www.peoplesdaily-online.com

Vol. 10 No. 6 Monday, January 7, 2013 Safar 21, 1434 AH N150 . . . putting the people first

The Federal Governmenthas so far repatriated a totalof 16,000 aliens even as it

says it has discovered 1,497 illegalborder points used forunauthorized movement in andout of the country.

Minister of Interior, ComradeAbba Moro, stated this at theweekend while giving a review ofthe government’s effort atstemming the tide of the activitiesof terror groups.

He said the strategy adoptedby the government has beenyielding the desired result,leading to the repatriations andthe discovery of the routes usedby the terror groups that havebeen ravaging some parts of thecountry.

The minister, however, linkedpart of the problem to the abuse ofthe Economic Community of WestAfrican States (ECOWAS)protocol that allows freemovement of citizens within theWest African sub-region.

The abuse of the protocol, heexplained, forced Nigeria to takethe drastic decision as it becameobvious that foreign mercenarieswere aiding insurgency in thecountry.

Moro said, “Our majorchallenge, like I said, is the

From Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan

L-R: Emeritus Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Kelvin Aje, President Goodluck Jonathan, Archbishop of AbujaDiocese, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, mother of the President, Mrs. Eunice Jonathan, Senate President David Mark,and other bishops during the 30th Episcopal ordination anniversary and celebration of the elevation of CardinalJohn Onaiyekan, yesterday at Our Lady Queen Of Nigeria Pro-Cathedral, in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

Declare your assetsnow SERAP tells

President>> PAGE 2 >> PAGE 2 >> PAGE

Governor’s wifesacks councillorin Katsina

Jonathan’s 2015poster not our

headache — INEC

15 perish as tanker, bus crash in Ogbomoso

Contd on Page 2

No fewer than 15 personsdied in a multiple autocrash on Ogbomoso-Oyo-

Ibadan road yesterdayafternoon.

According to an eyewitness,the accident occurred when atanker loaded with petrol, coming

from the Oyo/Ibadan end, ranover an 18-seater commercial buscoming from Ilorin/Ogbomoso, ata sharp bend near Odo-Oba village– five kilometers to Ogbomosotown.

The crash happened at a spotwhere another tanker loadedwith petrol had broken down forthe past one week.

It was gathered that theimpact of the collision caused thetanker to overturn, spilling itscontent which exploded in flamesimmediately.

The driver of the bus, theeyewitness added, lost control ofthe vehicle and some occupantswere flung out.

Only three people escaped

from the bus while the crashcaused a long traffic snarl on theI b a d a n / O g b o m o s o / O y ohighway.

It took men of the fire servicesometime to mobilise to thescene while men of the NigerianArmy and the NationalEmergency ManagementAgency (NEMA) were on hand

to offer rescue assistance and toensure that the property of thevictims were not tamperedwith.

The spokesman of NEMA inthe South-west, Alhaji IbrahimFarinloye, said that the scene hadto be cordoned off while trafficwas diverted to alternativeroutes.

Terrorism: Nigeriadeports 16,000 aliensBy Richard Ihediwa

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSNews 2-10

Editorial 12

Op.Ed 13

Letters 14

Opinion 15

Metro 16-18

Business 19-22

S/Exchange 23

S/Report 24-25

Law 26

Education 27-28

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Lingering PDP crisis inAdamawa, Page 4

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Health 29-30

Int’l 31-34

Politics 37-40

Sports 41-46

Leisure 47

Columnist 48

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 2

Terrorism: Nigeria deports 16,000 aliens

The key to thetransformation of Nigeria isfor President Goodluck

Jonathan to declare his assets inorder to give impetus to the fightagainst corruption, says Socio-Economic Rights andAccountability Project (SERAP).

Declaring his assets, theorganization said in a statementyesterday, would send out astrong signal that the presidentintended to fight corruption “headon” and “end the culture ofimpunity.”

It said that PresidentJonathan’s promise to work fasterthis year to meet the needs ofNigerians “is routine andrhetorical.”

“The President must showstrong leadership and lead byexample if he is to earn the trust ofNigerians and convince them thathe is truly committed to the fightagainst corruption,” said SERAPExecutive Director, AdetokunboMumuni.

“Ultimately, the responsibilityfor sorting out Nigeria rests withPresident Jonathan. The buckstops with him,” it said.

“Nigerians will judge him notby the number of promises he hasmade but by the number of roadsrepaired, decent hospitalsestablished, and how muchdifference he is able to make toensure the enjoyment of otherbasic necessities of life for millionsof impoverished Nigerians.”

The statement called on the

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam president to lead by example bydeclaring his own assets asrequired by the Constitution andto prosecute his cohorts accused ofcorruption.

“Half measures which avoidpublic scrutiny of the President’sown assets declaration, andeffective prosecution of corruptioncases when they involve thoseconnected with this governmentare utterly inadequate and tendto throw the government intodisrepute.”

“Genuine fight againstcorruption can’t happen unlessPresident Jonathan wants it, andleads by example,” the statementadded.

It added that the “woefulpositions” the country occupies onthe 2012 Failed States Index

Declare your assets now, SERAP tells Jonathanpublished by the United States-based Foreign Policy Journal andthe 2012 United Nations HumanDevelopment Index should give thepresident serious cause forconcern.

Nigeria is ranked 144 out of177 countries on the Failed Stateindex and 159 out of 172 countrieson the Human DevelopmentIndex.

SERAP, therefore, said in orderto do better this year, PresidentJonathan should “prioritise anddemonstrate his expressedcommitment to fight corruption byurgently ensuring the effectiveprosecution of those suspected ofmassive corruption in the fuelsubsidy system and fully recoverstolen public wealth andresources.”

The Independent NationalElectoral Commission(INEC) has said it cannot do

anything about the thecontroversial poster drummingsupport for President GoodluckJonathan in the run-up to the2015 Presidential election.

INEC said it cannot go afterthose behind the posters since theyhave remained faceless. Also it saidit has not yet issued any notice ortimetable for the 2015 electionthat would have warranted aviolation of the 90 days before pollclause provided in the Electoral Actfor the commencement ofelectioneering campaigns.

INEC Chairman, Prof Attahiru

Jega who spoke through his ChiefPress Secretary, Kayode Idowu, inAbuja yesterday said there wasnothing the commission could dosince the poster which appeared inAbuja on New Year Day wereproduced and pasted by unknownpersons.

Idowu, in a telephone chat withPeoples Daily also argued that sinceno person or party has owned up tobeing behind the poster, the matternaturally fall within the region ofcrime and public order, whichshould be handled by securityagencies.

He said the commission did notdeal with unknown elements butwith registered political parties inthe discharge of its duties asenshrined in the law, adding that

was not for the commission to starthunting for those who placed theposter.

“It is not for INEC to start goingaround looking for who placed theposter. No party or group hasowned up to being behind theposter. If an identifiable party orpersons acting for a partycampaign outside the purview ofthe law, then it becomes a matterof interest to INEC. The presentscenario does not add up and onewould not expect the commissionto start chasing shadows,” Idowusaid.

He also noted that for now,INEC has not issued any notice ortimetable for the 2015 electionsand as such has no legal ground togo after those behind the posters.

Section 99 (1) of the ElectoralAct 2010 as amended prescribes90 days before election forcampaign by political parties inNigeria. Also section 30 of the EAalso mandates INEC to issues anotice of poll, which normallyindicates the timetable forcampaign.

The Presidency and the rulingPeoples Democratic Party (PDP)have denied having a hand in theposter, describing it as thehandiwork of those seeking todistract the President and todiscredit him in the eyes of theelectorate.

However, opposition parties areinsisting that the poster is a ploythe PDP and the Presidency to rigthe 2015 elections.

Jonathan’s poster not our headache - INECBy Richard Ihediwa

presence of aliens in this country.As friendly as we are, and assticklers to agreement,particularly the ECOWASprotocol that allows freemovement of citizens in ECOWAScountries, the suicide bombings,bombers and attacks on ourinstitutions make it imperativethat certain measures should be

taken to be proactive enough toforestall the continuedoccurrence of these activities.

“So, in the process, theNigerian Immigration Servicethat is charged with theresponsibility of controlling ourborders rose up to the occasion bysetting up the necessarymachinery to identify, screen andprofile aliens that are in the

country with a view to identifyingthose that are criminally mindedand whose activities are inimicalto the stability of this country. Inthe process, over 16, 000 suchaliens have been repatriated.”

The minister said measureswere also put in place to ensureeffective control of Nigeria’sborders, adding that was thereason his ministry had to contact

the relevant governmentagencies to grant approval to theImmigration Service to engagemore hands to be able to controlthe nation’s borders.

Moro stressed that the fact thatthe activities of those terroristspersisted in spite of concerted theefforts of the security agencies tostem the tide meant that “there isstill more work to do.”

Contd from Page 1

In order to elicitcontributions fromNigerians at the grassroots

in the ongoing constitutionamendment, the chairman,Senate Committee on theAmendment of 1999Constitution, Ike Ekweremadu,has disclosed that the committeehas created a GSM ServiceCenter which allows Nigeriansto send their views on issues tothe lawmakers through theshort code 20052.

Ekweremadu, who explainedthat all SMS to the code is free ofcharge as the committee hadalready paid for the services,added that a special website,www.constitutionreviewng.org,and an opinion poll corner havebeen created to allow Nigerianscast their votes and leave

comments on national issues.According to a statement

signed by his Special Adviser onMedia, Uche Anichukwu, theDeputy Senate President madethis disclosure when he debriefedthe media and publicity team ofthe Committee in Abuja onSaturday.

“We took cognisance of theappreciable tele-density in thecountry that makes the GSMservice available to an averagecitizen and thought that weshould seize the platform to givethe Nigerian masses yetanother novel opportunitybeyond the public hearings weconducted at national, zonal

and constituency levels tomake inputs into matters thatconcern both them and theirposterity,” he stated.

While expressing satisfactionwith the quantity of responsefrom Nigerians so far,Ekweremadu explained that thesystem is simple as respondentsonly need to respond to theadvertised questions by texting“Yes” or “No” to the short code.

He therefore called onNigerians to take advantage ofthe SMS and online opinion pollin the ongoing constitutionreview project to air their viewson critical matters.

He added that the opinion poll

was in keeping with the promiseand commitment of thecommittee to popularparticipation and transparencyin the ongoing constitutionamendment process.

“The major aims of the pollwere to demystify constitution-making, get more Nigeriansinvolved, and correct the wrongperception of constitution-making as an elite’s affair”, hesaid, adding that the committeewants to discourage thesituation where a vocal andprivileged few expropriate thevoices of the people and foist theirpersonal opinions and narrowinterests on the polity.

Constitution: NASS launches freewebsite, SMS centre for opinions

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 PAGE 3

NASS ready to enact law tofight religious extremism – Mark

FAAN deniesborrowing$500m toacquire aircraftFrom Suleiman Idris, Lagos

Senate PresidentDavid Mark,has said the NationalAssembly is willing and

ready to enact a law to addressreligious extremism in Nigeria.Mark made this known at areception organised in honour ofJohn Cardinal Onaiyekan on his30th Episcopal ordination and hisrecent elevation to the College ofCardinals in Abuja, yesterday.

He said the National Assemblywas willing to make the religiousenvironment much friendlier byenacting laws that would fight all

forms of religious intolerance andextremism in the society. Thesenate president said that thelegislature was holistically lookingat the issue of immorality in thesociety without preference to anyparticular one.

“We are ready to supportreligious activities that will fosterunity in the country, we are readyto make laws that will fight religiousextremism in the country’’. He saidthat the issues would be addressedas they were presented to theNational Assembly.

Mark said that the senate hadalready passed the bill on gaymarriage and was awaiting thereport of the House ofRepresentatives before it would besent to the executive. Earlier in hishomily at the church service,Onaiyekan reminded Nigerians ofthe need for religious tolerance andmutual respect.

He said tolerance and mutualrespect would help in buildingpeace and harmony amongstNigerians irrespective of theirbackgrounds and status in the

society. The cardinal spoke againstthe practice of what he describedas ‘the religion of exclusion’.

In the same vein, the Presidentof the Catholic Bishops’ Conferenceof Nigeria (CBCN), Most Rev.Ignatius Kaigama, called onNigerians to use religion to fightsocial and moral vices in thesociety. Kaigama, who is theArchbishop of Jos, said issues ofcorruption, kidnapping, drugaddiction and terrorism, could befought using the instrumentalityof religion. (NAN)

President GoodluckJonathan has observed thatanyone who kills another

person in the name of religiongoes contrary to the dictates ofreligion.

He noted that the major

…as Jonathan decries killing in the name of religionreligions in the country do notencourage violence and hate asthey preach brotherhood, love andpeaceful co-existence andtherefore, whoever kills in thename of religion cannot claim toworship God.

The President spoke yesterdayat Our Lady Queen of Nigeria, Pro-

Cathedral Garki Abuja, during the30th Episcopal OrdinationAnniversary and celebration of theelevation of Archbishop JohnOnaiyekan as a Cardinal of theRoman Catholic Church.

"We all know no religionpreaches or encourages violenceand hate. Both major religions in

this our land preach brotherhood,love and peaceful co-existence. Thisis their foundation and of course,the motivation for us too asChristians.

President Jonathan howeverobserved that the nation faced alot of challenges, noting that thechurch, just like the politicalleaders, has the responsibility tomould the characters ofNigerians and put them on theright path.

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

Thousands of workingNigerians may soon join thesaturated labour market if

feelers from the cementmanufacturing sub-sector areanything to go by, as moremanufacturers are scaling downproduction and significantlyreducing their capacity as a resultof the glut of cement due to imports.

This is coming on the heels of arecent survey by the World Bankand International FinanceCorporation revealing thatNigeria has failed to improve in its‘Ease of Doing Business’.

With the Dangote Group’s

Gboko plant shut and the reductionin capacity in Larfarge’s Ewekoroplant, it is obvious that workerswill be laid off.

A statement by the DangoteGroup said its four million metrictonnes Gboko plant that employsthousands in direct and indirectlabour may remain shut owingto glut in the market andwarehouses caused by theimportation.

Similarly, 50 percent ofLafarge’s Shagamu plant has beenshut down due to the same reason.

Lafarge factories have excesscement and clinker inventory attheir plants of about 300,000metric tonnes, which cannot be

absorbed by the Nigerian market,a statement said.

More cement plants are alsobracing up to close shop as themarket is being over-supplied withimported and inferior products.

The Cement ManufacturersAssociation of Nigeria (CMAN) haswarned that Nigeria risks losinghuge investment as a result of theunnecessary importation ofcement.

Chairman of CMAN, JosephMakoju was quoted as saying:“Energy cost accounts for over 35percent of production cost inNigeria, whereas it is 10 percentin China. In Nigeria, the price ofLPFO has jumped from N25 perlitre to N107.76 per litre as atNovember 2012, an increase of331 percent.

By Abdulwahab Isa

Cement imports: Job losses loom inmanufacturing sector

One person was allegedlyshot and killed recently inAssakio, Nasarawa state,

with two others arrested forpossessing dangerous weaponswhich included pistols, machetesand charms.

Our correspondent reports thatvigilante youths accosted thesuspects while attempting to plantcharms at the site of a local shrine,following which the youths weresaid to have handed the suspects toa team of security men operating

in the area.Eyewitness account has it that

one of the suspects who tried toescape, was allegedly shot andkilled by one of the operatives.

Names of those arrested weregiven as, Umar Mohammed andSaidu Yahuza, both residents ofGidan Buba, in Lafia Eastdevelopment area.

When contacted on the matter,deputy Police Public RelationsOfficer, Cornelius Ocholi,maintained that the command isyet to get a report on the incidence,as at the time of filing this report.

From Ali Abare Abubakar, Lafia

Alago/Eggon crisis: One killed,two arrested, weapons seized

The Federal AirportsAuthority of Nigeria(FAAN), yesterday, refuted

claims that the agency hasborrowed $500 million from banksin China to acquire aircraft meantfor distribution among operatingdomestic airlines.

The agency said it is a serviceprovider and presently occupiedwith translating thetransformational aviation masterplan into concrete realities.

FAAN General Manager,Corporate Communications, Mr.Yakubu Datti, told journalists that“FAAN has not borrowed $500million from China nor anycountry for that matter”.

An article written by oneCaptain Dele Ore had last weekcriticized the persistent news breaksthat $500 million has beenborrowed from China to acquireaircraft for Nigerian domesticairlines and queried the rationalebehind FAAN's involvement.

President GoodluckJonathan would be holdinga two-day national security

summit on Police by Tuesday andWednesday this week.

The summit with the theme:“Addressing Nigeria’s SecurityChallenges for Sustainable Peaceand Development”, is said to besponsored by Police and Vanguardnewspapers and is billed to hold atthe International ConferenceCentre, Abuja, at 10am each day.

Police spokesman, Frank Mba,said the summit will be officiallyflagged off by the PresidentJonathan and will be attended bymilitary and police chiefs, securityexperts/practitioners from withinand outside the country as well asother critical stakeholders.

Police authorities said thesummit is a public-privatepartnership initiative and isexpected to provide an avenue forNigerians from all walks of life tomake informed input into concertedefforts by the police and othersecurity agencies at providinglasting solutions to Nigeria’s myriadsecurity challenges.

Jonathan tohold two-daynationalsecurity summitBy Lambert Tyem

L-R: First Chairman of Al-Habibiyyah Organisation, Amb. Ridwan A. Mustapha, Chief of Jiwa, Alhaji Idris Musa,Sheikh Abdulfatah Adeyemi, and Chief Imam of Al-Habibiyyah Mosque, Imam Fuad Adeyemi, during the 10thanniversary special prayer of the organisation, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Lingering PDP crisis in AdamawaThe internal squabble

rocking the PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP) in

Adamawa State since thedissolution of the duly elected 28party executives of the partyunder the leadership of AlhajiUmaru Mijinyawa Kugama bythe National Workingcommittee of the party andsubsequent appointment of a 7-man caretaker committee tooversee the affairs of the partyheaded by Ambassador UmaruDamagun in October 2012. hasbeen viewed as a setback to theparty in the state.

As a result of thisdevelopment, the People’sDemocratic Party in the state isfactionalized into two politicalcamps namely; Kugama andDamagun camps while somepolitical pundits are of the viewthat the power tussle is betweenthree political gladiators - thatis, the incumbent GovernorMurtala Nyako, NationalChairman of the Party (PDP)Alhaji Bamanga Tukursupported by the stakeholderstagged Adamawa Elders forumchaired by former DeputyGovernor in the state Mr.Wilberforce Junta and Prof.Jibrin Aminu among others.And the third class of interest isthe former vice president, AtikuAbubakar.

Investigation by Peoples Dailyin Yola revealed that the recentcontroversial congresses held bythe Ambassador Damagun-ledcaretaker committee in the 226wards of the state x-rayed thereal power tussle as the AtikuAbubakar camp was morefavoured in terms ofrepresentation of politicalstructures; many believed thisdidn’t go down well with the likesof Professor Jibril Aminu,Bamanga Tukur and thealmighty Adamawa EldersForum who are seen byelectorate in the state as a gangof wounded lions that have lostpolitical relevance andpopularity.

Even though Damagun as thecaretaker chairmanacknowledged and accepted theprevious local government areaelections conducted by thedissolved Kugama Exco abouttwo months ago where all the 21local government seats wereclinched by the candidates ofPeoples Democractic Partydespite protests by oppositionparties like Congress forProgressive Change (CPC) andAction congress of Nigeria(ACN), who are still challengingthe context at the local councilpolls election tribunal currentlysitting in Yola, the state capital.

At a press conference heldrecently Ambassador Damaguntold journalists that they werein the state for a nationalassignment given to them by theNWC of their party (PDP) andtherefore enjoined all the 21elected council chairmen to

support and cooperate with theelected caretaker ward leaders intheir respective councils andalso called on Governor MurtalaNyako to recognized them as theauthentic leaders of the Party(PDP) in the state so as to have afree and fair congresses asmandated them by the NWC(PDP).

However, on the other side,the Kugama-led Exco went toYola High court under theformer Acting Chief JudgeJustice Umaru Bobboi seek anorder of injunction restrainingthe Damagun caretakercommittee as leaders of theparty in the state they wereobliged that ‘status quo” bemaintained. But on thejudgment day justice Bobboiafter hearing the counsels of thetwo parties dismissed the caseon the ground that his courtlacks jurisdiction to entertainthe case and advised them tosettle amicably out of courtsince it is an internal partycrisis.

Meanwhile, there wasdisquiet recently whenGovernor Murtala Nyako’sgovernment through a statewide announcement signed bythe secretary to the AdamawaState Government (SSG) ChiefKobis Ari Thimnu banned allforms of political activities inthe state indefinitely, an actionwhich some believed to be amove to forestall the alreadyscheduled dates of the ward,local government and statecongresses slated for December27, 2012, January 3rd 2013and 8th January, 2013respectively.

Expectedly, swift reactions

injunction stopping the process(congress) which was grantedand a date for judgment fixedfor 8thof January, 2013. Butonly to the dismay of electorate,the following morning thecaretaker claimed to haveconducted a free and faircongress on one of the televisionand radio outfits owned byformer vice president AtikuAbubakar.

In a similar view, some of thepoliticians interviewed by ourcorrespondent in Yola expressedreservations over the saidcongresses; one of them,Abdulrazak Haliru noted thatthe Assistant Inspector Generalof Police in-charge of Zone 3, AIGMuhammed Tambari Yabo hasheld a meeting with the twofactions of Kugama andDamagun and advised them toreschedule the dates for thecongress considering insecurityin the state. Tambari confirmedthis when contacted at his officeby Peoples Daily “it is true weinvited them and advised themto reschedule the exercisebecause the current securitychallenge in the state is nothealthy for such politicalactivities”, he said.

With the lingering crises inthe party some political punditsobserved that dividends ofdemocracy can hardly berealized, especially in anatmosphere of rancor andtherefore called on all theparties involved to resort todialogue for lasting solutionsthat will create conduciveatmosphere for developmentboth politically, economicallyand socially in the state andcountry at large.

ensued; for Dr. Umar Ardo as astakeholder of the party (PDP)said he was challenging theNyako’s government to showthem the law that gave theiradministration theconstitutional powers to ban allpolitical activities or nobodywill obey such order. “I think theregime needs extra prison yardsto accommodate more numbersof political detainees in the statewho will breach such order.May be the revolution thatObasanjo was talking about willstart in Adamawa State”, hesaid.

However, on the other side,Peoples Daily reliably gatheredthat President GoodluckJonathan intervened bysummoning the Nationalworking committee of the party(PDP) which was described as ameeting to make or mar whilethe visits by Governor Nyako toWadata house Abuja, thePeople’s Democratic Partyheadquarters secretariat on thesame issue has not yielded resultover this congresses brouhahain the state.

Another point of tensionbetween the governor and theparty’s national chairman isthe reported desire to pave wayfor his son, Auwal B. Tukur, aformer member of House ofRepresentative to succeedAdmiral Nyako. Some politicalanalysts in the state opined thatthe refusal of Admiral Nyako tocede some slots of localgovernment areas at the last LGpolls connotes that Dr. Tukurwill have a tough timemaneuvering his son to beGovernor in Adamawa come2015 because Bamanga has no

single political structure thatthey can fall back on as of now.

In a letter of invitation for ameeting of PDP majorstakeholders of Adamawa stateaddressed to Governor MurtalaNyako by the Nationalsecretary of the party, PrinceOlagunsoye Oyinlola, datedDecember 12, 2012, the partysaid the meeting shall bebetween national workingcommittee members of theparty, Governor Nyako andsome stakeholders in the party,and is at the instance of themeeting reached between theNWC and some Governors lastmonth. Some political punditsin the state viewed that, maybe by now with the abortedmeeting a certain reconciliationmay have been reach.

In addition to the effort ofresolving this crisis, just lastweek President GoodluckJonathan had inaugurated areconciliation committeeheaded by Governor SuleLamido of Jigawa state andother notable Nigerians to amatter of urgency intervene byaddressing the grey areas thatgenerated the political squabblein the Party so as to profferlasting solutions to the crisis.

On last week’s localgovernment congresses asclaimed by the caretakercommittee, there was a milddrama among the participantsof the previous congress, who feltaggrieved and rushed to HighCourt in Yola under the newacting judge, Justice NathanMusa. They filed a case ofexclusion from the electionswhich they bought form initiallyand sought for an order of

By Umar Dankano

Governor Murtala Nyako Alhaji Atiku Abubakar

PAGE 5PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Minister of Interior,Comrade Abba Moro,has cleared the air on the

alleged recruitment exerciseembarked upon by the NigeriaImmigration Service (NIS), sayingthat the information was a blatantfalsehood and handiwork ofmischief makers.

Moro who was speaking againstthe backdrop of reports in somenational dailies over the weekend,alleging that the recruitmentexercise was meant to favour the

minister and the ComptrollerGeneral of the service, maintainedthat recruitment in the servicedoes not favour any individual norsection of the country, but theentire citizenry.

He alleged that the confusionwas perpetuated by certainpolitical elements who want toscore cheap political points andoverheat the polity, assuring that"the ministry is investigating tounearth the cause of the rumour,and to effectively deal with anyonefound culpable".

"I would like to make it clear

that the service did not engagein any secrete recruitmentexercise as published in sectionsof the media. Our recruitmenthas always been open to thegeneral public and so shall itremain. However, I suspendedthe exercise to enable us tacklethe problem beclouding theexercise", he said.

On allegations of promotion andposting to his kinsmen, theminister said promotion in theservice is based on strict civilservice rules, which he said focusedon the attainment and

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam achievement of certainindividuals.

"Posting of officers has beenbased on professional competenceand knowledge of subject matterof assignment. For the records, I amnot aware that five indigenes ofBenue state or Idoma tribesmenwere specially favoured. I wonderwhere theses reports emanatedfrom", the minister said.

He further called on membersof the public to ignore the reports,which he said lacked credibility,assuring that the ministry wouldsoon stamp of the rumour peddlers.

Shema’s wife sacks councillorover row with LG boss’ wife

Minister refutes NIS recruitment scam

Wife of Katsina stateg o v e r n o r , H a j i y aFatima Ibrahim Shema,

has sacked the SupervisoryCouncillor for Water and Sanitationin Matazu local government,Hajiya Hadiza Ibrahim, over a fightwith the local council’s chairman’swife, Hajiya Bilkisu Sani Haliru.

A letter dated 27th December2012 with reference numberMTLG/ADM/36/VOL.1 signed bythe local council’s staff officer,Malam Bala Lawal Yaro, notedthat it was the governor’s wife thatdirected the sack of the councilor.

The letter added that thedirective to sack the councilor overher row with the chairman’s wifewas conveyed to the localgovernment by the governor’s wife

From Lawal Sa’idu Funtua,Katsina

via a letter with reference numberGH/KTS/GWO/41/C.

The letter stated: “I am directedby the office of Her Excellency,Hajiya Fatima Shehu Shema toissue you this letter because of yourmisconduct and behaviour. Youare therefore directed to handoverall official documents in yourpossession to your director withimmediate effect, please”.

It would be recalled that the

chairman’s wife, Hajiya Bilkisu SaniHaliru was alleged to have slappedthe supervisory councilor, HajiyaHadiza Ibrahim which lead to aphysical combat between the duo.

During the fracas thechairman’s wife was alleged tohave inflicted injuries on the faceof the councilor which forced herto seek medical attention in a localhospital in Matazu.

The cause of the fight, our

correspondent gathered, was theallegation by the chairman’s wifethat the councilor sidelined her incompiling the list of those to benefitfrom the government povertyalleviation programme.

When contacted, the presssecretary to Shema’s wife, AlhajiAbdul’aziz Imam said: “I’m on myway back to Katsina. If I arrive wewill discuss over the matter to seewhat is happening”.

Public relations experts willconverge on the Agip RecitalHall of the Muson Centre,

Onikan in Lagos tomorrow(Tuesday) to discuss ways theNigerian image can be improvedamong the comity of nations.

The colloquium being puttogether by the management ofCMC Connect Limited (PerceptionManagers), is to commemorate the50th birthday anniversary of themanaging director of the companyMr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya.

A statement by Acting Head ofMedia, CMC Connect, Mr. SolaSolotan, said the gathering will bea convergent point for integratedmarketing communicationsprofessionals and institutions inNigeria whose core focus areaincludes communications andimage management.

“It will explore issues andfactors that shape Nigeria’s imageand proffer solutions to suchcommunications challenges”,Solotan told reporters.

The outcome of the specialcolloquium according to theorganisers, will be developed intoa communiqué which will becomea reference document for policydevelopment and futureconstitutional reforms.

The theme ‘ManagingNigeria’s Image: WhoseResponsibility? Will have theMinister for Foreign Affairs,Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru asspecial guest of honour while thekeynote address will be deliveredby the Minister of Information, Mr.Labaran Maku.

Specialcolloquium onNigeria’s imageto hold in LagosFrom Suleiman Idris, Lagos

Bauchi state House of Assembly’sCommittee on Appropriation hasordered the Ministry for Local

Government and Chieftaincy Affairs to stopthe deduction of local government councils’funds that are not backed by the law.

Chairman of the committee, Hon.Abulkadir Dewu, said unless the ministryprovides acceptable explanation backedby a law, all deductions made fromcouncils’ funds are illegal and must be

stopped.The committee while directing the

ministry to legally operate under the ambitof law did not however take a decision onpast illegal deductions from councils’ funds.

The Commissioner for LocalGovernment & Chieftaincy Affairs, AlhajiAbubakar Ahmed Faggo when approachedby newsmen after the committee’s sitting,said the ministry had all the backing to makethe deductions from the councils’ funds andwill furnish the committee with thenecessary requirements.

From Ahmed Kaigama, Bauchi

Bauchi lawmakers want ministryto stop deduction of LG funds

Father of Kogi state governor, Pa WadaEjiga, has solicited peaceful coexistenceand understanding among the

various ethnic groups in the state to facilitatedevelopment.

Pa Wada Ejiga was speaking with ourcorrespondent on Saturday at his home inAnyigba, Dekina local government area ofKogi state.

While commending the electronic andprint media for the matured way the roadmishap involving his son on December 28,

2012, was handled, he stated that roadaccident was a natural phenomenon,expressing gratitude to Almighty Allah forsparing the life of the governor.

He appealed to the people of the stateand the country to remain prayerful forcontinued peace and progress of thecountry, maintaining that “this is ourland; there is nowhere we can run to,adding, "north, south, east or west, homeis the best".

The over 90-year-old retired customarycourt judge reiterated the need to prayalways in our daily life pointing out that itwas prayer from genuine people whichsaved his son's life.

From Sam Egwu, Lokoja

Wada’s father calls for peacefulco-existence

L-R: Niger state Governor, Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, Vice-President Mohammed Namadi Sambo, Jigawa state Governor,Alhaji Sule Lamido, and Minister of National Planning Commission, Dr. Shamsuddeen Usman, during the minister’s Daugterwedding Fatiha, on Saturday at the National Musque, Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 6

Insecurity: Shettimadecries destructionof public property

FG to set up flood recovery, agric initiative

The Federal Government isbilled to set up a nationalflood recovery and food

production initiative for dryseason farming for theimmediate food security need ofareas affected by the flood in thecountry

The Minister for Agricultureand social development, Dr.Akiyomi Adesina disclosed thisat the weekend during the flagoff for the distribution of reliefmaterials to flood disastervictims in seven localgovernments of Bauchi stateover the week-end in Gamawalocal government area.

The Minister who wasrepresented by the permanentsecretary, Bauchi stateministry for agriculture, AlhajiMuhammad Yusuf said that

Sarkin Tukur Tukur dies at 82 in Zaria

The Sarkin Tukur-Tukur inZaria, Kaduna State, AlhajiSambo Sulaiman, has died at

the age of 82. Sulaiman died in his residence

on Saturday night after aprotracted illness.

Alhaji Sabo Sulaiman,Manager, Queen FM Radio, Zariaand a relation to the deceased, saidSulaiman is survived by a wife,

flood disaster has posed a greatchallenge on food security in theaffected states.

Adesina said: ''Each farmerwill be giving 2 numbers of 50kgof fertilizer and 1 number of50kg bag of rice seed free ofcharge, the internationalinstitute of tropical agriculturein Ibadan has also donated 6metric tones of improved maizeto Farmers in the state forplanting, the distribution is tobe carried through the GSsystem based on validated listof registered farmers receivedfrom state.''

He explained that ''as apreamble to this laudableinitiative to provide succour tothe flood victims, the federalministry of agriculture andrural development has allocated1200 metric tones of maize andsorghum to be distributed to

flood victims across Bauchistate.''

The Agric Minister revealedthat the fertilizer and blendingmaterials would be distributedto registered farmers in the floodaffected areas in no distant time.

The Bauchi statecommissioner for special duties,Alhaji Baffa Azare said ''what wedid in the first time was toprovide emergency relief tothose who were affected, on oursecond coming, we have given12 units of canoes".

According to Azare, of thetotal of 40 trailers of grains andsorghum the federalgovernment brought to Bauchistate, 26 brought maize while14 had sorghum in addition tothe standing committee set upby the federal government tosource funds from individualsunder Alhaji Aliko Dangote.

Abandoned multi-million naira Asaba drainage project in Delta state. Photo: NAN

From Mohammed Adamu,Kaduna

Governor Kashim Shettimaof Borno state at theweekend expressed concern

over the incessant destruction ofpublic property by the 'enemies' ofhis administration, who arehiding under the guise of BokoHaram insurgents.

Speaking when he paid acourtesy call on the Shehu ofBama, Kyari Ibn Ibrahim El-Kanemi, Shettima lamented that

despite government'sdetermination to move the stateforward, certain people were busysabotaging such efforts.

The governor solicited thesupport of traditional institutions,religious and community leadersin ending the prevailing securitychallenges stating thatmeaningful developmentalprojects could only be achievedunder peaceful atmosphere.

The governor tasked residentsto embark on extensive prayers forthe restoration of peace.

Shettima also told the monarchthat he was in Bama town to laythe foundation stone for theconstruction of an ultra- modernmarket to replace the former onewhich was razed by fire in 2010.

The project, Shettima added,would gulp the sum of N823.7million.

According to him, whenconstructed, the market will have941 shops, a police station, fireservice station, clinic,administrative offices, car parksand mosque among others.

From Ahmed Kaigama, Bauchi

11 children, many grandchildrenand relations.

The deceased was buried inZaria on Sunday morning,according to Islamicinjunctions. The deceased wasthe Village Head of Tukur-Tukur ward in the ZazzauEmirate Council in Zaria localgovernment area of Kadunastate. (NAN)

Jigawa sponsors 10,000eye patients for treatment

Jigawa state Ministry ofHealth provided freetreatments to 10,000 eye

patients suffering from cataractand lid infections last year.

The state Eye Coordinator ofthe Ministry, Mallam AUAbdulrahman disclosed thiswhile speaking on the activitiesof the department.

He said of the number, 6342were for cataract and 3628 for

From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse lid surgery.Malam Abdurrahman said

the state government incollaboration with vision 2020undertook the surgery.

He said the stategovernment spent N25 millionon every round for the cataractsurgery.

The coordinator said theMinistry has distributed 800eye glasses to students ofsecondary schools across the statesuffering from sight problems.

Igbomina State: Group cautionsagitators against disunity

A Socio-cultural group, OmoIbile Igbomina organization,which comprises of people of

Osun and Kwara South Senatorialdistrict has cautioned agitatorsbehind the creation of Igbomina stateto tread carefully to avoid disunityin the affected areas.

The group in a communiqué atthe end of its annual generalmeeting, signed by the NationalPublicity Secretary, Julius Ishola,"dissociates itself from the wrongapproach and method adopted by agroup claiming to be championingthe cause of Igbomina state which ifnot checked can create frictionsamong the Igbomina and betweenIgbomina and other social-culturalgroups.

From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin "The organization pledges supportfor any genuine cause for theIgbomina people that aretransparent, honest and sincere;unanimously adopts a motion for theorganization of proposed nationalunity conference of all Omo IbileIgbomina to deliberate on the wayforward for its people; agrees that anylevies charged by any group orindividual under the guise ofIgbomina, and approved by thenational executive council of thegroup should be disregarded"

It said that the unity, peace andprogress of Omo Ibile Igbomina wasparamount and must be pursued byall both at home and in the Diasporaand resolved to support governmentactivities aimed at improving thelives of the people especially oneconomic empowerment.

2015: Youth to decideNorth's political leaders

Northern youth haveresolved to take over indetermining the political

future of the region in 2015 in view ofthe weaknesses and lapses of the oldergeneration in 2011 .

This was part of the resolutions ofNorthern Youth Assembly during aone day workshop at Arewa House,Kaduna over the week end.

Chairman of the Assembly,which is made up of about 400Northern youth organizations,Ibrahim Waiya, blamed elders ofNorth for creating bloated and illusivepopularity on pretext of championingthe cause of the North resulting ininsignificant representation of theNorthern region.

"We will not and cannot affordanother minority segment in oursociety claiming to have our mandateand legitimacy to continue to bargainand make grounds for our future", hestated.

In a paper presented by AliyuIbrahim Gebi at the occasion, thechairman, House of Representativescommittee on Internal Security,observed that northern youth shouldcraft a well-articulated agenda thatmust extend the hand of fellowshipacross the Niger to other youthsmovements.

The lawmaker lamented that "itsunfortunate that while youths atAbakaliki were fighting for theemancipation of their people, here inthe North, nobody is able to nip in thebud the incessant bomb explosions".

He cited as example with how theNational Assembly members wereable to defeat the old brigade politiciansby electing their leaders at the Nationalassembly.

Also in his paper, the deputy leaderof the Sokoto State House of Assembly,Barrister Bello Mohammed, pointedout that to arrest the political ant socialupheavals among youth in the North,government should take steps towardsoverhauling school curriculum tofocus more on enterpreneurship.

From Mustapha Isah Kwaru,Maiduguri

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 8

Deputy Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the UN, Amb. Usman Sarki (left),presenting a gratuity cheque to the longest-serving worker in the mission in NewYork, Mr. Joseph Onwe, at the weekend.

Parish priest, St. Philip Anglican church, Trans-Ekulu, Enugu, Ven Simeon Emelumadu andchurch members during the 2013 anointing service, yesterday in Enugu.

Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, dancing at a partyorganised for newly promoted junior police officers at the Force Headquarters, Abuja,on Saturday.

L-R: Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu, receiving obeisance from Minister ofFederal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed, who paid him a condolence visitover the death of the wife of Wazirin Bauchi, Alhaji Bello Kirfi, at the weekend inBauchi. Photos: NAN

Graduands of pre-deployment training of 323 battalion Nigerian Army, displaying with their guns, during their graduation at Peacekeeping Centre, in Jaji, Kaduna state,recently.

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 10

The Peoples DemocraticParty (PDP) in the South-west has said its clamour

for the zone to be honoured withthe vacant position of the party'sBoard of Trustees (BoT)chairmanship does not translateto adoption of any candidate forthe position, saying: “we willabide by the overall decision ofthe party leaders”.

Zonal publicity secretary ofthe party, Hon. Kayode Babade,who made this known in arelease issued at the weekend,

BoT chairmanship: S-W PDPdenies adopting candidate

said the clarification had becomenecessary to clearmisconceptions on the decisionreached at the party's jointmeeting of the BoT membersfrom the South-west and thezonal working committeemembers held in Abeokuta, theOgun state capital lastWednesday.

“Our appeal is simple, we areurging the national leadershipof our great party, the PDP tohonour our zone with the positionof the BoT chairman.

“That is clearly differentfrom saying we have adopted aparticular candidate from the

Some journalistsof Northern extractionhave congratulated the

newly turbaned SarkinSamarin Zazzau, Alhaji BelloSa’ad and praised the Emir ofZazzau, Dr. Shehu Idris for thehonour done to the patron andillustrious son of the emirate.

The group, in acongratulatory message jointlysigned by its president, Hassan

Arewa journalists congratulatenew Sarkin Samarin ZazzauBy Stanley Onyekwere

South-west and that we havethrown our weight behind thecandidate.

“We however still maintainthat as a deserving zone, theSouth-west would be highlyhonoured if it is considered infilling the vacant exalted officeof the BoT chairman of our greatparty, the PDP”, Babade said.

The South-west ZonalWorking Committee had held ajoint meeting with BOTmembers from the zone lastWednesday where it urged thatleadership of the party should beencouraged to elect thechairman of the BoT by

consensus in the interest ofpeace, harmony and cohesion ofthe party at the highest level.

It was also resolved at themeeting that: “The South-westwould be highly honoured if it isconsidered in filling the vacantexalted office of the BoTchairman of our great party, thePDP”.

Apart from the NationalVice-Chairman (South-west),Chief Segun Oni, who led theZonal Working Committeemembers, BoT members fromthe zone who attended themeeting included Chief RichardAkinjide, Senator C.K. Awoyelu,

Alhaji Shuaib Oyedokun andChief Tunde Osunrinde.

Those who could not attendbut sent apologies includedAlhaji Yekini Adeojo, Rt. HonPatricia Etteh, Senator BodeOlajumoke and Chief (Mrs.)Aduke Maina.

From Ayodele Samuel, Lagos &Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan

As parts of its strategiesto tackle poverty andunemployment among

the youths, Borno stategovernment has embarked onmassive irrigation projectsacross the riverine communities.

The scheme, governmentsaid, was aimed at providinglegitimate sources of livelihoodfor unemployed youths to makethem self- reliant andeconomically stable.

Governor Kashim Shettimastated this at the weekend whileinspecting irrigation project inKonduga town, headquarters ofKonduga local government area.

Governor Shettima said hisadministration identifiedpoverty as one of the factors thatled to youth restiveness andwould therefore, economicallytransform lives with the scarceresources at its disposal.

While distributing vegetableseeds and assorted bags offertilizer to over 100 irrigationfarmers free of charge, Shettimaurged them to be morecommitted to the scheme as hisgovernment was ever ready toassist farmers in whatevercapacity in the state.

He noted that agricultureprovides jobs for over 70 percentof the state's population.

the Commissioner forAgriculture and NaturalResources, Alhaji Usman Zannasaid the Konduga irrigationscheme which covers 25 hectresof land mass, was not the onlyscheme that has undergone the"Kashimic AgriculturalRevolution" as similarresuscitation has taken place inDamasak town with theinstallation of three units ofbrand new irrigation pumps, aswell as the replacement of ten oldpumps with brand new ones atthe Yau irrigation scheme whichalso covered Abadam, Arege,Daya and other communitiesboardering Niger and ChadRepublic.

He said half of the 25 percenthectres of land in Konduga wasdemacated to 120 plots ofvarious sizes, which arecurrently under cultivationranging from 1000 to 1500square metres each, wherevegetables ranging from onions,pepper, lettuce, cabbage, carrotincluding wheat are beingcultivated.

Zanna said arrangementshave been concluded to revampall minor irrigation schemes ofValengede, Ngabu and Jaffi inBorno south senatorial zone.

Borno tacklespovertythroughirrigationprojectsFrom Mustapha Isah Kwaru,Maiduguri

Two hundred and eightydeaths have beenrecorded on the Nigerian

roads from December 19, 2012to date.

The Corps Marshal of theFederal Road Safety Commission(FRSC), Osita Chidoka this tojournalists at Nnamdi AzikiweInternational Airport, Abuja asthe commission carried out itsfinal surveillance of operationfrom the East (Enugu) to Abujawhich commenced fromDecember 19, 2012 to date andwould be concluded this week.

Chidoka noted that thecommission recorded about 280deaths,480 crashes and 1600injured people since Decemberadding that it was animprovement compared to lastyear and hope for betterimprovement.

He also said that the FRSChad, in the past ten years, been

able to reduce road crashessuccessfully with 36,000vehicles were stopped as a resultof the its enforcementactivities,13,000 good, 26,000cautioned and allowed not toproceed on their journey while13,000 were booked.

Chidoka said one person wassent to prison by mobile court,339 people charged beforemobile court and 370 peoplewere fined for several offenceswhile 25 people were dischargedand acquitted by the samemobile court.

The Corps Marshal noted thatpeople have commended theactivities of the FRSC for makingit possible for them to get to theirdestination safely.

On orderly movement ofvehicles, he said the commissionwas very strict on traffic flow toavoid congestion and bottlenecksespecially on highways acrossNiger Bridge and Lokoja.Chidoka said three things were

responsible for their success ofsurveillance operation 0 whichincludes learning from the pastexperience and improvement oftheir data and analyses.

“The increase in our staffstrength that happened in thelast one year and half, morepeople to deploy on the road,

our improve monitoringmechanism, our effort toimprove oversight on peoplewho are giving responsibilityand making sure that it’s doneand our technologymechanism make us tomonitor what is being done inreality”, Chidoka noted.

By Muhammad Nasir

Vehicles destroyed by bushfire, which crept into the car park of Ogun Secretariat, on Saturday evening at Oke Mosanin Abeokuta. Photo: NAN

Galadima and SecretaryGeneral, Abraham Sule, said theSa’ad’s turbaning on Friday wasin recognition of his meritoriousservice to humanity.

“As a leader, you haveearned yourself the enviabletitle that cut across major ethnicgroup in our great countrywhich includes; the Omotosho ofAbuja, Amokachi Abuja andMadakin Hausawan Abuja,Sardaunan Samaru amongothers”, the statement added.

PAGE 11PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

People are definitely a company'sgreatest asset. It doesn't makeany difference whether theproduct is cars or cosmetics. Acompany is only as good as thepeople it keeps - Mary Kay Ash

Quote

Managing finances in marriageWhether you are in a

serious relationship, justrecently married, or

have been married for severalyears, money matters can becontroversial if not handledcarefully.

Are you engaged? How muchdo you know about your fiancé'sfinancial situation? When twopeople become a couple, theyconfront a myriad of financialchoices and decisions. After theexcitement of the weddingceremonies, it will be time to faceyour financial future together.

Navigating this somewhatsensitive issue is importantbecause financial problems canstrain relationships to breakingpoint and have been cited as amajor cause of divorce, yet mostcouples go into marriage withoutever broaching this subject. Itmay not be romantic, but it isimportant. Here are some of themoney issues that you shoulddiscuss with your significantother.

Attitude towards moneyYou do not just develop good or

bad money habits by chance;attitudes to money are formedvery early on in life and usuallydevelop over many years. Youmay not even realize the fulleffects of your childhoodexperiences, circumstances, andyour parents' attitude towardsmoney; indeed, many peoplesimply assume the savings andmoney management habits oftheir parents - whether they werevery frugal, disciplined savers, orspendthrifts. Your attitudetowards money can have asignificant impact on thefinancial decisions you make.

Financial goalsWhat are your short-,

medium-, and long-term goals?Where do you see yourselves 5, 10,20 years from now? Financially,this can mean owning your ownhome, educating your children,and planning for yourretirement.

In relationships, there may bedifferent goals and priorities. Onemay be averse to debt while theother adopts debt as a way of life.He might want a flashy car whileshe feels more secure with moneyin the bank. She might spend allthe housekeeping money onjewellery, shoes and bags while hispriority is to give the children asound education. He may viewthe new home cinema as theirgreatest new asset while herpriority is to make a downpayment on their own home. Ifthe differences are fundamental,this may be a source of conflict. Atthe same time, be conscious of thefact that it shouldn't be all aboutscrimping and saving towards thefuture; enjoy yourselves as well.

Managing the familyfinances

Women often enter marriageassuming that their spouse willhandle all money issues; thus,they delegate almost totalresponsibility and sit on thesidelines without being involved.Determine who is best able tomanage the routine everydayfinancial matters. Teamwork isessential and shared duties workwell for some families, but even if

one party is more involved, bothshould have a general overviewof the total picture. Periodicmeetings are important so youknow where you stand financiallyand can see whether you areactually moving closer towardsyour family goals.

BudgetingIt is surprising how many

married couples get by without abudget. Through budgeting, youhave a better idea of what iscoming in and how much can bespent. You should both know howmuch you pay for your rent ormortgage, utility bills, insurance,and so on. Budgetingresponsibilities should be sharedsuch that neither partner shouldfeel that he/she has to shoulderthe entire responsibility. Periodicmeetings, say, at least once amonth, are useful to review bankbalances, any outstanding debt,routine expenses as well as anymajor expense that needs to becarefully planned for.

Paying for family needsSomething as basic as the

handling of everyday householdexpenses is a source of friction inmany families. How will youhandle routine household

9 debt reduction tips for your immediate action planWith credit cards so

convenient, loans socommon and debt

socially acceptable, gettinginto debt is extremely easy. Istill have vivid memories of thetwo people who sold me mycollege credit card. It had theschool logo on there and best ofall, it helped the school everytime I use the card to pay for apurchase. How cool is that?

Get out of debt now withthese tips

Avoiding debt is an advicemost don't appreciate until theyare swamped with bills andobligations. For years, manyjust pay the minimum

* Debt snowball:Some like to pay the highestinterest rate first and otherslike to pay the smallest loansfirst. Whichever method youchoose, debt snowball worksbecause you are concentratingon one loan and thepsychological benefit of payingthem off helps tremendously.

* Get a side job: Youare afraid of your job but howmany of you are actuallytrying to get another job in thiseconomy? Whether it'sbuilding up some form ofpassive income or getting a parttime job, side hustling is stillthe quickest way to make moremoney.

* Freeze your creditCards: I personally thinkcredit cards are great becauseof the rewards you earn but theplastic cards are clearly not foreveryone. If you have a hardtime keeping yourself fromsplurging, just freeze them.

* Have constantreminders: Reducing debt isa long journey that takesdiscipline. Whether it's settingreminders on your calendar orsetting an alarm on your phoneto alert you to pay bills,anything you can do to triggeryour mind about your path tofinancial freedom isencouraged (and sometimesnecessary).

* Have a regularmeeting about debt:Schedule a monthly meetingwith your family and figureout how to save more moneyand pay off your debt morerapidly. In the meeting, talkabout your progress, dream upideas and make some pointform actions for the next 30days.

* Take ownership:The most important step inbecoming debt free is takingresponsibility. The credit cardcompanies may have

encouraged you through theyears to limit your spendingbut it's ultimately you whoracked up those charges. Stopcomplaining and start doingsomething about it.

* Understand thatthis is a problem: Nocompany is ever going to keeplending you money forever andever. Stop wishing that theproblem will just go away byitself and start dealing with thesituation. Debt is a problem.Start reducing what you oweimmediately and stop thinkingthat you should drag it outinfinitely.

* Learn the power ofcompounding interest: Iimagine that people who are indebt don't really understand theessence of compound interest.Remember all those charts thatshow how interests compoundwhen you invest? When you arein debt, this is just in reverse.Source:www.moneyning.com

payment on their credit cardsand think of their house as anATM machine.

Now that the economy isdeteriorating and people areworried about their jobs,everyone is finally thinkingabout debt load. If you areconcerned about all the loansthat you need to pay off, use thetime you are worrying andspend some time implementingthe following 25 tips to reduceyour debt instead.

* Focus on the prize:Motivation is key to succeedingwith paying off your debt. Geta post-It, write down your totaldebt and tape it on yourcomputer monitor. Seeing thenumber go down is a hugemotivator. Some people like toinstead motivate themselvesby looking at the reward(perhaps a picture of yourhappy family to remind youhow relaxing being debt freecan be). That works just as well.

expenses? You both earn but howmuch should each personcontribute? Are you both doingyour "share"? Should it be equalamounts no matter what eachperson earns, or a certainpercentage? If you earnsignificantly more or less thanyour spouse, it seems only fair tocontribute amounts in proportionto your respective incomes toreflect this imbalance.

Some couples assign expenses- you pay the rent and school feeswhile I pay for groceries, utilitybills, and so on. Other couples useone partner's income for allexpenses and apply the otherincome to build up savings andinvestments.

Separate or joint accountsThere has been extensive

debate over single and jointaccounts. Most couples wouldstrive for the same goal to create astronger marriage whilemaintaining financialresponsibility. Some argue thatjoint accounts create a sense ofunity that is vital in anyrelationship. If money isseparated, you weaken the bondthat is the essence of any long-term relationship. On the otherhand, separate accounts alloweach the ability to retain someindependence; this, it is suggested,could actually strengthen arelationship.

Will you open a joint accountand pool both incomes or haveseparate accounts? Having a jointaccount combined withindividual accounts for personalexpenses is a good compromise aseach partner takes someresponsibility for the householdbudget, yet is still able to retainsome autonomy. Partnerscontribute a certain amount oftheir monthly salary into thejoint account to cover routinehousehold expenses such as food,utility bills, and so on. Somecouples decide to pay their salariesinto the joint account and thenpay themselves a monthly

allowance.If you had a fairly independent

existence before this relationshipand managed your own financesand made your own investmentdecisions, it may be more difficultto give up that control to anotherperson. Yet if you were notparticularly structured aboutyour finances, you might be moreable to opt for a joint account.

It is important to rememberthat parties to a joint account havea right to withdraw all the moneyin the account. It is for this reasonthat the use of joint accounts isusually limited to people whohave built a solid level of trust.Look critically at the options andtry to come to a compromise thatwill suit your relationship.

Setting spending limitsDo you have to account for

everything you spend to yourspouse? If you show up with anexpensive new TV or a car, couldthis be a cause of tension?Everyone needs some personalspending money that doesn't haveto be accounted for. The amountwill vary depending on thecouples' resources and lifestyle.Some couples set spending limitson how much either can spendwithout consulting each other.

Even though there may be theoccasional conflict about money,it is really about how best conflictscan be resolved. With carefulplanning, clear communicationand compromise, manyfrustrating conversations can beavoided. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to finances inrelationships; even the bestsystem may not always beappropriate. So, be prepared tomodify your system as yourrelationship and financialsituation evolve. Try to find theright balance that works for yoursituation; if one option doesn'twork, try another. The financialdecisions that you make now canhave a lasting impact on yourfinancial future as you gothrough life together.

PAGE 12 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

2015 poster: You canstop this, Mr. President

President Goodluck Jonathanfound himself in a rather tightspot throughout last week with

the appearance, on New Year day, of his2015 campaign poster on the streets ofAbuja, the nation's seat of government,ahead of a presidential election still twoyears away. He did not help his casemuch, as usual, with his untidyhandling of the controversy the posterstirred.

The big poster carried a glossypicture of the president and thefollowing inscriptions, in fine print:"2015: No vacancy in Aso Rock. Let's domore" and "One good term deservesanother; support Dr. GoodluckJonathan for 2015 presidency". 2015,of course, is an election year in thiscountry. Discussions in the politicalarena have centred on whether or notJonathan would go for a second term.At present, there are cases in courtchallenging his eligibility. Besides, thepresident has said he would not bedistracted by talks of the upcomingpolls, saying he has a job to do. But hemade it clear there is no question of hiseligibility as a Nigerian under theconstitution.

That is precisely why the poster hasstirred the hornet's nest. He wants nodistraction, but if the poster isn't onewhat then is it? Asked about theappearance of the poster, particularlythe timing of it, President Jonathan'media spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati,denied the president had any hand in it.He added that those behind it could nothave been stopped because they were"faceless".

“If the Presidency thought itsdismissal of the poster had put

the matter to rest it wasmistaken. Instead, it providedthe opposition, which until nowhad been rather quiet, with theammunition to take pop shots

at the president

If the Presidency thought its dismissalof the poster had put the matter to rest itwas mistaken. Instead, it provided theopposition, which until now had beenrather quiet, with the ammunition to takepop shots at the president. Conference forProgressive Change (CPC) whosepresidential candidate, AlhanjiMuhammadu Buhari, came secondbehind Jonathan in the 2011 election,

marked by widespread violence, quicklysmelled a rat. "Is this not an earlywarning that results of the 2015presidential election have been writtenand kept in wraps just for the 'forma'announcement?"

"Jonathan has little occupying hismind but a second term", said anotheropposition party, ANPP; and it saidominously, "Nigerians are watching."Said CNPP, a coalition of politicalparties, "President Goodluck Jonathan isfree to run (for a second term), unless the

court stops him..., but he should not usehis high office to manipulate theelectoral process."

Having warned that nobody shouldjumpstart the 2015 electioneeringcampaign and then declared that thoseprinting and putting up his poster wereon their own, the president should havefollowed through with a stern warningand an unambiguous order to the policeand other security agencies to watch outfor those jumping the gun supposedly onhis behalf. He didn't do that. Instead, hesaid those who wanted to campaign forhim were free, as Nigerians to do as theywished, even without his say so. Worse,he left it to the security forces todetermine whether national securityhad been breached in this case and toact as they deemed fit.

Nigerians can draw only oneconclusion from this doublespeak,which is that the security forces shouldlook away and as far as the president isconcerned, 2015 is well underway. Toobad, if this is our president's mindset!He doesn't want the polity overheatedbefore election year, yet he is doingexactly that. He cannot even wait till2014, the year he has repeatedly told ushe would announce his 2015 plan orlack of it.

If it is any consolation for themajority of Nigerians, the president'sprevarication is all too familiar. He saysone thing and acts differently. Wewould do well to watch both his wordand action so that he does not lead ormislead us into a ditch. With a presidentlike him, who needs a blind man as aguide?

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

MALAM WADA MAIDA, OON, FNGE

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

ALI M. ALI

MANAGER, ADMINISTRATION

HASSAN HAMMANYAJI

EDITOR, DAILY

ABDULAZEEZ ABDULLAHI

ACTING EDITOR, WEEKEND

JAMILA NUHU MUSA

HEAD, ADVERT/MARKETING

HUSSAINI ABDULRAHMAN, CNA

HEAD, LAGOS BUREAU

ADESOJI OYINLOLA

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

industry by putting thepeople first, upholdingthe truth, maintaining

the highestprofessional andethical standards

while delivering valueto our stakeholders”

“To be a reputable,profitable,

innovative andtechnologically

reliant mediacompany offering

world classservices and

products”

OUR VISIONOUR VISIONOUR VISIONOUR VISIONOUR VISION

DIRECTOR/ EDITOR-IN-CHIEFRUFA’I IBRAHIM

EDITEDITEDITEDITEDITORIALORIALORIALORIALORIAL

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 PAGE 13

The outcome of the Adamawastate PDP congresses, at stateand local government levels,

is a lesson for those who think theycan cage democracy and mould itto suit their narrow selfish interestat the expense of fairness. Despitehis pig-headed determination toput all elected officials in his pocket,Governor Murtala Nyako musthave been taught a lesson aboutthe limits of the arrogance of power.Despised and distrusted by thosewho had staked their politicalcapital and good will to bring himfrom ANPP into the PDP, theGovernor demonstrated anuncanny skill at destroying friendsand former allies. Professor JibrilAminu fell out with former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar in orderto prop up Nyako as Governor.Today, however the two politicianshave parted company.

Besides, Nyako had fallen outwith all the original founders of thePDP that lured him into the partyfrom ANPP. Carried away by afalse sense of political security afterbecoming a Governor, Nyako hadbelieved everyone else was at hismercy. In fact, he must have feltthat democracy itself was at hisfeet. Determined to achievemaximum power and control, heensured that no other stakeholdersof the Adamawa State PDP had adog’s chance to get elected into any

office at all levels.With the State Electoral

Commission at his beck and call andthe party executives in his pocket,Governor Nyako blocked anyefforts towards reconciliation withaggrieved former PDP members,including Atiku Abubakar. Thereconciliation policy was officiallyadopted by the nationalheadquarters of the PDP, but theAdamawa State Governor dideverything to make their returnimpossible. In fact, he was soobstinately committed to frustratethis policy that he left theAdamawa State PDP in perpetualcrisis. Worse still, with total powerin his hands, he found level playingfield a dirty word in his politicaldictionary.

The dictatorial fashion withwhich he exerts influence on theAdamawa State PDP chapteralienated all the original foundersof the party. Oblivious of theephemeral nature of power, Nyakoeven had the ridiculous audacityto fight the national headquartersof the PDP, which insisted on freeand fair election. He repeatedlydefied the party directive and dideverything to incite the Presidentagainst the national Chairman,Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, whom hissupporters branded an Atiku’s

“closet” ally for the 2015presidential election.

He desperately wanted thePresident’s sympathy by pittingBamanga and Atiku againstJonathan as part of his effort tomaintain power without dueprocess or fair competition.Unfortunately for him, PresidentJonathan himself seemed to haverealized that Nyako’s domesticpolitical crisis was self-inflicted andavoidable. For some time, thedivision among other stakeholdershad helped Nyako to maintain histotal control on the AdamawaState PDP.

However, that is no longer thecase in Adamawa State. Theconvergence of common interestsamong the PDP stakeholders wasthe ultimate coup de grace thatswept away Nyako’s lackeys fromtheir seemingly unchallengedcontrol of party offices in AdamawaState. The outcome of the Stateand Local Government congresseswas a revelation to power-drunkleaders that think they can cagedemocracy in their pockets.

With his contempt for reasonand wise counsel, nobody couldhave saved Nyako from ultimatedefeat at the polls. Loyalists of theoriginal founding fathers swept thepolls because they acted in concert

The error of caging democracy

Most people in the relativelystable democratic nations ofthe world would find it

rather difficult to understand whydemocracy should be causing somuch pain in the so-called thirdworld nations. The assassination ofBenazir Bhutto in December 2007and the consequent turmoil ofPakistan followed by the killings ofhundreds of citizens in Kenya andNigeria in the aftermath of allegedlyrigged presidential elections, furtherreminded peoples of the peacefuldemocratic nations that what theynow take for granted in their ownnations never comes on a platter ofgold.

The United States of Americagained its independence fromBritain in 1776. However, theAmericans had to fight a systemwhich made them pay tax withoutbeing represented in parliament.“No taxation withoutrepresentation” was the memorableslogan of their war and theirdeclaration which must guidedemocracy anywhere in the worldis the assertion that “all men andwomen are created equal”. Thedetermination to give effect to thatimportant declaration would laterlead to constitutionalists to prohibitthe American citizen from bearinga title of nobility. The nowproblematic gun culture – the rightof the American citizen to have agun- was also intended to achievethat end.

However, America is stilldemocratising because the assertionof equality of all men and womenexcluded blacks for the great part ofthe nation’s history. The history ofde jure acceptance of blacks as equalto whites is only a few decades old,coming into effect with the CivilRights legislation of the 1960s, whilede facto acceptance of equality is stillevolving. The vestiges of the racial-supremacist Ku Klux Klan, their own

earlier version ofour Boko Haram,have yet to fully disappear. However,things are looking good becausesubstantial progress has beenmade.The election and re-election ofBarack Obama as first African-American President is a huge step inthe right direction.

Neither can Great Britain claimto have perfected its democracy. Thenature and extent of privilegesenjoyed by the Monarchy is an on-going debate. The history ofdemocracy in Britain has been ahistory of the ordinary citizenchallenging the Crown and the so-called royal prerogative. It is also ahistory of organised challenge to theassumptions of the aristocracy. TheBritish Monarch is now a mereconstitutional one – courtesy of therevolt led by Oliver Cromwell in the17th century – while many otherEuropean countries includingFrance, Germany and Russia, got ridof theirs in violent revolutions. Theemergence of a controversial Kingor Queen could spell the end of themonarchy in Britain.

Be that as it may, democracy andits institutions crept in gradually.The right to vote did not come tomany on a platter of gold.Requirements of property andeducation meant many wereexcluded from the democraticprocess. Voting rights did not cometo women until quite recently. Wemay now refer to some societies ascivilised not least because theircitizens readily comply to rules andregulations but such civility did notcome about easily. In Britain, forinstance, there was once a timewhen a relatively minor offenceattracted severe punishment.Convicts were ex-communicatedand distant Australia became moreor less Britain’s prison for such

convicts.The universal definition of

democracy is that provided by thegreat Abraham Lincoln as “thegovernment of the people, for thepeople, and by the people”.Democracy is not just an approachto political governance but a culturewhich touches on every facet ofhuman life. The major problem ofdemocracy in some societies is thatit is a new value system incompetition with alreadyestablished structure which are atbest contradictory. Theauthoritarian feudal structures ofsome societies derive theirauthenticity from tradition andreligion. Until the contradictions ofstate and society have been resolved,our democracy will be a mereimitation of what obtainssomewhere else.

In Nigeria, for instance, thetraditional system co-exists with themodern democratic system. Thereis nothing like the King or Queen ofNigeria but traditional rulers existas heads of cities, towns and villages.The British approached politicalgovernance in Nigeria through asystem of indirect rule, making useof the Chiefs. The politician seekingpolitical power wants to be in thegood books of the traditional ruler

and some might want to parade achieftaincy title of some sort.Traditional rulers are among themost affluent in Nigerian society;those in big cities receive multiplesalaries from local governmentcouncils in their areas of jurisdiction.It is hard to envisage a revolutionthat would end Nigeria’s traditionalinstitutions.

The electoral democracy intowhich we were introduced has beencharacterised by failure. Therigging culture has become ourelectoral culture. The recent eventsin Cote divoire are also an indicationthat election rigging is an Africandisease. The typical African leaderdoes not believe in leaving officevoluntarily or in being defeated inthe process of re-election. If theConstitution stipulates two terms,the typical African leader interpretsit to mean a minimum of two termsin office. Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwehas been one long term mis-leaderin that respect. The United States ofAmerica has been governed by oneconstitution since 1787, whileBritain is not even guided by awritten one; the typical Africanleader believes the Constitutioncould be changed at everyconceivable opportunity, to suit hiswhims and caprices.

Rough road to democracy

to end Nyako’s despotism.Therefore, blaming AtikuAbubakar for their current politicaldebacle is a diversionary ploy. Thiswas the same Atiku they dismissedas insignificant in Adamawapolitics. Rather than brandingAtiku as their giant killer, Nyako’ssupporters should blame theirnaivety and myopia instead.

In the words of the Englishstatesman, Samuel Goldwin, anyleader that created too manyenemies at different fronts will endup leading exhausted troops.Clearly, this was the fate that befellNyako’s one-man democracy. Heneedlessly united political forcesagainst himself by unwiselyturning former friends and alliesinto enemies. And in politics, theenemy of my enemy is my friend!With Professor Aminu, AtikuAbubakar, Wilberforce Juta, JoelMadaki, Bamanga Tukur, Dr.Ardo, Dr. Zhinghina and othersunited by a common cause,Nyako’s strategy of divide and rulecould no longer work.

As a result, the waning of hisdeadly grip on the Adamawa StatePDP chapter was a matter of time.President Jonathan dideverything privately to seeAdamawa State PDP acted as onefamily, but Nyako would renege

“The electoral democracy into which wewere introduced has been characterised byfailure. The rigging culture has become ourelectoral culture. The recent events in Cotedivoire are also an indication that election

rigging is an African disease

Is there a future for democracyin Africa? One likes to be optimisticand therefore say there is. One’soptimism derives from the belief thateducation can play a big part in thefuture of democracy in ourcontinent. Most of the current cropof African leaders (or rulers) belongto the first generation of educatedmen and women in their respectivefamilies, while the percentage of theeducated in society itself is generallylow. True democracy belongs to thefuture when a more assertive,refined and rational citizenrydominates the political space. Withsuccessive generations of educatedmen and women the outlook on lifewill be a lot different from what itcurrently is. A country like Britaincan boast of more than a thousandyears of education; its oldestuniversity is more than 900 yearsold while Nigeria’s oldest university,the University of Ibadan is 64 thisyear. The point one is trying to makehere is that ours is still a very youngnation and it takes time for roughedges to be chissled out.

Future economic outlook will alsobolster democracy. The currentgeneration knows no other route towealth and fame other than politicsbut that should change wheneconomic opportunities widen.Thereare still quite a number of thiefs andclowns dictating policies here andthere. . When corrupt politiciansretire to nowhere other than prison,those who seek wealth and notservice will know where to go. ThePress and Judiciary in Nigeria maybe doing relatively well but the peoplethemselves must feel democratic fordemocracy to be the culture they somuch crave . They are the ones whomust insist, by their votes andactions, on how they want to begoverned.

By Anthony Akinola

By Bello Mohammed Jimeta

on his commitment to unity andreconciliation once he foundhimself back to Yola, the citadel ofhis power. In politics, you shouldnever dismiss your opponentsbecause of your seeming grip onpower. Determined termites canultimately fell the oak. And theoutcome of the state and localgovernment congresses was aconfirmation of this truism.

The saddest aspect of thisdrama in Adamawa State wasNyako’s decision to appoint a thirdranking Judicial Officer to becomethe State Acting Chief Judge toplay his script. Predictably, theActing Chief Judge declared theState and Local Governmentcongresses as “illegal”. By draggingthe judiciary into his dirty politics,Nyako has set a dangerousprecedent and is undermining theindependence and neutrality of thejudiciary. Given a choice, thepeople would always vote fortransparent process rather thanmanipulations of the system.Governor Nyako should learn alesson from George Washington’simmortal words: “No man is goodenough to govern another withouttheir consent.”Mohammed Jimeta wrote infrom 71 Maiduguri Road,Kaduna.

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 14

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WRITE TO US

By Sadik Yusuf Zaria

Senator Bala Mohammed(Kauran Bauchi) theFCT Minister, is

undoubtedly a worthy andillustrious son of Bauchi statewho is steadily and positivelytouching the lives of hispeople is no small measure. Inthe first place as minister ofthe Federal CapitalTerritory, the Kauran Bauchihas endeared himself to thehearts of many Nigeriansthrough his open door policyto all, irrespective of tribal,religious, political orsectional differences.

The land system in thefederal capital territory hasbeen made favourable to allNigerians while the city israpidly undergoing gianttransformation worthy of afederal capital territory. In anutshell, things are movingsmoothly courtesy of Kauran

Bauchi's humane and realisticapproach to theart of humanmanagement.

Back homein Bauchistate, theminister is thetalk of thet o w n .E v e r y b o d yseems to begrateful to theminister for hisp h i l a n t h r o p i cactivities andfor his humankindness andconcern for thepoor and thedowntrodden. He haspositively touched the lives ofso many people and they are

Import substitutionindustrialization (ISI) is atrade and economic model

that seeks to replace foreignimports with domesticproduction. It was developedsince the 18th century byClassical economist DavidRicardo. It principles wereendorsed by European countriesand Americas and it paid off.

But this policy wasabandoned by developingeconomies in the 1980s duelargely to structuralindebtedness and IMF/WorldBank adjustment programmesthat lend credence to tradeliberalization policy for poorcountries.

To say, therefore, that theconsequences of tradeliberalization policy andunchecked importation on theseeconomies have been colossal, isto rehash a cliché.

Nigeria today cannot clothitself, neither can it feed itself.About 90 per cent of thecountry’s textile needs areimported and about $158.4million is being spent onimportation of textiles andfabrics from Dubai aloneannually. This is scandalousand enough to send jitters downthe spin of a seriousgovernment.

The country has alsowitnessed mass exodus of tax-paying manufacturingcompanies. Those who choose tostay back eventually collapsedue to high cost of productionand the importation of cheapgoods from China andelsewhere, where the cost ofproduction is pretty very low.

While the government hadhitherto expresseddetermination to encourageMade-in-Nigeria goods to bolsterDomestic Direct Investment, ithas, however, yet to walks ittalks.

The business climate formanufacturers has beenstormy. For instance, the dawn

of textile boom in the country waseclipsed by the twin evils of cheapimportation and infrastructuralconundrum.

Unbridled importation oftyres has since forced Dunlop andMichelin to kiss the dust, andrelocate to another Africancountry.

Nigeria’s ranking on theglobal scale for ease of doingbusiness has also nosedived.

It is against this backdrop thatthe on-going altercation betweenthe country’s cementmanufacturers and importers isa cause for concern for discerningNigerians.

The macabre dance ofgovernment is not helpingmatters either. Both the DangoteCement and the Lafarge WAPCOCement Plc have raised the alarmthat the business environment isbecoming intolerable.

For instance, the Dangote’sfour million metric tonnescement plant that employs abouta thousand people in Gboko,Benue State, was shut down lastmonth due to glut in the market.

Similarly, the managementof Lafarge Cement WAPCO Plc hascut its production. PlantManager, Lafarge’s Ewekorocement plant, Mr. LanreOpakunle, said 50 percent ofLafarge’s Shagamu plant hasbeen shut down.

He said that the company’sEwekoro plant had cut productionby 40 percent in response to theglut in the market. According tohim, the various Lafarge factorieshave excess cement and clinkerinventory at their plants of about300,000 metric tons, whichcannot be absorbed by theNigerian market.

Hence, the suspension ofoperation by one of Dangote’scement factories owing to marketglut created by nefariousimporters should disturb thegovernment. This is so becauseas a manufacturing company,the Dangote Group hascontributed enormously to thedevelopment of this country.

It pays an average of N50

billion in tax annually. Itsphilanthropic profile soared toaround N20 billion between 2011and 2012. It gave a whoopingN2.5billion to the flood victimslast year. The Dangote Group istoday adjudged the largest donorand biggest employer outsidegovernment. It has caused theemployment of over a hundredthousand in direct and indirectlabour. All this is made possiblethrough MANUFACTURING, notimportation.

The country’s cement sub-sector almost hit the rocks by2002 when total domesticproduction was a paltry 1.9million metric tonnes. Butchange came with the federalgovernment’s backwardintegration policy for themanufacturing sector. With thispolicy, total production rose to18.5 million metric tonnes as at2012, while another 12 millionmetric tonnes is in the offing.

According to the chairman ofthe Cement ManufacturerAssociation of Nigeria(CMAN)Engr Joseph Makoju: “The 18.5million metric tonnes isrepresenting just 65 percent ofthe present total installedcapacity of the industry. Between2002 and May 2012, a total of$6 billion new investment wasmade by the local manufacturerswhile the on-going expansion andnew plants is estimated to costanother $3.5 billion.”

He said: “Due to thecontinuous rapid growth, thenation no longer requires cementimports as local demand is beingeffectively met and evensurpassed. However, withcontinuous importation of theproduct into the country, as attoday, most local cement plantshave huge inventory of unsoldcement and the clinker,signifying the attainment of self-sufficiency.”

The question being asked is:why has cement price notcrashed in the face of the glut? Itis a truism that the cost ofproduction in Nigeria is veryhigh. Any producer or

Cement importation: The unholy business

all grateful to this wonderful

politician, journalist andtechnocrat of no meanstanding. From whatever

businessman will easilyconfirm this. Manufacturing isnot synonymous with charity.The business of business isbusiness. As a former economicsteacher, I know that the forcesof demand and supply are notall there is to bring down a pricein the long run. There areexceptional and abnormalsituations. Nigeria’s economy,as we all know is not normal.

Engr Makoju had explained:“Energy cost accounts for over35 per cent of production cost inNigeria, whereas it is 10 percent in China. In Nigeria, theprice of LPFO has jumped fromN25 per litre to N107.76 perlitre as at November 2012, anincrease of 331 per cent.Haulage is another factor thatis out of the control ofmanufacturers. Haulage costalone accounts for between 20and 25 per cent of the openmarket price of cement. All bulkproducts are affected by thisfactor due to deplorable state ofNigerian roads.”

Pundits therefore say thebackward integration policyintroduced by the Obasanjogovernment to encourage localproduction is once again beingthreatened. With theJonathan’s governmentindecisiveness, the cement sub-sector, they say, is regretfullyset to tread the path the textilesector trod.

It is also worth mentioningthat cement consumption inNigeria is still very low. Thisspeaks volume of the state ofinfrastructural projects in thecountry when compared toother African countries.

Cement consumption inNigeria is below that of Senegal.It is also behind Egypt whichconsumes an average of 48million tonnes. This does notspeak well of a country that hasan estimated housing deficit of16 million unit, and whose roadnetworks are almost in tartars.

Government can also helpmitigate the glut by usingconcrete for its road

angle one looks at the KauranBauchi, onewould not failto admirehim as aqualified andr e m a r k a b l eleader for allseasons. As aone timej o u r n a l i s tand ane x p e r i e n c e dt e c h n o c r a twho had beenat the federalcivil servicefor manyyears beforej o i n i n g

politics in 2007, Senator BalaMohammed has really comeof age, and cannot be brushed

aside.The country needs such a

man of vast experience andcapacity to continue makinghis mark for the progress andhappiness of its citizens. Thegood people of Bauchi state willcontinue to pray for thisremarkable man of noblequalities and the people willsurely stand by him, supportand entrust their mandateunto his able shoulders. TheBauchi people have everyreasons to believe in KauranBauchi because he has ablyperformed and has lived up totheir expectations. We areproud of him.*Yusuf wrote in fromJahun Quarters, Bauchi,Bauchi Statesadiqyz@yahoo.com

By Jibrin Abubakar construction projects instead ofasphalt in order to savesubstantial outflow of foreignexchange. Concrete roads arestrong, durable and evoked allover the world.

Local cement consumption issaid to have risen by 11.1 percentfrom 8.42 mmtpa in 2004 to9.35 mmtpa in 2005. In 2006 itgrew to 10.08 mmtpa,10.98mmtpa in 2007 and by22.1 percent to 13.41 mmtpa in2008. Average consumption hit14.80 mmtpa in 2009, 15.83mmtpa in 2010. In 2011, itreached 17.10 mmtpa.

In 2011, cementmanufacturing started closingthe gap on domestic cementdemand. With total localconsumption projected at 20.97mmtpa by end 2012, DangoteCement, with over 20 mmtpacapacity, had met local demandfor the product. It is thereforeinstructive that to allowcontinuous importation whenNigeria can now export is to killthe idea and the success recordedthrough the backwardintegration and importsubstitution policies.

It would be recalled thatbetween 2010 and 2011,cement manufacturing hadsaved Nigeria a staggeringN270billion. The amount itcosts the country to importcement yearly had dropped fromN300 billion to N30 billion. Thiscorroborated the fact thatImport Substitution policy canhelp unshackles a country fromits economic shackles.

With Nigeria’s huge size andcomparative advantage incement production,manufacturing is most likely toachieve economies of scale for thecountry. Nigeria also hasadditional advantage ofcontrolling the West Africanmarket. The chorus in everycorner should be: No to cementimportation.Mr. Abubakar writes fromGauraka Village, SulejaEmirate(jibrinabu28@yahoo.com)

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 PAGE 15

The prompt action taken bythe FCTA Minister,Senator Bala Mohammed

in connection with thecommunal clash whichoccurred between the Fulaniand the Gwari people recentlyat Gwagwalada in the FCT isreally commendable and a rightstep in the right direction.

It shows the true quality of adecisive leader who is sensitiveto the feelings of the people. Hisaction in peacefully settling thedispute has put him ahead of hispeers. It also showed thatSenator Bala is alwaysconcerned with the plight of hisown people no matter whatgroup of people are involved.

The Hon. Minister's concernfor his people was amplydemonstrated by the promptmanner he set up an eleven-man committee to quickly lookinto the issue and recommendsuggestions on what hisadministration should do.

The reconciliationcommittee which was given oneweek to submit its report isheaded by the FCTCommissioner of Police, Mr.Adewale Shinaba. TheCommittee was set up at the endof an emergency meeting lastMonday to resolve thecommunal clash that erupted

between Gwaris and Fulanis inthe Gwagwalada Area CouncilAbuja, FCT. During the clashtwo persons were reported tohave died and about 1,500 madehomeless.

Shortly before he set up theCommittee, the Minister did nothide his displeasure about whathas happened and swore that thegovernment will not fold itshands and watch some selfishelements causing mischief in thearea. He said that governmentwill promptly prosecute thosefound fomenting trouble in notonly the area but throughout theFCT. He insisted that the wholeof Abuja is a peace loving areaand that perpetrators of anytype of misunderstanding will befished out and dealt withpromptly by the government.

Senator Bala expressed theconfidence that the Adewale-ledcommittee will be able to unravelthe remote and immediate causesof the clash with a view toenabling government find alasting solution to this type ofclash so that such type ofunfortunate accident will notoccur in the future again.

The Minister did nothowever stop there. He quicklydirected that food, and somerelief materials as well as sheltershould be supplied to the victimsof the unfortunate incident dueto his humanitarian nature and

love for his people as well as beinga decisive leader who listens tohis people's yearnings.

It is also instructive that hecares for his people in the way hedirected the committee toexpedite action on the issue andto ensure that the committee dugdeep to find out what reallyhappened and to quickly assessthe damages done and therequired compensation to bepaid. The committee should alsorecommend those that should beprosecuted, because according tothe Minister, perpetrators ofsuch upheaval must not beallowed to remain unpunished.

Apart from distributing reliefmaterials to the affected personsSenator Bala also appealed forcalm among the people and

assured them that governmentwill take a prompt action on theissue. He is of the view that suchclashes and misunderstandingsare alien to the residents of theFCT. He said that tt is on recordthat such type of clashes do notoccur in the FCT and warnedtrouble makers to avoid suchactions or face the wrath of thelaw squarely.

The Minister said the FCTAwill take a major step to create agrazing unit or area in the FCTamong other things aimed atreducing such incidents amongthe Fulanis and the Gwaris whohave co-existed for a very longtime in all parts of the territorywithout fighting each other onsuch issues. Similarly, it will bea good idea if the Minister will

also propose an edict to theNational Assembly which couldspecify the relationship betweenthese two groups and how theFulani people could carry outtheir grazing activities withoutcausing any problem in theterritory. This reporter feels thatthis action could help a lot.

Already many people in thearea have expressed regret overwhat has happened and pledgedtheir willingness to cooperatewith the government to unravelwhat has happened and to put astop to its reoccurrence.

Among those whocommended the Ministerinclude the Chairman of MiyettiAllah, Alhaji Abdullahi Adama,Chairman of Gwagwalada AreaCouncil, Zakari Angula Gobi, theAguma of Gwagwalada, Alh.Mohammed Magaji and DirectorGeneral of NEMA, Alh.Muhammad Sani Sidi, who saidthe Minister's prompt actionhelped to resolve the issuequickly. He described theintervention as a timely one.

With only some few days leftfor the committee to submit itsreport this reporter can only say,Well done Mr. Minister. Pleasekeep up the good work you aredoing. People appreciate it andposterity will surely judge youright.Biu sent in this piece fromAbuja

FCT Minister's action on Gwari/Fulani clashBy Ibrahim Biu

Recently, the Governor ofNasarawa State, UmaruTanko Al-Makura,

revealed the intention of hisadministration to obtain the loanof about thirty billion Naira toundertake some developmentprojects in the state.

As expected, however, as soonas the governor revealed thisintention, the main oppositionparty in the state, the PDP,apparently for political reasons,mounted the rostrum andshouted, from the top of its voice,against obtaining the loan,arguing that the money will notbe utilized by the Al-Makura-ledCPC administration.

Perhaps, the PDP inNasarawa forgot, or chose toignore the fact, that the twoprevious administrations it hasled also borrowed huge amountsof money, cited the same reasonsfor collecting the loans as thegovernor now does, only to leavethe state with no visible projectsand huge amounts of loans torepay.

But if you think that it is onlythe PDP that is kicking againstthe decision to obtain the thirtybillion Naira loan now, you willbe fooled because many otherwell meaning groups andindividuals are crying againstthe decision to acquire the loan.I am one of them and I havemany reasons why, despite myvoting for the governor in the2011 election, I now elect not tostay on his side, as far as this issueof loan is concerned. Chiefamong my reasons is the factthat the loans collected by the

previous elected governmentsin the state to, as they claimed,finance development projects,ended in the pockets of some fewcorrupt top officials and theiraccomplices.

In fact, sometimes, the loanswere acquired largely throughdubious means and did not evencome to the state, and when theydid, they were embezzled andnever employed for the purposesthey were meant for. The CPC-led government has not yetdone the minimum to make mebelieve that the story will bedifferent this time around. Farfrom that.

In fact, the Al-Makura-ledadministration has sufficientlyconvinced me that, this time,the loan, if acquired, will just befrittered, with the huge chunkof it likely to be used for themaintenance of the emirs andchiefs in the state. It isinteresting to observe that thestate’s traditional council nowboasts of having a recordnumber of 22 first class emirsand chiefs, the highest in thecountry.

Also interesting to note is thefact that one of the beneficiariesof the three CPC created firstclass chiefdoms is the governor’sbillionaire elder brother, AlhajiAhmadu Al-Makura, the chief ofKwandare, who is not only thepolitical god-father of thegovernor but also a verypowerful and influential figurein the state. The chief is also abig time businessman cum

politician, who, certainly, will beconsulted on the kinds ofdevelopment projects to beimplemented with the loan,when procured, and whosecontracting firm will be toowilling and capable of executingthe projects.

My other reason is the factthat, like the immediate pastgovernor Aliyu Akwe Doma ofthe PDP, Al-Makura is alsoheavily accused of involving hischildren and siblings in therunning of government affairs.It is alleged that his kids andbrothers, who are visible in thecorridors of power in the state,are great beneficiaries ofgovernment contracts andpatronages. In fact, a NasarawaState based NGO, Action forBalanced State (ABS), in a recentpress statement, alleged that oneof the governor’s youngerbrothers who served as hispersonal assistant, died and leftin his private bank account thesum of about N 140 m and housesin choice locations in Lafia.

But, in the past, what waseven more worrisome was thefact that in the few cases wherethe loans were acquired throughthe proper means and expendedby the two previous PDPgovernments in the state, theprojects embarked upon by themhave seldom improved the livingconditions of the people, mainlybecause the projects were notrelevant and scarcely completed.There is no reason to believe thatunder the CPC-led government

things will be better done. Infact, the clearest sign yet gottenfrom the presentadministration, two years afterits inauguration, is that it is stillwobbling and battling to get itspriorities right.

So far, the administration,apart from the payment of thenew minimum wage to theworkers who constitute less thanone per cent of the population inthe state, it has done nothingthat directly touches the livesof the people and, or, improvetheir living conditions.

Of course, the government isbuilding an airport atKwandare, the home town of thegovernor and it is planning tobuild another one at Karu.Agreed, the government hasalso expressed its wish toestablish a university for thedeaf, apart from the one it nowhas in Keffi. Still, if truth mustbe told, I don’t see how thepresence of an airport inNasarawa State could positivelymake any impact on the livingconditions of the people who aregenerally poor, unemployed,illiterates and ravaged bydiseases.

To say the least, theconstruction of that airportclearly shows the lack ofprioritization of projects andpolitical direction of the onlyCPC controlled state because theairport is, without any doubt,not needed in the state now. Theconstruction of an airport, lettruth be told, ought not to

feature in the priority list ofprojects of the presentadministration. Succeedinggovernments in the foreseeabletime from now should, ideally,also not consider building it inthe face of more seriouschallenges confronting the state.Realistically speaking,therefore, for thisadministration to contemplateand commence the building ofan airport clearly demonstratesthat it is bereft of ideas on how tomove the state forward.

Similarly, I don’t see how thebuilding of another university,when the one at Keffi is notproperly run, can help solve theproblem of education in thestate. I think, however, that theonly way that the planneduniversity can be helpful to thepeople of the state is if it isequipped to cater for the hearingdeficiency of the governor and,in the process, save the statesome money which otherwise hewould have used to travel abroadfor his medication, as he oftendoes, and also provideemployment for especially thefew educated youth.

Essentially, however, whileit is very safe to argue that theuniversity is in all economic,social and political senses nownot needed in the state, it isneedless to add that with agovernment such as this one inplace, hardly can any loan beutilized.Abdul-Rahman wrote infrom Kilema, Lafia.

N30bn loan? Haba! Al-MakuraBy Haruna Abdul-Rahman

“He quickly directed that food, andsome relief materials as well as sheltershould be supplied to the victims of the

unfortunate incident due to hishumanitarian nature and love for his

people as well as being a decisive leaderwho listens to his people's yearnings

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 16

Mystery fire guts block offlats in GwagwaladaA block of four flats located

along Demonstration Roadin Gwagwalada, a satellite

town in the Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT), was at theweekend razed down by fire.

A News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) Correspondent whowitnessed the incident reportsthat effort by men of the FCT FireService to put out the fire whichstarted at about 10 a.m. onSaturday was abortive.

Some occupants of the flat whospoke to NAN blamed the cause ofthe fire on one of the occupants

whom they alleged left her cookeron.

The suspected, occupanthowever, denied the allegation,saying that she had not evenopened her kitchen when the firebroke out.

“I had not even opened mykitchen this morning. I just wentacross the road to buy chickenand met the house on fire on myreturn. My little baby wouldhave been in the fire if not that Icarried him with me,’’ IfeomaAmadi, the occupant, said intears.

One of the occupants, simplyidentified as Augustus, was saidto have travelled to Enugu thismorning to attend his sister’sburial.

While other occupants of thebuilding were seen salvaging afew property from their flats,everything in Augustus’s roomwas burnt as access could not begained into his apartment.

Meanwhile, Mr IgnatiusAmadi, the Caretaker of the blockof flats, said that the fire startedfrom the mattress of one of theoccupants.

Most transporters in theFederal CapitalTerritory (FCT) have

maintained their rate of fares asAbuja residents return to base afterthe Christmass/New Yearcelebration.

A News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) correspondent, who visitedsome motor parks at Utako andJabi District in Abuja, reports thatpassengers paid the normal faresfrom Abuja to the East on Saturday.

One of the passengers, whospoke to NAN, said they werehappy paying the same amountthey paid during the festive period.

Mr Emeka Nwankwo, apassenger at the Peace MassTransit Company in Utako Distric,said that, initially, passengersthought there was going to anincrease in fares because of fuelscarcity.

He said passengers wererelieved when they discovered thefares had not changed.

However, Mr Yahaa Lawal, adriver, told NAN that turnout ofpassengers was very low, and thatmore people travelled at last yearthan this year during the period.

Mr Maximus Nnadi , PublicRelation Officer, Peace MassTransit, said that in spite of the lowfare, the turnout of passengersreturning to their base, especiallyfrom the East was low.

Nnadi attributed this toinadequate buses, adding that“empty buses are being sent toconvey passengers back to Abuja’’.(NAN)

Abuja transportersmaintain faresafter Yuletide

He further revealedthat the total number ofimpounded motorcycles sincethe inception of its ban inOctober 1, 2006 in Abuja was9, 143,wondering why the‘Okada’ riders despite theircontinual arrest still don’twant to relent in plying someof the banned areas in theFederal Capital City.

The minister however,assured that hard times awaitthem this year as the officialsof the Directorate of Road

Traffic Services (DRTS) havebeen given stern instructionand are more than everprepared to stamp out theirillegal activities in therestricted areas of the FederalCapital City, Abuja.

He revealed that the FCTAdministration recorded 479automobile accidents on theroads of the Federal CapitalTerritory in the precedingyear of 2012.

Senator Mohammedremarked that Traffic Offences

Mobile Courts set up last yearwould further be encouraged todischarge their duties tosanitize our roads and reducetraffic bottlenecks beingexperienced in the FederalCapital City especially at peakhours.

This was as he warned thatthe year 2013 would not bebusiness as usual because alltraffic offences in the territorywould be apprehended.

He therefore, called forcooperation andunderstanding of the motoringpublic to take Abuja to the nextlevel.

The Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT)Administration has

revealed that 11,350 trafficoffenders were apprehended inthe FCT in the year 2012.

According to the Minister ofthe FCT, Senator BalaMohammed who spoke at theweekend , in the precedingyear 2012, the administrationalso impounded 1,231c o m m e r c i a lmotorcycles(Okadas) which weretaken to the Abuja Auto-Poundfor safe keep.

11,350 traffic offenders nabbed in 2012 By Josephine Ella Ejeh

An elderly man waiting for alms yesterday in Area 1, Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

He alleged that the occupantmay have left her phone on hermattress while charging it,adding that there may have beenelectricity spark somewhere.

The house, which accordinghim, was the major source ofincome to the owner, wascompletely razed with propertiesworth millions of Naira.

Some of the occupants of theflats said that besides theirproperty that were burnt in theinferno, there were othervaluable documents includingcertificates and cash. (NAN)

• 1, 231 Okadas impounded

The Consumer ProtectionCouncil (CPC), has called onPark and Pay operators in

Abuja to centralise theiroperations with a view toharmonising the issuance of cards.

The Director General of thecouncil, Mrs Ify Umenyi made thecall in an interview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN in Abuja.

She said that the council hopedto meet with the Federal CapitalTerritory Administration (FCTA)with a view to resolving the issue.

Umenyi said that a situationwhere the card issued by one firmwas not honoured by the other didnot augur well for the motorists.

She stressed that the systemshould be harmonised so that onecard could be used by a motoristin any part of the city just like theATM card.

“Some motorists havecomplained that after buying thepark and pay card from anoperator, they still found itdifficult to park in any other areamanned by another operator.

“They also complained aboutincessant harassments by thedifferent operators manning theparking zones in the city,’’ she said.(NAN)

CPC calls forharmonised parkand pay systemfor Abuja

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 PAGE 17

Man appears in courtfor indecent conduct

A 25-year-old man, BalaAbubakar of TipperGarage, Nyanya, at the

weekend appeared before aKaru Upper Area Court forallegedly romancing anotherman’s ‘male organ’.

Prosecutor UmarMohammed told the court thaton January 3, 2012 Abubakarat about 1.00 am, jumped overa fence and entered SaniShamsudeni’s room of sameaddress.

“He then slept close toShamsudeni, who was fastasleep and started romancinghis male organ. WhenShamsudeni woke up,

Abubakar took to his heel untilhe was pursued and arrested,”he said.

Mohammed said that theoffence contravene Sections 95and 342 of the Penal Code.

The accused, however,pleaded not guilty to the charge,saying: “I followed a friend into

the house to sleep and when wewere sleeping, I drew up theblanket to cover myself verywell.

“When the complainantwoke up, he asked who came tosleep in his room and he was toldthat I was the one. That was whathappened,” Abubakar said.

The Judge, Umar Kagarko,granted bail to the accused in thesum of N50,000 and a surety inlike sum.

He said that the surety mustreside within the jurisdiction ofthe court and adjourned thecase to March 13, 2012 forhearing. (NAN)

Justice Mamman Kolo, theFederal CapitalTerritory(FCT) High Court

Vacation Judge, on Fridayremitted the suit betweenTimipre Silva and AttorneyGeneral of the Federation,Chairman of EFCC and EFCC tothe FCT Chief Judge forreassignment.

Kolo told the court that hisassignment as the vacationjudge for the Christmas andNew Year holidays lapsed onFriday.

“I am, therefore, remittingthe case to the CJ forreassignment to the appropriatecourt,” he said.

Mr Benson Benson, theCounsel to Timipre Silva, hadearlier told the court that themotion on notice served by theAGF, EFCC chairman and EFCCwas received on Friday and thathe needed time to go through itand respond appropriately.

In his submission, counsel to

the Attorney -General of theFederation, Mr B.A. Sai‘d, saidin an oral application that “wefiled a preliminary objectionthis morning (Friday)challenging the jurisdiction ofthe court to entertain thismatter’’.

Mr Oghenovo Otemu, thecounsel to EFCC, said thecommission could not serve

Vacation judge remits EFCC suit to CJ for assigning Two scavengers, Abah Sani,18, and Dahiru Yushehu,20, both of Lugbe Zone 1,

Abuja, were last Friday arraignedbefore an Abuja Senior MagistratesCourt for alleged joint act and theft.

Police Prosecutor, JeremiahElijah said their offences contravenethe provisions of Sections 79 and 288of the Penal Code.

Elijah told the court that thecase was lodged at the Lugbe PoliceStation on January 2, 2013 byIfeanyi Okenyi of Ido-Sauka, alongAirport Road, Abuja.

He said the accused jointly brokeinto Okenyi’s shop and made awaywith some items, including threepairs of 9-inche moulders, one 6-inche moulder, a welding machine,one wheel barrow, two inches of pipe,and some scraps of iron.

Elijah said that duringinvestigations, the accused confessedto committing the offences.

Senior Magistrate GraceAdebayo said the prosecutor shouldnote that an accused could not denythe allegations against him in part,and reserved sentencing of theaccused to January 21, 2013.(NAN )

Two scavengers incourt for allegedtheft

Police arraign security guard for assault, theft

Sylva with a copy of the counteraffidavit because his counsel’soffice was locked, “hence theservice was made in courttoday’’.

Otemu said they could notreach the applicant‘s officebecause they had been onChristmas and New Yearholidays.

He also said that, currently,

the properties in question hadbeen under seal following anorder issued by the Federal HighCourt in Abuja.

It will be recalled that theEFCC charged Timipre Silva tocourt on December 21, 2012 insuit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/834/2012 for alleged conspiracy,conversion, abuse of public officeand money laundering. (NAN)

The Police have arraigned27-year-old man, MosesYero of New Karu, Nasarawa

state, before an Abuja SeniorMagistrates Court for allegedassault and stealing.

Prosecutor David Udeh toldthe Court that one Nasiru Hassanof Gowon Barracks, Abuja,reported the case at WuseDivisional Police Headquarter,Zone 3 on January 1, 2013.

“Yero and four other men,

presently at large, jointlyassaulted Hassan, beat him upand dishonestly collected hisNokia handset worth N2, 000. Inthe process, the sum of N18,000was also stolen from Hassan by theaccused persons,’’ Udeh said.

The prosecutor said that theiroffences contravene Sections 79,265 and 287 of the Penal Code.

Yero, however, pleaded notguilty to the charge. Mr DicksonOmaiye, Counsel to the accused,

urged the court to grant his clientbail on liberal term, contendingthat his client had been in custodyfor three days.

The presiding Magistrate, MrAliyu Shafa, granted bail to theaccused in the sum of N100,000and a surety in like sum.

Shafa ordered that the suretymust reside within the court’sjurisdiction and “must be a civilservant of above grade level 4’’.(NAN)

Driver, 20, dockedfor allegedrobbery

A driver, Ahmed Abdulkadir,20, residing at Gange Streetin Maitama, Abuja

has appeared before a Karu UpperArea Court in the Federal CapitalTerritory(FCT), charged withalleged robbery and causing hurt.

The Prosecutor, Mr AbiolaOyewusi, told the court that oneUmar Emmanuel of the U.S.Embassy, Abuja, had petitionedthe FCT Commissioner of Police,on the matter on November 4,2012.

Oyewusi said thatAbdulkadir, Muzali Sa’ad and oneIbrahim now at large, jointlyconspired and attacked one MissLindsay Barber of the U.S.Embassy, Abuja on November 3.

”Abdulkadir, Muzali andIbrahim robbed Lindsay of herBlackberry phone and attackedher, inflicting injuries on herhead,” Oyewusi said.

The prosecutor said duringinvestigation, Abdulkadiradmitted that he committed theoffence, adding that a Blackberryphone was recovered from him.Oyewusi also told the court thatthe offences allegedly committedby Abdulkadir contravene Section79, 246 and 298 of the PenalCode.

Abdulkadir, however, deniedthe allegations in court.

The Judge, Alhaji UmarKagarko, granted bail in the sumof N300,000 with a crediblesurety who must reside within thecourt’s jurisdiction.

He adjourned the case tillMarch 12, 2013 for hearing.(NAN)

Orozo primary school pupils performing a cultural dance at a function, recently in Abuja. Photo: NAN

INSIDE FCTCOURTS

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013PAGE 18

The Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT) AmirulHajj for the 2012 Muslim

pilgrimage operations, RetiredGeneral Abdullahi BaguduMamman has revealed how areacouncils of the FCT wereallegedly involved in illegal salesof hajj forms at extra cost to Muslimpilgrims last year.

General Mamman, revealedthis while presenting the 2012

FCT area councils fingered in alleged shady Hajj dealBy Josephine Ella Ejeh report by the Amrul Hajj Team to

the Minister of State for the FCT,Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide.

The Amirul, who did notspecifically mention the areacouncils involved in the deal,however told the minister pointblank that involving the councilsin sales of Hajj forms was a blunder.

“Honourable minister, webelieve without mincing wordsthat sending forms to area councilsto sell was a mistake,” he told theminister, adding ”a lot of people

were denied the forms while thosewho succeeded did that at an extracost”.

According to him, manypeople, including him weredenied access to the forms overalleged anti-party activities asthe authorities of the councilspoliticised the sales of formsalong party line.

“I’m a living witness, I hadtwo passports, I wanted to buyforms for my driver andsteward but because I was

Abuja residents condemn useof fireworks after yuletide

Residents of some estatesalong the Airport Road inAbuja have commended

the Abuja EnvironmentalProtection Board (AEPB) forevacuating heaps of refuse thathad polluted the environment ofthe area.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that the heaps ofrefuse had accumulated duringthe festive season.

The bad odour that pervadedthe environment, made theresidents of the affected estatesuncomfortable and constituted ahealth hazard.

The affected areas includedAco Estate, Federal HousingAuthority Lugbe Phase 1, AsoEstate, Chika, Gosa, Kuchingoro,Sabon-Lugbe and Trademore

Estate, among others. Some of the residents who

spoke with NAN expressed disgustwith the situation before theevacuation.

In his comments, Rev.Ephraim Obande, a resident ofTrademore Estate, said thatresidents of the area had paid forrefuse collection but did not getany service during the yuletideseason when they needed it most.

Obande noted that refuse fromdumpsites in the various parts ofthe estates had spilled over ontothe roads, reducing them to singlelanes.

Another resident, MrBabawale Osinubi decried theindiscriminate dumping of refusewithout consideration to its effectson health and the environment.

He said that he packed hisown refuse inside a cellophanebag and tied it very well so as toguard against houseflies andmaggots.

“Even if the refuse is much itwill not have much effect on usas long as we package it verywell; we all know that end of theyear is holiday period; AEPBshould have their holidaytoo. Without anybody telling orordering us on what to do,Nigerians are supposed to knowthat they should clean up theirenvironment for their ownsafety”, he added.

NAN correspondent whovisited the estates, reports thatmost of the refuse had been clearedand that sanity had been restored.(NAN)

Refuse evacuation: Residents of AirportRoad estates commend AEPB

accused of anti party in my areacouncil I didn’t get one. Evenafter paying the extra feerequired I can’t get a refundbecause there is no receipt forthe extra.

“There are three officersfrom my organisation, they toohad their passports, they paidthe extra money but they werealso denied because they wereassociated with me,” he said,condemning the actions of thecouncil.

Responding to theallegations, Akinjide explainedthat the decision to give formsto the councils to sell was toensure that people at thegrassroots acquire them.

“I was told that the formswere not reaching thegrassroots. Forms will be sold atthe grassroots but the agents ofsale will be changed. We haveto work to ensure that we sellthe forms in transparent andequitable manner”, she added.

Some residents of Abuja havecondemned the continueduse of fireworks after the

festive period.The News Agency of Nigeria

(NAN) reports that the city hascontinued to experience fireworksand bangers three days into 2013in spite of the intense firings onNew Year eve.

A resident,Mr Istifanus Friday, said “onecould hardly differentiatefireworks from any gun-shot. Thebangers were so much that Ibecame confused. If a gun duel hadensured between two groups, onewould hardly have known thedifference,’’ Friday said.

Another resident, MissGrace Akanwa, said it was notproper for people to continue

using fireworks after the festiveperiod.

“Criminals can takeadvantage of the confusingnature of the sound to perpetratecrime,’’Akanwa said.

Some of the residents,however, commended securityagencies for ensuring peace andsecurity during the period.

Mr Adbul Ibrahim, a civilservant, said the peace andsecurity recorded in the cityduring the festive period wascommendable.

Ibrahim advocated greatersupport for the agencies to furtherguarantee the safety of lives andproperty in the city.

He called for the replication ofsuch level of security in other partsof the country. (NAN)

PAGE 19PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Management Tip of the DayPut mundane decisions on autopilot

INSIDE

Life is full of mundanedecisions: what to wear,what to eat, which route to

take to work. Making too manydecisions about humdrum detailsis a waste of a limited resource:your mental energy. When youhave more demands on your time

GT Bank re-affirmscommitment tosecure banking

- Pg 20

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

BBBBBUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESS

than you can accommodate,eliminate as many of these choicesas possible by putting them onautopilot. Eat the same thing forbreakfast everyday (hint: yogurtand fruit are better thandoughnuts and coffee). Reduceyour wardrobe options and create

New executives of Gudum market traders association taking oath of office, recently, in Bauchi. Photo: NAN

‘FAAN not borrowing N80bn for aircraft acquisition’

The Federal AirportsAuthority of Nigeria(FAAN) has debunked

rumours making the roundsthat $500 million (N80 billion)was borrowed from China toacquire aircraft for operatingdomestic airlines.

FAAN’s General Manager,Corporate Communications,Yakubu Datti in a press releaseissued at the weekend saidFAAN has not borrowed $500million from China nor any

country for that matter.Furthermore, FAAN is notacquiring aircrafts, as claimedin the statement.

FAAN is a service provider inthe industry and is presentlyoccupied in translating thetransformational aviationmaster plan into concreterealities.

At present, the Authority isfocused on the reconstruction of22 airports across the countryas initiated by the Minister ofAviation, Princess Stella Oduah.The Lagos terminal 1, popularly

known as GAT has since beencommissioned while theremaining airports are atdifferent stages of completion.Work on the remaining 11airports in the 2nd phase willsoon begin.

According to him, theorientation of aviationemployees is being vigorouslypursued through capacitydevelopment, and the Director,Mr. George Uriesi isspearheading this paradigmshift towards service delivery,accountability, and self-

By Ibrahim Kabiru Sule

go-to outfits for certain types ofoccasions. Take the same routeevery day. By making fewerdecisions you’ll free up your mindto focus on things you care moreabout.Source: Harvard BusinessReview

sustenance.He however added that the

Ministry of Aviation is makingarrangements to facilitate theacquisition of 30 airplanes toboost the operations of domesticairlines.

According to him, themodalities are being fine-tuned,to checkmate the abuse of theaviation intervention fund.This strategy will plug theloophole that allows fortuneseekers free access to these fundshe said.

Other strategies are beingdeployed to grow the domesticairlines. Princess Oduah’ssuccessfully campaign for theremoval of taxes and tariffs oncommercial airline spare-partsis being widely commended as astep in the right direction.

Some airports have beendesignated as agro-allied andcargo terminals to promoteinvestment and make them self-sustaining.

In the area of safety andsecurity, modern securityequipments have been procuredfollowing a comprehensivesecurity threat andvulnerability assessment. Headded.

On airports airfield lighting

Petrol truck electronic loadingcommences in Nigeria

Petroleum Electronic TruckLoading concept hasstarted in Africa’s biggest

oil producing nation, Nigeria.The concept, which is beingdriven by the PetroleumEqualisation Fund Managementboard has been designed toimprove operations in thedownstream sector.

This initiative, which hasbeen named ‘Project Aquila’, isstructured to further ensure arobust and strategic way ofloading and delivering ofpetroleum products across thenation.

Speaking on the new project,the General Manager, CorporateServices, PetroleumEqualisation Fund, Mr GodwinNnamdi stated this in a mediaparley held in Abuja.

He said employing theElectronic strategy, was goingto ease the hitches, delays, issuesand gridlocks that occurred in

the process of loading petroleumproducts at the depot as well thedistribution of same throughoutthe country.

Stressing on how importantthe new scheme had become inthe country, he stated that “Itwill now be very difficult for anymarketer to get paid for thebridging claim if not registeredwith Project Aquila”, meaningthat it will no longer be businessas usual in the operations of thedownstream sector, that has todo with petroleum productdistribution and supply.

on runway, he said 18L at theDomestic Terminal of MurtalaMohammed Airport has beenrestored. Again, the expandedE Arrival Wing of theinternational terminal of MMAhas commenced operations. Healso said the ministry is makingarrangement towards theconstruction of brand newairports in 2013.

The year 2013, he said, willwitness the construction of brandnew airport terminals in Abuja,Lagos, Kano and Port Harcourt,and the commencement of theAerotropolis project; a conceptthat involves building citiesaround airports, and thusconnecting businesses, suppliers,executives and goods to theaviation global world.

The transformation of theaviation sector is on course, hesaid.

He then cautioned the writerof the piece, whom he identifiedas Capt Dele Ore and whom hedescribed as to being “on a wildgoose chase” to stop givingunfounded allegations as it couldsend wrong signals to theinternational aviationcommunity and hurtGovernments sincere efforts torejuvenate an ailing industry.

On the issue of manualbacklog claims since last year,the PEF said it was workingtirelessly to ensure that issuesthat surround it were resolvedamicably by March this year.

It could be recalled that latelast year, Petroleum Minister,Mrs Diezani Alison Maduekeassured Nigerians that 2013 willsee a major improvement in thedistribution and supply ofpetroleum products, and withthe electronic petrol loadingconcept introduced, her promisemay come to fulfilment.

By Muhammad Nasir with agencyreport

The President of the NationalAssociation ofT e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s

Subscribers (NATCOMS), ChiefDeolu Ogunbanjo, on Fridaycalled on telecommunicationcompanies to compensate theirsubscribers for non-delivery ofShort Messaging Services (SMS)during the yuletide.

Ogunbanjo made the call inan interview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inLagos. He lamented that someSMS sent during Christmas andNew Year celebrations were notdelivered while some weredelivered days after thecelebrations. He said that evenwhen the text messages were notdelivered, telecoms consumerswere charged for the service.

According to him, theintension of the subscribers hasbeen defeated for not deliveringthe SMS, as the messages aremeant to put smiles on the faces

of recipients. ‘’Quality of servicehas been the bane of the telecomsindustry, imagine you send NewYear message to someone and itis taking four days to deliver,some are even not delivered andyou are charged. ‘’The NigerianCommunications Commission(NCC) should mandate theoperators to give each subscriber100 free SMS as compensation,’’Ogunbanjo said.

He said that telecom consumerswere not particular about reducedtariffs in 2013, but preferred goodquality service from telecomsservice providers. Ogunbanjo saidthat in line with the recent attackson base stations and offices of theoperators, telecoms consumerswere not expecting lower tariff.

‘’The attacks on telecomsinfrastructure and their offices is asad one for the telecoms industry.It is one industry that Nigeria is soproud of. ‘’We should not allowthese suicide bombers to erode thegrowth of the industry and theeconomy,’’ Ogunbanjo said.

He said that attacks ontelecoms infrastructure werepart of the reasons subscriberswere experiencing poor qualityservice. Ogunbanjo said theFederal Government shouldensure that telecomsinfrastructure were declaredcritical national infrastructurein 2013, as it would help avertattacks on the equipment.(NAN)

Subscribers demandcompensation for undeliveredtext messages during yuletide

PAGE 20 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

GT Bank re-affirmscommitment to secure bankingGuaranty Trust Bank Plc

(GT Bank) has re-affirmed its commitment

to the safety of stakeholderfunds as it prepares for the 2013financial year. Investigationsshow the bank has installedseveral new technologies andintroduced a number of internalprocedures that enable itidentify spurious transactionsand prevent frauds on customeraccounts.

Speaking on thedevelopment, ManagingDirector/CEO of GuarantyTrust Bank, Mr. Segun Agbajesaid the bank was committed toensure its customers are

COMPANYNEWS

shielded from the escalatingincidence of online and otherforms of fraud beingexperienced within theindustry.

Mr. Agbaje said, “We haveintroduced several newprocesses internally, which Icannot disclose that make itmore difficult for fraudsters tohave access to our customeraccounts. Additionally we havea mutually beneficialrelationship with lawenforcement agencies, such asthe Nigerian Police Force thatenable us identify potentialfraudsters and apprehend thembefore they act’.

Guaranty Trust Bank hasalways been committed to the

China CivilEngineeringConstructionCorp

China Civil EngineeringConstructionCorporation (CCECC)

handling the construction ofthe Lagos-Badagryexpressway blue rail line hascommenced fixing of thetracks from the Alafia end ofthe project.

Adegbite Bankole, a siteengineer said the first phaseof the work which startedthree days ago will take twoweeks to terminate at theOrile end of the project.

Bankole said the trainhead which is the machinerywill serve as guide to aid the

placement of the tracks.

LG Electronics

LG Electronics Inc hasstarted taking orders fororganic light-emitting

diode (OLED) televisions, foran edge over rival SamsungElectronics Co Ltd in thenext-generation technologythat could change the face ofelectronics displays.

LG Electronics andSamsung showcased 55-inchOLED TVs a year ago andthey are expected to be pricedup to five times higher thanliquid-crystal display (LCD)equivalents when they reachstore shelves next month.

LG Electronics, the world’sNo.2 TV manufacturer, saidit would start delivery of thenew TVs from earlyFebruary, with plans todisplay them at 1,400 retailoutlets in South Korea.

Personal TrustSavings andLoans

In compliance with theCentral Bank of Nigeria’s(CBN) revised guidelines

for mortgage bankingoperations in Nigeria,Personal Trust Savings andLoans (Mortgage Bankers)will hold an Extra-ordinaryGeneral Meeting (EGM) of itsshareholders next week.

The EGM, according to thebank, is part of its strategiesto shore up its capital base, inline with the revisedguidelines which requireregional mortgageinstitutions to recapitalise toN2.5 billion and N5 billionfor national ones.

A statement from thebank, signed by its managingdirector and chief executiveofficer, Anthony Owuye saysthe EGM, already slated forTuesday, January 8,2013 inLagos, seeks the neededcapital for its regionaloperation.

Earnings Report for Banks Source:Pro-share Nigeria

Inflation rates from Dec, 2011 to Nov, 2012Max = 12.9 %, Min = 10.3 % for period in display.Current Inflation rate = 12.3 % Source:CBN

safety of stakeholders’ funds. Afew years ago it installed awhistle blower platform to helpmitigate against instances offraud whilst resolving customerservice related issues. Thechannel enables customers,staff and other stakeholders ofthe Bank report unethical orunprofessional conduct by itsemployees without revealingthe complainant’s identity. TheGTBank Whistle Blower is avery secure platform that ishosted on the Bank’s website foreasy access.

More recently, the bankdeployed a security software onits Internet Banking platformcalled Trusteer Rapport. Thesoftware protects customer

By Aminu Imam accounts from fraudsters bysecuring onlinecommunications with theBank’s website/internetbanking portal.

Authorities at the bank havestated that it remains ardentlycommitted to proper practicesand preventive mechanismsthat safeguard the accounts,lives and properties of itsstakeholders.

The Bank intends tocontinue strengthening itssecurity processes at alltouchpoints, whilst promotingits value system, which ishinged on international bestpractice, professionalism,ethics, integrity and superiorcustomer service.

Insurance channel.She promised to maintain an

effective relationship withstrategic stakeholders within andoutside the country as well asadding greater value tomembers through effectivehuman capital developmentand ensure a resoundingcelebration of the landmark50th anniversary of the Council.

Half way into her tenure, theCouncil and its more than 500members have a convergence of

Osijo is Inspenonline ‘Insurance Man of The Year’

The Managing Director, OliveMicrofinance Bank, Mr EniolaAgbesoyin told the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that theCBN had released N220 billionfrom the fund to assist themicrofinance sub-sector.

Agbesoyin said that the fundwas launched on Oct. 23, 2012,but was yet to be accessed bymicrofinance banks.

He said that the fund wouldreduce the lending rate in thesub-sector as its interest ratesranged between three and eightper cent.

“Funds from the CBN alwayscome with cheaper interest rates.

“Once the fund effectivelytakes-off, it will affect the currentlending rates in microfinancebanks because it will attractminimal interest rate from theapex bank,” he said.

Agbesoyin said thatmicrofinance banks were createdto assist the poor to grow theirbusinesses, but that funding hadbeen the major challenge.

He commended the CBN forthe intervention fund, stressingthat it would enable them servethe poor better.

Mr Valentine Whensu, theChairman, National Associationof Microfinance Banks in LagosState, said that the apex bank hadnot released guidelines on thedisbursement of the fund.

“Though we will access thefund, I don’t know the modalitiesyet. Again the fund is also meantfor cooperative societies. (NAN)

Customers of microfinance banks shouldexpect lower lending rates in 2013

The Managemento f I n s p e n o n l i n e , Nigerian’s first Insurance

and Pension Online mediaChannel, has named thePresident, Nigerian Council ofRegistered Insurance Brokers(NCRIB), Mrs. Laide Osijo,the ‘Insurance Man of the Year2012’.

She emerged top, out of manyinsurance operators considered forthe award. Within the short periodshe has been on the saddle of

leadership of the largest insurancebrokers fraternity in African, shehas distinguished herself and hasused her wealth of experience toreposition insurance practice.

The Commissioner forInsurance, Fola Daniel wasawarded the Good LeadershipAward, for his steps inrepositioning the industry andproviding adequate security forpolicyholders.

Mutual Benefits was namedthe Insurance Company of theyear. The company was pickeddue to its stride in Retail Insurancethrough well developed Micro-

views about the fact that the lotof the body has inched upconsiderably, far above theiranticipation.

Some of the Council’s notableachievements in the last oneyear included the considerableimprovement in therelationship between theNational Insurance Commissionand the Council, notably asregards the entrenchment ofethical standards amongstoperators.

From Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos

Some operators ofmicrofinance banks onThursday expressed

optimism that lending rates in thesub-sector would drop in 2013.

They said that lending ratesin the sub-sector would drop assoon as operators were able toaccess the Micro Small andMedium scale EnterpriseDevelopment Fund of CBN in2013.

PAGE 21PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

INVESTORSNEWS BITS

Source:Pro-share Nigeria

January effect boosts optimism, asASI returns +2.41% gain in weekActivities on the Nigerian

bourse sustained uptrendmomentum in the first

week of the year as valueinvestors continued with ‘holdand buy’ approach towardsequities on the back of improvedrisk appetite while marketbreadth remained healthy andfortified.

Further analysis revealedgrowing anticipatory influencealong with strong impact of‘January Effect’ as marketwitnessed significant increase inmarket activities and patronageamid impressive turnover.

Nigerian stocks experiencedcontinued bargain trend onMonday, extending gains by

+0.76% to open the week onpositive note as bargain huntersmaintained active positions. Also,the key benchmark indicesextend 3-days gaining streak onWednesday as market surged by+1.50% on the back of activevalue investing.

However, market succumbedto pressure of large capped stocksin the building material sub-sector despite the healthybreadth to fall by -0.21% onThursday as Dangote Cementand WAPCO hit considerably.

Notwithstanding, equitiessustained healthy breadth onFriday as market traded abovethe line amid low volatilitythroughout the session to end theweek with aggregate gain of+2.41%.

AshakaCement;Julius BergerAshaka Cement PLC and

Julius Berger Nigeriahave joined 33 other

stocks in the basket of marketmakers of the Nigerian StockExchange (NSE). This is inline with the phasedintroduction of additionalstocks by the exchange to itsmarket making program.Julius Berger was droppedfrom the list twice in early2012 but was later re-enteredin the fourth quarter of thesame year. Market analysts saythis underscores the fluidity ofthe NSE 30 Index.The NSE had in November2012 announced the addition ofDangote Flour Mills PLC, UnityBank PLC and PrestigeAssurance PLC to the marketmaking stocks on its bourse,bringing the total number ofmarket making stocks on the

Nigerian Stock Exchange to 35.

SEC

The chairman, Securitiesand Exchange (SEC)Committee on

Dematerialisation, EmekaMadubuike, says thecommission may shelve thenationwide dematerialisationawareness campaignsscheduled to start on January3 1 .

Madubuike told the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inLagos that the postponementwas due to the zero allocation toSEC in 2013 federal budget bythe National Assembly.

Dematerialisation is theprocess of replacing paper sharecertificates with electronicrecords at the CentralSecurities Clearing System.

Pension funds

Pension funds are to invest more in corporatedebt securities,

investment experts havepredicted. Currently, theallocation is just 3 percent. In2011, the regulators raised thecap from 20 percent to 30percent, in a bid to boostinterest in this asset class.

Renaissance Capitalanalysts said more demand forcorporate bonds will givecompanies a new source offunding, aside from bank loans,and encourage banks to lendnow, to discourage a possiblypermanent shift towardsfunding from this new source.

The worry however is that foreigners will leave theNigerian market, and, asportfolio flows into Nigeria wereroughly $5bn over the first fivemonths of 2012 (annualized 4%of GDP), such a reversal wouldindeed have a negative impacton asset prices.

Which sectors made you money in 2012Agriculture Sector

Here Presco Plc, listed underthe Crop Production sub-sector ofthe bourse gained 96.08% followedby Livestock feeds (92%) with ayear high of N1.74. Instructively,none of the stocks within theAgriculture sector lost even asEllahLakes and FTN Cocoa closedflat.Consumer Goods

Out of 30 stocks listed underConsumer Goods, 12 stocks (40%)gained while 11 stocks (36.97%)lost as seven (7) stocks closed flat.International Breweries Plc ledthe gainers chart with +184.21%while Vitafoam lost -31.07%.Industrial Goods

Of the twenty seven (27) stocks

listed in this sector, 9 stocks(33.33%) gained while 8 stocks(29.63%) lost. The remaining 10stocks were flat throughout theyear. Paintcom and CAP led thegainers chart with +276.92%and +93.10% respectively whileAvon crown lost -68.01%.Conglomerates

Here, Transcorp Plc led thegainers chart with +87.50%followed by UACN Plc whileJohnholt Plc lost -42.28%.Financial Services

The banking sub-sector hereled the gainers camp withDiamond Bank gaining+145.77% followed by AccessBank +79.56%. Of the top 10gainers, 9 stocks came from the

Stories from Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos Further analysis onacquiring banks sincetransaction date showed that theshare price of Access Bank Plc hasrecorded +91.11% gains withFCMB recording +20.51% gainwhile Union Bank Plc leads thechart with +258.85% gains.However, Sterling Bank Plcrecorded +55.91% gains whileETI closed negative with -4.54%loss recorded.

However, the All-Share Indexin the week under reviewappreciated by +2.41% to close at28,538.06 as against aappreciation by +1.69% recordedlast week to close at 27,866.51.

In the same vein, the marketcapitalization in the weekappreciated by N214.63 billion(US$1.34 billion) to close at N9.12

trillion (US$57.00 billion) asagainst appreciation by N151.36billion (US$946.03 million)recorded last week to close atN8.90 trillion (US$55.66 billion)

The total volume traded inthe week closed at 914.86 millionunits valued at N7.74 billion(US$48.39 million) comparedwith 571.07 million units valuedat N5.25 billion (US$32.86million) exchanged in 20,499deals last week.

The volume transaction in theweek when compared with theprevious week data moved downby -29.25% as against decline by-55.84% recorded last week.Weekly value also went down by-61.68% as against negativeposition of -43.58% recorded lastweek.

Banking, consumables stocks to dominatestock market activities in 2013 – Operators

increase local investorparticipation in the marketwhich currently stands at 30 percent.

Mr Emeka Madubuike, theManaging Director, CompassSecurities Ltd., said that theconstruction sector and food/beverages stocks wouldexperience increased activitydue to the country’s largepopulation. “The food/beverages, building materialsand oil/gas sectors would do

banking sub-sector with theexception of Mansard (Insurancesub-sector) which made animpressive showing.HealthCare

50% of the stocks within theHealthcare sector lost value withMorison Industries losing -61.66%while GlaxosmithKline, aPharmaceutical company gained+96.09%.ICT

With the exception of NCR Plclisted under IT Services sub-sector,none of stock gained while E-Tranzact Plc lost -22.27% with anegligible average sectorperformance of 0.02%.Services

22.72% of the stocks listed

said that the reforms hadimpacted positively on thefortunes of the industry andinvestors made over 55 per centreturns in the sector in 2012.

“We are still expecting it todo more because most of thebanking stocks are still tradingbelow their fair value and veryliquid for both entry and exit offoreign investors,” he said. Kurfi,however, called on marketregulators to embark onaggressive investor education to

well because we are still adeveloping economy with largepopulation,” Madubuike said.

He urged the FederalGovernment and marketregulators to provide the rightenvironment for investmentpurposes. Madubuike said thatlocal investors needed to beeducated on marketinvestment options, exitarrangement and when andwhere to invest to avoid repeat ofpast experience.

under Services gained while36.36% closed flat. Air ServicesPlc gained +92.63% during theyear while Ikeja Hotel Plc lost -50.62%.Construction/Real Estate

On the average, this sector lost-0.72%; 50% of which closed flatwhile Arbico Plc lost a staggering-73.42%.Natural Resources

None of the stocks in the sectorgained while BOCGAS Plc lost -8.76%.Oil & Gas

This sector was the worst hitin the year with a value loss of -25.98% while FO, Chevron andOando lead the losers chart.(Source: Proshare)

Some capital marketoperators said on Saturdaythat activities in the

Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE)in 2013 would be dominated bythe banking, consumer goods,food/beverages, and buildingmaterial stocks.

They told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) in Lagos that themarket would continue on itsrecovery path in 2013 barringany unforeseen economic shocks.

The Managing Director, APTSecurities and Funds Ltd., MalamGarba Kurfi, said that thebanking sector would leadactivities in the year as a resultof financial sector reforms. Kurfi

PAGE 22 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

2012 was poor for Nigerian businesses – LCCIThe Lagos Chamber of

Commerce and Industry(LCCI) has described 2012

as very poor for the businessenvironment in the country,despite the huge opportunitiesoffered by the economy.

This is the conclusion of the

Chamber in its review of thebusiness climate in the outgoneyear, released by Muda Yusuf, itsDirector-General.

“The business and economicenvironment was typicallycharacterised by upsides anddownsides, but the latter seem tohave outweighed the former”.

Yusuf observed that 2012

offered huge opportunities toinvestors, especially indigenousentrepreneurs, but said they wereconstrained by challenges thatprevailed in the operatingenvironment.

He explained that theopportunities were in thecountry’s robust naturalendowments, youthful

From Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos

Full business activities at the Abubakar Gumi Central Market, recently in Kaduna. Photo: NAN

ICT should be properly established to bridge digital divide - ExpertBy Chris Alu with agency report

The Managing Director,Beta Computers Ltd, Mr.Will Anyaegbunam has

said that Nigeria would onlyrealise the full potentials of ICT ifthe field was properly established.

Anyaegbunam told the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagosthat stakeholders, includinggovernmental ministries,companies and databaseproducers, needed to collaborate

to make this possible. “Bridgingthe digital divide is the first andmost significant step that shouldbe taken in efforts to have aproperly established ICTframework and infrastructure inNigeria,” he said.

Anyaegbunam said bybanding together the specificgrowth initiatives, stakeholderscould bring a wealth ofknowledge to the people andenrich their lives. “Thesepartnerships are examples of how

reaching across national andcultural boundaries to effectchange is fundamental tosuccessfully bridging the gapsthat separate us from manycountries of the world,” he said.

Anyaebunam said Nigeriastood to experience manypotential benefits bydramatically increasing access topertinent information throughelectronic resources.”The mostnotable benefits include a sharpincrease in the overall quality of

education in schools anduniversities through increasedaccess to the latest researchinformation.

“The residual benefits fromhaving a better educatedpopulace can often include thedevelopment of a more highlyskilled workforce and animproved economy overall.Other benefits include improvedinternational communicationsand relations and greaterstanding in the world of nations,”

he said.The Managing Director said

the government should partnerwith information serviceproviders and other dedicatedorganisations in assisting thenation in various ICT growthinitiatives.

“They should also seek theirassistance in facing thechallenges limiting the uses of ICTin the country, like improving onthe services of the librarycommunities,” he said.

demography, large coastlines,and largest population in thecontinent.

“Nigeria is the seventh largestoil exporting country in the world,a large enterprising population,an innovative banking sector, aGDP growth of 6.6%, which is oneof the best globally; rising foreignreserves which was $44.5 billion,

as at November 2012, excesscrude account of $9.6 billion anda stable polity, bolstered byincreased credibility of theelectoral process. All these formthe major components of theupside in the economy in 2012”he said.

However, Yusuf said thedownside was moreoverwhelming, as the operatingenvironment was generallyadjudged to be unsatisfactory bymany investors.

This, he said had profoundimpact on returns on investmentand profit margins.

“The challenges included weakconsumer demand, cost andaccess to credit, cargo clearingprocesses, transportation costs,especially the collapse of the railsystem; institutional problems,corruption, especially in relationto public sector transactions”.

“Other concerns were theuncertainty and inconsistency inthe policy environment, growinginsecurity, manpower issues andthe relevance of educationalcurriculum to the needs of theeconomy; high level of receivablesacross sectors, power supplychallenges, poor sectoral linkagesand weak commitment to thedevelopment of indigenousenterprise.

He lamented the securityconcerns in the country whichwas a major concern to investorsduring the year, with directconsequences for the economy.

Bothered by the relativelyhigh rate of exclusion of anestimated 39.2 million

Nigerian adult population frommodern financial services acrossthe country, the Central Bankof Nigeria (CBN), pledgedrenewed commitment atlowering the number of thepopulation currently not havingaccess to formal bankingservices.

In its recent financialinclusion roadmap, the apexbank hinted it intends to raisethe bar for extension of provisionof adequate, appropriate andtimely financial services for the39.2 million financiallyexcluded adult Nigerians.

Speaking recently on itsefforts so far, the CBN Governor,Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi,noted that the initiative occupiesa central position in thecountry’s efforts at promotingand achieving rapid economicdevelopment.

Sanusi explained that one ofthe major reasons for the high

rate of financial exclusion inNigeria was inadequateknowledge of the serviceproviders, services provided,terms and conditions and thebenefits derivable fromaccessing financial services.

According to the apex bankboss, the reforms in the bankingsector has so far led to significantreduction of the industry cost –to serve by 30 per cent; whileincreasing access, convenienceand service levels across theindustry.

He stated that the process hasalso enabling greater financialinclusion and integration offinancial services into theeconomy, pointing also that thebank has already prepared theframework for implementingthe tiered Know-Your-Customer(KYC) requirements and theestablishment of a uniqueidentification mechanism for the

financial services sector.The bank pointed out that as

at September 2012, a total of101,154 Point-of-Sale (POSs) and9,676 ATMs had been deployedin Nigeria, while the 20 LicensedMobile Payment Operators,carried out transactions worthover N8 billion, with over40,000 agents across thecountry.

The CBN has said thatglobally, access to financialservices has remained a majorchallenge to development,citing reasons for this state ofaffairs to include: culturalbarriers, low education,unemployment, gender, longdistance to access points, lack ofappropriate means ofidentification and hightransaction costs.

In Nigeria, the rate of adultfinancial exclusion is estimatedat 46.3 per cent, one of the

Financial inclusion countdown: CBNdeploys 101,154 POSs, 9676 ATMs

By Abdulwahab Isa

highest in Sub-Saharan Africa,hence the development of aNational Financial InclusionStrategy (NFIS) by the CBN.

It was also observed thatabout 90 per cent of childrenand youths do not have accessto formal financial serviceseven though 32.1per cent ofworld population is below theage of 18.

Meanwhile, the apex bankhas indicated its commitmentto further enhancing FinancialLiteracy among Nigerianswhich is a process, by whichconsumers/investors improvetheir understanding of financialproducts, concepts and risksthrough information,instruction and/or advice tomake informed choices, knowwhere to go for help, and takeother effective actions toimprove their well-being.

A financial expert, Mr EddieOsarenkhoe, hasattributed the failure of

Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) to repay their loans to thehigh cost of doing business.

Osarenkhoe, a formerPresident of Finance HousesAssociation of Nigeria (FHAN),told the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) at the weekend in Lagos,that the difficulty in doingbusiness had retarded thenation’s tempo of businessactivities.

According to him, it has alsoplaced limitation on the nation’seconomic potential and reducedentrepreneurial skills in thecountry. “The SMEs are thebedrock of any nation that wantsto develop because theycontribute positively to the GrossDomestic Product (GDP).”

Osarenkhoe noted that theSMEs spent huge amounts of

Financial expert blames high businesscost for SMEs loan repayment failure

money to run their generatingsets daily due to instability in thenation’s power supply. He saidthat inadequate power supplyhad an adverse effect on the costof production and made it difficultfor some of the SMEs to pay backtheir loans to financialinstitutions.

“When the SMEs do not payback their loans, there will notbe funds for finance houses to lendto new investors and this affecttheir operations.” Osarenkhoealso said that that lack of fundswould bring about stagnation ofeconomic development and theattendant challenge ofunemployment and poverty.

“For meaningfuldevelopment to be achieved, theFederal Government must giveurgent attention to electricity inorder to have an effective SMEsoperators in the country,’’ hesaid. (NAN)

PAGE 24 PAGE 25PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Red card forFCT councilchairmenBarely a few months to the

Area Council elections inthe Federal Capital

Territory (FCT), Abuja, there isalready an election fever in theair in most of the area councils,even as most residents say theyare not satisfied with theperformance of the incumbentchairmen. Reason? In spite of thehuge funds accruing to thecouncils, both from theFederation accounts and theInternally GeneratedRevenue(IGR), there is hardlyanything to show for the close tothree years these chairmen havebeen in office.

Investigations by PeoplesDaily revealed that the residentsin the council areas are sodisappointed with their rulersthat some have embarked oncampaigns to get the Chairmento account for the funds thatcame their ways these past yearsas there is no evidence to showthat they were put to proper usethat will benefit the people.

For instance in Bwari AreaCouncil, it’s been glaring that thenon-performance of the PeterYohnna-led administration inthe last two years plus irks thepeople. For over one year now,residents of Dutse and Kubwa, acommunity in Bwari AreaCouncil have been staging publicprotests in condemnation of thedeplorable state of roads in thetown and environs. While theregime gets huge fortune asallocations to it from theFederation Accounts, severalcommunities in the council donot feel any governmentpresence.

The worst hit appears to bepeople living in somecommunities like Kurudu,

Kwakwa, Gasakpa, Kubwa,Dutse, Kutunku, under thevarious area council but there isno motor able road. During rainyseason, residents of thesecommunities go through hellmoving from their dwelling

as the only electricitytransformer given to them canno long service the increasingpopulation here.

Recently the Federal CapitalTerritory Administration(FCTA) shared the sum of N1.786

before being able to link up withother parts of the land.

Apart from the issue of non-availability of roads, theinhabitants of this sereneenvironment have also becomeused to perpetual power outage

Councils. But, alas, she might aswell have talked to stones. Takea look at Kuduru in Bwari AreaCouncil of the FCT, for example.The residents had earlier decriedthe lack of medical facility in thearea; the health centre is in amess up till date, despite all thefortune at the councikl’s disposal.

It would be recalled that theonly health centre in the villagewas inaugurated on May 16,2011 and was yet to beginoperations. The CommunityLeader, Mr Peter Ade, said thepeople trekked several kilometresto get medical attention at BwariGeneral Hospital. It was alsorevealed that people usuallyspend more than an hour to getmedical attention, as a result ofwhich many lives have been lost.

According to him: “The clinic

2012 budget for equipment,drugs and medical personnel tothe centre. He said efforts are onto replace some fittings that werevandalised at the centre. Gojipledged to visit the four healthfacilities at Ushafa, Shere, Kawuand Igu, to assess the problems soas to activate them for the benefitof residents.

Also some resident inKwakwa Community in AbajiArea Council have also expressedconcern over the learningconditions of pupils in thecommunity. The Village Head ofKwakwa Sarki Dauda Jataulamented that the people of thecommunity are always at thereceiving end, despite the factthat they vote en-mass forpoliticians but at the end they areforgotten. He alleged that thecommunity has been neglectedby successive government of thecouncil, adding that they lackbasic amenities.

Still in the same Abajicouncil, Gasakpa Communitythrough the spokesman of thecommunity, Malam SaiduYahaya lamented over thedeplorable road linking thecommunity with Gawu village.Residents of the communityhardly ply the road especiallyduring the rainy season, asmajority of the inhabitants arefarmers who suffer a lot.

share $1,597,048.73 from theExcess Crude Account.

The Minister of State for FCTand Chairperson of FCT AreaCouncils Joint AccountAllocation Committee (JAAC),Olajumoke Akinjide, confirmedthis in Abuja during theCommittee’s meeting attendedby the chairmen of the AreaCouncils – Abaji, AbujaMunicipal, Bwari, Gwagwalada,Kuje and Kwali. The Ministerdisclosed that the sum of N1.576billion revenue allocation wasreceived from FAAC for themonth of July 2012 for the FCTArea Councils while N170.32million was received from theFederal Ministry of Finance asthe Area Councils’ share of theSURE-P for May, June and July2012.

The six area councils alsoshared N39.904 million being10 per cent of the FCTA’sInternally Generated Revenue(IGR) for August 2012, bringingthe total revenue allocation toN1.616 billion.

Out of this, the FCTAdisbursed N817.41 million to theFCT Universal Basic EducationBoard (UBEB) for primary schoolteachers in the six area councils;N95.04 million to FCT AreaCouncils Pension Board (ACPB)being 15 per cent pension fund asstatutorily required, and N16.16

billion among its six AreaCouncils, being funds receivedfrom the Federation Account andthe Subsidy Reinvestment andEmpowerment Programme(SURE-P). The six FCT AreaCouncils are also expected to

($219,307.96,” she explained.On the SURE-P funds,

Akinjide advised the area councilchairmen that the money shouldbe put in a dedicated account andutilized for wealth creation andcritical infrastructuredevelopment in their areacouncils. Out of the N170.321received for the months of May,June and July 2012, AMAC gotN50.314 million, Bwari(N27.866 million),Gwagwalada (N25.503 million),Kwali (N23.388 million), Kuje(N22.350 million) and Abaji(N20.89 million).

She enjoined the Chairmen ofthe Area Councils to adopt theperformance contractagreement model in order todeliver democratic dividends tothe residents of their respective

FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed

million to FCT Area CouncilsService Commission being oneper cent training fund, alsostatutorily required.

The balance of the revenueallocation of N687.50 millionwas disbursed to the AreaCouncils, with Abuja MunicipalArea Council (AMAC) receivingthe lion’s share of N135.02million. According to theminister, the sum of N125.75million was distributed toGwagwalada Area Council,N123.51 million to Bwari AreaCouncil, N102.86 million toAbaji Area Council, N101.10million to Kwali Area Council,and N99.23 million to KujeArea Council.

On the excess crude sharing,she stated that the sum of $1billion would be shared amongthe three tiers of government,out of which $1.597 million wasfor the FCT Area Councils. “Thisamount will be paid by theCentral bank of Nigeria (CBN)in naira at the prevailingexchange rate on the day ofpayment. The FCT AreaCouncils were allocated the sumof $1,597,048.73 and allocatedas follows: Abaji ($195,949.51);Abuja Municipal($471,781.54); Bwari($261,296.03); Gwagwalada($239,138.68); Kuje($209,575.01), and Kwali

has been there since early lastyear and since it is not in use,lizards and snakes have made ittheir home, while the wholebuilding is over grown withweeds.’’ Ade, who is also abusinessman, blamed the areacouncil administration forneglecting the centre, even as hesuggested that it could assist byequipping the health centre withsome basic drugs for the people.

The security man at thecentre, Mr. Danjuma Ali toldjournalists that the place hadbecome haven for reptiles as theyroamed around unhindered. “Iintend to see the councilchairman for some money to cutthe grass, I cannot stay here withsnakes around,” he said.

Mr Samuel Agbor, who ownsa block industry adjacent to thecentre, said that the last time anofficial of the council visited thehealth centre was in February2012. He claimed that theofficial were there to take stock ofitems allegedly stolen from thefacility after it was burgled.Agbor reportedly foiled manyattempted burglaries at theabandoned health centre; heurged the local council to equip itso as to start offering medicalservices to residents.

The council’s Head of Health,Dr Goji Sunday, said thatprovisions had been made in the

“The six area councils also sharedN39.904 million being 10 per cent of

the FCTA’s Internally GeneratedRevenue (IGR) for August 2012,

bringing the total revenue allocationto N1.616 billion

The performances of Area Council chairmen in the FCT are, in the viewsof many residents, criminally poor. Adeola Tukuru mirrors the situation.

PAGE 26 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

08028402920sbejike@gmail.com

Nigeria: Harmonization ofcybercrime law and methods

issues of embedding the NigerianCybercrime Framework, with therest of the Internationalcommunity. Thus, in crafting a

Nigerian national Cybercrimepolicy, areas like adaption ofInternet Laws with domesticlaws, harmonization with foreignand regional laws, harmonizationwith International Lawenforcement practice,involvement of private sector andinvestigative and LawEnforcement collaboration

must be given consideration:In a September 19, 2000 speech,by Kevin DiGregory, a DeputyAssistant Attorneys General inthe Criminal Division at the U.S.Department of Justice inWashington, D.C. noted that,“Harmonization of the lawsdefining criminal behavior is notenough. To enforce substantivecomputer crime laws, lawenforcement authorities alsoneed appropriate tools fordetecting and investigating suchunlawful activities. Manycriminal cases today areinvestigated and solved throughelectronic evidence, which ishighly perishable, and can beeasily deleted or modified fromhalf-a-world away”.

There is therefore a need forNigeria, in the construction of itsCybercrime efforts, to include onethat recognizes a model thatincorporates not onlyharmonization issues of Law, butalso a

framework for an effective LawEnforcement Program thatreflects harmonization of LawEnforcement methods. EoghanCasey, suggests in Chapter 4 of hisbook (Digital Evidence and

Computer Crime: ForensicScience, Computers, and theInternet), that digital evidence

processing can beaccomplished within the efforts ofthe following groups:

A) Digital Crime SceneTechnicians: Individualsresponsible for gathering data ata crime scene should have basictraining in evidence handling anddocumentation as well as in basiccrime reconstruction to help themlocate all available sources ofevidence on a network.

B) Digital EvidenceExaminers: Individualsresponsible for analysis ofparticular kinds of digitalevidence require specializedtraining and certification in theirarea.

C) Digital Investigators:Individuals responsible for theoverall investigation shouldreceive a general training but donot need very specializedtraining or certification.Investigators are also

responsible forreconstructing the actionsrelating to a crime usinginformation from firstresponders and forensicexaminers to create a morecomplete picture forinvestigators and attorneys.

( h t t p : / / w w w . c o r p u s -delicti.com/fs_bookstore/decc/decc2-introduction.html).

Finally, an effective NigerianCybercrime program, mustinclude, the harmonization oflaw, Law Enforcement techniqueand methods, and an adaptivetechnological research program.

Culled from NigeriaVillage Square Website

Generally, CybercrimeCriminal jurisdictionscover transnational

dimensions. A 419 Email letterthat originates from Nigeria, andclaims a victim elsewhere in theworld, might not only violate theterritorial laws of Nigeria, but alsothose of the victim. If it does notviolate Internationaljurisdictional regions, evidencetrails, for this example, might befound on the electronic pathwayof several International States.Thus, to be effective, there is clearindication from Cybercrimeexperts around the world, that theharmonization of laws, and theharmonization of lawenforcement practices, provides aclearer framework for anyeffective State sponsored Anti-Cybercrime effort.

In an article by Phil Williamstitled, “Organized Crime andCybercrime: Synergies, trends andresponses”, he writes,“Harmonization is necessary forboth substantive and procedurallaws.

All countries have toreappraise and revise rules ofevidence, search and seizure,electronic eavesdropping, and thelike to cover digitized information,modern computer andcommunication systems, and theglobal nature of the Internet.Greater coordination ofprocedural laws, therefore, wouldfacilitate cooperation ininvestigations that cover multiplejurisdictions.”

In short, there is a need forCybercrime Laws of one Nation,to be reciprocal with others. Toyield, criminal prosecution, a 419Email that finds it’s victim on the

other side of the Atlantic, must notonly be criminal in Nigeria, butalso, at the jurisdictional State ofthe victim.

Furthermore, the Frameworkfor investigating these criminalactivities must be a coordinatedeffort of International LawEnforcement activities. In thesame paper, Phil Williams wentfurther to note that, “In additionto appropriate laws, it is alsoimportant that governments andlaw enforcement agencies developthe capacity for implementation ofthese laws. This requires thedevelopment of expertise in thearea of cybercrime as well aseffective information sharingacross agencies within a countryand across national borders.

Moreover, this sharing has togo beyond traditional lawenforcement bodies to includenational security and intelligenceagencies. It is also essential tocreate specialized lawenforcement units to deal withcybercrime issues at the nationallevel. Such units can also providea basis for both formalinternational cooperation andinformal cooperation based ontransnational networks of trustamong law enforcement agents.Ad hoc cooperation andmultinational task forces

can both prove particularlyuseful and there are already caseswhere international cooperationhas been very effective. Indeed,successful cooperation can breedemulation and further success.”

Hence, as the NigerianPresidential Committee onCybercrime, deliberates onCybercrime Policy issues, duecare must be taken to address the

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in routine check at a cybercafe

Diamond Bank Plc has beendragged before an AbujaHigh Court for allegedly failing

to honour customers’ cheques.The Plaintiffs, Cashflow Abi

Network limited, Cashfow Abi Nig.Ltd. and Philemon Ibrahim Gora havedragged the bank to court for breachof contract.

In their statement of claim filed atthe court, the Plaintiffs averred thatone of their business associatecommitted suicide recently in EbonyiState, “because of her funds that is tieddown with the 1st and 2nd Plaintiffsowing to the action of the Defendant.”

They averred that the 1st Plaintiff’saccount number is 0021877679; the2nd Plaintiff’s account number is0025974291, and the 3rd Plaintiff’saccount number is 0023944234,adding that the 3rd Plaintiff is the alterego of the 1st Plaintiff and thecoordinator of the 2nd Plaintiff.

According to the statement ofclaim, the 3rd Plaintiff moved to Abujasometime in July, 2012 to set up officesfor the 1st and 2nd Plaintiffs and thatfrom the 27th day of July, 2012, allefforts made by the 3rd Plaintiff toaccess his account in different branchesof the Defendant in Abuja provedabortive.

They further claimed that severalcheques of the Plaintiffs issued inrespect of rents and professional legalfees were not honoured by any of theDiamond bank branches in Abuja.

Cheques issued to businessassociates of the Plaintiffs in Abujawere returned without beinghonoured by any of the Diamond bankbranches in Abuja.

They pleaded the dishonouredcheques before the court and said theywill rely upon them during trial.

The Plaintiffs further claimed thatthe only thing the Defendant’sbranches in Abuja have told them isthe reason for not honouring theircheques is that their accounts are onPND (Post No Debit), saying thatnobody has given them any reasonwhy their accounts are on PND.

They further stressed that theyhave not been served with any noticeor order from an administrative orjudicial body.

The Plaintiffs stated that, “Thissituation has pitched the Plaintiff’sbusiness associates/creditorsagainst the Plaintiffs individuallyand collectively.

“The Plaintiffs have lost severalbusiness opportunities andincurred several liabilities while inAbuja owing to their not beinggiven access to their funds in theiraccounts with the Defendant.

“The Plaintiffs have been put ina position by the Defendant wherethey cannot pay their staff salaries.

“The 3rd Plaintiff has beenmade to suffer hardship to theextent that he cannot take care ofthe needs of his immediate familyand those of his aged parents whoall depend and rely on him; thereason being his being deprived ofthe use of his legitimate funds withthe Defendant”, they added.

Hearing in the case comes up todayat an Abuja High Court 20 in Apo,sitting before Justice Jamil Y. Tukur.

Customers slamN1bn suitagainstDiamond BankBy Sunday Ejike Benjamin

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

addition 8 percent of yourbasic salary added to yoursalary. If you are a teacherserving in rural schools in theFCT, you equally have 12percent added to your salarybecause you are serving inrural location of the FCT.

We try as much as we canto ensure that we don’t oweteachers’ salaries and paythem as at when due. Teacherswho want to obtain soft loansfrom their banks to own theirhouses are also considered, wesign for them after due processto enable them obtain a softloan up to N1million from theirbanks.

There is the problem ofghost teachers and ghostschools in some states. Doyou have such challenge inUBEC schools in the FCT?

Not only in FCT UniversalBasic Education Board schoolsbut it is difficult in the entireEducation Secretariat of theFCT to find a ghost teacher.Salaries are centrally paid inthe FCT and before any body’sname is shortlisted forpayment of personalemolument, that person musthave been biometricallycaptured at the FCTAEstablishment and TrainingDepartment. There is no wayyour salary can be paid andbefore you do that all yourdocuments must be genuine.

One of the majorobjectives of UBEC is toensure that every Nigerianchild have access to qualityand free education. Wouldyou then say that thatobjective has beenachieved?

Yes, the FCT is one of theboards that have achieved theobjectives and goals set up bythe Universal Basic Educationprogramme. In the FCT thereare schools that are located inthe most remote part of thecity and there are teachersthere too. We make educationaccessible in all nook andcrannies of the FCT. So, I wouldsay that FCT has achievedthat goal to a great extent butthat does not mean that we donot have some challengesespecially as we expandschools, recruit more teachers,buy more instructionalmaterials, train and re-trainmore teachers and makelearning environment morechild friendly for our pupilsand students. As we expand,more financial needs arerequired to meet up with ourchallenges and that is why we

open doors for people who arewilling to come and partnerwith us to make oureducational services betterthan what we have now.

For now, we have 525public primary schools andyou know a new academicsession commenced somemonths ago, therefore, theLocal Education Authority areyet to give us the list of newprimary schools they haveestablished in their respectiveareas this academic session. Weare adding 9 new secondaryschools making it 927 junior

FCT UBEB has achievedits goals – UBEB

secondary schools in the city.So, you can see we are going tohave about 137 juniorsecondary schools in the FCT.

Apart from financialconstraint, what are theother challenges you face?

The major constraint isfinance. For instance, if aschool does not have enoughteachers and instructionalmaterials, it all boils down tofinance. So, everything boilsdown to the availability offunds. We have some moneybut it is not enough to meet upwith the demanding

challenges. You know that theworld is now ICT compliantand we are trying to see howwe can introduce E- educationin the FCT which is capitalintensive because you have toensure that the ICT facilitiesare provided d in the city aswell as tackle the issue ofsecurity to ensure that theyare not stolen or vandalisewhich also has to do withmoney. The challenges areenormous.

The free booksdistributed by UBEC toprimary school pupils in theFCT do not go round thechildren. What is the boarddoing to ensure that everychild gets what is due tohim?

When you look at thenumber of pupils we have inall our schools within the cityyou will see that the numberof books produced cannot goround all the schools which iswhy some pupils get thestipulated number of text bookswhile others get less or don’teven get because every daypupils are admitted into theschools.

Although the books aremarked it is still possible thatthey may end up in the marketbecause the contract for theproduction of the books aregiven to different publishinghouses to produce for statesand assuming a publisher isasked to produce 40,000 booksand during the production, thepublisher may decide toproduce 50-60,000 copieswhich means he will be leftwith additional 1,000 or 2,000copies and you know they aremarked strictly for FCT. Hecannot sell them in FCT but tosend them to book vendors whowill sell them to privateschools. But states sell UBECbooks. The books are reviewedafter every 3years, after thenthey become invalid and thosepeople sell them but in the FCTteachers know the implicationof selling those books.

Why do teachers andstudents prefer to go to FCTUBEC schools?

They go to UBEC schools forquality and accessibleeducation. In FCT UBEBschools, the minimumqualification you get amongthe teachers is NCE and that isin primary schools while in ourjunior and secondary schoolswe have graduates, Master’sdegree holders and even PhDholders as well as in our seniorsecondary schools.

PAGE 27

You are recentlyposted to the FCTUniversal Basic

Education Board (UBEB) asa director. What are yourplans for the Board?

My major objective is tomove the board forward byimproving the quality ofservices it render to the generalpublic particularly how I canbetter the lot of FCT children.

Some SUBEB have beenassociated with the problemof corruption as alleged insome states that moniesmeant for UBEC projectswere not judiciously spentfor that purpose. Whatmakes the FCT differenteven though there have beensimilar insinuations in somequarters?

As far as FCT basiceducation is concerned, FCTUBEB has no cases of corruptionbecause when it comes to UBEfunds, there are a lot of checksand balances on how the fundsare spent. Before UBE funds areexpended action plans aretagged with specificprogramme and projects withspecific funds attached to themas well as action plans are takento UBEC to scrutinise anddefend it by us. It is when FCTUBEB convinces UBEC that thecommission approves suchaction plans for such monies tobe spent and as soon as suchaction plans are approved andmonies are released for theexecution of those projects,UBEC follows such fundsreligiously to make sure thatthe purpose for which suchfunds are released are equallyused.

Secondly, you know FCTalso operate like a state, theadministration is equally astake holder in such funds toensure that they arejudiciously spent for thepurpose they are meant for.The FCTA as anadministration, when youcome to FCT EducationSecretariat through its ownmachineries equally follow, atthe board level we check howfunds are spent. We havegroups that go and checkprojects we execute.

At the board level we haveour works department that isthe Physical Project Planningand Implementation Division,the Audit, Procurement Unitand as a director I have myown secrete unit that goes outto verify projects that areexecuted before such files willbe treated for payment.

We will try as much as wecan to reduce to the barestminimum the issue ofcorruption if at all there iscorruption in the UBEB.

How do the UBEB bridgethe gap between the urbanand rural teachers?

FCT teachers in thecountry are the most well paidbecause they enjoy the federalsalary teachers’ structure;secondly, in FCT we have twosalary structures. If you are ateacher serving in any of theschools in the city center, youare paid in addition to yournormal salary andallowances; you have in

Mr. Adamu Jatau Noma

Adamu Jatau Noma is the director of FCT Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB). In thisinterview with Maryam Garba Hassan and Zainab Yahaya Khandi, he speaks extensivelyon the activities of FCT UBEB schools, the newly established junior secondary schools in thecity, and the achievements of UBEC schools in the city among others. Excerpts:

“We are adding 9 new secondaryschools making it 927 junior

secondary schools in the city. So,you can see we are going to have

about 137 junior secondaryschools in the FCT

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2012PAGE 28

Chairman, Katsina StateUniversal Basic EducationBoard (SUBEB), Alhaji

Suleiman Dikko, has disclosedthat the State Government hasrecruited 3, 400 primary schoolteachers in 2012. According tohim, the recruitment was part ofefforts to reduce teachers’ shortfallin public primary schools in thestate.

He said100 teachers wererecruited for schools in each of the34 Local Government Areas of thestate adding that the new teachershad helped in reducing work loadon serving teachers therebyenhancing service efficiency inthe schools.

Dikko said that governmenthad during the period purchasedtextbooks and furniture worthN431.2 million and that morethan N545.7 million was alsospent on developing the capacitiesof teachers in the state.

The Chairman who called onwealthy individuals andorganisations to complementgovernment effort in thepromotion of basic education inthe state, said the aim was toimprove teaching and learning inthe schools.

Katsinarecruited 3,400teachers in 2012

The Veterinary Council ofNigeria (VCN) hasapproved the

commencement of clinicaltraining for students of theFaculty of Veterinary Medicine,University of Abuja.

A statement issued yesterdayin Abuja by Malam Waziri Garba,the institution’s Information

Officer, said that the approvalfollowed a visit to the institutionby the VCN’s AccreditationCommittee in December, 2012.

According to the statement,the approval is contained in aletter written by VCN to theuniversity adding that Prof.James Adelabu, the university’sVice-Chancellor, had alsocommended VCN for theapproval.

VCN approves clinical training forUniAbuja’s veterinary medicine students

“This is a major breakthroughin the accreditation of theinstitution’s Faculty of VeterinaryMedicine,”Adelabu said.

The statement furtherdisclosed that the final visit by thecouncil would be when the firstset of students in the faculty wouldbe sitting for their 600 levelexaminations.

It recalled that anaccreditation visit had earlier in

Cross River Govt spends N1.2bn onlaboratory equipment in 60 schoolsThe Commissioner for

Education in Cross River,Prof. Offiong Offiong, has

said that the State Governmentspent N1.2 billion on theprovision of laboratoryequipment in 60 Schools in2012. Offiong told the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inCalabar that the expenditurewas in consonance with the StateGovernment’s resolve to providequalitative education to thepeople. He said that the 60schools was the first phase of thegovernment’s effort tocomprehensively renovateschools in the 18 LocalGovernment areas.

He said 40 of the benefitting

schools had been equipped withthe laboratory facilities.

“The contract to equip theschools covers Physics,Chemistry, Biology andComputer laboratories and thevalue is N1.2 billion,” he said.

The commissioner said thatthe government had alsoprovided tables, chairs andtwin-desks for teachers in theschools at the cost of N340million adding that 41 schoolswould benefit in the secondphase and that Gov. Liyel Imoke

had approved funds for theproject.

According to him, “In theministry, we have concluded thepre-qualification of contractorsfor the projects under the schemeand we hope to award thecontracts soon’. He, therefore,appealed to schools andcommunities that were yet tobenefit to be patience, stressingthat all schools in the state wouldreceive the same attention.

Offiong announced that theministry had set up

L-R: Ministerof State forEducation,BarristerEzenwoNyesomWike, andChairman,Committeeon NationalTeachersHousingScheme,MalamShehu Aliyu,during thepresentationof thecommittee'sreport to theminister,recently inAbuja.

Photo:Justin Imo-Owo

By Maryam Garba Hassan October 2012 been paid to theCollege of Health Sciences by theMedical and Dental Council ofNigeria (MDCN) and that theNigerian UniversitiesCommission (NUC) had alsoconducted resource verificationvisit to the Faculty of Engineeringof the university in November2012 adding that the universitywas awaiting the reports of MDCNand NUC.

Mr. Raphael Saka, theChairman NasarawaState House of Assembly’s

Committee on Education, onyesterday in Lafia decried the lowlevel of school enrolment of the girl-child in the North. Saka said therewas the need to address theimbalance if Nigeria must attainits set target of Education For All(EFA) by year 2015.

‘’It is only in the North thatpeople are forced to go school,especially the females. It is a hardsell convincing parents that a girlshould be educated first beforegetting married. “If you say youwant all to be educated by 2015,how feasible is that when a part ofthe country is educationallybackward?’’ he asked.

The lawmaker, who attributedthe development to the poorattitude of people towardseducation, urged the governmentto embark on monitoring andsupervision in the school systemsaying that without propermonitoring of policyimplementation, no matter theamount of money allocated to thesector, it would be a waste ofresources.

He said the state on its part waspaying the required attention toeducation through policies thatcontinued to encourage students,teachers and parents. “Parents inthis state are lucky because theydo not have to worry aboutpayment of registration fees forfinal year examinations, becausegovernment now pays for itsindigenes’ NECO examination.

“Indigenes are now given a fairchance on admission, andeducation is second on the state’sbudget allocation, the lawmakersaid.

Lawmaker decrieslow level of girl-child enrolment inthe North

Maintenance Committees inpublic schools to ensure thatfacilities were regularlymaintained and their utilitysustained. He also said that theministry had embarked oncapacity building programmefor school Inspectors, adding nofewer than 212 of them weretrained in 2012.

He added that 3,508 teacherswere also trained under theTeachers ProfessionalDevelopment scheme in thestate. (NAN)

NUT hails implementation of N18,000 wageThe Nigerian Union of

Teachers (NUT) in Kebbi onFriday commended the

government for theimplementation of the N18,000minimum wage for its membersin State.

The Chairman of the union,Malam Danlami Ribah, madethe commendation during aninterview with the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbi.

He said that theimplementation of the new wagewould encourage the members toimprove their output, especiallyin external examinations.

``With good salary andwelfare, teachers will improvethe standard of education,especially at the primary level,’’he said.

He however decried the delayin the implementation of the new

wage and the payment of arrearsbut added that the union wouldcontinue to work toward thedevelopment of education.

The NUT chairman called forimprovement in the provision ofmodern learning and teachingmaterials. ``Our membersrequire regular training andcourses on how to improve theirperformance. ``Teachers areexpected to prepare their lessons

for the pupils, be punctual andremain dedicated to duty.’’.

Ribah called for the correctionof anomalies during theimplementation of the new wage,especially the omission of namesof some of the members in BirninKebbi and Argungu LocalGovernment areas. ``The namesof those omitted have beencomplied and we hope they wouldbe paid promptly.’’ (NAN)

PAGE 29PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Kaduna state being one of thehigh polio prevalent states resolved during the last

Immunisation Plus Days (IPDs), torelinquish the title by introducingvarious initiatives to battlepoliomyelitis.

In Kaduna North localgovernment, all concerned officialswere all out to test the result ofvarious intervention programsthey have put in place.

Despite the implementationcoinciding with the death of formerstate governor, Ibrahim Yakowa,the stakeholders includingvaccinators did not relent incarrying out the importantassignment of ridding the state ofpolio disease.

The death of the governor didnot cause any setback in the IPDprogram as the state had alreadyset its plans and machineries inmotion.

According toMallamKabirYahaya Ahmed,Local Immunisation Officer,Kaduna North Primary HealthCare, four tools have beendesigned, tested and have so farbeen yielding good results.

The tools include, compounddialogue, community dialogue,town hall meetings and finally thefilm show (Majigi show).

Explaining the fourinnovations, he said, “We havecompound dialoguewhich is houseto house dialogue, here we discuss,ask questions, make clarifications,allow people to ask their ownquestions and finally, clear theirdoubts.

“InCommunity dialogue, wemove the discussion from onesettlement to another and peoplegather to listen to us and they alsotell us what their feelings are aboutthe immunization exercise.

Town hall meetings give us theopportunity to invite religiousleaders, traditional leaders, NGOs,market women and youths. We dohave open discussion with thesecategories of people so they can tellus sincerely where the problem is.

“The film show is a film thatconvinced people beyond anyreasonable doubt due to the realityof the film. The people could seelive, what became of a child thatwas denied immunization, how thechild could not compare with hispeer. Even for those that don’t havechildren, it is not only what youread in papers but what is shownlive in film; the true life storytouched any soul that watched it.”

According to Kabir, peoplereallyneed to speak out on whatthe problem of polio is rather thangiving unfounded excuses. “Theyneed to tell us where the problemis, they keep saying too manyrounds, it is not a reason so we aretaking pains to visit them to showthem we are parts and parcel ofthem and honestly, it has yieldedgood result,” he declared.

He said the district heads in thelocal government have been veryhelpful, “We go out as a team; thatis the taskforce members,whenever there is no compliance,they follow us and seeing suchcaliber of people living in tow withus, it goes a long way to boostconfidence in people.

However, some of the peoplebelieve that the district heads areinto what can be described asdouble-faced attitude. According to

Polio: Kaduna recordsimprovement with film shows

a resident of MagajinGari area inKaduna North who pleadedanonymous, the district heads areinto the canvassing process due towhat they stand to lose or gain ifthey fail to comply.

He said, “Most of them are insupport in public but within theirhouseholds, they refuse to allowvaccinators immunize theirwards.”

MallamKabir however pleadedwith parents and guardians aliketo take health as number onepriority of by welcominggovernment health initiativesespecially as it concernseradication of polio.

He said,”Health should benumber one agenda of any rightthinking society, governmentcannot do everything, and wedon’t have to convince peoplethrough provision of socialamenities before we administerhealth since health should comefirst.”

According to him,

By A’ishaBiolaRaji

enlightenment of the mind playsmajor role in conquering themenace of polio and other healthissues. “For those that areenlightened,they always knowthey are part of thegovernment,”Most of theseproblems we are having are self-inflicted problems because of lackof personal hygiene.

“There were lots of infectiousdiseases before which today, theyare no more.We tell people that,health is government’s priorityfollowed by education, hence theneed to join hands withgovernment in achieving a poliofree nation,” he called.

He said the problem of polio inKaduna state is mainly due to thecentrality of the state, “Most of theviruses are being imported as mostpeople like to come into the statehence the need to immunizechildren wherever and whenevereven when they are on transit.”

On why it had taken so long forthe state to come up with the four

intervention programs, Kabir saidthe four programs had always beenthere but not properly utilized.“Before now, they were notproperly utilized. There is need toget committed people, need tomotivate them and the support tocarry it out. In this round, we haveexplored the whole horizons and itwill be better than other roundswe had. We are seeing the impactalready,” he said.

He however urged theleadership of National PrimaryHealth Care Development Agency(NPHCDA) to expand the coldchain system in the localgovernment. He said, “We haveat least 5,000 ice packs and lots ofrefrigerators which should occupylarger space than what we haveright now.”

According to him, there is abuilding that is under constructionwithin the PHC facility. “Thebuilding under construction wasstarted by the local governmentauthority for ante-natal care. “If it

can be completed by the agency, itcan be converted to a cold chainwith permission from the localgovernment authority,” he urged.

Speaking with the HealthEducator and Social MobilisationOfficer, Mrs. Amina YusufDantsoho, the four advocacyprograms were successful throughboth moral and financial supportfrom policy. “We have newleadership now at localgovernment level due to the justconcluded election; they releasetheir councilors and seniorsupervisors to go on supervisionduring immunization rounds. Forinstance, the Chairman, KadunaNorth Local Government, MallamSamaila Sulaiman chairs thetaskforce meeting,” she said.

According to her, thecommunity dialogue has hadpositive impact in high risksettlements like Ngwan Shekarain Badarawa ward, Hayin Banki,Ngwan Shanu and Rafin Guza inKawo ward.” Here, our DistrictHeads, youths and leaders areworking together to achieve samegoal.”

She said the four innovationsare yielding a positive result whichwas exemplified at the flag-offceremony of the IPD. “Only duringflag off, we were able to immunizeabout 190 children. The hostilityfrom people has become a thing ofthe past.”

She said letters were alsodistributed to churches, Quranicschools and mosques where theleaders there are expected to makeannouncements to thecongregation and students. “Theyhave also been complying withus,” she recalled.

Also in an interview, Dr.RabiuAbubakarYaro, Director,Primary Health Care KadunaNorth local government, he saidthe majority of people living in thelocal government are elites so theyusually take their children to clinicfor routine immunization againstwild polio virus.

He however agreed that, therehad been improvement in the IPDcampaign. “We have intensifiedour effort so that, there is progresseven though we have problemshere and there.”

Dr. Rabiu called for timelyrelease of fund duringimplementation; at least two weeksbefore the exercise. “If the fund isreadily available, it will go a longway in realizing our mandate butsometimes we start the exercisewithout anything on ground this isour biggest challenge,” he pleaded.

He said the PHCdo enjoysupport from major stakeholderslike WHO, UNICEF and so on,”theyhave been helpful in tackling mostof our challenges.”

With the feat that was recordedin Kaduna especially KadunaNorth local government area,there is need for the stategovernment to look into thesecurity challenges being facedcontinually by vaccinators andfocal persons at Zaria, BirninGwari. Here focal persons find itdifficult to move freely.

PAGE 30 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Electrical current altersspeed at which brainneurons fire, relieving

pain,it releases painkillers thathave similar properties toopiates such as morphine,reduced pain of chronicheadaches by 37 per cent overfour weeks and long-termexposure could reduce theamount of medication needed.

Scientists have managed torelease the body’s most powerfulpainkillers by running anelectrical current through thebrain.

The breakthrough hasprovided hope for sufferers ofchronic migraine after it wasfound to reduce the pain of aheadache by up to 37 per cent.

The technique, known asdeep brain stimulation, or Transcranial direct currentstimulation (tDCS), alters thespeed at which the brain’sneurons fire. This, in turn, canrelieve pain.

The painkillers released bythe brain were endogenousopioids, the human body’s mostpowerful, euphoria-inducingpainkillers that are very similarto opiates such as morphine.

The new research, conductedat the University of Michigan,found that just a very smallcurrent of two milliamps was

Headache: Electric shock to the rescue

enough to have the effect.Thirteen patients with

chronic migraine, defined as

By Anna Hodgekiss

least 15 attacks a month hadelectrodes, were placed abovethe motor cortex, the part of the

brain responsible for voluntarymovement.

After 10 sessions over fourweeks, the average person’s painthreshold had increased by 37per cent after four weeks.

The effects were cumulativeand kicked in after about fourweeks of treatment, saidAlexandre DaSilva, assistantProfessor at the U-M School ofDentistry and lead author of thestudy, which appears in thejournal Headache.

“This suggests that repetitivesessions are necessary to revertingrained changes in the brainrelated to chronic migrainesuffering,” he said, adding thatstudy participants had anaverage history of almost 30years of migraine attacks.

By boosting the release ofnatural painkillers, it is hopedchronic migraine suffererswould be less reliant onmedication, therefore reducingthe side effects and the risk ofaddiction.

Other studies have shownthat stimulation of this part ofthe brain reduces chronic pain.However, this study providedthe first known mechanisticevidence that tDCS of the motorcortex might work as anongoing preventive therapy incomplex, chronic migrainecases, where attacks are morefrequent and resilient to

conventional treatments,DaSilva said.

While the results areencouraging, any clinicalapplication is a long way off,DaSilva said. “This is apreliminary report,” he said.“With further research,noninvasive motor cortexstimulation can be in the futureof adjuvant therapy for chronicmigraine and other chronicpain disorders by recruiting ourown brain analgesic resources.”

The research, performed inconjunction with scientists fromHarvard University and theCity College of the CityUniversity of New York, alsotracked the electric current flowthrough the brain to learn howthe therapy affected differentregions.

This was done using a high-resolution computational model.They correctly predicted thatthe electric current would gowhere directed by the electrodesplaced on the subject’s head, butthe current also flowed throughother critical regions of the brainassociated with how we perceiveand modulate pain.

“Previously, it was thoughtthat the electric current wouldonly go into the most superficialareas of the cortex,” “We foundthat pain-related areas verydeep in the brain could betargeted,” DaSilva said.

Arup Indra, an associateprofessor in the OSU College ofPharmacy said, “In thesestudies, we have basicallyshown that inadequate Ctip2 isreducing the lipids in skin thatit needs to stay healthy, protectitself and perform its function.

“At the same time, this canallow unwanted formation ofproteins that trigger

inflammation.“The skin’s ability to resist

inflammation is going down justas the amount of inflammationis going up, and the underlyingreason is that Ctip2 is not doingits job. Either or both of theseproblems can lead to eczema.”

The condition, characterisedby dry, itchy red skin, is nowestimated to affect up to 20 per

cent of school children and upto 10 per cent of adults.

There is also a growing bodyof research indicating it may belinked to food or pollen allergens.

Atopic dermatitis isassociated with a dysfunctionalimmune response, butresearchers have neverunderstood the underlyingcause. Existing treatments use

Protein known as Ctip2controls body fats thatkeep skin cells healthy

and hydrated.In people witheczema, it may malfunction,causing the characteristic dry,red, itchy skin,findings paveway for new treatments, sayresearchers.

The main genetic cause of acommon type of eczema hasbeen discovered by scientists,leading to hopes of freshtreatment.

Researchers at Oregon StateUniversity found the condition,which affects millions aroundthe world with dry, itchy andinflamed skin lesions, can betriggered by a malfunctioningprotein known as Ctip2.

It was already known thatthe Ctip2 controls body fatsthat keep skin healthy andhydrated, but researchers havenow discovered that if theprotein is not performingproperly, it can cause atopicdermatitis, a common type ofeczema.

Eczema allows significantloss of fluids through the skin,allowing allergens to penetrate.

The findings, published inscience journal PLoS ONE, maypave the way for newapproaches to helping sufferersof eczema, which is difficult totreat and has no known cure,researchers claim.

moisturisers to try to protectskin, and in difficult cases,powerful steroid drugs can help,but they often have significantunwanted side effects,especially in long-term use.

Most people outgrow it asthey reach adulthood, but somesuffer from the condition theirentire life.

Mr. Indra added, “Our skinis the largest organ in thehuman body and one of the mostimportant.

“It’s our first barrier ofdefense, is in a constant battleagainst external insults, isinfluenced by both genetics andthe environment, and has to befinely tuned to do many jobs. Ineczema, this process begins tobreak down.”

Commenting on theresearch, Margaret Cox, chiefexecutive of the NationalEczema Society, told MailOnline, “Getting to the bottomof what genetic factorsinfluence eczema is important,as long-term, this gives the besthope of prevention.

“At the moment, we arevery much building a jigsawand this is another piece. I amclearly delighted to see a newdevelopment, but we are stillquite a way off from finding atreatment that switches thisgene off and on.”www.dailymail.co.uk

Treatment for eczema: Scientistsdiscover protein behind dry scaly skin

PAGE 31PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Maize farmers in Malawi

Once again Malawi findsitself in a tight spot. A foodcrisis set off by erratic

rains, rising food prices andeconomic hardships is slowlyunfolding.

For the first time in severalyears, the country's ability tofeed its citizens is at risk. Sadlyand unexpectedly, Malawi haslost its hard-earned status as anagricultural success story - itused to produce enough maize forits people to eat and still providea surplus to neighbours. Manyare now wondering what wentwrong and whether there couldbe lessons for other Africancountries.

More than 1.63 millionpeople, or 11 per cent of thepopulation, are facing severefood shortages, according to theWorld Food Programme, a UNrelief agency.

Malawi needed $30 million tothe end of 2012 to cover theshortfall. Agriculture is thebackbone of its economy: four infive people rely on it for income.

Most farmers plant on smallplots by hand with littleirrigation, and therefore arevulnerable to recurringdroughts, notes the UN Food andAgriculture Organization.Malawi is home to Africa's third-largest freshwater lake - LakeMalawi - yet less than 3 per centof the land is irrigated.

Malawi's current troublesmight seem surprising. Yet tothose who follow events in thetiny, poor and densely populatedlandlocked Southern Africannation, it is less an abruptchange in fortunes than a series

of self-inflicted injuries unfoldingin slow motion.

Back in 2004, PresidentBingu wa Mutharika, who diedin office in early 2012, rode intopower on a promise to increasefarm subsidies as part of his FarmInput Subsidy Programme.

Under the plan, thegovernment gave subsidyvouchers to "smallholders to buya small amount of fertilizer andseed so that they could replenishthe soil nutrients, takeadvantage of improved seedvarieties and at least achieve alivable crop from their tinyfarms," says Africa Confidential,a UK-based newsletter. Thevouchers were redeemable forseeds and fertilizer at about one-third of the normal cash cost.

The results were instant. In2005, a year after expandedsubsidies kicked in, Malawiharvested a grain surplus of halfa million tonnes. In subsequentyears it exported grain to Lesothoand Swaziland, as well as400,000 tonnes of maize toZimbabwe.

Food experts and advocacygroups took turns atinternational forums extollingMalawi as an example of Africa's"green revolution." Exploitinghis new-found success, PresidentMutharika called on otherAfrican leaders to embrace hispolicies. Now the tables have

turned, and Malawi is facingsevere food shortages.

Ironically, even during theyears of plenty, Malawicontinued to import largequantities of wheat, maize andother cereals, says FAO, andisolated pockets of hungerremained.

In pursuing subsidies,Mutharika defied donor criticswho alleged that theprogramme was riddled withcorruption, ran counter to theprinciples of free markets andwas unsustainable. Indeed, by2009 the government wasspending 16 per cent of itsbudget on subsidies.

Over time PresidentMutharika became autocratic,amid charges of corruption andcronyism. In 2009 he spentmore than $20 million on a long-range presidential jet.

Worse, he started promotinghis brother Peter, then foreignminister, as his successor,further alienating donors, onwhom Malawi depends. As thedonors abandoned him, theeconomy tanked and protesterstook to the streets, leading topolitical instability.

Now that a previouslysuccessful experiment with an"African green revolution" isunraveling, what are the lessonsfor others? With a population ofmore than a billion and

counting, will Africa ever be ableto produce enough food for itspeople? The answer to thatquestion is a qualified yes. Butfor it to happen, certainconditions must exist.

First, an essential ingredientfor success in agriculture isstrong political will at thehighest level. In his book The NewHarvest: AgriculturalInnovation in Africa, CalestousJuma, a Harvard Universityprofessor originally from Kenya,argues that African leadersshould make agriculture a keyelement of all major economicdecisions.

Rhoda Tumusiime, the headof agriculture at the AfricanUnion Commission, agrees. Shenotes that while success inagriculture does not have manydrivers, leadership is crucial.

"There must be a key politicalchampion at head-of-state levelto steer and champion a visionon agricultural revolution," shetold the Economic Commission forAfrica.

Mr. Mutharika not only hadthe political will, but tried to leadby example. And his anti-poverty policies attracted manyadvocates.

The director of the New York-based Earth Institute atColumbia University, JeffreySachs, who has worked closelywith Malawian authorities to

By Masimba Tafirenyika

ANALYSIS

Mr. Mutharika not only had the political will,but tried to lead by example. And his anti-poverty policies attracted many advocates.

“

fight poverty, is among them."We should ... remember a

positive legacy of the latepresident Mutharika, becausethat legacy holds a key forAfrica's future development andescape from poverty," Sachswrote in an op-ed in the New YorkTimes.

"Until his final two years,Mutharika had actuallyengineered an agriculture-ledboom in Malawi, one that pointeda way for Africa to overcome itschronic hunger, food insecurity,and periodic extreme famines,"said Sachs. He credited the latepresident for standing "bravelyagainst the arrogance of an ill-informed foreign aidcommunity back in 2005."

Second, while foreign aid iscritical in feeding the hungryand reviving agriculture inAfrica, food security is tooimportant to be left to thegenerosity of external partners.

Food security requires thesame seriousness and resourcesas national security, if not more.In fact, national security loses itslegitimacy if thousands ofcitizens die not from enemyfirepower but from starvation,or risk their lives crossingborders while fleeing fromhunger.

And finally, Africa needs astrong food policy backed byresources from African Unionmembers, to be invested ininstitutions that promoteagriculture.

One tangible AU response hasbeen the Comprehensive AfricaAgriculture DevelopmentProgramme (CAADP), whichrequires countries that sign upto it to spend at least 10 per centof their national budgets onagriculture (see page 11).

CAADP itself has a verysmall budget, but it uses thelittle it has to strengthenagricultural institutions andbuild teams of skilled personnelwho roam the continent sharingbest practices with nationalauthorities.

"There is no doubt thatAfrican agriculture needs stronglocal institutions to avoid thekind of bubble that we saw inMalawi, which was largelydriven by external energy,"Martin Bwalya, the head ofCAADP, told Africa Renewal,alluding to Malawi's dependenceon donors for its short-livedsuccess.

CAADP, which is run by theNew Partnership for Africa'sDevelopment (NEPAD), the AU'sdevelopment agency, recognizesthat Africa needs institutionswhose effectiveness and shelf-lifedo not depend on the survival ofindividuals.

Mr. Mutharika tried to followthe path of subsidies and largelysucceeded. Countries that havepursued Malawi's lead have"achieve[d] breakthroughs infarm yields and food productionfor the first time in their modernhistory," said Professor Sachs.

Mr. Mutharika's successor,Joyce Banda, Africa's thirdfemale president, now has toformulate a new food policy, wooback the donors, stabilize theeconomy and again getagriculture back on track.

Source: allAfrica.com

Malawi: what went wrong?Lessons from Malawi's food crisis

PAGE 32 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Sudanese leaders commit to buffer zoneThe leaders of Sudan and

South Sudan havereaffirmed their commitment

to setting up a buffer zone on theirshared border and resuming oilexports.

African Union mediator ThaboMbeki said both sides had agreed"unconditionally" to implement a dealfirst struck in September.

Presidents Omar al-Bashir ofSudan and SalvaKiir of South Sudansmiled and shook hands, but madeno comment.

The neighbours came closeto war after the South'sindependence in 2011.

The talks in the Ethiopiancapital, Addis Ababa, followedreports of renewed clashes onthe disputed border.

African Union mediatorswill now lay out a timetablefor the implementation of alloutstanding agreements,according to an officialdocument seen by the BBC.

This is expected to be inplace by the end of next week,and if the timetable isrespected, a demilitarised bufferzone between the two countries willbe set up.

That would allow the resumptionof oil exports from the south and ofcross-border trade.

"They've... agreed that actionsshould be taken immediately - ormaybe as soon as possible - to South Sudan's SalvaKiir (right) was greeted by Ethiopia's prime minister as he arrived for talks.

Mali crisispaving wayfor militantattacks onFrance- judge

The insurgency that has seizedthe north of Mali is paving theway for attacks on France as

more French Muslims of Africanorigin are finding a cause in theconflict, Paris's top anti-terrorismjudge warned on Sunday.

As Mali's former colonial ruler,France fears al Qaeda's north Africanarm, AQIM, is cementing a base inthe West African state that wouldprovide a launch pad against Frenchpolitical and economic interests athome and abroad.

"We have a very large Maliancommunity in France, but also fromsub-Saharan Africa as a whole," MarcTrevedic said in a rare interviewwith weekly newspaper Le Journaldu Dimanche. "These 'black' FrenchMuslims who were suffering fromlatent racism from 'Arabs' have forthe first time found their jihad."

Diplomatic sources have said ahandful of French nationals hadtravelled to the Sahel region to trainfor Islamic jihad, or holy struggle.Trevedic said four investigationswere open on what he called Malian"terrorist" cells.

"They are young, often dualnationals or who have links with sub-Saharan Africa," he said. "They getin either through Niger or Algeria,but many are Malians who can goand visit their families and don't needvisas."

France has been a vocal supporterof plans for an international operationto try to wrest back northern Malifrom Islamist insurgents, who holdeight French hostages in the area.

In December, the U.N. SecurityCouncil authorized a French-drafted resolution to deploy anAfrican-led force to retrain Mali'sdefeated army and support an anti-insurgent mission, although noground operations are expecteduntil later in 2013.

"All the ingredients exist so thatthere are repercussions on our soil,"the judge said. "France is backingthose that want to intervenemilitarily in Timbuktu. So we arethe enemy and are identified assuch."

Despite past differences withWashington and London overMiddle East policy, France has longbeen a target for Islamist militantsbecause of its colonial record inNorth Africa and problemsintegrating its large Muslimminority.

Numbering five million, France'sMuslim community is the biggest inthe 27-member European Union butmany are marginalized with poor jobprospects in grim, violence-riddensuburbs and housing estates.

Rebels in the Central AfricanRepublic have taken thesouthern town of Alindao

around 100km from the border withthe Democratic Republic of Congo, agovernment spokesman hasconfirmed.

The military advance onSaturday came after the UNSecurity Council called on rebels tohalt their offensive and withdrawfrom other towns and cities they hadseized earlier.

"There's certainly a big rebelpresence in the [Alindao] area andno resistance from governmentforces," said Al Jazeera's AndrewSimmons, reporting from thecapital, Bangui.

"[Government troops] haveprobably moved out of the areaaltogether, even as more and more[foreign] troops reinforce thegovernment army."

The Council said in a statementthat the rebel advances "gravelyundermine" the country's securityand stability, "constitute a threat to

the civilian population, and hinderthe provision of humanitarianassistance".

Rebels calling for PresidentFrancois Bozize to step down haveseized almost a dozen towns in amonth, but they halted theiradvance on Bangui on December 29pending negotiations.

The Security Council called onall parties to seek a peaceful solutionand engage in negotiationsscheduled to be held in Libreville,Gabon, starting on Tuesday "withoutpreconditions and in good faith".

It encouraged the government,armed groups, the political oppositionand other interested parties to usethe talks "to negotiate acomprehensive political solution".

Pakistan's UN AmbassadorMasood Khan, the current councilpresident who read the statement,was asked whether the talks woulddefinitely take place givenuncertainty about participation ofall the rebels and other groups.

"Right now, preparations are

Central African rebels seize one more town

Nelson Mandela 'has recovered from infection'Former South African

President Nelson Mandelahas recovered from a lung

infection and surgery to removegallstones, the government says.

"President Mandela has madesteady progress and... continuesto improve," President JacobZuma's office said.

Mr Mandela, 94, spentalmost three weeks in hospitallast month, and has since beenreceiving treatment at his homein an East Cape province village.

It was his longest stay inhospital since he left prison in1990.

Mr Mandela served as SouthMadiba

Africa's first black president from1994 to 1999 and is regarded bymany as the father of the nation.

His health has been a causeof concern for many years. Hefirst contracted tuberculosis inthe 1980s while detained inRobben Island prison.

He has been admitted tohospital on three occasions in thepast two years.

He retired from public life in2004 and has been rarely seenin public since.

The former president hasbeen admitted to hospital onthree occasions in the past twoyears.

being made and we're hoping thetalks will take place, and all partiesare being urged in that direction,"Khan said.

"The talks are important to reducetension and de-escalate the situationand look towards diplomaticsolutions."

The rebel coalition Seleka, which

means "alliance" in the local Sangolanguage, is made up of four separategroups which had previously foughtone another.

Bozize has offered to form agovernment of national unity butthe rebels have questioned hissincerity and are demanding thathe relinquish power.

Rebels wave flags on the streets of Malindao.

implement all the existing agreementsunconditionally," Mr Mbeki said.

"The presidents have also agreedthat... the necessary decisions aretaken to create the safe demilitarisedborder zone."

BBC Sudan reporter JamesCopnall says there appears to havebeen some limited progress on thedisputed Abyei region, including acommitment to set up a jointadministration for the area, as well ason several other outstanding issues.

But he adds that in essence both

leaders have simply agreed toimplement deals they had alreadysigned - and the fact that this isnecessary gives an indicationof just how bad the relationshipis between the two Sudans.

The South shut down itsown production a year ago aspart of a row with Khartoumabout how much it should payto export its oil through Sudan.

The flashpoint region ofAbyei is claimed by both sides. It lieson their border and is inhabited both

by nomadic herdsmen who areloyal to Sudan and other groupswho are closely linked to theSouth.

Tensions over oil and securitybrought the two sides to the brinkof war last April.

At a meeting in September thebuffer zone was agreed and SouthSudan said it would resume theproduction of oil, but the deal wasnot implemented.

Both sides blamed the other for thelack of progress.

PAGE 33PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Syria's Assad outlinesnew peace plan

A paramilitary soldier stands guard beside a border gate at the India-Pakistani joint check-post.

President Bashar Assad

Syrian President Bashar Assadhas outlined a new peaceinitiative, including a national

reconciliation conference and a newgovernment and constitution, butdemanded regional and Westerncountries stop funding and armingrebels first.

The Syrian president wasspeaking on Sunday in a rareaddress to the nation, his first since

June. He spoke to a packed hall atthe Opera House in centralDamascus, and the audiencefrequently broke out in cheers andapplause.

Assad ignored internationaldemands for him to step down and

said he is ready to hold a dialogue withthose "who have not betrayed Syria".

The Syrian opposition, includingrebels on the ground, were quick toreject Assad's proposal.

Louay Safi, a member of theopposition group called the Syrian

Asia andMiddle East

National Coalition, dismissed theaddress to the nation as "emptyrhetoric".

"He did not offer to step down,which was a precondition to start anynegotiation," Safi said.

"He has shown that he is a dictator

that we cannot negotiate with. I thinkhe has no desire to relinquish power.He wants to crush the opposition andhe hopes he can stay over for thenext forty years like what hisfather did."

Opposition leaders haverepeatedly said they will acceptnothing less than the president'sdeparture, dismissing any kindof settlement that leaves Assadin the picture.

Binyamin Netanyahu

India andPakistan inKashmir borderskirmish

Indian and Pakistani troopshave clashed near the Line ofControl in the disputed

Kashmir region.Pakistan said Indian troops had

raided a military post in the HajiPir sector of Pakistani-administered Kashmir, killing asoldier and injuring another.

An Indian army spokesmansaid it had responded to a "ceasefireviolation" but did not cross the Lineof Control.

Kashmir is claimed by bothnations in its entirety and has beena flashpoint between them formore than 60 years.

Exchanges are not uncommonbut rarely result in fatalities.

The Pakistani military said ina statement that Indian troops had"physically raided a checkpostnamed SawanPatra".

The Haji Pir Pass is just south ofthe main road from Muzaffarabadin Pakistan-controlled Kashmir toSrinagar in Indian-administeredKashmir.

"Pakistan army troopseffectively responded to theattack," the Pakistani statementsaid, adding that Indian troops hadleft behind weapons as theyretreated.

One Pakistani soldier waskilled and another criticallyinjured, it said.

Indian army spokesman ColJagadishDahiya told Reutersnews agency it had responded to a"ceasefire violation" by Pakistan.

He added: "None of our troopscrossed the Line of Control. Wehave no casualties or injuries."

Another Indian armyspokesman, Col BrijeshPandey,told Associated Press thatPakistani troops had "initiatedunprovoked firing" with mortarshells and automatic weapons atIndian military posts. Onecivilian home was destroyed, hesaid.

"We retaliated only usingsmall arms. We believe it wasclearly an attempt on their partto facilitate infiltration ofmilitants," Col Pandey said.

There has been a ceasefire inKashmir since late 2003.

India suspended a peace processwith Pakistan following attacks byPakistan-based militants inMumbai in 2008. Negotiationsresumed in February last year.

Last month, the nations signedan agreement to ease visarestrictions on travel for somecitizens.

Israel's PM plansto build Syria-Golan fence

Israel's prime minister haspledged to build a fortifiedfence along the frontier with

Syria, warning that hardlineIslamist forces have taken overthe area.

Binyamin Netanyahu spokeat a weekly cabinet meeting onSunday as Syrian PresidentBashar al-Assad delivered a rarenationwide address in Syria,calling for a nationalreconciliation conference.

Assad claimed that "terroristswho carry the ideology of al-Qaeda" were active in his countryand demanded that foreigncountries stop arming the rebels.

Netanyahu said the Syrianregime was "unstable", and Israelwas concerned about thecountry's chemical weaponscapabilities.

He said Israel needed a barrieron its frontier with Syria, similarto a structure it has almostcompleted along its border withEgypt - which has nearly stoppedthe flow of African migrants.

Israel has largely stayed out ofthe civil war that has engulfedSyria and left more than 60,000people dead according to the UN,but it is concerned that violencecould spill over.

Israel worries that Assadmight try to draw it into thefighting as a distraction if hissituation becomes desperate.

An even greater concern forIsrael is a scenario in which Assadis toppled, Islamists take his placeand gain control of Syria'sstockpile of chemical weapons.

"We intend to erect an identicalfence, with a few changes basedon the actual territory, along theGolan Heights," Netanyahu said.

"We know that on the otherside of our border with Syriatoday, the Syrian army hasmoved away, and in its place,global jihad forces have moved in."

"Global jihad" is the term Israeluses for forces influenced by al-Qaeda, and Syria's rebels includesome al-Qaeda-allied groups.

"We are co-ordinating ourintelligence and readiness withthe United States and others sothat we might be prepared for anyscenario and possibility that couldarise," Netanyahu said.

His office did not say how longit would take to complete theproject.

Israel captured the GolanHeights in the 1967 Middle Eastwar and later annexed thestrategic plateau, a move notrecognised by the internationalcommunity.

PAGE 34 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Europe andAmericas

Cameron saysUK should 'askfor change onEurope'

Venezuela National Assemblyre-elects Chavez ally

Venezuela's NationalAssembly has met to chooseits leader, a possible stand-

in for President Hugo Chavez whois in Cuba following cancersurgery.

The assembly re-elected theincumbent Diosdado Cabello, aleading ally of Mr Chavez.

Opposition leaders are callingfor new elections if the presidentcannot be sworn in for his newterm on Thursday.

In such a situation, Mr Cabellowould become caretaker presidentpending the outcome of the vote.

Diosdado Cabello (Right), takes the oath.

Honduran ambassador sacked after wild partyThe Honduran ambassador to

Colombia has been sacked aftera wild Christmas party at the

embassy in Bogota.Ambassador Carlos Rodriguez

has been told to resign "to safeguardrelations with Colombia", theHonduran Foreign Ministry said ina statement.

An investigation has begun into

reports that two prostitutes hadbeen invited to the party on 20December.

The two women have beenaccused of stealing laptop computersand mobile phones from the embassy.

An inquiry committee has beenset up in Honduras, while inColombia the authorities are tryingto identify the two sex workers.

Vice-President Nicolas Madurohas dismissed the opposition's calls,saying the Supreme Court canswear in Mr Chavez at a laterdate.

Mr Cabello's re-election wasexpected in the NationalAssembly, which is dominated byMr Chavez's governing UnitedSocialist Party of Venezuela(PSUV).

"The president will continuebeing president beyond January10, nobody should have any doubtabout that," Mr Cabello said afterhis election, adding: "We will

never defraud the people."Mr Maduro watched the vote

and debate from the balcony of thechamber.

The BBC's Sarah Grainger inCaracas says Mr Cabello findshimself in a position of great powerand influence.

Analysts say he is seen as apolitical rival to Mr Maduro,whom Mr Chavez has named ashis preferred successor.

However, both men havevowed to maintain unity in thePSUV. They both visited MrChavez in Cuba earlier in the

week, along with several otherdignitaries.

Hundreds of Chavezsupporters rallied outsideparliament on Saturday followingan appeal by Mr Cabello.

Information Minister ErnestoVillegas, who was among the firstgovernment officials to arrive forthe vote, said: "There is a clearleadership here by ComandanteChavez who is so responsible thathe has even studied the worst casescenarios.

"We have a president who hasbeen elected from 2013 to 2019...and that will be perfectly fulfilled.Chavez is the president ofVenezuela. There is no other."

Experts have differentinterpretations of what it wouldmean if Mr Chavez misses hisinauguration.

Some in the opposition say thatif Mr Chavez is still in Cuba, powershould pass to the head of theNational Assembly and newelections should be held within 30days.

But Mr Maduro has insistedthat Thursday is not a fixeddeadline and that there was noreason to declare Mr Chavez's"absolute absence" from office.

"The formality of his swearing-in can be resolved in the SupremeCourt," he said.

"The president right now ispresident."

Mr Chavez - who was re-elected for a fourth term inOctober - has not been seen inpublic since his latest round ofsurgery more than three weeksago.

Four killed in shootout in US town of Aurora

Wounded medic receiving attention at the scene.

Four people, including agunman, have been killedfollowing a hostage-taking

incident in Aurora, Colorado,police have said.

After nearly six hours of failednegotiations, police killed thegunman as he opened fire onthem through a second-storey

window of a townhouse wherehe had barricaded himself,Cassidee Carlson, Aurora policespokeswoman, said on Saturday.

Aurora is the same townwhere a man shot dead 12 peopleand wounded 58 more in a movietheatre last July.

It was still unclear from policeand media reports whetherofficers entered the home or shotthe man through the window.

KUSA television reported thathe was killed after police fired teargas and entered the home, wherethey found three more

bodies.The victims were believed to

be related to the gunman,Carlson said.

Around 03h00am (1000GMT), police notified neighboursof an emergency situation andevacuated several blocks,Carlson said in a news briefing.

One person inside hadescaped and alerted authorities,she said.

Around 08h00, the gunmanfired on a police vehicle, leadingto an exchange of gunfire, KMGHtelevision said.

At that time police saw thefirst body, the station reported.

Carlson said the gunman,whose name has not beenreleased, died just before 09h00.

A neighbour, Michael Ignace,46, said he had spoken to thegunman and "he seemed like areasonable guy, and we talkedabout motorcycles".

Police entered Ignace'sapartment during the night andalerted him, but he chose to stay

Britain is "perfectly entitled" toask for a change in itsrelationship with Europe,

Prime Minister David Cameron hassaid.

Speaking on the BBC's AndrewMarr Show, he said voters would beoffered "real choice" on this at thenext election.

But he said being entirely outsidethe EU would not be "right forBritain".

Mr Cameron is due to make along-awaited speech on Europe thismonth. Many Tory MPs are urginga referendum.

The prime minister said anyvote would happen within five years.

"People should be in no doubt thatthe Conservatives will be offering atthe next election a real choice and areal way of giving consent to thatchoice," he said.

"What's happening in Europeright now is massive change beingdriven by the existence of the euro.

"The countries of the euro,they've got to change to make theircurrency work - they've need tointegrate more, they need to makechanges to all their systems.

"What that means is they arechanging the nature of theorganisation to which we belong.And so we are perfectly entitled, andnot just entitled but actuallyenabled... to ask for changesourselves."

As part of a series of ongoing EUreforms partially aimed atsustaining the euro, the EuropeanCentral Bank will be directlysupervising around 200 of thelargest European banks from 2014- but will have the right to interveneif smaller lenders are in trouble.

Also during his interview, MrCameron said the government wasreviewing which powers should berepatriated back to the UK, andhighlighted the internal movementof people in the EU and fishingquotas as areas of concern.

Mr Cameron also said he did notthink it would be "right for Britain" -or in the "national interest" - to leavethe EU entirely, pointing out some50% of nation's trade was with theEU.

The UK would have "no say overthe rules of the market into whichwe sell" if it left, he added.

Prime Minister David Cameron

An employee close to MrRodriguez has been accused oforganising the party and hiring theprostitutes.

An embassy vehicle wasreportedly used to bring them intothe building.

It is not clear whether theambassador was present.

US secret service agents were

involved in a similar scandal lastyear, ahead of an official visit byPresident Barack Obama toColombia.

They were sent home anddisciplined in April 2012 after beingaccused of taking prostitutes to theirhotel rooms on the eve of the Summitof the Americas in the city ofCartagena.

in his house, he said.The same Denver suburb

was rocked by the mass shootingin July that had been thedeadliest in the United States of2012 until the December 14massacre at an elementary

school in Newtown, Connecticut,where 28 died, including theshooter.

In Aurora, the gunmanopened fire during a midnightscreening of the Batman movie"The Dark Knight Rises".

PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 PAGE 35

California teens drug parents'milkshakes, sneak web time-Police

Milkshake

Two Northern Californiateenage girls are accusedof spiking milkshakes with

prescription sleeping medicine toknock out the parents as part ofan alleged conspiracy to skirt thefamily's ban on home Internetuse after 10 p.m., according topolice.

The incident happened on theevening of Dec. 28 in Rocklin,Calif., a city of about 60,000people approximately 21 milesnortheast of Sacramento.

"The 16-year-old daughterand her (15-year-old) friendwere at a house in Rocklin andthey say, 'hey mom and dad,how about we get you somemilkshakes?' They go to a localfast food restaurant and getsome milkshakes," RocklinPolice Department Lt. LonMilka said Thursday.

The teens then allegedlyspiked the shakes with some sortof anti-anxiety medicine, Milkasaid.

The parents finished abouta quarter of the milkshakes --which "tasted funny" and hada "gritty feel" -- before pouringthem out, Milka said.

An hour later, the couple"passed out asleep," according topolice.

The parents awoke withhangover symptoms, Milkasaid.

"They kind of put two and

Cat used in Brazil prison smuggling

KFC restaurant

When life gives youlemons, rob a KFC.ABCNews reports that two

thieves planned to rob WrightsJewelers in Beaudesert,Australia on New Year's Eve,but they knocked through thewrong wall and ended upinsidethe KFC next door, cops said.

Dwayne Doolan and PeterWelsh allegedly made the bestof their situation, by robbing theKentucky Fried Chickenrestaurant instead.

The men threatened workerswith a metal bar and one of theemployees opened a safe whereabout $2,600 was held, accordingto a statement on the QueenslandPolice siteand the Courier-Mail.

The alleged thieves then fledon foot, but were soon apprehendedby police.

Welsh is charged with armedrobbery, stealing, burglary andattempted burglary.Doolan ischarged with robbery andstealing.

Thieves try to rob jewelry store,steal from kFC instead- cops

The cat with a cell phone wrapped around it's waist.

two together, and they saidtheir daughters had wantedInternet access after 10 p.m.,the time it was automaticallycut off at their house," Milkasaid.

The daughter had describedthe family's Internet policy as"too strict," according toinvestigators.

After taking a urine drug testfrom Rocklin police, the parents

"believed they got a positive,"and brought their daughter infor questioning, Milka said.

The girls, one from Rocklinand the other from Roseville,were booked into Placer County

Juvenile Hall on suspicion ofwillfully mingling apharmaceutical into food andconspiracy.

The teens' names were notreleased.

A prison official says theycaught the cat slippingthrough a prison gate with

a cell phone, drills, small saws

and other contraband taped toits body.

Guards thought there wassomething suspicious about a

little white cat slipping througha prison gate in northeasternBrazil. A prison official says thatwhen they caught the animal,they found a cellphone, drills,small saws and other contrabandtaped to its body.

Alagoas state prisonsspokeswoman Cinthya Morenosays that the cat was caught NewYear's Eve at the medium-security prison in the city ofArapiraca.

The O Estado de S. Paulonewspaper reported Saturdaythat all of the prison's 263inmates are suspects in thesmuggling attempt, though itsays a prison spokesman said "Itwill be hard to discover who isresponsible since the cat does notspeak."

Man claims two in carpool disputeA North Bay man purposely

drove alone in the carpoollane in hopes of getting a ticket.

He says he hopes to make the legalpoint that a corporation is a person.Jean Elle reports.

If you get caught in a carpool lane,you face a hefty fine.

We met a Bay Area man whointentionally drove alone in thecarpool lanes in hopes of getting a ticket- not to pay the fine, but to prove apoint.

San Rafael's Jonathan Frieman isnow fighting a ticket he received fordriving alone in the carpool lane,saying that he did have a passenger atthe time he was pulled over. That

passenger was his corporation papers,which he carried with him in thepassenger's seat.

Frieman sees the ticket as achance to legally comment on thedefinition of a corporation as being aperson.

He got the ticket back in October,but he claims he wasn't really drivingalone because he had his corporationpapers with him and a corporation isa person under the law.

Frieman says his fight isn't abouttraffic, but about corporate power.

"I'm just arresting their power andusing it for my service to drive in thecarpool lane," Frieman said.

USF law professor Robert Talbot

says the point is a little bit of a stretch.Talbot said the point of the carpool

lane law is to get cars off the road andFrieman is steering away from theintent of the law.

"A court might say well it saysperson and a corporation is a person sothat'll work for the carpool lane it'spossible but I doubt it," Talbot said.

Frieman said he is hoping to takehis case well beyond a Marin Countytraffic hearing, which is scheduled forMonday.

He wants corporate personhoodand the protections corporation haveto be debated in a higher court. Hesays he wants to turn that legaldefinition on its head.

PAGE 36 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Appropriation bills, otherwise known as Budgettill date remains the must difficult aspects whichmust of our leaders in government find it

difficult to implement. Indeed lack of budgetimplementation has become notorious to mostgovernments. Budgets have in fact lost its essenceand meaning, hence it became only but rituals. Somegovernments failed to implement budgetdeliberately just, to siphoned money while to othersit was only circumstances that compels them not to.

In Nasarawa state however, 2012 appropriationbill which was the first full blown budget to bepresented by Al-Makura led administration receivedwide acclaimed from the people of the state for itsrich in content as well as determination,demonstrated by Al-Makura to implement thebudget in full. Unfortunately however, immediatelyafter appropriation by the state House of Assembly,the much expected revenue which the entire budgetwas built upon refused to come by owing mainly tounprecedented drop in the federal allocation to thestate, good performance of internally generatedrevenue not withstanding. Al-Makura admitted thismuch while delivering 2013 appropriation bill tostate House of Assembly on 12/12/12, when heblamed the inability of his government to implement2012 budget to its fullest on among other things: dropin allocation from the federation account, theinability of government to access grants and loanstotally N10billion which initially governmentanticipated its receipts and enforcement ofIrrevocable Standing Payment Order (ISPO) onobligations to which the state was committedconsequent upon contractual agreement entered intoby the previous administrations which stand at aboutN350million monthly as well as monthly paymentof N209million to Plateau state in respect of ParisClub refund.

Al-Makura's admission of shortcomings in 2012budget performance, were in fact mark of a goodleader. And as the saying goes 'man proposes Goddisposes' of-course as human beings, perfections isone thing that can hardly be achieved in this manworld. It is worthy of note that the inability of Al-Makura to implement 2012 budget in full were nothis making, taking into account the factorsenumerated above. It therefore about time that wemust say it loud and clear that this slavery that wewere subjected to by the previous administrationsthrough these agreements must be investigated,especially the Paris Club refund which we were madeto be parting with N209million monthly to Plateaustate. This refund to Plateau state which Al-Makurais paying since he assumed office in May 2011 wouldcontinue till May 2014 However, despite theseshortcomings, the Al-Makura led administration wasable to achieve some significant progress in the statethrough the instrumentality of 2012 budget.Although as at the end of October 2012, only aboutN37.734billion of the proposed N104.868billionestimated revenue was realized, yet Al-Makura,through transparency in the management ofresources of the state, he was able to executive somecapital projects across the state.

Amongst the projects executed by Al-Makuraunder 2012 budget include; massive construction ofurban road in Lafia, the state capital and other majortowns across the state, government was also able tomake a significant impact in areas of healthcaredelivery which as a result, visitations to private clinicsby the people was reduced by 45%. Other sectorswhich significant impacts were recorded in last yearbudget were in the area of education, water/powersupply and integrated rural development. Theseachievements as highlighted above, were notgimmicks as even the Minister of Information MrLabaran Maku has to commend Al-Makura for thegiant strides made in the state when he visited

Nasarawa 2013Budget: An AppraisalBy Rayyanu Bala

Nasarawa in the caused of his good governance tourto the state, some time in September last year.

While assuring the people of Nasarawa state of theresolved of his administration to pursue vigorouslythe development of the state in 2013, Al-Makurahowever revealed that 2013 fiscal appropriation wastargeted specifically to achieve the objectives ofgovernment on completion of all projects alreadystarted in the state and enhancement of InternalRevenue Generation (IGR) as well as provisions ofSocial services. Other areas which Al-Makura madea solemn pledge to pursue in 2013 includes; Marketdevelopment; Housing infrastructure; Value re-orientation; rural roads network; Capacity buildingand enhancing monitoring and control systemsthrough due process mechanism as well as Creationof enabling environment for PPP projects in the state.This is in addition to Al-Makura's pledge to reducedoverhead expenditures and robust YouthEmpowerment; sports and Agriculturaldevelopment.

Since the projects billed to be implemented in 2013budget are enormous with serious financialimplication, Al-Makura announced a total sum ofover N107 billion as anticipated revenue receiptsfor 2013 with a marginal increase of over N3 billion

above 2012 budget.As 2012 budget,2013 appropriationbill was taggedbudget ofredemption 11, inthe spirit ofcommitment of Al-Makura's leda d m i n i s t r a t i o nfulfillment of itscovenant with thepeople of the statewhich hinges onsalvaging themfrom strangleholdof want,d e p r i v a t i o n ,squalor, diseaseand hopelessness.

Being agovernment whichplaces highpremium ontransparency, A-Makura went aheadand gave abreakdown of thebasic assumption of2013 budget toinclude; N1billionas opening balance/saving transferredto consolidatedrevenue funds toc a p i t a ld e v e l o p m e n tfunds, N35billion as

expected statutory revenue allocation from thefederation account, 10billion as expected excesscrude oil receipts and N7billion as expected shareof the state from value added tax (VAT).Other basicassumptions of 2013 budget are; N16.3 as internallygenerated revenue (IGR), N4.6billion as Grants andN10 billion as loans while N4billion as miscellaneousreceipts and N20billion as Bonds. Out of these figureshowever, over N42billion, representing 40% of theentire budget will go as recurrent expenditure, whileover N65billion is to be set aside for capital projects.In view of the concern by Al-Makura ledadministration for infrastructural development inthe state, works and transport got lion share of overN15billion closely followed by housing and urbandevelopment with over N13billion.

Indeed, what gladdens the hearts of the people atthe 2013 budget presentations before the stateHouse of Assembly by governor Al-Makura was hisappeal to members on the need for both of them towork together in the interest of the state. He added'let us rededicate ourselves to the actualization ofthe aspirations of our people by vigorously pursuingthe rapid development and progress of our dearstate. This is the duty to which this budget proposalbeckons all of us.'

Al-Makura did not only stop at appealing forcooperation and understanding from the law makers,but also went ahead to remind them that nothingworks better than cooperation and understandingso as to move the state forward.

At this juncture, while I will also like to add mywords for the speedy passage of this budget, ithowever became incumbent on us all in the state tosheave our differences aside and work for the interestof the state.

We don't have any state that we can call our ownexcept Nasarawa state therefore we must team-upand salvage it together. The 2013 appropriation billotherwise tagged budget of redemption 11 requiresour support for it to become a reality.

Bala wrote from Lafia, Nasarawa state<rayanubala@yahoo.com>

“Amongst the projects executed by Al-Makura under 2012 budget include;massive construction of urban road inLafia, the state capital and other majortowns across the state, government wasalso able to make a significant impactin areas of healthcare delivery which asa result, visitations to private clinics bythe people was reduced by 45%

Nasaraw State GovernorUMARU TANKO AL-MAKURANasaraw State GovernorUMARU TANKO AL-MAKURA

PAGE 37PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

It is believed that GovernorAkpabio is a difficult personto work with. What have

been your challenges workingwith him as his Chief PressSecretary?

Anybody who says GovernorAkpabio is a difficult man to workwith does not understand "Jack"about the governor. The governorof the state is a very simple person,he is a kind hearted person, hecannot see troubles and work awayfrom it and he is a very tolerantperson. I am enjoying my workwith him despite some challenges.

Although the governor isgenerally known as a promisekeeper, but he seems to havefailed in his promise in humandevelopment. He promised toestablish one industry in eachof the 31 local governmentareas since 2011. Do you thinkhe will fulfill this promise beforehis tenure runs out in 2015?

When you want to dosomething as grandiose as thegovernor wants to do, you have toengage professional to handle suchjobs. Most at times the planningstage is more difficult than thefinishing state.

You also talked about capacitybuilding. I believe you are talkingabout employment. There issomething we need to know, thecivil service or public servicecannot employ every unemployedpersons. If you do that, there willbe an explosion. You need todetermine how many people youneed to bring to the system. Whatgovernment does all over the worldis to bring business opportunitiesfor people to be employed.

The programme of the stategovernment in terms ofindustrialization andinfrastructural development hasled to employment of Akwa Ibompeople. I don't know whether youknow that Akwa Ibom people aresupplying sharp sands, granitesand material needed by thesecompanies for road construction.The inter-ministerial direct labourprogramme has constructed over4000 projects. All these projectswere given to A'Ibom people. Youalso have to consider the influx ofpeople to the state for variousconferences. When these peoplecome to the state, they shop in thestate. Why is tourism the 5th topearner in Israel? The reason is thatwhen you go to Israel as a pilgrim,you don't give money to the Israeligovernment but by simplyshopping and buying things, theIsraeli's are making money. Whenthey come on conference in AkwaIbom, they shop in Akwa Ibom,

they buy in Akwa Ibom, thereforehuman capacity is being takencare of. There are some other areasyou can look at when you declarefree and compulsory primaryeducation, you leave more moneyin the hands of the child's fatherbecause the money the man wouldhave used to pay school fees wouldbe used for something else. If yougrant a free health care forpregnant women, children and foraged, it also preserve funds for thesecategory of people to use it forsomething else. All these amountto human capacity building.

The Governor has said thatIkot Ekpene Senatorial Districtis excluded from the 2015

It simply means that the ball is inthe court of Akwa Ibom people. Thebeauty of democracy is that, thereis always an opposition. It doesn'tmatter what good things you havedone, you will always have peoplethat will oppose you. It is the wayyou go about it that becomes aproblem. When the oppositionoperates outside democracy, itbecomes a problem.

Democracy is not a do-or-dieaffair and that is the problem withopposition in Nigeria. They thinkbeing in the opposition meansdoing everything to destroy theruling party. It is not right. Thething to do is to join hands with theruling party. And when you havedisagreement you just have to seeeye-to-eye to work it out.

Why did the Governorimmediately receive theresignation of his deputysometimes ago? Could it be thatsuch had been anticipated?

If a man says he is resigning,you cannot force him to stay inoffice. Even in football if a playerputs in a letter for transfer, the clubis bound to put him in the transfermarket even if you are LionelMessi. Immediately you demand atransfer it is the duty of the club toput you in the transfer market. Youknow why - that player would notput up his best after that.

There are allegations thatGovernor Akpabio hasdeliberately neglected OronLGA in his trans\formationprogramme. What is thegovernment doing to correctthis perception?

I know that they have doneurban roads in Oron; I also knowthat the wave of development isgoing through all parts of the state.Let me say that what the presentadministration is doing isenormous. They are interveningin so many projects in the state.Oron is not left out contrary to whatyou have said; a lot have been donein Oron. One of the major projectsof this administration is the IbomIndustrial City and the Ibaka DeepSea Project planned for Oron.

The state government alsointends to build a rail line fromIbaka in Oron to Aba. The IbomIndustrial City is going to have Oiland gas and a salt factory andmany other facilities. The design isawesome and fortunately for us,the Federal Government hasagreed to partner with the stategovernment in developing theIbaka Deep Sea Project. When the

Mr. Aniete Ukpe

Ibaka Project is completed, it isgoing to attract more ships to theport. The Ibaka Deep Sea Port isone of the deepest Seaports in thecountry. Most Ocean liners cannotaccess some ports in the country.The small ocean liners that visitthese ports have to be led by pilotships so that ship might not bestuck in mud. The Ibaka Deep seaport is so deep that even an Aircraftcarrier can berth on it withoutsinking. I know that thisgovernment has a lot of plans forOron local Government. Don't lookat the negative; look at thepositive.

The state governmentrecently played host to a carolnight tagged "9999", acollection of nine thousandnine hundred of ninety ninesingers from all the localgovernment Area of the stateto sing together at the sametime. Is this programme goingto be an annual event and doesthe government have theintention of upgrading theevent to look like the CalabarXmas Carnival that will attractrevenue to the state?.

You must understand that thebasic concept of the Carol Night isdifferent from the Calabarcarnival . The Carol Nightwas not conceived withprof i t in mind. I t was notconceived as purelycommercial programme. Itwas conceived as thegovernor said, for spiritualrebirth, for thestrengthening of bondbetween people, for thestrengthening of love andunity. It was conceived forpeople to come together andcelebrate the love of God.The emphasis was ontransforming peoplespir i tual ly . Therefore youwill not think of it in the lineof the Calabar carnival. Allthe same whatever is donewell will attract people. Youwil l remember thatspeaking at the carol night, theMan of God Pastor Enoch Adeboyesaid something instructive. In hisword "the world needs to see this"which in a way is stressing thefact that it needed to attracttourist, and it should appeal topeople all over the world. Like Isaid it was never the intention ofthe government to commercializeit. Whatsoever God does bringsbenefit and "whatsoever is born ofGod overcomes the world".

gubernatorial race. Does thatmean he has someone in mindfor 2015? And how do you feelabout the opposition despitehis good works?

To your first question, I don'tknow how you arrived at suchconclusion. The man was simplysaying in fairness that Ikot EkpeneSenatorial District has occupiedpower and that there should be ashift. That is the kind of statementyou expect from a statesman. Idon't know how you can interpretthe statement to mean that he hassomebody in mind. The governordoes not have anybody in mindfor 2015. He had stated thatchoosing someone for 2015 is theprerogative of Akwa Ibom people.

It's not difficult workingwith Akpabio, says CPSINTERVIEW The Chief Press Secretary to Akwa Ibom state governor, Godswill Akpabio, Mr. Aniete Ukpe, in this

interview with out Correspondent, Mike Etim, in Uyo clarifies the notion that it is difficult working with thegovernor, made comments on the politics of the state ahead of 2015 even as he explains why certaindevelopmental projects in the state are yet to be implemented . Excerpts:

There is something we needto know, the civil service or

public service cannot employevery unemployed persons. Ifyou do that, there will be an

explosion.

“

PAGE 38 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2012

Rep attractsN200 millionprojects toconstituency

L-R: Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Lawal Ngama, Minister, Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Peter Orubebe, and Minister of Aviation,Princess Stella Oduah, during a recuit Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, at the State House, in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

From Lawal Sa'idu Funtua,Katsina

Kwara ACN accuses governorof proposing patronage budgetThe Action Congress of

Nigeria (AC N)gubernatorial candidate in

Kwara state in 2011 AprilMohammed Dele Belgore SAN hasaccused the governor AbdulfatahAhmed of proposing an unfriendlybut patronizing budget in 2013.

Belgore in a statement issuedby his Media Aide, Rafiu Ajakaiyesaid "Mr. Belgore is againstretrenchment of, or untimelypayment of all entitlements due to,workers. What (he) meant inspecific terms is that Kwara fund isbeing used to run a patronagesystem that does not benefit themasses.

That this patronage systemtakes precedence over provision ofbasic infrastructure/amenities iswhat should alarm all Kwarans".

But the state governmentthrough the Chief Press Secretaryto Governor, Alhaji AbdulwahabOba said the governor waspolitically and morally obtuse tocontemplate retrenchment in astate largely populated by civilservants.

Governor Ahmed, according tothe statement was committed tofull implementation of its SharedProsperity Programme whichplaces emphasis on humancapacity development,emphasizing government'scommitment to youth job andwealth creation in the new year.

From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin

From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse

Jigawa CNPP warns members against abuse of office

The Jigawa state chapter ofthe Conference of NigerianPolitical Parties (CNPP) has

warned its members to desist fromusing the cover of the chapter toderive personal benefits without itsconsent.

The warning was contained in afive point communique issued at the

end of its meeting held in Dutse.The communique signed by the

chairman of the chapter, AlhajiGarba Mohammad Madobi, said theelection into the leadership of thechapter should be based on zoning inaccordance with the three senatorialconstituencies.

It also agreed that the Nationalworking committee of the CNPP beheld monthly.The communiqué

gave the list of the newly members ofthe chapter. They include AlhajiGarba Madobi chairman, AlhajiBashir Ringim vice chairman one,Alhaji Ibrahim DPP vice chairmantwo and Sardauna Yero Yallemansecretary.

Others were Ibrahim Buwatreasurer, Alhaji Ibrahim KazaurePRO , Shehu Birnin kudu auditor andAuwal Ahmed financial secretary.

By Lawrence Olaoye

Dabiri-Erewa leads delegation to India Diaspora Conference

Chairperson, House ofR e p r e s e n t a t i v e sCommittee on Diaspora

Affairs, Rep Abike Dabiri-Erewa,will today be at the head of theNigeria delegation to the 11thedition of India Diaspora daycelebration holding in Kochi,India.

In a statement in Abuja, theconvention known as ``PravasiBharatiya Divas (PBD) 2013 willbe held in Kochi, India betweenJanuary 7-9.

Dabiri-Erewa, who wasinvited in recognition of her pro-active roles in Diaspora affairs in

Nigeria, is slated to deliver a paperon ``Diaspora and Heritage''

This is the first time, a non-ethnic India, is being invited todeliver a paper at the conference.

The India Prime ministerManmohan Singh is expected todeclare the convention open atHotel Le-Meridian on Jan. 8, whilePresident of India will deliver thevaledictory address on January9 .

A large number of centralministers, including externalaffairs minister Salman Khurshidand overseas Indian affairsminister Vayalar Ravi will alsoparticipate.

The Diaspora Day in India

commemorates the return ofMahatma Gandhi from SouthAfrica on Jan. 9.

The PBD 2013 is beingconducted in partnership with theKerala government and has as itstheme `Engaging Diaspora: TheIndian growth story'.

Other highlights of theconvention include pre-PBDseminars related to developmentissues such as skill development,pure sciences, tourism, youth andNon Resident Indians (NRIs) in theGulf.

It also includes plenary sessionson 'India's growth: greateropportunities', 'Overseas Indians:safe environment', 'Engaging

young overseas Indians' and'Investment opportunities inStates.'

``Since the country iscelebrating the centenary of theGadar Movement in 2013, thePBD Oration this time will be onthe Gadar Movement.'', thestatement said.

Over 2,500 delegates from 50countries are expected to grace the2013 convention of the India inthe Diaspora conference withNigeria being the only invitedcountry in Africa.

Rep Abike Dabiri-Erewa-leddelegation was among thedelegates that witnessed the 10thedition of India Diaspora Daycelebration in Jaipur, India in2012.

The Special guest of honour, MsKamia Persad Bissessar, PrimeMinister of Trinidad and Tobago,also, a non-resident India, wereamong the dignitaries in 2012.

It was jointly put together byConfederation of Indian industry(CII), Ministry of Overseas IndianAffairs and Government ofRajasthan, with its theme``Global Indian-Inclusivegrowth''.

A member of the House ofRepresentatives fromKatsina State, Alhaji Suleiman

Salisu, has disclosed that he attracteddevelopment projects worth N200million to his Jibia-Kaita constituency.

Salisu who made the disclosurewhile briefing newsmen at theweekend in Katsina noted that theprojects includes provision of facilitiesworth N100 million at Jibia dam siteand the construction of boreholesworth N70 million in both Jibia andKaita.

According to him, the solarpowered boreholes were 20 in numberwhere 10 were constructed in Jibiaand 10 in Kaita local, stressing the sixof such boreholes were completed ineach of the two local governments.

Similarly, the lawmaker addedthat solar powered street lights worthN35 million would be erected in, Jibia,Magama-Jibia, Kaita and Dankamatowns, adding that this wouldenhance security in the areas.

Salisu further stated that he hadsingle handily secured employmentfor seven persons in his constituencyinto various federal governmentestablishments while also supportinga day secondary school in the areawith English and Mathematicsteachers by paying their allowances.

The lawmaker expressed worryover the deteriorating securitysituation in the country where he said' the situation is worrisome becausewe are in a situation where nobody issafe. Both the rich and the poor

Belgore had in the messageflayed the government for floatinga 2013 budget in which recurrentexpenditure, estimated at N51b, faroutweighs the (productive) capitalexpenditure pegged at just N42.6b.Both the government and the PDPcharacterised Belgore's comment tomean a call for mass retrenchmentof workers.

Ajakaye said in a statementrecently that the Senior Advocateabhors engaging people in gutterlanguage, adding that Kwaransget to know of the much-vauntedgiant strides of the PDP governmentonly on the pages of newspapers and

on television screens."Urbane and tough advocate of

issue-based politics; Mr Belgorewould not engage the PDP in gutterlanguage, as has become the habitof its spokesman, in the name ofpolitics. Also, the jury is out aboutthe so-called achievements of thePDP government which our peoplesee only on TV screens and on thepages of newspapers.

"However, for the purpose ofsetting the record straight, we wishto state the following: Followers ofKwara politics know our stand onwhat has become a culture of latepayment of workers' salary and

shabby treatment of the work force.Instead, it is KWSG that isretrenching workers in a wickedand dubious way by orchestratingthe sack of LG workers withoutgiving any official confirmation. Itis the height of deceit especiallyafter Ahmed swore no such thingwould happen.

"That KWSG is about the worstculprit of ghost worker syndromeas it has no verifiable official dataon its workforce, deliberatelycreating avenue for corrupt PDPofficials to rip off the state. Nothingexposes this than the fact thatseveral months after it ran a sham

verification of workers, the exerciseremains inconclusive.

"That we challenge KWSG to tellthe world how much it spendsmonthly from public fund onbailing out the tottering ShongaFarm which the white farmersadmit has 'passed its sell-by date' outof the cobweb of debts, even whenwe are told that the state now ownsjust 25% in an investment builtlargely with Kwara resources. It isall of these, amongst other wastages,that really eat away the state'smeager resources, not the paltrysum being paid the poor civilservants who deserve their wage."

PAGE 39PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2012

Wamakko wants North, South toclose ranks over terrorism

Sen. Ayogu Eze (PDP- EnuguNorth)on Saturdaycanvassed for an Nsukka man

to be the governor of either EnuguState or the proposed Adada State in2015. Eze, who is the Chairman ofSenate Committee on Works, madethe remark during the launch ofNsukka calendar produced byOrdinary People of Nsukka (OPON),an NGO at Nsukka on Saturday.

He said that in 2015, a person ofNsukka extraction should occupy the'Lion Building' in Enugu or get electedas the first governor of the proposed

state, if created before then.``It is sure that come 2015,

Nsukka man must be governor.```We should start now to mobilisemaximum support for whosoeverthat will emerge from Nsukka zoneas governor of Enugu State or Adadastate in 2015.'' He appealed toleadership of OPON to ensure thatits interest did not clash with that ofPDP in the zone. ``I commend theinitiative of the pioneers of OPON buturged the leadership to ensure theinterest of the organisation did notclash our party.

Eze wants Nsukka man asgovernor of Enugu in 2015

generally to continue to preachpeace, unity and understandingamong Nigerians as part of effortsaimed at drawing down thestrength of terrorists in the country.

He said his government overthe years has been showingexamples by encouraging harmonyand peaceful co-existence among thepeople of the state in which case, non-indigenes have been enjoying their

R-L: Ekiti state Governor, Dr KayodeFayemi,with Speaker, State House of Assembly, Hon. AdewaleOmirin, during the signing of the 2013Appropriation Bill into law, recently in Ado-Ekiti.

stay without any form ofmolestation while they operateunder the same law as othersunrestrained.

He said to promote the value ofpeace and progress in Sokoto stateand the rest of the north, hisgovernment was intensifying effortson how to host a mother of all Durbarin the state later in the year, meantto attract tourists from across the

world if only to show-case the valueof Sokoto State in Islamic services, asa place of peace and harmony.

The Durbar, he noted, would beheld annually, being the first of itskind in Africa south of Sahara, justas the event being planned wouldalways attract the attention oftourists and world investors to Sokotoand the northern parts of thecountry.

Former commissioner tasksagencies on corruption

a quick passage of the nation'sbudget by the National Assemblywould go a long way inaccelerating the government'sdesire to execute its capitalprojects.

The former commissionercalled on all tiers of governmentto find a lasting solution to thepoor road network in thecountry. He said it would savemany lives who would have diedin motor accidents. (NAN)

Alhaji NurudeenMohammed, a formerCommissioner for Finance

in Kwara, has urged the nation'santi-graft commissions to intensifytheir efforts at tackling corruptionto engender development.Mohammed, who stated this inIlorin, appealed to the EFCC andICPC to live up to their mandatesof ridding the menace ofcorruption, which he said hadreached an alarming rate. He

pleaded with the judiciary toensure quick dispensation ofjustice, especially in matters thatrelated to corruption.

The former commissioner, whois the Tafida of Kaima in Kwara,urged Nigerians, irrespective ofreligion and social culturalbackground, to work withsecurity agencies in their bid toensure a crime-free society.Mohammed also answered aquestion on budget, saying that

Sokoto State Governor,Alhaji Aliyu MagatakardaWamakko, has called on

stakeholders from the northern andSouthern parts of the country to closeranks in order to address thechallenge of terrorism in thecountry.

The governor while reacting toquestions from newsmen over theweekend said the challenge ofterrorism should not been seen asthat of the northerners alone butthat of the entire nation.

Wamakko pointed out thatthere could be no reasonabledevelopmeht in the country if anyof its parts is weighed down by thechallenge of insecurity. Accordingto him, it was time for the rest ofNigerians, most especially thesouthern states rally round thenorth in addressing the knottyproblem of terrorism which hasbeen afflicting the zone in the interestof national unity.

Wamakko stressed that thenorth at this time requires thelogistics and spiritual supports of thesouthern states to end the menace ofterrorism in the country, asaccording to him, the north ralliedround the south when it was afflictedwith activities of militants in theNiger Delta area, separatistsmovement (MASSOB) in the south-east and that of the Oodua PeoplesCongress (OPC) in the south-west.

The northern governors, heassured have not been resting ontheir oars in ensuring that terrorismcomes to an end in the northern partwhere it has been most prevalentadding that efforts were on tonetwork with their colleagues in thesouth on how to collectively resolvethe challenge.

Expressing appreciation to theunderstanding Nigerians have beenshowing in the face of provocationby some terrorist groups, the SokotoState governor urged clerics

…sets to hold mother of all Durbar this yearBy Lawrence Olaoye

Gov. Adams Oshiomhole ofEdo has ordered theimmediate retirement of

Mr Alhassan Ikeloa, thePermanent Secretary, Ministryof Environment and PublicUtilities, for alleged derelictionof duty.

The governor announcedIkeloa's retirement in astatement issued by theSecretary to the StateGovernment, Prof. JuliusIhonvbre, on Saturday in Benin.The statement said that the sackorder followed the governor's on-the-spot inspection of some partsof the Benin metropolis onFriday. The places he visitedincluded the National Museumon Oba Ovoramwen Square,where he lamented the filthynature of the area.

The statement stated thatthe governor was visibly angryover the heaps of refuse at themuseum and surrounding areasand traced the problem to thePermanent Secretary'sdereliction of duty. Accordingquoted Oshiomhole as sayingthat the board of the state CivilService would be informed ofIkelao's retirement forratification.

The governor also orderedthe seizure of wares displayed bytraders along walk-ways on thenewly constructed Oba Marketroads, the statement added.Oshiomhole, who ordered thetowing of vehicles impounded bythe police, warned the DivisionalPolice Officer of the station in thearea to desist from parking suchvehicles along the road. (NAN)

Oshiomholeretires Perm Secfor dereliction ofduty, warns DPO

Kogi State Deputy Governor,Yomi Awoniyi, has advisedthe Kogi State Chairman of

Action Congress of Nigeria ACN, AlhajiHadi Ametuo not to embark on a missionof calumny that is detrimental to theprogress of the state.

Awoniyi stated this when hereceived members of the State House ofAssembly from the five Okun speakingareas of the state who were in his officeon a sympathy visit on the recent autocrash involving the State Governor,Capt Idris Wada in which he lost his

ADC,ASP Mohammed Idris.The Deputy Governor described the

utterances of the state Chairman of theACN regarding the state of health ofCapt Idris Wada as misleading andunhealthy for the State.

He appealed to him to always crosscheck his facts before going to the press soas not to run foul of the law. Awoniyidisclosed that the absence of theGovernor has not in any way sloweddown government business.

Rather than seek cheap popularity,Awoniyi urged the ACN Chairman tobe humane in his utterances addingthat it was an accident which couldhappen to anybody. Awoniyi thankedGod for the Governor's speedy rate ofrecovery within a short time andcommended the initiative of thelegislators for the visit.

Earlier in his speech, Hon HenryOjuola who spoke on behalf of thelawmakers described the loyalty ofthe Deputy Governor to his boss asunflinching, unalloyed andunconditional pray God to grant theGovernor speedy recovery to enablehim return and continue with histransformation agenda for thestate.

Highlight of the legislators visitwas prayers offered for quickrecovery of the State governor, hisDeputy the family of the late ADC andthe state in general.

Kogi Depuity Gov. cautions ACNagainst calumny campaignFrom Sam Egwu, lokoja

PAGE 40 PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

2015: Northern youth groupkicks against Jonathan

The Kogi Government has beenadvised to set up anindependent budget

monitoring body to effectively trackbudget implementation.

The call was contained in an 11-point communique issued on Fridayin Lokoja at the end of a one-daymeeting of the Kogi State EconomicLiteracy for Budget Accountabilityin Governance (ELBAG), facilitatedby ActionAid Nigeria.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that thecommunique was signed by MrVictor Adejoh of ParticipationInitiative for Behavioural Change

in Development on behalf of ELBAGand Mr Mattaga Gerald, theCommunity Coordinator.

The document said that the bodywould assess the budgetperformance of the state's Ministries,Departments and Agencies (MDAs)as well as local government councilsin the state. It pointed out that inspite of government's good intensionsand plausible budgetary provisions,an appraisal of the 2012 budgetshowed that it did not make positiveimpact on the lives of the poor in thestate.

"The MDAs in the state have notbeen accountable and transparent

Group advises Kogi to set up budget monitoring bodyin budget implementation in thepast year as no MDA clearlyaccounted for any capitalprojects in 2012."

The communique alsorecommended capacitybuilding training for membersof the state's House of Assemblyto sharpen their oversightfunction skills in ensuring thatbudgetary provisions werestrictly adhered to andimplemented. Budget staff of theMDAs, the communique added, alsorequired training to develop theirexpertise in budget and budgetingprocesses. (NAN)

The Nigeria Association forthe Blind, Nasarawachapter, has applauded Gov.

Umaru Al-Makura appointing twophysically-challenged men intogovernment positions. Mr HassanAdogo, chairman of the association,gave the commendation in astatement made available to theNews Agency of Nigeria (NAN) onSaturday in Lafia.

The chairman said that theappointment of Mr Mohammed Idris,a cripple, as the state's SolicitorGeneral and Permanent Secretary,Ministry of Justice, had shown thatAl-Makura ` is truly the governor ofall". He also commended theappointment of Mr Yakubu Obama,also a cripple, as his Special Assistanton Disabled Matters.

``Gov. Al-Makura has done a lotto improve the lives of the citizens ofthe state,'' Agogo said. He reiteratedthe association's commitment togiving the governor total support toenable him to transform the state andimprove the lives of the people. Hecalled on the governor to appointmore physically-challenged peopleinto state government positions togive them a sense of belonging.

The chairman also called on thestakeholders, politicians and citizensof the state to give the governor themuch-needed support to enable himto take the state to ` the promise land''.(NAN)

Association laudsAl-Makura forappointing 2blind men intocubinet

Northern youth groups fromnineteen northern statesunder the aegis of the

Northern Youth Assembly (NYA)(Majalisar Matasan Arewa)yesterday at Arewa House, Kadunasaid they will resist any attempt toimpose President GoodluckJonathan on the nation even thoughthey did not oppose his right to

contest the 2015 presidency.Speakers at the National Youth

Dialogue meeting themed"Challenges of Sustaining theNigerian Democracy and theNational Unity -The Role of NigerianYouths and the Way Forward"were unanimous in asking thecrop of present Northern leadersto leave the stage for the youthsto lead the quest for NorthernPresidency in 2015.

Chairman of the occasion,Rep Aliyu Ibrahim Gebi, whilespeaking said Nigerian andespecially Northern youthshave been marginalized by thesame people who attainedleadership position in theyouthful ages due to thebenevolence of leaders like lateSardauna Sir Ahmadu Bello, but arenot willing to allow the present cropsof youths to realize their potentials

and contribute to development ofthe region.

"It is our mandate and our rightto decide who leads us. If PresidentGoodluck Jonathan likes he cancontest a million times as much asthe constitution allows, but foranyone to try to impose anybodyon us will not be acceptable, neveragain, it will not happen neveragain," Gebi said.

He also said the northernyouths are not subjects toanyone but bonafide membersof the society with the right todignity guaranteed for otherNigerians in the Constitution.National chairman of the NYA,Mallam Ibrahim Waiya, saidNorthern youths had series ofbitter experiences includingthe recent 2011 generalelection where some peoplecreated illusive popularity inthe pretext of championing thecause of the North with noreasonable and responsiblerepresentation of the majorityof Northerners.

Don't be deterred by criticisms,Obasanjo advises Okorocha

showed that Nigerians were becomingmore united. ` I received supports andgifts from almost all the governors,including those that were represented.

``In fact, Nigeria is matchingforward and very soon we will becomethe greatest nation in mankind if wecontinue like this," he said. In hissermon, the officiating priest, Rev. Fr.Julius Emegwa urged the groom to lovehis wife "as Christ loves the church" andthe bride to be submissive to herhusband. Emegwa also enjoined themto tolerate and love each other, and notedthat without love, marriage would notstand. (NAN)

Former President OlusegunObasanjo on Saturdayadvised Gov. Rochas Okorocha of

Imo not to be deterred by criticism of hisperformance. Obasanjor gave theadvice at the wedding of the governor'sfirst daughter, Uloma, and husband,Mr Uche Nwosu, at the Holy CrossCatholic Church, Aladinma, Owerri.

Nwosu is the Imo Commissioner forLands and Survey. Obasanjo, who saidthat Okorocha was bound to receivecriticisms, urged him to remain focusedon the programmes and policies of hisadministration aimed at developing thestate. He reminded the governor that

the more good he did, the more criticismshe would attract, citing Jesus Christ asan example.

The former president noted thatJesus was an epitome of goodness, yet hewas crucified by his enemies. Hecommended Okorocha for believingin and preaching the unity of thecountry, an attitude he said was thehallmark of a progressive leader.Obasanjo prayed God to bless thecouple, and urged them to love eachother. Earlier, Okorocha stressed theneed for unity in the country, addingthat the support he had received frompeople from all parts the country

L-R: Member, House of Representatives,Hon. Halliru Zakari Jikan Toro, Speaker, House ofRepresentatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, and Hon. Bashir Adamu, exchanging pleasantries,during their visit to Hon. Halliru zakari's house, recently in Borgu, New Bussa in Niger state.

By Umar Muhammad PumaA group, under the aegis ofConcerned Arewa Patriots(CAP), has called for the

fielding of a credible candidate fromthe north to contest for the country'sPresidency in 2015. The North-WestCo-ordinator of CAP, Mr MaiyakiIdris, made the call in Kano onSunday while briefing newsmen.''CAP hereby appeals to the North topassionately address the crucialchoice of a presidential candidatewith credible standards devoid ofethnic, political and religioussentiments,'' he said.

The group appealed to politiciansfrom the north to ensure the selectionof a candidate who is ` incorruptible,sellable, reliable''. It said thecandidate must be someone whosetrack record of nationalism andperformance could never be in doubtto vie for the presidency in the nextgeneral elections. Idris said the grouphad set the machinery in motion tomobilise all well-meaningNortherners, including all formerHeads of state in galvanising supportfor the idea. `

`We also have in mind the federaland state legislators, both presentand past ones, and we believe theycan support the idea,'' he said. Theco-ordinator said the group wouldfocus on programmes aimed atpromoting the region's socio-economic and political growth, aswell as its development and that ofthe nation as a whole.(NAN)

2015: Groupcalls forcrediblecandidate

Aregbesolaunveils Ori-olokun in Ile-Ife

Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of Osunon Saturday in Ile-Ifeunveiled an Ife ancestral

monument, popularly called Ori-olokun, as part of activities markingthe inauguration of Ori-olokungarden. The governor performed theunveiling of the huge Ori-Olokunsculpture at the Ori-OlokunRoundabout, formerly MayfairRoundabout in Ile-Ife.

He described the monument as aprecious heritage of the Yoruba race,and urged the people to protect andpreserve it. Mr Taiwo Olaiya, theExecutive Secretary, Ife Central LocalGovernment, under whosejurisdiction the garden is situated, alsodescribed the monument as the mostfamous in history. According to him,Ori-Olokun monument wasdiscovered in the early 20th centuryby German explorer Leo Frobenius.

``Frobenius could not imaginethat such works were of African originand came up with the theory that thisgreat art was evidence of the lostAtlantis of the Greeks. ``He furtherdeclared that the Yoruba deity, Olokun,was the same god as the GreekPoseidon.

``The monument was furtheridentified as a modern sand casting ofa brass, which comprises copper andzinc. ``The name, Olokun, attachedto this head refers to the fact that itwas dug up in the late 19th centuryin the Olokun Grove and used inannual rites to honour Olokun ,'' hesaid. An Ife priest, Chief FalobaFagbenro, described Olokun as thegoddess of the sea and patronage of beadmaking, which makes glass beadworking an important industry in Ile-Ife.

He recalled that the head of Olokun(Ori Olokun) remained in the hands ofthe family responsible for the Olokuncult until Oni brought it to the palacefor safekeeping in 1934. (NAN)

PAGE 47PEOPLES DAILY, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

SUDOKUSUDOKUGetting Started

Each sudoku puzzle is a 9 by 9 grid of horizontal and verticalrows, evenly separated into 9 squares with 9 spaces each.Instead of word clues, each puzzle’s solution is determinedby the pattern of the numbers already filled in you. Yousolve the puzzle by filling in the missing digits so that, whencompleted, each row and each square will have all thenumber from 1 to 9; each number will appear in exactlynine spaces within each puzzle.

Yesterday’s solution

Say what?

Serene: With its eyes shut and one flipper outstretched, the seal appears almost as if itis practicing yoga moves by balancing upon a rock in the middle of the sea off the coastof Estonia. Source: Dailymail.co.uk

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Engineer as a Designer of the Human BodyThree engineering students were gathered together discussing the

possible designers of the human body.One said, “It was a mechanical engineer. Just look at all the joints.”Another said, “No, it was an electrical engineer. The nervous

systems many thousands of electrical connections.”The last said, “Actually it was a civil engineer. Who else would run

a toxic waste pipeline through a recreational area?”

The GenieA blonde was walking along the beach when she finds an old bottle

floating in the water. The blonde goes over and picks it up and noticesa cork in the top of the bottle. She pulls out the cork and a geniepops out.

“Thankyou for letting me out after 10000 years, stuck in that bottleand to say thankyou I will give you 3 wishes.

The blonde thinks for a little while and finally decides on her firstwish.

“I would like to be 10% smarter”The genie does her magic and she is turned into a red head.“I don’t think I am smart enough yet, I would like to be 100%

smarter than what I am”So the Genie does her magic a second time and she turns in to a

brunette.“I don’t think I am smart enough yet I would like to be 1000%

smarter than what I am”So the genie turns her into a man!

J O K E SJ O K E S

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. Kano office: Plot 3, Zaria Road, Opposite Kano State House of Assembly. Lagos Office:No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos. Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 805 727 9862.e-mail: contact@peoplesdaily-online.com; pmlnewsdesk@gmail.com ISSN: 2141– 6141

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

QQQQQUOUOUOUOUOTTTTTABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QUOUOUOUOUOTETETETETEIn addition to China, India, and Brazil, regionalplayers such as Colombia, indonesia, Nigeria,

South Africa and Turkey, will become especiallyimportant to the global economy.

— United States National IntelligenceCouncil (NIC) report on Global Trends 2030

If voting changed anything,they'd abolish it — KenLivingstone

The reactions to the deluge ofposters in Abuja hinting, ineffect, that President

Jonathan intends to remainPresident beyond 2015 werevaried and amusing. Thepresidency itself pulled out all stopsto denounce the intention and theact of plastering the face of thePresident in glossy, expensiveposters in a bid to warn awayambitious opposition from daringto dream of Nigeria withoutJonathan as President in 2015. Allthat energy was wasted. The legionof the presidential spokesmen whodistanced him from the postersfailed to recognize that the ploy is atime-tested Nigerian politicaltradition, and while you meeklydo say that the face in the poster isnot the inspiration for it, you alsosay it is the right of every citizen toexpress a political preference. Ifsome people, you also say, wantJonathan to contest again in 2015,it is their right to say so in an opendemocratic manner, with orwithout his consent. The goal, ofcourse, is that the point would havebeen made. Nigerians now knowthat the 2015 project is real, andthere are likely to be otherstrategies to keep the message alive.

No one believes that thousandsof posters plastered in Abuja in themiddle of the night were thehandiwork of detractors or peoplewho want to force the hands of thePresident. Just think: if thoseposters had the face of PresidentJonathan above captions such as"2015: Never Again, Jonathan"; or"Go Home in 2015"; or "Please GoNow, Jonathan"; or any of suchslogans, would presidentialspokesmen, police, SSS or any ofthe army of security personnel orthe thousands of young peoplefrom the south-south who havenow made Abuja first homes andpaint it red until the wee hours ofthe morning have left them there,and claimed that they had noknowledge of who pasted them? Atthe most minimal level, it musttaken at least 100 people armedwith posters, glue, smearingequipment, lights and someelaborate intelligence overstrategic posting positions,working over a period of at least 4or five hours to paste all thoseposters. The printers would haverequired at least 36 hours andelaborate logistics to print anddistribute. If the posters carriedpatently subversive messages,such as "Support Boko Haram", or"End the Nigerian Nightmare"; oreven less offensive slogans like

parties over the episode. Everyoneis running around shouting as ifthis post-your-poster-and-disclaim-it strategy is new in Nigerianpolitics. Everyone knows thatPresident Jonathan is a very likelycandidate in the 2015 elections.Politicians have put out posters towarn off oppositions with 'NoVacancy' since PresidentObasanjo's campaign managersmade it popular. Politicians haveroutinely printed and publishedposters of opponents as aspirants topolitical offices to pitch themagainst occupants many times inthe past. Vice President NamadiSambo's posters were plastered allover Kaduna some time last year,announcing his candidature for thePresidency. He duly denounced itas the handiwork of detractors.Posters are put out to test thewaters, to pollute waters, to causeconfusion. They are put out byfriends and enemies, andsometimes they are pasted andtorn down within a few hours bythe same interests to make politicalpoints.

It is perfectly legal andlegitimate to warn off opposition.The language of 'No Vacancy' usedto offend Nigerians, because itsuggested that even popularelections will not replaceoccupants. This has changed sincethe standard ethics of Nigerianpolitics came crashing downmany notches. If PresidentJonathan's supporters cannot findless abused phrases to say he is inthe race, the most seriousaccusation that can be labeledagainst them is laziness.

And there is plenty of evidenceof laziness all around the politicalterrain. Opposition is getting allworked up over posters, when itshould be involved in a life-or-death discussions over alliancesand mergers. It even has time tocomment on the President's NewYear message to the nation, adocument that should be saved byhistorians as evidence over howlow competence in governancelevels can descend in Nigeria. Thedemand that people who printedand pasted all those posters shouldbe arrested and prosecuted isalmost laughable. They are

Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) has closed theAfrica Cup of Nations door

on Newcastle striker SholaAmeobi after he failed to arriveover the weekend at the teamtraining camp in Portugal.

Ameobi preferred to skippera depleted Magpies team thatslumped 2-0 at second-tierBrighton and Hove Albion onSaturday to make a shock FACup third-round exit.

The 31-year-old strikermade his senior internationaldebut against Venezuela twomonths ago and was set to beincluded in a 23-man SuperEagles squad for the Cup ofNations between January 19and February 10.

But once Ameobi was chosenin a provisional Nigerian squad,Newcastle manager AlanPardew said the player would notbe going to South Africa for thetournament without giving areason.

Although it emerged that aclause in the contract of Ameobiallowed the English PremierLeague club to retain his servicesduring the tournament, Eaglescoach Stephen Keshi did not drophim from the squad until thisweekend.

“The chapter concerningAmeobi is now closed and we arelooking ahead to theannouncement of the final 23-man squad this week," Nigeriateam spokesman Ben Alaiya toldreporters at the camp in Faro.

Alaiya added that the squadto face defending championsZambia, Burkina Faso andEthiopia in Rustenburg-basedGroup C could be namedtomorrow, a day before Nigeriaplay a warm-up match againstthe Cape Verde Islands inPortugal.

The Eagles will be hoping tobuild on an impressive firstwarm-up last Wednesday whenan experimental team thatstarted with seven local playersdrew 1-1 in Spain against aCatalonia side containingseveral Barcelona stars.

www.peoplesdaily-online.com

. . . putting the people first

NFF closesAFCON dooron Ameobi

Posters and posers

"Replace Jonathan with Dokubo",would they still have been printedand pasted without any detectionor resistance?

There are in fact serious issuesto consider in the poster saga. Thesecurity angle is the most serious.It is perfectly understandable ifPresident Jonathan's peopledisown the people behind thecampaign. But it would bereassuring to hear from thesecurity agencies that they wereaware of the printing, movementand pasting of all those posters inthe middle of the night. Theyshould also say if they know whowas behind them, since theyapparently broke no laws, exceptperhaps defacing public property.Nigerians need to hear this becausefeigning ignorance, or claimingnot to know anything about theposters would alarm a nationalready on edge. People who hadall the time to move posters andpasting material to many parts ofAbuja and work unchallengedcould also have been involved inmore harmful exercises in verysensitive areas. So it is importantto hear the view of the police andother security agencies. Even if itis to assure citizens that they knewwhen the posters were beingposted, and who was behind them.Whatever other information theygive to the President in confidenceshould not be of public concern.

The amusing angle to the postersaga is the indignation of opposition

President Jonathan

detractors, we are told, people whowant to divert Mr President'sattention and energy frommaking 2013 a trulytransformative year. If thehundreds of suspects who wereinvolved in spectacular bombingshave been arrested, according tothe President, but have not beenprosecuted, does the oppositionseriously expect arrest andprosecution of people who pastedposters campaigning for PresidentJonathan? After all, everyonewho had anything to say, tells usthat they are unknown. Prettymuch like the JASLIWAJ (a.k.a.Boko Haram) who are faceless,even though many of their majoroperatives are now in custody.

The hoopla over the campaignposters of President Jonathanremind us of the sorry state ofNigerian politics. Here you havea President with neither time nortrust, battling massive problemswhich mount by the day, anddesperately hoping for a miraclethat things will automaticallyturn round. He cannot say he willrun again in 2015 because he doesnot have enough ammunition tofight that battle. He cannot sayhe will not run because he will bepermanently crippled by peoplewho see their future without him.So he or his people fly kites, andeven these are shot at by anopposition which cannot work ata more serious level to challengehim now, and in 2015.

If, to be charitable to PresidentJonathan, he truly does not know,or approve of the people who putout those posters, he needs to paycloser attention to his immediatepolitical circle. The recentcriticisms of this circle by a(former?) insider, Asari Dokuboshould tell him that he has manyproblems close to home. He maydo well to heed the warning thatyou keep your friends close, andyou enemies closer. If he had nohand in the posters, his closeenemies may be at play.

If the posters were kites testingthe waters over the President'spopularity or ambitions towards2015, one will only hope thatthere are people around thePresident competent enough togive him a fair feedback. If thisfeedback is anything other thanan irritated, hostile reaction, theymust be deluding him. PresidentJonathan needs to work a lotharder to earn the confidence ofNigerians. The opposition needs towork even harder to ensure thatthose posters are not signals thatwhatever they or the electoralprocess do, President Jonathanwill be in the Villa after May 29,2015.

FIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENFIFTEENMINUTESMINUTESMINUTESMINUTESMINUTES

drbabaahmed@yahoo.com

withDr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed

Shola Ameobi