the nation thatas part of the creativity inaddressing the short comings ofauthorities in justice sector reformthey will come with “guide linesthat will address the issue of pleabargain.”

Plea bargain lawsonly favour therich, says SenateBy Ali Alkali

Wamakko swears in 21 commissioners, 14 SAs

3 killed as festival turns bloody in Jos

Annual festival of Miangopeople in Bassa localgovernment area of

Plateau state yesterday turnedbloody claiming at least threepersons and a police station andmagistrate court were setablaze.

Our correspondent gatheredthat hundreds of the villagerswent wild damaging cars andother valuable properties.

According to an eyewitness,trouble started at Miangovillage last Sunday eveningwhen two youths carrying

knives clashed at the annualcelebration which later resultedfighting among themselves.

The eye witness furtherdisclosed that the securitypersonnel drafted to keep vigilat the venue of the festivalcelebration arrested some of theyouths which triggered aconfrontation between policeand the youths.

The youths of the village whocame out in their large numberto prevent the arrest of theircolleagues caused the dead of thethree persons.

The state Police PublicRelations Officer (PPRO), ASP

Samuel Dabai said usually thepeople had an annual festivalwhich started on Friday andended on Sunday but towardsthe end of the festival a fightensued between youths and thepolicemen drafted to the area toensured peaceful celebrationarrested them and took them toa nearby police outpost.

According to the youthsinvaded the police station andreleased the two personsarrested and then set ablaze thepolice station and a courtassuring that investigation isgoing on to fish out those behindthe act.

From Nankpah Bwakan, Jos

From Sadeeq Aliyu, Sokoto

Governor AliyuMagatakarda Wamakkoof Sokoto state has

yesterday sworn in 21commissioners and 14 SpecialAdvisers with a call to the newappointees not to run away from

their people in the grass root.Wamakko said he expects the

commissioners and specialadvisers to ensure fullinteraction with theirconstituencies to enablegovernment justify theconfidence people have in them.He also advised them to have

harmonious workingrelationship with theirpermanent secretaries and allcivil servants they would havethe honour to work with.

Seventeen of thecommissioners had served in thefirst tenure of GovernorWamakko and were reappointed

along with four other new oneswhich included the formerDirector General of NigeriaBroadcasting Corporation AlhajiNasiru Danladi Bako who wasassigned to head informationministry.

The governor explained thatit was the first time in the historyof the state that entire membersof state executive council whoserved in different dispensationswere allowed to serve again,saying that “They serveddiligently and selflessly to deserveour confidence”.

He added that if any of theappointees was not deeplyattached to the grass roots, “wewould have witnessed uproarsagainst him or her”. Accordinghim, the considerable successeshis administration recorded werefacilitated by the commissioners‘sacrifices and candid advice inmatters of governance.

Governor Wamakko howeverurged them to rededicatethemselves to the service of theirdear state, stressing thatchallenges ahead of them arebeyond simple estimation.

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 6

Edo: Gunmen abduct RepsMinority Whip’s father

Unknown gunmensuspected to be kidnappersyesterday morning

abducted the father of the MinorityWhip in the House ofRepresentatives, Pa SamsonImariagbe.

Eyewitnesses said the gunmen

had unfettered access to theresidence of the 75- year-old atUrhokuo-osa Village, near Ehor,the administrative headquartersof Uhunmwonde local governmentCouncil, and whisked him intotheir operational van.

In a telephone interview withHon. Samson Osagie whoconfirmed his father's abduction,

From Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin said attempts to reach his fatherproved abortive, as his GSM phonewas switch off. He could notconfirm if any bounty has beenplaced on the victim's head.

Imariagbe's abduction iscoming months after theseptuagenarian alongside familymembers, were involved in a fatalroad accident which claimed the

life of his father-in-law, leavingseveral others injured whilereturning from Abuja where theywent to grace the swearing-inceremony of Hon. Samson Osagie.

The Edo state command PolicePublic Relations Officer, PPRO, MrEtim Bassey said, he has not beenofficially briefed about the allegedabduction.

President and ChiefExecutive officer of DangoteGroup, Aliko Dangote has

helped to ameliorate the sufferingsof victims of ammunition dumpexplosion in Congo with a donationof $500,000 (about N80 million).

Dangote announced thedonation while on a condolencevisit to the President of Republic ofCongo Denis Sassou-Nguesso.

Speaking at the President'soffice in Brazzaville, Dangote saidthe visit was to commiserate withthe President and people of Republic

of Congo on the ammunition dumpexplosion that killed over 200people.

A series of explosions at anammunition depot on March 4killed 200 people and woundedabout 2,000 more in Brazzaville,the capital of Republic of Congo.

The explosions occurredshortly when a fire at the depot setoff a cache of tank shells.

He said Dangote Group felt thepains and sufferings of the victimsof the explosion, adding that thedonation was a gesture towardsameliorating the plight of theaffected people.

By Aminu Imam He prayed that such disasterwould not occur again in Congo.

According to him, the groupidentifies with the Republic of Congowhich informed its decision to site acement plant in the country.

Responding, the President ofCongo, Denis Sassou-Nguessoexpressed appreciation for thedonation saying that the gestureis a true reflection of DangoteGroup's pan-African stance.Thanking Dangote for thedonation, he said that Africa needspeople like who have humansympathy and responds quickly toreduce the impact of disasters.

The Congolese President statedthat government has startedreconstruction of houses affected inthe explosion, adding that "thiscontribution will go a long way inbuilding new houses for thevictims". He said that he is deeplytouched by the gesture.

The President also thankedAliko Dangote for the group'sprojects in the country.

Following the condolence visit,the minister of State in theMinistry of industrialDevelopment and Private SectorPromotion, Rodolphe Adada witha nine man entourage visited

Dangote donates N80m to Congo-Brazaville’s explosion victimsDangote Cement's Ibese andObajana plants in Nigeria.

Speaking after the fact findingvisit, Rodolphe described AlikoDangote as a sure partner inindustrial development as well as jobcreation in Congo. According to him,"It is a privilege for Congo to be partof the 14 countries where DangoteGroup is building cement plants. Weare very ready to facilitate theestablishment of the DangoteCement plant in our country."

He added that 400 hectares ofland has been allocated to thecompany and the ground breakingceremony will soon take place.

A member of NigerianInstitute of Electrical andElectronic Engineers

(NIEEE), Mr. Ajibade Hafeez, hasadvised the Federal Governmentto speed up the clearance ofabandoned power equipment atsea ports.

Hafeez, a former general-secretary of the association, gavethe advice in a telephone interviewwith the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Lagos yesterday.

He said that the equipment,which were meant for the National

Integrated Power Projects (NIPP),had been at the ports since October,2011.

He said that government'sefforts to ensure stable power supplymight not yield the desired fruits ifthe equipment were allowed to rotaway at the ports.

According to him, the delay inclearing the equipment is a majorhurdle in the completion of manyof the NIPP projects.

He also added that manyagencies at the ports were workingat cross purposes to the detrimentof governments' efforts to completethe projects.

``Government should

By Muhammad Sada, withagency report

intervene to get these agencies towork as one,they should be made torealize that the projects belong toall Nigerians and the agenciesshould realize that some contractorshave suspended activities on site dueto their inability to get someequipment out the ports,'' he said.

Hafeez also identified lack of gasas another factor delayingcompletion of the NIPP projects andurged the Federal Government tointervene urgently.

He said the issue of gas had todo with having appropriatecommercial pricing and advisedthe government to address theproblem proactively.

Power equipment stuck at ports since Oct. 2011

Oyo state government hasreduced the structures to bedemolished from 2,105 to

56, just as it ruled out the paymentof compensation to owners of theaffected structures.

The state Commissioner forInformation and Orientation, Mr.Bosun Oladele, who briefednewsmen at the end of the stateexecutive council meetingyesterday in Ibadan, said thatother makeshift structures likeshops, portal cabins and containerswould also be pulled down.

It would be recalled that thecommittee set up by the stategovernment shortly after theAugust 26, 2011 flood disasterswhich claimed many lives andproperty, had recommended that2,105 structures be demolished.

Structures billed for scrappingare those built on waterways,drainages and flood plains, thusaffecting free flow of water likelyto cause another flood disaster.

However, Oladele toldnewsmen that although thecommittee recommended a totalof 2,105 for demolition, only 56would be pulled down in thedemolition exercise scheduled tocommence on Tuesday.

He added that 40 out of the 56structures had already beenabandoned to their irredeemablybad state, while the remaining 16are currently being occupied.

While ruling out anycompensation for the owners of theaffected structures, Oladele saidthey were built in contraventionof the building laws, and that thehavoc they had wreaked had bothdirect and indirect impacts onother structures.

Flood: Oyoto demolish56 structuresFrom Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan

Children within the ages ofeight and ten wereyesterday exposed to

education and entertainingactivities aimed at boosting theirability for critical thinking andnumerical interpretation.

At an event tagged "HavingFun with Numbers" yesterday inAbuja, a foundation calledCreativekids Foundation incollaboration with the KoreanCultural Centre (KCC), organiseda class where the children wereencouraged to apply mathematicsin their everyday life.

Coordinator of the foundation,Mrs. Anne Akahara, described theworkshop as "first of its kind" andsaid such event has come to stay inAbuja considering its significancein assisting the children haveaccess to things outside theiracademic circle.

Akahara further noted that asthe foundation grows; it would co-opt stakeholders like theMathematics Board, otherrelevant government and privateorganisations, so as to encouragemathematics awareness amongthe children, teenagers and adults.

"The concept Maths-craft is allabout teaching the children whereart and mathematics connect. It isthe use of arts to teachmathematics and reinforceexciting, colorful and decorativeprojects which can be created bythe children while learningmathematics concepts," she said.

Excited about her visit to theKCC, one of the children, ChisomAngel, said the event wasmemorable and amusing even asshe observed that the K-POP videoshown had lots of similarities withNigerian modern choreographicdance.

Also speaking, Director of KCC,SUH, Jeong Sun, who expresseddelight partnering the foundationto support the event, said the effortwas in line with the Koreangovernment's desire to maintaincordial relationship andunderstanding with the Nigerianpeople and government.

He also assured that theembassy through the centre wouldnot only continue to partner suchprogrammes but ensuresustainability of the effort for thebenefit of both counties.

Foundationpartners Koreaon Maths-craftworkshopBy Mohammed Kandi

L-R: Member, House Committee on Aviation, Nasir Ahmed, Deputy Chairman, Rufai Chachangi, andCommittee Chairman, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, during the committee’s public hearing on highinternational air fares, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

PAGE 7PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Blame parents for examinationmalpractice, educationists saySome educationists have

blamed parents forexamination malpractice

and mass failure in theexaminations conducted by theJoint Admissions and

Matriculation Board (JAMB).The educationists and

parents were reacting to themass failure recorded in therecently released JAMBresults, and the number of

candidates caught trying tocheat during the examination.

Prof Dibu Ojerinde, theregistrar of JAMB, recentlydisplayed to newsmen footwears embedded with cell

phone that were seized fromcandidates during the 2012UTME conducted on March 24

The stakeholders told theNews Agency of Nigeria (NAN)in separate interviews onMonday in Lagos that apartfrom parents, the dwindlingeconomic fortunes of mostNigerians had given room formalpractice.

Dr. Clementinah Owokade,a former Deputy Director, WestAfrican Examination Council(WAEC), said some parentsoften induced teachers to helptheir children to cheat inexaminations.

"If students can beencouraged to learn, knowingthat no one would assist themduring exams, they woulddefinitely study", she said.

Owokade also suggestedadditional motivation forteachers to make them rejectfinancial inducement fromparents who encouragemalpractice.

She called for collaborationbetween schools and officials ofthe Ministry of Education tomonitor examinations.

"There is little WEAC andother bodies can do. They arejust the examination bodies andshould not be saddled with totalmonitoring of theirexaminations", she said.

Also commenting onexamination malpractice, anofficial of the Lagos StateExaminations Board, Mrs.Yemisi Oguntimehin, agreedwith the idea that malpracticestarted with the knowledge ofparents.

"Parents are certainlybehind the problem because theyencourage their children to payagents for special examinationcentres where malpractice are atthe highest level", she said.

Oguntimehin said thatchildren with such parents wouldthen waste their time on theinternet, instead of studyingbecause they know that they

would be assisted in theirexaminations.

"It is indeed very sad thathigh reading culture hasgradually been phased out,replaced with numerous formsof malpractice and laziness,''she said.

Chief Abiodun Ajayi, agrandfather and a directorwith Palmline Agency, Apapa,blamed the situation on thecurrent craze for greatnesswithout hard work.

"All these problems of massfailure and malpractice aredue to corruption. It is the basicbottleneck in our society", hesaid.

Ajayi believed that a goodchild, brought up in a goodhome, would produce anexcellent result without anyform of cheating.

Mr. Gerald Emejom, anEnglish teacher in a privateschool in Lagos, also blamedparents who, he said, payexorbitant fees to examinationagents to assist their children.

"These parents pay as muchas N60, 000 to agents whonegotiate with invigilators andsupervisor's, he claimed.

A mathematics teacher in apublic school in Akure, Ondostate, Mrs. Juliet Tedheke, alsoexpressed sadness that studentshave evolved new ways tocheat, despite JAMB's anti-malpractice measures.

She told NAN on telephonethat laziness on the part of thestudents and the economicsituation of the country hadforced people to engage inmalpractice for money.

"The economy is so bad thatquestions are sold before theexamination day. The teachershave less blame because they doextra work before theexamination", she said.

NAN reports that about27,000 results were withheld byJAMB for various malpractices inthe recently released UTMEresults. (NAN)

Ex-Niger Delta militants protesting negligence of oil communities by Mobil Producing Nigeria, yesterdayin Ibeno, Akwa Ibom state. Photo: NAN

The newly appointedPermanent Secretary tothe Federal Ministry of

Labour and Productivity, Dr.Tunji Olaopa, said the ministrywill uphold the right of theorganised Labour union toembark on strike whencollective bargaining fails.

Dr. Olaopa stated this inAbuja during the change ofbaton of office with the outgoingpermanent secretary, Engr.Anthony Ozodinobi.

"I will never say industrialunion should not do strike,strike is always a weapon whencollective bargaining or allconversation has failed, "heemphasised.

He added that a majorconference to engage organisedlabour union and stakeholdersin the labour sector isimperative at this critical stageof the nation's development.

"We deserve to have a majorconference to engage the unionsand other stakeholders on howwe can all sit together as stake

Ministry will support workers strike, says Perm SecBy Albert Akota holders and think the way

forward", Dr. Olaopa affirmed.In a press released signed by

assistant director press of theministry, Samuel Olowookeresaid the Permanent Secretaryalso advocated a paradigmshift in government labourrelations.

"We need a labour/government relation with aparadigm shift from theadversarial approach tosomething slightlydevelopmental" thepermanent secretaryadvocated.

Dr. Olaopa promisedmembers of staff of theministry that he will be a teamplayer and contribute hisquota to the development of theFederal Ministry of Labour andProductivity during his tenurein the ministry.

Earlier, the out gonePermanent Secretary, Engr.Anthony Ozodinobi urgedmembers of staff of theministry to extend the kind ofcooperation he enjoyed to hissuccessor.

Gombe state governor,Alhaji Ibrahim HassanDankwambo has

approved the construction of 14prototype primary health carecentres in order to improvehealth care delivery in thestate.

The state's PermanentSecretary in the Ministry ofHealth, Alhaji Umaru Guramadisclosed this at the one-dayMandatory ContinuingProfessional DevelopmentProgramme (MCPDP)organised for nurses andmidwives in Gombe.

Gurama further said afterthe primary health carecentres, women and childrenhospital would be constructedin the state capital.

He urged the participant tomake use of the knowledge theywill acquire during theworkshop.

In his speech, Alhaji UmarGambo, senior assistantregistrar of the NationalNurses and Midwives Councilof Nigeria said the aim of theworkshop was to expose nursesand midwives to currentdevelopment as well as newtrend in health care delivery.

Gombe to construct 14 modelprimary health care centresFrom Auwal Ahmad, Gombe

The Federal Government isto re-positioning thetransport sector with a view

to developing alternative sourcesof revenue that will remove the

FG to repositiontransport sectorFrom Auwal Ahmad, Gombe nation's over dependence on oil.

The Minister of Transport,Senator Idiris Abdullahi Umarwho disclosed this in Gombe, saidthe transport sector will drive theeconomy as enshrined in theVision 20: 2020.

The Kogi state governmentin collaboration with theGreen Development

Group from the United Statesof America has started thebuilding of a BIODIESELRefinery at Itobe in Ofu local

government area of the state.The state governor,

Captain Idris Wada whileperforming the groundbreaking and foundationlaying ceremony of therefinery at Itobe over theweekend stated that the firstphase of the project would gulp

N2 billion naira.He said that the refinery

which would be completed intwelve

Months, would haveinstalled capacity of 40 millionlitres of biodiesel product and4,000 metric tones of fertilizerannually.

BIodiesel refinery commences in Kogi From Sam Egwu, lokoja

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 8

PHOTOS: JOE OROYE, MAHMUD ISA and NAN.

23Food items to be distributed to widows by Adamawa

state Ministry of Women Affairs and SocialDevelopment, Friday in Yola.

An octogenarian looking at the blown off roof of hishouse after a heavy rain storm on Friday, at Ijayearea of Abeokuta metropolis.

4 5

2 3

1 5L-R: Edo state Governor, Comrade AdamsOshiomhole, and Chairman, Nigeria bar Association(NBA) Benin branch, Mr Rasaq Isenelumhe, duringa visit by the executives of the NBA to the Governor,yesterday in Benin City.

1National Commercial Motorcycles and TricycleOwners and Riders Association, Motorcycle TransportUnion of Nigeria, All Nigerians Autobike CommercialOwners and Workers Association and Okada RidersWelfare Association embarked on the strike,yesterday following a ban on their activities in the Ikejabusiness district of Lagos.

4L-R: The Director, Research for Development (WestAfrica), International Institute of Tropical Agriculture(IITA), Dr. Robert Asiedu, Programme Officer,Agricultural Development, Bill & Melinda GatesFoundation, Dr. Regina Kapinga, and Director General,IITA, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, during the launch of theYam Improvement for Income and Food Security inWest Africa (YIIFSWA) project, yesterday in Ibadan.

PAGE 9PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Governor Jonah DavidJang has promised torestructure the Plateau

state civil service and deal withstubborn leaders who aid and abetghost workers in the state.

Jang handed down this warningyesterday at Jishe GovernmentLodge while signing into law the2012 budget amounting toN112,763,528,563.00 as passed

include falsification of names insalary vouchers. The stategovernment has continued to losemillions of naira monthlythrough this racket; we will putup a machinery to fish out thosebehind this fleece and will dealwith them appropriately".

Jang also announced thatfindings by the state governmentshowed that with about 40,000work force, its monthly salary

Ghost workers: Jang set forwar with stubborn officials

by the state legislature whichpresents an increase of 30.27percent from the previous year,reflecting " an increase of over N720million from the proposal".

He said, "inspite of thisadministration's effort to meet theneeds of its public servants sinceinception, in addition toimplementing the minimum wage,regrettably, some workers havecontinued to thwart government'seffort through corrupt acts which

From Bayo Alabira, Jos

Board of Trustees of theA m a l g a m a t e dCommercial Motorcycle

Owners and Riders Association(ACOMORAN), yesterday,disowned the factional chairmanof the Ogun state chapter of theassociation, Alhaji Lateef Yekini.

Yekini had earlier declaredhimself the authentic boss of theassociation in the state, inspite ofthe unresolved crisis in theleadership.

However, the association’sBoard of Trustees chairman, ChiefEgunjobi Adeosun, while reactingto Yekini's threat, said such did nothold water, declaring his'appointment' as a fallacy.

Adeosun stated that members

ACOMORAN board disownscontroversial chairman

of the board did not meet atanytime to appoint, select or electa new chairman for Ogun statechapter of the Association, statingthat the current state leadershipis occupied by Prince AdebayoSamsudeen Apelogun and notYekini.

He further said the currenttenure of Apelogun is in its secondyear of a term of four years, andtherefore needed no change ingovernment.

The BOT chairman revealedthat Yekini was the formersecretary expelled on grounds ofstealing and embezzlement of theAssociation's fund.

He called on the general publicand the state government todisregard Alhaji Yekini'schairmanship.

By Abdulwahab Isa

stands at N800 million only butPlateau state with only littleabove 17,000 workers pays aboutN1.5 billion monthly.

He pointed out that thePlateau state Civil ServiceInstitute would take off forcapacity building to enable theworkers meet up the present daychallenges.

The governor added that theMillennium Development Goals

L-R: Director General, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Engineer MansurAhmed, receiving some copies of Peoples Daily from Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Peoples MediaLtd, Malam Ali M. Ali, during the COO visit to the commission headquarters, yesterday in Abuja.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

The Director-General,Infrastructure ConcessionRegulatory Commission

(ICRC), Engr. Mansur Ahmed hascalled for commensurateinvestment in infrastructure forthe attainment of sustainablegrowth in the economy.

He affirmed that a sustainableinvestment in infrastructure inits entire ramification will put thenation at its threshold of economicgrowth.

Mansur stated these

ICRC boss harps on sustainable investment in infrastructuregrowth in the economy.

"This is an economy thateverybody accepts has a potentialto grow; to be a strong economybecause it's an economy that hasrequisite potential for growthand development. By and large,while it has grown in terms ofGDP that growth has not beentranslated in to development inthe sense that the Nigerianpeople have not seen a greatimprovement in the quality ofliving. Part of the constraint is avery huge deficit in basic andsocial infrastructures", he

Dimeji Kayode-Adedeji, Abeokuta

affirmed.Engr. Mansur said the agency

which came into existence in2008 has been able to enthrone aPublic Private Partnership (PPP)as a means for sustainedinvestment in infrastructuredevelopment.

Within the period of itsexistence, he said, the agency hasidentified no fewer than 20 keyinfrastructure projects in variousministries, departments andagencies of government and saidcollaboration between ICRC andthe agencies has begun.

The Nigeria LabourCongress (NLC) Kogistate chapter, has

charged the Kogi stategovernor Captain Idris Wadanot to consider returning someof the members of the dissolvedexecutive council.

In a statement issued overthe weekend by the statechairman, Comrade JamesOdaudu which was madeavailable to newsmen inLokoja, he noted that theexperience in the past eightyears had shown that mostmembers of the dissolved excowere non performers with pooroutput.

The release further statedthat it would becounterproductive for Wada's

administration which thepeople hold in highexpectations, to bring on boardthose who contributed to lowservice delivery by the pastadministration.

He urged him to ensure thatProfessionals and competentpersons were appointed to headcritical sectors of the state'seconomy while calling on thegovernor to be wary ofsycophants and other elementsthat have contributed to theslow pace of development in the

Kogi NLC rejects returnof old cabinet members

state.The chairman also

appealled to the stategovernment to urgentlyintervene on the non-implementation of theminimum wage for primaryschool teachers and localgovernment workers in orderto avert industrial crisis.

Investigation by ourcorrespondent in mostministries in Lokoja yesterdayshowed that somecommissioners and politicaloffice holders dissolved by CaptIdris Wada were still reportingto the offices, using officialvehicles and living in officialquarters.

From Sam Egwu, lokoja

(MDG) office in the state is alsointervening in the water,agriculture and health sectors withthe support of the state governmentthrough the prompt payment ofcounterpart fund, to enable itimplement projects in the ruralareas of the state. "I wish to call onour communities to take ownershipof these schemes and other projectsin their localities", he said.

yesterday while receiving themanagement of Peoples MediaLimited, publishers of PeoplesDaily and Peoples Daily Weekend,led by the company's ChiefOperating Officer, Malam Ali M.Ali.

While acknowledging that thecountry has recorded anappreciable growth in economy,leading to rise in GDP to the 7percent, he said such growth wasyet to translate to tangibledevelopment as according to himNigerians were yet to feel inpractical terms the impact of such

Lagos state Attorney-Generaland Commissioner forJustice, Mr. Ade Ipaye,

yesterday, said the stategovernment is yet to impose banon the operations of commercialmotorcyclists, otherwise known asokada, on Lagos roads.

Ipaye stated this while makingsubmissions in a suit filed againstthe state

government by four differentokada riders associations.

The state Attorney Generaltold Justice Stephen Adah of aFederal High Court sitting in Ikeja,

‘No ban on Okada yet on Lagos roads’that the applicants were reactingto mere newspaper reports.

"The ban or restrictions allegedby the applicants has not takenplace. All pieces of evidencesupplied by the applicants to thecourt are press cuttings. There isno direct evidence regarding thetrue state of affairs and we all knowwhat press reports represent", hesaid.

Ipaye sought to makeclarifications on two issues raisedin the written address submitted tothe court by the applicants.

On the issue of a ban being abreach of fundamental rights of theapplicant, Ipaye stated, "it has not

From Francis Iwuchukwu, Lagos been alleged anywhere thatcommercial motor cycles would nolonger operate on the roads".

"What is imminent areregulations which are facts of life inany business. It would therefore notbe appropriate in any civilisedsociety for there not to beregulations".

On the operation of theapplicants for commercialpurposes, the commissionermaintained that since they carrypeople in return for paymentrendered, it was a business whichmust be regulated".

Justice Adah has adjourned thematter till May 4, 2012 for ruling.

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 10

Koton Karfe jail break:‘36 so far re-arrested’The Nigeria Prisons Service

(NPS) said 36 prisoners of the72 who escaped from the

Koton Karfe Prison in Kogi state onFebruary 17, have so far been re-arrested.

The Deputy Controller ofPrisons and spokesman for theservice, Mr. Kayode Odeyemidisclosed this in an interview withthe News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)in Abuja yesterday.

Odeyemi said the service was

committed to ensuring that allthose who escaped were re-arrestedand made to face the law.

It would be recalled that BokoHaram gunmen invaded theKoton Karfe Prison on Feb. 17 andfreed the prisoners.

It would be recalled that anofficial of the prison was shot deadby the assailants during theincident.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria PrisonService has denied any jail break

in Gboko, Benue state.Odeyemi, who made the

denial, said that “all I know is thatthere were some disturbances inGboko Prison by prisoners”.

“The prisoners, who were onhunger strike, were protestingagainst the ban on the use of GSM;they also called for speedy trials oftheir cases.”

The Controller of Prisons inBenue state, Mr. David Agada, hadconfirmed to journalists on March

26, that there was an attemptedjail break by the inmates of theGboko Central Prison, but none ofthem escaped.

Agada said the attempt wasfoiled by prison officials, whoscared the prisoners by shootinginto the air.

The controller, who said theMinistry of Interior and the prisonauthorities were on top of thesituation, did not, however, giveany reason for the attempt. (NAN)

The Chief Medical Director ofthe Federal Medical Center,Makurdi, Dr. Mathias

Oyigeya has debunkedinsinuations that the healthcaredelivery system of the center isdeclining.

Dr. Oyigeya who made thedismissal with a wave of the handduring an interaction withjournalists in Makurdi, describedharbingers of such rumours asmischief makers and idle peoplewho only create negativeimpression of the hospital.

He said the center has beenupgraded with modern andsophisticated medical equipmentand offers the best qualityhealthcare services which wereevident in the increasing numberof people who patronise the hospital.

The CMD added that the centerhas 38 consultants and over 200doctors including 2287 staffthough he frowned at the attitudeof work of some of the staff.

“I did a perception study usingthe four drivers of Servicom anddiscovered that some persons donothing but hide under the canopyof unionism to disrupt services.This is most unfortunate. Theproblem is not the workforce buttheir attitude to work”, Oyigeyalamented.

FMC CMDlambastscriticsFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

Some farmers in Nsukka inEnugu State have expressedappreciation to God for

Sunday’s rainfall, which they saidwould enable them to startplanting their crops.

Mr. Jeremiah Ugwoke, said inNsukka yesterday that, he wasvery happy for the rain.

He said that it would allow himto start planting his crops on hisfarm which he had cleared sinceFebruary.

“I’m happy for that Sundayevening rain, the Almighty hasanswered my prayers. I will startplanting my crops in my farmsimmediately,” he said.

Mr. John Aleke said that hehad already bought some highbreed seedlings, waiting for therain so as to start planting them,adding that he was optimistic thatrainfall would now be regular.

“I and members of my familywill go to the farm to start planting.I am happy that God heard myprayers during Palm Sundayservice, during which I prayed forrain.

“I urge government to ensurethat they provide fertiliser at theappropriate time during thisfarming season.

“With adequate encourage-ment to farmers by governmentthrough providing fertiliser andloans, the country will soonachieve food security.

“Farming has helped me a lot,as I have trained some of mychildren up to university levelfrom the money I generated fromit,” he said. (NAN)

Enugu farmerscelebrate firstrainfall

The Standards Organisationof Nigeria (SON) said it hasembarked on a nationwide

market survey of substandardproducts following consumers'complaints especially over cellphoneaccessories and electronics.

Director-General of SON, Mr.Joseph Odumodu said the outcomeof the survey would be made publicby the end of the month.

He, however, dismissed thespeculation that 95 percent ofcellphone accessories andelectronics in Nigeria were sub-standard.

“I don’t know where thestatistics came from but the basiscannot be true, we are currentlyconducting another survey and assoon as that is completed I wouldrelease the statistics.

“You should just give usanother month for our final recordsto be out and we would be able toconfirm the level of substandardgoods in the country. The situationis very bad and people have a right

to complain.“We have just secured a place

in the market because that makesit a lot easier for us to monitor whatis happening and also to ensurethat our enforcement is targetedcorrectly and accordingly,”Odumodu said.

He said that SON had achieveda level of standardisation in spiteof the activities of some fraudulentpeople.

“People who were having a fieldday suddenly called themselves toorder and if you check very well,we have actually impoundedphone accessories on a routine basis.

“The point to be made is thatour markets are definitely awashwith substandard products andthey have been for a long time. Wehave started a process which hasresulted in a drastic reduction ofthese products,” he noted.

Odumodu called for concertedefforts to protect the health ofNigeria and the environment.(NAN)

Ter Makurdi, Chief SuleAbenga, has attributed thecrisis in Agboughoul, a

settlement in the Benue statecapital to the influence of politiciansas well as land speculators of theState Ministry of Lands andSurvey who are only interested inachieving their selfish aim at thedetriment of the residents.

Chief Abenga who made theaccusation at the weekend duringa chat with journalists in hispalace, frowned at the large scaledestruction of properties worthmillions of naira.

He also lamented that theunwholesome attitude of staff ofthe Ministry of Lands who colludewith land speculators to actcontrary to the surveyspecifications of the area.

The royal father frowned atthe role of the police whom heaccused of always of chasingshadows even when the architectsof the crisis are known to them.

“That’s why this crisis hasbeen recurring because peoplewho are behind it are well knownto the police. Each time we held ameeting we will reveal thesepersons to the police and they willbe arrested and the same peoplewho are their godfathers willrelease them,” the traditionalruler fumed.

He however urged securityagents to beam their searchlighton some prominent citizens in thestate who had in the past vowed toset Makurdi on fire.

The chief equally called for anoverhaul of the lands ministry asa panacea to restoring peace inAgboughoul and other areas of thestate where land has become athreat to peace.

“Left alone with the peopleoriginally who stayed with thoseTyoshin people, you won’t hearany crisis. But there are somepeople who have now graduatedfrom visitors to landlords and theyare now selling the land out,” ChiefAbenga said.

From Uche Nnorom, Makurdi

Monarch blames politicians, landspeculators over Agbougoul crisis

SON embarks on nationwidesurvey of substandard goods

L-R: Managing Director, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO), Mr. Kayode Oluwasegun-Ojo, and Director-General,Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren, during the commissioning of the N68 million security equipmenterected by NAHCO at its cargo shed of Murtala Mohammed Airport, at the weekend, in Ikeja, Lagos.

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 11

Special team ad hoc staff administering oral polio vaccine (OPV) to a child while others childrenwaiting for their turn, during 2012 Immunisation Plus Day, at the weekend, in Almadarasatul Sa’adatulIslamic School, Kpakungu, Niger state. Photo: Mahmud Isa

Solid minerals: Kaduna Polytechnicgets N500m World Bank facility

Efforts by the FederalGovernment towards thediversification of the

nation’s economy has received afurther boost with the World Bankfacility of about N500 million to theKaduna Polytechnic, for theinstitution’s Centre for Solid MineralsResearch and Development.

A senior education specialist atthe World Bank, Dr. Tunde

Adekola, gave the figure in Kadunawhen he led a team of other officialson inspection of facilities at thecentre, located on the polytechnic’smain campus at Tudun Wada.

Adekola said there wasremarkable progress in activities atthe centre which was establishedin April 2011, designed to tackle theproblem of low research output inkey areas relevant to the solidminerals sector of Nigeria.

The centre which is also a

From Agaju Madugba, Kaduna collaboration with the NigerianInstitute of Mining andGeosciences, Jos, Modibbo AdamaUniversity of Technology, Yola,Federal Polytechnic, Nasarawaand Federal Polytechnic, Nekede,is expected to collaborate with otherinstitutions abroad in the areas oftraining and research in mineralexploration, mining, processing aswell as metal extraction.

In his remarks, acting Rector,Kaduna Polytechnic, Dr. Aliyu

Mamman, explained that, “thechoice to pursue a research-basedcentre in the minerals sector wasborne out of the desire of theinstitution to add value to the solidminerals sector in order to assistthe nation in the diversification ofits revenue base and to ensure theproduction of highly qualifiedmanpower for the solid mineralssector.

“Experiences with countries likeBotswana, Ghana, Namibia and

South Africa indicate that effectiveparticipation by all stakeholders inthe solid minerals sector in research,investment and developments in theminerals cycle can help optimise thecontribution of solid minerals tosustainable development andpoverty reduction.

“The equipment that will beput in place will be modern andstate of the art that will competefavorably with similar centresaround the world”.

The Bauchi stategovernment has concludedplans to secure admissions

for scores of qualified youths underits special remedial programmeinto the newly established stateowned university in Gadau.

Governor Isa Yuguda disclosedthis during the send-forth/Walimah of the Muslim Students’Society of Nigeria, YankariAcademy chapter, in Bauchi. Gov.

Yuguda said this is part of the state’scommitment to boost youthempowerment as well as provideemployment opportunities forunemployed youths.

The governor who wasrepresented by his deputy, AlhajiSagir Aminu Saleh, also said aspart of its concern to the plight ofthe youths in the state, hisadministration established theYankari Academy whichadmitted over 4000 youths fromacross the state in order to re-sit

From Ahmed Kaigama, Bauchi their WAEC and NECOexaminations.

A press release signed by theChief Press Secretary, IsholaMichael Adeyemi, further statedthat the government will continueto pursue creation of more jobopportunities to both youths andwomen who are qualified bothacademically and otherwise justas those of them who want tofurther their education will beencouraged and supported bygovernment.

Bauchi govt to secure admission forqualified youth in remedial studies

Following the thunderstormwhich wreaked havoc tomany houses and rendered

residents homeless, Ogun state hascalled on the Federal Governmentto assist victims of the disaster inthe state.

The governor, SenatorIbikunle Amosun made the call inAbeokuta while lamenting thedamage caused by the rainstorm,noting that the scale of the damagewas enormous, adding thatgovernment would give quickassistance to areas and structures

affected.He said government was

committed to protecting the livesand property of the citizenry,adding that he was happy no lifewas lost.

Senator Amosun urged theFederal Government to providefunds for the state to control andprevent flood so that conduciveatmosphere could be provided forthe economic development of thestate.

While addressing traders atOke-Ilewo, Amosun stressed thatillegal structures would impededevelopment, advising residents tocooperate with officials ofgovernment in the removal ofthose structures.

He assured them that theywould be relocated to where theywould transact their businessesand urged them to be prepared tosacrifice for the overalldevelopment of the state.

Oyo govt seeks FG assistancefor rainstorm victims

From Dimeji Kayode-Adedeji,Abeokuta

Taraba state governmenthas expressed commitmenttowards construction of

more rural roads in the state.The Commissioner of

Information, Culture and Tourism,Mr. Emmanuel Bello, stated thiswhile briefing newsmen on theoutcome of the state executivecouncil meeting last weekend.

He said government’sintention to construct roads would

enhance more development andboost the economic activities of thestate.

The commissioner also saidgovernment was making efforts toaddress the problems ofunemployment in the state.

He however appealed to citizensand residents of the state tocooperate with the presentadministration in its effort totransform the state.

He said government wouldcontinue to be responsive to theyearning and aspirations of thepeople of the state.

Taraba govt to build morerural roadsFrom Yusha’u Alhassan, Jalingo

The Ebonyi stateCommissioner forEnvironment, Dr. Paul

Okorie, says the government willplant one million trees this year toimprove the state’s greenenvironment programme.

He told the News Agency ofNigeria on Monday in Abakalikithat the tree planting programmewould involve all the 13 localgovernment areas and 64development centres in the state.

Okorie said that theprogramme would commenceimmediately the rains sets in.

“As soon as the rains set in, theministry would start the treeplanting exercise to encourage andimprove green environment inEbonyi”.

“The exercise will greatly

enhance the State’s green houseemission programme”.

Meanwhile, owners of illegalstructures situated on the majorroads and streets of Abakaliki,yesterday began to dismantle suchstructures to beat thegovernment's deadline on thedevelopment.

Okorie explained that thegovernment had given owners ofsuch make shift structures withinthe capital city to remove them onor before April 1 or have themdestroyed.

“The measure is to improvethe aesthetics and beauty of thearea as well as give the place afacelift.

“A bill on the make shiftstructure on major roads andstreets of Abakaliki, which is beforethe House, was publicly heard onThursday,” he said.

Ebonyi to plant one milliontrees this year

The Bauchi State PoliceCommand bis to partnerwith the Army, Federal

Road Safety Corps and the NigeriaImmigration Service in order tofight crime in the state.

The Commissioner of Police,Mohammed Ladan, stated this inBauchi when he visited thesecurity agencies in the state,saying that “as partners inprogress we must work together inorder to make the state a peacefuland better place to live in”.

The commissioner describedthe relationship between thepolice, army and other security

outfits as cordial and urged themto give him the maximumcooperation as they have beendoing even before he was moved toBauchi.

In his remark the BrigadeCommander of the 33 ArtilleryBrigade, Brigadier General AgboRobinson, said the police, armyand State Security Servicesoperate together in Bauchi whenit comes to fighting crime.

Also speaking, the SectorCommander Federal Road SafetyCorps, Zakariyya Mammanassured the commissioner ofmaximum cooperation in order toreduce crime and maintainpeaceful coexistence in the state.

From Ahmed Kaigama, Bauchi

Police in Bauchi to partner securityagencies in crime prevention

PAGE 12 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

The pension scam probeand matters arising

Presently six top civilservants among them apermanent secretary are

facing trial for their culpabilityin the recent Senate probe intothe Police Pension Fund.Fingered in the multi billionnaira theft are Atiku AbubakarKigo who is presently apermanent secretary in theoffice of Head of Service of theFederation, Ahmed InuwaWada, John Yakubu Yusufu,Sani Habila Zira, Esai Dangabarand the lone female VeronicaUlonma Oyegbule.

They are facing a 16 countcharge of defrauding the PolicePension Fund of a whoppingN32.8 billion. According to theEconomic and Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC) thatarraigned the suspects, theiroffence borders on criminalbreach of trust and abuse ofoffice. They are also beingaccused of conversion of publicfunds to personal use as well asreceiving bribes at differenttimes between January 2009and December 2011.

The alleged offences arepunishable under Section 97 ofthe Penal Code Act, CAP, 532,Laws of the Federal Capital

“Shuaibu and Kigorepresent a fraction of themassive sleaze in publicservice. Over time, graft

and outright theft bythose entrusted with

public funds havebecome fashionable

EDITEDITEDITEDITEDITORIALORIALORIALORIALORIAL

Territory (FCT) Abuja, 2007.At once the trial confirms a

widespread view that the entiregamut of the nation's civil serviceis riddled by graft andcorruption. This manifests, inpart, in the mind boggling choiceproperty littering the federalcapital allegedly owned by such

corrupt civil servants with noknown source of income apartfrom their salaries.

An example of thiscondemnable disposition amongcivil servants is the seizure ofsuch properties belonging to oneof the other 31 accused personsinvolved in the pension scam.

The accused identified as DrSani Teidi Shuaibu, a formerDirector, PensionAdministration in the office ofthe Head of Service of theFederation, had four fillingstations and two eight bedroomduplexes,5 units 2-bedroomsapartment and a mosque in onesprawling compound, held bythe anti graft agency.

Shuaibu and Kigo represent afraction of the massive sleaze inpublic service. Over time, graftand outright theft by thoseentrusted with public fundshave become fashionable. Thefigures so embezzled orconverted to personal use havesteadily risen. We dare say thisseeming impunity was fuelled bythe perception and rightly too,that big time crooks are hardlypunished. On the contrary, theyare celebrated on account of thestream of tittles and honorarydegrees bestowed on them.Secondly, our judiciary havesimilarly failed to tame thiscancer of corruption. We can listseveral instances where thejudiciary has unwittingly aidedthe rise in corruption by settingfree proven cases of graft onsome legal loophole.

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PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 13

In Nigeria, math doesn’t add upThe owner of the body does not

say that he is in no pain,while we insist on showing

empathy for his sleeplessness andhis restlessness. (One does notcommiserate with a person whodoes not admit their misfortune).In Nigeria, it is not just about themore you look the less you see; thefact is that you rarely see muchor see anything at all. The system,if indeed we have one, seems todefy all logic. When you expect itto falter, fall and fail, it takes acurve and strangely comes backon strong. The question is for howlong we have to rely on auto-piloting of the ship of governance.I was taught in primary schoolmath that one plus one wouldequal two; however, in our case,it could equal three, four, seven,and ten or even be zero. Everyconcerted effort at getting it rightends disastrously. It never adds upwhen Ibrahim Larmode, the EFCCchair, tells you that there iscorruption in the Commission.

In January, this year, we werealmost certain that change wason the horizon, that it would notbe business as usual, but with eachpassing day we see our sensibilitiescontinually assailed by just a few.Little has changed, with threehigh profile ‘entertaining’ probesby the National Assembly—

subsidy, pension and SEC. Whatwe see exposed is a generally mutepublic, outrage without action.Three months into the New Yearcivil servants are being owedarrears of salary. In the Northernpart of the country, the BokoHaram keeps changing colour asmore join the fray and the deathtoll rises; every new attack raisesquestion: why our maths don’tadd up.

In a typical Nigerian twist,while poverty ravishes the land(the National Bureau for Statisticssays that over 100 million arepoor), yet luxury car maker,Porsche, is interested in the fewrich ones and has opened ashowroom in Lagos for them; itdoes not add up; millionaires arecreated everyday out of thesystem, few by dint of hard work,most through what CBNgovernor, Lamido Sanusi callsrent-seeking. It never adds up,they are poor in the morning andfor doing next to nothing are richin the evening.

Just be at the right place atthe right time, know the rightperson and he better be ready toact right there for you and youare made—Just a supply of PDPwrapper for its convention or thesupply of the new police Man o’War uniform, get a contract forborehole in a community that hasfour non-functional boreholes...

An alarming size of thepopulation have no access toquality education, some1.5million Nigerians write theJAMB exams for less than500,000 admission spaces,strange figures. We cry thatthere is a dwindling fortune inpublic schools, yet fraudulentprivate schools litter everywhereand almost quarterly the FECapproves a maximum of threenew universities, at the momentthere are over one hundred andfifty of them. Still there are‘unbaked graduates’ areeverywhere and billions is spentin neighbouring Ghana to getbetter education. The math doesnot add up...

In the last five years, the railsystem, a supposed integral partof a new transport networkremains only in public speechesand documents such as SURE andunSURE. We only hear budgetaryallocations in millions and billionsand are inundated with talk of theLagos-Port Harcourt-Kano railroad and Abuja Mono rail projects,we see little or next to nothing.While this writer appreciates thefact that these are not threeminutes Indomie noodle projects,sadly we do not see hope, it all doesnot add up...

After several months ofcommittee work, the Senatepassed a budget of N4.877 for the

2012 fiscal year. It was N4. 484in 2011 and in 2010, N4.608trillion, the weed did not knowthat the farmer had a machete.The evil doer does not consider thefeeling of the person wronged. Itall does not add up, three straightyears and budgets of 4trillion plusconsecutively and still nothing toshow for it, except for a pot-belliedrich political class. It does not addup, but its Nigeria, it never doesand does not need to.

A local axiom says a crippledoes not block the road with hislegs. literally meaning that aperson with a handicap should notchallenge those who are nothandicapped, but in Nigeria, a fewthousands challenge plentymillions, because it never adds up,the maladministration,unfocused governance, fraud andwaste continues, for example assymbolized by what Ojo Maduekecomically described as“...Maturation of internaldemocracy”. The maturation sawthe emergence of a much ‘mature’Bamanga Tukur as Chairman ofPDP.

One treats a disease; one doesnot treat death. My admonitionevery week dwells on theimportance of attending toproblems before they becomeunmanageable. Indians home andabroad have taken over ourhealthcare system, in cases

David-West’s flaring faith for Nigeria

Professor Tam David-Westhad been endorsingpositive policies for the

youth. Take it or leave, not his.Sometimes one wonders why hehad so much sparkling faith forNigeria. He could not stophammering on bad policies thegovernment was incessantlyimplementing that had windswepta lot of us. He had not limited hiscomments of valid points forgarbage. He had always issued beststatements on national issues,especially since the beginning ofthe fuel subsidy crisis. But itseemed that the government hashad no valid point for refusing hiscall for a forum where Nigerianswill publicly interrogate thegovernment’s decision on fuelsubsidy and sundry crass ideals.His reactions to the fuel subsidyremoval had opined one point:How a man of over 70years wasready to lay down his life for thefuture of Nigeria, if it called forthat.

During the protest that theNigeria Labour Congress (NLC)organized to checkmate thegovernment over the issue, he wasamong the frontrunners who ledthe protest before NLC startedgiving conditions to thegovernment from the N141 hikedprice to N97 that the governmentlater unilaterally brought it to, forthe price of fuel.

It was observed that NLCbecame fragile against its initialstoical stand against thetyrannical posture of the

Odimegwu Onwumere government when the protest wasintensified. David-West was soembittered with the divergentopinion of the NLC and asked thegovernment to publish the namesof those that were importing fuel.

He had been of the opinion thatNigerians should differentiatebetween metaphysical Nigeria andpolitical Nigeria. Nigeria is a greatcountry blessed by God. The waywe are going, the political Nigeriawill destroy the metaphysicalNigeria, because to keep Nigeria asone is a task that must be done. Hewould admonish.

While a layman could see thosein the political positions as hisleaders, David-West however hashad a definition of them: “Most ofthose in government are roguesand thieves; they love themselvesmore than Nigeria.”

Against that influence, it hadbeen perturbing to him why everyNigerian would not owe Nigeriamore than what Nigeria owed himor her. He had been clamouringfor more statesmen thanpoliticians and believed thatNigeria would be better then.

A first time comer to Nigeriawill be shocked what Nigeria is byreading numerous expositoryessays and interviews by David-West. He was disappointed thatstatesmen like him who werethinking of the future were beingdisrespected by a bouquet ofpoliticians who only think of thenext election, culminating toNigeria being a country where asenator earned more money thanthe President of America, and evenbuy government houses and spend

billions on cars, yet they couldn’tpay the N18, 000 minimumwage to Civil Servants.

What else could be called moralcorruption? To the intellect dude,politicians had morally crippledthe country and the governance,but they will be destroyed by God.He had been weeping that somegoons were doing all the atrocitiesin a great country as Nigeriawhere there had not been any caseof natural disaster, but there wereable men and natural resourcesthat had been pilfered by a fewclique of people for long years.

To him, it was shameful thatthe few opportunists had made themajority of the people to cry of nojob, and compelled graduates todrive taxis and engage in othermenial jobs; those frailheartedengage in armed robbery, becausethey have to survive. In hisarithmetic, it takes integrity andrigidity not to be corrupt and leadthe nation, and God will punishthose that are punishing Nigeriansand Nigeria.

“When the poor man weeps,the tears go to heaven and comedown with burning fire andconsume his enemies. And that iswhat will happen in Nigeria,” healso wept.

Professor David-West wascompetent to speak withoutsentiment on any issues besettingthe country. He’s very interesting:a volcano vaporizer when it comesto truth. He abhorred thegovernment for counting that thetrue price of oil must include thesuffering of the people.

This was evident in a quote:

“Nigeria`s poor suffer the twinenvironmental perils of oilextraction — oil spills and gasflaring. Villagers draw their waterdirectly from the same rivers andstreams that become catch basinsfor oil spills. Sanctions for spills areminor. Between 1989 and 2000,more than 536,000 barrels of oilwere spilled; only 23,000 barrelswere recovered. Land and riverrestoration are rare. Meanwhile,gas flaring is the cheapest way toeliminate natural gas, a byproductof oil extraction. Villagers describethe gas flares as “Flames from Hell.”These flares contribute to climatechange, pollute the air, and bringacid rain to the region.”

It’s a thing of worry thatPresident Goodluck Jonathan andhis cohorts had not put in greatdeal of strength to curb insecurityin the country the way they hadexpended much energy on the fuelsubsidy removal which hadimpoverished the poor massesmore. Many Nigerians weresubjected to so much hardshipwhereas the song on their lips atevery minute was supposed to be“Hosanna in the Highest” becauseNigeria was endowed naturallymore than wanted. Rather,Jonathan and his cohorts talkabout cabal in the government butnone have been seen meted withthe rule they required. They wererather tapped with the kid’s gloveon the wrist and allowed to becomfortable with their organizedcorruption to the detriment ofmillions of Nigerians.

It is on this nepotism’s way ofhandling cases of corruption in

Nigeria by the authorities that wasmaking David-West to cry.Nigerians are today languishingin the different prisons of the world,where they had gone to, beatingthe arctic weather situations of thewestern world, and enslavement,for the proverbial Golden Fleece.

Those that were in the prisonare even lucky: there had beencases of Nigerians who lost theirlives all the year round in thedesert in their quandary for agreener pasture abroad. David-West had been crying thatNigerians lived all their livesstruggling to feed their families andsee them through school, whereasit was not supposed to be so.

Many of the parents wholaboured to seeing their childrentomorrow become better people inthe society die painful deathsbecause their children were unableto reciprocate their gesturebecause of dearth of job that hadcharacterized Nigeria.

Nigerians were being enslavedeven in their own country to badgovernment policies, and theirdestinies sold to pains and too muchsweat. It was on this premise thatDavid-West had been crying thatcorruption should be eschewed andavoided and not become identicalwith political administration ofNigeria.

The country was hijacked byrapacious few men and womenholding on to the club of control toexhibit cruelty to those who weresupposed to be their subject. Whilethese “unfortunate” Nigerians

By Prince Charles Dickson delivering quality and other casesfacilitating suicide because of ourfailed medical health deliverystatus. In recent times ,we havereceived without compliant thenews of UK banning our doctorsfrom select Universities andalmost every three months anarm of medical and healthworkers are on industrial actionin one part of the nation or theother. Yet millions are set aside forhealth and nothing to show asinfant and maternal mortalityrate is on the increase unabated.

Former Lagos state governor,Bola Tinubu, in a recent interviewstated: “They are liars driving theeconomy and feeding the publicwith fake statistics. If you have asolid economic programme, youwill be able to articulate that forthe country and you willstrengthen our hope anddetermination. We are creating ahydra-headed accounting fraudbut let’s leave that. Where is thenumber coming from; if not fromsomebody’s magical thinking?”While I believe he is equally partof the problem, I ‘ll rather look atthe message than the messengerand end by asking, do we need allthese somersaults leadingnowhere, certainly not, but do wewant to go forward—only time willtell.

Prince Charles Dicksonblogs at burningpot.com

Contd. on page 15

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 14

Who needs autism awareness?General of the United Nationstitled; “Message on World Autismawareness Day”, made me changemy theme of my current piece todeal extensively with the allimportant question of who indeedneeds Autism awareness.

There are other physicaldisability challenges that confrontour youngergenerations thatare nota d e q u a t e l yattended to bygovernment andother relevantstake holders somuch so that a lotof children areabandoned bytheir mothersonce theseuninformed butpoverty- strickenmothers find outthat their babiesare born with onephysical deformity or the other.This trend of throwing away babieson the flimsy excuse that they arephysically deformed must beeffectively checked by governmentand all lovers of humanity.

In the letter dated April 2nd2012, the United NationsSecretary General wrote as follows;

“Autism is not limited to a single

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WRITE TO US

Caught between writing apiece on the deterioratingenvironmental situation of

Abuja, the nation’s capital and thechallenge posed by the largepresence of street children in Abuja,yours faithfully made up his mindto reflect on the latter which is theincreasing social/security threatposed to Abuja residents by theunprecedented presence ofpoverty-stricken, homeless,hungry-looking and desperatechildren as young as eleven year-old in the major streets of a placewe proudly call our Federal Capitaland these Children are not part ofthe usual annual budget of thepolitical authorities at the Ministryof the Federal Capital Territory.

But as I made to put pen topaper I received a powerful mailfrom the office of the United Nationssecretary General in which Mr.Banki Moon extensively treated thecontemporary issue of Autism andthe urgent need for humanity togain awareness.

The mail from the office of thesecretary General of the UnitedNations was intelligently craftedand the heading was catchy,relevant and strategic.

The salient qualities inherentin the letter from the secretary

By Emmanuel Onwubiko region or a country; it is aworldwide challenge that requiresglobal action”.

“Although developmentaldisabilities such as autism begin inchildhood, they persist throughouta person’s life. Our work with andfor people with autism should notbe limited to early identification

and treatment; it should includetherapies, educational plans andother steps that lead us towardssustained, lifelong engagement”.

Mr. Banki Moon stated further;“Reaching out to people withautism spectrum disordersrequires global politicalcommitment and betterinternational cooperation,

especially in sharing goodpractices. Greater investments inthe social, education and laboursectors are crucially important,since developed and developingcountries alike still need toimprove their capacities to addressthe unique needs of people withautism and cultivate their talents.

We also need top r o m o t ef u r t h e rr e s e a r c h ,train non-s p e c i a l i z e dcare providers,and enable thea u t i s mcommunity tomore easilynavigate caresystems toobtain servicesthat cansupport andm a i n s t r e a mi n d i v i d u a l s

with autism”.“The annual observance of

World Autism Awareness Day ismeant to spur such action anddraw attention to the unacceptablediscrimination, abuse and isolationexperienced by people with autismand their loved ones. Ashighlighted by the Convention onthe Rights of Persons with

Disabilities, people with autism areequal citizens who should enjoy allhuman rights and fundamentalfreedoms”.

The South Korean-born Mr.Moon Sounded humane as healways does when he told hisreaders thus; “My wife has beenvery involved with autismawareness and advocacy efforts,and has shared with me inspiringstories not only about individualswith autism, but also about thosecommitted to improving theirlives. Let us all continue to joinhands to enable people with autismand other neurological differencesto realize their potential and enjoythe opportunities and well-beingthat are their birthright”.

From KidNeeds.com we wereprovided with profound body ofknowledge regarding thechallenges that parents face whenthey give birth to children withdisabilities.

According to Kidneeds.com, forchildren with physical disabilitiesand their families each day maybring new challenges. Personswith physical disabilities mayexperience functional, visual,orthopedic, motor, or hearingimpairments, which may impactupon their ability to walk, play and

SOS to IGP MD AbubakarPermit me to use thismedium to draw theattention of the Inspector-

General of Police, M. D. Abubakarto the nefarious activities ofarmed robbers who have beenterrorising the people of Isa andSabon Birnin Local Governmentsof Sokoto state for over a decade.

The activities of these men ofthe underworld have broughtuntold hardship to many villageswithin these two localgovernments with hardly a daypassing by without an innocentsoul being killed, maimed or both.They are becoming more daringand cruel by the day, moving

from one village to another, fromone market day to another,robbing people of their hard-earned with seeming ease andimpunity. From 1999 to date,not less than 200 businessmenand women have lost their livesas a result of the dastardlyactivities of the robbers in thesetwo local councils.

Just few days ago, they heldthe people of Garin Idi in SabonBirni local government hostagefrom 2am till 8am. This timearound, they went ransackinghouses and maiming innocent

citizens in the process. GarinFullo, another village in SabonBirni Local government was notspared as recently, they engageda team of mobile policemen in aduel.

In the process, they killed onepoliceman and set ablaze themopol’s patrol vehicle. They alsoabducted another policeman,whose body was seen hanging ina bush two days after.

It is pertinent to note thatthese armed robbers are notcoming from unknown places asthere are allegations that they

are base in villages such asTamuske, Zangon Zobe andZangon Tanara, both in SabonBirni local government. It is alsoalleged that they use Caseamotorcycles for their operations,and every year they celebratethe coronation of their king inwith great fanfare.

They have crippled thebusiness activities of two localgovernments and its adjourningmarket days, as people hardlyventure into any businessjourney for fear of their lives.Despite several complaints that

By Mohammed Aliyu Shehu

have been lodged with the policeand many petitions written toother security agencies againstthese people, the assaults keepincreasing on a daily basis.

I hereby implore the policeand other relevant authoritieswho are charged with theresponsibility of protecting thelives and properties of Nigeriancitizens, to come to our aid, beforethey kill all of us here in Isa andSabon Birni Local Government.Mohammed Aliyu Shehu,Sabon Birni LocalGovernment, Sokoto state.

Contd. on page 15

What hope for the future generation?

Nigeria’s first generation ofleaders was legendary inevery sense. They were a

set of people that all that mattersto them was the collectiveprogress of their people in everyaspect irrespective of religion ortribal affiliation of the followers.These set of responsible leadersgave an inspiration to a veryrobust and well synchronisednear flawless governance systemwhose core mandate was thewelfare of the Nigeria populace.As with every purposefulleadership, those foundingfathers saw education as a veryimportant leverage for thesustenance of the nation’s veryimpressive growth and as suchgave the educational sector avery critical attention regardingits funding and expansion. Thefuture leaders of that time were

provided with the best teachersthe world can offer, conducivelearning environment, very wellstocked and standard laboratoriesand functional libraries, theluxury of very decent hostels andhuge sums as pocket money allin the bid to have themeffectively grasp the art andscience of nation building. Thoseset of leaders were literallypampered to study and weresupposed to get their inspirationfrom the leaders of that time.

With the gradual demise ofthose purposeful leaders, the roleof leadership fell on the laps of thethen young Turks who werethought to be visionary too buthave proven otherwise in everysense. Rather than treading onsame path as their predecessorsthey took a complete 180 degreesturn to produce a very dangerousbrand of leadership whose coremandate is self centeredness

rather than the collectiveprogression of the masses . Thisgeneration proved to be nothingbut power drunk rogues thatcome to with the sole intention ofsquandering the government’streasury. A set of people that weretaught to patriotic became adeptin playing ethnic and religiouscards whenever it suits themright. This has lead to thebackward movement of a onceunited, prosperous and enviousnation to a nation that has all thecharacteristics of a dividing anda failing nation. The Nigeria thatwas once feared among thecomity of nations has becomenothing but a clay-footed giantwhose bark cannot scare even thetiniest of nations.

Since the eclipse of the firstgeneration leaders, the rogues wehave masquerading as leadershave not made any significantachievement as regards building

qualitative and sustainableinfrastructure. Those samelegacies that the founding fathersleft are what the country is stillrelying on despite the exponentialgrowth in the country’spopulation, which makes theinfrastructures inadequate. Incases where this cluelessleadership decides to build anyinfrastructure they use that asan opportunity to dip their handsinto government treasury byinflating the contracts, and inmost cases ,the contracts areawarded to political associateswho end up doing shoddy jobsbecause they need to cut out their‘shares’ out of the contract funds.

In saner climes the people thatenjoyed governmentscholarships are supposed to bemore patriotic in the sense thatthey will view the nation as theirsaving grace from ignorance. Butin Nigeria, it is those who enjoyed

By Sani Abubakar Sadiq exceptional governmentscholarships that are ruling thecountry so dangerously to theextent that some people areclamouring for its disintegration.Suffice to say that Nigeria as anation is brought down to itsknees by the people it helped toget out of abject poverty andignorance.

The frightening thing is theupcoming generation of youthswho are to be leaders of tomorrow.The youths as they are now are acollection of semi educateddisgruntled humanbeings whohave not experienced any formof good governance. So thepertinent question is: If thecountry has not been steered wellby citizens whom it groomed andpolished to internationalstandards then who will?Sani Abubakar Sadiq can bereached atsanisadeep@yahoo.com

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 15

The recent allegation ofcorruption leveled againstthe chairman of the House

of Representatives’ committee onCapital Market, Hon HermanHembe, by the Director Generalof the Nigerian Stock Exchange(NSE), Ms. Arunmah Oteh, hasno doubt brought unwarrantedattention not only to the principalactors involved in the affair, butalso on the operations of theCapital Market committee of theHouse as a whole.

Similarly, the approach withwhich the leadership of the Housetackled the imbroglio has broughtto the fore a hitherto unnoticedleadership quality of the Speakerof the House, Rt. Hon AminuWaziri Tambuwal.

While many Nigerians stilllook forward to the final outcomeof the panel empowered to get tothe root of the bribery allegation,as well as finding the reason forthe crash of the capital market,the intervention of the leadershipof the House has set a positiveprecedence in managing theaffairs of the lower chamber of thecountry’s legislature.

Unlike the thinking in somequarters that the matter wouldbe swept under the carpet, eventsof penultimate Tuesday where theSpeaker set up an ad hoccommittee to carry on with thecapital market probe, as well asmandating the House Ethicscommittee to dig into the briberyallegation, have reaffirmed theconfidence Nigerians have onTambuwal to lead the House tothe desired destination.

In June last year when he gotthe nod of his colleagues to headthe House, Tambuwal laid out inhis Legislative Agenda what canbest be described as far reachingideas that had the potential toradically change the way andmanner in which lawmakers andthe legislature as whole conduct

affairs in the country. Since thatmomentous day when he laid hiscard bare to all Nigerians to assess,many legislators have followedsuit by launching what theytermed their legislative agendas,indirectly copying Tambuwal intheir effort to bolster their socialcontract with their constituents.

At the crux of the LegislativeAgenda is the determination toinitiate a new order that fosterstransparency leading toinstitutional integrity throughefficiency of public expendituremanagement. Also, it seeks torestructure the management andfunctions of legislative committeestowards adequacy in capacity andimproved productivity.

In addition, the Agenda seeksto design and implement theelectronic parliament (e-parliament) blueprint thatelevates the National Assemblyoperations to international bestpractices and ensures publicaccess to parliamentaryinformation and process.

Importantly, the Agendaseeks to review the legislativebranch budget in line with therequirements of openness,effectiveness and accountability;review the Constitution of theFederal Republic of Nigeria in allrelevant areas in line with theaspirations of Nigerians; engageactively with other arms ofgovernment to restore publicorder and national security andfinally to institutionalizemechanisms that facilitateeffective engagement withvarious stakeholders includingconstituents and civil societyorganizations (CSOs).

Intent on implementing the

agenda for the collective good ofthe polity, Speaker Tambuwalapproached the bribery allegationin a manner that reinforced hisage-long stand on fightingcorruption in its entireramification. No doubt, his strongstance on discipline,accountability, and truth, as seenfrom the way he handled theallegation, is now setting the barand becoming an example in aterritory where the tenets ofmorality and social justice areseriously under the threat.

Tambuwal’s decision toappoint a respected MP, IbrahimEl-Sudi, to head the ad hoccommittee and continue with thepublic hearing, along with IniIdoku, Yakubu Dogara, BimboDaramola, Toby Chukwu, UsmanMohammed and Rose Oko, is nodoubt a visionary step that wouldgo a long in reaffirming the faithNigerians have on him and theHouse. The decision to also appointthe Minority Whip of the House ofthe House, Hon Samson Osagie,to head the Ethics and PrivilegesCommittee that will investigatethe bribery allegation will godown in memory as amasterstroke aimed at giving allparties a fair hearing.

For those who may not knowOsagie, apart from being amember of the opposition ActionCongress of Nigeria (ACN), thehonourable gentleman has builta reputation as a no-nonsense anduncompromising lawmakerwhose voice is respected acrosspolitical divide in the House. WithHembe being from the rulingPeoples Democratic Party (PDP),the intention is to ensure that noone accuses the majority PDP

Of bribey allegation and SpeakerTambuwal’s intervention

members of moves to favour oneof their own.

In a speech immediately afterHembe announced hisresignation, Speaker Tambuwaldescribed the event as a challenge“which though not unusual in thedemocratic process, has subjectedthis institution to furtherrefining. These challenges arenecessary for the strengtheningof our democratic institutions.”

According to him, “Theincidence of 15th March 2012which forms the basis of thedeliberations just concluded arosefrom an investigative hearingwhich was being conductedpursuant to a resolution of thisHouse. The Constitution of theFederal Republic of Nigeria 1999(as amended) in Sections 88 and89 places upon the legislature theduty and responsibility toconduct investigations into theactivities of government for thepurpose of exposing corruption,waste and inefficiency. This is nodoubt a responsibility which ishazard prone. However, as I havestated elsewhere, these hazardsnotwithstanding, it is a duty fromwhich we cannot and must notabdicate.

“Let me assure Nigerians onceagain that we are totallycommitted to the fight againstcorruption and shall deploy allenergies available at our disposalto fight this war. The old sayingthat “when the going gets tough,the tough gets going” willcontinue to be our guide. I alsowish to assure Nigerians that infighting this war we recognizethat we must, like Caesar’s wifebe above board and suspicion.

“For the avoidance of doubt

and the benefit of those who maybe uninformed, all Committees ofthe House have constitutionalbacking.

“My dear Colleagues, we werenot elected to lie on a bed of roses.Those who elected us expect thatwe represent their yearnings andaspirations. Nigerians havechosen presidential democracy asa bulwark against dictatorship,against corruption and waste andabove all against executiverecklessness, this is the duty towhich we have been called andwe have sworn to promote, protectand preserve the will of the peopleenshrined in the Constitution.The House of Representatives willcontinue to be a bulwark againstinjustice and vanguard for thepromotion of good governance andthe defense of the interests,yearnings and aspiration ofNigerians,” he added.

The Speaker has repeatedlysaid that the need to stimulate thesocio-economic growth anddevelopment of the country is thecardinal objective of the SeventhSession of the House ofRepresentatives. Accordingly, allhands are on deck to ensure thatNigeria becomes a great countrythat is the envy and pride of all.

This House, under SpeakerTambuwal, has certainlyindicated its desire andwillingness to redeem and re-order its perception among thepopulace as a pro-Nigerianparliament. The task ahead of usall is to rally round this objectiveand see to its realization.

Imam is the Special Adviseron Media and Public Affairs tothe Speaker of the House ofRepresentatives

were languishing in pains on howto make the end meet, the self-acclaimed bourgeoisies were busypracticing corruption with theirstealing and robbing of thecountry’s coffers. The mostshameful side of it was that theywere the same people who bringtheir selves and their ugly trade tothe cleaners for the rest Nigeriansto laugh at, while biting their

fingers in abject pains.Professor David-West had

severally challenged thegovernment to reinforce itsargument for removing the oilsubsidy with facts and figures, butthe government’s apologists – realwasters – were singing the song ofdeath for Nigerians. Without any

corollary, Professor David-West isthe choice of every village, town,state and country for themarketing of truth. He has beensaying it all, if specifics should begiven and taken, confronted,questioned upon and concludedand finalized and be implemented.A brilliant man with a good-

looking mind, he has been morejudicious in his critiques of thegovernment’s policies. He speakswith his head, not emotions. He’s awell meaning Nigerian who’ssaying the truth, and asks thosegoverning to better be carefulbefore Almighty God crushes themto death for any form of bestial

governance.May Professor Tam David-West

live long for exhaustively breakingdown and clarifications of nationalissues.Odimegwu Onwumere, Poet/Author, is the Coordinator,Concerned Non-Indigenes InRivers State

David-West’s flaring faith for NigeriaContd. from page 13

By Imam Imam

learn. Physical disabilities are alsooften defined and categorized bysome degree of limitation in the useof upper or lower extremities andmaintaining posture andpositioning.

KidNeeds.com which iscommitted to providing theirvisitors and subscribers with accessto accurate and timelyinformation on a broad range oftopics relative to children withphysical disabilities also providedsound information ondevelopmental disability thus;“The term developmentaldisability commonly refers to asevere and chronic disability that

is often attributable to a mental orphysical impairment that occursprior to age 22”.

“A developmental disabilitycan be expected to continueindefinitely and often presentssignificant challenges to childrenand families. There are fivediagnostic categories associatedwith the term developmentaldisability. They are MentalRetardation, Cerebral Palsy,Epilepsy, Autism, andNeurological Impairments,” theynoted.

“A developmental disabilitycan result in functional limitationsin some of the following areas: self-care; learning; language andcommunication; mobility and

movement; socialization;independence; self-determination”.

“Although developmentaldisabilities generally fall into thesecategories there are manydifferent conditions and diagnosesthat are also defined asdevelopmental disabilities,including spina bifida, musculardystrophy, deafness, visualimpairments, brain and spinalcord injuries, and others”.

It is noteworthy to state herethat just like what experts advisethat we can help our children withdisabilities to communicate andmove if we encourage them to takepart in daily activities. Dressingand bathing can be opportunities

to encourage your child’sdevelopment. Children learn a lotin the first three years, so it’s a goodidea to start as early as possible.

Every child is a human beingwho deserves the protection of his/her human rights. Government atevery level must practically maketransparent and accountableprovision release and use of publicfund for the adequate care and wellbeing of all categories of theNigerian Children. Stakeholders inthe organized private sector mustalso make meaningful andpractical social corporateresponsible contribution towardsestablishing adequate health carefacilities in the different parts ofNigeria and ensure that functional

Who needs autism awareness?Contd. from page 14

health care are effectivelyrendered to our Children who areseriously in need because if wecontinue with the currentmaltreatment and neglect againstour Children then we will breed aset of would-be adults that willinflict revenge violence on thelarger society.

If we allow the Children to growin the streets without care, then ifthey manage to rig their ways tobecome legislators or politicalleaders in the nearest future thenthe future of Nigeria is alreadyjeopardized since these ‘wounded’Children will inevitably inflictdevastating revenge on thesociety.Emmanuel Onwubiko headsHUMAN Rights Writers’Association of Nigeria andwrites fromwww.huriwa.blogspot.com

The Bwari Area Councilhas urged residents ofDutsen Alhaji to be

mindful of the danger inherentin open defecation and otherunhygienic practices.

Three EnvironmentalHealth Officers of the council,Mrs Fasilat Balogun, MrWilliam Kolo and Mr DanbaDanjuma, made the callrecently in Dutsen Alhajiwhile enlightening theresidents on hygienic living.

Balogun condemned opendefecation and stressed theneed for the people to adhereto safety measures to protect them from diseases.

“Open defecation exposeswater and food tocontamination by houseflyand promotes the outbreak ofdiseases such cholera anddiarrhoea.

“It also leads tocontamination of surface andunderground water,” shesaid.

Also contributing,Balogun expressed thecommitment ofEnvironmental HealthOfficers in the council toensuring that landlordsprovided their tenants withtoilets and bathrooms.

According to Danjuma,such facilities will stopresidents from indulging inopen defecation and otherunhygienic practices.

The Hakimi of DutsenAlhaji, Alhaji Abubakar Bako,expressed satisfaction over theenlightenment programme.

Bako, who was representedby his secretary, Mr. HamzatYa‘u, promised to ensure thatresidents of the area compliedwith the control measuresagainst open defecation.(NAN)

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 16

An Abuja Area Court hassentenced a casualworker at Coca-Cola

Company, Idu, Godwin Agi,25, to three months’imprisonment after he pleadedguilty to theft.

However, the judge, MrAhmed Ado, gave him an optionof N30,000 fine.

Agi was arraigned on a one-count-charge of theft.

The prosecutor, Mr EgwuClement, said the offencecontravened Section 289 of thePenal Code.

Clement told the court thatMr Raymond Ubani, who is

working with the company,reported the convict on March23 at the Life Camp PoliceStation.

He said that on March 22,the convict stole two cartons ofcan coke belonging to thecompany.

Clement said that Agi wasarrested by the company’ssecurity guards and the stolenitems recovered from him.

In a related development,the court remanded one EmekaOkeoma, 34, of Kado village inprison for robbery, pendingwhen an application for his bailwould be filed.

The police prosecutor told thecourt that Okeoma committedthe offence contrary to Section298 of the Penal Code.

Clement said that MrSamuel Ukoh, the Manager ofAP Filling Station LifeCamp, lodged a complaintagainst the accused on March24 at the Life Camp PoliceStation.

The prosecutor said therewas a fire outbreak at the fuelstation which made themanager to evacuate N3.19million, the total money madefrom the day sales, and he gaveit to four staff members for safe

Man, 25, pleads guilty to theftkeeping at the head office.

Clement said that on theirway, the accused and nineothers still at large came outfrom the bush and attackedthem with dangerous weapons.

He told the court that,although the nine others madeaway with the money, theaccused was caught andN688,480 was recovered fromhim.

The accused pleaded notguilty.

The judge ordered thesuspect to be remanded in prisoncustody and adjourned the caseto April 12. (NAN)

Residents of Kubwa, asuburb located along theSuleja express way in the

Federal Capital Territory (FCT)yesterday cried out over thestate of the market located inthe community. They insiststhat there is need for the FCTminister, Senator BalaMohammed and other relatedagencies to come to their aidein providing a standard marketbefitting the developingstandard of the community.

Kubwa according to peoplespoken to which happens to beone of the major suburbandistricts in Abuja cannot boastof a market befitting its status.

Peoples Daily findingsobserved that on getting toKubwa village market, one can

Kubwa residents decry state of markethardly tell between the marketand the road, as tradingactivities have almost taken upthe narrow road leading intothe market.

A resident, Mrs GeorginaAbor told Peoples Daily thatthere is the need to relocate andupgrade the market.

Another resident of KubwaVillage, Ralph Asabe noted thatthe traffic congestion along theKubwa market road hasbecome very bad, adding thatthe proximity of the market tothe narrow road was a majorsource of concern for residentsand motorists.

He lamented that thetraffic congestion around themarket was due to theinadequate space for themarket, suggesting that themarket should be relocated to

a bigger site.In his words: “The market

ought to have been relocatedbefore now, because when youvisit the market duringweekends, you will not be ableto pass by because of the trafficcongestion and the activities ofbus drivers who drop and pickpassengers by the roadside,blocking the only access way tothe market.

“Vehicles are not supposedto be double parked. Doubleparking is wrong but in Kubwamarket, the way the vehiclesare parked, when there is anemergency, I doubt if anybodycan survive it, because ifanybody wants to leaveimmediately, they may not beable to make it, which is notgood for a market in a developedsatellite town like Kubwa,” he

added.Asabe lamented the filthy

nature of the market and calledon the FCT Administration towork towards sanitizing it.

“There are a lot ofattachments in the market andthis makes it look even dirtier.People selling fairly used clothestake over the entire road side,especially in the evening and ifthere is brake failure from avehicle around there, you canonly imagine the disaster thatwould occur”, he said.

Mr James Akintade, abutcher in the marketexplained to our reporter thatthe bad state of the marketaffect their sales, lamentingthat consumers mostly don’tlike entering the market,because of the bad smellemanating out of the market.

By Adeola Tukuru

Open defecation:Bwari AreaCouncilsensitisesresidents

“Some customers call us onour phones to bring the meatfor them in their respectivehouses, because they keepcomplaining that they cannotenter the market because ofhow disorganized the market is. We have contributed a lot ofmoney to ensure that themarket is put on order but ithas turned out to be worse,especially now that it’s rainingseason”.

“We don’t know what ourgovernment, especially thechairman of Bwari, Hon PeterYohanna and the FCT ministeris doing to help we residents ofkubwa, in terms of good road,befitting market and provisionof other facilities, it is sounfortunate that we voted thispeople in, but now they are notpaying attention us”, he said.

The driver of this bus was in total confusion as his vehicle got engulfed in a tick smoke, yesterday at City Gate, Abuja. He was, however,lucky as sympathisers rallied round to put out the fire. Photo: Joe Oroye

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 17

Man hawking children's wares, at Karmo, recently in Abuja. Scavenger pushing his truck along Kuje road, yesterday in Abuja. Photos: Mahmud Isa

Drinks hawker pushing his bicycle after it had flat tyre, yesterday at Apo village, Abuja.

Road constructions going on along Gwagwalada, yesterday in Abuja.

Scavenger out for business along Masaka/Keffi road last Friday.

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 18

Demolition: Court ruleson contempt case, April 17An FCT High Court sitting

in Gwagwalada onFriday fixed April 17 for

ruling in a contempt suit filedagainst the FCT Minister, Sen.Bala Mohammed and fiveothers.

The suit was filed over thedemolition of Gwagwalada MainMarket.

The plaintiffs, Mr MusaMohammed and 52 othertraders in the market filed thesuit through their counsel, MrMichael Ayam, challenging thedemolition in spite of asubsisting court order.

Other defendants in the suitare Gwagwalada Area Council

Chairman, the Federal CapitalDevelopment Authority, theChairman, Market Motor ParkDevelopment Committee,Finamedia Global Services Ltd.and Gwagwalada Area Council.

Justice Mwoda Balami, hadon Feb. 11, 2010, granted anorder restraining thedefendants from demolishingthe market pending thedetermination of thesubstantive suit before thecourt following an applicationfiled by the plaintiffs.

At the resumed hearing ofthe case, the plaintiffs’ counselsought for an order committingthe defendants to prison for

disobedience to the order of thecourt.

Ayam urged the court torestrain the defendants fromclearing or erecting building onthe demolished site by thedefendants pending thedetermination of thesubstantive suit before thecourt.

He also sought for an orderfor exemplary damages forlosses caused to his clients bythe demolition of all the shopscovered by the court order.

Ayam urged the court togrant his application to restorerespect for Rule of Law and toserve as deterrent to others

wishing to disobey court orders.Mr Chima Ede, counsel to the

minister, had objected to theplaintiffs’ application ongrounds that it was defectiveand incompetent in law.

He faulted the application onthe grounds that service was noteffected on his client personallyas required by law since therewas no order for substitutedservice granted by the court.

Ede urged the court to refusethe application and hold thatthe order was not duly servedon his client in line with therequirement of the law.

The Judgeadjourned rulingin the case to April 17. (NAN)

An evening fire, Sundaynight, gutted some shopsin Masaka Ultra Modern

market, a suburb of the FCTlocated in Nasarawa state.

Fire raze shops in Masaka marketEyewitnesses said the fireresulted from an explosion of atransformer at the entrance ofthe market. A hair stylist in thearea, Comfort Akpoga said thefire started at about 8.pm, whileextending to the main market,

where it razed the affected shops.According to her, the shopsinclude a rice shop and a rechargecard shop, where the traders aredeal in wholesale commodities. Shesaid that the incident causedresident shop owners to look for

The Abuja EnvironmentalProtection Board (AEPB)has expressed worry over

the menace of hawkers andmiscreants around the Area 1informal market in the city.

The Director of the Board,Mr Isa Shuiabu, said this inAbuja recently, during anenvironmental inspection ofthe area.

Shuaibu said that thepresence of miscreantsposed security threats to thelives and properties ofresidents.

It would be recalled thatAEPB had on January3 dislodged hawkers andmiscreants from the area butthey resurfaced shortly after.

He said that the boardwould take drastic measures tocurb the menace of hawkers,adding that it would no longercondone hawking in the city.

“I don’t like the situationwhere people will sympathisewith them but when theycause trouble for them, theywill say that government is notworking.

“If you do your job, peoplewill say human rights, if youdon’t do your job, they will saysecurity risk; you better dowhat will not jeopardise thesecurity of the city.”

Shuiabu said that theconfiscated items would bedestroyed, adding that theoperation would be sustained toensure clean and safeenvironment.

He said that the populationof hawkers in that location wasfar more than the legaloccupants of the area, addingthat it was more of underagechildren.

The director called on themanagement of the informalmarket not to accommodatethe hawkers but to report anyillegal activities to the police orthe board for immediateaction.

“We have tolerated themfor a very long time; we will nolonger tolerate them if they failto take action concerning theactivities of hawkers aroundthe market.

“The administration wouldbe left with no choice than toremove the market.

“We allow them to be thereout of pity but if they fail to dosomething about theenvironment, we will takeaction for security reasons.”

He said the operation wouldbe carried out in four zones inthe city namely Wuse market,Banex plaza, AYA junction andArea 1.

The Secretary of the Area 1informal market, Mr AuduGas, called for the assistance ofthe board to see that thehawkers did not come back tothe location again. (NAN

AEPB expressesworry overmenace ofhawkers,miscreants atArea I

By Josephine Ella ways and means of safeguardingtheir wares from the ravaginginferno. But for the quickintervention of some of theresidents, who made frantic effortsto put off the fire, more shops wouldhave been razed, Akpoga said.

Raring or trading with hyena? This man was caught by our cameraman along Shehu Shagari Way, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Muhmad Isa

The police on Monday,April 2nd arraigned atan Abuja magistrate

court for forgery of license ofthe nursing and midwiferycouncil of Nigeria and signedfor one of their distinguished

Pregnant woman arraigned for forgery impersonationmembers.

The accused, MarieOphushcure of Karu, Abujawas reported by one Rev.Simon Asemota of Diff hospitalto have been working with thehospital with the photocopy ofa certificate bearing MariaIgubor and was caught whenasked to produce the original

copy of the certificate duringa verification exercise ofmembers of staff embarked onby the management.

During the investigation ofthe police in the case, Maryconfessed to haveimpersonated Maria Iguborwhile also accepting to haveforged the practicing license.

By Morufat Ojulari The accused begged forleniency and promised neverto indulge in such practiceagain.

The trial magistrate,Okeagwu Azubuike convictedthe accused and sentenced herto 5 months imprisonment orpay ten thousand naira as anoption of fine.

PAGE 19PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Management Tip of the DayFind a job by changing the way you network

You have more contacts than youthink. Consider former classmates,former colleagues, clients, andcommunity acquaintances. Whenyou make a contact, ask forintroductions to others.

View discussions as learningopportunities. Approachmeetings as conversations, not

interviews. Ask about more thanjobs. Ask about the industry, howto succeed, and how to positionyourself.

Keep good records. Connectingwith many people can becomplicated. After each meeting,write down what you learned andwhat you'll do as a result.

INSIDE

The best way to find a job isthrough networking. But,don't limit your outreach to

close friends and currentcolleagues. Cast a wide net andreach people beyond yourimmediate circle. Here are threesteps to do that:

Broadly define your network.

BUYING SELLING

CFA 0.294 0.314• 206.819 208.1528£ 247.4292 249.0249RIYAL 41.3449 41.6116$ 155.06 156.06

CBN 27th Mar, 2012

EXCHANGE RATES

PARALLEL RATES

BUYING SELLING

• 210 212£ 255 257RIYAL 40 42$ 158 159

NNPC, IOCs toboost up supply

chain management

- Pg 20

Email: amunuimam@yahoo.co.uk Mob: 08033644990

BBBBBUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSIslamic bank aidsNigeria’s dev with N310bn

Flight schedule

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

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

ABJ-KANO: 18.40

KANO-ABJ: 08.35

ABJ-SOK (MON): 09.35

SOK-ABJ (MON): 11.35

LOS-ABJ: 06.50, 13.30, 19.45

ABU-LOS: 07.30, 13.00, 14.00, 19.00

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

ABJ-LOS: 07.20, 09.36, 13.05, 14.40

LOS-ABJ: 9.45, 11.45, 2.45

IRS AIRLINES

AIR NIGERIA (MONDAY - SUNDAY)

DANA AIRLINES (MON - SUN)

AEROCONTRACTORS (MON - SUN)

ABJ-SOK (FRI): 10.10

ABJ-SOK (WED/SUN): 11.20

SOK-ABJ (FRI): 12.00

SOK-ABJ (WED/SUN): 13.20

LOS-ABJ (SUN): 12.30

LOS-ABJ (SAT): 16.45

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

ABU-LOS (SAT): 18.30

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

LOS-KANO: 08.10

KANO-LOS: 11.25KANO-ABUJA: 11.25

ABUJA-KANO: 10.08

ABJ-LOS: 11.30, 3.45, 4.45

LOS-KANO: 6.15LOS-KANO (SAT/SUN): 16.30KANO-LOS: 07.30KANO-LOS (SUN/SUN): 10.30

The Islamic Development Bank(IDB) has set aside about N310billion to support the

implementation of Nigeria'stransformation agenda for a two-year period, between 2012 and2014.

Vice-President Namadi Samborevealed this in his keynote addresstitled: "African DevelopmentExperience: What SuccessfulExperiences to Replicate and Scaleup," during the special meeting ofAfrican Governors Forum on theSpecial Programme for theDevelopment of Africa (SPDA),yesterday in Khartoum, Sudan.

SPDA is an initiative of IDB forthe acceleration of developmentobjectives in African membercountries.

While explaining the coreprovisions of the transformationagenda, he thanked the IDBPresident, Dr. Ahmad MohammedAli, for this development.

The Vice-President told hisaudience that the agenda itself wasanchored on five pillars includingaccelerating and sustainingeconomic growth; improving andmodernizing infrastructure;strengthening human capital stockand enhancing access to socialservices; improving governance andincreasing competitiveness;reinforcing social cohesion and main-streaming cross cutting issues.

He noted the problems of

developing countries and the effortsto address them particularly inAfrica, pointing out thatImplementation reviews hadconfirmed that significant privatesector participation and financialsupport from development partnerswere critical, especially in thePriority Action Plan.

Vice-President Sambo observedthat on the political and social fronts,the African continent was stillevolving and reeling from somecomplex and multi-dimensionalchallenges especially how toeradicate poverty and providedecent and better lives andopportunities for the teemingpopulation across the continent.

According to him, "it is on recordthat Africa is the only region in theworld that is off-track in achievingmost of the targets set in theMillennium Development Goalsparticularly in the areas of themainstream inclusive growth,provision of basic services(infrastructure, water, sanitation,education and hospitals) andreversion of the spread of diseases,tackling of poverty, job creation andsecurity.

"African countries cannot do allthese things alone; they need helpand assistance from developmentpartners. The prospect of thisveritable source of support is fastbecoming less reliable, no thanks tothe failure so far, tocomprehensively resolve the highincidence of debts and deficits in

Japan, United States of America andsome European Union membercountries.

"The unpalatable fallout of thissudden shock is the declining flow ofgrants and Foreign DirectInvestments to the continent ofAfrica."

To address this gap therefore, hesaid, African countries were left nooption than to embark on far-reaching economic transformationpolicies designed to promote privatesector driven growth, strengthenregional integration, facilitate cross-border trade and harness economiesof scale."

Noting that Nigeria was in thesecond year of its Medium Term(2011-2015) DevelopmentStrategy (MTDs), he stressed thatthe MTDs spelled out the keymilestones of the transformationagenda which he said drewinspiration from our vision20:2020.

On the SPDA-I, which covers theperiod 2008-2012, Sambo observedthat it had proved to be a remarkableinitiative of the IDB as it has madeappreciable impact on povertyreduction and promotion ofsustainable economic growth whilealso supporting regional integrationin African member countries.

He said it was encouraging tonote that so far the Bank hadcommitted about $8 billion under theprogram, while SPDA-II, theenvisaged successor is to span anotherfive years (2013-2017).

Naira gains on oilfirms’ dollar salesThe Naira gained

marginally against theU.S dollar on the interbank

market and at the bi-weeklyforeign exchange auctionyesterday, supported by about$240 million in dollar sales bythree local units of energycompanies.

The Naira appreciated to157.65 to the dollar on theinterbank market, versus the157.70 a dollar it closed at onFriday.

Traders said units of RoyalDutch Shell, Chevron andExxonMobil sold around $240million to some lenders on Monday,boosting dollar liquidity in themarket and providing support forthe local currency.

At the bi-weekly auction, thecentral bank sold $100 million at155.90 to the dollar, compared with

$150 million sold at 156.01 to thedollar at the previous auction onWednesday.

"The Naira should hover aroundthe present level or appreciate alittle for the better part of this weekbecause of the expected dollar salesby the Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation (NNPC),"one dealer said.(Reuters)

L-R: Managing Director, Commerz Bank (Africa), Florian Witts, Managing Director, Financial DerivativesCompany Limited (FDC), Bismarck Rewane, CEO, African Finance Corporation, Andrew Alli, GMD/CEO,UBA Plc, Phillips Oduoza, CEO, Rencap West Africa, Yvonne Ike, Deputy Governor of CBN, SuleimanBarau, CEO, Nigerian Stock Exchange, Oscar Onyema, and Partner Roland Berger Consultants, ChristianWessels, during the Africa Investors Conference, recently in Berlin, Germany.

Ecobank net profitclimbs 57 pct in 2011

Pan-African EcobankTransnational yesterdaysaid its 2011 net profits hit

$206.8 million, up 57 percentfrom $131.8 million in2010.(Reuters)

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

Dangote Cementplans Londonlisting

President/Chief Executiveofficer of Dangote Group,Aliko Dangote plans to list his

$11 billion cement business,Dangote Cement, on the LondonStock Exchange next year, theFinancial Times (FT) reportedyesterday.

Dangote is cited by the FT assaying he intends to free-float a 20percent stake in Dangote Cement tofinance its rapid expansion.

"We want to list in London nextyear. By then the upside to ourbusiness will be much bigger thantoday," Dangote is quoted as saying.

Morgan Stanley and JPMorganhave been appointed as co-leads forthe London share issue, according tothe Financial Times.

Dangote is cited as saying thecompany was on track to meet thecorporate governancerequirements for a premium listing,and that he would give up hiscurrent role as chairman. (Reuters)

S/N BENEFICIARIES SUB-TOTAL (N)

1 FG (52.68%)States (26.72%)L/govt Councils (20.72%)Derivation (13% of Mineralrevenue-oil/gas)Value Added Tax (VAT)& Transfers 620.7 billion

FAAC allocation for the month of March 2012

PAGE 20 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

SON shutswarehouses overfake ballpoint pens

Standards Organisation ofNigeria (SON) has sealedoff warehouses involved in

the sharp practice of sellingsubstandard ballpoint pens inLagos.

Skye Bank initiates‘open house' for e-banking

Skye Bank Plc has adoptedan innovative way ofintroducing e-banking

services to its customers.

CBN explains roleof NIRSAL tofarmers,stakeholders

The Central Bank ofNigeria (CBN) hasexplained that Nigeria

Incentive Risk Sharing ofAgricultural Lending (NIRSAL)would be a risk-sharing barrierbetween banks, farmers andstakeholders in espect ofagriculture lending.

NDIC seeks role inappointment ofbank directors

The Nigeria DepositInsurance Corporation(NDIC) will seek

collaboration to control theappointment of BoardMembers of Banks in Nigeria.

Investors stakeN101.6b on FGNbonds in one week

Transactions on FGN bondsthrough the Over-The-Counter (OTC) market last

week recorded a turnover of 116million units worthN101.6billion in 1,029 deals,compared with a total of 91.23million units valued atN75.1billion exchanged in 875 .

World’s richestnow $13bnricher

The 20 richest people onEarth gained a combined$12.5 billion at the

weekend, as Brazilian EikeBatista's net worth surged $7.2billion after he sold a stake inhis commodities empire.

Nigeria, S.Koreaconsider diplomacyin resolving oilblocs’ dispute

The Federal Governmentand KNOC, a SouthKorean oil company, may

have opted for an out-of-courtsettlement over dispute on twooil wells in the country-OPL 321and OPL-323, after almost sevenyears' standoff.

COMPANYNEWS

Jos electricity distribution firm. CEOlaments neglect in nation’s power sector

The Chief Executive Officer,Jos Electricity DistributionCompany, Barr. (Mrs) Vera

Ngozi Osuhor has attributed thelong decay in the nation's powersector as responsible for the slowtransformation witnessed in thesector.

Mrs. Osuhor, who made thiscontention in Makurdi at theweekend, during a visit tocommission Power HoldingCompany of Nigeria (PHCN) projectsin the state, added that the companyis grappling with aged distribution

network that requires a lot of moneyto fix.

She said the present governmentis determined to ensure that thesystem works and appealed toNigerians to be patient.

"We have allowed this decay inthe sector over a long time. It will beinhuman to think thattransformation will take place veryfast. The system is coming back andgovernment is determined to ensurethat the system works. There wouldbe light at the end of the dark tunnel",she stated optimistically.

The CEO lauded the Benue statebusiness unit for the giant strides

S/Africaconsidersnuclear fuelcycle facilities

South Africa is mulling there-establishment of itsuranium enrichment and

conversion facilities, which weredismantled during the apartheid era,as it seeks to secure fuel for a new fleetof nuclear power stations.

The country, Africa's largesteconomy, which announced morethan 40 years ago that it would enrichuranium as part of a military-linkedstrategy during the Cold War, wantsanother 9,600 megawatts of nuclearenergy to help shore up a power gridunder pressure from rising demandand decades of under investment.

The country's nuclear energycorporation, NECSA, is beingencouraged to revive its participationin the nuclear value chain - includingenrichment, conversion and nuclearfuel manufacturing - to reduce SouthAfrica's current dependence onimported reactor fuels.

The country has some of theworld's largest uranium deposits andthe new nuclear fleet is likely to use465 metric tonnes of enricheduranium a year by 2030.((Reuters))

L-R: President, Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Dr. Theo Okonkwo, withAirtel Zonal, Business Manager, South-Central, Mr Abidemi Ajagbe, during Airtel’s Special Day, at theon-going Enugu International Trade Fair, recently in Enugu.

NUPENG strike paralysesNLNG operations

The Nigeria Union ofPetroleum and NaturalGas Workers (NUPENG),

South-South zone hascommenced a three-daywarning strike at the weekend,resulting to the paralysis ofoperations of the NigeriaLiquefied and Natural Gas(NLNG).

This is sequel to theexpiration of the 14-dayultimatum which expired onFebruary 28, issued byNUPENG to the managementof some foreign firms to theNLNG.

It was noted that the dailyoperations at the NLNGlocations in Bonny and PortHarcourt have been disruptedwhile only skeletal services were

By Muhammad Nasir being provided byadministrative staff.

It was also revealed that thePort Harcout zone of theNUPENG, comprising 10 statesof Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa,Imo, Cross River, Enugu,Anambra, Abia, and Ebonyi hadcalled out its members on awarning strike after emergencycouncil meeting in the riversstate capital last Thursday.

From Uche Nnorom, Makurdi achieved in erection of a customercare unit as well as thecommencement of the Pre-paidMeter (PPM).

She contended that the PPM willgo a long way to strengthen the lifespan of overloaded transformers inthe State, noting that the unit hasalready commenced refencing toensure electricity consumers beginusage of the PPM.

Mrs. Osuhor sued for cooperationfrom the over 1,400 customers whohave applied for the PPM, even asshe warned them against by-passing the meter which attracts afine of N50,000.

NNPC, IOCs to boost upsupply chain management

Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation,NNPC has maintained that

it will sustain and ensure theprudent supply chainmanagement in the Nigeria oiland gas Industry.

This was disclosed by theGroup managing Director ofthe NNPC, Engineer AustinOniwon during a workshop onsupply chain managementbetween the corporation and the

International Oil Companies(IOCs)in Abuja, that, in the face of theglobal business competition, thecorporation would keep adoptingprocesses and procedures thatwould impact positively in theNigerian economy.

Engineer Oniwon, who wasrepresented by the Group ExecutiveDirector, Engineering andTechnology, Engineer Billy Aghamaintained that the corporationwould employ prudent spendingmeasures in its supply chainmanagement so as to deliver value

By Muhammad Nasir for money in the competitive globalbusiness environment.

"This workshop would help theNNPC and the other IOC's to rubminds on the best way to managethe supply chain in the Nigerianoil and gas industry and it will helpparticipants to acquire moreethical issues synonymous withacquisition of assets, share bestpractices amongst professionals toguarantee efficiency in theindustry and ensure theapplication of Governmentprocesses and procedures,"

Auchi consumersowe N600m toPHCN

The Auchi business unit ofPower Holding Company ofNigeria (PHCN) says that

electricity consumers in the districtare owing the company more thanN600 million.

The spokesman of the company,Mr. Edekin Oarhe told the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterdayin Auchi that federal and stateparastatals in the area including thearmy and the police were among themajor debtors of the company, owingthe company more than N158.94million, while the Edo stategovernment and local governmentareas owed N12.6 million and N307,591.52 respectively.

Oarhe added that residentialhouses and other businesses in the areaalso owed the company and expressedconcern at the continued refusal of themajor debtors to pay up.

Urging the debtors to urgently andpromptly settle their bills, thespokesman, however, said the federalagencies and the state governmenthad set out to offset part of their bills.He condemned the incessantharassment of the company's staffmandated to recover the debt bycustomers and also appealed to theFederal Government to ensure thecompletion of the National IntegratedPower Project (NIPP) project in thearea.

According to him, most customersdid not always want to respondbecause of the situation of power supplyin the area. "We know that powersupply in the area is not what it usedto be but we appeal to them to assistthe utility company by paying uptheir bills. "We also call on the FederalGovernment to complete the NIPPproject in the area as it will boost powersupply to the area".

By Muhammad Sada with agencyreport

PAGE 21PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

NNPC vows to rehabilitate 3 refineries

The Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation(NNPC) has vowed to

rehabilitate the three refineriesin the country.

This was disclosed by theGroup Managing Director of theCorporation, Mr. Austin Oniwon,represented by the ExecutiveDirector, Port Harcourt Refinery,Mr. Dominic Ikpemauzu inEnugu at the recently held 23rdEnugu International Trade Fair.

He maintained that therehabilitation has become

necessary in order to increase thedomestic refining and stemproducts importation, addingthat the refineries are located inPort Harcourt, Warri and Kadunawith a combined capacity of445,000 barrels per stream day.

The GMD said the NNPC hadengaged the services of theoriginal engineeringprocurement and constructioncontractors who built the threerefineries.

Oniwon noted that thecontractors had inspected thethree refineries and produced theanalyses on how the plants could

be revamped to achieve 90 percent capacity utilisation in thenext two years.

He reiterated that otherinfrastructure being put inplace by the corporation to drivethe economy includes theconclusion of feasibility studieson the Greenfield refineries andrehabilitation of productpipelines such as Kaduna toKano, Kaduna to Gusau andKaduna to Suleja.

"It should be noted that allour efforts to build facilities inthe downstream sector areaimed at increasing local refining

to a minimum of 60 per cent oflocal consumption by 2013 and100 per cent by 2015", heenthused.

Meanwhile, the President ofEnugu Chamber of Commerce,Industry, Mines and Agriculture(ECCIMA), Dr. Theo Okonkwo,addressed the problems facingthe deregulation of thedownsteam sector as well asseeking the support of the privatesector toward the deregulationhoping that it would be carriedout with strategic and tacticalapproach to reduce negativeimpact on the people.

S/Africa’s Iranian oil imports soar in Feb.South African crude oil

imports from Iran leapt inFebruary, to $364 million

from zero the preceding month,customs data showed yesterday,dashing the view that Pretoria hasbowed to U.S. pressure to curbcommercial links with Tehran.

The Revenue Service saidAfrica's biggest economy imported417,000 tonnes of Iranian crudein February, a dramatic reversalof a declining trend seen sinceOctober, when it imported467,000 tonnes.

South Africa has come underWestern pressure to cut Iraniancrude imports as part of sanctionsdesigned to halt Tehran'ssuspected pursuit of nuclearweapons, although it has beenunclear how diplomatically non-aligned Pretoria is responding.

Senior energy and foreignministry officials directlycontradicted each other lastmonth as to the status of Iranianimports.

However, January trade andcustoms data showed Iranian

L-R: Pioneer Managing Director, Sigma Pensions Limited, Alhaji Adamu Modibbo, Chairman, Audit Committee, Sigma Pensions Limited,Alhaji Mohammed Jalingo, Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Sigma Pensions, Alhaji Umar Modibbo, and Chairman, Board ofDirectors, Alhaji Rasaki Oladejo, during the 7th Annual General Meeting of Sigma Pensions, at the weekend in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

All companies in theextractive sectors havebeen advised to comply

fully with the on-going NigeriaIndustries TransparencyInitiative (NEITI) industry auditsor face severe sanctions.

This was disclosed by theExecutive Secretary of the NEITI,Mrs. Zainab Ahmed on Fridaywhile receiving the ManagingDirector of Shell Petroleum, Mr.Mutiu Sonmonu, who paid acourtesy visit to NEITI Secretariatin Abuja.

Ahmad noted that NEITIexpects all companies to promptlypay in full what they are expectedto pay to government in terms ofroyalty, profit tax, signaturebonuses, tax, and other levies. Allcompanies, she said, must also beprepared to disclose thesepayments to NEITI during the on-going independent industryaudits of the oil and gas sector andsolid minerals industry.

She maintained thatcompliance to NEITI industryaudits is not only statutory,lawful but mandatory, andreminded all companies thatfailure to comply will attractsevere sanctions in line with thelaw that setup NEITI.

NEITI adviseserringcompanies onindustry auditsBy Muhammad Nasir

The Petroleum TechnologyAssociation of Nigeria(PETAN) has called for the

urgent intervention of theNigerian Content Developmentand Monitoring Board (NCDMB)to arrest what it described as braindrain in Nigeria's oil and gassector.

This was disclosed by theFinancial Secretary of PETAN,Chris Onyekwere, who accusedmultinational oil servicecompanies of illegally poachingand exporting skilled Nigerianworkers trained by indigenous oilcompanies.

Onyekwere urged theregulatory authorities in theNigerian oil and gas sector to alsointervene on the matter becausethe action of the multinationalcompanies has created technicalgaps in the sector, therebyundermining government'sintentions of developing contentin the industry.

He also criticised themultinational service companiesfor not training their Nigerianstaff, but noted that PETAN, asthe umbrella body of allindigenous oil service companiesin the country, will continue toinvest in capacity development.

He disclosed that three localcompanies mainly have been hitby the poaching strategies of themultinationals.

Associationdecries skillsdepletion in oil &gas sectorBy Muhammad Nasir

By Muhammad Nasir

crude imports at zero comparedwith a monthly average of $280million last year.

Iran has been South Africa'sbiggest crude supplier,accounting for a quarter of its oilimports.

The biggest South Africanbuyer of Iranian crude is Engen,majority-owned by Malaysiannational oil company Petronas .Engen has not commented, but aPetronas source told Reuters lastmonth. Engen had stoppedbuying Iranian oil from March.

Petrochemicals group, Sasol,which took 12,000 barrels ofIranian oil a day, says its hasalready found new suppliers buthas not named them.

In January, trade figuresshowed a spike in imports fromSaudi Arabia, Qatar and Ecuador,suggesting they were being usedas alternative suppliers to Iran.

In February, Saudi Arabia wasSouth Africa's biggest supplier,with 582,000 tonnes of crude,followed by Iran, Nigeria, Angolaan Ecuador. (Reuters)

DPR, Norway renew bi-lateral pactThe Department of PetroleumResources (DPR) and theNorwegian PetroleumDirectorate (NPD) has signed abi-lateral pact aimed atexploring the growingopportunities in the oil and gassector of both countries.The pact is aimed atdiscovering means ofreconstituting the institutionalcooperation that existedbetween both countries in theoil and gas sector since the year2000 when the initialMemorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) was

signed.It was noted that the agreementwas signed by the oil ministersof both countries at the timewhich expired in 2010 and itcovered technical cooperationin areas such as dataacquisition and managementResources and metering.Meanwhile, the NigerianExtractive IndustriesTransparency Initiative(NEITI) had also joined DPR andNPD in a tripartitearrangement to strengtheni n t e r - d e p a r t m e n t a lcooperation in achieving thenational objective of ensuringtransparency and

accountability in the processesof yielding optimum revenuefor the nation from oil and gas.The Executive Secretary ofNEITI, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed,who led the team, expressed herappreciation to the DPRmanagement for extendingunbridled cooperation to NEITIover the years, stating thatNEITI's progress in its mandatewas due in part to theassistance given by DPRespecially in the area of dataavailability through DPR'sNDR platform.It was agreed that DPR shouldoptimally support thedevelopment of relevant

capacity of NEITI in the use ofthe available data on the NDRplatform and to continue tosupport periodic auditactivities of NEITI by supplyingall relevant informationrequired, as well as develop aNEITI data portal at the NDRfor seamless access to relevantproduction.It was also agreed that, in orderto further bolster this new pactand to ensure that it got fullstrategic support critical to itsenduring success, the RoyalNorwegian Embassy in Abujawould be fully incorporatedinto the organisationalstructure at the steering level.

By Muhammad Nasir

PAGE 22 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Hats off to Ngozi

When economists from theWorld Bank visit poorcountries to dispense

cash and advice, they routinelytell governments to rejectcronyism and fill each importantjob with the best candidateavailable. It is good advice. TheWorld Bank should take it. Inappointing its next president, thebank's board should reject thenominee of its most influentialshareholder, America, and pickNigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

The World Bank is the world'spremier developmentinstitution. Its boss needsexperience in government, ineconomics and in finance (it is abank, after all). He or she shouldhave a broad record indevelopment, too. Ms Okonjo-Iweala has all these attributes,and Colombia's José AntonioOcampo has a couple. By contrastJim Yong Kim, the Americanpublic-health professor whomBarack Obama wants to imposeon the bank, has at most one.

Ms Okonjo-Iweala is in hersecond stint as Nigeria's financeminister. She has not brokenNigeria's culture of corruption-anAugean task-but she has soberedup its public finances and injecteda measure of transparency. Sheled the Paris Club negotiations toreschedule her country's debt andearned rave reviews asmanaging director of the WorldBank in 2007-11. Hers is the CVof a formidable public economist.

Mr Ocampo was also financeminister, though his time inoffice, 1996-98, saw the budgetdeficit balloon. He ran the mildlystatist UN Economic Commissionfor Latin America and theCaribbean. His is the CV of theinternational bureaucrat.

Mr Kim, the head of auniversity in New England, hasdone a lot of good things in his life,but the closest he has come torunning a global body was ashead of HIV/AIDS at the WorldHealth Organisation-not a postrequiring tough choices between,say, infrastructure, health andeducation. He pioneered trials ofaid programmes before theybecame fashionable and set up anoutfit called Partners in Healthwhich does fine work in Haiti andPeru. But this is a charity, not adevelopment bank. Had MrObama not nominated him, hewould be on no one's shortlist tolead the World Bank. (Indeed heis a far worse example of Westernarrogance than ChristineLagarde, whom the Europeansshoehorned into the IMF job lastyear: the French financeminister plainly had the CV forthe job.)

Ms Okonjo-Iweala is anorthodox economist, which manywill hold against her. But if there

Challengers for World Bank leadership ask for ‘a fair chance’

Nigeria's finance minister,Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala isAfrica's standard-bearer

in the contest to become WorldBank president. Jose AntonioOcampo, a former Colombianfinance minister, is beingchampioned by South America.

Both say they are betterqualified for the job than theAmerican candidate tapped byPresident Obama last week. Butbeyond that, each says the otherwould be better than Obama'spick.

The White House nominatedDartmouth College PresidentJim Yong Kim for the top WorldBank post, instantly making himthe front-runner to replaceRobert Zoellick when he leavesoffice in June. Under agentleman's agreement thatgoes back 60 years, the U.S.government gets to name theWorld Bank chief. But this timearound, the American pick - andthe U.S. prerogative - are beingaggressively challenged.

ANALYSIS

A golden opportu-nity for the rest ofthe world to showBarack Obamathe meaning ofmeritocracy

is one thing the world hasdiscovered about povertyreduction in the past 15 years, itis that development is notsomething rich countries do topoor ones. It is something poorcountries manage forthemselves, mainly by the sortof policies that Ms Okonjo-Iwealahas pursued with some success inNigeria.

Mr Kim's views ondevelopment are harder todivine. But what can be gleaned

is worrying. In an introductionto a 2000 book called "Dying forGrowth", he wrote that "the questfor growth in GDP and corporateprofits has in fact worsened thelives of millions of men andwomen", quoted Noam Chomskyand praised Cuba for "prioritisingsocial equity". Were Mr Kimhoping to lead Occupy WallStreet, such views would beunremarkable. But the purposesof the World Bank, according toits articles of agreement, are "to

promote private foreigninvestment…[and to] encourageinternational investment for thedevelopment of the productiveresources of members." The Bankpromotes growth because growthhelps the poor. If Mr Kimdisagrees, he should stick tomedicine.

Ready. Steady. NgoFor almost 70 years, the

leadership of the IMF and WorldBank has been subject to anindefensible carve-up. The head of

the IMF is European; the WorldBank, American. This shabbytradition has persisted because ithas not been worth picking a fightover. The gap between Mr Kim andMs Okonjo-Iweala changes thecalculation. It gives others a chanceto insist on the best candidate, notsimply the American one. MrOcampo should bow outgracefully. And the rest of theworld should rally round MsOkonjo-Iweala. May the bestwoman win. (The Economist)

In interviews, Okonjo-Iwealaand Ocampo acknowledged thatKim has unquestioned expertisein public health. But they saidpublic health is a narrow slice ofwhat the World Bank does andan issue that many other globalorganizations address.

"He is known as a healthexpert who has helpeddeveloping countries and I havegreat respect for what he hasbeen able to do. When you lookat my experience you can see Ihave breadth and depth,"Okonjo-Iweala said in atelephone interview this weekfrom Delhi, where she wasworking to gather support for hercandidacy. "You cannot just lookat health and view developmentthrough that lens, or just atagriculture or manufacturing -there are so many inter-relationships."

Okonjo-Iweala, a formerWorld Bank managing director,says she would make theinstitution faster to respond

when countries need help if shewere chosen as its next president.She would also increase its focuson creating jobs and addressingthe massive need for roads, portsand other infrastructure in thedeveloping world.

Ocampo, speaking by phonefrom his home in New York,where he teaches at ColumbiaUniversity, said: "We are talkingabout the major developmentinstitution in the world. I cansafely say that if they want toevaluate the candidates on theirexperience in development thereis no question the financeminister of Nigeria and myselfhave a clear advantage."

Ocampo, who has also been asenior U.N. official and prolificacademic, says he would putemphasis on helping poor andmiddle-income countriesmanage the effects of climatechange. He says he would alsorepresent a bridge between theWorld Bank's practical focus andthe new ideas brewing in

academia.Kim, a physician and founder

of the Partners in Healthprogram, is on a world "listeningtour" to further his owncandidacy. U.S. Treasury officialsare accompanying him and saidhe was not available for aninterview. In a letter to WorldBank directors, who will choosethe new president, TreasurySecretary, Timothy F. Geithnerasked them to support the U.S.candidate. Geithner said Kim"brings the combination ofexperience, innovation and drivethat will best serve the bank."

Both Okonjo-Iweala andOcampo said they want theirnominations to prompt anearnest debate on the 25-memberexecutive board about who ismost qualified. The threecandidates are to be interviewedseparately on April 9, 10 and 11,with a decision expected beforeWorld Bank spring meetings thatbegin April 20.(Source: Washington Post)

Nigeria's Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

PAGE 21PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

NNPC vows to rehabilitate 3 refineries

The Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation(NNPC) has vowed to

rehabilitate the three refineriesin the country.

This was disclosed by theGroup Managing Director of theCorporation, Mr. Austin Oniwon,represented by the ExecutiveDirector, Port Harcourt Refinery,Mr. Dominic Ikpemauzu inEnugu at the recently held 23rdEnugu International Trade Fair.

He maintained that therehabilitation has become

necessary in order to increase thedomestic refining and stemproducts importation, addingthat the refineries are located inPort Harcourt, Warri and Kadunawith a combined capacity of445,000 barrels per stream day.

The GMD said the NNPC hadengaged the services of theoriginal engineeringprocurement and constructioncontractors who built the threerefineries.

Oniwon noted that thecontractors had inspected thethree refineries and produced theanalyses on how the plants could

be revamped to achieve 90 percent capacity utilisation in thenext two years.

He reiterated that otherinfrastructure being put inplace by the corporation to drivethe economy includes theconclusion of feasibility studieson the Greenfield refineries andrehabilitation of productpipelines such as Kaduna toKano, Kaduna to Gusau andKaduna to Suleja.

"It should be noted that allour efforts to build facilities inthe downstream sector areaimed at increasing local refining

to a minimum of 60 per cent oflocal consumption by 2013 and100 per cent by 2015", heenthused.

Meanwhile, the President ofEnugu Chamber of Commerce,Industry, Mines and Agriculture(ECCIMA), Dr. Theo Okonkwo,addressed the problems facingthe deregulation of thedownsteam sector as well asseeking the support of the privatesector toward the deregulationhoping that it would be carriedout with strategic and tacticalapproach to reduce negativeimpact on the people.

S/Africa’s Iranian oil imports soar in Feb.South African crude oil

imports from Iran leapt inFebruary, to $364 million

from zero the preceding month,customs data showed yesterday,dashing the view that Pretoria hasbowed to U.S. pressure to curbcommercial links with Tehran.

The Revenue Service saidAfrica's biggest economy imported417,000 tonnes of Iranian crudein February, a dramatic reversalof a declining trend seen sinceOctober, when it imported467,000 tonnes.

South Africa has come underWestern pressure to cut Iraniancrude imports as part of sanctionsdesigned to halt Tehran'ssuspected pursuit of nuclearweapons, although it has beenunclear how diplomatically non-aligned Pretoria is responding.

Senior energy and foreignministry officials directlycontradicted each other lastmonth as to the status of Iranianimports.

However, January trade andcustoms data showed Iranian

L-R: Pioneer Managing Director, Sigma Pensions Limited, Alhaji Adamu Modibbo, Chairman, Audit Committee, Sigma Pensions Limited,Alhaji Mohammed Jalingo, Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Sigma Pensions, Alhaji Umar Modibbo, and Chairman, Board ofDirectors, Alhaji Rasaki Oladejo, during the 7th Annual General Meeting of Sigma Pensions, at the weekend in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

The Petroleum TechnologyAssociation of Nigeria(PETAN) has called for the

urgent intervention of theNigerian Content Developmentand Monitoring Board (NCDMB)to arrest what it described as braindrain in Nigeria's oil and gassector.

This was disclosed by theFinancial Secretary of PETAN,Chris Onyekwere, who accusedmultinational oil servicecompanies of illegally poachingand exporting skilled Nigerianworkers trained by indigenous oilcompanies.

Onyekwere urged theregulatory authorities in theNigerian oil and gas sector to alsointervene on the matter becausethe action of the multinationalcompanies has created technicalgaps in the sector, therebyundermining government'sintentions of developing contentin the industry.

He also criticised themultinational service companiesfor not training their Nigerianstaff, but noted that PETAN, asthe umbrella body of allindigenous oil service companiesin the country, will continue toinvest in capacity development.

He disclosed that three localcompanies mainly have been hitby the poaching strategies of themultinationals.

Associationdecries skillsdepletion in oil &gas sectorBy Muhammad Nasir

By Muhammad Nasir

crude imports at zero comparedwith a monthly average of $280million last year.

Iran has been South Africa'sbiggest crude supplier,accounting for a quarter of its oilimports.

The biggest South Africanbuyer of Iranian crude is Engen,majority-owned by Malaysiannational oil company Petronas .Engen has not commented, but aPetronas source told Reuters lastmonth. Engen had stoppedbuying Iranian oil from March.

Petrochemicals group, Sasol,which took 12,000 barrels ofIranian oil a day, says its hasalready found new suppliers buthas not named them.

In January, trade figuresshowed a spike in imports fromSaudi Arabia, Qatar and Ecuador,suggesting they were being usedas alternative suppliers to Iran.

In February, Saudi Arabia wasSouth Africa's biggest supplier,with 582,000 tonnes of crude,followed by Iran, Nigeria, Angolaan Ecuador. (Reuters)

DPR, Norway renew bi-lateral pactThe Department of PetroleumResources (DPR) and theNorwegian PetroleumDirectorate (NPD) has signed abi-lateral pact aimed atexploring the growingopportunities in the oil and gassector of both countries.The pact is aimed atdiscovering means ofreconstituting the institutionalcooperation that existedbetween both countries in theoil and gas sector since the year2000 when the initialMemorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) was

signed.It was noted that the agreementwas signed by the oil ministersof both countries at the timewhich expired in 2010 and itcovered technical cooperationin areas such as dataacquisition and managementResources and metering.Meanwhile, the NigerianExtractive IndustriesTransparency Initiative(NEITI) had also joined DPR andNPD in a tripartitearrangement to strengtheni n t e r - d e p a r t m e n t a lcooperation in achieving thenational objective of ensuringtransparency and

accountability in the processesof yielding optimum revenuefor the nation from oil and gas.The Executive Secretary ofNEITI, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed,who led the team, expressed herappreciation to the DPRmanagement for extendingunbridled cooperation to NEITIover the years, stating thatNEITI's progress in its mandatewas due in part to theassistance given by DPRespecially in the area of dataavailability through DPR'sNDR platform.It was agreed that DPR shouldoptimally support thedevelopment of relevant

capacity of NEITI in the use ofthe available data on the NDRplatform and to continue tosupport periodic auditactivities of NEITI by supplyingall relevant informationrequired, as well as develop aNEITI data portal at the NDRfor seamless access to relevantproduction.It was also agreed that, in orderto further bolster this new pactand to ensure that it got fullstrategic support critical to itsenduring success, the RoyalNorwegian Embassy in Abujawould be fully incorporatedinto the organisationalstructure at the steering level.

By Muhammad Nasir

Differentials for bothNigerian and Angolangrades slipped lower

yesterday in a slow session,with traders citing muteddemand from both Asian andU.S. refiners.

Traders said there werecargoes from at least fivedifferent Angolan gradesremaining for May because ofa slow-down in Asian buying.

Asian imports from theregion hit a record high in thefirst quarter but have sinceshowed signs of falling,according to a Reuters survey.

"Differentials have beenmoving South. No-one wants tooffer - they are just looking forinterest," said a West Africancrude oil trader.

Traders said that a cargo ofQua Iboe grade was last sold atdated plus $2.55 a barrel butthat offers may now fall lower.At least two cargoes of thisgrade per month weretypically taken by U.S. buyersbut refinery closures on theU.S. east coast have curbeddemand.

Traders said that at leastfour of the May Qua Iboe cargoesare still unsold, including twoVitol tankers. (Reuters)

WAfricaCrude: Valuesslump due todemand lull

PAGE 24 PAGE 25PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Much Ado about cashless economySince last year, there

have been so much fussabout Cashless

Economy in Nigeria. Somehave come to think of it asan alien and abstractconcept. This piece thereforeis in reaction to the whole dinabout cashless economy andthe misleading notion that itcan be decreed intoexistence.

The past Central Bank ofNigeria (CBN) regimesespecially that of ProfessorChukwuma Soludo madevery remarkable efforts toimprove the paymentsystem in Nigeria. This isborne out of the desire tofollow global trend, controlthe cost of mintingcurrency, reduce the riskassociated with handling andcarrying cash, check thescourge of money laundryand most importantly, aidspeedy transaction andefficient resourcemobilization for production,economic growth anddevelopment. The overallobjective is for efficiency,safety and reliability.

Within this period, thepayment system witnessed atransformation. Theestablishment of NigerianInterbank settlementscheme (NIBSS) facilitatedelectronic funds transferamong banks. There was alsothe Nigerian AutomatedClearing System (NACS).The CBN authorities knewthat a robust paymentsystem is a key requirementfor promoting financialstability. The use of theelectronic payment systemin payment, clearing andsettlement led to thereplacement of the manualcheques with the MagneticInk Character Recognition(MICR) cheques. Clearingsettlement period reducedfrom 21days to 3 days. Atpresent CBN maintainseffective presence in all statecapitals and runs twoclearing sessions on dailybasis.

The banks respondedaccordingly. Some IT firmskeyed in by developing andproviding supportiveelectronic platforms thatenable banks interface withtheir customers and otherbanks. E-business became thebuzz word in the sector. Thebanks fortified theirInformation TechnologyUnits and acquiredsophisticated software tosupport e-commerce.Different banks establishede-business department. Somany electronic bankingproducts and portals weredeveloped for internet

banking, transactionnotification, enquiries, fundstransfer and payment.Automated Teller Machine(ATM) were acquired anddeployed to various businesslocations across the country.Credit cards and debit cardswere customized and given tocustomers. Bank in theirquest to expand their marketshares developed branches inevery nook and cranny of thecountry. Point of sale (POS)devices and other electronicmodems were acquired anddeployed to customers. Thiselectronic interface allowedfirms and governmentagencies access tomultichannel paymentsystem that enable themcollect fees, revenues as wellas remittances and salariesfor improved efficiency,fraud control among otherbenefits. Now all paymentsand remittances ingovernment Ministries,Departments Agencies(MDAs) are doneelectronically.

Despite these revolutionin e-business, the Nigerianeconomy remains largely acash and carry affair due tolow level of literacyespecially financial literacy,technical inadequacy, lowlevel of trust on financialinstrument, on-linepayment fraud, systemunreliability, absence ofcredit facility and poor creditadministration due to theabsence of credit bureau.There is also the problem ofadverse socio-politicalenvironment, dualisticnature of Nigerian economyand the legal andinstitutional weakness inmonitoring and creditadministration.

Added to these, is the factthat Nigeria is grossly underbanked. Over 60% haveneither access to bankingfacilities nor financial andeconomic institutions. Asizeable portion of the totalmoney in circulation is outsidethe banking system.

Thus achieving cashlesseconomy will be much morethan pegging the deposit and

withdrawal limits as CBN hasdone, fixing =N=150,000 forindividuals and=N=1,000,000 for corporatebodies. It must involvedeveloping internal structuresand the use of cash substitutesthat will make cashtransactions unattractive.Putting a ceiling on deposit andwithdrawal with the intentionof encouraging cashlesstransactions is equivalent toattacking the effect rather thecause. It is always the casethat when you attempt to solvea problem by attacking theeffect, rather than the cause,the problem will resurfacesome other times in a moremenacing dimension. Thisattempt by the current regimeto fix deposit and withdrawallimits may lead to the

following:1 ) The banks may

grant waivers to theirvalued customers especiallykey distributors who makedaily huge cash lodgmentsand withdrawals.

2 ) People may becompelled to open multipleaccounts in different banks tofacilitate multiple depositsand withdrawals withoutpaying the penalties.

3 ) Again and moredangerously, depositors mayin an attempt to avoid thepayment of the cashprocessing fee, hold more cashafter paying in the stipulatedamount permissible.

4) Some may be forcedto change their money intohard currency and hold themin their private vaults.

5) Worse still, thosewho are not rate sensitivemay carry on their usualcash transaction regardless ofthe processing fee.

Do not forget that bankcustomers are not new to cashprocessing fee. This has beenintroduced in the past bybanks to discourage cashtransactions but it provedineffectual due to theinherent constraints in oureconomy.

Without doubt, attempt toimprove our paymentsystem through the use ofElectronic Payment System

(EPS) started long beforeSanusi Lamido Sanusi CBN.The Nigerian PaymentSystem (NPS) policy haslong been articulated as aprelude to the West AfricanMonetary Zone (WAMZ). So,attempt to achieve cashlesseconomy by putting awithdrawal and depositceiling without necessarilystrengthening the entrencheddistortions in the system willamount to an exercise infutility . CBN has optionsdepending on what it intendsto achieve. CBN canreconsider Soludo’s CurrencyRedenomination proposal forinstance if it wants to reducethe cost associated minting,processing and holding cash.CBN can further reduce thecheque clearing andsettlement days.

It is not out of place to saythat it is difficult to figure outthe direction of the currentCBN regime. For instancesome of the steps taken bySanusi upon assumption ofoffice as CBN governor wereantithetical to the apparentcashless economy drive.Sanusi ordered banks toremove ATM from publicplaces. He also halted branchexpansion thereby denyingsome areas access to bankingservices in a developingeconomy like ours with veryuneven spatial distribution

of banking facilities. Also,Sanusi’s actions tend tocriminalise lending.Remember that a cashlesseconomy is more or less acredit economy.

Clearly, the current CBNregime cannot elicit trustabout its sincerity of purposeneither does it inspireconfidence about itscapabilities to move theeconomy forward. Othereconomies have recoveredfrom the shock of the globalmeltdown because they didproper diagnosis and tookright decisions but ours is stillcomatose.

Three years after presentreform, neither the economynor the parties to thefinancial intermediationprocess has benefited from it.Depositors have becomedisillusioned and some areforced to convert theirdeposits into other assets.Some changed theirs intohard currency and kept themin their private vaults.Investors no longer haveaccess to investment funds aswas the case hitherto. Somenow source their fundingoffshore. The banking sectoris currently in a state of topsy-turvy. Our banks are nolonger rated. Before now thesector was obviously boomingand bourgeoning, acquiringand partnering with foreignbanks and spreading beyondthe shores of Nigeria. It wasdriving the economy and

contributing significantlyto employment. But now itsvitality is gone. Now wehave forceful merger andinsidious acquisition. Asituation where only 5 outof surviving 22 control over50% of the total deposits isvery unhealthy. Over50,000 bank workers havebeen sacked in the past threeyears. Some have receiveddemotion, wage slash andcasualization. Those in thesystem are searching for jobsince they are not sure oftheir positions. The stenchof uncertainty is hanging inthe air like a time bomb.The morale is very low.When morale is low,commitment and

“Added to these, is the factthat Nigeria is grossly under

banked. Over 60% haveneither access to bankingfacilities nor financial and

economic institutionsA banking hall in Nigeria with customers queuing to transact banking business. Cashless banking will eliminate such hassles

An automated teller machine

By Gozie Irogboli

CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

productivity are low andemployee fidelity doubtful.

The overall effect is thatour economy is still in thedoldrums. Unemploymentsituation is dangerouslyvery high. Dependency ratiowith its attendant crime andsocial vices are on theupward swing. Economicgrowth is visibly on thedownward slide. Businessesare operating below theirinstalled capacity. Some areclosing and moving intomore stable economicenvironment. Prices are stillvery far from stable as thecost of living and doingbusiness in Nigeria aresuffocatingly high. Ourexternal balances measured

in terms of foreign reserve,foreign debt, exchange rate,balance of payment andothers are still very far fromthe desired position.

Genuine economicprogress is not achieved byfiat or propaganda but byplanning and developingsystems, structures andinstitutions that will supportproductive activities. Wehave waited patiently. Thewhole din about reform onlyexists on the pages ofnewspapers and on the lipsof some ignorant members ofthe public. Reforms arecarefully articulatedprogrammes of action aimedat making a fundamentalimpact on a system. Reformsare strategic, cohesive andresult-oriented.

As I told Joseph Sanusithe former CBN governorabout ten years ago, (see“The Banks and the Rest ofUs”. Thisday Newspaper 16th

June, 2002 page 14.) CentralBanking is not just about banksupervision. In a developingeconomy like ours, it goesbeyond manipulatingmonetary aggregates.Essentially it requires aholistic developmentalapproach. The financialsystem is the blood of theeconomy. Nigeria needs avirile financial system. Wecannot get there by ad hochalf-hearted arrangement.

After the BankingConsolidation, the system

was awash with too muchequity funds with whichsome banks indulged in cut-throat competition and withtheir universal bankinglicence, they began todiversify deeply into areasoutside their corecompetences. Some of theirsubsidiaries were notcontributing to the bottomline. Moreover, with thebourgeoning capital marketstimulated by the bankconsolidation, the banks werehelplessly exposed to marginlending. In the midst of thesecame the global meltdown in2008 and the collapse of thestock market. Remember thatNigerian economy is notinsulated from externalshocks. This was the mess thatSanusi met. Instead offollowing up with the postconsolidation steps or someother positive steps, he blewthe situation out of proportionby playing to the gallery.

We witnessed thehullaballoo that greeted theupdate of customerinformation in 2010. It wasas if the system will come toan abrupt end by December31st 2010 if not completed.But it was clear that the heatand the measure wereuncalled for. Again, when the

issue of Islamic Bankingcame, Sanusi passed thebuck. Instead of dwelling onthe merit of non-interestbanking as expected, heshocked everybody bysaying that it was professorSoludo that approvedIslamic Banking yet when heestablished AssetManagement Corporation ofNigeria (AMCON) he nevergave Soludo the credit for theidea.

Sanusi need to change hisstyle and consult widely if hemust make any meaningfulimpact. Often times, amarked difference existsbetween actual and expectedresult of a programme whenthe critical success variablesare not factored into thedesign process. I believe thatfor public office holdersespecially economicmanagers the Structure andProblems of NigerianEconomy should be a primenecessity in programmeidentification, design andimplementation. That is asure way to have the desiredresult.

Gozie Irogboli is atrained economist,banker, consultant and apublic policy analystgoziei@yahoo.com

“After the Banking Consolidation,the system was awash with toomuch equity funds with whichsome banks indulged in cut-

throat competition and with theiruniversal banking licence, theybegan to diversify deeply into

areas outside their corecompetences

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 26

Re: Ikemba goes home (II)Incontestably, a man like Steve

Biko gave his life for Africa, but canthe same really be said of EmekaOdumegwu-Ojukwu?

Although the millions of Ndigbowho gathered on the streets ofAwka, Enugu, Onitsha, Nnewi,Umuahia etc. to pay homage to theirdeparted “Eze Gburugburu” ( arather strange sounding title thathas no historical precedence inigboland) were genuinely convincedthat Ojukwu was one of the greatestleaders that Africa has ever known,it is highly improbable that this wasactually a widely shared perceptionin the rest of Nigeria, particularlyamong the peoples of the presentRivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom andCross River states, who claim tohave been unwilling captives in theBiafran entity that emerged fromOjukwu’s ill-fated declaration ofsecession.

At the risk of appearing to swimdangerously against the tide, onecannot help noting that the vastoutpouring of grief among thegeneral Igbo population all overNigeria on the occasion of ChiefEmeka Odumegwu’s demiseinevitably presents some puzzlingaspects to those Nigerians who werealready adults at the time of theNigerian civil war.

To some extent, one doesunderstand that the genuine senseof bereavement experienced by thequasi-totality of Ndigbo springsfrom the widespread nostalgia thatmany continue to feel for the faileddream of Biafra as an independentIgbo homeland, with which the lateIkemba is closely associated.

However, was Biafra everreally a viable proposition inthe Nigeria of pre-civil wardays?

Could an independent igbohomeland have actually thrived asa landlocked entity, cut off from theoil-rich riverine areas inhabited byhostile minority tribes?

To what extent were the Ijaws,Annangs, Efik, Ibibio etc. have beenexpected to buy into the concept ofBiafra?

If not, would it have been trulypossible to construct Biafra on thebasis of massive regimentation andoppression of the minority non-igbotribes by the majority Ndigbo?

And how long could that kind ofsituation have been sustained, oncethe creation of the new twelve statestructure by General YakubuGowon had given the original COR(Calabar-Ogoja-Rivers) populationstates of their own?

More intriguingly, one noteswith some degree of amazementthat the rewriting of history hasbeen carried so far by some people(including a number of prominentnon-Igbo citizens) as to suggest thatthe late Ikemba was actually somekind of proponent of a newrevolutionary entity that wassupposed to replace the Nigerianstate that was in existence of thetime on the basis of the Aburiaccords (which he apparentlysuckered his less well educatedmilitary colleagues into signing).

The last gasp hodgepodgeattempt to provide some form ofideological clothing for the concept

duration of the civil war).Nzeogu himself died in

mysterious circumstances in Biafrashortly after the beginning of thecivil war, while Emmanuel Ifeajunawas one of those who were tried bya kangaroo court headed by JusticeNkemena and executed onOjukwu’s orders along with VictorBanjo, Sam Agbam, and Philip Alaleon the grounds that they had“conceived of an intention” tooverthrow Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu with a view to “procuring”the downfall of Biafra...

Clearly, Ojukwu was NEVER arevolutionary or a sophisticatedpolitical thinker, either in thecontext of Nigeria or within Biafraitself!

It is also obvious that those whonow seek to bestow this whollyundeserved accolade on the lateEmeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu areeither carried away bysentimentalism or blinded bypartisan passion!

From a certain perspective, it ishowever wholly understandablethat Ndigbo should identifyemotionally to such a huge extentwith the late Ikemba...

During the course of the civilwar, it can be estimated thatbetween 80 and 90 per cent of theentire igbo population bought intothe concept of Biafra as anindependent igbo nation.

What is rather difficult tounderstand however, is that boththen and now, most igbo peoplerefuse steadfastly to attach anydegree of blame on Ojukwu forsome of the shortcomings inleadership that appear to haveprolonged their suffering in thecourse of the ill-fated Biafranadventure.

True, thousands of innocentigbo people were maimed, torturedand massacred by rampaging mobsin some northern cities in the run-

up to the war.The question that however

remains to be answered is :DID THE TERRIBLE

SUFFERING OF THE IGBOVICTIMS OF POLITICALVIOLENCE IN THE NORTHSERVE AS A CONVENIENTJUSTIFICATION FOR THEIMPLEMENTATION OF A PLANTHAT OJUKWU AND HISENTOURAGE HAD ALREADYFORMED FOR THEDECLARATION OF SECESSION?

Was there truly no alternative toBiafra and no hope for nationalreconciliation at all in Nigeria in thetragic weeks and months thatpreceded the civil war?

Opinions remain divided on thesubject!

What is however clear is that theintransigence displayed by Ojukwu(who stubbornly rejected severalopportunities for a negotiatedsettlement of the war) inevitably ledto a tragic prolongation of the civilwar, with the resultant multitude ofavoidable deaths, and thewidespread starvation anddestruction that was provoked bythe length of the war.

Obviously, it was this factor thatled an elder statesman like Dr.Nnamdi Azikiwe to eventuallyabandon the doomed Biafranadventure and declare himself infavour of the federation of Nigeria.

The warmth with which Dr.Azikiwe was welcomed back into thefold by the entire Nigerian nationand the highly laudable policy of “novictors no vanquished” that wasapplied by General Yakubu Gowonfollowing the end of the war offeredabundant proof at the time that thevast majority of Nigerians weretired of the war and its inevitablecortege of horrors, and that theygenuinely aspired to live once morein peace and harmony with theirigbo brothers and sisters.

Unfortunately however, right uptill today, the igbo psyche seems tohave been unable to overcome thedeep traumatism of the civil warexperience...

To this day, (rightly or wrongly),many igbos continue to feelmarginalized and unloved asNigerian citizens, which is perhapswhat explains the emergence of acharacter like Ralph Uwazuruikeand his bizarre project for “theactualisation of Biafra”.....

If Ojukwu deserves acceptanceas a kind of hero within the contextof the lives of Ndigbo, can it be saidthat his actions following the finalcollapse of Biafra (when he claimedto have flown to a safe haven in theIvory Coast in search of imaginarypeace negotiations) truly in keepingwith the image of a courageousleader?

Whom can Ojukwu be said tohave gone to negotiate with in Coted’Ivoire, especially as he had alreadyhanded over power in Biafra to acommittee headed by Gen. PhilipEffiong, which included elderstatesmen like the late Sir LouisMbanefo?

Would Churchill, Roosevelt orStalin have flown away in “searchof peace” at the hour of collapse oftheir homelands if their respectivecountries had been defeated duringthe Second World War?

pogrom and rioting to whichmassive numbers of igbo citizensfell victim in the north in the runup to the ciivil war was actuallyengineered by some disgruntlednorthern politicians and anorthern military cabal who feltthreatened by the impact of theJanuary 1966 coup (which had ledto the emergence of GeneralAguiyi-Ironsi and a mostly igboclique at the head of the NigerianGovernment, even though Aguiyi-Ironsi and his clique in the armyand civil service had not actuallytaken part in the coup thatprecipitated the collapse ofNigeria’s first Republic).

MOST IRONICALLY,OJUKWU HIMSELF WAS NEVERPART OF THE REVOLUTIONARYGROUP OF MAJORS (LEDPRINCIPALLY BY CHUKWUMAKADUNA NZEOGU ANDEMMANUEL IFEAJUNA), WHOLED THE MILITARY UPRISINGTHAT OVERTHREW THEGOVERNMENT OF THENIGERIAN FIRST REPUBLIC ONJANUARY 15TH 1966.

On the contrary, it is on recordthat, far from supporting the actionof the Nzeogu group, Ojukwuinitially sat on the fence from thevantage point of his position asCommander of the 5th battalion, anarmy unit based in Kano!

It is also on record that Ojukwueventually helped Ironsi to foil therevolutionary aims of the authors ofthe Janury 1966 coup!

Finally, it is a well known factthat as a reward for Ojukwu’s rolein blocking Nzeogu’s take over ofNorthern Nigeria, General Ironsiappointed Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu to the position of militaryGovernor of the Eastern Nigerianregion, catapaulting him over thehead of Lt. Col Hilary Njokwu (whowas subsequently held in detentionby Ojukwu during the entire

of Biafra under the appellation of“Ahiara declaration” has also oftenbeen cited in recent days as apristine example of Ojukwu’s far-reaching political wisdom, whichwe now hear provides a valid basisfor nation building in the whole ofAfrica!

Might this not be a little far-fetched?

Amidst all the outpouring ofheated rhetoric and sentimentalhyperbole, the question that reallyneeds to be asked is :

Was Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu actually a reformist leadermotivated by a desire to restructureNigeria for the benefit of allNigerian citizens, and not simply achampion of the igbo population?

Although it may not pleasemany who are not conversant withthe history of 1960s Nigeria to hearthis, the answer to that crucialquestion does not lead to theconclusion that Ojukwu ever caredabout the citizens of Nigeriaas awhole!

In reality, there is a fundamentalcontradiction that lies at the heartof Ojukwu’s role in history, whichis currently mirrored by the largelyincomprehensible attempt by agentleman named RalphUwazuruike to achieve what hedescribes as “the actualisation” ofBiafra.

The contradiction is this :CAN NDIGBO

SIMULTANEOUSLY SECEDE TOESTABLISH AN INDEPENDENTBIAFRAN STATE AND STILLREMAIN NIGERIAN CITIZENSAT THE SAME TIME?

In the present-day context, isUwazuruike saying that all those ofigbo origin who are established allover the Nigerian federation inKano, Jos, Maiduguri, Calabar,Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Oshogbo,Bauchi, Lagos etc. should pull upthe stakes they have built up invarious parts of Nigeria, sell alltheir landed property andbusinesses and relocate to the igboheartland?

How feasible is that?And how would Ndigbo really

stand to benefit from such a wildscheme?

And yet Uwazuruikeapparently continues to presenthimself as a leader of some sortwho has something valid to offerNdigbo! How strange!

IS THERE SOMETHINGTHAT THE REST OF US HAVEFAILED TO UNDERSTAND INALL THE SEEMINGLY EMPTYRHETORIC ON WHICH THERESURGENCE OF BIAFRAPROGNOSTICATED BY FOLKSLIKE UWAZURUIKE IS BASED?

Travelling back in time to thetragic era that preceded the civil waritself, can one really describe thehorrendous massacres to whichthousands of Ndigbo fell victim atthe time in some parts of NorthernNigeria as some kind ofpremeditated act in which the entirenorthern population took part?

Even though one cannot butsympathize deeply with the manythousand igbo victims of themassacres that occurred in thenorth at the time, a balancedexamination of all available factswould tend to suggest that the

By Ola Balogun

Late Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 27

Two-year-old Indian plays with cobra as helearns family business from his grandfatherThese pictures, which will be

shocking to many Britishparents, show the dying

tradition of snake charming inrural India.

For centuries, the charmershave enjoyed a celebrated place inthe country’s history.

The hypnotic tunes they playedto enchant snakes to dance havenot only captured the imaginationof Indians, but people around theworld.

But now, the industry isfighting for its survival amidstringent wildlife protection laws.

Wearing a colourful turban,Budh Nath, 65, is training hisyoung grandson to perfect theancient art - despite the fact it is

Turning on the charm: Budh Nath (left) is training his grandson Sumit, two, in the now illegal art ofsnake charming. The family, which lives in Faridabad, an hour's drive from Delhi, claim they usedto make a good living and were respected as highly skilled performers

illegal and he could be jailed ifcaught.

The family, which lives inFaridabad, an hour’s drive fromDelhi, claim they used to make agood living and were respected ashighly skilled performers.

Since the late 1990s, when theWildlife Protection Act (1972) wasimplemented, members of thenomadic Bedia community haveseen their meagre finances dwindlestill further.

The Act bars people from usingwild animals commercially orturning them into pets, includingbans on performances with livesnakes.

The Bedia community have noother source of income.

Consigned to hissss-tory: Tanu Nath, 9, with snakes hangingaround her neck - but the snake charming industry is fighting forsurvival due to stringent wildlife protection laws

Two-year-old Sumit isencouraged by his family to playwith cobras, nonchalantlywrapping them around his neck,as they expect him to continuethe family tradition.

‘I have educated all my sonsand all my grandchildren go toschool, but I will always teachthem our ancient ways so we donot forget our heritage,’ saidBudh Nath.

Snake charmers, once asymbol of the mystical Indianculture, have all butdisappeared.

Supporters of the communitysay it has become a victim ofIndia’s strict wildlife laws, withhefty fines and up to seven yearsin prison for anyone who owns asnake.

‘For thousands of years wehave earned our living by

entertaining people with snakes butnow we are left penniless,’ saidBudh Nath.

‘Earlier, we used to roam fromvillage to village and do our shows,but now if the police see usperforming they take us to jail.’

‘Before they banned us fromperforming, we could make a decentliving - we could get our sonseducated, our daughters married.Now it is very difficult.’

Snake charmers used to performon street corners, festivals and in theearly days of Indian independence atinternational art festivals.

Clad in the traditional turbanand sitting cross-legged on matsbefore a cane basket holding coiledserpents, the hypnotic performancesbecame an iconic image of India’scolourful rural heartland.

Armed with a long gourd flute,called a been, the snake charmer

would coax the snake, usually adeadly cobra, from the basket byswaying their instrument fromside-to-side.

The snake, appearinghypnotised, follows the movementof the instrument with its head,appearing to dance.

‘We still do privateperformances at hotels but only forpeople we know. Otherwise, younever know when the police will tryto arrest us and take our snakesaway from us,’ said Budh Nath,who insists everyone in his familyretains their traditional skills.

His shy six-year-old grandson,Karan, regularly ignores hishomework to practise playing theflute. ‘I love playing with snakes,’he said. ‘When I grow up, I want tobe a snake charmer like mygrandfather.’

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

Beware the scales... of justice: Karan Nath, six, plays with a snakein a basket even though the practice of snake charming is now illegal

Living dangerously: Tanu Nath, nine (left), and brother Karan, six, happily pose with their father Mukesh - andtheir slithery friends. But anyone who owns a snake is subject to hefty fines and up to seven years in prison

PAGE 28 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

BYEMMANUEL

IRIOGBEemmacopi@yahoo.com

08026125552

Keffi Barracksneeds attentionThe top hierarchy of the

military must becommended for their

proactive approaches in theirreformation drive of the militarysince the advent of democracy in1999.

At different fora, they have notminced words in telling the worldhow they have fared better undercivil rule as compared to when theywere in power. It is a good thing thatmoney being made available tothem is being put to judicious usethat we now see military personneland formations that both thecountry and the internationalcommunity is proud of.

Only last week, the minister ofdefence, Dr. Mohammed Haliru-Bello commissioned army projectsin Abuja. Among these projectswere the 38 flats complete with a,air-conditioned, 1bedroom dogkennel at the Shehu Yar’Aduabarracks, 36 flats at the MambilaGuards Brigade Garrison,48 rooms,soldiers transition accommodationlocated inside the Mogadishucantonment and the 32 flats forofficers at the WU Bassey Barracks.

The question on most lips is;should the army concentrate on onlyinfrastructures located in major citieslike Abuja and Lagos while thosescattered in nooks and cranniesaround the country suffer neglect?

A typical example is the ShittuAlao barracks, Keffi which is home tothe elite117 Guards Brigade of theNigerian army.

For those not in the know, theGuards Brigade is charged with thepersonal security of Mr. President, hisvice, and members of their immediatefamilies.

Going by this background, onewould have expected to see thesemen and women live in comfort soas to be able to discharge theirassigned roles creditably and to thebest of their abilities. This howeveris not the case as the barracks is ina sorry state of dilapidation withbroken down houses and roads thatcan best be referred to as un-motor

able.The Shittu Alao Barracks is a

stone throw from the federal capitalTerritory (FCT), and nothing stopsthe army from extending thedevelopmental projects to the elitebarracks.

The Chief of Army staff shouldbe aware of the deteriorating natureof the road net work in the barrackbecause he was there upper week forthe annual army shootingclassification exercise where he wasa participant.

What could have been goingthrough the mind of the COASwhen he was been driven throughthe rough terrain that makes up theroads in the barrack. This isespecially considering the cozynature of similar facilities in Abujahe just left behind. After all, Gen.Ihejirika in his speech during lastweek’s commissioning of projectsstated that in order to get the bestout of troops their well being musttake priority. He went ahead todisclose at the ceremony thatsimilar rehabilitation of barrackswere on going in such places likeSokoto, Akwananam in Enugustate, Adamawa and at the trainingbase in Kontagora, Niger statewithout any mention of the allimportant Keffi Barracks.

Also at the ceremony, DefenceMinister, Dr. Haliru-Bello was fullof praises for the army when hesaid; “Projects of this nature thattouch the heart of troop welfare arevery important and significant”

The ministry has over timeboasted of rehabilitation ofbarracks, but is it aware that somebarracks in the country are in suchdeplorable state that can only becompared to police barracks withthe attendant inhuman livingenvironment fit only for animals?

There is a popular maxim whichstates; “show me where you live andI will tell you who you are. The armyhas it in its logo that victory is fromGod but they must not also bemindful of the saying that‘Cleaningness is next to Godliness’

factor all that into the training ofpersonnel. As you are aware, Iflagged off recently training ofsoldiers in counter-terrorism inKachia, Kaduna state and as wespeak, a lot of training is on-goingalso in Jaji with about 2,000 soldierscurrently undergoing training, weexpect to see further improvementin their performances.

While refusing to give the actualfigure of soldiers that have lost theirlives in the fight against the BokoHaram sect, the chief of army staffhowever agreed that; “Like in everyoperation we have suffered a numberof casualties, but I want to say thatsoldiers have continued to persevereand will continue to do so”.

Speaking on plans to take thefight to neigbouring countries,Ihejirika said the country and itscitizenry cannot sleep comfortably ifterrorist activities play out in thesecountries.

“Like I earlier posited, by thetime we root out terrorism from thiscountry,the next phase will be for usto prepare to help our neigbours inneigbouring countries to also rootout the menace, because even if thereis peace in Nigeria, that peace willnot be complete, if our neigbours areembattled. You must also have learntthat some of these terrorist weretraining in neigbouring countries. Ibelieve that our operation is to rootthem out of Nigeria,and then in linewith the nations commitment to thesub region, we would be prepared toassist our neigbours”.

The Quarterly conferencesaccording to the army boss providesthe army with opportunities to takestalk of activities, make a review andtake decisions with regards toactivities in the coming quarter. Thefocus of this year’s conference he saidis basically to concentrate on securityand training.

Insecurity: Neigbouring countries,our next target, says Ihejirika

The Chief of army staff (COAS),Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirikahas thumbed up the Nigeria

army in the fight against terrorismsaying that the country would nowextend the fight to neigbouringcountries.

Gen. Ihejirika spoke recently atthe ‘First Quarter Chief of Army StaffConference 2012’ and revealed thatthe security situation in the countryhas improved tremendously.

“I want to say that the situationof insecurity generally has improved.As we get more information throughthe cooperation of the people,operations become swifter andeasier.I attribute our successes so farto several factors, one of which isadequate provision of equipment bygovernment, secondly is in the areaof training as there is no substitutefor training.

“As we become aware of themodus operandis of the terrorists, we

Dr. Mohammed Haliru-Bello, Minister of Defence.

The immediate past permanentsecretary in the ministry ofdefence, Mr. Linus Awute has

attributed the success the ministryrecorded for the 6 months he was incharge to the co-operation he receivedfrom his boss, the minister of defence,Dr. Mohammed Haliru-Bello and theminister of state in the ministry, EreluOlusola Obada.

Mr. Awute gave thecommendations Friday at the formalhandover ceremony to his successor,Prof. Nocholas Damanchi at the ShipHouse in Abuja.

While describing the minister asone of the best things happening to theministry and a befitting legacy of the4th Republic’s democracy, listed hisachievements to include barracksrehabilitation, military hardware andplatforms acquisition, work ethics,discipline and general staff welfare.

The former PS who moved to theministry of interior in the recentredeployment of permanent secretay,said the ministry within his stayrecorded an increase in thesupervision and control of themaritime environment at the gulf of

Guinea, the joint Development Zoneand the Niger Delta Areas. Others hesaid include provision of logistics forthe JTF, commissioning of 2No. SuperPuma Helicopters among others.

In the area of discipline, hedisclosed that all outstandingdisciplinary cases have beeninvestigated, treated and forwarded tothe federal civil service. Thedisciplinary cases he said ranged fromoutright fraud, stealing, negligence ofduties.

Awute who spoke passionately onthe need for every Nigerian to bepatriotic and do what is right, disclosedthat over 40 contracts have beenevaluated, revoked and terminatedwhile efforts were on for a possible re-award and refund or recovery of 15%mobilization earlier advanced to suchcontractors between 2007 and 2010.

He called on the new permanentsecretary on the need to fast trackongoing projects using the 2012budget provision.

Prof. Damanchi in his response,thanked Mr. Awute for a detailedhand-over and promised to continuewith the good works.

A new Director of Army PublicRelations Brig-Gen. MobolajiKoleoso, assumed duty,

Friday at the Directorate of ArmyPublic Relations in Abuja.

Koleoso who takes over fromMaj-Gen. Ralph Isa, and has sinceresumed as the Provost Marshal ofthe Nigerian army said he washappy with the achievements of thedirectorate and promised to sustain.

He reminded officers in thedirectorate of the vision of the Chiefof Army Staff to transform theArmy, adding that they should worktoward the attainment of the goal.

“The vision is not new and thevision is being driven on daily basis. We have seen the successes that theArmy has made since the Chief ofArmy Staff came on board and Iwould want everyone to pleasecooperate.

“A tree cannot make a forestthat is why I am seeking thecooperation of all, including ourbrothers and sisters in the media. ’’

Koleoso explained that the daysof traditional media was gone andwith the advent of social media,“whatever we do here now, may betransmitted all over the world. ’’

Earlier, Isa told his successorthat since coming on board abouta year ago, he has done his best toreposition the directorate.

“I have tried my best toreposition the directorate in the pastone year and I will urge you tocontinue with the success story andto even surpass our record. ’’

He told the new director that hewould be interacting with local andinternational press, stressing thathe should operate an open-doorpolicy.

The new director was untilrecently a directing staff at theNigerian Defence College, Abuja.

In a related development, Col.John Agim has been posted to theheadquarters as the new chief ofstaff at the Army public relationsdepartment and takes over fromCol. OU Abdul.

Brig-Gen.Mobolaji Koleosois new Armyspokesman

Awute, Ex Perm. Sec.hinges success on minister

Soldiers on patrol on a deserted street, what kind of accommodationare they returning to after a hard day's job?

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 29

Growing rate of rice importation mayspell doom for Nigeria, Agric Minister

“As a result of the successfulimplementation of agriculturalprojects in 2011, we wereencouraged to train moreagricultural officers and farmers inthe state,” he said.

The coordinator lauded thecommitment of the stategovernment to enhance farmers’

The Minister of Agriculture andRural Development, DrAkinwunmi Adesina, has said

that growing rate of rice importationmay spell doom for Nigeria if effortsare not made to curtail the practice.

Adesina, who stated this recentlyin Abeokuta in Ogun State, during anInvestors’ Forum, said that Nigeriaspent N1.3 billion on rice importationannually.

He said: “The FederalGovernment would be spending N150billion dollars importing rice in 2050,unless the trend was reversed.”

The minister also projected thatthe consumption level would haverisen to 36 million tonnes by year by2050, as Nigeria currently consumed5 million tonnes of rice annually.

Adesina, however, said that thelevel of rice production in the countryhad not matched the rate ofconsumption.

The minister described suchdevelopment as unsustainable andundesirable, and called on the stategovernments to step up action towardsguaranteeing food security.

He said that the presentadministration under PresidentGoodluck Jonathan was determinedto transform Nigeria into being amajor exporter of rice.

According to him, the FederalGovernment is poised to create 3.5

million jobs in the agricultural sectoras part of its transformation agenda.

As part of efforts to boost riceproduction, the minister said that theFederal Government had justestablished three new rice processingmills in Ebonyi, Niger and Kebbistates with a capacity of 90,000tonnes.

He further said that the FederalGovernment would partner with Ogunin establishing three large-scale millsfor the improvement of the local Ofadarice, produced in the state.

In his remarks, Gov. RaufAregbesola of Osun called on civilservants in the state to embraceagriculture as a supportive source ofincome.

Aregbesola, who noted thatmajority of civil servants in theNorthern states were engaged infarming, said such venture was notillegal.

The governor called on the OsunHead of Service to encourage civilservants in the state, particularly topofficials to have farm settlements inorder to complement the effort of thestate government in agriculture.

He advocated that the promotionin the civil service be hinged on theevidence of diligent farming.

Also speaking, the host governor,Sen. Ibikunle Amosun, said that Ogunwas a viable investment destination in

its own right.“In Ogun, we realise that we have

a unique opportunity. Our hugeagricultural base means that we havethe ability to feed our sister state,Lagos.

“With our proximity, we areincreasingly housing Lagos workersand we have a large and growingcommuter community. Our low costmanufacturing base is ideal for anycompany wishing to sell into thelucrative Lagos market,” he stressed.

According to him, “our locationadvantages are not, however,restricted to Lagos. The appellation,‘the Gateway State’ reflects thediversity of our borders. We haveborders with Oyo, Osun and Ondostates.”

“We boast of the deepest shores ofthe Atlantic Ocean, which are alreadybeing developed into a much neededdeep sea container port in Olokola,”he stated.

“We also have an internationalborder with Benin,” the governor said,and urged investors to take advantageof the investment opportunities in thestate,” the gogernor added.

It was however learnt thatparticipants at the two-dayprogramme include governors,captains of industries, businessmoguls, investors and top governmentofficials. (NAN)

President of the InternationalFund for AgriculturalDevelopment (IFAD), Dr

Kanayo Nwanze, has said thatinvesting in agriculture was themost effective way to eradicatepoverty in Africa.

In a statement issued in NewYork recently, Nwanze saidincreasing investment inagriculture was essential toachieving the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs).

According to him, “Investmentsin agriculture are more effective inlifting people out of poverty thaninvestments in any other sector.”

“They not only drive economicgrowth and set the stage for long-term sustainable development; theypay high dividends in terms ofquality of life and dignity for poorrural people,” he said.

“The experience of IFAD hasshown that agriculture is a business,and our business is to make suresmallholder agriculture profitableso that rural communities canthrive,” he added.

Meanwhile, Nwanze is expectedsoon at Addis Ababa for the JointAnnual Meeting of the AfricanUnion Conference of Ministers ofEconomy and Finance.

According to the statement, theIFAD President will, at the meeting,share his vision for ensuring thatsmallholder farmers are at thecentre of any plan for post-2015.(NAN)

Agric investmentmost effectivepoverty eradicationmethod -IFAD

The Sasakawa Global 2000, aN o n - G o v e r n m e n t a lOrganisation, has

commenced a two-day training of89 extension agents and farmers inAdamawa on crop productiontechnology.

Sasakawa Global 2000 is a jointventure of two organisations -Sasakawa Africa Association andthe Global 2000 programme of theCarter Centre in Atlanta, U.S.

Theme 1 Coordinator, Dr IdrisGarko, Sasakawa Global 2000 inNigeria, declared the training openrecently in Yola, the Adamawa Statecapital, saying the organisationdecided to assist the governmentwith the training, following thesuccessful implementation ofagricultural projects in 2011.

Bananas ready for export

NGO trains extension agents, farmerson crop production technology

welfare and improve crop yield.He, however, expressed concern

that due to lack of support by Bauchiand Gombe State governments, theorganisation could only train 22 and20 extension agents respectivelyfrom the two states.

Earlier, Malam Mustafa Raji,ADP project manager in Adamawa,

urged participants at the training topay attention to and tap from theknowledge of their resourcepersons.

“You are expected to impact theknowledge gained from the trainingon other farmers to improveagricultural production,” he said.(NAN)

A member representing MubiSouth State Constituency inAdamawa House of Assembly,

Alhaji Usman Lamorde, has raisedconcern over tension at the Mubi cattlemarket over the collection of cattle tax.

Usman told journalists in Yolarecently that attempt by officials of theNigeria Customs Service (NCS) tocollect custom duty from the cattledealers had generated tension.

The law maker also said that hehad presented the issue before theassembly, six months ago when thestate command of customs explainedthat the tax would only be collected oncattle entering Nigeria at the border.

“This renewed attempt to collectthe tax in the market, instead of borderposts as specified customs regulationon cattle tax is causing tension in Mubi.Cattle dealers in the market, which isthe biggest cattle market in the NorthEast, are complaining bitterly,” thelawmaker said.

Usman, who is the HouseCommittee Chairman on Security,pointed out that there was enoughtension in Mubi because of the recentsporadic shootings in the town.

He said that there was, therefore,the need for caution from allconcerned, not to aggravate thesituation.

“I want to call on the state customcommand to look into the activities ofits men, in Mubi particularly, now thatwe are experiencing serious securitychallenges in the town,” he said.

“We know the importance ofrevenue to government and we will doeverything necessary to assistgovernment generate it in a proper andpeaceful way,” Usman stated.

When contacted on the allegation,the Public Relations Officer of thecommand, Mr S.K. Taupyen, deniedthe allegation.

He said that he had contacted theofficer in charge of Mubi unitcommand, who told him that noofficial was collecting cattle tax in themarket.

“Our men only collect such levy atMbila in Maiha Local GovernmentArea, which is the entry point toNigeria from Cameroon. Our mennever entered the Mubi Cattle Marketfor anything,” Taupyen said. (NAN)

Lawmakercautions NCSover cattle tax

The Oyo State Commissionerfor Agriculture, Mr DanielKolade, has condemned what

he called infighting within farmersand commodity associations in thestate.

Kolade told journalists in Ibadan,the Oyo State capital, that one of thechallenges facing the ministry was thenumerous factions within farmersand commodity associations.

The commissioner said even theAll Farmers Association of Nigeria(AFAN), the apex body of farmers inthe state, had been polarised.

“I have met with the state’s AFAN.The state’s AFAN is divided in two.All of them put themselves into two,into three factions. There is so muchinfighting among them. You don’treally know who to deal with,” he said.

“When you are dealing with thisone, another one will come up. Andwe have seen that they have so muchpolarised themselves along partylines,” Kolade added.

He said the polarisation offarmers groups along party lines hadworsened, with members threateningto unleash violence on each other.

The commissioner saidgovernment had been pleading withthe different associations to resolvetheir differences and engagegovernment as united entities. (NAN)

Agriculture:Commissionerdecries clashwithin farmersassociations

Nigeria among emerging forestresources markets, says FAO

FAO Forestry Officer, Mr WalterKollert, said that the time the treeswould reach harvestable dimensionswas comparatively long and onaverage would take between 20 and80 years.

“Teak planting serves localcommunities as a savings account andin the long run helps small holdersimprove their livelihoods and thelivelihoods of their children," it quotedKollert as saying.

Kollert said that there was nobetter up-to-date information on teakresources available at the moment,adding that data provided by thesurvey should be handled with care.

"It is difficult to obtain precisefigures on teak forest loss, because teaktrees do not grow in pure stands innature.

“Natural teak forests are mixeddeciduous or tropical evergreenforests which have a share of teak ofbetween four and 35 per cent,” hesaid. (NAN)

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012PAGE 30

Farmers appeal to JTFon curfew in Borno

Food and AgricultureOrganisation (FAO) has saidthat Nigeria and three other

African countries are emerging forestresources markets in the world.

A statement made available tojournalists in Lagos recently, said thatthe survey, conducted by FAOResources and Market Assessment in60 tropical countries, showed thatsome African countries wereimproving in teak planting.

It was also learnt that teak is oneof the most important and valuablehardwoods in the world, adding“the planted teak forests haveattracted large private sectorinvestments in Africa, Asia andLatin America.”

According to the statement, asa result, the planted teak areas haveincreased in Africa, CentralAmerica, South America and Asia.

“With the global decline in naturalteak forest, the survey reveals thatplanted teak forests are increasing in

countries like Nigeria, Benin, Ghanaand Tanzania,’’ it said.

The statement said that naturalteak forests grow only in four countriesin the world: India, Laos, Myanmarand Thailand.

“In 2010, their combined area ofnatural teak forest was estimated atabout 29 million hectares (ha), almosthalf of its growing in Myanmar,’’ thestatement said.

Myanmar is the only country thatcurrently produces quality teak fromnatural forests- India, Lao PDR andThailand has bans on logging innatural forests or on log for exports inplace.

According to the survey, naturalteak forests declined in area by385,000 hectares globally, or by 1.3 percent between 1992 and 2010.

It said that the improvement inplanted teak forest in developingcountries would have positive effect onthe economy and the livelihood of ruraldwellers.

In furtherance of its Green RiverProject (GRP) initiative to boost agriculture, the Nigerian Agip

Oil Company (NAOC) has doled outfarm implements and cash prizes to200 farmers in Rivers.

Managing Director of NAOC,Mr Ciro Pagano, gave the prizes atthe 16th NAOC-GRP Farmers’ Daycelebration and launch of the 2012farming season in Obrikom, OnelgaLocal Government Area recently.

It was learnt that prizes won bythe farmers included motorcycles,refrigerators, generators,wheelbarrows and fishing nets/feeds.

Others are machetes, hoes,spades, head pans, rain boots andcash prizes of between N15, 000 andN30, 000.

Pagano said NAOC, through itGreen Rivers Project, had disbursedN19 million to 35 farmers,cooperative societies, women andyouth organisations in the oilproducing areas.

He stated that the company alsoassisted 3,500 farmers with farmingtechniques and technologies aimedat enhancing productivity andpromoting food security in thecountry.

According to him, 120 hectaresof farm land have been provided forfarmers and 300,000 bundles ofimproved cassava plantlets to 251farmers.

Pagano disclosed that the oilcompany would soon unveil itsrobust initiative that wouldrevitalise the agriculture sector andensure food security in its hostcommunities and in the countrygenerally.

The NOAC boss said the existingpeace and cooperation of the hostcommunities had afforded thecompany a good operationalenvironment.

Managing Director of NigerDelta Development Commission(NDDC), Dr Christian Oboh, saidthe Green River Project was alaudable one that had improvedagricultural produce in the region.

According to him, NDDC willprovide N1 million worth of farmtools to the best farmer in the GreenRivers Project initiative.

He also said farmers andcooperative societies could accessloans by forwarding their interest tothe commission, saying “I also wantto challenge the youths that this isan opportunity for us to cash on whatwe have now. We have large pool offunds that youths can come partnerwith us to go into agriculture.

“It’s going to provide morefoodsfor us and is going to provideemployment for the youth. We areopen to discussion with allcommunities; we are willing toestablish large farms because wehave the marching order of thePresident of Nigeria,” he stated.

The Green Rivers Project is aNAOC initiative that aims atrevitalising agriculture and farmingtechniques in its host communitiesin Bayelsa, Delta, Imo and Riversstate respectively. (NAN)

Agip oildistributes farmimplements,cash prizes to200 farmers inRivers

A cassava farm

Farmers in Maidugurimetropolis in Borno Statehave appealed to the Joint

Task Force (JTF) to review the curfewimposed in some parts of the state toenable them perform their farmingactivities.

A cross section of those, who

PAGE 31PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

How the West de-democratisedthe Middle East (II)ANALYSIS

President Barack Obama

Iran

The next major theatre of de-democratisation was Iran,whose elected government

was overthrown, in 1953, by aUS-UK alliance. MohammadMosaddeq was Iran's electedprime minister. He enjoyed theapproval of Iran's parliament forhis nationalisation programme.The US and UK organised a CIA-led coup to oust Mosaddeq -because Iran refused make oilconcessions to the West. DuringWorld War II, the UK had takencontrol of Iran to prevent oil frombeing passed to its ally, theSoviet Union. Through theAnglo-Iranian Oil Company, theUK continued to control Iran's oilafter the war. The French-educated Mosaddeq was highlycritical of Iran's draining ofresources to the West. Soon aftergetting elected as prime ministerin March 1951, Mosaddeq andhis National Front alliance hadmoved to nationalise Iranian oiland throw out foreign control ofoil fields. One such was theAbadan refinery, then thelargest in the world. The UKretaliated by imposing economicsanctions, backed by its heavynaval presence in the region.Mosaddeq, however, wasundeterred; his popularity onlyincreased among the Iranianpeople. Faced with Mosaddeq'sresistance, the UK-US alliancestaged a coup to over throwMosaddeq's government.

The 1953 coup in Iran wassignificant also for Central andSouth America. Indeed,subsequently it became a modelfor regime change. Only a yearlater, in 1954, as the New YorkTimes noted in 2000, the CIAstaged a successful coup inGuatemala. We should also notethe CIA plot on 9/11. Not the 9/11 we know think of - but the 9/11 of 1973. On that occasion, theCIA toppled the democraticgovernment of Salvador Allendein Chile to replace it with thedictatorship of General Pinochet,who brutally ruled for 17 longyears.

BahrainAnother theatre of de-

democratisation in the MiddleEast was Bahrain, formerly aBritish protectorate. In 1971,Bahrain became independent. InDecember 1973, the firstelections (only menparticipated) were held to electthe thirty members of al-majlisal-watani, the NationalAssembly. That assemblychallenged the unbridledauthority of the al-Khalifafamily which had ruled Bahrainsince 1783. A major challengeto the clan came in the form ofthe assembly's demand for theeviction of the US Navy basefrom Bahrain. Let it be noted

that the US military presence inBahrain dates to 1949. After thewithdrawal of British forces fromthere, the US presence increased.Legally, Bahrain's assembly wasright in asking for the evictionof the US Navy. But the rulingal-Khalifas dissolved theassembly on August 26, 1975.There was then no democracyuntil 2002. Various vibrantinstitutions of civil society, suchas trade unions, were allcrushed.

Clearly, what mattered tothe US were not the voices andaspirations of Bahraini peoplebut America's own nationalinterest, which was to keep itsbase. Admiral Crow justifiedthis, saying that "on generalprinciples ... the [US] Navy didnot want to leave a place wherethey were already established".One may say that there was no"external" intervention and theal-Khalifa family took a"sovereign internal" decision todissolve the assembly. However,in the Middle East (as elsewhere)the drawing of lines between

internal and external is adifficult business.

AfghanistanThe West's de-

democratisation continued inAfghanistan. After the fall of theTaliban, an UN-sponsoredconference took place (inNovember 2001) in Bonn todecide Afghanistan's future. Theavowed objective was to installdemocracy and women'sfreedom in Afghanistan.Leaving aside the issue of theextent to which the Afghandelegates invited to Bonn wererepresentative of the Afghanpopulation, it is instructive tonote that the leader Abdul SatarSirat, elected by a majority ofvotes to lead the interimgovernment, was asked to giveway to Hamid Karzai. Thedecision to install "democracy" inAfghanistan was itself takenundemocratically. The aimclearly was not to installdemocracy but to install Karzai,"our man", who was eager topursue Western ambitions. A

decade since then, journalistssuch as James Fergusson, authorof A million bullets and Taliban,now complain that Karzai is"absolutely not interested in theprinciples of democracy". Wasthis the goal, however? Theformer Australian primeminister, John Howard, lateradmitted that West did not wantto get embroiled in Afghanistan'sreconstruction or any messy"nation-building". Surgicaloperations in Afghanistan werethe key goal.

IraqThe story of de-

democratisation was similar inIraq. Following the Westerninvasion of Iraq as thegovernment fell in April 2003,people in places as diverse asMosul (a Kurdish town), Samara(with a Sunni Arab majority),Hilla and Najaf (both Shiatowns), and Baghdadspontaneously organisedmeetings to elect representativesfor reconstruction, safety andprovision of essentialinfrastructure. It was a populardemocratic initiative in the truesense of the term. However, theUS thwarted all such democraticinitiatives by nullifying thedecisions and plans the electedrepresentatives of variouscouncils had made. In theirplace, the US appointed theirown, reliable (unelected) people,including former Baathists.

The 'why' of de-democratisation

Why did the West de-democratise the Middle East? Itdid so, I submit, because seldomdid its power elites see the regionas a people with diverse,dynamic social-cultural textureinstead of a repository ofmultiple resources and strategicinterests. Hence their prime aimwas to keep the Middle East"stable" and "manageable".

In 1984, Robert W Stookey, aprominent member of the USforeign service (with postings inthe Middle East and a doctoratein political science), publishedThe Arabian Peninsula: Zone ofFerment from StanfordUniversity's Hoover Institution.The books published from theHoover Institution were"concerned with the USinvolvement in world andregional politics". Stookey beganthe book's introduction asfollows: "Considering theeconomic and strategicsignificance for our nationalinterests, the Arabian peninsulais not well known to the generalpublic." And this is how, withinthe framework of US nationalinterest, he made the MiddleEast "known" to his Westernaudience. Saudi Arabia, henoted, had the "possession of one-fourth of the non-communistworld's oil reserves" and thusdescribed it (and Kuwait) as "oil-rich". In contrast, he called thethen-two Yemens "oil-less". It isevident how the Middle Eastmade any sense to the West onlyin relation to whether it was "oil-rich" or "oil-less".

Such a conceptualisation ofthe Middle East was articulatedby imperial Britain, whoseviceroy to India, Lord Curzon,wrote in the 19th century:"Turkestan, Afghanistan,Transcaspia, Persia - to manythese words breathe only a senseof utter remoteness, or amemory of strange vicissitudesand of moribund romance. Tome, I confess they are pieces on achessboard upon which is beingplayed out a game for thedomination of the world." Indeed,the term "Middle East" itself isimperial. "Middle" betweenwhich two points or locations?And yes, East of what? Clearly,it is a geographical designationwhich puts the West at the centreof the world. In the late 19thcentury, Alfred Mahan, a USnavy officer, invented the term"Middle East" and used it in hisbook The Influence of Sea PowerUpon History. HalfordMackinder, a liberal imperialistof Britain, later popularised it.

I have argued how the West'sclaim of spreading democracy inthe Middle East is bogus. Againstthe West's claims, I have insteadshown how it continually de-democratised one country afteranother. Like India, the world'slargest democracy which islargely disinterested in - andindirectly hostile to - democraticmovements in Bhutan andBurma, the West has beenlargely hostile to genuinedemocracy in the Middle East soas to nurture its interests -geopolitical and strategic - bykeeping the Mubaraks and theShahs “stable”.

Irfan Ahmad is a politicalanthropologist and a lecturerat Monash University,Australia

Source: Aljazeera.com

“I have argued how the West'sclaim of spreading democracy in

the Middle East is bogus.Against the West's claims, Ihave instead shown how it

continually de-democratised onecountry after another.

By Irfan Ahmad

PAGE 32 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Senegal’s Sall sworn in as presidentSenegal’s Macky Sall took

his oath as president of theWest African country

yesterday under the gaze ofregional leaders due to holdemergency talks later on thecrisis in neighbouring Mali.

The ex-prime minister wonnearly 66 percent in lastmonth’s run-off vote to defeatincumbent Abdoulaye Wade,his former mentor, in a tenseelection that neverthelessreinforced Senegal’s credentialsas the most stable democracyin mainland West Africa.

But what was hailed as avictory for African democracywas overshadowed days laterby a coup in Mali whichemboldened separatist rebels toseize major towns in thenorthern half of the country

Sudan, S.Sudan accuse each other of attacks, talks delayedSudan and South Sudan on

Sunday accused eachother of launching attacks

in the oil-producing areastraddling their border aftertalks aimed at ending the worsthostilities since Juba declaredits independence weredelayed.The United Nationsand the United States fear theborder clashes, which broke outon Monday, could escalate andre-ignite a civil war betweenthe mainly Muslim north andthe South where most adhereto Christian and animistbeliefs.

Sudan said South Sudan’sarmy had attacked the Sudanside of the disputed Heglig oilfield area, the scene of severalclashes in the past days, statenews agency SUNA said.

“The (Sudanese) armedforces are now dealing with theenemy forces,” armyspokesman Sawarmi KhalidSaad told SUNA.

There was no immediate

response from South Sudan,which accused Khartoum ofhaving bombed two areas onthe oil-producing southern sideof the border.

“The government of Sudanattacked Manga today at twoin the morning,” PaganAmum, head of South Sudan’snegotiating team, toldreporters in Addis Ababa,where the African Union istrying to restart talks betweenthe neighbours.

“Panakuach, also in UnityState, has been subjected toaerial bombardment today,including attacks by helicoptergunship,” he said. “As wespeak, Sudan is bombing SouthSudan.”

Sudan’s army spokesmandenied the allegation.

South Sudan becameindependent from Khartoumunder a 2005 peace agreementthat ended decades of civil warthat killed 2 million people.

Both sides were supposed to

Malisanctionsloom, rebelsseize northWest African leaders will

decide on Mondaywhether to impose

sanctions on Mali after leaders ofa military coup said they wouldreturn power to civilians in a bidto avert diplomatic and economicisolation.

A 72-hour deadline, set byWest African bloc ECOWAS, forsoldiers to start returning tobarracks expired overnight asnorthern separatist rebels saidthey had completed a lightningpush south, seizing three regionalcapitals in as many days as Mali’sarmy units retreated.

A senior ECOWAS officialaccused the junta of “buyingtime” with the promises but saida decision over sanctions wouldonly be taken at a summit heldon Dakar on Monday on thesidelines of the swearing-in ofSenegal’s new president, MackySall.

Last month’s coup, weeksbefore President AmadouToumani Toure was due to stepdown for elections, shattered theinternational reputation ofstability and democracy thatAfrica’s No. 3 gold producer hadpreviously enjoyed.

The push by rebels, whoseranks were swelled by fightersreturning from the Libyanconflict, has also deepenedinsecurity across the Sahara-Sahel band, already awash withIslamists, traffickers andbandits.

France and Britain haveadvised their citizens to leave thecountry due to the insecurity.

“Captain Amadou Sanogoand his group are just buyingtime,” Remi Ajibewa, head ofpolitical affairs andinternational cooperation atECOWAS, told Reuters after thecoup leader pledged to reinstatethe constitution and all stateinstitutions before holding anelection.

“Apart from announcing therestoration of the 1992Constitution they have not setout any timetable to hand overpower to a democraticallyelected government in Mali,” headded.

ECOWAS has threatened theclosure of trade borders,diplomatic isolation and a freezein funding from the regionalcentral bank. However therewas no sign early on Monday ofmoves to implement themeasures.

where they want to make theirhomeland.

Sall, 50, ran for a seven-year mandate but has pledgedto reduce the presidential termto five years and to stick to anexisting two-term limit. It wasthe move by 85-year-old Wadeto seek a third term thatsparked street protests leadingup to the election in which atleast six people died.

Sall joins a new generationof African leaders born afterthe 1960 wave ofindependence declarationsacross the continent, and is oneof the few of that number tohave first gained power by wayof regular elections.

Among his peers are Togo’sFaure Gnassingbe, installed aspresident in 2005 on his father’s

death; Democratic Republic ofCongo’s Joseph Kabila, who cameto power the same way in 2001;and Madagascar’s AndryRajoelina, who with army backingdeclared himself president in2009 after a political crisis.

Sall has pledged to maketackling poverty a priority,promising to fund cuts to theprice of basic necessities such asrice with reductions in the costof running the government.

Among his other topchallenges is to keep Senegal’sdysfunctional power gridoperational and ultimatelyrevamp it. The sector iscurrently only producingelectricity thanks to expensivegenerators hired last year froma U.S. energy group.

resume talks this weekend butAfrican Union officials said keymembers of Sudan’s delegation,such as its defence minister andthe chief-of-staff of its army,had yet to arrive.

Sudan’s delegation said itwas committed to talks asKhartoum wanted peace,without giving a time frame.

“The government confirmsthat dialogue with South Sudanis the right way to solve allissues and to have peacebetween the two states,” thedelegation said in a statement,SUNA reported.

Amum accused Khartoum oftrying to delay the talks.

“The government of Sudandid not send the leader of theirteam. It is now clear that theyhave different intentions,” hesaid.

As well as agreeing a halt tofurther hostilities, the two sidesneed to decide how much thelandlocked South must pay toexport its crude oil through

Sudan. Juba has shut down itsentire oil production to stopKhartoum taking oil ascompensation for what it callsunpaid transit fees.

Tuareg rebels ready for Mali talksTuareg rebels in Mali’s north

have expressed a willingnessto negotiate with the

government or regional blocECOWAS after having seized theancient city of Timbuktu.

The rebel offensive came amidthe chaos gripping the WestAfrican country following lastweek’s military coup.

The National Movement forthe Liberation of Azawad (MNLA)said they were no longer seekingto expand their area of control,having secured the borders ofwhat the group considers to be aTuareg homeland.

“Our objective it not to gofurther than the Azawad borders.We don’t want to create problemsfor the government of Mali, andeven less create problems in thesub-region,” said Hama AgMahmoud, of the MNLA’s politicalwing.

“We don’t want to give anyonethe impression that we’re gung-ho for the war, so from themoment we have liberated ourterritories, our objective is

achieved, we stop there.”He said that while his group

had not yet been contactedregarding talks, they were opento them.

“We are open to all attempts... [to] all means of negotiationsthrough ECOWAS [EconomicCommunity of West AfricanStates], through another organ orthrough big powers, we areeffectively open, but for now wehaven’t received any attempt ofnegotiation,” he said.

Earlier, the rebels overranTimbuktu, a long-time target oftheir movement.

“[Tuareg rebels] have arrivedin the town. They are plantingtheir flag,” El Hadj Baba Haidara,a member of parliament forTimbuktu, told the Reuters newsagency on Sunday.

A resident told the Reutersnews agency that the rebels hadhoisted the Tuareg flag at thegovernor’s office, the mayor’s officeand the main military camp.

Several witnesses told the AFPnews agency that rebels were in

the city and that gunshotswere heard.

The capture of Timbuktucame hours after the rebels tookthe garrison town of Gao,following a withdrawal byMalian army forces.

Al Jazeera’s HashemAhelbarra, reporting from Malicapital, Bamako, said that bycapturing Timbuktu, therebels had “managed to do whathad eluded them for decades”.

He said that when mutinoussoldiers overthrew thegovernment, they said it waswith the intention ofestablishing a genuinedemocracy in Mali.

“However, what they failedto take into account was thatthe army was sort ofdisintegrating and that therebellion was going to takeadvantage of that situation toclaim more than one third ofthe country,” he added.

Fighting under the bannerof the MNLA, the rebels re-launched their decades-long

military campaign for aseparate homeland in mid-January and have since seizedKidal, another key town in thenorth.

The setbacks at the hands ofthe heavily armed rebels piledpressure on Mali’s coup leaderswho had been given untilMonday to start handing backpower or face sanctions by theECOWAS regional bloc.

Threatened with cripplingsanctions, coup leader AmadouSanogo has agreed to reinstatethe constitution and holdelections.

Sanogo, who dissolved thenation’s constitution aftergrabbing power, said onSunday that the 1992 law hadbeen “reinstated”.

“We make the solemncommitment to restore, fromthis day, the constitution of theRepublic of Mali of February25, 1992, as well as therepublic’s institutions,” Sanogotold journalists in Bamako.

Macky Sall

Omar Al-Bashir

PAGE 34 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

A Russian passenger planecrashed and burst intoflames after takeoff in an oil-

producing region of Siberia onMonday, killing at least 31 of the43 people on board, emergencyofficials said.

Thirteen survivors werepulled from the wreckage andrushed to hospital by helicopterbut one later died. Televisionfootage showed the plane, whichhad broken in two, lying in asnowy field. Only the tail and rearpart of the fuselage were visible.

It was not immediately clearwhat caused the UTair airlinesATR 72 to crash with 39passengers and four crew on board,the latest air disaster to blightRussia's safety record.

"There are no explanationsyet," Yuri Alekhin, head of theregional branch of theEmergencies Ministry, toldRussian television from the sceneof the crash.

He said the "black box" flightrecorder had been found andadded: "Contact was lost with theplane just over three minutesafter take-off."

Russian plane crashkills 31, 12 survive

UTair said on its website thatthe twin-engine, turbo-prop planehad been trying to make anemergency landing when it camedown 1.5 km (one mile) from theairport in the western Siberiancity of Tyumen en route to Surgut,an oil town to the northeast.

At least five of the survivorswere in critical condition, RIA newsagency quoted hospital officials assaying in Tyumen, some 1,720km (1,070 miles) east of Moscow.

UTair has three ATR-72 craftmade by the French-Italianmanufacturer ATR, according tothe Russian airline's websitewww.utair.ru.

ATR is an equal partnershipbetween two major Europeanaeronautics players, AleniaAermacchi, a Finmeccanicacompany, and EADS.

The crash was the deadliest airdisaster in Russia since a Yak-42plane slammed into ariverbank near the city ofYaroslavl after takeoff onSeptember 7, 2011, killing 44people and wiping out theLokomotiv Yaroslavl icehockey team.

Pakistan jails bin Laden’sfamily for illegal stayA Pakistani court charged

former al Qaeda leaderOsama bin Laden’s three

widows and two daughters withillegally staying in the countryand sentenced them to 45 daysin jail, their lawyers saidyesterday.

In practice, that means 14days in prison because theyhave been in detention sinceMarch 3. Bin Laden’s familymembers will eventually bedeported to their homecountries, the lawyers said.

“They (bin Laden’srelatives) were sentenced to 45days imprisonment and fined10,000 rupees ($110) each.The money was paid on thespot,” Aamir Khalil, one of thelawyers, said.

“The Secretary of theInterior has been instructed tomake arrangements for theirdeportation after that.”

Analysts had said thatPakistan may have wanted alengthy prison sentence for thefamily to prevent them fromdiscussing details of their timein Pakistan.

Once outside Pakistan, bin

Laden’s relatives could revealdetails about how the world’smost wanted man was able tohide in U.S. ally Pakistan foryears, possibly assisted byelements of the country’spowerful military and spyagency.

Pakistan’s government andmilitary have said they had nolinks to bin Laden.

Any revelations about tiesto bin Laden could embarrassIslamabad, and infuriateWashington which staged adecade-long hunt for bin Ladenafter the September 11, 2001attacks on the United States.

Bin Laden was shot andkilled in May last year by U.S.special forces who stormed hishouse in the Pakistani garrisontown of Abbottabad, about atwo-hour drive from thecapital Islamabad.

Yemen-born Amal Al-Sadeh, the youngest widow,and her four children wereamong the 16 people detainedby Pakistani authorities afterthe raid, which also includedtwo other wives from SaudiArabia.

Hungarian presidentquits after plagiarism row

Hungarian President Pal Schmitt arrives at the parliament inBudapest April 2, 2012. Schmitt, who was stripped of his doctoratelast week in a plagiarism row, announced yesterday that he willresign from his post.

Hungary's presidentresigned yesterday,bowing to pressure over a

plagiarism scandal which sawhim stripped of his universitydoctorate.

Pal Schmitt became the firstpresident in post-communisthistory to quit the largelysymbolic post. The resignationposes no risk to the governmentand his rapid departure mightbenefit his ally, Hungary'sconservative Prime MinisterViktor Orban.

The 69-year-old was strippedof his sports doctorate after theuniversity found he had copiedchunks of his thesis withoutproper acknowledgement, acharge he denies. Critics called forhim to go, saying the scandaldamaged the prestige of his officeand harmed Hungary's image.

"When my personal issuedivides my beloved nation ratherthan unites it, it is my duty to endmy service and resign mymandate as president," Schmitttold parliament.

The two-time Olympic goldmedal-winning fencer had aninstrumental role in pushing theagenda of Orban's government,signing controversial reforms,such as retroactive taxes, into law.

Schmitt was elected presidentby parliament for a five-yearterm in 2010, after Orban's Fideszparty won elections.

Less than two years later,Schmitt vacates his palace inBudapest's luxurious castle districtas the least popular president sincethe collapse of communism,according to a poll last week.

The controversy comes at asensitive time for Hungary,central Europe's most indebtednation, as it tries to resolve alengthy dispute with theEuropean Union that has held upfunding from the bloc. But itshould not destabilise thegovernment.

"This decision strengthens thegovernment's stability," said PeterKreko, an analyst at think tankPolitical Capital.

"Schmitt was a big politicalburden for the government andFidesz ... and as it has been a quickresignation, I don't think thiswould erode Fidesz' support."

Despite his everyman charm,Schmitt could not connect withvoters, many of whom deridedwhat they saw as his lack ofautonomy in signing bitterlycontested reforms into law, in linewith his inaugural pledge to be the"engine" of Orban's reforms.

Schmitt presided over thepassage of a new constitution andabout 300 new laws, some ofwhich sparked a dispute withHungary's internationalpartners and the EU, hamperingits bid for vital financial aid toavert a market crisis.

Budapest's SemmelweisUniversity revoked Schmitt'sdoctorate last week, after itsinquiry found his 1992 thesis, "Ananalysis of the programme ofModern Olympic Games", had notmet scientific and ethicalstandards.

The university's decision wentfurther than suggested by thefindings of its investigativecommittee, which said while

Schmitt's 215-page thesiscontained "unusually largeamounts of verbatim translation",it met the formal standards of thetime.

Schmitt, a former Fidesz partyvice president, said he wouldappeal the ruling on the groundsthat the university had nojurisdiction in the matter and

Stage set forColombiahostagereleaseTwo Brazilian air force

helicopters have arrivedin Colombia to whisk away

to freedom the last 10 soldiersand police held hostage byColombia’s main rebel group.

Piedad Cordoba, a formerColombian senator brokering therelease, said she expected toobtain the co-ordinates from theleftist Revolutionary ArmedForces of Colombia (FARC) onMonday morning.

The Red Cross-emblazonedSuper Cougars would thendepart for a jungle rendezvous.

Brazilian helicopters havebeen used because it acceptableby all sides, and has beeninvolved in previous hostagehandovers.

It remains unclear whetherFARC rebels will free all 10captives - some held for as longas 14 years - at once or in severalstages. Four of the hostages aresoldiers and the rest are policeofficers.

The rebels have proposedpeace talks, and recentlyannounced a halt to kidnappingsfor ransom.

Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo,reporting from Villavicencio,Colombia, said the long ordealfor the hostages “may be comingto an end within a matter ofhours now”.

He said the move was ahumanitarian handover asopposed to a military one.

The handover is being led bythe International Committee ofthe Red Cross and Colombians forPeace, an organisation made upmostly of women.

The group has been workingbehind the scenes for manymonths to make “thishumanitarian handoverpossible”, said ourcorrespondent.

He said one of the people whoarrived to show support for theNGO’s effort was RigobertaMenchú, a Nobel prize-winninghuman rights advocate fromGuatemala.

“We know that there aresveral others that have beenreleased this way. And we knowthat beyond the releasesColombia should have peace. Wefeel what Colomboans feel now,”Menchú said.

Our correspondent said thatthe FARC was also holdingcivilians but added that it wasnot clear how many were in therebels’ hands.

“It could be as little as eightyor ninety, but some estimatesare that it could be into thehundreds. Nobody really knowswhat the status of civilianhostages will be,” he said.

“There is a real hope that thishostage handover could open updoors of communication anddialogue between the FARC andthe Colombian government, butit is unclear whether thegovernment will want to engagein dialogue with the FARC.”

only a court could revoke hisdoctorate.

"The process was unethical andunlawful," Schmitt toldparliament.

"Naturally, I will appeal thisdecision and I will seek justicethrough the courts. For some, thisis a political question. To me, it's amatter of honour."

PAGE 33PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Palestinian on hunger strike deported to GazaHana Shalabi, a

Palestinian woman on ahunger strike for 43

days, has been deported to theGaza Strip after ending her fastunder a deal that has beencriticised by Palestinians.

Shalabi has been protestingagainst her detention by Israelwithout charge.

Witnesses and Palestinianofficials told the AFP newsagency that Shalabi enteredGaza via the Erez border crossing,and was transferred byambulance to a local hospital fortests.

Shalabi, who met relativeson the Israeli side of Erez beforeentering Gaza, said she was“very happy to be in my countrywith my people”.

But, she added, the encounterwith her family - from Jenin inthe West Bank - was verydifficult.

“I was shocked meeting myfamily, and they were shockedto see me,” she told the media onthe Gaza side of Erez. “Themeeting with my family wasvery difficult.”

Shalabi was received in Gazaby approximately 100 peoplebearing her picture and callingout her name. Officials from theIslamic Jihad and Hamasmovements were also there.

Sivan Weizman, Israel’sprison services spokeswoman,said Shalabi, who ended herhunger strike on March 29, wastransferred in a regular vehicle,and that she had no details onher condition.

Shalabi began her hungerstrike after she was arrested onFebruary 16 and held withoutcharge. She was hospitalised onMarch 19, after 33 days withoutfood, with doctors saying she hadlost 14kg and her pulse was“feeble”.

On March 29, Palestinianauthorities announced thatShalabi had agreed to a deal withIsrael under which she would bereleased and deported to Gaza forthree years in exchange forending her hunger strike.

The deal has been criticisedby rights groups and thePalestinian prisoners affairsministry, which said she had

been forced to accept thearrangement.

But in a statement releasedon Sunday through her lawyer,Jawad Bulus, Shalabi insistedshe had agreed to the dealvoluntarily.

‘To my dear family and mypeople and all the free people inthe world, I thank you for yourefforts and I appreciateeverything you did for me andfor the prisoners,” she said.

“I hope that you willunderstand my position and mydecision, which was takenfreely.”

“I chose to be transported toGaza, which is half thehomeland, and to be with myfamily and people there for threeyears,” she said.

“With no guarantees that sheor her family will be permittedto travel, her expulsion couldessentially become an extensionof her previous isolation”

“After that I will go back to

my home in Jenin and to myfamily. I hope that my decisionwill be respected and that we willcontinue to support togetherthose who are fighting theirbattles for the homeland and forthe prisoners,” said Shalabi.

Palestinian prisoners groupAddameer and Israel’sPhysicians For Human Rights-Israel, both of which worked onShalabi’s case, expressedconcern about the deal, in a jointstatement on Sunday.

They noted that theirofficials, as well as Shalabi’srelatives, were denied access toher during the final days of herhunger strike.

And they warned that“aspects” of the deal “arefundamentally at odds withinternational law”.

“With no guarantees that sheor her family will be permittedto travel, her expulsion couldessentially become an extensionof her previous isolation from her

home and family while inprison.”

The InternationalCommittee of the Red Cross(ICRC) said in a statement issuedin Geneva that it was notinvolved in the negotiationsbetween Shalabi and the Israeliauthorities “and is not aware ofthe details of the arrangement.”

However, the organisationsaid it “urges the Israeliauthorities to comply withinternational humanitarian law... which prohibits Israel,whatever its motives, fromforcibly transferringPalestinians to anotherterritory.”

The statement added: “Onpurely humanitarian grounds,the ICRC did facilitate a visitbetween Ms Shalabi and herrelatives, which took place todayat the Erez crossing.”

Israel had previously heldShalabi for 25 months butreleased her in October last year

under a prisoner swap deal withHamas, which controls Gaza.

Shalabi was one of about 300Palestinian prisoners being heldin Israeli jails underadministrative detention orders,which allow a court to order anindividual to be detained forrenewable periods of up to sixmonths at a time.

Her action followed a hungerstrike undertaken by anotherPalestinian prisoner, KhaderAdnan, who also protested hisdetention.

Adnan refused food for 66days, only agreeing to end hishunger strike after a deal wasstruck ensuring he would bereleased at the end of his four-month term.

In the wake of his hungerstrike, dozens more Palestinianprisoners in Israeli jailslaunched similar protests,according to Palestinian andIsraeli officials.

Suu Kyi upbeat about post-poll MyanmarPro-democracy icon Aung San

Suu Kyi has struck anoptimistic note about

Myanmar’s future, saying thisweek’s by-elections, which herparty claimed to have wonoverwhelmingly, could be theharbinger of a “new era”.

Her National League forDemocracy (NLD) says it won all44 parliamentary seats itcontested, including the one SuuKyi was standing for.

The veteran activist’s electionto political office, if confirmed,would mark the latest change inthe country after decades of

outright military rule ended lastyear. It would also be the Nobellaureate’s first foray intoparliament.

“This is not so much ourtriumph as a triumph for peoplewho have decided that they mustbe involved in the political processin this country,” Suu Kyi said in avictory speech at her partyheadquarters in Yangon onMonday.

“We hope this will be thebeginning of a new era,” said theactivist, who was locked up by theformer military rulers for most ofthe past 22 years.

Suu Kyi struck a conciliatorytone towards the other politicalparties.

“We hope that all parties thattook part in the elections will be ina position to co-operate with us inorder to create a genuinelydemocratic atmosphere in ournation,” she said.

The NLD said that it had wonall of the seats it contested, basedon its own tally, but no officialresults have yet been announced.

Suu Kyi’s win is “hugelysymbolic,” Al Jazeera’s WayneHay, reporting from Yangon, said.

“And while she will have little

power, the mere fact that she isthere means there will be a lotmore international attention onparliament itself and the decisionsthat it makes.”

He said the success of theseelections might mean biggergains for the opposition in theupcoming 2015 generalelections.

More than six million peoplewere eligible to vote on Sunday,with a total of 160 candidatesfrom 17 parties, including sixnew to the political stage, for 45seats.

The number of seats at stake

is not enough to threaten themilitary-backed ruling party’soverwhelming majority,secured in full elections in 2010.

The government for the firsttime invited teams of foreignobservers from the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations,European Union and the US, andjournalists to witness the elections.

Since taking office a year ago,President Thein Sein has carriedout reforms including releasinghundreds of political prisoners,easing media restrictions andwelcoming the opposition backinto mainstream politics.

Shalabi was one of around 300 Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails under administrative detention

PAGE 34 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

A Russian passenger planecrashed and burst intoflames after takeoff in an oil-

producing region of Siberia onMonday, killing at least 31 of the43 people on board, emergencyofficials said.

Thirteen survivors werepulled from the wreckage andrushed to hospital by helicopterbut one later died. Televisionfootage showed the plane, whichhad broken in two, lying in asnowy field. Only the tail and rearpart of the fuselage were visible.

It was not immediately clearwhat caused the UTair airlinesATR 72 to crash with 39passengers and four crew on board,the latest air disaster to blightRussia's safety record.

"There are no explanationsyet," Yuri Alekhin, head of theregional branch of theEmergencies Ministry, toldRussian television from the sceneof the crash.

He said the "black box" flightrecorder had been found andadded: "Contact was lost with theplane just over three minutesafter take-off."

Russian plane crashkills 31, 12 survive

UTair said on its website thatthe twin-engine, turbo-prop planehad been trying to make anemergency landing when it camedown 1.5 km (one mile) from theairport in the western Siberiancity of Tyumen en route to Surgut,an oil town to the northeast.

At least five of the survivorswere in critical condition, RIA newsagency quoted hospital officials assaying in Tyumen, some 1,720km (1,070 miles) east of Moscow.

UTair has three ATR-72 craftmade by the French-Italianmanufacturer ATR, according tothe Russian airline's websitewww.utair.ru.

ATR is an equal partnershipbetween two major Europeanaeronautics players, AleniaAermacchi, a Finmeccanicacompany, and EADS.

The crash was the deadliest airdisaster in Russia since a Yak-42plane slammed into ariverbank near the city ofYaroslavl after takeoff onSeptember 7, 2011, killing 44people and wiping out theLokomotiv Yaroslavl icehockey team.

Pakistan jails bin Laden’sfamily for illegal stayA Pakistani court charged

former al Qaeda leaderOsama bin Laden’s three

widows and two daughters withillegally staying in the countryand sentenced them to 45 daysin jail, their lawyers saidyesterday.

In practice, that means 14days in prison because theyhave been in detention sinceMarch 3. Bin Laden’s familymembers will eventually bedeported to their homecountries, the lawyers said.

“They (bin Laden’srelatives) were sentenced to 45days imprisonment and fined10,000 rupees ($110) each.The money was paid on thespot,” Aamir Khalil, one of thelawyers, said.

“The Secretary of theInterior has been instructed tomake arrangements for theirdeportation after that.”

Analysts had said thatPakistan may have wanted alengthy prison sentence for thefamily to prevent them fromdiscussing details of their timein Pakistan.

Once outside Pakistan, bin

Laden’s relatives could revealdetails about how the world’smost wanted man was able tohide in U.S. ally Pakistan foryears, possibly assisted byelements of the country’spowerful military and spyagency.

Pakistan’s government andmilitary have said they had nolinks to bin Laden.

Any revelations about tiesto bin Laden could embarrassIslamabad, and infuriateWashington which staged adecade-long hunt for bin Ladenafter the September 11, 2001attacks on the United States.

Bin Laden was shot andkilled in May last year by U.S.special forces who stormed hishouse in the Pakistani garrisontown of Abbottabad, about atwo-hour drive from thecapital Islamabad.

Yemen-born Amal Al-Sadeh, the youngest widow,and her four children wereamong the 16 people detainedby Pakistani authorities afterthe raid, which also includedtwo other wives from SaudiArabia.

Hungarian presidentquits after plagiarism row

Hungarian President Pal Schmitt arrives at the parliament inBudapest April 2, 2012. Schmitt, who was stripped of his doctoratelast week in a plagiarism row, announced yesterday that he willresign from his post.

Hungary's presidentresigned yesterday,bowing to pressure over a

plagiarism scandal which sawhim stripped of his universitydoctorate.

Pal Schmitt became the firstpresident in post-communisthistory to quit the largelysymbolic post. The resignationposes no risk to the governmentand his rapid departure mightbenefit his ally, Hungary'sconservative Prime MinisterViktor Orban.

The 69-year-old was strippedof his sports doctorate after theuniversity found he had copiedchunks of his thesis withoutproper acknowledgement, acharge he denies. Critics called forhim to go, saying the scandaldamaged the prestige of his officeand harmed Hungary's image.

"When my personal issuedivides my beloved nation ratherthan unites it, it is my duty to endmy service and resign mymandate as president," Schmitttold parliament.

The two-time Olympic goldmedal-winning fencer had aninstrumental role in pushing theagenda of Orban's government,signing controversial reforms,such as retroactive taxes, into law.

Schmitt was elected presidentby parliament for a five-yearterm in 2010, after Orban's Fideszparty won elections.

Less than two years later,Schmitt vacates his palace inBudapest's luxurious castle districtas the least popular president sincethe collapse of communism,according to a poll last week.

The controversy comes at asensitive time for Hungary,central Europe's most indebtednation, as it tries to resolve alengthy dispute with theEuropean Union that has held upfunding from the bloc. But itshould not destabilise thegovernment.

"This decision strengthens thegovernment's stability," said PeterKreko, an analyst at think tankPolitical Capital.

"Schmitt was a big politicalburden for the government andFidesz ... and as it has been a quickresignation, I don't think thiswould erode Fidesz' support."

Despite his everyman charm,Schmitt could not connect withvoters, many of whom deridedwhat they saw as his lack ofautonomy in signing bitterlycontested reforms into law, in linewith his inaugural pledge to be the"engine" of Orban's reforms.

Schmitt presided over thepassage of a new constitution andabout 300 new laws, some ofwhich sparked a dispute withHungary's internationalpartners and the EU, hamperingits bid for vital financial aid toavert a market crisis.

Budapest's SemmelweisUniversity revoked Schmitt'sdoctorate last week, after itsinquiry found his 1992 thesis, "Ananalysis of the programme ofModern Olympic Games", had notmet scientific and ethicalstandards.

The university's decision wentfurther than suggested by thefindings of its investigativecommittee, which said while

Schmitt's 215-page thesiscontained "unusually largeamounts of verbatim translation",it met the formal standards of thetime.

Schmitt, a former Fidesz partyvice president, said he wouldappeal the ruling on the groundsthat the university had nojurisdiction in the matter and

Stage set forColombiahostagereleaseTwo Brazilian air force

helicopters have arrivedin Colombia to whisk away

to freedom the last 10 soldiersand police held hostage byColombia’s main rebel group.

Piedad Cordoba, a formerColombian senator brokering therelease, said she expected toobtain the co-ordinates from theleftist Revolutionary ArmedForces of Colombia (FARC) onMonday morning.

The Red Cross-emblazonedSuper Cougars would thendepart for a jungle rendezvous.

Brazilian helicopters havebeen used because it acceptableby all sides, and has beeninvolved in previous hostagehandovers.

It remains unclear whetherFARC rebels will free all 10captives - some held for as longas 14 years - at once or in severalstages. Four of the hostages aresoldiers and the rest are policeofficers.

The rebels have proposedpeace talks, and recentlyannounced a halt to kidnappingsfor ransom.

Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo,reporting from Villavicencio,Colombia, said the long ordealfor the hostages “may be comingto an end within a matter ofhours now”.

He said the move was ahumanitarian handover asopposed to a military one.

The handover is being led bythe International Committee ofthe Red Cross and Colombians forPeace, an organisation made upmostly of women.

The group has been workingbehind the scenes for manymonths to make “thishumanitarian handoverpossible”, said ourcorrespondent.

He said one of the people whoarrived to show support for theNGO’s effort was RigobertaMenchú, a Nobel prize-winninghuman rights advocate fromGuatemala.

“We know that there aresveral others that have beenreleased this way. And we knowthat beyond the releasesColombia should have peace. Wefeel what Colomboans feel now,”Menchú said.

Our correspondent said thatthe FARC was also holdingcivilians but added that it wasnot clear how many were in therebels’ hands.

“It could be as little as eightyor ninety, but some estimatesare that it could be into thehundreds. Nobody really knowswhat the status of civilianhostages will be,” he said.

“There is a real hope that thishostage handover could open updoors of communication anddialogue between the FARC andthe Colombian government, butit is unclear whether thegovernment will want to engagein dialogue with the FARC.”

only a court could revoke hisdoctorate.

"The process was unethical andunlawful," Schmitt toldparliament.

"Naturally, I will appeal thisdecision and I will seek justicethrough the courts. For some, thisis a political question. To me, it's amatter of honour."

PAGE 33PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Palestinian on hunger strike deported to GazaHana Shalabi, a

Palestinian woman on ahunger strike for 43

days, has been deported to theGaza Strip after ending her fastunder a deal that has beencriticised by Palestinians.

Shalabi has been protestingagainst her detention by Israelwithout charge.

Witnesses and Palestinianofficials told the AFP newsagency that Shalabi enteredGaza via the Erez border crossing,and was transferred byambulance to a local hospital fortests.

Shalabi, who met relativeson the Israeli side of Erez beforeentering Gaza, said she was“very happy to be in my countrywith my people”.

But, she added, the encounterwith her family - from Jenin inthe West Bank - was verydifficult.

“I was shocked meeting myfamily, and they were shockedto see me,” she told the media onthe Gaza side of Erez. “Themeeting with my family wasvery difficult.”

Shalabi was received in Gazaby approximately 100 peoplebearing her picture and callingout her name. Officials from theIslamic Jihad and Hamasmovements were also there.

Sivan Weizman, Israel’sprison services spokeswoman,said Shalabi, who ended herhunger strike on March 29, wastransferred in a regular vehicle,and that she had no details onher condition.

Shalabi began her hungerstrike after she was arrested onFebruary 16 and held withoutcharge. She was hospitalised onMarch 19, after 33 days withoutfood, with doctors saying she hadlost 14kg and her pulse was“feeble”.

On March 29, Palestinianauthorities announced thatShalabi had agreed to a deal withIsrael under which she would bereleased and deported to Gaza forthree years in exchange forending her hunger strike.

The deal has been criticisedby rights groups and thePalestinian prisoners affairsministry, which said she had

been forced to accept thearrangement.

But in a statement releasedon Sunday through her lawyer,Jawad Bulus, Shalabi insistedshe had agreed to the dealvoluntarily.

‘To my dear family and mypeople and all the free people inthe world, I thank you for yourefforts and I appreciateeverything you did for me andfor the prisoners,” she said.

“I hope that you willunderstand my position and mydecision, which was takenfreely.”

“I chose to be transported toGaza, which is half thehomeland, and to be with myfamily and people there for threeyears,” she said.

“With no guarantees that sheor her family will be permittedto travel, her expulsion couldessentially become an extensionof her previous isolation”

“After that I will go back to

my home in Jenin and to myfamily. I hope that my decisionwill be respected and that we willcontinue to support togetherthose who are fighting theirbattles for the homeland and forthe prisoners,” said Shalabi.

Palestinian prisoners groupAddameer and Israel’sPhysicians For Human Rights-Israel, both of which worked onShalabi’s case, expressedconcern about the deal, in a jointstatement on Sunday.

They noted that theirofficials, as well as Shalabi’srelatives, were denied access toher during the final days of herhunger strike.

And they warned that“aspects” of the deal “arefundamentally at odds withinternational law”.

“With no guarantees that sheor her family will be permittedto travel, her expulsion couldessentially become an extensionof her previous isolation from her

home and family while inprison.”

The InternationalCommittee of the Red Cross(ICRC) said in a statement issuedin Geneva that it was notinvolved in the negotiationsbetween Shalabi and the Israeliauthorities “and is not aware ofthe details of the arrangement.”

However, the organisationsaid it “urges the Israeliauthorities to comply withinternational humanitarian law... which prohibits Israel,whatever its motives, fromforcibly transferringPalestinians to anotherterritory.”

The statement added: “Onpurely humanitarian grounds,the ICRC did facilitate a visitbetween Ms Shalabi and herrelatives, which took place todayat the Erez crossing.”

Israel had previously heldShalabi for 25 months butreleased her in October last year

under a prisoner swap deal withHamas, which controls Gaza.

Shalabi was one of about 300Palestinian prisoners being heldin Israeli jails underadministrative detention orders,which allow a court to order anindividual to be detained forrenewable periods of up to sixmonths at a time.

Her action followed a hungerstrike undertaken by anotherPalestinian prisoner, KhaderAdnan, who also protested hisdetention.

Adnan refused food for 66days, only agreeing to end hishunger strike after a deal wasstruck ensuring he would bereleased at the end of his four-month term.

In the wake of his hungerstrike, dozens more Palestinianprisoners in Israeli jailslaunched similar protests,according to Palestinian andIsraeli officials.

Suu Kyi upbeat about post-poll MyanmarPro-democracy icon Aung San

Suu Kyi has struck anoptimistic note about

Myanmar’s future, saying thisweek’s by-elections, which herparty claimed to have wonoverwhelmingly, could be theharbinger of a “new era”.

Her National League forDemocracy (NLD) says it won all44 parliamentary seats itcontested, including the one SuuKyi was standing for.

The veteran activist’s electionto political office, if confirmed,would mark the latest change inthe country after decades of

outright military rule ended lastyear. It would also be the Nobellaureate’s first foray intoparliament.

“This is not so much ourtriumph as a triumph for peoplewho have decided that they mustbe involved in the political processin this country,” Suu Kyi said in avictory speech at her partyheadquarters in Yangon onMonday.

“We hope this will be thebeginning of a new era,” said theactivist, who was locked up by theformer military rulers for most ofthe past 22 years.

Suu Kyi struck a conciliatorytone towards the other politicalparties.

“We hope that all parties thattook part in the elections will be ina position to co-operate with us inorder to create a genuinelydemocratic atmosphere in ournation,” she said.

The NLD said that it had wonall of the seats it contested, basedon its own tally, but no officialresults have yet been announced.

Suu Kyi’s win is “hugelysymbolic,” Al Jazeera’s WayneHay, reporting from Yangon, said.

“And while she will have little

power, the mere fact that she isthere means there will be a lotmore international attention onparliament itself and the decisionsthat it makes.”

He said the success of theseelections might mean biggergains for the opposition in theupcoming 2015 generalelections.

More than six million peoplewere eligible to vote on Sunday,with a total of 160 candidatesfrom 17 parties, including sixnew to the political stage, for 45seats.

The number of seats at stake

is not enough to threaten themilitary-backed ruling party’soverwhelming majority,secured in full elections in 2010.

The government for the firsttime invited teams of foreignobservers from the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations,European Union and the US, andjournalists to witness the elections.

Since taking office a year ago,President Thein Sein has carriedout reforms including releasinghundreds of political prisoners,easing media restrictions andwelcoming the opposition backinto mainstream politics.

Shalabi was one of around 300 Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails under administrative detention

PAGE 35PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

World’s tallest treehouse makes popularSwiss family look like amateurs

The world's tallest treehouse,located in Crossville,Tennessee, makes the Swiss

Family Robinsons look like a bunchof amateurs - but that might bebecause it was commissioned byGod.

The 1960 Disney film about afamily shipwrecked on an island,features an impressive treehousecomplete with its own water mill.

But the Robinson's home palesin significance next to thisstructure, which took builderHorace Burgess 11 years to build.

Horace, who lives in the 10story wooden house, said he begunthe build in 1993 after he receiveda vision from God, who said hewould never run out of materialsif he built it.

The enormous treehouse is awhopping 10,000 square feet butonly cost Horace a reasonable$12,000 thanks to his thrifty useof recycled materials.

Inside there are spiralstaircases, a sanctuary, a choir loft,a basketball court, and countlessrooms, walkways and balconies.

These photos were taken byphotographer Tom Whetton, 63,on March 15, this year.

He said: 'The treehouse isincredibly impressive.

'You can't really appreciate thescale until you are standing nextto it but it is absolutely huge.

'I was told that the whole thingis supported by just six trees andthat Horace used 258,000 nails toput everything together.

'This house is every kids dream.Even I wanted to go inside andexplore.'

Competition: The Swiss Family Robinson, from a 1960 Disney film, lived in a somewhat less elaboratestructure

Ten stories: The tree house in Crossville Tennessee, the tallest inthe world and it has taken 11 years for builder Horace Burgess tofinish

Envious: The vast, cavernous, interior is large enough to make the likes of even Swiss FamilyRobinson envious. That family, from a 1960s Disney movie, built a splendid tree house while trappedon an island

More like tree mansion: Thebuilder, Horace Burgess, callsthis 10,000-square-footstructure

Wonders inside: The treehouse features a spiralstaircases, a sanctuary, achoir loft, a basketball courtand countless rooms,walkways and balconies

Dream house: Tom Whetton, the photographer who snappedpictures of the place, said the house is the sort of place every kiddreams about exploring

PAGE 36 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Genetic flaw that turnsflu into a killer discovered

A genetic discovery couldhelp explain why flumakes some people

seriously ill or kills them, whileothers seem able to bat it awaywith little more than a few aches,coughs and sneezes.

British and Americanresearchers said they had foundfor the first time a human genethat influences how peoplerespond to flu infections, makingsome people more susceptible thanothers.

The finding helps explain whyduring the 2009/2010 pandemicof H1N1 or ‘swine flu’, the vastmajority of people infected hadonly mild symptoms, while others- many of them healthy youngadults - got seriously ill and died.

In future, the geneticdiscovery could help doctorsscreen patients to identify thosemore likely to be brought downby flu, allowing them to beselected for priority vaccinationor preventative treatment duringoutbreaks, the researchers said.

It could also help develop newvaccines or medicines againstpotentially more dangerousviruses such as bird flu.

Study leader Paul Kellam ofBritain’s Sanger Institute said thegene, called ITFITM3, appeared tobe a ‘crucial first line of defence’against flu.

When IFITM3 was present inlarge quantities, the spread of thevirus in lungs was hindered, heexplained. But when IFITM3 levelswere lower, the virus couldreplicate and spread more easily,causing more severe symptoms.

People who carried a particularvariant of IFTIM3 were far morelikely to be taken into hospital

when they got flu than people whocarried other variants, he added.

‘Our research is important forpeople who have this variant aswe predict their immune defencescould be weakened to some virusinfections,’ Kellam said.

‘Ultimately as we learn moreabout the genetics ofsusceptibility to viruses, thenpeople can take informedprecautions, such as vaccinationto prevent infection.’

The potential antiviral role ofIFITM3 in humans was firstsuggested in studies conducted byAbraham Brass fromMassachusetts General Hospital inthe U.S. Using genetic screening,he found that it blocked thegrowth of flu and other viruses incells.

Teams led by Brass andKellam then took the work furtherby knocking out the IFITM3 genein mice. They found that oncethese animals contracted flu theyhad far more severe symptomsthan mice with the IFITM3 gene.

In effect, they said, the loss ofthis single gene in mice can turna mild case of influenza into a fatalinfection.

The researchers thensequenced the IFITM3 genes of 53patients who had beenhospitalised with seasonal orpandemic flu and found that ahigher number of them had a

A genetic clue may explain why some people experience mild flu symptoms while others are hospitalised

particular variant of IFITM3compared to the general patientpopulation.

The researchers believe thisvariant results in a shorterversion of the protein or one that

is less abundant in cells, leavingpatients more vulnerable to fluwhen they get it.

‘Our efforts suggest thatindividuals and populations withless IFITM3 activity may be at

Plain popcorn has alreadybeen hailed as a great dietfood for its low calorie content

but now a group of scientists claimit may even top fruits andvegetables in antioxidant levels.

Antioxidants - known aspolyphenols - have huge healthbenefits as they help fight harmfulmolecules that damage cells.

Popcorn was found to have ahigh level of concentratedantioxidants because it is made upof just four percent water whilethey are more diluted in fruits andvegetables because they are madeup of up to 90 percent water.

Researchers discovered oneserving of popcorn has up to300mg of antioxidants - nearlydouble the 160mg for all fruits perserving.

They also found that thecrunchy hulls of the popcorn havethe highest concentration ofantioxidants and fiber.

The scientists from theUniversity of Scranton inPennsylvania unveiled theirdiscovery at a meeting of theAmerican Chemical Society in SanDiego.

Researcher Joe Vinson said:‘Those hulls deserve more respect.They are nutritional gold nuggets.’

But Mr Vinson warned thatpeople can’t forgo their five-a-day

Popcorn has ‘more antioxidantsthan fruit and vegetables’

As well as being a great dietfood, popcorn also contains ahigh level of antioxidents,which help fight harmfulmolecules. Posed by model

The scientists warned thatpreparation is key to cullingpopcorn’s health benefits.

Mr Vinson added: ‘Air-poppedpopcorn has the lowest number ofcalories while microwave popcornhas twice as many calories as air-popped.’

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

per cent unprocessed whole grain.‘All other grains are processed

and diluted with otheringredients, and although cerealsare called ‘whole grain’, this simplymeans that over 51 per cent of theweight of the product is wholegrain.

‘One serving of popcorn willprovide more than 70 per cent of

the daily intake of whole grain.‘The average person only gets

about half a serving of whole grainsa day, and popcorn could fill thatgap in a very pleasant way.’

in favour of popcorn - as it doesn’tcontain vital vitamins andnutrients found in fruit andvegetables.

Although he added thatpopcorn has many other healthbenefits, stating: ‘Popcorn may bethe perfect snack food.

‘It’s the only snack that is 100

But researchers warn that while popcorn has a higher concentration of antioxidents it doesn't containany of the vital vitamins or other nutrients found in fruit and vegetables

increased risk during a pandemic,and that IFITM3 could be vital fordefending human populationsagainst other viruses such asavian influenza,’ said Brass.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

PAGE 37PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

The Congress forProgressive Change(CPC) has rejected the

results of the Kebbi stategovernorship rerun electionheld at the weekend thatreturned Governor UsmanDakingari as the winner.

The party in a release madeavailable to newsmenyesterday and signed by itsNational Publicity Secretary,Rotimi Fashakin said “TheCongress for ProgressiveChange, CPC, havingconsidered the results of thegovernorship election (of 31stMarch, 2012), hereby rejectsin its entirety the electoralexercise as monumentalcharade.

“Undoubtedly, the hollowand shallow manner theIndependent National ElectoralCommission (INEC) conducted

CPC rejects Kebbi Governorshipre-run election’s results

the election, despite evidence ofCPC’s forced non-participation,clearly unmasked the electoralbody as a thoroughly partisanumpire.

“The hubris of the responseof INEC to CPC’s letter for moretime to file for fresh nominationfor another candidate to contestthe election on the party’splatform (after the defection ofthe former candidateAbubakar Mallam to PDP)showed that the leadership ofINEC is either in cahoots withPDP to foist dictatorship on thenation or is grosslyincompetent.

“Meanwhile, our attentionhas been drawn to thestatement credited to one BashirMatawalle, wherein he statedinter-alia, ‘the CPC has noproblem with the result andshall not contest it in any court.’This is absolute balderdashbecause the fellow does not have

By Lawrence Olaoye

The newly electedgovernor of Kebbi state,Alhaji Usman Saidu

Dakingari, was yesterdaysworn-in even as he assuredthat all those who decampedfrom the opposition to join thePeoples Democratic Party (PDP)would be carried along in hisgovernment.

Dakingari, who was giventhe Certificate of Return by theNational Chairman ofIndependent National Electoral

Commission (INEC), Prof.Attahiru Jega who wasrepresented by the Col.Mohammed Ammaga,promised that he wouldcontinue to deliver democraticdividends to the people.

He explained that theSaturday election showed thatthe people of Kebbi state havedemonstrated love and unityeven as he pledged toreciprocate the good gesture byproviding more developmentalprojects across the state.

He equally assured the

From Ahmed Idris, Birnin Kebbi people that he would notdisappoint them. He said ''prayfor me, happened before theelection showed good andprogress of the state''.

The swearing-in ceremonywas attended by the formerFCT Minister, Alhaji AdamuAliero, the formerACNgovernorship candidate,Kabiru Tanimu, Former SportsMinister, Hon. Bala Kao'oje,and Samaila Sambawa,Senator Atiku Bagudu andother prominent stakeholderfrom the state.

Dakingari sworn-in, assures decampees of patronage

Governor Saidu Dakingari

authority to speak for the party,having been part of therenegade group that cast theirpearl to the pigs for a meal forthe belly!

“This statement should bediscountenanced as coming froma turn-coat because the partyhas commenced the process ofredressing the infraction to thelawful electoral process that wasevinced in the conduct of theKebbi governorship election ofSaturday, 31st March, 2012.

“Indeed, we shall continue tocontribute our quota, as a party,to the entrenchment of enviabledemocratic values in theNigerian state. It is our beliefthat it is the reducible minimumexpected from us by ournumerous supporters in the faceof the PDP/INEC grand collusionat foisting one-partydictatorship in Nigeria. On thislaudable endeavor, we shall notwaver in our commitment!”

F ormer-Vice PresidentAtiku Abubakar hasdescribed the victory

recorded by Governor SaiduDakingari in the Kebbi

Dakingari’s election reflectspeoples trust in PDP, says AtikuBy Lawrence Olaoye rerun elect ion held last

weekend as evidence of thePeople’s trust and confidencein the rul ing party , thePeoples Democrat ic Party(PDP).

The former Vice-President who congratulatedthe governor elect througha statement issued by hismedia office in Abuja said there-election of Dakingari hasre-affirmed the trust ofvoters in the ruling party asthe strongest political partyin Nigeria.

Atiku urged Dakingari touse the opportunity of his re-election to correct pastmistakes, improve hisrelationship with fel lowparty men and consolidateon the gains of his leadership.

Commenting on therecent PDP convention,the Turaki Adamawa advisedthe newly elected officials ofthe party to work towardsgenuine reconcil iation andtransform the PDP into amore people-oriented party,which should set standardsfor internal democracy,cohesion, unity of purposeand commitment to goodgovernance.

The Project Swift Count(PSC) yesterdaydeclared that the

conduct of the Saturday'srerun governorship poll inKebbi state , where thecandidate of PeoplesDemocratic Party, PDP,Alhaji Saidu Dakingariemerged winner, was free,fair, credible andtransparent.

The PSC, a nongovernmental organization(NGO) had deployed a total of627 observers to monitor theconducted of thegovernorship poll in the state.

The group acknowledgedthat the electoral procedurewhich allowed people to leavethe polling unit after

accreditation opened thepossibility of multiple voting,and therefore, advised theIndependent NationalElectoral Commission (INEC)to address this concern for theupcoming governorshipelection in Edo state.

Addressing journalists inAbuja on its findings duringthe poll, the 1st Co-Chair ofPSC, Dafe Akpedeye, said theorder and magnitude of theINEC results for each of theseparties that participated inthe poll was the same as theSwift Count estimates.

He said "Because ProjectSwift Count was able toindependently collate officialresults from polling units andarrive at the same results asINEC, political contestantsand the public alike should

By Mohammed Sada have a high degree ofconfidence that the officialresults as announced by INECreflect the votes in Kebbigubernatorial election."

Akpedeye, who said therewere frequently reportedincidents of irregularitiesincluding vote buying,simultaneous voting andaccreditation, illegal voting,late arrival of electionmaterials, shortage of electionmaterials, intimidation orharassment and stealing ofballot papers as well as ballotbox stuffing, said theirregularities wereinsignificant to discredit theresults of the election.

The PSC, however, notedthat "the election dataprovided by INEC officialswere logically inconsistent in

Observers adjudge Kebbi governorshiprerun poll free, fair and credible…Tasks INEC on accreditation procedures ahead of Edo gov. poll

a significant number ofpolling units. This reveals aneed for better training ofelectoral officials to ensurecompetent administration ofelections.

"People leaving the pollingunit after they have beenaccredited remains asignificant problem. In Kebbi,75% of the polling unitsreported none or only fewpeople left after beingaccredited; however, at 25% ofthe polling units, more thanhalf of the people left afteraccreditation.

"Allowing people to leavethe poling unit afteraccreditation opens thepossibility of multiple voting,and INEC should address thisconcern for the upcomingelections in Edo state," he said.

PAGE 38 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Hameed Afolabi,Chairman, KwaraAssembly Committee on

Local Government andChieftaincy Affairs has called on theNational Assembly to review theLocal Government AdministrationAct to make it more responsive tothe people.

“It is the local government thatadequately takes care of people atthe grassroots and the strength ofany local government is measuredby resources available to it,'' Afolabitold the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Ilorin.

He, however, said that theagitation for the scrapping of localgovernment as the third tier ofgovernment would not be in thebest interest of Nigerians.

``The call for the scrapping oflocal government system isbaseless and counter productive tothe social and economic well-beingof the people.

Afolabi appealed to the FederalGovernment to disregard such callbut strengthen the localgovernment system.

Edo CRPP Endorses Oshiomholefor second term

The Coalition of RegisteredPolitical Parties (CRPP) in Edo on

yesterday in Benin adoptedGovernor Adams Oshiomhole asits candidate for the July 14,governorship election.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that some of theparties that make up CRPP areAccord Party, the New NigeriaPeoples Party (NNPP), AfricanDemocratic Congress (ADC), andAlliance for Democracy (AD).

The Chairman of CRPP in Edo,Mr. Samson Isibor, told newsmenthat CRPP at an enlarged meetingrecently decided to adoptOshiomhole because of hisperformance in the area ofdevelopment.

Isibor said that the coalition hadbeen the foremost critic of theOshiomhole administration,adding that the coalition laterdiscovered that the governormeant well for the people.

He appealed to the people of Edoto join hands with the coalition inensuring the re-election of thegovernor for a second term toenable him accomplish his laudableprogrammes for the people.

``We, therefore say, there is novacancy in Osadebey House,Benin,'' Isibor said.

He said, Oshiomhole said, ``He

has performed excellently, he is ademocrat, a resilient fighter,always people driven and has apenchant for the people of Edo.''

Enugu givernor congratulatesDakingari, calls for qualitative,exemplary leadership

Governor Sullivan Chime ofEnugu State has congratulatedAlhaji Saidu Dakingari of thePeoples Democratic Party (PDP)over his landslide victory in the lastSaturday's governorship re-runelection in Kebbi.

Chime, in a statement signedyesterday in Enugu by his ChiefPress Secretary, Mr ChukwudiAchife, called on Dakingari toprovide qualitative and exemplaryleadership to the people of his state.

He described the victory as avigorous testimony of the party'soverwhelming popularity amongthe people.

``I congratulate you on yourvictory, I urge you to make thepeople and PDP as a party proud,''Chime said.

The governor commended theIndependent National ElectoralCommission (INEC) and securityagencies for their contributionstoward the successful conduct of thepoll.

Lawmaker calls for review of LG Act

Ex-militant leader, AlhajiAsari Dokubo has vowedto personally monitor the

forthcoming July 14th governorshipelection in Edo state in order to guideagainst rigging.

Dokubo who made the assertionat the weekend during aninteractive session with members ofEdo Youth for Good Governance, saidexperience has shown that organisedriggings are mostly perfected atnight.

He said “Go buy night visionGoogle because rigging is perfectedin the night.I don’t believe inWestern education, I believe thatpower flows from the barrel of thegun and the people have to confrontthe common enemy…Oshiomhole isan icon of the peoples face…If theyhave anything to offer, they shouldshow the people example’.

He recalled the potency of prayerof the governed after endorsing thegovernor of the State, AdamsOshiomhole candidature over whathe termed as unique visionaryleadership; he warned corruptNigerian leaders, especially pastgovernors charged withembezzlement of public funds to bewary.

The ex-militant leader said Dr.Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was notelected as President because he wasthe best man to govern the country,but he was elected to join the leagueof Nigerian leaders who haveunderdeveloped Nigeria over thepast 50 years.

“We did not vote for Goodluck because he is the best man, we votedfor him because bad People havebeen doing bad things since the past50 years, so let Goodluck still do someof the bad things’.

“When I was in the prison, Irealised that I billion naira wasuseless as one kobo. If not for theKoran I was reading, I would haverun mad”, he said.

State governor, AdamsOshiomhole who recalled AlhajiAsari Dokubo revolutionary zeal byputting his life on the line to drawthe attention of the world toexploitative and deprivation of thePeople of Nigeria, vowed to workharder to sustain on-goingdevelopment if given the mandateand attributed the feat hisleadership has attained to God.

“I cannot compel anyone tosupport me and it’s also possible forone to do his best and yet you’redismissed that your best was notgood enough”, he said.

Dokubo vows to monitorEdo guber pollsFrom Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

House of Representativeshas again reiterated thecall for full

implementation of 35%affirmative action for womenparticipation in politics and otherpublic offices.

It noted that this remained averitable tool to achieve result inall-round developmental goals ofthe present administration.

Majority Leader of the House,Hon. Mulikat Akande-Adeola,made the call yesterday when he

received a delegation of womenlawmakers from Uganda in heroffice. The Leader urged Nigerianpolicy makers to borrow a leaffrom Uganda where a total of 131out of 375 members are women.

She lamented to her Ugandancounterparts that a situationwhere there are only twenty fivefemale members in the NigerianHouse of Representatives; one ofthe least in Africa wasunacceptable.

Akande-Adeola expressedwillingness of the Nigerian

parliament to learn from otherAfrican nations where womenhave recorded equal, if not higher,representation in theirparliament.

Ababiku Jesca, leader of theUganda delegation narrated howher country has been able to comeover socio-political challenges ofthe past to attain its current feat.

She listed current liberalgender policy of Uganda as one ofthe achievements of the femalelawmakers in the country andurged Nigeria to follow suit.

Reps insist on implementation of35% affirmative action for womenBy Lawrence Olaoye

A member of the House ofRepresentatives, MrOpeyemi Bamidele, has

described the death of Mr. AyoAfolalu, Chairman of the Ekiti statechapter of the Nigeria Union ofLocal GovernmentEmployees(NULGE) as a colossalloss to the state and the country.

Bamidele, said this in astatement signed by his MediaAide, Ahmed Salami. The NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) recallsthat Afolalu died alongside threeother aides on Tuesday in a motoraccident in Benin.

Bamidele described thedeceased as a quintessentialunionist and bureaucrat whocontributed to the uplift of the localgovernment administration in the

state, adding that he would beremembered for his sterlingcontributions to the developmentof local governmentadministration.

He said the deceased served androse to the pinnacle of his career asDirector of Administration ofseveral councils in the state.

``In the Local GovernmentService, Afolalu also proved a pointthat he was a committedprofessional who could be reliedupon.

``In all the local governmentcouncils where he served, heinstilled discipline, financialprudence and the doctrine of do-it-right in all his dealings.

``The records are there toshow,'' Bamidele noted.

Rep pays tribute to lateEkiti NULGE chairman

Former acting National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje(left), briefing journalists on the just concluded National Convention of the party, during his thank you visitto President Goodluck Jonathan, at the State House, recently in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

A traditional ruler in Edo,His Majesty, GeorgeOshiapi Ecabor, has advised

politicians to avoid the use of foullanguage and instead sell theirparty manifestos to the electorate.

The monarch, who is theOmoaze 1, and the Okumagbe ofAgenebode in Estako East LocalGovernment Area of Edo, gave theadvice ahead of the July 14governorship election in the state.

Ecabor told the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Agenebode onSunday that ``political playersshould endeavour to discuss ideas,policy and programmes of theirdifferent parties with the people.

“Politics is about contest of ideasand programmes, and notcondemnation or assassination of

peoples' character.''The traditional ruler said:

“Politics is not about hooliganismbut about how politicians can sellthemselves to the electorate byexplaining how they want to leadthe people and provide facilitiesthat will better their lives.

“They should do this withoutthe use of foul language becausefoul language creates problems andthat is the beginning of politicalcrisis which can snowball intoeither religious or ethnic crisis.''

On peaceful coexistence in hiskingdom, the monarch said: ``Wedon't allow fanaticism to take roothere at all because it is not howmuch fanaticism you exhibit thatportrays you as either a goodChristian or Muslim.

Edo monarch advises politiciansto avoid use of foul language

PAGE 39PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

The All Nigeria PeopleParty (ANPP)governorship candidate

in the recently conductedrerun in Kebbi state, AlhajiSuleman Mohamed Arugugun,has said there was no levelplaying ground at the election.

Speaking to our reporter onphone while reacting on theelection, Alhaji Suleman said“there was no level of playground by the INEC, I decidednot to participate in theelection because INEC refusedto carry other political partiesalong’’ he said.

He further alleged that thefigure announced by the INECwas not correct as there wasvoters’ apathy insisting thatthe figure declared by INEC

Kebbi re-run: There was no level playingground, says ANPP guber candidateFrom Ahmed Idris, Birnin Kebbi were not the actual people that

participated in the election. “Iknow I did not participate but Iwent round and there was a lowturnout so INEC decided toallocate figure to the rulingparty’’ he said.

Meanwhile, the Chairmanof Congress of Nigeria Politicalparties (CNPP) and also the

state chairman of ActionDemocratic (AD) who was alsoa gubernatorial candidate,Alhaji Boye Zayatu Jega saidthat they have accepted theresult being declared by theINEC and have taken it in goodfaith adding that Dakingariwas also their brother and thatthey were ready to support his

National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur (left), addressing party's supporters, during a campaign rallyfor Kebbi state Governor-Elect, Alhaji Saidu Dakingari, recently in Birnin Kebbi. Photo: NAN

Some voters, who turnedup to vote in Saturday’sKebbi re-run

governorship electionwithout their voters’ cardswere accredited to vote insome parts of the state.

The News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) reports thatin Birnin Kebbi, Zagga and

Suru areas, some partyagents and securitypersonnel, who initial lyopposed the idea, had tosuccumb to pressure.

The opponents of the ideasuccumbed to pressure on theinsistence of those willing tovote, whose attitude beganto generate tension and

confusion around somevoting centres.

Polit ical party agents insome of the polling units heldmeetings and resolved toallow the voters to participatein the election.

A presiding officer inZagga Primary School, Suru,Mr Aule Aminu, and asecurity officer, who preferrednot to be named, told NANthat they abandoned theirinitial objection since theagents had agreed to allow thevoters to cast their votes.

“The agents had resolvedthat voters, whose pictureswere captured in the masterlist should be allowed to vote,’’the INEC official said.

NAN reports that thedecision to allow the voters toexercise their right calmedthe situation and restoredpeace to the voting centres.

Kebbi poll: Voters without cards accredited to vote

Fusion of politicalparties willenhance progressin Kebbi, saysAliero

Former Kebbi Governor,Alhaji Adamu Aliero,has said that the state will

experience accelerated developmentfollowing the fusion of major politicalparties into PDP.

Aliero told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) on Saturday aftervoting in the re-run governorshipelection in Kebbi that such fusion hadopened a new vista for speedydevelopment.

According to him, the fusion ofACN and CPC into PDP wouldculminate into an amalgam ofpolitical forces that would lead topolitical progress that was free ofunnecessary of rancour andbickering.

“We are now one as thecontentious issue was how to forgeahead as a people,” he said.

Aliero recalled that Kebbi was anANPP enclave, which he led to thePDP, adding that the step had yieldednumerous dividends or the people.

He expressed happiness that theelection was rancour free with voterscasting their votes withoutmolestation or intimidation.

The defection of topmembers of theopposit ion to Peoples

Democratic Party (PDP) will notstrangulate the opposition inKebbi, an opposition politician said.

The Chairman of Conferenceof Nigerian Political Parties(CNPP) in Kebbi Alhaji Boyi Zaito,made the statement in aninterview with the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Jega, Kebbi

Defection of politicians won’t affect opposition in Kebbi -CNPPrecently.

Zaito told NAN soon aftercasting his vote at Sabongaripolling unit that the oppositionpolitical parties would remainunited and focused to ensue goodgovernance in the state.

“We are intact and we willcontinue to be intact and opposeany unpopular policy of the PDPgovernment,” he said.

The chairman said that as

far as the CNPP was concerned,none of the 15 political partiesofficially withdrew from the re-run governorship race.

“None of the political partieswrote to INEC officially toconvey any intention to pull outof the race,” he said.

He further said that theopposition parties woulddeliberate toward charting anew course for the progress and

speedy development of the state.“For democracy to grow,

there has to be sustained andconstructive opposition thatcould put the ruling party instead for good governance,” Zaito said.

He blamed the poor voterturnout in the election on thepeople’s belief that other politicalparties had withdrawn from thecontest.

administration’s mission andvision.

He commended the efforts ofthe INEC and the securityagencies in the state addingthat they are ready to workwith governor Dakingari inorder to promote the state,democracy and Nigeria atlarge’’ he said.

Kebbi formeracting governoradjudges electiona success

The former ActingGovernor of Kebbi, AlhajiAminu Jega, has described the

governorship re-run election in thestate on Saturday as a “huge success’.

“In spite of the low turnout in themorning, the exercise has turned outa huge success in most parts of thestate,’’ Jega told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) in Jega on Saturdayafter casting his vote at Sabongaripolling unit.

“ The voter turnout is impressiveand all arrangements for the electionare perfect,’ he declared.

He expressed optimism that thepeople would voted for the PDP becauseof its “tremendous achievements’’over the years

“Observers may claim that therewas a low turnout but you can seevoters, particularly women, troopingout to vote,’’ he said.

Jega appealed to the people of thestate to continue to supportgovernment for the speedydevelopment of the state.

Musa, who cast his vote at about12.10 p.m., urged the people toremain peaceful and law-abiding soas to enjoy the fruits of democracy.

PAGE 40 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

L-R: Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Victor Ochei, Chairman, South-South Speakers Forum, Hon. Daniel Amachree, and Speaker,Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Hon. Samuel Ikon, during forum for lawmakers, recently in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state. Photo: NAN

The Independent NationalElectoral Commission(INEC) has declared Malam

Bello Kaoje of PDP as the winner ofBagudo/Suru Federal Constituencyre-run election held on Saturday.

The Returning Officer, Mr ShehuAbubakar of Othman DanfodioUniversity, Sokoto, announced thatKaoje secured 74,232 votes to beatMalam Garba Abdullahi of CPC, whoscored 17527 votes.

The re-run election, which heldon Saturday alongside the re-rungovernorship election in the state, wasnecessitated by the annulment of theelection conducted in April 2011.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) recalls that the ElectionPetition Tribunal in Kebbi hadnullified the election of Kaoje in Apriland awarded victory to the CPCcandidate in the election

However, the PDP candidateappealed against the judgment at theCourt of Appeal in Kaduna, whichcancelled the results in 154 pollingunits, which were the cause of thelegal dispute.

Meanwhile, the CPC Secretary,Malam Bashir Matawalle, has saidthat the party would challenge theresult because INEC it the mandatory14 days notice before conducting theelection. (NAN)

PDP candidatewins Bagudo/Suru Fedederalconstituency

A member representingL a v u n / E d a t i / M o k w a Federal constituency in the

House of Representative, RepMohammed Sani Idris Kutigi has called on the newly elected membersof the National Working Committee(NWC) of the Peoples DemocraticParty to close ranks for the growthand development of the party.

According to him, the partyneeds to work as one big family sothat it can reach out to allstakeholders adding that the justconcluded PDP elections into nationaloffices through consensus was anindication that, consensus if properly handled engender cohesion andharmonious relationship in the party.

Kutigi said “At this critical timeof Nigeria national development, PDPas the ruling party cannot afford anyinternal wrangling that will causedisaffection among its members atall levels.”

He said for the party to continueto make the desired impact onNigeria’s political landscape, the newleadership must hit the groundrunning. “The party chairman,Alhaji Bamanga Tukur with othermembers of the executive must startto reach out to especially those whocontested with them. They shouldbring them on board so that they havea sense of belonging. ”

He congratulated AlhajiBamanga Tukur and the NationalYouth Leader, Alhaji Garba Chizaurging them to strive to invest in theyoung people in the party forcontinuity.

Kutigi urgesPDP NWC toclose ranks

NULGE wants democraticallyelected local governmentsNigeria Union of Local

Government Employees(NULGE) has canvassed

for a democratically elected localgovernment system in thecountry.

Mr. Ibrahim Khaleel, Presidentof NULGE, said, “In a democraticsociety any form of imposition ofleadership is anti- people and tosome extent it is also considered indemocratic principles as a crime.”

Khaleel told the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) that the unionwas not comfortable with theway some state governmentsdenied the electorate at thegrassroots level the opportunity toelect their leaders.

He said, “The people at thegrassroots level are denied theopportunity to exercise their civilrights by electing the people oftheir choice to lead them.

“The provision of section 7 ofthe 1999 Constitution of Nigeriaguaranteed democratically elected

representative at the localgovernment level.

“But this not sobecause administrators are “superimposed’’ at the grass root level.”

Khaleel said that the impositionof leadership as caretakers at thelocal government level hadhindered development at thegrassroots level.

He said that the localgovernment system was at theverge of collapsing due to excessivecontrol by the state governmentsin the areasof politics, socials, finance, andeconomy, among others.

Khaleel said, “That is the reasonwhy the union has been agitatingfor the restructuring of the localgovernment system in Nigeria toenable it function freely.”

He, however, said that theunion was also making efforts tocreate awareness by sensitisingthe people on the need to have anautonomous local government

system in the country.The awareness campaign, he

said would make people torealise the importance of localgovernment system and why ithad generally failed to actuallyachieve its goals as a system ofgovernment.

“It will also exposeunconstitutionality committedby the state governors and thestate houses of assembly in thearea of operation of localgovernment.

“Because we believe this callfor autonomy is not for localgovernment alone, but for allNigerians.

“If the local governmentsystem is strengthened, if itbecomes autonomous, it willfunction freely, and I believe development and democraticdividends will go down well to ourNigerian citizens,’’ he said.

Khaleel further said thatPresident Goodluck Jonathan had

shown commitment and concerntowards the need for therestructuring of the localgovernment.

He said, “The President hadconstituted a committee, headedby Justices Alfa Belgore to look intothe grey areas that needed to beaddressed in the constitution togive the local government theautonomy it deserves.”

He also commended theNational Assembly for the passageinto second reading three of thelocal government bills before bothchambers.

“The only problem we havenow is gaining support from thestate houses of assembly. We wantto urge them to see themselves asthe representatives of the peopleand no one else.

“We want to make them seereasons why they must respectthe process of democracy, whythey must respect theconstitution,’’ Khaleel said.

Senator Mohammed AbbaAji, a leading aspirant inthe just- concluded election

for the National Chairman of thePeoples Democratic Party (PDP),has congratulated AlhajiBamanga Tukur, on hisemergence as the NationalChairman of the party at therecent national convention of theparty, held in Abuja.

In a press release issued inAbuja by the Director- General

At last, Abba-Aji congratulates BamangaBy Ikechukwu Okaforadi of his campaign organisation,

Dr. Bolere Ketebu, the formerSpecial Adviser on NationalAssembly Matters said, AlhajiBamanga Tukur was eminentlyqualified to lead the partyconsidering the many years ofexperience he has garnered inthe public and private sectors.

Describing Alhaji Tukurs'emergence as an act of God, theNational Chairmanshipcandidate said that he hasconfidence in the ability of AlhajiTukur to give the party the

required leadership anddirection and pledged hissupport to the new NationalChairman as he sets out on hismandate. He called on his fellowaspirants to join hands withAlhaji Tukur to move the PDPforward.

Senator Abba Aji alsocongratulated the entiremembership and leadership ofthe party including PresidentGoodluck Jonathan, and theVice- President Arc. NamadiSambo, for a hitch- free and well-

organised national conventionwhich, to a large extent, wouldmake the party stronger in theyears to come.

He thanked his supporters,friends and admirersnationwide, both inside andoutside the PDP for theirsolidarity throughout thecampaign period and after.

He urged them to assist theparty and the new NationalChairman with prayers toenable him succeed in thecritical national assignment.

PAGE 41PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

accountability,” he said. Abdullahi said government wouldconcentrate on creating an atmosphere conducive for sports tothrive through appropriate legislation and provision ofnecessary infrastructure should sports federations truly becomeautonomous.

But he regretted that rather than be allowed to concentrateenergy on the provisions of facilities, the government is beingcompelled to bear both the cost of infrastructural provisions aswell as sponsorships of the activities of the respective sportsfederations. Besides, the minister said sports administratorshave failed to complement the efforts of the government throughskillful administration of sports, instead tended to have beeninfamous for dissipating energies on needless and often selfishconflicts.

Peoples Daily Sports recalls that about three weeks ago, theNational Assembly held public hearings on the sports withspecial reference to the NFF which sought to give legal to teethto its change of name from NFA to NFF. Both the sportscommittees of the House of Representatives and the Senateconducted the hearing to enable public submissions on the 2004NFA Acts as well as other matters of sponsorship andadministration.

Sports administrators havebeen told to focus less onparticipation in

competition but concentrateefforts on developing sports.

Besides, war lords in theNigeria sports scene have beenurged to sheath their swords inthe interest of sportsdevelopment and thus allowroom for concrete developmentof sports in the country.

Supervising Minister ofSports, Hon. Bolaji Abdullahi,made the appeal while speakingon downward trend of Nigeriasports against the backdrop ofincessant court cases overpersonality conflicts borderingon elections matters.

The minister said ratherthan concentrate efforts onparticipating in everycompetition, administratorsshould devote greater time todeveloping sports and thusavail the nation several optionsshould the country choose tocompete for honours in anyevent.

“It’s time for us to focus onsports development and shiftfrom a competitive mindset

where sports administratorsprefer to participate in everycompetition. It is thismindset or compete-in-competition mental attitudethat has put us in messy,” hesaid in apparent reference touse of age-cheats in cadettournaments.

Also, the minister, who hasvowed to personallyprostrate before the likes ofChief Segun Odegbami thatare held bent on causingripples in the footballfirmament because ofpersonal wrangling with thepresent leadership of the NFFas well as others with seemingpenchant for court casesagainst the NSC, NFF andother subordinates of thecommission over electionsand other matters, urgedthem to hold their breath.

“Since you (warring lords)have been part of the problemof sports, I appeal to you toshift focus, be determined tobe a part of the solution,” theminister said stressing thatan atmosphere of peaceprevail.

Edwin Okon, Coach Falconets

When the Falconetseventually sealedtheir place in the FIFA

U-20 World Cup scheduled forJapan, they are surely going toshowcase their skills at some ofJapan’s premier stadiums whichwill be used for the Japan 2012matches.

The organizers announced fivehost venues and the tournamentmatch schedule. According to theLocal Organising Committee thehost venues and cities for the 2012FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cupare Miyagi Stadium (Miyagi),Komaba Stadium (Saitama),National Stadium (Tokyo), KobeUniver Stadium (Kobe) andHiroshima Big Arch(Hiroshima).

It should be noted that amongthese venues are the MiyagiStadium, host of matches at the2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan, and the National Stadiumin Tokyo, which was used duringthe summer Olympic Games in1964. Miyagi, a region whichsuffered significantly in last year’searthquake and tsunami, will bethe venue for the opening matchon August 19 where the hostnation will feature.

Meanwhile, the FIFA ExecutiveCommittee meeting held inZurich over the past two days hasconfirmed the tournamentmatch schedule.

Already, some countries havebooked their places for the under20 mundial and include the likesof China PR, Korea DPR, KoreaRepublic (AFC), Canada, Mexico,USA (CONCACAF), Brazil,Argentina (CONMEBOL),Germany, Italy, Norway,Switzerland (UEFA) and of coursehosts Japan. Oceania (onerepresentative) and CAF (tworepresentatives) will finalise the16-team field when theirqualifying tournaments concludethis month and May respectively.

The tournament, the first FIFAwomen’s event to be held since lastyear’s FIFA Women’s World Cupwhich was won by Japan, will beheld between August 19 andSeptember 8, 2012.

Falconets’ likelyvenue in Japan2012 announced,match schedulesreleased

NFF is notautonomous,says Minister

…Wants focus onsports developmentnot competition

All talks about theNigeria FootballFederation (NFF)

being an autonomous bodywere dismissed by thesupervising Minister ofSports, Hon. BolajiAbdullahi, who said thefootball federation remains aparastatal under thesupervision of the NationalSports Commission (NSC)like every other sportsfederations.

The Minister, who was aguest of the NigeriaTelevision Authority (NTA)sports programme said thefootball federation’s claims ofindependence from the NSCwas not only erroneous butfallacious as it remains oneof the 35 subordinate sportsfederations to thecommission.

Buttressing his assertion,the minister said a body couldonly claim autonomy if suchbody is financiallyindependent but so long assuch body enjoys absolutesponsorship from an externalbody it remains subservientto whoever sponsors itsactivities.

According to him, since theNFF depends absolutely onsubvention from thegovernment it cannot claimto be an autonomous bodybecause a body that isautonomous would be selfreliant, sponsoring itsactivities without drawingany subvention or receivingbudgetary allocation fromgovernment.

“The NFA can only beautonomous when they don’tdepend on grants andbudgetary allocation fromthe government. But nowthe NFA depends absolutelyon whatever the governmentreleases for the sponsorship ofits activities. No, they are notautonomous but are aparastatal of thecommission,” he said.

The minister though saidhe would encourageautonomy because it allowsthe respective sportsfederations to be independentand to conduct theirbusinesses in whatever waysthey deem fit without thecommission demandingexplanation ofaccountability.

“Autonomous fundingencourages specialization.And we would be glad to seethe sports federations,especially the NFA, enjoyautonomous relationshipwith the government. Thatway they can conductbusiness in a manner thatsuits them without thegovernment insisting ontransparency and

Stories by Patrick Andrew

Davidson Owumi

Aminu Maigari,President of the NFF

Chief Segun Odegbami

Bolaji Abdullahi, SupervisingMinister of Sports

PAGE 42 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Scott Nnaji, the Coach, CustomsBasketball Club of Lagos, says inspite of winning just one match so

far this season, everything humanlypossible will be done by the club to avoidrelegation.

The recently promoted Customs havelost five of the six matches so far playedsince the beginning of the season. Butreacting to his team’s 56-52 win overChariots Basketball Club of Lagos onSunday in Lagos in the ongoing DStvMen’s Basketball League, Nnaji said thatthe team was determined to succeed

adding that with some luck they wouldavoid relegation.

“The league has become socompetitive that every team wants towin at all cost. From the slight margin,it is obvious that we were lucky becauseChariots were also all out to win’’ hesaid.

The week six match at the IndoorSport Hall of the National Stadium sawChariots leading in the first and secondquarters 13-12 and 16-13.

Customs put in more effort in the lasttwo quarters to beat their opponents 17-

11 and 16-13 to emerge eventualwinners.

In his remark, Chariot’s AssistantCoach, Charles Ibeziako, attributed histeam’s defeat to loss of concentration.“It is unfortunate that our players lostgrip of the match in the last twoquarters, which denied us of our secondvictory,’’ Ibeziako said.

Chariots have also won only a singlematch out of the six played since theleague started this season. The teamdefeated Ebun Comets of Lagos 73-67in week two of the league. Chief Patrick Ekeji, DG, NSC

Eight teams will slug it out fromThursday in the annual Para-Soccer Tournament at the National

Institute for Sports (NIS), Lagos, even asthe sponsors Promasidor Nigeria Ltd, hasassured of sustained bankrolling of thecompetition to engage physicallychallenged persons positively.

The teams are TC Terrors, NASWarriors, Lead United, Premium Sports,Nasarawa United, Plateau United, KwaraUnited and Adamawa State team.

Andrew Enahoro, who represented MrKeith Richards, the Managing Director ofthe company, made the promise whilespeaking to newsmen in Lagos at theunveiling ceremony of teamsparticipating in the 5th edition of thetournament, said that Promasidor wascommitted to the programme.

According to him, the company feelsthat sponsorship of the competition is itsown corporate social responsibility to thecommunity noting that an investmentin sports for physically challengedathletes remains their own way of takingthem off the streets.

“We are happy that most of our athletesin this competition have not seen theirchallenges as a problem but have turnedit to abilities. We promise to continue thesponsorship of the tournament for morephysically challenged athletes tocontribute their own quota to nationbuilding,’’ Richards said.

Coordinator of the tournament, TheoLawson, said that athletes were preparedto thrill their fans to an exciting Easterholiday and lauded Promasidor for itscontinued sponsorship of the tournament.

Meanwhile, some changes have beenmade in the tournament with theduration increased to four days instead ofthe previous three days.

It will also be round-robin instead of theformer knock-out while the game will alsobe increased to 16 matches, instead ofeight matches.

A 46-year-old man, EmmanuelTemuru, was on Friday broughtbefore a Yaba Magistrates’ Court

for allegedly causing the death of hisgirl friend.

The accused was charged forallegedly causing the death of one MissMargaret Usen, 35, but his plea was nottaken as he was remanded in prisoncustody, pending an advice from theDirector of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

The prosecutor Insp. Philip Ugbodu,told the court that the accused, whoresides at 5 Olupitan St., Idimu Lagos,is a football coach.

He said the accused had, on Feb. 13,

Former Chelsea defender CelestineBabayaro says lack of structuresand inept organisation by African

football administrators has deraileddevelopment of the game on thecontinent.

Babayaro adduced the several talentsthat have emerged in the continentadded that in spite of the abundanttalents the game has remained poorlyadministered in Africa because ofadministrative ineptitude which havetendered to kill the game.

“We have plenty of talents in Africa.But those running the game are nothonest because some use the sport fortheir own selfish gains. Others use togain political mileage and forget theyouth who struggle to make a living.With good football structures and goodplanning, we can match with ourEuropean, Italian and Spanish Leaguecounterparts,” said Babayaro.

Babayaro who is in the country alongwith his former coach at Chelsea; RuudGullit as Uefa Cup ambassadors, isaccompanying the UEFA championsLeague trophy which is on a tour of fourcountries including Tanzania, Kenya,

Mexico and China.He paid tribute to Zambian national

soccer team for winning the recentAfrica Cup of Nations saying there wereno big or small teams in football.

Babayaro said playing for Chelsea formore than eight years under fourdifferent coaches from 1987-2005remains his greatest achievement infootball.

at about 6.30p.m. allegedlyimpregnated the deceased, travelledwith her to Abeokuta after she developedsome health complications.

Ugbodu told the court that theaccused had allegedly taken thedeceased to a Clinic/Maternity Hospitalin Abeokuta, where she was given someherbs to drink and also bath with it.

He alleged that the health of thedeceased deteriorated soon after theherbal treatment and she died hourslater adding that the offence is contraryto section 319 of the Criminal Code, Lawsof Lagos State.

The case was adjourned to June 6.

The Handball Federation of Nigeria(HFN) has promised to raise twojunior national teams at the end

of the U-18 National Championshipsscheduled for Sokoto.

The championships, which will holdin Gingiya Stadium in Sokoto from April19 to April 29, is expected to throw upsome talents that the federation wouldbuild two formidable male and female

junior teams from.Speaking on ‘phone, the president of

the Handball Federation of Nigeria(HFN), Mallam Dauda Yusuf, said thefederation believes the competitionwould serve as the springboard for thediscovery of the talents.

“The federation is working towards aformidable junior teams ahead ofimportant international

championships, and the U-18Championships is our target to achievethis vision,’’ he said.

According to the federationpresident, the junior championships isbeing organised by HFN in conjunctionwith the Sokoto State government.

He said that the championships hadbeen scheduled to begin from Feb. 23through March 4, but had to bepostponed due to unfavourable securityreports.

Yusuf said that seasoned technicalofficials of the federation would bepresent during the 10-day event toscout for skillful players who would beinvited to camp after thechampionships.

He said that those who excelledduring camping would represent thecountry at the Challenge Trophyholding in Ghana in June.

Yusuf said that those withoutstanding performance during thechampionships would be rewarded withgifts to motivate upcoming players.

“We have good plans for theupcoming players and we are workingtowards giving them all theencouragement so that they can becommitted to the growth of Handball,’’he said.

The president said that the federationaspired to bring back the lost glory ofHandball in the country and intendedto revive the sport from the grassroots.

Laurel Patrick receiving his certificate from the Head Teacher of Salem Academy,FHA, Lugbe, Mr. David Elijah while Miss Joy Iden looks on. The budding talent cametops in one of the athletics events during the school inter-house sport recently

Para-Soccertourney beginsThursday, assponsors giveassurance

Why African football talents don’t thrive, by Babayaro“Playing under four different coaches

led by Ranieri, Ruud Gullit, and JoseMourinho had helped me to sharpen myfootball skills. I retired with greathonour and am proud to be associatedwith youth development matters backin Nigeria.”

Coach in court for allegedmurder of girl friend

We won’t be relegated, says basketball coach

Handball Federation plans toraise formidable junior teams

PAGE 43PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Tsegay of Ethiopia easily outpaced Hervis Prague HalfMarathon defending champions Philemon Limo and hiscolleague Henry Kiplagat after 15k in cold and windy

conditions in the Czech capital this lunchtime.In fact, those who thought he had accelerated too early

were soon disabused of their doubts, when Tsegay, a 20-year-old from Addis Ababa just went further and further away fromhis pursers, eventually shattering Limo’s course record, byclose to a minute, in clocking 58:47, the fastest time in theworld this year.

The former champion was to comment later, “If there hadbeen no wind today, this guy would have broken the Worldrecord,” opined the Kenyan after the Hervis Prague HalfMarathon which an IAAF Gold Label Road Race.

Tsegay readily agreed with Limo, saying, “It was verydifficult today, very windy. In my next race, I would like totry and break and the World record”. That belongs toZersenay Tadese of neighbouring Eritrea, with 58.23, whichhe ran in Lisbon just over two years ago.

“I always knew he would be difficult, because he beat me inMarseille last year. We held him until 15k today, but after 15kit was impossible,” said Limo, who eventually finished thirdin 60.03, two seconds behind Kiplagat.

The Marseille to Cassis road race last October - an IAAFSilver Label Road Race - that Limo was referring to is on avery tough undulating course, and Tsegay broke that recordtoo, as well as the 10km course record in another earlierFrench race, in Langueux.

His previous half marathon best was almost one year ago inRabat, Morocco, where he clocked 61:12, so thiscomprehensive demolition of that time, in addition to his

Coaches training thecountry’s boxers for theLondon Olympic Africa

qualifiers have assured boxingfans that the team would securetickets to the Games.

They said that the combinedteam of coaches was puttingfinishing touches to theirpreparations with the few weeksleft before the competition inMorocco later this month.

Anthony Konyegwachie saidmany of the boxers in camp nowhad won several medals inprevious national competitions.

He added that with the rateat which they were preparingfor the Africa qualifiers,Nigeria’s victory was sure.

“With just a few weeks left toprepare for the qualifiers inCasablanca, the combined teamof coaches will present Nigeriawith a team that will stand outin Morocco.

“We have been in camp forthe past one and half monthwith no break, this shows howdetermined we are in pursuit ofthe qualification.

“The boxers are verydetermined and they are in goodform in their different weightcategories.

“With the currentperformance of the team, we arevery sure and with God on ourside the team will qualify for theLondon Games beginning on

July 27,” Konyegwachie said.A female coach, Ijeoma

Azubike, lamented the lack ofinternational exposure formany of the boxers, adding thatinternational exposure wouldhave enhanced theirperformance.

She said that she would havesuggested a training tour forthe boxers but the time wasshort.

Azubike said though it did nothappen, she was still hopeful ofa good performance by theboxers.

She disclosed that 10 boxers,comprising five girls and fiveboys had been selected for thechampionships.

He

nry

Kip

lag

at

Jo

yc

e C

he

pk

iru

i

Ats

ed

u T

se

ga

y

minutes.This Hervis Prague Half

Marathon was the biggestever field for a mass race inthe Czech Republic (closeto 11,000 starters).

RESULTS

MEN

1 Atsedu TSEGAY ETH 58:472 Henry KIPLAGAT KEN60:013 Philemon LIMO KEN 60:034 Josphat BETT KEN 61:015 Senteyehu MERGA ETH61:026 Kenneth KIPKEMOI KEN61:257 Geoffrey KANYAJUA KEN61:528 Dawid WOLDE ETH 62:19

WOMEN

1 Joyce CHEPKIRUI KEN67:032 Lydia CHEROMEI KEN67:263 Gladys CHERONO KEN68:184 Rose CHELIMO KEN 71:355 Tetiana GAMERA UKR72:156 Lyudmila KOVALENKOUKR 73:35

Coaches assure of tickets toOlympics at Africa qualifiers

Anthony Konyegwachie

Ethiopia’sTsegayshattersLimorecord inPrague

recent victoriessignal a major s h i f tupwards in Tsegay’s c a r e e r ,after anu n s p e c t a c u l a r i n t e r n a t i o n a ldebut as a junior shortly after he begantraining seriously three years ago.

Tsegay’s immediate preoccupation is to makethe Ethiopian team for the Olympic Games, where hewill be more than a match for any of his colleagues at 10,000metres at the moment, if he can translate his form, andpugnacious running style, to the track.

Kiplagat was satisfied with his debut at the distance, justoutside the hour, and Limo, who in 59:30 last year, said,“Today was not my day; you can’t run well every time, so I’mhappy with third place.”

The women’s race too was decided at 15km, when JoyceChepkirui of Kenya eased away from her more favouredcolleague, and defending champion, Lydia Cheromei, andanother Kenyan, Gladys Cherono.

The trio finished in that order, with all of them runningpersonal bests, headed by Chepkirui’s course record of 67:03,which was a personal best by over two minutes, and beatCheromei’s former best by exactly 30 seconds. “I didn’texpect to beat Lydia,” said Cheromei, “but I got away fromher at 15k, and I’m very happy with my new personal best.”Incidentally her coach and husband, Erick Kibet finishedtenth in the men’s race in 62.32.

Cheromei bettered her time from last year by sevenseconds, with 67:26, and signalled her intent to return forthe Prague Marathon on 13 May, to defend her title and courserecord then. Cherono also had a significant improvementtoday, with 68.18, like Chepkirui, a new best by over two

PAGE 44 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

Heartland FC of Owerri hasattributed their 0-1 home loss toSharks of Port Harcourt on

Sunday in a Week 18 Nigerian PremierLeague match to ill luck.

“We are not destined to win,’’ CajetanNkwopara, Heartland Media Officer, toldthe News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)following the match played at the U. J.Esuene Stadium, Calabar.

“May be this is what God has destinedfor us today; some days are like that. Asyou can see, we even lost a penalty, soyou can say that we were unluckytoday,’’ he said.

According to him, the team ought tohave taken their chances right from thefirst half of the game, but the playerswasted many chances.

“We couldn’t convert any of those beggingchances and we paid dearly for ourlackadaisical attitude in front of goal,’’ headded. Nkwopara further said the teamneeded to be aggressive upfront, adding thatthey have to accept the result in good faith.

In his reaction, the Technical Adviserof Sharks FC, Imama Akpakabo, said hewas excited that his team won, addingthat they deserved the win.

“I am excited because my team played

well and won,’’ he said, adding that thevictory was his third consecutive awaywin against Heartland in three seasons.This is the third year running that theyhave not been able to beat us.

“So, now I can beat my chest and saythat I am the only coach who has defeatedHeartland away and home for threeconsecutive years,’’ he said.

According to him, Sharks are graduallyinching their way to the top on the leaguetable after a slow start to the season.

“We had a challenge at the beginningof the season but gradually we arebuilding a team that will challenge for

honours,’’ Akpakabo said.NAN reports that Gomo Onalukwu

scored the only goal of the match in the78th minute after a solo run.

Centre referee, Ibrahim Majindadi,from Gombe State, awarded a penalty toHeartland in the 88th minute afterEmma Amaefule was fouled in the 18-yard box.

However, Ikechukwu Ibenegbu wastedthe penalty and denied his side the chanceof equalising. Heartland was recentlybanished to Calabar by the NPLdisciplinary committee after their fansassaulted a referee in Enugu.

Coach Mike Akuboh of the AhmaduBello University (ABU) Zaria sayshis team will win the men’s basketball

event of the ongoing West Africa UniversityGames (WAUG) in Ilorin.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Ilorin on Sunday that he believedhe had the team to beat all comers in theevent adding that the ABU team won theiropening game on Sunday with a 41-34defeat of the University of Abomey Cotonou(UAC), Republic of Benin.

“Our target here is to win the gold, andwe have the team to do that, irrespective ofthe way our game went this morning.’’

ABU had won the first quarter 11-4, butwere stretched to their limits in the secondquarter which they lost 8-11.

They, however, recovered to win the nexttwo quarters to claim victory, and Akubohsaid they were well prepared for suchsituations.

“We do know there is going to be pressure,and the others will not be lying low for us tobeat them. We are well prepared for the taskat hand and I can assure that we will achieveour target of winning the gold medal in theevent.’’

ABU are in Group A of the competitionalongside UAC, University of Abuja,University of Jos and Kano State Universityof Science and Technology, Wudil.

The University of Calabar yesterdaywon the mixed doubles’ title in thetable tennis event at the on-going

West Africa University Games (WAUG)at the University of Ilorin.

The pair of Prudence Joseph and BasseyAgbor helped their team to a three-set winof 11-6, 11-8, 11-2 over the University ofCape Coast (UCC), Ghana. UCC wererepresented by the duo of Richard Donkarand Valpal Dzeshie.

The final match was delayed tillyesterday’s morning after competitionofficials could not find time and space tohave the game owing to the crowdednature of space and time at thegymnasium hall venue.

In the semi-final, UCC, which beat theObafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife 3-0 in the quarter-final, defeated theUniversity of Benin 3-0.

The University of Calabar also beat theMichael Okpara University ofAgriculture, Umudike (MOUAU) 3-0 inone of the semi-final matches.

Competition in the men’s and women’sdoubles was later continued, while thetable tennis event in both categories ofthe singles event will continue on today.

Heartland blame ill-luck for home defeat

We have all it takes towin gold, ABU men’sb’ball coach says

Unical wins tabletennis mixeddoubles title

Coach Sanusi Shuaibu ofBayero University Kano(BUK), yesterday promised

a revenge against hostsUniversity of Ilorin (UNILORIN)when the two meet again in themen’s basketball competition.

Shuaibu made the promise afterhis team lost 23-26 to the hosts ina Group B match at the ongoing13th West Africa University Games

(WAUG). The result gave UNILORINtheir second win in three games inthe competition.

They narrowly lost their firstmatch 52-53 to the University ofGhana (UG), Legon, on Saturday butdefeated Federal University ofTechnology (FUT), Minna, 35-22 intheir second match on Sunday.

The result also gave BUK their firstloss in three matches, after 35-26

win over FUT, Minna, on Saturdayand 40-31 victory over UG onSunday. Shuaibu expresseddisgust with the officiating of thematch and resorted to arguingwith some officials.

“This is not the way to do things.The officiating official particularlyworked against us and in favourof our opponents. I had to givethat official a piece of my mind. Ido believe such a manipulationwill not help the hosts at the endof the day,’ ’ Shuaibu hadcomplained.

The coach later said that he wastaking the issue lightly for now,and would wait until his teammeets the host later in thecompetition. According to thedraws, the two teams can onlymeet again in the third and finalmatches of the competition.

In the other matches playedyesterday, the University of Abujabeat the Kano State University ofScience and Technology, Wudil,57-34 in the men’s Group A.

In the women’s competition,Ahmadu Bello University (ABU),Zaria, beat Benue State University,Makurdi, 28-17 in Group B, whilethe University of Lagos also beatthe University of Abuja 52-20 inthe women’s Group A. The Gameswill end on April 6.

Austin Eguavoen, the TechnicalAdviser of Enyimba FC of Aba, hassaid that the club will take

advantage of the Nigeria Premier League(NPL) transfer window to fortify theteam.

Eguavoen disclosed this afterEnyimba’s 1-1 draw with Akwa UnitedFC that the team still lacked the cuttingedge to win the league.

“We have been talking about newplayers for sometimes now and we arejust bidding our time until the beginningof the NPL’s transfer window, to fortifythe team for the task ahead,’’ he said.

The technical adviser noted that someof the newly recruited players had yet togel with the team, saying that this haddistorted the team’s cohesion.

“We create series of chances but wecan’t score, and yet we spend quality timeon the training pitch to blend the teamfor better performance; but to no avail.

“We will keep working on the strikersto sharpen their ability to score goals,

because the chances do come, but to putthe ball in the back of the net is theproblem,’’ Eguavoen said.

The technical adviser, who was aformer Super Eagles Chief Coach,expressed disappointment at theprofligacy of his strikers “who cannotconvert begging chances’’.

“We were out to grab the three pointsat stake but we eventually ended up withjust one point which was not good enough;I am disappointed.

“In spite of the draw the team’sperformance was quite encouraging, butthe boys would have to work harder ontheir concentration levels duringmatches, a lapse our opponents exploitedto snatch a draw.

“We allowed the one goal advantage wehad to slip through our grasp, and gettingone point at home is not good enough,’’ hesaid.

Meanwhile, Solomon Ogbeide, thecoach of Akwa United, has commendedhis players for rising up to the challenge

by levelling scores against a formidableteam like Enyimba.

“We grabbed our chance in the 49th

minute and held on until the referee’ finalwhistle,’’ Ogbeide said.

Eguavoen says Enyimba to be fortified with new players

Philip Idowu, British triple jump medal hope at the London olympics Games

A u s t i nEguavoen

WAUG: BUK b’ball coachpromises revenge against Unilorin

PAGE 46 PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

The Secretary General of the Nigeria Referees’ Association, (NRA)Prince Moruf Oluwa has said that the Nigeria Premier League,(NPL) Nigeria National League, (NNL) and Nationwide League

referees are under the watchful eyes of the association.The retired referee, who disclosed this to People Daily Sports in Abuja,

said the association has turned a searchlight on them to ensure thatthey officiate strictly by the rules of the Game.

He said the association has mapped out strategies to monitor the refereesand added that those found wanting would be sanctioned.

“Referees are being monitored. We want the game to improve especiallyin the aspect of officiating. We don’t want the referees to bring the gameinto disrepute that is why we are appealing to the clubs’ managementsnot to compromise referees. We don’t want them to offer referees anykind of gift or threaten any referee for following the rules of the game,“he said.

Moruf also appealed officials to educate their players both on and offthe field, provide adequate security at venues as well as institutes crowdcontrol measures. It would be recalled that Enugu Rangers coach, OkeyEmordi recently criticized match referees and was corroborated by thea member of the NFF executive committee who alleged that refereesoften demanded for bribes.

The referees’ body has since refuted that and lambasted clubs fordeliberately compromising its members.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will not hinder the plans of itsnewly-appointed football director, Tom Saintfiet from bringingforeign assistants, while former interim Super Eagles coach, James

Peters will be named his deputy.According to a wire service, the Belgian has been told he can work

with two foreign assistants of his choice even as the NFF has insisted onthe former director, technical work- Peters-work with the ex-Ethiopianand Namibian head coach in understudy capacity for the four-yearperiod of his contract with the football federation.

It is also unclear if Saintfiet will be responsible for the wages of hisforeign assistants. “Saintfiet reserves the rights to bring at least twoforeign assistants of his choice,” an unnamed NFF source was quoted bythe wire service.

“I don’t know if he or the NFF will pay for such but he is told he canbring two assistants at least. But the NFF has said his deputy that worksdirectly with him must be a Nigerian who will learn the curve of beinga technical director. “Right now James Peters looks like the man thatwill get the job of deputy technical director. But it is still not confirmedyet because Tom Saintfiet has not signed the contract,” he said stressingthat barring any hitch Saintfiet will officially sign on as Nigeria’stechnical director for four years this week.

“He is expected to arrive in the country this week and hopefully signthe contract and resume immediately,” SuperSport.com was informed.

Saintfiet was named technical director of Nigeria on March 28 in thenation’s capital, Abuja and will earn a monthly salary of $20,000 (aboutN3.2 million).

The Executive DirectorGeneral of the NationalInstitute of Sports, Dr

Sunny Ikioya has blamed thefederal government for notproperly funding the institutionwhere sports administrators canbe discover to run the countrysports.

The DG, who stated this duringSenate Committee on Sports publichearing in Abuja, said that theinstitution aim is to nurture sportsadministrators and groom athletesand players for the country.

Ikioya noted that lack ofadequate funding of the institutionto carryout it research work hashad negative impact on itsprogrammes, adding that theinstitution has two formulas whichinclude manpower training andcatch-them-young also place themon scholarship.

The director noted that thetarget has been totally defeateddue to non availability of fund toexecute it project.

“NIS is a training and researchinstitute that has two centres,training centre in Lagos andteaching centre in Abuja, NIS hasnot be properly funded by thefederal government in order tohave an edge over countries we arecompete with in the area of sports.

“Most of the athletes are from lowin-come home backgrounds, theyneed adequate welfare package totake care of their needs but thereverse is the case we are facing inthe institution, “he said.

Ikioya urged the government atall levels to join federalgovernment in training it staff inaboard in order to acquire theoptimal standard that the gamerequires.

He also requested the ongoingconstruction building at Abujanational stadium package B,should be converted to athlete’shostel in assisting them in promptsports development as well as theNIS having access to athletes asrequire by the management.

Leonel Messi

Zlatan Ibrahomic

Referees under surveillance,says NRA ScribeBy Albert Akota

Saintfiet to work with foreign assistants,as Peters to be named deputy

Domestic league Super Eagles led by theirskipper Chigozie Agbim resumed campingyesterday and will kick start preparations

for the April 12 international duel against thePharoahs of Egypt.

The Eagles will engage their counterparts in AbuDhabi, United Arab Emirates and the technical crewled by the Dan Amokachi will drill the players aheadof the friendly. Agbim hit the camp yesterday alongwith of his Warri Wolves’ club mates; AzubuikeEgwueke, Sunday Mba and Ossai Uche.

Agbim said he was happy to be back in thenational camp along with his teammates andpromised that they will do their best in the comingfriendly against the seven times African NationsCup winners. Other players yet to arrive havealready given their words that they would be incamp latest today and on time to fit into the plansof the technical crew who want to team to gel forthe game against Egypt and several other friendlylined up for the national team in the coming weeks.

Below is the list of players as at yesterday.Chigozie Agbim, Azubuike Egwueke,

Sunday Mba, Ossai Uche, Ejike Uzoenyi,Adesope Hammed, Juwon Oshaniwa,Okemute Odah, Hassan Hussein, ShehuMaijema, Ogonna Uzochukwu, NuraMohammed, Kalu Uche, Henry Uche,Solomon Jabason, Barnabas Imenger Jnr,Papa Idris Gabriel Reuben.

18 Eagles resume training today

Gabriel Reuben

Inadequate funding hapersNIS’ programmes, says DG

Defending championsBarcelona could beeliminated today if AC

Milan manage to score againstthem at Camp Nou andsuccessfully sealed off theirvital area just as they didduring the first leg.

Barca were in rampagingform at the San Siro but in spiteof shooting 17 times on targetfailed to put their noses on infront. The feat seems to giveMilan an edge and they couldexploit it to great advantage ifthey are able to wound Barcafirst. And they have the qualityto do so.

Besides, it would be the fourthtimes both will be meeting yearin this competition. They metat the group stage where wereforced to 2-2 draw at the CampNou before winning 3-2 at theStadio Giuseppe Meazza.

Success in the return legwould send the Catalansthrough to the semi-finals forthe fifth season on the trot, and

allow them to equal thelongstanding record set by RealMadrid from 1956-60. Real arealready in the semi-finals.Milan, meanwhile, will belooking to secure their firstaway victory in Europe thisseason.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is manthat would revel theopportunity to return to haunthis former club while LeonelMessi should aim at dentingMilan and increase his goalpoaching record.

Another high flyer is BayernMunich whose 2-0 win overOlympic Marseille give themclear advantage.

Mario Gomez’s 11 goal in thisyear’s competition willprobably feel that they havedone enough to extinguishMarseille’s hopes of reachingthe semis. With that goal,Gomez is now hot on the heelsof Messi, who has 12, in the raceto finish as this season’s topscorer in the competition.

But in football nothing isimpossible after all a saggingChelsea suddenly becamerejuvenated and humiliatedNapoli which had a 3-1advantage over them.Marseille have the potentialsbut many say not enough tothreaten star-studded Bayern.

UEFA ChampionsLeague: Barcelonaor AC Milan, Whobows out?

By Patrick Andrew

MATCHES TODAY

Barcelona vs AC MilanB/Munich vs Marseille

PAGE 47PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

English Premiership matchagainst Tottenham Hotspuron March 17 at White HartLane.

Muamba was reported tohave collapsed of cardiacarrest but is fast recoveringin the hospital.

According to Edun,nothing must be taken forgranted, especially athletes’fitness.

The former commissionerfor finance in Lagos stateurged sports stakeholder totake cognisance of themedical fitness of athletesbefore they participate incompetitions.

He commended the LagosState Ambulance Service

Olawale Edun, theChairman, LagosState Boxing Hall of

Fame, has said that themedical fitness of boxersparticipating in the“Saturday Boxing Show”would henceforth be givenpriority attention.

Edun, the promoter ofthe Lagos monthlycompetition, said this in aninterview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) onSaturday after the 29thedition of the tournament.

He spoke against thebackdrop of FabriceMuamba, the BoltonWanderers FC midfielderwho slumped during an

(LASAMBUS) medical teamfor screening all boxers whoparticipated in the show.

“I need not mention toanybody that the medicalfitness of athletes is veryimportant, for example, thecase of Muamba, I wish himspeedy recovery.

“Every boxer thatparticipated here today wascertified fit by theLASAMBUS medical team, Ithank the stateCommissioner for Health,Dr Jide Idris, for his effort,”he said.

Edun praised the boxersfor displaying their skills tocreate excitement for theirteeming fans.

He also said that he wasexcited with the largeturnout by the crowd,including students whoadorned the Indoor Hall ofthe Mobolaji Johnson SportsCentre, Yaba venue of thetournament.

“I am indeed very happywith the display of skills andthe large turnout ofspectators, it means that theshow is becoming popular,”Edun said.

In the 10 boutscompetition, Olaide FijabiAjeromi Ifelodun LocalGovernment defeatedSunday Oladele of ChampionClub of Oshodi in the 64kgcategory.

Oliwo Kazeem, also ofStar Club of AjeromiIfelodun beat Ibrahim Ali ofParamount Club, Agege inthe 56kg.

In the exhibition bout toarouse the interest ofstudents in boxing, JosephBadejo defeated his NigeriaModel High School, Mushincounterpart, SaviourFrancis.

In 60kg, Joseph Otto ofParamount Club defeatedEniola Korede ofProgressive Club, Oshodi,while Nike Salami of Day byDay Club defeated AyisatOriyomi of Blessed Club,Yaba in the 54Kg femalebout.

Boxing sponsor harps on athletes’ medical fitness

Nkosinathi Joyi of SouthAfrican retained his IBFmini-flyweight title by

winning the rematch against theJapanese challenger on points.The scores were 116-111 on twocards and 117-110.

With two overseas judges,Shafeeq Rashada and MarcusMcDonnell at ringside withSylvia Mokaila, there was no hintof a hometown decision.

Joyi, who took too manydamaging blows for his own good,showed superior skills against theaggressive challenger and gaveTakayama no change to avengehis defeat at Carnival City,Brakpan, in January last year.Joyi won that fight whenTakayama was cut in a clash of

heads and the bout ended in a no-contest. The champion had notfought since then but showedlittle ring rust when he won themuch anticipated rematch. Hispoor defence, however, was aworrying factor.

Joyi is still unbeaten on 22-0,with one no-contest and 15knockouts. Takayama’s recordnow stands at 24-5, with one no-contest and ten knockouts.

Joyi’s trainer, BoyboyMpulampula, said the championhad fought according to plan “aswe knew what the Japanese wasgoing to offer”.

The South African took controlfrom the first bell, scoring withcombinations and at timesshaking Takayama with fierce

blows.Takayama kept coming

forward, showing grit in front ofa crowd that was clearly backingJoyi at the packed OrientTheatre.

Earlier Sabelo Jubatha beatWonga Ntoyakhe on a majoritydecision over twelve rounds in afeatherweight bout and ZolaniTere stopped Sipiwo Ntsangani inthe first round of abantamweight bout.

Jubatha, the SA featherweightchampion, improved his recordto 14-1, with ten knockouts. Hewon the vacant national title inDecember last year when hestopped Simphiwe Tom 42seconds into the fourth round.

He had previously held the SAfeatherweight title after beatingLuthando Vukuza on a tenth-round technical knockout inDecember 2009.

Ntoyakhe, whose record wasdecidedly poor before the fight,dropped to 5-6; 1 as he had alsolost on points over six rounds toJubatha on June 12, 2009.

Joyi cruises topoints victory

Maria Sharapova says she hopes to put the disappointment oflosing her second-straight final on hard courts behind herwith a strong showing this year in the upcoming clay court

season.“I feel like I’ve improved with every year that I have been playing

on it (clay) and I enjoy it,” said Sharapova, after losing 7-5, 6-4 inthe Miami final on Saturday to fifth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska ofPoland. “I feel like you learn so much about the construction of thepoints and the games such a cat-and-mouse game. “I didn’tnecessarily like that many years back, but I feel like I’m muchbetter at it and I have improved physically as well.”

The 24-year-old Sharapova is now a four-time runner-up inMiami, having lost in the final back-to-back years twice, 2005,2006, 2011 and 2012. She has also lost in all three of her finals in2012, falling twice to world No 1 Victoria Azarenka (Indian Wellsand Australian Open) and now to Radwanska in straight sets.

“It’s only 30 minutes after you lose, so it is not the easiest thing inthe world,” Sharapova said. “But, these last two tournaments arealways the toughest just because they’re so close together and playingsix matches in an event. “I’m looking forward to taking a little breaknow and getting on the clay and starting the practice.”

Sharapova has a 30-9 career record at the French Open, the nextGrand Slam tournament of the season, with her best result beingtwo semifinal appearances, last year and in 2007. Shoulder andelbow injuries prevented Sharapova from playing in Miami for threeyears, 2008, 2009 and 2010. But she says the right shoulder problemthat gave her so much trouble in the past is behind her now.

“My shoulder feels really good,” she said. “I’m really happy that Igot over that injury.”

Sharapova hopesto have her clay day

Maria Sharapova

Nkosinathi Joyi

SPORTS LALALALALATESTTESTTESTTESTTEST

ADVERT:ADVERT:ADVERT:ADVERT:ADVERT: 0803 311 74580803 311 74580803 311 74580803 311 74580803 311 7458BUSINESS:BUSINESS:BUSINESS:BUSINESS:BUSINESS: 0805 689 17650805 689 17650805 689 17650805 689 17650805 689 1765NEWS:NEWS:NEWS:NEWS:NEWS: 0803 606 33080803 606 33080803 606 33080803 606 33080803 606 3308LAGOS:LAGOS:LAGOS:LAGOS:LAGOS: 0805 327 19690805 327 19690805 327 19690805 327 19690805 327 1969

0803 454 03440803 454 03440803 454 03440803 454 03440803 454 0344

Published by Peoples Media Limited, 35, Ajose Adeogun Street, 1st Floor Peace Park Plaza,Utako, Abuja. Lagos Office: No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos,Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 803 606 3308. e-mail: contact@peoplesdaily-online.comISSN: 2141– 6141

TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012

QQQQQUOUOUOUOUOTTTTTABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QUOUOUOUOUOTETETETETE The best years of your life are The best years of your life are The best years of your life are The best years of your life are The best years of your life are

the ones in which you decide yourthe ones in which you decide yourthe ones in which you decide yourthe ones in which you decide yourthe ones in which you decide yourprprprprproboboboboblems arlems arlems arlems arlems are ye ye ye ye your oour oour oour oour own.wn.wn.wn.wn. YYYYYou doou doou doou doou donot bnot bnot bnot bnot blame them on ylame them on ylame them on ylame them on ylame them on your motherour motherour motherour motherour mother,,,,,

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Kanu HeartFoundationrestatescommitment tochildren withcardiac disease

The Kanu HeartFoundation (KHF) hasexpressed committed to

scaling up its interventionprogramme to save the lives ofchildren suffering from cardiacdiseases.

Project Consultant KanuCardiac Centre, Miss PhilOkoroafor said in Abuja thatthe foundation would intensifyefforts to ensure that manypatients benefit from theactivities of the foundation. "Weare committed to doing it by alllegitimate means to save thelives of our children," she said.

According to Okoroafor, therising incidences of heart diseasesamong children in the countryhave become an issue of greatconcern to the foundation asabout 1000 patients are now onits waiting list.

“We are worried by thegrowing number of patientssuffering from congenital heartdiseases now waiting on thefoundation's list,” adding thatsince 2000 no fewer than 425children had benefited from theits intervention, while only 10children died after the surgery.

The project consultant saidthat as part of efforts to prevent thedisease KHF had partnered withschools to create awareness on howpeople should take preventivemeasures and recognisesymptoms of the diseases.

Okoroafo added that KHFhad also invited experts fromIndia and visited manycommunities in the country toenlighten and encouragepeople to report any case ofheart abnormalities.

She said paucity of fundswas militating against thefoundation's efforts to treatmore children, adding that itcost 10,000 dollars to send onechild to Europe, America orIndia for open heart surgery.

Okoroafor disclosed thatKHF would soon establish aCardiac Centre to reduce the costof sending patients abroad fortreatment.

She called on governmentsin the country to partner withthe foundation to fight againstthe disease so as to save the livesof children and to put a smile onthe faces of parents.

For some time now there hasbeen patting of back andexcited chatter among top

security chieftains about how theBoko Haram insurgency will soonbe history. Its backbone has beenbroken, we hear. The talkeverywhere among thesechieftains is that the sect'smilitary infrastructure has beenvirtually destroyed, most of itstop leaders are behind bars, itsmajor supply routes have beenidentified and blocked and itscapacity severely weakened.

The fact that since the Kanoincident in January this yearthere has not been any majorattack anywhere by the sect isbeing cited as evidence of thesuccesses achieved by thecombined efforts of our securityagencies in the campaign againstthe sect's insurgency.

Soon, it's being said, thecountry will be singing the dirgeof Boko Haram.

But, now, the nation's ChiefSecurity Officer and theCommander- in- Chief himself,President Goodluck EbeleJonathan (GEJ), has movedbeyond "soon" to something moredefinite. At separate meetingswith investors and Nigerians inKorea last week, GEJ gave outthat by mid-year the Boko Harammenace would be all over, andNigeria would be safe again forinvestment. In three months'time from now, that is to say, thebombings will cease, the guns willbe silent, the killings anddestruction will end and theheightened sense of insecurityamong Nigerians will vanish.

Long before now, both GEJand his security chiefs have beentalking about an early end to thesecurity challenge posed by BokoHaram. But by giving a specificdate in Korea, GEJ has made afirm commitment and, in theprocess, staked his honour on it.The international communityand Nigerians will hold him byit.

But can GEJ deliver on this?Are we likely to see an end to theinsurgency by end of June or evenJuly this year? Is all the excitedchatter among the securitychieftains merely bogus, or is therea good ground for it?

Well, both GEJ and thesecurity chiefs must know thingsthat the rest of us don't. In Korea,beyond giving a definite time

frame, GEJ offered his audiencesno details about how theinsurgency will be brought to anend, saying only that these are"top security matters". In anycase, we must allow the presidentand the security chiefs a measureof the elation and optimism thatthey now so openly display. Thefact is, Boko Haram has been dealtsome heavy blows in recentmonths. Its military capacity hasbeen considerably reduced as aconsequence of sustained attackson its bases. Many of its leaders,now in detention, are singing,

giving valuable information thatis leading to further attacks andarrests. The assassination, abouta fortnight ago, of Abu Darda'sfather in Maiduguri by gunmenbelieved to be Boko Harammembers is evidence that the sectis being seriously hurt by theinformation obtained from itscaptured leaders and members.

Encouraged by thesedevelopments and mountingpressure from a strong 'no-dialogue with terrorists' lobby,the authorities have completelyclosed the door on dialogue as anoption for ending the crisis. Notthat the authorities have everbeen favourably disposed todialogue with the sect. Which iswhy their attempts at dialogue,including and especially the mostrecent one involving Dr. DattiAhmed, have been half-hearted,geared merely to create thesemblance, without its substance,of a peaceful engagement with thesect.

There is hardly any doubtthat it was the authoritiesthemselves that leaked the detailsof this last attempt, or the Dattiinitiative, to the press, knowingthat such a leakage was thequickest and surest way to

President Goodluck Jonathan

truncate a process that, bydefinition, required the utmost ofsecrecy. Clearly, all that theauthorities wanted was to put upa show that they believed wouldplay well in especially thoseWestern countries that have beencanvassing for dialogue with thesect as the best option.

All along, the GEJadministration has treated theproblem as essentially a securitymatter, without a social contextor root. And the insurgents?These are terrorists. Andterrorists are fair game. Kill themwithout mercy or remorse, andthe problem is over. After all, sogoes the reasoning, have thesuccesses recorded in recentmonths not been the result ofbetter intelligence but especiallyintensified military actionagainst the sect?

Boko Haram is now down. Allthat is required to ensure that itis also out, according thisreasoning and plan, is a well-coordinated final militaryoffensive. Already, well armedsoldiers, armed with a license tokill, are in the war front. Bloatedwith a loathing for for their ownpitiable conditions, dripping withethno-religious prejudice,stinking of misplaced self-righteousness and trigger-happy,these soldiers are killing people atrandom, humiliating andmolesting members of the public.What is now needed to finish thejob is more soldiers and more gunsand bullets, and the final push, ascotched-earth attack that willensure that by the end June, it isall over. QED.

But this approach is a-historical and too one-dimensional. GEJ was part of theYar'adua regime that wiped theentire leaders and hundreds ofmembers of the Boko Haram sectin 2009. In only about one yearthey had re-grouped.

Boko Haram, as a sect, did notjust happen on us. Its roots andhistory stretch back many years.In terms of its ideology, at core ofwhich is a deep-seated resentmentagainst and hatred for Westerninfluences and values, BokoHaram can righty be said to bethe off-spring of the Maitatsinesect of 1980s. Maitatsine and theTaliban share roughly the sameideology as the Taliban inAfghanistan.

Boko Haram: GEJ’sboast and reality

FOR THEFOR THEFOR THEFOR THEFOR THEMASSESMASSESMASSESMASSESMASSES

ruf585@hotmail.com

By Rufa’i Ibrahim

“Long before now, both GEJ and hissecurity chiefs have been talking about anearly end to the security challenge posedby Boko Haram. But by giving a specific

date in Korea, GEJ has made a firmcommitment and, in the process, staked

his honour on it. The internationalcommunity and Nigerians will hold him by it

Contd. on Page 45

After being wiped out in Kanoin 1981, the Maitatsine sect, itmay be recalled, resurfaced firstin Yola, Adamawa state, and laterin Bulunkutu, Maiduguri. It mayalso be recalled that the BokoHaram sect first started itsactivities in Yobe State, callingitself the Nigerian Taliban, beforeit moved to and formed its base inMaiduguri.

No final push, or scotched-earthattack or any sort of military actionwill wipe the sect out. A militaryoption will bring only a temporaryrespite, not a permanent solution.And the reason for this should beobvious. The sect, and others likeit, are a product of the socialconditions of deprivation, masspoverty, hopelessness andilliteracy that years and years ofmisrule, official corruption andimpunity have helped to produce.Governments came and go, all ofthem producing poverty insteadof enriching the masses of ourpeople, and making hope a rarecommodity among the people. Yet,those in authority expect themasses to be throwing flowers atthem.

The point is, wiping out BokoHaram, finding a lasting solutionto the current security challenges,is not a three-month affair. It is aproject that necessarily involeschanging for better theunderlying socio-economicconditions that give rise to suchmovements whose members,jobless, illiterate and without hopeof a good future, are prone toimbibing ideologies that preachviolence and harbour disdain forhuman life. And this will takeyears of planning, vision and hardwork.

Besides, what makes GEJ sosure that "finishing off" BokoHaram within the next threemonths will be such a popular ideaeven among the members of thesecurity agencies? There is hardlyany doubt that Boko Haram is bigbusiness for many interests andforces across Nigeria, includingtop ranking security chieftains,rogue elements among thesecurity operatives and officersand many others who "chop" fromthe crises.

And Boko Haram, it is now, hasbecome factionalized. InMaiduguri, there is now talk of

Boko Haram: GEJ’s boast and realitythree factions, namely, Yusufiyyacomprising the original memberclose to the slain leader,Mohammed Yusuf; the Sheriffiyya(those allegedly founded and beingfunded by the states formergovernor, Ali Sherrif); and AAzaziyya (those allegedly beingfunded by the top security

chieftain loyal to Azazi, the NSA).There may be no truth in all

this, but that point is that, asmany have already pointed out,there are now many BokoHarams, and the name itself hasbecome a franchise for all sorts ofpeople and all kinds of things.

Which of the Boko Harams,

then, is to be wiped out in threemonths time by GET and hissoldiers?

But there are other problemsas well. It is said that after the Kanobombing incident in January,youths in many towns in theNorth were going about makingenquiries as to how they could beregistered as Boko Harammembers. Secondly, in manyparts of the world today, it isbecoming a matter of pride andmacho for youths to take part inviolent operations. Nigeria is noexception.

Thirdly, only about a fortnightago, a UNESCO top official disclosedthat Nigeria has the world'shighest member of children out ofschool. He gave the number as 8.6million kids. Most of these kids mustbe Northerners, and, I believe,living largely in the areas of whereBoko Haram is most active.

What is the future of thesechildren? Will they grow up to feedthe large army of the millions ofunemployed youths, almajirai andthe LUMPEN elements that areready recruits for Boko Haram andother forces with untowardagendas?

Contd. from Back Page

PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 PAGE 45

“Besides, what makes GEJ so sure that"finishing off" Boko Haram within the nextthree months will be such a popular ideaeven among the members of the securityagencies? There is hardly any doubt that

Boko Haram is big business for manyinterests and forces across Nigeria,

including top ranking security chieftains,rogue elements among the security

operatives and officers and many otherswho "chop" from the crises