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Vol. 8 No. 74 Thursday, July 5, 2012 Shaaban 15, 1433 AH N150. . . putting the people first

Contd on Page 2

I’ve got phone numbersof Boko Haram leaders

New NSA reveals:

We lack evidence to prosecute Farouk Lawan – PoliceBy Lawrence Olaoye

Confusion as N300,000church collectionturns to papers

>> PAGE 9

Jonathanappoints first

female CJN

FG assures onsafety of corpsmembers

>> PAGE 3>> PAGE 5

Lagos-Kano trainservice begins

this month – NRC>> PAGE 19

Borno state Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima (left), his Chief of Staff, Alhaji Abubakar Kyari (middle) and Borno stateCommissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Youth Empowerment, Dr. Zainab Gimba, inspecting roofing tiles produced bytrainees under the state’s youths’ skills acquisition for mass housing programme, recently in Maiduguri.

Meets Shema, Kwankwaso

The Nigeria Police yesterdaydeclared that they lackedenough evidence to

prosecute the former Chairmanof the House of Representativesad-hoc committee on the

nation’s subsidy regime, RepFarouk Lawan.

The Police is currentlyinvestigating Lawan over a$620,000 bribery allegationlevelled against him by theChairman of Zenon Oil and GasLtd, Mr. Femi Otedola.

Otedola had alleged that thelawmaker requested the sum of$3 million bribe from him toenable him strike out the nameof his firms from the list of thoseindicted by the subsidy probecommittee for accessing foreignexchange (FOREX) without

importing petroleum products.The oil magnate had alleged

that Lawan and the committee’sClerk, Boniface Emenalo,received the total sum of$620,000 as part payment forthe bribe, which he claimed wasa sting operation in liaison with

security agents.Otedola had maintained that

he has recordings of all thetransactions between him andthe embattled lawmaker,promising to make them public.

Two of the purported tapes

Contd on Page 2

From Lawal Saidu Funtua,Katsina, with agency report

In what must be cheeringnews to a terror-wearynation, the new National

Security Adviser (NSA), Col.Sambo Dasuki (rtd), yesterdaydeclared that he had obtainedthe contacts of key Boko Haramleaders for possible dialogue withthe group.

Dasuki, who spoke in Josduring a meeting withstakeholders in Plateau state,said he was planning to meetwith the group on the need for itto cease fire and embracedialogue as soon as possible.

His words: “I was in Yobe andBorno states last week and I gotthe telephone numbers andcontacts of key Boko Harammembers and I will meet withthem.

“I saw the dangerous effectof Boko Haram in these statesand what I saw was pathetic. ButI have the mandate to put headstogether with religious andtraditional leaders as well as thestate governments to ensure animmediate ceasefire”, the News

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSNews 2-11

Editorial 12

Op.Ed 13

Letters 14

Opinion 15

Metro 16-17

Business 19-22

S/Exchange 23

S/Report 24

Earth 26

Issues 30

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Inviting US to crushBoko Haram is

dangerous, Page 37

WE WANTTO HEAR

FROM YOU

International 31-34

Strange World 35

Digest 36

Politics 37-40

Sports 41-47

Columnist 48

PAGE 2 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Sacked Afribank staff: Reps threatento declare Mainstreet Bank hostile

I’ve got phone numbers of Boko Haram leaders

Contd from Page 1

We lack evidence to prosecute Farouk Lawan – Police

Contd from Page 1

By Lawrence Olaoye

had been aired on ChannelsTelevision with Lawanvehemently disowning theaudio through his counsel,Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN).

But the Police authoritieshave said that the alleged audioand video recordings over the$3 million bribery scandalwere not enough to prosecutethe lawmaker.

The Deputy Force PublicRelations Officer, Frank Mba,who spoke on the briberyscandal, said there was not

enough evidence to prosecuteLawan, and asked for the fullclips of the recordings.

The Police spokespersondemanded for the full videocomponent of the recording. Hesaid that without the wholerecordings, going to court willbe an exercise in futility.

He said: “You just don’t rushto court for the fun of chargingpeople to court. That is whycourts are congested and thatis why we don’t make progress.It does not make sense. It isunproductive; it is a waste ofpublic resource.”

Mba noted that with theevidence so far obtained, it willamount to a waste of time andpublic resources to rush tocourt.

It would be recalled thatLawan said he will bevindicated in the matter.Commenting on his removal asthe chairman of the ad-hoc andEducation committees as aresult of the allegation againsthim, Lawan said: “The decisionof the House of Representativesis a collective decision of theinstitution and I haveabsolutely no problem with

that decision. As far as the issuerelating to me is concerned, Ibelieve ultimately, I will bevindicated.

“I just urge Nigerians tocontinue to be patient, I havenot spoken on the issue forstrategic reasons, but I believein the end Nigerians will cometo believe and see that for the13 years that I have investedin championing goodgovernance, responsibility andprobity in this country thatthis last trial is a trial from Godand I believe in the end we shallprevail”, he stressed.

Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quotedthe NSA as saying.

Dasuki said he was in Plateaufor on-the-spot assessment of thesecurity challenges there and infurtherance of the FederalGovernment’s peace efforts,particularly across the northernpart of the country.

He expressed confidence thatthe people of Plateau could puttheir problems behind them andforge ahead with genuine peaceand reconciliation.

The NSA stated: “I have astake in Plateau because I havelived in Pankshin and Jos whenmy father resided here. So if welived peacefully way back then,it is possible to go back to thosegood old days.

“Before now, it is difficult forme to believe that you can see aFulani and Berom man togetheron the street of Plateau fighting.

“But the presence of variousethnic and religious groups atthis parley is a pointer to the factthat we want to forge ahead”, hesaid.

In his remarks, GovernorJonah Jang regretted that theemergency rule in the state hadnot achieved the intended effectas the attacks on the affectedlocal government areas hadcontinued unabated.

But Jang stated that it wouldbe difficult to dialogue with theBoko Haram sect since its leadersand members were not known.He therefore urged the group tocome out and identify itself.

The governor said: “We onlyhear that Boko Haram claimsresponsibility for this and thatattack but we never heardanybody coming out to say he isBoko Haram. We know the NigerDelta militants had leaders anda cause they were fighting forwhich made late President

Yar’adua to succeed with theamnesty programme but, whois Boko Haram?”

Jang alleged that someinfluential people were behindthe sect in view of thesophistication of its operationsand insisted that the sponsorsmust be dealt with by theappropriate authority.

The parley had inattendance, traditional,religious and communityleaders, heads of securityservices, women, youthgroups, and governmentfunctionaries, among others.

Meanwhile, as part of his on-going tour of some troubledareas in the country, Dasukialso visited Katsina and Kanostates yesterday, where he metwith Governors IbrahimShema and Rabiu Kwankwaso.During his meeting with theKatsina governor, Dasukisolicited the support of all

stakeholders in ensuring theprotection of lives and propertyin the land.

On his part, GovernorShema urged Nigerians to unitetoward ensuring peace andsecurity, for the nation torealize its economic potentials.

“Other countries of theworld are moving forward andtherefore Nigeria must alsomove forward to take its placein the comity of nations. Thiswe must not fail”, he stressed.

The NSA had beforedeparting for Kano also metwith the Emir of Katsina,Alhaji Abdulmumini KabirUsman behind closed doors inthe emir’s palace.

Meanwhile, a source inKano Government House toldPeoples Daily at about 9.15pmthat Dasuki was still at ameeting with Kwankwaso,discussing ways of fosteringpeace and security in the state.

The House of Representatives yesterday threatened to declare the

Mainstreet Bank hostile to theparliament over its reluctanceto comply with its resolutions tore-instate the 41 sacked staff ofits predecessor, Afribank.

Chairman House Committeeon Legislative Compliance, RepMoroof Akinderu-Fatai, who ex-pressed frustration at the wayMainstreet’s management hasrefused to cooperate with thecommittee in its bid to resolvethe logjam between it and theformer Afribank staff.

Akinderu –Fatai said theManaging Director of the bankhas never deemed it fit to appearbefore the committee in spite ofseveral invitations extended tohim but maintained that thecommittee decided to continuethe intervention in the interestof peace and justice for those 41sacked citizens who had theirsource of livelihood abridged.

He wondered why the bankwould only acquire the assets ofthe bank and reject all its accom-panying liabilities including thesacked staff who were expectedto be reinstated.

He said “If we cannot resolvethis, we may be left with no otheroption than to report back to theHouse that they have refused tocomply with the resolution andthe House would regardMainstreet Bank as being hostileto the parliament. This meansthat the bank should forget hav-ing anything to do with the par-liament.”

According to him, the bankhad severally insisted that itcannot reinstate the sackedworkers unless the Central Bankof Nigeria and the Nigeria De-posit Insurance Corporation(NDIC) endorse such decision bythe agencies at the hearing dis-closed that they have no suchpowers over Mainstreet Bank.

NDIC and CBN and AMCONrepresented at the meeting dis-closed that they have no power

to dictate on what the bankwould do as such critical decisionas to employment and sack ofworkers rest solely with themanagement of Mainstreet.

The committee howeverfrowned at the disposition of thebank to the resolution of thematter as he counseled the agen-cies involved to resolve the mat-

ter amicably. Concerning thenonchalant attitude of the bank,Akinderu-Fatai lamented “Theyhave not been here with anyagreement with AMCON or theNDIC; we have always been theones giving them information.Up till today, they have notshifted their position on the mat-ter.”

Again, US embassy warns citizensof possible terror attacks in Abuja

By Julius Ogar

The US embassy in Nigeria yesterday warned itscitizens about threats to

American targets through theindependence holiday weekagainst the backdrop of insecu-rity across the country.

“The U.S. Mission in Nige-ria is issuing this emergencymessage to inform U.S. citizensof potential threats againstU.S. installations during theJuly 4 holiday week," said a

statement posted on theembassy's website.

The warning followed Tues-day night’s explosion whichdisrupted activities in Wuse 2a commercial area in Abujamunicipality.

‘US citizens in Abuja re-main barred from visitingplaces of worship as well asnearby commercial establish-ments and must return totheir homes by midnight’, ac-cording to the embassy state-ment.

PAGE 3PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Jonathan appoints firstfemale Chief JusticeThe Senate yesterday

confirmed PresidentJonathan’s appointment of

Justice Mariam Aloma Mukhtaras the first female Chief Justice ofNigeria (CJN.

Jonathan, in a letter to theSenate President, David Mark,which was read on the floor of theSenate, also appointed JusticesKumai Alaaks (North West) and

Stanley Alagoa (South –South) asjustices of the Supreme court.

The appointment of the newCJN was in conformity withsection 2311 (1) of the 1999Constitution, which empowers thePresident to make suchappointment, upon therecommendation of the NationalJudicial Council (NJC).

Justice Mukhtar, being thefirst female to head the nation’sjudiciary in Nigeria’s history, is to

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi replace the incumbent CJN,Justice Dahiru Musdapher, whowill retire from service this month.

Before her appointment,Justice Mukhtar was elevatedfrom Appeal court to Supremewhere she had been a justice of theSupreme Court, until theyesterday’s appointment.

In the letter, Jonathanexplained that the appointment ofthe two justices was based on therecommendation of the NJC.

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam

An army spokesperson,Colonel Sani Usman of the1 Division Nigerian Army

based in Kaduna, yesterday,confirmed that a bomb explodedbetween Dan Kande andMararaban Jos villages alongKaduna-Zaria expressway inKaduna state.

Usman told reporters that oneperson was injured in the blast. Healso confirmed that the armycordoned off the area and beganfull investigations to unravel thecause of the explosion.

Army confirmsbombexplosion alongKaduna-Zariaexpressway

Three officials serving underthe Taraba stategovernment were yesterday

arraigned in a Federal High Courtsitting in Yola by the Economic andFinancial Crimes Commission(EFCC), Gombe zonal office over asix-count charge including moneylaundering.

The accused persons, AlhajiInuwa Usman, Alhaji Shehu Boseand Reverend John Simon Jatutuallegedly swindled the Tarabastate government of N10 millionunder false pretence.

The charges read averred thatthe said N10million was allegedlycollected by the trio on behalf ofthe state Muslim council, to enableit prepare for the 50th anniversarycelebration of the country in theyear 2010.

When the charges were readout to the suspects, they all pleadednot guilty before the presiding chiefjudge, Justice Salem Shu’aibu.

Suntai’s officialsin EFCC netover moneylaunderingFrom Blessing Tunoh, Yola

The Federal Governmentyesterday shifted the blameof the ongoing acts of

terrorism in the country on thedeath of former Libyan leader,Muammar Gaddafi and the crisisthat followed.

Minister of Interior, ComradeAbba Morro, said this in Abuja,when he received United Nationsexperts on Libya in his office.

Moro said part of the securitychallenges the country is currentlyfacing stemmed from the activitiesin Libya.

His words: “Governmentbelieves that part of the problemsthat we have today, the challengesof internal security stemmed fromthe activities in Libya.

“It is indeed an open secret thateven though, we did not sharecommon border with Libya, armsand weapons have found theirways into Nigeria from that NorthAfrican country.”

FG blamesLibya forinsecurity

As part of measures to savecost and reduce the expensesof government, the Federal

Executive Council (FEC),yesterday, decided to ban anyofficial delegation to the upcomingLondon Olympics.

Minister of Sports, Mr. BolajiAbdullahi announced this whilebriefing State House correspondentsat the end of the meeting, sayingthat it would be the first time in along while that an officialgovernment delegation would notbe accompanying Nigeriancontingent to a major sporting event.

This, he explained, was tomove away from the situation inthe past where such events wereturned into a jamboree by officialsof government.

FEC bans officialdelegation toLondon OlympicsBy Abdulrahman Abdulraheem

Four people were killed while20 others were injured in adispute over land between

Kediya in Ganjuwa localgovernment and Golocommunities in Kirfi localgovernment area of Bauchi state.

A member representingGanjuwa-East, Adamu Manu inthe state house of Assembly whobrought the issue to the attention

of the House, urged the House toset up a committee to investigatethe dispute.

He recalled that the Emir ofBauchi, Dr. Rilwanu Suleimanhad visited the troubled areas tocommiserate with the victims ofthe communal clash.

It was gathered that two peopledied from each of the twocommunities during the conflictwhile a local leader of one of thecommunities had been arrested.

In a related development,members of staff of the Borno State

From Mustapha Isah Kwaru,Maiduguri & Ahmed Kaigama,Bauchi

Housing Corporation were throwninto mourning yesterdaymorning, following the killing oftheir General Manager, Engr. IsaMadu Ngaram.

Engr. Ngaram was reportedlykilled by unknown gunmen whoraided his office, situated inAbbaganaram ward of Maidugurimetropolis.

Our correspondent gatheredthat the incident occurred at about11.00am, when two men, armedwith AK47 rifles trailed the victimto his office and gunned him down.

4 killed, 20 injured in land dispute…as gunmen kill Borno Housing Corp. GM

A Federal Capital TerritoryHigh Court, presided overby Justice Abubakar Sadiq

Umar adjourned till September 25,2012 for cross examination andcontinuation of hearing in thecharges of misconduct and abuseof office filed against former

minister of the Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT), Malam Nasir el-Rufai and two others by theEconomic and Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC).

Hearing in the matter couldnot continue yesterday, followingthe in-ability of Chief Kanu Agabi,counsel representing the formerGeneral Manager of the Abuja

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

Geographic Information System(AGIS), Isma’ila Iro who is the thirdaccused person in the matter, tomake it to the court on account ofill-health.

It would be recalled that thecourt had turned down theformer FCT minister’s applicationand the other accused persons toquash the charges of misconductand abuse of office preferredagainst them by the anti-graftagency.

Court adjourns case against el-Rufai,others till Sept 25

A mysterious fire yesterdayat about 8.00pm broke outat the Louis Edet House of

the Police Headquarters.Police sources described the fire

incident as minor one and declinedfurther comments on it.

Our source said the incidentinvolved an old portacarbinlocated about 75 metres behind themain force headquarters building.

"The structure is an oldportacarbin measuring about 40feet in length and used for storingdisused and unserviceable officematerials.

"The fire has since been put offthrough the combined efforts ofpolicemen and fire fighters.

"Preliminary investigationindicates that the fire might havebeen caused by an electrical fault.”

Fire incidentat policeheadquartersBy Lambert Tyem

R-L: President Goodluck Jonathan, congratulating a new Permanent Secretary, Mr. Henry Akpan, after his swearing-in, yesterday atthe State House in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 4

You can’t influence us withyour means, Reps tell OtedolaThe House of Representatives

yesterday descended on theChairman of Zenon Oil

Nigeria Ltd., Mr. Femi Otedolatelling him that he lacked thecapacity to influence it even withhis enormous means.

Chairman, House Committeeon Media and Public Affairs, RepZakari Mohammed whilecommenting on the refusal of oil

By Lawrence Olaoye magnate to testify in camera beforeits Ethics and Privileges committeeprobing into the $620,000 briberyallegation against the formerchairman of the adhoc committeethat investigated the nation’s subsidyregime, Farouk Lawan, said Otedolacannot dictate the procedure forparliamentary proceedings.

According to him, "The caseagainst Hon Farouk is still anallegation. Otedola cannot controlthe House. This institution is bigger

than Otedola that he has meansdoes not mean that he should comeand dictate to us".

"Otedola was not in court but togive evidence. We respect thejudiciary. We are not doing the jobof the judiciary. We will never sidecorruption. It is a personal issue andFarouk should carry his cross. Butwhile this is going on, the report ofthe probe should be implemented.What is happening is because theHouse took a position which did not

go down well with some individuals,subsidy report is sacrosanct".

The investigation by thecommittee is not the court of lawand Chief Otedola is just a witnessto a case involving a member andas such he’s not subject to Houserules. The House as an institutionhas no issue with chief Otedola as itrespects other arms of thegovernment especially thejudiciary and security to take careof the relevant of the investigation".

Justice Stephen Adah of aFederal High Court, Ikeja,yesterday restated his earlier

interim order, suspending therenaming of the University ofLagos (UNILAG) to Moshood AbiolaUniversity, Lagos (MAUL),pending the determination of the

From Francis Iwuchukwu, Lagos motion on notice filed by studentsof the institution.

The judge restated his earlierorder that all parties shouldmaintain status quo following thefailure by the defence counsel tofile their reply to motion on noticebrought by the students and anoral application made by counselto the plaintiffs, Chief Wole

Olanipekun for a renewal of theJune 25, 2012 order.

Adah also ordered that the twosuits filed separately by thealumni association and somestudents of the universitychallenging the propriety ofrenaming the institution througha broadcast by President GoodluckJonathan should be consolidated.

At yesterday's hearing,counsel to the 1st, 2nd and 3rddefendants, Prof. Taiwo Osipitanrepresenting UNILAG and theschool’s council, and Mrs. TitiAkinlawon representing theSenate of the University of Lagosdid not oppose the request.

Attorney-General of theFederation, Mohammed Bello Adoke

Again, court restrains Jonathan over UNILAG name changeand the National Assembly, thefourth and fifth defendants in thematter were represented by J.JUsman and Obayagbon H. in the suitand did not also oppose the request.

The court however adjournedthe matter till September 21,2012, to enable the defence counselfile their reply to motion on noticeof the students

The Federal Governmentyesterday affirmed itscommitment to ensure the

safety of corps members deployedto any part of the country.

The Minister of Information,Mr. Labaran Maku, gave thisassurance while fielding questionsfrom State House Correspondentsafter the weekly Federal ExecutiveCouncil (FEC) meeting, presidedover by President GoodluckJonathan at the Presidential Villa.

Corps members had besiegedthe headquarters of the NationalYouth Service Corps in protestagainst their posting to crisis-pronestates in the Northern parts of thecountry.

The affected corps membersare mainly those posted to Kano,Kaduna, Yobe, Bauchi, Maiduguriand Gombe states.

Maku, however, reassured thecorps members that they had noreason to worry as the governmentwas doing all it could to guaranteetheir safety.

FG assurescorpsmembersof safety

Protest yesterday greeted thecall by the former GroupManaging Director (GMD) of

the Nigeria National PetroleumCorporation (NNPC), AustinOniwon, for the relocation of theGreen field refinery from Itope inOfu local government area toIbogiri in Ajaokuta, Kogi state.

A group, Ukomu Igala, at apress conference yesterday inLokoja, said the statement creditedto the former NNPC chief was anattempt to cause unnecessarydisaffection between the Igala andEbira people whom the formerbelieve have the same ancestralbackground and have been livingtogether in peace.

At the briefing, chairman ofthe steering committee of theassociation, Dr. Mike Idachabaexplained that a Certificate ofOccupancy for the refinery in Itopehad been issued by formerGovernor Ibrahim Idris since 2010when the Federal Governmentrequested land for the project in thestate.

Kogicommunityopposesrefinery’srelocationFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

In a declaration that stunned apacked Shari'a Court III atKofar Soro in Katsina, Khadi

Kabir Bello yesterday discharged a12-year-old boy charged before himfor allegedly stealing scrap metalsand offered to meet the minor’sschool needs.

The courtroom was moved totears when the Primary 5 pupil(names withheld) told the judgethat he stole some metal scraps toearn money to buy books to enablehim attend school.

The boy was arraigned beforethe court for allegedly stealing

From Lawal Sa'idu Funtua,Katsina

scrap metals valued at N10, 000belonging to his sister's husband.

He told the court that he used theproceeds of the money he got fromthe metal scraps to buy books, whichhe produced with other educationalmaterials in his school bag.

Corroborating his story, theboy’s mother and a neighbour whotestified before the court disclosedhow the boy had been complainingto his mother over lack of schoolbooks.

Delivering judgment, KhadiBello stated that the boy wasunder-aged and therefore cannotbe tried for theft in a court of law.

He discharged the accused andwarned him to stay off crime.

I stole to go to school,boy, 12, tells Shariah court

Nigerian businessmenoperating in Ghanayesterday cried out to the

Federal Government to come totheir rescue as Ghanaianauthorities have been embarkingon hostile business practicesagainst them.

The Nigerian traders said theGhanaian authorities havecommenced closing their shops forallegedly operating illegally

By Aminu Imam, with agencyreport

because they were said not tocomply with the governmentpolicy which requires them tohave an initial capital of $300,000and employ 10 Ghanaians beforethey can start any business inGhana regardless of the size of thebusiness.

When contacted, the ForeignAffairs Ministry said the FederalGovernment has stepped into thematter. An official said the FederalGovernment has reached out to itsGhanaian counterpart and thatthose affected should not rush tothe ECOWAS court as they havethreatened.

Ghanaian govt chasingus out, Nigerian bizmencry out

L-R: FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, Minister of State for FCT, Chief Olajumoke Akinjide, Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Lawal Ngama, during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, yesterday atthe State House in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 5

A Federal High Court inAbuja yesterday stoppedboth the House of

Representatives and the FederalGovernment from acting on thereport of the Farouk Lawan-ledAd-hoc committee on fuelsubsidy regime pending thedetermination of a case filed byIntegrated Oil and Gas Limited.

The company, which isamong the oil marketingcompanies indicted by the Houseprobe, had in a motion on noticefiled on June 25, 2012 asked thecourt for an interlocutory

Subsidy probe: Courts bars FG from implementing reportinjunction restraining the Houseof Reps, Hon Farouk Lawan,Attorney General of theFederation (AGF) and Ministerof Justice, Economic andFinancial Crimes commission(EFCC), Independent CorruptPractices and Other RelatedOffences Commission (ICPC) andthe Inspector General of Police,who are 1st to 6th respondentsin the suit, from acting on thecommittee’s report pending thehearing and determination ofthe substantive suit.

The judge, Justice GladysOlotu, granted the motionfollowing an agreement among

Yobe stateGovernor,MalamIbrahimGaidam(middle),with the twosons of lateSenatorUsmanAlbishir,MohammedAlbishir(second left),and KashimAlbishir(left), duringthegovernor'scondolencevisit to theAlbishirfamilyresidence,yesterday inKano.

The Minister of Interior,Comrade Abba Moro, hasassured that the

government is taking measures tostrengthen the skill acquisition ofinmates in prisons across thecountry.

Moro, made this known in astatement issued by the ChiefPress Secretary in the Ministry,Taye Akinyemi, whenrepresentative of AmnestyInternational, led by LucyFreeman, visited him in his office.

He told the delegation that“effort is ongoing to strengthen theskill acquisition of inmates acrossNigeria, to help them becomebetter members of the society”.

Earlier, the representative ofthe Amnesty Internationaldescribed her visit as a continuousprocess especially in the area ofrespect for human rights anddignity.

Ministerreiteratescommitmentto reformprisonersBy Tobias Lengnan Dapam

The Federal Governmentyesterday disclosed that ithas no option than to

welcome assistance by theinternational community in itsefforts to address the currentsecurity challenges facing thecountry.

Minister of Police Affairs,Navy Capt. Caleb Oluboladestated this when he hosted theChief Researcher on Nigeria withthe international human rightsbody, Amnesty International,Ms Lucy Freeman in his office.

Captain Olubolade furthersaid that while the Ministry wasvigorously undertaking a reformof the Nigeria Police Force, theactivities of the Boko Haramcontinues to stifle these effortsowing to its perceivedinternational dimension.

He denied that policemenwere involved in human rightsabuses, especially in thenorthern part of the countrywhere the Boko Haraminsurgents have made lifeunbearable for the people andinsisted that it is the policementhat have become victims ofhuman rights abuses as a resultof incessant and unprovokedattacks on them.

Earlier, Ms Lucy Freeman hadtold the Minister that AmnestyInternational wanted to know theministry’s position on the humanrights implications of the securitysituation in the country,particularly on detention ofsuspects and processes ofinvestigation.

Boko Haram:FG to seekforeign securityassistance, saysPolice Minister

counsels to the parties that theirclients would not do anythingthat would affect the case beforethe court.

While explaining theimplication of the court order tojournalists, lead counsel to theAGF, Chief AdegboyegaAwomolo said, “We have reacheda no arrest, no detention, noprosecution, no refundagreement, pending thedetermination of the suit.”

It would be recalled that thecommittee had in its reportasked Integrated Oil and GasLimited to refund N13. 2 billionsubsidy refunds paid to it by the

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

Vengeance: STF burns 50 housesin Plateau over death of cop

Kakuru village in Kura-Falls ofBarkin Ladi local government areaof Plateau state.

It was further gathered that theaggrieved STF members stormedthe community in Kakuru andarrested three members of MiyettiAllah Cattle Breeders Associationwhose identity could not be

From Nankpah Bwakan, Jos

By Lambert Tyem

Federal Government forpetroleum products it importedbetween 2006and 2011 on theground that the amount was notsustainable.

The company, through itslawyer, Tayo Oyetibo, filed asuit, asking the court to, amongother reliefs; nullify thecommittee’s report, saying itwas not given fair hearingbefore the committee came to itsconclusion.

Further hearing in thematter was adjourned to October18th, 2012 and the judge heldthat the matter will be givenaccelerated hearing.

FCT Queens protest four years salary arrearsBy Josephine Ella allowances have not been paid.

More so, the young ladies,numbering about 30, alleged thatthe administration had notdeemed it fit to tender anexplanation for ignoring the issueof payment.

Bearing placards withvarious inscriptions which read:“Pay us our money to pay ourdebts; You are fightingprostitution, yet you are forcingus to prostitution,” they alsolamented the neglect by theadministration in paying themfor participation in the NationalSports Festival held at Kadunaand Port-Harcourt in 2009 and

2011 respectively.Captain of the team, Oluchi

Eze, told journalists that “theadministration owes us since2008 till 2011 but they said theyare going to pay us for the last oneyear but instead of paying us theykeep telling us come, today cometomorrow”.

Continuing, she added thatinformation reaching them hasit that the new administrationhad said it would not honour theirformer arrangement with theerstwhile management of theclub under the defunct womencommission of the FCT; a positionthey said they are not comfortable

The female football team inthe Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT), FCT

Queens, late Tuesday, stormedthe secretariat of the FCTAdministration at Area 11, Garki,barricading the entrance to theoffice of the Minister of the FCT,Senator Bala Mohammed inprotest over the nonpayment oftheir four years salaries and otherallowances.

The female football team,which is being managed by theadministration, alleged that since2007, their salaries and

ascertained as at the time of press.A statement by the Media and

Information Officer of the STF,Captain Sailsu Mustapha, gave theidentity of the mobile police asCorporal Friday Babale, explainingthat he was shot by unknowngunmen when he went to easehimself few metres away from his

duty post.The statement disclosed that

search for the rifle and theperpetrators of the act was on-goingand they count on the support andcooperation of community leadersand the general public to provideinformation leading to the arrest ofthe perpetrators.

Following the killing of amobile policeman attachedto the Special Task Force (STF)

and seizure of his rifle, over 50houses belonging to Fulani wereallegedly set ablaze by theaggrieved members of the STF in

with.It took the intervention of the

Senior Special Assistant to theminister of the FCT, Senator JibrilWowo, who drove in at the timeto calm the ladies down.

Senator Wowo assured thefootballers that he would taketheir matter to the minister fordue consideration andappropriate action.

His intervention led to theinvitation of the Director of Sports,FCT Social DevelopmentSecretariat, Halim Musa whoaddressed the footballers assuringthem that their file had reachedthe Treasury for payment.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 6

L-R: Managing Director/CEO of JAIZ Bank Plc, Malam Mohammed Mustapha Bintube, with a shareholder,Bishop Goodluck Akpore of Christ Temple Ministry International, Onitsha Zone, after the 9th AnnualGeneral Meeting (AGM) of the bank, yesterday in Abuja.

SEC staff protest Oteh’s appearance at EMT

For attending Tuesday'sE c o n o m i cManagement Team (EMT)

meeting, embattled Director-General of the Securities andExchange Commission (SEC),Ms Arumah Oteh, has incurredwrath of SEC staff.

Chairperson of the SEC staffunion, Barrister MuhammedSalihu who spoke to newsmen onbehalf of other staff yesterday,said Oteh's continued attendanceof the meeting will send negativesignals to the investing public atthe stock exchange.

Though Salihu said

Investments and Security Act,2007 is silent on what shouldhappen if a DG is asked to proceedon compulsory leave, the dictatesof good governance demands thatsuch a person should refrain fromacting in the capacity of DGpending the determination ofinvestigation and by implication,should not be engaged in officialfunctions of the commission.

Muhammad, a manager inthe Security and Investmentdepartment at SEC, addressed apress conference in company ofother executive members of theunion.

"The representation of ArumaOteh at the meeting of Economic

Management Team is thereforea total disregard of due processand rule of law, and is capable ofsending mixed signals to themarket which may negativelyaffect it especially internationalinvestors…" Consequently,Salihu therefore urged thegovernment "to restrain Ms Otehfrom further attendance of EMTmeetings pending theconclusions of investigationsagainst her."

Commenting on the issue,Minister of Finance, NgoziOkonjo-Iweala said Oteh'sattendance at the meeting wasin order as she is just on leave.

By Etuka Sunday

19th AU summit to focus on intra-African trade

The 19th African Union (AU)Summit scheduled to takeplace from 9th to 16th July,

2012, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, isto focus on boosting Intra-Africantrade, among others.

According to the agenda of thesummit, "the Executive Councilwill look into reports of some AUorgans including the Pan-African

Parliament (PAP); the AfricanCommittee of the Rights andWelfare of the Child (ACERWC);the Economic, Social and CulturalCouncil of the Union (ECOSOCC);the African Union Advisory Boardon Corruption."

The 19th Assembly of Headsof State and Government of theAfrican Union (AU) holding underthe theme: "Boosting Intra-African Trade" will consider and

discuss the activity report of thePresident.

The Union will also look intothe report of the Peace andSecurity Council on its activitiesand the state of peace andsecurity in Africa, and that onAfrica's preparation for theclimate change negotiations atthe 18th Conference of Parties ofthe UN Framework Conventionon Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Jaiz represents best banking practicein Nigeria - BishopBy Isa Abdulwahab We're working hard to track

down perpetrators of Wusebomb blast - PoliceBy Lambert Tyem

The Bishop of Onitsha ChristTemple International, Dr.Goodluck Akpore,

yesterday, reiterated the essenceof non-interest banking as one ofthe financial services in thecountry and referred to thecoming of Jaiz Bank as epitome oftrue banking practice.

Akpore, a shareholder of JaizBank Plc, said his observation wasstrictly from unbiasedperspectives devoid of bothreligious and ethnic sentiments.He spoke yesterday at the 9thAnnual General Meeting of the

Jaiz Bank Plc which held in Abuja.Akpore said as a revered

Christian of bishop status fromOnitsha, he would not allowsentiment to becloud his sense ofjudgment especially when he seessomething that is good andprogressive.

Asked whether his view doesnot contradicts the position of theChristian Association of Nigeria(CAN) which kicks against non-interest banking practice inNigeria , the Bishop said thestatement being attributed toCAN was a mere personal viewwhich is never the position ofChristians.

Jaiz International Plc is theSpecial Purpose Vehicle (SPV) setup to facilitate the establishmentof Nigeria's non-interest bank. Itformally transmuted to a full-fledged bank with its maiden AGMheld yesterday at Shehu MusaYar'adua.

Speaking at the occasion, theChairman of the bank, AlhajiUmaru A. Mutallab, said the AGMwas remarkable in actualising theestablishment of the bank.

He said the bank since itcommenced operation in Januarythis year, has recruited categoriesof staff that have undergonedifferent training to ensure

By Abdulwahab Isa

The Federal CapitalTerritory PoliceCommand, yesterday,

vowed that in collaboration withother security agencies haveswung into action to arrestperpetrators of the Wuse 2 bombblast.

Similarly, Business activitiesyesterday continued along theAminu Kano Crescent end of WuseII despite a late explosion aroundthe Banex Plaza area which causedminor damages to some shops inthe area on Tuesday night.

A visit to the area yesterdaymorning revealed that the area

was bustling with activity.Emergency workers were also atthe site clearing the rubbles.

However, contrary to theusual practice of conductingbusiness till about 9pm, most ofthe shops in the area were closedfor business as early as 6pm.

FCT Police Commissioner,Adenrele Shinaba, restated hisearlier call on residents to go abouttheir normal duties but to reportany suspicious persons or parcelsto law enforcement agents.

He however said officers fromthe Explosive OrdinanceDepartment EOD of the commandare still investigating theincident.

No agreement betweenNigeria, US on asset declarationBy Joy Baba

The Minister of ForeignAffairs, AmbassadorOlugbenga Ashiru, has

refuted claims by a national dailythat President Goodluck Jonathan'srefusal to declare his asset publiclyis a violation of agreement signedbetween Nigeria and the UnitedStates.

The minister made this knownin a statement issued by ministry

in Abuja. The statement furthersaid 'It is important for the generalpublic to understand that thePresident's comment did not violateany agreement because there is noagreement between Nigeria andthe United States of America onpublic declaration of assets. Thenews story correctly refers to aspectof a joint communiqué issued byNigeria and the United States at theend of the US-Nigeria Bi-nationalCommission held in Washington DCfrom June 4-5, 2012 whichreaffirms Nigeria's commitment tobudgetary transparency andaccountability, including publicasset declaration by senior publicofficials".

A national daily had on July 1,2012, reported that PresidentJonathan's refusal to declare hisassets publicly was a violation of anagreement between Nigeria andthe US.

Associationdonates freewheel chairs,tricycles todisabled in KaruBy Mohammed Kandi

An Association calledShukr-Allah involved incharitable work yesterday

distributed tricycles and wheelchairs to 20 persons living withdisabilities in Karu community inthe FCT.

The association, whichcomprised of colleagues working inthe Petroleum Trust DevelopmentFund (PTDF), said they arepassionate about the plight ofvulnerable people.

Chairperson of the association,Habiba Wakili, said the associationwas working hard to assistgovernment in "impacting" onsuch persons, saying "thegovernment cannot do it alone."

Wakili further stated that "wevisit hospitals to help the sickwithout using religion as thecriteria".

The district head (SarkinHausawan Karu), Suleiman Musa,represented by the Madaki,Ismaila Musa Karu, urged thebeneficiaries of the donation toendeavour to make use of thematerials themselves.

Journalists callfor completionof Abuja-LokojaroadFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

The chairman, Kogi stateUnion of Journalists(KUJ), Comrade Alih Atabor,

has described the Lokoja Abujahighway as horrific and a death trapurging the government to expeditethe renovation of the highway.

The KUJ boss stated thisyesterday in his office in Lokojawhen he received the sectorcommander of the Federal RoadsSafety Corps, Mr. MohammedIbrahim Garba.

Atabor assured the commanderof a good working relationship withthe press and urged him to takecampaign to the construction,heavy duty and articulated drivers,saying their reckless driving is asource of worry to other road users.

quality service delivery.Jaiz Bank secured regional

banking licence from CBN on 11thNovember, 2011 and

commenced banking operationson the 6th January 2012 in threelocations, Abuja, Kano andKaduna.

PAGE 7PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

An Abuja High Courtyesterday held thatthe suspended

Chairman of the HouseCommittee on CapitalMarket, Herman Hembeand his Deputy, IfeanyiAzubuogu, have to facetrial on the two-countcharge preferred againstthem by the EconomicandFinancial CrimesCommission (EFCC).

Hembe andAzubuogu, in theirpreliminary objectionsasked the court to quashthe two-count charge ongrounds that the courtlacked the inherentjurisdiction to try them.

The accused personsalso argued that thesubject matter of the suitwas still beinginvestigated by the Houseof RepresentativesCommittee on Ethics andPrivileges.

While Hembe ischallenging thejurisdiction of the court toentertain the two-countcharge preferred againsthim by the anti-graftagency, Azubuogu isfaulting the leavegranted the anti-graftagency to prefer thecharge against him.

But in his ruling, thetrial Judge, AbubakarUmar, held that EFCChad been able to establisha prima facie case against

the accused persons andadded that they must facetrial.

Consequently, Umardismissed the duo’spreliminary objectionsand declared that thematter would be givenaccelerated hearing.

The judge adjournedthe matter till July 18thand 19th, 2012 forarraignment of theaccused persons andhearing of the suit.

He also directed theEFCC to produce all itswitnesses at the nextadjourned date.

At the last hearing ofthe matter, Hembe’scounsel, Jibrin Okutepa(SAN) informed the courtof the preliminaryobjection he filed on May21, urging the court toquash the charges ongrounds that the courtlacked the jurisdiction totry his client.

Okutepa furthersubmitted that thecounter-affidavit, whichcontains “extraneousfacts and purports tomake the EFCC arespondent in the suit,”contradicted theEvidence Act, addingthat “there is contrivanceand falsity ofinformation”.

Aligning withOkutepa, Counsel toAzubuogu, OnyechiIkpeazu(SAN) arguedthat since the report of the

House’ Ethics committeeis yet to be released, itwould not be in theinterest of justice to trythe accused person.

Ikpeazu stressed: “Thecourt must rely on aninvestigative reportbefore trial. There is acase of inadequacy ofdocuments and so there isno case for the 2ndaccused person to answerto, especially as he soughtto return the moneythrough the Clerk of theHouse, only for theDirector-General of SECto ask him to keep themoney, since there willbe another conference.”

Citing Section 167(b)of the Evidence Act,Ikpeazu contended that“the prosecution is boundto produce all criminaldocuments to the court towarrant trial and theabsence of the DG of SECin this case exposes thecomplicity in it.”

In his objection,however, EFCC’s counsel,Ojeffu Ibe, prayed thecourt to dismiss the twoapplications, urging it todetermine whether thepurpose for which theestacode was given waswhat it was used for.

Ibe argued in hiscounter-affidavit that the1999 Constitution onlygave the NationalAssembly lawmakingpowers, and not powers toinvestigate.

SEC probe: Hembe, Azubuogumust face trial, court rulesBy Sunday Ejike Benjamin

As orientation campsopen to Batch ‘B’National Youth

Service Corps (NYSC)members nationwide, a

corps member posted toKatsina State has givenbirth to a baby girl on herfirst day in camp.

The state Coordinator ofthe NYSC, EbenezerAfolalu, made thedisclosure yesterday at the

Corps member gives birth in campFrom Lawal Sa’idu Funtua,Katsina

swearing-in ceremony ofthe corps members postedto the state.

He added the corpsmember, who delivered atthe NYSC Katsina campclinic, was in good healthalongside her baby.

Governor AbiolaAjimobi of Oyo Statehas disclosed that

the N50 billion structureserected in Ogbomoso by hispredecessor, Chief AdebayoAlao-Akala, will becomethe teaching hospital of theproposed Oyo State

Technical University.Speaking at a Town Hall

Meeting held at the SounOgunlola Hall, Ogbomoso,Ajimobi observed that theedifice had many medicalequipment which had notbeen put into use.

He added that thestructures would besubjected to integrity testto determine their

Oyo to site varsity’s hospital in OgbomosoFrom Inumidun Ojelade,Ibadan

suitability.The structures were

initially meant to host theteaching hospital of theLadoke AkintolaUniversity of Technology(LAUTECH), but this planbecame stalled followingthe crisis that broke outover the joint ownership ofLAUTECH by between Oyoand Osun states.

The Afo people ofUdege, Nasarawastate yesterday

denied claims that the stategovernment had imposed acandidate on thekingmakers for the vacantstool of the Osu-Ajiri ofUdege chiefdom.

They described mediareports sponsored by “aminute and mischievousgroup of illegal Ambu eliteforum”, as a “vain attemptto rewrite history andwhite-wash the peoplesconscience.”

Thirty-three elders ofAfo, under the auspices ofthe Concerned People ofUdege, in a statement

Nasarawa community deniesgovt’s interference in stool tussleFrom Ali Abare Abubakar,Lafia

yesterday in Lafia, accuseda lawmaker in the stateHouse of Assembly ofsponsoring series of illegalmeetings and mediapublications aimed atsowing seeds of discord inthe chiefdom.

They charged thesecurity agencies tomonitor the activities of thelawmaker closely.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 8

L-R: Kebbi state governor, Alhaji Saidu Dakingari, receiving Chief Operating Officer ofPeoples Media Ltd, Malam Ali M. Ali, during the latter's official visit to the state, onTuesday in Birnin Kebbi. Photo: NAN

Scenes from the bomb blast on Tuesday at Wuse II, Abuja

L-R: Chief, Voice of America Hausa Service, Mr Leo Keyen, presenting a certificate ofappreciation to Kaduna state governor, Mr Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, for the state hostingof town hall meeting on health issues, yesterday in Kaduna.

L-R: Minister of Sports, Alhaji Bolaji Abdullahi, Minister of State for Health, Dr Muhammad Ali Pate, Minister of Information, Malam Labaran Maku, and Minister of State forDefence, Erelu Olusola Obada, briefing journalists on the state of the health sector, yesterday at the State House, in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye.

PAGE 9PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

L-R: Sokoto state governor, Alhaji Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, with Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa'ad Abubakar III, during theflag-off of polio eradication campaign, yesterday in Sokoto. Photo: NAN

Fear, confusion as N300,000church collection turns to papersFear and confusion gripped

residents of Hwolshe in Jos,when N300, 000 church

collection suddenly turned to abundle of papers as it was aboutto be deposited in a bank.

The money, which belongedto St. Mary’s Parish, Hwolshe inJos South Local Government washanded to Miss Ifeoma Eze, theChurch Secretary to be depositedin the bank before the mysteryoccurred.

Eze told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) yesterday thatshe had filled the teller at themain branch of Zenith Bank inJos with the money wrapped inpolythene bag but saw paperswhen she was about to give thecash to the cashier.

“The money was intact whenI left home for the bank but ongetting to the counter, I openedthe polythene bag only todiscover that it has turned to

bundles of papers.“I was so confused and scared;

I started screaming and wasoblivious of the attention I wasattracting as bewilderedcustomers tried to console me,’’she told NAN.

She said that she wasparticularly confused becauseshe was wondering how to relaythe story to the Parish Priestwho entrusted the money to her.

She said that she was still “toobaffled and confused” to conveyher shock, adding that it wasdifficult to imagine what hadhappened.

“It is a story I find difficultyin telling anyone because notmany people can believe it,’’ shesaid.

Eze said that she could notfathom what could havehappened but explained that shetook the money home on Sundayand changed the smaller

denominations into bigger ones toease the deposit processes in thebank.

She said that she did notsuspect foul play from the pointof changing the denominationsand explained that the changewas obtained from market womenand cashiers of Mr Biggs, apopular fast food outfit.

“I do not suspect them becausethey are my regular customers.Only God knows what could havehappened.’’

NAN learnt that the incidenthad sent tongues wagging amongsome skeptical members ofthe church.

Eze, however, expressed somerelief that many of the memberswere convinced that there was nofoul play on her part.

“I thank God that the Churchbelieved what happened to meand the money, and still retainedme as the Church Secretary,’’ she

said.A church member, who spoke

on condition of anonymity, saidthat it was not difficult to believeEze’s story because she was theChurch Secretary and hadhandled its funds without anyblemish in the past five years.

Rev. Father Emmanuel Ray-Ikpe, the Parish Priest, describedthe incident as “unfortunate,surprising and mysterious.

“I have never heard of such athing before but it has happenedto us; to our Church. Thereis nothing we can do about it. Mysecretary came back from thebank crying.

“Only God knows whatexactly happened. Eze came andtold us what happened to themoney and we couldn’t sayotherwise.

“We have left everythingin the hands of God our creator,’’Ray-Ikpe said. (NAN)

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam

Reps slash new number plates cost by 20%

Kano to sanctionofficials aidingpregnantpilgrims

Kano StateGovernment has pledgedto strengthen the state Hajj

Tribunal to ensure that those whoflout the ethics and lawsgoverning pilgrimage to SaudiArabia were adequately punished.

Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, thestate Deputy Governor,announced this yesterday whiledeclaring open a two-dayworkshop for officials of the statePilgrims Welfare Board and otherstakeholders.

He warned that anybodyfound violating the Hajjrules would be punished, saying,“we cannot afford to let Nigeriadown in the comity of nations.’’

Ganduje urged the resourcepersons at the workshop to payspecial attention to “certainanomalies that led to the reductionof Hajj seats allocated to the state.’’

He listed the anomalies asinstances of pregnant womenbeing allowed to go onpilgrimage with some of themdelivering in the holy land, andthe refusal of some pilgrims toreturn home after the Hajj.

The deputy governor warnedthat any official foundfacilitating the travelling ofpregnant women forthe pilgrimage would bepunished accordingly, whilepilgrims who defected in the holyland would also be sanctioned.

Be of good behaviour, Governor Aliyu tells corps members

The Governor of Niger State,Dr. Muazu BabangidaAliyu has warned corps

members posted to the stateagainst any type of behaviourcontrary to the rules of the NYSCscheme and advised them to riseup to the challenges of nationalservice which will prepare andequip them with necessaryleadership skills for post-serviceengagements.

“If you fail to comply with thecamp rule you may have yourselfto blame, let discipline be yourwatch word throughout yourservice year”.

He made this knownyesterday at the swearing-inceremony of 2,577 youth Corpsmembers of Batch “B” deployedto the state, saying the challengesyou face as Corps members will

actually prepare you for thechallenges in future.

Governor Aliyu howeveradvised them to be securityconscious while discharging theirduties, “we must be responsiblefor the security of ourcommunity and neighbours”.

The Governor commendedthe effort of the Chairman and

From Iliya Garba, Minna members of NYSC stategoverning board, NYSC Statecoordinator and other officialswho have worked very hardtowards the success of theorientation course.

The State Coordinator, Mrs.Justina Andirya said that duringthe three weeks orientationcourse, corps members will be

involved in man O war,citizenship and leadershiptraining, paramilitary drills,morning meditation, socialactivities and sports among othersand implored corps members tobe of good conduct and cooperatewith all the camp officials for theoverall success of the programme. No fewer than 1,835

National Youth ServiceCorps (NYSC) members

have been sworn-in out of the2,317 posted to Jigawa state.

Governor Sule Lamido whowas represented by his Deputy,Alhaji Ahmed Mahmoud,reiterated the continuedrelevance of the schemeconsidering the current and pastexperience of the country.

He said in the four decades ofthe schemes existence it hasrecorded achievements in thedevelopment of youths in thelarger frame work of nationbuilding.

According to him, “NYSCundoubtedly remains the moststrategic institution in Nigeriatoday. The activities of thescheme have been reshaping ournational outlook.”

He admonished the corpsmembers to always do thingsthat will promote national unitysince that is their major goal.

Earlier, the NYSC StateCoordinator, Mr. Ishaya S. Dede,gave a breakdown of thosesworn, that at midnight ofTuesday, 3rd July, 2012, a totalof 1,835 made up of (1,075 maleand 760 female) corps membershad registered and are beingsworn in.”

From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse.

The House of Representatives,on Tuesday, slashed the costsof production of the new

number plates by 20 per cent.The House made this move

while suspending the embargoearlier imposed on theproduction and issuance of thenew number plates and drivers’licence by the Federal Road

Safety Corps (FRSC).The order was contained in

the recommendations of theHouse Committee on FRSC,earlier mandated to investigatethe rationale behind theintroduction of the new numberplates and drivers’ licenses.

The report indicated that thecommittee recommended that theFRSC, Joint Tax Board, stategovernments and security

agencies should collaborate andintensify efforts at tracking fake,parallel production andissuance of licences.

The House further warnedmembers of the public to desistfrom patronising touts, addingthat such action increased theprice of number plates andfrustrate the good effort whichthe new number plate wouldachieve.

1,835 NYSCmembers forJigawa

From Bala Nasir, Kano

PAGE 10 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

could impact negatively on thedevelopment of the society.

Lawal who spoke passionatelyabout safety on roads stated that itwas in realization of the need toreduce global road traffic fatalities,particularly in the developingcountries, Nigeria inclusive, thatthe United Nations came up withthe ‘United Nations Decade ofAction for Road Safety’ 2011- 2020.

He, therefore, imploredSurakat and members of hisExecutive Council to embrace theglobal approach by supporting theaction plans of the Commission,particularly in the area of publicenlightenment. He said theCommission has been intensifyingefforts on its various road safetycampaigns to reduce carnage onroads.

The Assistant Corps Marshal

50% Kebbi driverslack licence - FRSCThe FRSC Sector Commander

in Kebbi, Mr Sayi Daniel, hassaid that 50 per cent of

drivers in the state have no driver’slicence.

Daniel told the News Agencyof Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbion Tuesday that "the commercialdrivers are the major culprits and

have remained defiant tocounselling."

He said illiteracy and quest forquick money were the mainreasons for the drivers’ recklessbehaviour and disregard for trafficrules and regulations.

Daniel stressed that suchdisposition had continued to

endanger the lives of travellers andother road users.

He also said that illegal parkingby some drivers had causedavoidable accidents in the state.

"The FRSC will not relent in itsefforts until sanity throughcompliance to traffic rules is restoredon the roads to protect lives and

property," the commander said.Daniel also condemned the

misuse of government numberplates by individuals in the stateand described the situation asrampant.

He said the practice couldencourage criminal activities andadded that the command hadstarted penalising culprits to checkthe trend.

"The FRSC command will alsointensify efforts to check themenace of driving in the night withone head light or none, over-loading as well as inculcate thehabit of using seat belts by bothdrivers and passengers," he said.(NAN)

The Assistant Corps Marshalin charge of zone RS 2,comprising Lagos and Ogun

states, Mr.Ademola Lawal hascalled on the Chairman of Ibeju-Lekki Local Government,Honourable Kemi Surakat, to lendhis support to the efforts of theFederal Road Safety Corps atreducing road fatalities andinjuries in the area.

The Assistant Corps Marshal,who was on a familiarization visitto the Local LG, stated thatreducing road accidents requirescollective efforts of all stakeholders,including the local governments.

He lamented the economic andsocial consequences of deaths andinjuries on our roads which he said

stated that lately, safety educationwas introduced to schools so as toinculcate road safety habits inschool children. In this regard, hesaid safety clubs are being formedin schools to achieve this “Catchthem Young Approach”. He statedthat parents should not besurprised when they see theirchildren educating them on roadsafety precautions.

Also speaking on the issuanceof driver’s licence, Lawal assuredthat only people who couldactually drive would be behind thewheels on roads, stressing that theCommission was poised to ensuringthat all drivers licence applicantsundergo proper training in any ofthe registered driving schools as apre-condition for applying forlicence.

The chairman of Ibeju-Lekki

local government, HonourableKemi Surakat in his responseexpressed appreciation to AssistantCorp Marshal Lawal for his adviceon the need for the LocalGovernment to join hands with allstakeholders in saving lives onroads. The Chairman stated thatsince the construction of Lekki–Epecoastal road, the area hadwitnessed fast propertydevelopment, increase inpopulation and growth of industrialconcerns. Theses, he said, had ledto heavy traffic in the area withthe attendant challenge ofincessant road accidents.

He commended the Road SafetyCorps Unit in the area for checkingthe excesses of motorists along Lekki-Epe axis. He said their presence onthe road had gone a long way inreducing road accidents in the area.

…Clamours for reduction in road accidentsFrom Ayodele Samuel andOjebola Matthew, Lagos

The Kogi state House ofAssembly has called onPower Holding Corporation

of Nigeria, [PHCN] to connectAnkpa-Olamaboro-Omala federalconstituency to national grid.

This was sequel to a motion ofpublic importance moved by HonDamian Abdul Adejo, representingOlamaboro state constituency inthe Assembly

Damian said that the federalconstituency comprising of Ankpa-Omala-Olamaboro had been in thedark without electricity for quitesome times reducing small scalebusiness in the area.

The member noted that withimprovement in the electricitysupply to the constituency, theincidence of rural-urban driftwould be drastically checked asunemployment and other minorsocial vices would give way.

In adopting the motion whichwas seconded by Hon AbdulahiZakari from Ankpa 11 stateconstituency, the Speaker AlhajiAbdulahi Bello stated that the issuewas all encompassing as it wouldhelp the populace.

Kogi Assemblycalls forconnection ofAnkpa federalconstituency tonational gridFrom Sam Egwu, Lokoja

The Kaduna state House ofAssembly may soon pass abill providing for all hotel

guests to be taxed effective fromthis year.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that the developmentfollowed the adoption of a reportsubmitted by the House JointCommittee on Culture and Tourismand Judiciary.

The House had on March 2mandated the committee toconduct an in depth study of anexecutive bill forwarded to it to thateffect.

The bill is titled “A Bill for a lawto impose levies on hotelaccommodation in Kaduna State,2012’’.

Presenting the report, MalamIbrahim Gambo, the Chairman ofthe committee said that wideconsultations were made withstakeholders.

He said that the stakeholdersinclude the Ministry of Cultureand Tourism and the Nigeria HotelAssociation to sensitise andpopularise the proposed law.

Gambo (CPC-Igabi East)recommended the harmonisationand amendment of the two billsregulating the operations of hoteland tourism establishments in thestate.

The laws sought to provide forthe licensing of operators of theindustry.

He specifically suggested forthe amendment of Sections 4 to 10and the deletion of Sections 11 to12 of the proposed bill.

KDHA considerslaw for taxinghotel guests

The National AutomotiveCouncil (NAC) has begunmoves to improve the

operations, as well as standards ofmotor vehicles in the country.

According to NAC DirectorGeneral, Mr. Aminu Jalal, themove is geared towards reducingthe loss of lives and property

resulting from road accidents.Jalal stated this yesterday at

the national conference on motorvehicle road worthiness inspectionheld in Abuja.

He said the conferencerepresented a major milestone inensuring that the council installeda very sound motor vehicleinspection system in the country.

There is no better time than

now to address the serious problemof road worthiness in Nigeria,which is daily causing loss of livesand property.

"The current system of vehicleroad worthiness, whose provisiondated back to the 1960s, isoutdated and no longer functionalin many states.

"This conference should be thebeginning of a drastic change in

By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem motor examination regime inNigeria. A change that will usherin a new era of safe, reliable,environmentally sustainable andcost effective motor vehicleoperation in Nigeria," the DG said.

He said further that NAC wouldstrive towards ensuring that allvehicles in the country conformedto technical and environmentalstandards.

Automotive Council to improve vehicles’ standard

Some 2012 Batch B National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members at parade ground, during their swearing-in ceremony, yesterdayin Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 11

Minister of State forEducation, Barr.Ezenwo Nyesom Wike,

has said that investing in girls andwomen is one of the most effectiveways to reduce poverty andadvance national development.

The minister made theassertion yesterday in Abuja at theofficial launching of the nationalframe work on girls and womeneducation.

According to him, educationplays an important role inempowering girls and women tosecure their fundamental human

rights to dignity, good health andadequate standard of living andthat countless studies have shownthat uneducated women are morelikely to suffer from poverty andother associated conditions.

He, however, said that sincethe launch of Universal BasicEducation scheme in 2004,Nigeria has recorded increase inenrolment figures of both boys andgirls even as he said factorsincluding cultural and traditionalvalues have created noticeablebarriers between girls and theirprospects for basic education.

“This has created genderimbalance in the education

system, which is sadly leadingmost of these girls and women intoliving deprived lives of missedopportunities and poverty”, hesaid.

He said already the ministryin collaboration with UNICEF andDFID is combating the menace withsome specific and targeted policiesand programmes adding that theUniversal Basic Education (UBEC)is currently constructing juniorsecondary schools for girls withboarding facilities in the six geo-political zones, which whencompleted are expected to expandaccess to opportunities and attractmore girls into having basic

By Maryam Garba Hassan

Women education advances national development, says Wikeeducation.

He warned that if the effectiveimplementation of the frame workis not ensured, efforts puts into thedevelopment of the document, willbe a waste.

In his opening remarks, thePermanent Secretary at theministry, Dr. Ben Ibe, said essenceof developing the frame work is toaddress issues of girls and womenand to present to the public thepractical guide lines on howgovernment will plan, budget andimplement specific tasks that willhelp improve education for womenand girls, empower them to breakthe cycle of poverty and disease.

He added that the frame willalso contribute meaningfully tonational development andaccelerate Nigeria’s drive atmeeting Education for All (EFA),Millennium Development Goals(MDGs), and Universal BasicEducation goals by 2015.

Fielding questions from thepress, the national President of theFederation of Muslim WomenAssociation of Nigeria, (FOMWAN),Hajiya Maryam Idris Othman, saidreligion has never been a barrierbetween the girl child andeducation adding that the onlyproblem is that both religions areinterwoven with cultural practices.

The Federal Government isset to recruit 10,000 youthsfrom Nasarawa state next

month in a bid to alleviate theplight of the mass of unemployedyouths across the country.

Minister of Information, Mr.Labaran Maku, stated this whileaddressing a mammoth crowd in

Awe, headquarters of Awe localgovernment area, on the occasionof kick-off of campaign programmeof Alhaji Musa Saidu, the PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP) candidatefor the Awe North, Nasarawaassembly bye-election slated forJuly 7.

The initiative by the FederalGovernment, according to theminister, will see to it that 10,000

youths from the state are employedannually, beginning from thisyear, with the programme due forlaunch in Lafia, next month.

Maku, who described Awe as“the luckiest local government inthe country”, disclosed that theJonathan administration willcomplete the abandoned 79 kmLafia-Awe road, with about 70 % ofthe project awarded in 2008, at the

From Ali Abare Abubakar, Lafia cost of over N4 billion, completed.While lauding the effort of Musa

Saidu in developing the area,when he was chairman of thecouncil, the Minister challengedthe people to show appreciation tothe PDP Federal Government,stressing that, “There was no light,no roads, no water supply in Awebut we, the PDP, brought all thesefor the good of the people.”

FG to recruit 10,000 youthsfrom Nasarawa next month

Worried by the currentchallenges of insecuritybedeviling the north,

and youths in particular,Northern Youth Assembly (NYA)has organised a conference of over400 youth groups from the 19states and Abuja to tackle thesituation.

The Governor of Niger State,who is also the chairman ofNorthern States Governors Forum(NGSG), Alhaji Babangida Mu’azuAliyu, is to declare open, theconference by the renowned youthgroup.

The NYA National Chairman,Ibrahim Waiya, disclosed at a pressbriefing in Kaduna, that 20 youthgroups have been identified fromeach state of the northern regionincluding Abuja for participationin the conference.

Waiya said the conference isexpected to hold on the 14 -15 July,in Birnin Kebbi, the Kebbi statecapital. Theme of the conference is“the Nigerian Project and theYouth- challenges and prospects.”

Minister of Women Affairsand Social Development,Hajiya Zainab Maina,

has said that the recent election ofNigeria’s Ms. Theodora ObyNwankwo, as a member of UNConvention on the Elimination ofall Forms of DiscriminationAgainst Women (CEDAW)Committee will be an incentive forthe government to begin to complywith provisions of a Conventionthat it ratified since 1985 andfurther bring the issue of CEDAWto the attention of the state to bringit to the fore.

The minister who said thisyesterday in Abuja at a press

conference to present to the publicthe newly elected member, saidthe election will improve respectfor Nigeria at the internationallevel and will increase itsparticipation in the treaty body.

Hajiya Zainab, who expressedoptimism over Ms. Oby’scandidature, said she is worthy torepresent the country in thatcapacity among the comity ofnations based on her track recordof success.

She added that before her

election, Ms. Oby who was a retiredChief Magistrate and genderactivist, has been a strong voice onwomen issues, promoting genderequality, empowering youngpeople and provide paralegalservices to the less privileged as wellas coordinated legislativeadvocacy for the domestication ofCEDAW and the protocol to theAfrican Charter on the Rights ofWomen in Africa.

In her remarks, Oby thankedthe government and people of

By Maryam Garba Hassan

Nigeria for the confidence reposedin her and assured that herpotential quality representationwill enhance the quality of theconvention and effectively addressissues of violence against women,gender inequality in Nigeriaamong others.

According to her, her electionwill make the Nigeriangovernment understand thechallenges gender inequality isposing and clear its perception insome quarters in the country.

UN CEDAW Nigerian membership willmotivate govt to comply, says minister

Gov Aliyu todeclare open400 NorthernYouth Groupsconference

The Federal Government hasflagged off the constructionof Ada-Okere-Ukoni-

Aendokhian road in Uromi, EsanNorth-East Local Government ofEdo state.

The project was awarded to aconsultant, Tisco and PartnersLimited, on February 9, 2010,while the final design wasapproved on March 25, 2011 atthe cost of N2.2 billion. It has threesections.

At the event, Minister of Works,Mike Onolomemen, said the projectwould "substantially improve themovement of people, goods,services and livelihood of ourteeming populace.

"The road will considerablyadvance the opening up of oilprospecting activities in the area,where hydrocarbon deposit wasdiscovered in the 1980s."

FG awardsN2.2bn roadcontract in EdoFrom Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

L-R: Representative of Presidential Committee on Security and Public Awareness, Malam Yusuf Addy, representative of DirectorGeneral, Directorate of State Security Service, Ms. Marylin Ogar, and representative of Director General, National Orientation Agency(NOA), Mr. David Dogo, during the press conference on public enlightenment campaign - "Drink the Content: Destroy the Can" by NOAin partnership with Birdonica Tremple Nigeria Ltd, on Tuesday in Abuja. Photo: Justin Imo-owo

PAGE 12 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

It’s bad leadership, notpopulation, Mr. President

Penultimate Tuesday, whileinaugurating the new board of theNational Population Commission

(NPC), President Goodluck Jonathan hintedat his plan to introduce a birth control lawbecause of his belief that the nation needs apiece of legislation to control populationgrowth. He said “For us to plan properly, wemust manage our population.” But at thesame time he is ambivalent. “It is extremelysensitive; we are extremely religious people,either you are a Christian or Muslim”, headded.

“Both Christians and Muslims and eventraditionalists believe that children areGod’s gifts to man, so it is difficult for you totell any Nigerian to limit the number of theirchildren because they are gifts of God. It is avery sensitive thing but we must begin tothink about it. We must begin to think abouthow to manage it.

“The key thing is that how you will,through your advocacy, come up with plansand programmes that as a way of advocacyyou begin to encourage Nigerians to havethe number of children they can managebefore government comes up with clearpolicies and guidelines”, the Presidentstruggled to explain.

Just about this time last year, the Speakerof the House of Representatives, HonourableAminu Waziri Tambuwal, made a similarremark when he told a delegation ofpopulation control non-governmentalorganizations that the National Assemblywas considering a law that would seek tocontrol the high population growth rate inthe country, claiming that the lawmakerswere not unaware of the problem.

"The House will look at this issue becauseit has become necessary to controlpopulation growth in the country. Unless weare able to plan very well to control thepopulation and manage it, we will haveproblems. We have to come up with effectivepopulation control measures throughfriendly legislation as we are very mindful ofthis issue", the then newly elected Speakerstated.

“We are glad thatNigerians from both

religious divides have beentelling the President what

they think he can do with hisplan to control births in thecountry. The unanimous

verdict is that governmentshould perish the thought

We are hardly surprised by the position thePresident and Speaker have taken on this verysensitive issue because since the beginning ofthe current democratic dispensation in 1999,our supposed leaders have exhibited, byactions and utterances, an unfortunatedisregard and disdain for popular opinion inthe land. Their hearts, not minds, seem toguide their actions and utterances. Fuelsubsidy removal, nauseating corruption inhigh places, election rigging, etc, have beenthe people’s lot from our elected

representatives these past years. Unbridledcorruption, in particular, has assumed a life ofits own under the present administration.

Equally worrisome to most Nigerians isour leaders’ unedifying groveling before andpenchant for actions and utterances thatwould please their Western counterparts,regardless of their negative consequences onthe larger society. It is against this backdropthat we can situate this unfortunate self-serving attitude by our leaders. Two monthsbefore Speaker Tambuwal made his remarks,UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s SpecialAdviser, Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, had suggested

that Nigeria work towards attaining amaximum of three children per familybecause the current population of 158million, according to him, could balloon to730 million by 2100.

“I am really scared about populationexplosion in Nigeria. It is not healthy.Nigeria should work towards attaining amaximum of three children per family,”Sachs had reportedly told AFP on themargins of a presidential interactivemeeting with key members of the businesscommunity on May 25, 2011. And PresidentJonathan’s declaration of intent on birthcontrol came not long after the UnitedNations estimated that the population ofNigeria could grow from about 160 millionto 400 million by 2050.

What, if we may ask, is the business of theWest telling us to reduce our population ifnot for selfish ends? The same Westernnations cheekily telling us to regulate ourpopulation are not doing so on their shores.There are families in some of thesecountries, notably the UK and US, withchildren running into double digits andcounting. Some of them are even singleparents living on state welfare.

Moreover, the low populations in thedeveloped societies have not evolvedthrough any deliberate government’saction but by choice of the citizens,something which some countries like Spain,Italy, France and (in Asia) Japan, are nowregretting and trying to redress bymonetary inducements to their people toprocreate.

We are glad that Nigerians from bothreligious divides have been telling thePresident what they think he can do with hisplan to control births in the country. Theunanimous verdict is that governmentshould perish the thought.

We are one with them because of ourstrong belief that bad leadership, not risingpopulation, is Nigeria’s problem, and untilwe get it right in that direction, the countrywill continue to flounder even if thepopulation is reduced to just one person.

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 13

I think it has become pertinentfor some of us onlookers tocomment on this recent issue

of whether or not PresidentGoodluck Jonathan should run forre-election in 2015 at theexpiration of his current term offour years.

The calls, which wereinitiated by elder statesman,Chief E.K. Clark, can be dividedinto three main categories. Thefirst belongs to those fired bygenuine and blind loyalty toJonathan. In this group, you findthe tribalists; mainly and thosewho are benefitting from theJonathan Presidency. Anotherterm for him will also elongatetheir relevance on the nationalstage. Since they do not have anyother song to sing now that thecampaigns are over and, sincethey have no meaningful inputinto the transformation agendaof the President, prematurelyasking that Jonathnan shouldrun for another term come 2015is for them the only way at themoment to show they love himand support him. They really donot know that what Jonathanactually needs now are ideas andpractical inputs that willactualise his transformationagenda and, therefore, enablemake his current tenurehistorical and monumental.

The second category belongsto those of the nation’s habitualdetractors to every governmentespecially since 1986. They werethere in “IBB Forever”. Theywere there in Abacha for “whothe cap fits”. They madespecially-designed “Abachatelevision sets” and “Abachawrist-watches”, etc proclaiminghim as God-sent and, so shouldbe President-for-life (ironically,or comically, somehow he was).Some of those people are noweither in the National Assemblyor State Houses of Assembly.Some are even liaison officers tothe National Assembly, envoys,etc. Any-Government -In-Power(AGIP) is their stock-in-trade.Many of them were very activein the movement for tenureelongation for PresidentObasanjo. I bet you, left alone,OBJ would probably have doneonly one term like NelsonMandela as he indicated in1998/9. They may have pushedhim for the second term,successfully though, and had theaudacity to crave for a thirdterm for him.

The third category belongslargely to those who are exploringany possibilities of causing

President Jonathan nationalembarrassment as part of theirvengeance mission because ofwhat they lost at the polls in2011. They want Jonathan to failso that they can point theirfingers at him and say to the restof us and the world that: we told

2015: Distracting JonathanBy Sleek M.O. Oshare

much from him. As a compatriot,I plead with Nigerians not todistract President Jonathan withsuch calls. When Chief E.K. Clarkmade that comment he did notmute it or mean it to be an issuefor national debate or even forpeople to go to court over. It wasjust a passing comment by him.It was not made for people all overto jump at in order to distract thePresident.

Infact, these calls and debatethereon are not only distractive,they are premature and counter-productive. Jonathan meanswell for the nation and for all ofus. He did not need your calls toget to where he is now. He is aman of destiny. God has alreadyprepared and charted his path oflife for him. If he is going to getanother term, it is not your callsthat will get it for him. You aregiving too much ammunition tohis enemies to hurt him. So let usput our energies into how we canmake him great and histransformation agenda succeedin the remaining three years ofthis term. This should be our dutyfor now.

God bless Nigeria.Sleek M.O. Oshare (JP) is anoil & gas consultant

Talentism is derived fromthe word talent.Talentism insists that the

state, through its educationalsystem, must discover, trainand equip every talent into anorganized business to provideutilities for the satisfaction ofhuman needs increase andsustain national development.

Talents can be identified indifferent faculties or work-cellsof life. They include naturalabilities to talk well, clean well,be the best messenger, bestclerical worker, best singer,best teacher, best curator, beststylist-fashion designer, leaderof leaders, best artist, bestentertainer, best engineer, bestaccountant, fastest sprinter,best writer, best footballer, bestarchitect, best medicalscientist, best thinker, etc. Inevery nation-state, theseabilities cannot all be found inone person because one personcannot do all these works ofGod; hence God distributedthem among different peoplesin different places as it pleasesHim.

Therefore it is the duty ofstate leadership to thinkthrough and provide policiesthat can harness these varioustalents into a sustainablenational culture. To be able todo this, some countries adoptedcertain ideologies ranging from

communalism, slavery,feudalism, capitalism tosocialism. Except the first, noneof these ideologies had been ableto effectively resolve theproblem of unemployment(especially among the youths).Some politicians havecapitalized on this to promisecreating million-million jobsfor their people. This surely isnot true because nobody cancreate work except God. God’swork domiciled in humantalents is the most viablepathway to nationaldevelopment. Let us illustratethis by examining a publicationon page 27 of the Daily Trust(a Nigerian Abuja-basednewspaper) of 22nd June 2012,titled “I want to be a nuclearphysicist”, said a 15 year oldstudent of Zaria Academy,Master Salisu H. M. Bunkure.

In the said publication,Salisu was the subject matterand we are interested here inhis engineering talent. Thepaper said “when he fabricatedhis radio station, nobodytaught him how to do it.” Thatshows a natural ability. Salisuwent further to state that,“because of the love I have forengineering…” The fact is thatthose who know their talentsare always passionate aboutthem. Again, talents define aperson’s expertise or profession.Salisu helps us here when hesaid “…from then on, I became

a radio repairer.” This meanshe has got his profession andalready employed (at less than15). One question to ask hereis: Could Salisu becomeunemployed after studyingengineering at the University?The obvious answer is no.

Like other talents-bearinghuman beings, Salisu initiallyhad problems working in linewith his talent. We must notethat Salisu’s primarychallenges were mainlyexogenous. For example, hesaid “… soon after, my motherbanned me from repairingradio because of argumentsthat clients raised either beforeor after the repair had beencompleted”. Whetherknowingly or not, parents orguardians sometimesdiscourage and shade awaychildren from their talents.But the other challenge fromclients was positive because ifproperly resolved, thosearguments can lead toimproved service qualitydelivery. Very instructivehere is that at about 15 yearsof age, Salisu already hadclients and indeed had startedbuilding his business empire.

Furthermore, and mosttimes, talents work on latentor wasting opportunities andresources to produce things ofgreater values. For example,Salisu said he “…picked piecesof amplifier that one of our

Youth unemployment andnational developmentBy Okachikwu Dibia

you, there you are. They knowthat with the lure of anotherterm come 2015, the Presidentwill be so distracted that he willnot be able to tackle theembarrassing and serious issueof corruption in the country

“However, the totality of the calls of allthese groups and their fellow co-travellers

is to distract the President from theonerous task he has set for himself and,

for which the nation expects so much fromhim. As a compatriot, I plead withNigerians not to distract President

Jonathan with such call

Contd. on page 15

because he will need many ofthose allegedly involved to helphim fight for another term. Ifthat happens, the Nigerian peoplewill then use that against himwhen voting time comes.Remember, the President’s homeregion accounted for just 24% of

his total votes in 2011.However, the totality of the

calls of all these groups and theirfellow co-travellers is to distractthe President from the oneroustask he has set for himself and,for which the nation expects so

teachers brought. It had beenlying there for more than twoyears… I was just trying todetect why the amplifier didnot work”. Latent wealthalways lay wasting, especiallyin Third World countries,waiting to be transformed byappropriate talents. Thus,talents work on latent wealthto produce manifest wealth. InGod’s design, requisite talentsare usually located near everylatent wealth to change thelater into manifest wealthwhich has utility forhumanity. The relationshipamong requisite talent, latentwealth and manifest wealthrelates to the issue of the law ofcomparative resourceadvantage inDevelopmentalism.

Salisu went on to say that“after I had joined the relayfrom the speaker with that ofthe battery to the aerial of thespeaker, I was just saying tomyself, can this thing work?Then I heard what I was sayingfrom the radio set…It was thenI knew I had set up a radiotransmitter”. When talentworks on latent wealth, itresults in greater manifestwealth and this output willalways come to people as asurprise or miracle. Talent-driven output, when coalescedfor over one million peoplefrom different works, results inhuge manifest wealth called

national product and as thisprocess continues with the aimof consistently increasing thiswealth, the nation canexperience development. Thisis the true meaning ofdevelopment.

Free education is crucial incapturing talents for nationaldevelopment. In our instantcase, Zaria Academy should beapplauded for sponsoringSalisu’s secondary education.To underscore the importanceof free education for talent andindeed national development,Salisu himself noted: “ … if hecould get scholarship, the skywould be his limit in his zeal tomove his state in particular andNigeria in general intechnological development tohigher heights.” Thus nationswould lose and waste theirtalents if they do not put inplace a free educational systemthat can discover, train andequip talents for greaterproductivity. Besides freeeducation, the curricula of theentire educational systemshould be talent focused.

“As a student in theacademy, Salisu managed towrite a physics handbook…hewas among the students thatconstructed an electricalinverter… invented carsecurity alarm that can beconnected to a handset…andthe establishment of a radio

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 14

Shema and Tata don't have to be political enemies

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WRITE TO USOne of the characteristics

of the average Nigerianleader is his failure to

fully comprehend theephemeral nature of power; heacts and superintends over theaffairs of state like an overlordagainst whom there must notbe dissenting voices.

In Katsina state, GovernorIbrahim Shehu Shema appearsto be intoxicated with politicalpower. A barrister at law, he isbestriding the politicallandscape like a colossus,muzzling anybody he perceivesto be a threat to his office. '

His recent show of dictatorialpower was his handling ortreatment of one of theillustrious sons of Katsina,Alhaji Umar Abdullahi Tsauri(alias Tata). Tata is a humblecivil servant whose only offencein the eyes of Shema is that henurses an ambition to be thegovernor of the state in 2015.Therefore he has set off early toidentify the basic needs of thecommon man. He formed a non-partisan organization, Na ka Sai

Naka Forum, so that he can reachout to every man in Katsina andidentify with their needs andaspirations, and he challengedhimself, firstlyas a dutybefore HisMaker, toprovide somesuccour in theform ofservices to thepeople of hisstate, himselfbeing amember of aprivilege class;and secondly,to show toK a t s i n a w aboth at homeand in theDiaspora thatgood leadership and commitmentto their cause is not after all amirage; it can actually happenin Katsina.

Using his lean resources, heconstructs mosques in villages,renovates old mosques, some asold as twenty years, and buildsclassrooms, provides teachingmaterials in some public schools.

He has also constructed bridges,empowered youths throughvarious poverty alleviationprogrammes and distributed

fertilisers to farmers. These aresome of the things he is doing thathave put him on a collision coursewith the governor.

And curiously, Tata is anactive member of the rulingparty in the state, PDP, and hecontributed immensely to theprop up the same Shemaadministration against the

By Abdullahi Tasiu Dutsinma Buhari hurricane in 2011. It isnot as if he is in an oppositionparty trying to undermine thePDP government in the state; in

fact, he iscomplementingthe efforts oft h a tgovernment atproviding thedividends ofdemocracy toKatsinawa.

And moreintriguing is thefact that this isthe sameShema, whowon the heartsof hundreds ofthousands ofvoters at a timewhen there was

a gang-up against him bynotable PDP leaders from thestate who happened to be closeto late President UmaruYar'adua, because they felt hedidn't deserve to be thegovernor, due to the fact that,he was an outsider, based inKaduna and that he had notcontributed enough to progress

Make these ghosts real (I)

How to be a Nigerian (IV)Accommodating Nigeria’sreality should includetheir best efforts to foresee

consequences. Above all, theymust be willing to gore currentoxen. They would be givenadequate time to produce a newdraft constitution and allowed tomake radical changes, to bepopularly accepted or not. But theurgency is clear.

And however unrealistic in apost-18th century constitution,especially here, I should like toplead for brevity. Much in the1999 constitution should behandled by legislation instead.The most effective democraticconstitutions, historically, areeither unwritten—hardlypractical today—or entrenchonly broad fundamentalprinciples and institutions,leaving the rest to laws that,especially in a federation, neednot be uniform throughout.

Further, it is, I think, offensiveto include in a constitution manyprescriptions that are now andcan in future be repeatedlyviolated. “It shall be the duty ofthe State to…” is how they begin,and when they are ignored, itundermines Nigerians’confidence in their institutions

and increases their cynicismabout those who claim to leadthem.

We know that internalweakness undermines the abilityof any country to play a visible,effective role internationally. It isno secret that Nigeria’seffectiveness on the world stage isa shadow of what it was in earliertimes, most notably the timewhen Joseph Nanven Garba wasits face and voice. U.S. Secretariesof State Cyrus Vance and evenHenry Kissinger, privatelyreflecting on Nigeria then andnow, made clear that what stoodout for them was Nigeria aspresented—and represented—byJoe Garba. It’s only a strong,stable, united, confident Nigeriathat can restore its internationalprominence. Nigeria should bethe obvious African candidate forpermanent membership on theUN Security Council. Now, it isnot.

More urgent even thanconstitutional reform is to restoresecurity to Nigerians. Give themback safe roads and freedom tomove around the country, so vital

to rebuilding their economicwellbeing and One Nigeria. Now,when violence and criminalitypervade, and the country is moremilitarized than it was undermilitary governments, fear andanger trump almost everythingelse.

Beyond that, Nigeriadesperately needs stronginstitutions, and needs more JoeGarbas committed to buildingthem—look at his work to makeNDA into a first class university;

look at NIPSS. He also had faith inNigeria’s youth—he did not think,nor do I, that means people intheir 40s or 50s. I think he wouldsee hope now, as I do, in thebehavior of young Nigerians lastJanuary, as they engaged inpeaceful protests in many of thecountry’s cities, complementingthe work, or non-work, of strikers.

Most impressive were thedeclarations that they would notallow anyone to use religion orethnicity to divide them. In Kano

and Kaduna especially, they wereemphatic about respect forworship, with young Christiansguarding Muslims at prayer andyoung Muslims guardingChristian churches on Sundays.Sadly, even tragically, thoseefforts were curtailed, but not bythe young themselves—and worstof all, in Lagos, by militaryviolence.

I hope those young, courageouspeople began something—arenewed commitment toNigeria—that will engage moreand more of them, and draw inothers similarly committed, ofwhatever age. They need acritical mass to insist onconstructive change. But in theirefforts are the seeds of “How to bea Nigerian” in the way that JoeGarba quintessentially was.

ConcludedProfessor Jean Herkovitsdelivered this speech atNigerian Institute forInternational Affairs, Lagoson 31 May 2012 in honour ofJoseph Nanven Garba, 1943-2002.

Efficiency is doing things right.Effectiveness is doing the rightthings. — P.F.Drucker

I had always thought that’’ghost workers’’ were fictitiousnames on payment vouchers

whose salaries are paid into a ’’realperson’s’’ account(s). It wasrecently I became exposed to asecond category of ghost workers!These are real persons who areemployees but are not availableto perform their duties. Reasonsfor this ’unavailability’ areseveral. Some of them are still inprimary or secondary schools and

are therefore under aged. The othergroup are too old as they aremummies and grannies. The thirdgroup are working elsewhere i.e.they have other jobs or are full timeself-employed. The only day youwill see these categories of ghostworkers attending to their duties iswhen there is a screening exerciseto fish them out. They appear fromall parts of the state or country,from all nooks and crannies of thelocal government, from unexpectedfamilies and abodes. They emergeto sup on our common wealth,

devour our common sense andinsult our sensibilities with theirsmiles of innocence.

Meanwhile we are inundatedwith reports of 5000-7000 or moreghost workers from the states andeven higher numbers from thefederal ministries. This implies wecan accommodate from the localgovernments 1000 ghost workersgiving 774, 000. From the 36states and the FCT, using anaverage of 6,000 per state, gives220, 000 while from theministries, using 5000 from 42

ministries gives 210, 000. Theseadd up to a mere 1.2 million whocan be on government payrollwithout us feeling the pinch.Rather than let the salaries ofthese ghost workers go tounscrupulous elements andgreedy individuals we can makethese ghosts workers real personsand convert their salaries orearnings to social securitypayments.

The conditions for enjoyingthe social security payments canbe set at being above the age of 18

and either being a graduate or asecondary school leaver. With theminimum wage at N18, 000.00and the ghost workers happy withN10, 000.00 as salaries, we candouble the number to be placedon social security to 2.4 million ormore. This will take the pressureoff government officials and allowthose who are true workers to dotheir jobs.John Igoli contributed thispiece tonigeriavillagesquare.comarticles.

By John Igoli

By Jean Herskovits

of the state to merit being thegovernor.

Like him, Tata is learning towarm himself into the hearts oftomorrow's voters. And he issucceeding. People are printingTata's posters, painting hisportraits on walls of their houses,erecting his billboards all overthe state and associating withTata's ambition.

Regretably, the actions ofthese Tata sympathisers seem tobe irritating the government ofthe day which has sent securityagencies after them. Manyvillagers, especially in Danjalocal government recently werearrested and arraigned before amagistrate's court on allegationsof vandalism and disturbing thepublic peace and they are stilllanguishing in the state CIDpending when the governordecides what to do with them orwhen the law finally opens itseye. It is glaring that Shema isall out to intimidate Tata.Abdullahi Tasiu Dutsinmawrote in from UnguwarKanawa, Kaduna NorthLocal Government, Kadunastate.

“More urgent even thanconstitutional reform is to restoresecurity to Nigerians. Give themback safe roads and freedom to

move around the country, so vitalto rebuilding their economicwellbeing and One Nigeria

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 15

Mgbeke is feeling funky.In contemporary Igbosociety, Mgbeke is the

village girl who lacks exposureand is distanced frommodernity. She knows nothingabout a good sense of dress andisn’t the type who walks withthe alluring girly gait. On herbest day, she looks out of placein her attires. Once in a while,an Mgbeke with an exaggeratedsense of self-worth happens onthe village scene. She wants tospeak, dress and act like the citygirl. But while she forces herselfto do that, she unwittinglyexposes her ignorance and senseof inferiority – the two qualitiesthat earned her the name andimage in the first place. And hermore exposed peers naturallydismiss her as Mgbeke feelingfunky.

We saw a similar scenarioplay out last Sunday. Nigeria’spresident, apparently irritatedby the torrents of criticismsthat have trailed his lacklusteradministration, andparticularly his refusal todeclare his assets as required bythe constitution, snarled at ajournalist during hispresidential media chat; “I don’tgive a damn!”

He was wondering whyNigerians can’t understandthat his own presidency shouldbe allowed to enjoy what thosebefore his boss – Yar’adua –enjoyed: corruption. Mr.Jonathan is a secret believer inall the theories that havedestroyed Nigeria, a key part ofwhich is “Chop-I-chop”. Heassumes that by now peopleshould have understood hisunwillingness to beaccountable. For him, it is aclosed topic. So why raise itagain? Mr President doesn’tgive a damn!

Mr. Jonathan must havebeen told by his advisers to acttough, to prove his mettle tothose who see him as aweakling. He thought to send aclear message to his critics who,interestingly, are many andincreasing in ranks by the day:do not ever take me for a sissy!

If he had the power ofelocution, the sudden arrogancewould have made meaning tous. If he were the president whohad in his kitty enough Englishwords to express his thoughts,we would have sought to sharein his sophistication. We wouldhave chosen to pick at least hisswagger, or his eloquence or hismastery of rhetorics. But hislack of willingness to be thepresident beyond an occupantof a presidential office; his use ofpedestrian language on nationalTV; his lack of depth in thoughtsgave him the Mgbeke image –the inadequate girl whooverrates herself.

Many have questioned thepresident’s qualifications. Many– at home and abroad – believethis president is intellectuallychallenged. Many members ofthe academia can’t see anyintelligence in the governmenthe runs. One would haveexpected his pastime to bereading biographies andautobiographies of great leadersto shore up his intellect, ratherthan reveling in gossips from hisvillage men. But then, hedoesn’t give a damn.

“If I declare my assets, will itstop Boko Haram?” MrJonathan asked. That was anauseating non sequitur. Itcould be pardoned from amischievous teenager, ateenage boy who was out to playpranks, but not from thepresident of a country. That itwas committed by a presidentmoves it way beyond the realmof fallacy. It assumed the weightof sin. It doesn’t follow. Thosewho included assets declarationin Nigeria’s constitution didn’tdo so for the purpose of stoppingterrorism. That wasn’t what itwas meant to achieve. Assetsdeclaration is for the purpose oftransparency, to curtailcorruption and underscore thecommitment of publicofficeholders in the collectivequest of the nation for opennessin governance. Corruption isthe root of most of the maladies

we see in today’s Nigeria. Withthat response, Mr Jonathan gaveout himself as lacking in basicknowledge of elementary logic,in which case he justifies thiswriter’s Mgbeke analogy, or hedeliberately chose to misleadNigerians in his desperation tobe left alone to run, as he hasdone in the last two years, anopaque regime.

The tragedy of today’sNigeria is that it is saddled witha cheerleader of corrupt peopleas its president. He thinkscorruption is in our DNA, andthat people should understandand just move on. Hear him:“The stealing of crude oil is aNigerian phenomenon.” That isa summary of what he standsfor on corruption.

why he is upset when peoplewant him to be a presidentdifferent from his predecessorswho converted public funds toprivate wealth. Somewherewithin him, I suspect he hasasked himself and those close tohim, “why should I stopcorruption today? Where wereyou advocates of war againstcorruption before I came?”

Actually, he has said it aloudonce. He said he wasn’t thecause of Nigeria’s problems. I donot think he said it because he iswilling to solve the problems, hesaid it to seek a leave from his

critics.But who gives a damn about

Jonathan’s assets declarationanyway? Even if he does, it willbe false. He has declared itbefore and it was false. In 2006,Goodluck Jonathan wasindicted for false declaration ofassets by a Joint Task Force(JTF) on corruption that was setup by Obasanjo’s government.That powerful panel washeaded by Nuhu Ribadu thenas the chairman of theEconomic and Financial CrimesCommission (EFCC).

The Joint Task Force said MrJonathan was in possession ofillegally-acquired propertysuch as homes and exotic carshe could not explain within hislegitimate income. While hewas invited for hearing, heclaimed he bought them fromhis “savings”. A lecturer’ssavings! Some of the propertiesinvolved were listed as: a seven-bedroom duplex worth N18million at Otuke Ogbia LGAacquired in2001; a four-bedroom duplex, valued at N15million at Goodluck JonathanStreet, Yenegoa, acquired in2003; and a five-bedroomduplex, at Citec Villas,Gwarimpa II – Abuja, valuedat N25 million, also acquired in2003. There were also two cars:a Lexus Jeep valued at N18

Who gives a damn anyway?million; and a BMW 7351 Seriesworth N5.5 million. If you checkthe dates, the purchases weremade starting from 2001, justtwo years after becoming adeputy to a criminal governorconvicted for fleecing Bayelsastate.

With such a past, why wouldanybody expect the president toshow willingness in the fightagainst corruption? Even if hedoes, would he be declaring histrue worth? More thananything else, Mr Jonathanwants to retire a trillionaire, notfrom profits built from asuccessful business. He wants toretire a trillionaire from moneymade in government. Daring tostop him will bring out theuncivil part of him, as it did,last Sunday.

There is nowhere in theworld where government isdesigned to confer on itsoperators the sole right to cornernational resources to privatepockets. We see that only inNigeria; and the rest of Africahave learnt that. The advocatesof good governance wantNigeria to be run like a modernday state where transparencyand accountability ingovernment drive economicgrowth and lift the populationout of poverty. This presidenthasn’t shown that he likes that.And for saying he isn’t takingthe country anywhere, hiscritics are branded abusive.

But beyond the president’snew-found intimidation tactics,we think it is our duty – a divineduty we owe our country – todemand accountability andgood governance. We will talk“from head to toe” in ourinsistence.

It is true that he doesn’t givea damn. But it is also true thatwe do not give a damn about hisnot giving a damn.Chinedu is a SundayColumnist withwww.ekekeee.com. You cancatch him on Twitter via:@ekekeee

By Chinedu Ekeke

station at the academy.” Theseare greater and higherproducts made possible by thetalents of teens in a secondaryschool. Every child is sodifferently talented and ifevery child can be so identifiedand encouraged, why shouldyouth unemployment andviolence overtake nations ofthe world in the 21st Century?

In seeking to resolve theunemployment challenge,most nations have turned tothe so-called idea of creatingemployment for the youths.They have invested directly inthe areas of skillsempowerment that couldenable youths establish smalland medium scale enterprises.To nations, these are aboutcreating jobs to reduce youthunemployment and increase

national productivity andultimately nationaldevelopment. Yet, youthunemployment keepsincreasing by the day. Why?It is because talents are beingneglected. Government needsto determine whether or notthese youths have talents? Ifthey do, what exactly are theirtalents? Do nations have aformal educational system orprocess that can seamlesslydiscover, train and equip thesetalents?

In seeking answers to thesefundamental questions, I havecome to discover that nogovernment can create jobs;rather government canprovide enablingenvironment to get jobs done.When people engage in areasof their talent(s) within anenabling environment, thereis always instant joy in doing

the work and the work iseffortlessly done well. The workis creative, innovative anddriven by decent ambition totake it to the highest level byachieving extra-ordinary featsthat create quantum value fornational development.Working in tune with yourtalent means workingaccording to God’s purpose foryour life. But whengovernment attempts to createjobs, which is fallacy, theycause people to engage in worksthat are unrelated to theirtalent(s), even within anenabling environment (like inadvanced economies).

Salisu himself acknowledgedthat “his talent is a gift fromGod”. Therefore, a talent-focused free educational systemand a talent-driven politicaleconomy are needed for truedevelopment where we can

Continued from page 13

youth unemployment and national devthave employer-youths notu n e m p l o y e d - y o u t h s ,positively engaged youths notidle youths armed robbers,religious fanatics and socialmiscreants whose stock intrade is violence.

How can we have a talent-focused education in a talent-driven economy? It starts withthe free educational systemthat must be able to discoverthe talents in children trainthem along their talents andconvert the talents intoindustries. This way, everywork-profession is peopled withpersons of like-talents.

Thus, the meaning of theSalisu example is that allhuman activities should bebased on talents. When thoseleading all the sectors of anation have requisite talents,true professionalism andexpertise will reign. Such

leaders may not be driven bygreed or Machiavelli’s ruthlessRealism Theory, but by somehumane principles that seek toachieve genuine progress withless contradictions andconflicts.

We must note that in the postSecond World War world,capitalism and socialism havefailed. Developmentalism(development throughTalentism)) will take over todrive human progress. Politicalleaders of all nations must keyinto Developmentalism toimprove on the strengths ofcapitalism and socialism whilerejecting their weaknessesthereby ushering in a morehumane and decentdevelopment paradigm withthe human talents as its drivingforce.Okachikwu Dibia lives inAbuja, Nigeria.

“The tragedy of today’s Nigeria is that itis saddled with a cheerleader of corrupt

people as its president. He thinkscorruption is in our DNA, and that people

should understand and just move on. Hearhim: “The stealing of crude oil is a Nigerianphenomenon.” That is a summary of what

he stands for on corruption

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 16

A 25-year-old man,Stephen Paul of Area AExtension, Nyanya,

Abuja has appeared before anAbuja Upper Area Court inKaru for causing grievous hurtto one Austin Paul.

One Austin, resident inGbagalape, near Nyanya, thePolice Prosecutor, JerryTangshak, told the court,

The Minister of State for theFederal CapitalTerritory(FCT), Oloye

Olajumoke Akinjide has disclosed that the Federal CapitalTerritory Administration(FCTA) has generated N1.10billion for the month of June2012.

Akinjide disclosed this at theFCT Area Councils Joint AccountAllocation Committee (JAAC) inAbuja.

She confirmed that the sumof N1.743 billion being allocationfrom the Federation Account forMay was allocated to the six areacouncils, Abaji, Abuja

Municipal, Bwari, Gwagwalada,Kuje and Kwali.

Represented by Director,Admin & Finance, Area CouncilsServices Secretariat, AlhajiYusuf Tsaiyabu, she explainedthat the Abuja GeographicalInformation System (AGIS)contributed N486.82 million ofthe total sum for the precedingmonth.

“We achieved an IGR ofN1.101 billion in June 2012 outof which N486.82 million wasrealised by AGIS, AbujaMetropolitan ManagementCouncil (AMMC) collectedN304.01 million, Water Board

recorded N202.57 million;Abuja Environmental ProtectionBoard, N60.52 million, andDirectorate of Road TrafficServices, N34.14 million,” shesaid.

Out of the N1.743 billionallocated to the FCT areacouncils from the FederationAccount, the minister noted thatstatutory deductions forprimary school teachers in thesix area councils, 15 per centpension fund and one per centtraining fund accounted forN926.04 million while netallocation of N817.08 was paidto the six area councils.

FCTA generates N1.1bn IGR in JuneThe breakdown indicates

that in the allocation to areacouncils, Abaji got (N119.40million); Abuja Municipal(N172.28 million); Bwari(N142.53 million); Gwagwalada(N143.59 million); Kuje(N121.42 million), and Kwali(N117.84 million).

Akinjide said the FCTA wouldcontinue to uphold transparencyin the disbursement of funds tothe six area councils and assuredthat it had put in place amechanism to monitor theperformance of the area councilson a monthly basis whilerewarding performing councils.

reported the matter at thePolice Station on June 26,2 0 1 2 .

Tangshak explained to thecourt that that some membersof Christ Embassy Church hadgone to preach to the accusedand the complainant, afterwhich they gave them somebiscuits to share.

In the process of sharing the

Man, 25, harms another over biscuitbiscuits, Stephen was said tohave started a quarrel,resulting to a fight withAustin.

He added that Stephenthrew Austin to the ground and“Austin’s left shoulder wasdislocated and he is nowreceiving treatment atGbagalape”.

The prosecutor said that

The Abuja Municipal AreaCouncil (AMAC) has set upa panel to investigate the

remote cause of a clash betweenyouths and the village head of Galadimawa village in FederalCapital Territory (FCT), ChiefTanko Zhimiko.

A clash had erupted last weekThursday, when some youths inthe community heard rumours

that the village chief wasplanning to sale out the entirevillage to an unnamed publicfigure.

The AMAC Chairman , Hon.Micah Y. Jiba confirmed that the committee would find alasting solution to the lingeringproblem in the area.

He regretted that most of theproblems of the communityhave affected the socio-economicendeavours in the village,

Galadimawa clash: AMAC sets up investigation panel urging youths to lay down theirswords for the interest of thecommunity and the FCT.

This was as a vowed topenalize anybody in the areathat was causing the problem.

Also, the Chairman of thepanel , Alhaji Idris Mohammedassured that anybody foundwanting by his panel would bepenalized accordingly.

One of the angry youths,John Gbegbe Bamgo, who spoke

to newsmen, expressed regretover the attitude of their Chief,adding that most of the advicegiven to him for propermanagement of the people andthe community are not usuallyheeded to.

He even tendered a copy ofinterlocutory injection issued tothe chief over issues borderingon land in the area, alleged thatit was his selfishness that led torevolt by the youths.

Secretariatpartners Kujecouncil onyouth devt

The Social DevelopmentSecretariat (SDS) of the(Federal Capital

Territory Administration) is collaborating with the Kuje AreaCouncil for social-economicdevelopment of youths thecouncil.

To this effect, the SDSSecretary, Mrs Blessing Onuh, who led top officials of thesecretariat on an advocacy visitto the council chairman, Hon.Danladi Etsu Zhin yesterday,donated sporting itemsincluding 18 pairs of jersey,boots and stockings each, for the10 wards in the council.

The gesture, Onuh told thechairman, - was to support theforthcoming Under-13 sportcompetition and the First LadyCup in the FCT.

She explained that the visitwas to declare the intention ofthe secretariat to collaboratewith the council in various areasas it affects social development.

According to her, thesecretariat also intends topartner with the council to stemthe rising cases of childmolestation by enforcing theChild Right Act in the counciland as well partner with themto develop their tourismpotentials.

“We are developing sportingfacilities and we have pickedKuje Area Council to carry outthe pilot scheme on sport so thisis why we have brought thesesporting facilities that wouldassist this council in the comingUnder-13 and first Lady’s Cup,”she said.

She added that these wouldbe replicated in other areacouncils, saying, “theseprogramme are geared towardsdevelopment of the FCT anddecongestion of the city centre,so very soon, what you can findin the city centre, you will beginto find them in the council”.

In his remarks, Hon. Zhinthanked the Secretary and herteam for showing interest in thecouncil.

He said on its part, thecouncil has been doing its bestby contributing its quota fordevelopment of youths andwomen in the council to addressthe issue of youth restiveness.

According to him, recentlythe council distributed 20 golfcars and 80 motorcycles toyouths in the council at 25 percent subsidy of the market pricesof the items.

“We also gave some loans towomen without interest andoffered scholarship of N6m andN12m in the first and secondyear of the commencement ofour scholarship scheme andN20m for last year scholarshipprogramme and this year willbe more,” he said.

Some of thephysicallychallengedpeople whobenefitted fromthe wheelchairsdonated byShukrallahAssociation,through Al-Khulafa’urrashidun-foundationyesterday inKaru, Abuja.

Photo:MohammedKandi

during police investigation, theaccused person confessed tocommitting the crime.

The accused pleaded notguilty to the charge.

The judge, Umar Kagarko,ordered the accused person tobe remanded in Keffi Prison andadjourned the case to August28, 2012 for further hearing.(NAN)

By Adeola Tukuru

By Josephine Ella

•••disburses N1.74bn to councilsBy Josephine Ella

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 17

Young girls hawking walnuts, on Tuesday at Wuse Zone 2, in Abuja.

An environmental worker dumping plastic bottles in a waste bin, on Tuesday in Area 2,Gark, Abuja.

You can't cheat nature: An old man selling slippers napping inside his shop duringbusiness hours, on Tuesday in Garki village, Abuja

Keke NAPE driver repairing his tricycle, on Tuesday in Durumi District, Abuja.Photos: Justin Imo-Owo

An elderly woman taking a ride on a motorcycle with her goods not minding the risk ascaptured, on Tuesday in Nyanya, Abuja.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 18

Biz-man loses eye to scavengers attackTwo scavengers were

on Tuesdayarraigned before an

Abuja Senior Magistrate’sCourt for allegedly causinggrievous hurt to the eye of abusinessman, Mr LawrenceOgbodo.

The accused, Mutalla Musa,19, and Mutalla Kahiridu, 21,of Angwa Hausawa, Kurudu,Abuja, were charged with joint

The Federal CapitalT e r r i t o r yAdministration (FCTA)

and the World Bank havecompleted the procurementprocesses and awardedcontracts for the constructionof seven overhead pedestrianbridges at critical spots onhighways in the city.

Minister of FCT, SenatorBala Mohammed, who disclosed this when a team ledby the Commissioner, PublicComplaints Commission (PCC),FCT Office, Hon. ObunikeOhaegbu, paid him a courtesyvisit, said this was intended to

FCTA awards contracts for seven pedestrian bridges

By Josephine Ella

In a bid to ensure a hitch-free 2012 Hajj operation,the Minister of State for

Federal Capital Territory (FCT),Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, hasinaugurated a MinisterialMonitoring Committee.

Chaired by the Secretary,Area Councils Secretariat, Hon.Yahaya Alhassan Gwagwa, thecommittee has as its secretary,the Personal Assistant to theMinister of State on MuslimPilgrims Welfare Board, AlhajiIsiaka Kehinde.

The members include,the Director of Treasury, FederalCapital TerritoryAdministration, Alhaji IbrahimBomai; Director of Security,FCTA, Mallam A. Bashir;Director of Special Duties in theOffice of the Minister of State,Alhaji Sagir Hamidu.

Others are the SpecialAssistant to the Minister of Stateon Area Councils, AlhajiIbraheem A. Ibraheem; DeputyDirector, Admin in FCTA, HajiyaSuleiman Danbatta; SpecialAssistant to PermanentSecretary, FCTA, Salihu IsmailaEvuti; Alhaji UmarfaroukAdamu Auta, and Dr. Abdullahi.

While inaugurating thecommittee, the ministermandated the members tomonitor the conduct of the 2012Hajj operation and ensure thesuccess of the operation.

“As the members of theCommittee are expected to do aclinical assessment of last year’sHajj with a view to correctingany mistake made, we should bemindful of other novel factorswhich can impact on this year’sHajj.

”The overall task, succinctly,is to make this year’s operationthe best ever. It is expected thatyou will put in your possible bestin this noble assignment,” shesaid.

Responding, the Chairman ofthe ministerial committeecommended the minister forputting various measures inplace, including the constitutinga ministerial body for theoperation, to ensure a smoothHajj operation for the pilgrims.

This was as he assured thatthe committee would diligentlyaccomplish the mandate givento them.

Minister sets upmonitoringc’ttee for 2012Hajj operation

act and grievous hurtpunishable under sections 79and 248 of the Penal Code.

Police prosecutor,Sergeant Abu Opanachi, toldthe court that the case wasreported through a writtenpetition to the Police AreaCommand Metro Office byOgbodo of Kurudu village,Abuja, on May 7, 2012.

Opanachi said that on

March 27 at about 6.30 p.m.,the accused conspired with oneAliyu Bala, now on the run,and attacked the complainantin his compound withdangerous weapons.

The prosecutor said theattack led to the removal of oneof the complainant’s eyes,adding that he had beenreceiving treatment atAsokoro General Hospital.

The accused denied thecharge.

Magistrate OmololaAkindele granted the accusedbail in the sum of N50,000each with two sureties each inlike sum.

She said one of the suretiesmust be a civil servant on GL12 and that the second mustbe living within the jurisdictionof the court.

According to her, the passportphotograph of the sureties and theaccused must be affix on the courtbail bond.

She said the sureties mustproduce first appointment letter,last promotion letter and the lastpay slip for sighting while thephotocopy must be attached onthe bail bond.

The case was adjourned toJuly 19, 2012. (NAN)

reduce the difficulties and risk being faced daily bypedestrians who across somebusy express roads in Abujametropolis due to lack ofbridges.

He said work on the selectedspots which include theMabushi/ Nnamdi AzikiweExpressway junction, Area 1/Area3 Junction and the Wuye/Wuse junction would sooncommence.

He said the FCTAdministration wouldcontinue to do its best to be abenchmark for goodgovernance by beingresponsive to the needs of theresidents of the nation’s

capital.Senator Mohammed

further expressed satisfactionwith the growing synergybetween the FCTA and the PCC,maintaining that he would dohis best to foster the cordialrelationship by ensuringtimely response to allcomplaints from the peoplethrough the commission.

On the Commission’s requestfor allocation of a plot of land forthe building of its permanentoffice complex in Abuja, theMinister directed the FCTPermanent Secretary, Engr.Anthony Ozodinobi to ensurethat an appropriate place ispromptly allocated for the

purpose.Earlier, the Commissioner,

Mr. Ohaegbu had commendedthe FCTA Transport Secretariatfor responding promptly to theenquiries by the commissionwhen contacted on the need forpedestrian bridges at somelocations in Abuja metropolis,especially at Wuye Finance/Wuse Zone 5 end among others.

He has also listed thechallenges facing hiscommission in FCT to includeoffice accommodation, suitableplot of land for location of thecommission’s permanent officeand transportation problemsfaced by staff due to insufficientnumber of official vehicles.

By Josephine Ella

The NYSC Coordinatorin the Federal CapitalTerritory (FCT), Mr Frank

Ekpunobi has assured corpsmembers of adequate security inthe territory.

Ekpunobi gave the assuranceduring the second day ofregistration exercise at theKubwa Orientation Camp.

He told the News Agency ofNigeria (NAN) that with thepresence of the military, police

NYSC coordinator assures Corps members of securityand other security agencies, thecorps members should feelsecured.

NAN reports at the entranceto the orientation camp, therewere large presence of securitypersonnel, who were seenconducting thorough search onpersons and vehicles.

The coordinator said thatthey were expecting 2,800 corpsmembers and that 2,000 hadalready arrived undergoing

registration.“Those, who are able to

complete their registration arebeing given kits, accommodationand other necessary items andwe are also expecting theremaining 800 corps membersto be here.

We enforce strict complianceto camp rules”.

Ekpunobi said that Abuja hadbeen the most preferred state bythe corps members and was not

expecting any of the membersposted to FCT toseek redeployment.

“Those seeking redeploymentwill have to obtain a medicalreport, which will be thoroughlyscreened by our medical teamwho will also interview them.

We allow nursing mothersand pregnant women to attendto their families and come backfor the swearing in,” he said.(NAN)

An accident scene near SDP junction, yesterday in Gwagwalada, Abuja. Photo: NAN

PAGE 19PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Management Tip of the DayWith teams, clarify each person's skills

expertise. Being sensitive tothis may help you avoidconflict.

Communicate yourrationale. When assigning atask or asking someone's advice,be explicit about why: "I'm askingfor your input because of yourknowledge of X." Explaining

your thinking may keep peoplefrom feeling slighted.

Encourage people to speakup. Tell people to ask questionswhen someone else gets anassignment they thought theywere better suited for.Source: Harvard BusinessReview

INSIDE

Team members don't needto see eye-to-eye on everyissue. But unhealthy

conflict can arise when teamsmisunderstand each others'skills Be aware ofperceptions. Know that peoplewill always hold varyingopinions of each other's

BUYING SELLING

CFA 0.278 0.298• 194.6009 195.8572£ 242.3256 243.89RIYAL 41.3023 41.5689$ 154.9 155.9

CBN 4th July, 2012EXCHANGE RATES

PARALLEL RATES BUYING SELLING

• 207 209£ 258 260RIYAL 40 42$ 165 169

SON seeks publicassistance over antisub-standard war

- Pg 20

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

BBBBBUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESSUSINESS

Software migration responsible for transaction hitch, says Ecobank

Lagos-Kano train services is expected to be restored before the end of this month

Lagos-Kano train service to start this month – NRC

Changes occasioned bysoftware migration fromPinnacle to Flexcube for

enhanced maximum efficiencyin banking transaction isresponsible for the presenthitch being experienced bycustomers of Ecobank Plc.

Our correspondent’sinvestigations revealed that inthe past one week, customersof Ecobank have beenexperiencing long delays whileconducting bankingtransactions at variousbranches of the bank.

However, the bank’sspokesperson Mr. Austin

Asokpor explained to PeoplesDaily in a telephoneconversation yesterday, whileclarifying the reason for thehitch, said the migration fromPinnacle software to moreefficient software will enhancemaximum service delivery tothe bank customers.

The Managing Director of theNigerian RailwayCorporation (NRC), Mr.

Adeseyi Sijuwade yesterdayannounced that the Lagos-Kanotrain service would be restoredbefore the end of this month.

The NRC boss stated that thecommencement of the Lagos-Kano train service had beenpostponed twice but remainedoptimistic that services on theroute will be restored this month.

“The railway engineers havejust returned from the finalinspection of the tracks; ourcontractors are now working onthe minor adjustmentsrecommended by the engineers.

“We are going to begin trialruns very soon, and most likely,full restoration of train servicesbetween Lagos and Kano beforethe end of this month-July2012,” he said.

Sijuwade noted that therecent heavy rainfall in parts ofthe country, especially theSouth-West, damaged some of thefacilities on the Lagos-Kano railtrack, adding that repair workson the affected lines had beencarried out.

The NRC boss also promisedthat the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri train service wouldbe ready soon as its rehabilitation reached an advanced stage.

According to Sijuwade, thenew standard rail gauge linebetween Kaduna and Abuja is 35per cent completed and should bedelivered within the next two

years, if adequate funds areprovided.

“Fortunately, the SubsidyReinvestment andEmpowerment Programme(SURE-P) is adequately fundingthe three railway projects -Kaduna-Abuja, Lagos-Kano, and

From Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos

By Abdulwahab Isa and A’ishaBiola Raji

He said the old OceanicBank, which was acquired byEcobank, was using Pinnaclesoftware while Ecobank was alsousing a different own software,noting there was a compellingneed for harmonisation so thatbank’s customers are capturedon single platform for efficient

banking service.He regretted the hitch

occasioned by the systemmigration and expressedconfidence that normalunhindered transaction willcommence on Monday.

He said those with ATM andPOS are affected with software

Port Harcourt-Maiduguri raillines.

“Although, only the Kaduna-Abuja new rail line is of thestandard gauge among them,we are only waiting to completethe rehabilitation of existinglines before going full blast to

having standard gauge on allroutes.

“And by the time thestandard gauge track would befully in place, the current narrowgauge lines would be used forcargo trains alone because theycannot carry the speed of modern

passenger locomotives,” he said.According to Sijuwade, the

laying of the standard railwaylines will be done in phases andwill start with the Lagos-Ibadanroute and extend gradually, justas it was in 1898 when the NRCbegan building rail lines. (NAN)

migration and assured ofsmooth transaction across thecounter next week Monday.

Austin said the bank kept itscustomers abreast of thedevelopment through textmessages and public noticeswell ahead of the systemmigration.

Naira firms against dollar as oil firms, CBN sell dollars

The Naira firmed againstthe United States’ dollaron the interbank

market yesterday , after dollarsales by the Central Bank ofNigeria (CBN) and two oil firmsboosted liquidity amid lacklusterdemand, traders said.

The Naira ended at 162.75 to

the U.S. dollar on the interbankyesterday, firmer than the163.16 it closed at on Tuesday.

Dealers said the local units ofChevron and Addax sold about$50.2 million combined to somelenders on yesterday, liftingliquidity in a market withwaning dollar demand.

At its auction, the CBN sold$251 million at N155.90 to thedollar yesterday, compared with$350 million auctioned atN155.94 on Monday.

It had initially offered $350million at Wednesday’s sale, butonly shifted $251 million due toinsufficient demand, traders

said. The bank didn’t disclose thelevel of demand at its auction.

“We see the market hoveringaround the present level of162.50-163 naira in the comingdays unless there is a resurgencein demand and slowdown indollar sales by oil companies,” onedealer said.

The Naira has weakenedfrom around 159 to the dollarsince the beginning of the year toabove 162, in the past twomonths, driven partly by an exitof offshore investors in the localdebt market and demand by fuelimporters.

The CBN has been providingsupport to prop up the Nairathrough direct intervention atthe interbank market, which hasbeen eating into the country’sreserves. (Reuters)

PAGE 20 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

UACN,Livestock FeedsPlc sign MoU oninvestment

UAC of Nigeria Plc (UACN), aleading diversified, food-focused conglomerate

with over a century of activeengagement in Nigeria, andLivestock Feeds Plc (LSF), apioneer in the manufacturing ofanimal feeds in the country,have signed a Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MOU) on UACN’splans to make an equityinvestment in LSF.

Fidsonencouragessupport forNAFDAC againstdrugcounterfeiting

Fidson Healthcare Plc, oneof the leading health andpharmaceutical

companies in Nigeria hasthrown its weight behind theon-going campaign by theNational Agency for Food,Drugs Administration andControl (NAFDAC) againstfake drug syndicates in thecountry.

Facebook IPOgrounds to a haltin Q2

The number of initialpublic offerings in thesecond quarter ground to

a halt because of Facebook’sdisappointing public debut,according to new data from theNational Venture CapitalAssociation (NVCA) andThomson Reuters.

British Airwayseye PortHarcourt route

British Airways (BA)management has said itis looking at the prospects

of operating a daily flightbetween London Heathrow andPort Harcourt, the thirdlargest commercial city inNigeria.

MFBs wantrecapitalisationdeadlineextended to 2013

Microfinance banks inthe country havecalled on the Central

Bank of Nigeria (CBN) toextend the recapitalisationdeadline to December 31,2 0 1 3 .

COMPANYNEWS US export to Nigeria hits N768bn in 2011

Exports from the UnitedStates to Nigeria explodedfrom $747 million in 2010

to $4.8 billion (N768 billion) in2011, the Nigeria-USAChamber of Commerce(NUSACC) has said.

Nigeria-USA Chamber ofCommerce (NUSACC), BonnieSpeed Logistics, Urban League ofGreater Cleveland and over 60entrepreneurs and companies -key organisations representing,healthcare, technology -computer and software, beautyproducts, wholesale productdistributors, marketers,educators and Universities saidthis at a pre-summit event tousher in the on-comingNUSACC’s 3rd InternationalTrade and Investment summitscheduled to hold on August 9-14, 2012 in Lagos Nigeria.

The President/CEO of

Stories from Ayodele Samuel, Lagos Spectrum Global Solutions LLC,Mr. Mike Obi, an internationaltrade consultant and a memberof Nigeria-USA Chamber ofCommerce (NUSACC), said thiswhile highlighting the hugepotentials awaiting companiesand investors wishing to dobusiness in Nigeria.

According to him, this is asign that Nigeria is demandingmore of American products andservices.

Nigeria, Obi disclosed, isdesignated by US EX-IM Bank asone of the 9 countries in theworld that it is focusing forfinancing outreach. He disclosedthat with Nigeria’s population atmore than 160 million, majorityof whom are young, the potentialto tap into the market andmaking profit is high.

The theme of the three-dayLagos summit is: “IdentifyingPartners to Maximise BusinessOpportunities in Africa’s Fastest

Growing Economy, Nigeria.” Infact the motivation for hostingthe Lagos summit was as aresult of the successful outcomeof 2011 summits organised incollaboration with the ClevelandCouncil on World Affairs(CCWA), the Quicken Loan/Cleveland Cavaliers, USDepartment of Commerce, USSmall Business Administration,the Overseas PrivateInvestment Corporation (OPIC)and the Embassy of the FederalRepublic of Nigeria, WashingtonD.C. More than 150organizations from the USattended NUSACC previoussummits.

Mr. Obi disclosed thatNUSACC’s 3rd InternationalTrade and Investment Summitscheduled in Lagos August 9 –14, 2012 should be seen first asa networking opportunity withtargeted business matchmakingto align US and Nigerian

businesses in the same industry.“Our goal is to buildrelationships with potential fora positive win- win businessdeals” he said.

He urged the guests toconsider using the opportunitiesafforded by the NUSACC’s 3rdInternational Trade and Investsummit to afford themselves ofthe opportunity of first having aview of the businessopportunities, doing thenetworking and eventuallydeciding whether they could dobusiness in Nigeria.

former president, OlusegunObasanjo commended MAN forits achievements, contributionsto the progress of Nigeria ineconomic terms and survivingthe ups and downs.

He noted that the theme ofthe AGM: “Strategies forAccelerated Development ofManufacturing-The WayForward” was very appropriateand gave more insight to thetheme.

In his address, the Presidentof MAN, Kola Jamodu, said thatit is widely held view thatmanufacturing is one of themost powerful engines foreconomic growth and a catalystfor the transformation of theeconomic structure of countries.

He explained that theblueprint reviews the status ofthe manufacturing sector inNigeria and identifies the extentof the burden thatmanufacturers have carriedover the years.

Expect good power supply by 2020,Jonathan assures manufacturersPresident Goodluck

Jonathan has said thatpower supply in Nigeria

will be among the best 20 in theworld in the next eight years.

The President gave theassurance recently in Lagos, atthe 40th Annual GeneralMeeting (AGM) ofManufacturers Association ofNigeria (MAN).

President Jonathan,represented by Dr. SamuelOrtom, Minister of State forTrade and Investment, he said,“We will do everything possibleto address the structuralweaknesses standing between usand revolutionising the powersector.

“We will do everythingpossible to address thestructural weaknesses standingbetween us and therevolutionising of the sector;some of the problems are deepbut not beyond thegovernment.

We are currently reviewingthe lapses in the power sector,to make it one of the best in theworld in the year 2020; Nigeriais on the threshold of history,ready to join world economicpowers in the very near future”he said.

He disclosed thatgovernment’s effort atattracting local and foreigninvestor into the economy isyielding positive results withover 16,000 local and foreigninvestors registering theirintention to do business worthabout N6.6 trillion in just oneyear.

He saluted the fashioning outof a blueprint by MAN to boostthe sector assuring them thatthe considerations of theblueprint will be highly valuedby the government and put towork because it will the impetusfor industrial revolution whichwe desire to see as a nation.

Also speaking at the event,

In its efforts to checkmate theinflux of fake and sub-standard products in the

country, the StandardsOrganisation of Nigeria (SON),has solicited the support andassistance of the general public toensure that products that do notconform to the stipulatedstandards specification are notallowed to find their ways in themarkets across the country.

The Director-General/ ChiefExecutive of the organisation,Joseph Odumodu, who made theappeal at an awards ceremony,organised by the Commerce &Industry CorrespondentsAssociation of Nigeria (CICAN), inLagos, said that it was onlythrough such collaboration thatthe organisation’s efforts ateliminating fake and sub-standard products, which had costthe nation avoidable deaths andloss of valuable goods could beaddressed.

Represented by his head ofmarketing, Bola Fashina, the SONboss also enjoined consumers toalways be alert and demand forthe best, as well as complain to therelevant authorities any timethey come across any fake andsub-standard products, addingthat it was only in that way thatfake, sub-standard andadulterated products could bechecked.

According to him, suchmeasures, apart from helpingconsumers, would also help inboosting and promoting trade andinvestment in Nigeria.

Odumodu attributed theincessant incidences of buildingcollapses, food poisoning, fires inhouses and markets, roadaccidents and such other sadincidences to marketing, sales anduse of sub-standard and lifedanger products in the country.

“A critical check, would revealthat each of us here as individualsmust have at one time or the otherbeen affected directly or indirectlyin the various deaths and lossesassociated with the distributionand use of substandard productseither through relatives, friends,neighbours or associates.

SON seekspublicassistance overantisub-standardwar

L-R: Representative of Oyo state governor, Mr Femi Oyedipe, Director-General, Oyo state Signage/Advertisement Agency (OYSAA), Mr. Yinka Adepoju, and General-Secretary, Outdoor AdvertisingAssociation of Nigeria, Mr Ajufo Emmanuel, during a stakeholders' forum, recently in Ibadan. Photo: NAN

PAGE 21PEOPLES DAILY, THUSRDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Health is wealth, theaphorism states, and inthe modern world,

access to adequate and relevantinformation is a major route togetting the full benefits ofhealth services.

This realisation is propellinga major public-privatesector partnership that has seenleading telecommunicationsservices provider, AirtelNigeria collaborate with publicsector health organisations likethe National Agency for Controlof AIDS (NACA) and theNational Agency for Food &Drugs Administration andControl, (NAFDAC)in providing the much-neededpublic health information.

Airtel uses the platform ofthe ubiquitous mobiletelephones carried by nearly 20million Nigerians on its networkto provide dedicated lines forcitizens (consumers) to call into NACA or NAFDAC.Citizens also receive textmessages and alerts on issues ofpublic health concern.

The Director of CorporateCommunication and CorporateSocial Responsibility (CSR),Airtel Nigeria, Mr. EmekaOparah explained that Airtel’sinvolvement is borne out of itsconcern with fundamentalissues of public good. He said,“Our interventions inpublic health are akin to thework we are doing with primaryeducation.

“We are concerned in ourinterventions in investing inareas of demonstrable long-term benefit to the communitiesthat we serve. Health is afundamental concern. Byenabling access to real timeinformation, we hope to serveas a veritable link in the healthcare chain.”

The collaboration withNACA concerns the NationalCall Centre on HIV/AIDS andRelated Diseases. Airtel providedthe telecom centre as well astoll-free lines that enablecitizens to call in andmake enquiries about HIV orAIDS.

Airtel provided an initial 30lines for use of staff at theCall Centre. Thirty agents

engaged by NACA at theNational Call Centre on HIV/AIDS provide information,guidance and counselling tocallers. All calls on a dedicatedAirtel line, 6222, are free.

The telecoms firm alsoenables NACA use the centre tosend regular SMS messages onHIV/AIDS and other health careconcerns. First Lady,Dame Patience Jonathancommissioned the National CallCentre on April 26,2012. DrPatience Jonathan observed atthe ceremony that thegrowth of telephony in Nigeriahad provided a strong platformfor enhanced informationdissemination on health issues.

She commendedAirtel Networks Limited for itslead role in providing toll freelines for subscribers to call theCentre and access informationon HIV/AIDS.

Said Mrs. Jonathan: “Ibelieve that this National CallCentre will go a long way instrengthening our nationalresponse to HIV/AIDS, as is thecase in other countries of theworld, such as South Africa,the Philippines and India, whohave used help lines and CallCentres successfully in the fightagainst the HIV/AIDSpandemic.”

The collaboration betweenthe Airtel network and NACAdates back to 2005 when theidea for the national call centrewas first proclaimed.

The network kept to itsinitial agreement and ensuredthat when NACA was finallyready to roll with the CallCentre, the network wasalso ready. Airtel CEO Mr.Rajan Swaroop affirmed theresolve of the network to ensurethe success of the partnership.

“As far as this partnership isconcerned,” Mr. Swaroopstated, “we are totallycommitted to ensuring thesuccess of the NationalCall Contact Centre. We willensure effective publicenlightenment and educationthrough firm commitment inscaling up existing efforts andconcrete partnerships that willhelp millions of Nigeriansaccess better information andreferrals to service provision in

healthcare delivery.“At Airtel, we will also work

with the NACA to send shortmessages concerning the deadlyscourge to our subscribersnationwide.”

The Airtel-NACApartnership took-off against thebackdrop of the National HIV/AIDS sero-prevalence sentinel

How Airtel is partnering NACA,NAFDAC to promote public health

From Suleiman Idris, Lagos

survey for 2011 thatshowed higher prevalence ofHIV in some rural areascompared with urban areas.

The company believes thatadequate and relevantinformation through mobilephones would ensure thatdenizens of rural areasalso receive information needed

to protect them from thescourge.

A similar consideration forpublic health and public goodactuates the collaborationbetween Airtel and the NationalAgency for Food andDrug Administration andControl (NAFDAC). The overallgoal is to take the battle againstfake drugs one notch higher, bycalling in the services of mobiletechnology and speed ofresponse.

With the partnership, theSMS service allows the buyer tosend the code (PIN) on the drugpackage to a defined short code.The number automaticallysends a return SMS to eitherconfirm that the drugis genuine or state otherwise.

Through the collaborationswith the public serviceagencies, Airtel Networks isrendering invaluable service tocitizens of Nigeria in the criticalarea of health. It is also makinga statement of its long-termintentions.

As the First Lady aptly putit, the collaboration betweenAirtel and the public sectorhealth agencies ” is a clearexpression of corporate socialresponsibility in the true spiritof Public-Private-Partnership.”

Twenty-five winners hasemerged in the on-going‘Cowbell Chocolate Naija

Quest’ promo, recently launchedby Promasidor Nigeria Limitedin Lagos with each carting awayprizes like bicycles, electronicpads and school kits.

Some of them, who were atthe corporate head office of the

company in Lagos to collect theirprizes, commended the companyfor the promo. 11-year-oldjunior secondary school student,Samsudeen Kamorudeen,who went home with a bicyclesaid, “I am very excited heretoday, because I always takeCowbell Chocolate and when Isaw that I had won, I was veryexcited. I want to thankPromasidor for this opportunity

and also my Mom, for alwaysbuying the product for us.”

Mr. Oluwafemi Adeniji,whose 3-year-old daughter,Oluwasarasimi Adeniji also wona bicycle encouraged everyoneto participate in the promo.

Marketing Director of thecompany, Mr. Kachi Onubogusaid the essence of the promo,which is primarily for the 20gramms Cowbell Chocolate

Winners emerge in ‘Cowbell Chocolate Naija Quest’ PromoFrom Suleiman Idris, Lagos

Promasidor Nigeria Limited, makers of Cowbell milk with promo winners who carted away variousprizes

and Cowbell Strawberrysachets, is to educate Nigeriankids about the major touristattractions in the country.

“The promo is veryeducational and goes to the heartof what the brand stands for:physical development, in termsof the product which is good forenergy and vitality; intellectualdevelopment in terms ofhavingknowledge of who we are, who

our nation is and, bringing thattogether will be fun andinteresting.”

Other winners includeAmosu Paul, who won anelectronic pad,Ayomide Adeniyi, who was atthe venue to collect prizes for twoof her kids who won school bagsand Nwafor Ifeanyi, a secondaryschool student who won anelectronic pad and other items.

“The Airtel-NACA partnershiptook-off against the backdrop

of the National HIV/AIDS sero-prevalence sentinel survey for

2011 that showed higherprevalence of HIV in somerural areas compared with

urban areas.

PAGE 22 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Kogi govt plans to boostcocoa and cotton productionInvestors in Nigeria have been

encouraged to take position ofKogi state in the agricultural

net, as the state will soon becomethe agricultural hub and adestination for agro-alliedindustry development in theNation.

Capt Idris Wada made theremarks at the flag-off of the 2012planting season and whilepresenting cotton and cocoaseedlings to farmers in the state,describing the state as blessed andbest suited for the growth of cocoa

as well as SAMCOT 10 andSAMCOT 11 variety ofcotton,regarded as one of the bestcotton in the world.

The governor noted that thestate is in the same region withstates in the South-West in termsof cotton production, stressingthat the state has entered intobilateral and multilateralcooperation initiatives onagricultural development,

Capt. Wada, who urgedfarmers to take advantage ofgovernment commitment toagricultural transformation andnatural endowments, as

L-R: Special Adviser to the President on Research and Strategy, Barrister Oronto Douglas, discussingwith the Chief Executive Officer, Syringe Company of Nigeria Limited, Alhaji Musa Bello, during thelatter's visit to President Goodluck Jonathan, on Tuesday at the State House, in Abuja. Photo: Joe Oroye.

From Sam Egwu, Lokoja opportunity to create wealth. saidnine of the local government inthe state is suitable to grow Cocoawhile Cotton can be grown in allthe local governments.

In his speech, the PermanentSecretary, Ministry ofAgriculture, Yusuf Evinovohcommended the presentadministration for makingagriculture a priority, pointingout that farmers wouldreciprocate government gesture,by being resourceful and adoptbest practices.

Also speaking ,AchimuguAnebe of Arewa Cottons said the

The Lagos state governmentis working on plans to buildfour new Independent Power

Plants (IPPs), with a combinedcapacity of 226 megawatts ofelectricity, following its recentsuccesses in IPP projects.

This is follow up to its strategyto further boost industrialisationand job creation in the state, whichis the business and industrial nervecentre of the nation.

Several businesses have shutdown in the state over the years,with attendant heavy loss of jobs,due to high running costsattributed mainly to the cost ofproviding alternative powerbecause of heavy power supplydeficits from the national grid.

The provision of alternativepower is said to account for over30 percent of the cost of doingbusiness in Nigeria. It likewiseundermines the competitiveness ofNigerian products in the local andinternational markets andconstantly threatens their verysurvival.

Asides the four proposed IPPs ,

another one is receiving attentionin the Isolo Industrial Estate, alsoin Lagos.

The state had previously builtthe 12.15 megawatts Akute/Adiyan IPP, in partnership withOando plc, and the 270 megawattsLagos Island IPP, in collaborationwith AES. The Akute/Adiyan IPP,powers the Adiyan Water Workswhile the Island IPP facilitates 24-hour power supply to selectedpublic establishments within theLagos Island.

The 226MW IPPs which areplanned for industrial estates, arecoming at a time when the overallpower output of the country,driven by the highly inefficientand corruption stricken PowerHolding Company of Nigeria(PHCN) is less than 3,000megawatts, with dire consequenceon industries, especiallymanufacturing concerns whichcontinue to lament increased costsof production amidst poorinfrastructure.

Lagos, which consumes over40 percent of the overall nationaloutput, is estimated to require over6,000 megawatts of electricity to

Lagos plans 226mw IPPs for industrial estatesFrom Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos function.

Over 60 percent of the nation’sindustries are based in the state.This combines with other essentialfactors, including the presence ofseaports, international airport,head offices of banks andinsurance companies, serviceproviders, as well as a hugepopulation estimated at over 15million, to earn the state its statusas Nigeria’s economic andfinancial hub.

However, poor infrastructure,particularly power supply,stands in the way of the growth ofexisting industries, especiallysmall and medium enterpriseswhich are generallyacknowledged as the engine roomof any economy.

All businesses in the state, as isthe case in other parts of thecountry, generate their ownpower through generators-spending huge sums of money ondiesel, a development which theManufacturers Association ofNigeria (MAN) says limits theirbottom-lines, resulting inextreme cases in pruning of staffto keep afloat.

state government’s initiatives willcreate jobs and urged the farmersto take the advantage of theN1.6m free seedlings offered thestate farmers.

Speaking on behalf of the KogiWomen Alliance, Odiba H.E.called for the establishment ofcotton and farm settlements in thestate.

Representatives of the Cottonand Cocoa farmers solicited thesupport of government in the areaof machines, soft loans andcapacity-building for youngerfarmers in the state to take overfrom those aging.

Unity Bank Plc isintensifying itsengagement with

customers in their primaryplaces of business as a means ofdeepening interaction withthem.

Head, CorporateCommunications of the bank,Aliyu Ma’aji explained theengagement is also aimed atobtaining first-hand feedbackfrom the customers and otherpeople needing banking services.

With the plan, the bank willbe organising road shows in threecities across the country, namely:Abeokuta, Ilorin and Minna.Similar road shows have beenheld in Abuja, Lagos, Bauchi,Katsina and Port Harcourt.

This phase of the programme,which takes off today in Ilorin,Kwara state will provide anopportunity for the bank tofurther showcase its SavingsProducts which are attractingattention from small-scalebusiness men and women.

According to the bank’sspokesman, the rest of the roadshows will take place this month,July within an interval of threedays.

The bank is running a six-month promo on the its savingproducts such BETA for microentrepreneurs, Holy Trip forreligious obligations andUnityKids for school fees andother educational demands.

The bank recently held its1st national draw in Abuja,under the Savings promo knownas ‘Aim, Save & Win’, duringwhich 15 customers won differentprizes which included a Hyundaisaloon car.

In the previous zonal drawsheld in May this year, 160customers who saved under thePromo were rewarded withvarious prizes which included

Unity Bankinteracts withcustomers,holds roadshowsBy Abdulwahab Isa

Residents and indigenes ofOgbogoro community inObio/Akpor Local

Government in Rivers stateare calling on the PowerHolding Company of Nigeria(PHCN) to reconnect theirpower line that had been cut-off for months now, sayingthey are not indebted to thecompany.

However, the PHCN hassaid it would not reconnect thecommunity until it pays adebt of N9.5m they owe.

While speaking on the issue,the Community's ElectricityChairman, Engr. SirwarnNyekazi David disclosed thatthe community, as agreedwith the PHCN, has beenpaying N100, 000 monthly tothe company, but wassurprised when suddenly,they came and disconnectedtheir line thereby keepingthem in perpetual darkness.

According to him, "Havingstayed in darkness for months,I, as the electricity chairmanand our lawyer visited thePHCN office to lay complaintsthat we have not had access topower for months, " and thatwas when the company'sbusiness mangers served us anindebtedness letter that we oweN9, 580, 058.78", he said.

Community,PHCN disagreeoverN9.5milliondebtBy Muhammad Sada

Union Bank of Nigeria onTuesday posted a 2011pre-tax loss of N122

billion ($750 million), comparedwith a profit of N36.5 billion ayear ago, it said in a filing withthe stock exchange, giving noreason for the loss.

Gross earnings at the lenderfell 38 percent to N80.7 billion,it said, while net assets recoveredto 196 billion naira during theperiod, from a loss of N115.8billion last year.

A large chunk of the losses arelikely to be due to write downs ofbad debts left over from a 2008/9 banking crisis.

Shares of the bank shed 4.35percent to N3.72 on the news,almost the maximum 5 percentswing allowed, andunderperforming the broaderindex, which gained 0.55percent to hit 21,690 points.

Union Bank last year sold a60 percent stake in itself to agroup of institutional investorsled by African Capital Allianceprivate equity for $750 millionto help it recapitalise.

It was one of nine lenders thatthe central bank bailed out tothe tune of $4 billion in 2009,after it judged they weredangerously under-capitalised.(Reuters)

Union Bankposts N122bnloss in 2011

PAGE 24 PAGE 25PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Things that should disturb Nigeria’sMuslim community besides Boko Haram

For Nigerian Muslims, thisyear’s Ramadan, theone-month fasting period

by adherents of the Islamicfaith worldwide, will follow afamiliar path. As is thepractice, the Amir alMumineen (Commander of theFaithful) and Sultan of Sokoto,His Eminence MuhammadSa’ad Abubakar, who is also thePresident General of theSupreme Council of IslamicAffairs, based on verifiableinformation from across thecountry, will soon announcethe sighting of the new of themoon of Ramadan to signal thecommencement of the fast.

Expectedly, theannouncement will gounheeded by a significantminority. Some believe thatthose who will not heed theannual announcement choosethat path as their way ofprotesting the recognition ofthe Sultan of Sokoto as theleader of the Muslimcommunity. Disagreementsover the dates to commence theRamadan have, over theyears, been the underlyingmanifestation of a needlessacrimony among the NigerianMuslim community. Thefaçade of unity received aterrible jolt early last year.

In the thick of the 2011presidential electioncampaign, prominent Muslimcleric Sheikh Dahiru UsmanBauchi stirred the hornet’snest when he publicly declaredthat he would have no qualmscasting his ballot for aChristian in an election thatpited a Christian against amember of the Jama’atuIzalatul Bidi’a wa Ikamatus-Sunnah, JIBWIS. The red wasstill in the eyes of members ofthe Izala sect andapprehension grew amongmembers of the Christiancommunity when the clericrationalised his position.

His words: ‘Christians don’tinsult me, they don’t insult myreligious beliefs, they don’tinsult my respected religiousleaders. That, precisely, iswhat the Izala man does; hecalls himself a Muslim but hedoes not respect my beliefs. Heopenly insults me, he openlyinsults my respected religiousleaders. He takes pride in

openly referring to me as kafir.Why should I vote for someonewho calls himself a Muslim butwho publicly calls me kafir? AChristian does not call me akafir, at least, not in the open.”Few disputed his claim:Prophet Muhammad, in someof his sayings, spokevehemently against the use ofthe term kafir even for non-Muslims, especially Christians,who are recognised in the HolyQur’an as Ahlil Kitaab or‘People of the Book.’

At the heart of the disunityin the Muslim community isthe raging controversybetween members of the AhlilSunnah, the mainstreamMuslim group and Izala, on onehand, and these two rivalgroups and other groups on theother. Basically, all thecontending religious groupshave no fundamentaldifferences; where they differis how to attain these goals, asituation that occasionallylead bloodletting anddestruction of property.Strangely, non-Muslims havebeen often caught in thecrossfire of what shouldnormally be intra-religious

Islam is well known in Nigeria no thanks to the atrocitiescommitted by Boko Haram and other radical groups. Whatis less known, but remains a problem, is the intra-sectrivalries, writes Abdulrazaq Magaji.

confrontation. Anotherinteresting angle to thescenario is the commonknowledge that all the newgroups, some of them espousingmilitant views, sprouted fromthe mainstream Ahlil Sunnah.Except for some exceptions, allthe contending and constantlyfeuding groups basicallysubscribe to the five cardinalpillars of Islam arranged intheir order of simplicity: Iman(faith in God), Salat (five dailyprayers), Saum (fastingduring the month ofRamadan), Zakkat (almsgiving) and Hajj (pilgrimageto the Holy Land).

Noticeable exceptionssurround the acceptance ofProphet Muhammad as theseal of prophets and some newbut curious interpretationsregarding the five dailyprayers which some do notconsider mandatory. Take, forinstance, the Ahmadiyya. Tothe consternation of the Muslimcommunity, members of thegroup, which originated inPakistan, revered its founder,Ghulam Ahmad, to the extentof elevating him to the positionof a messiah and prophet. Since

the early 1970s, members ofthe Ahmadiyya sect havebeen contending with four outof the five cardinal pillars ofIslam on account of their beingbarred from embarking on theannual Hajj. That decision bythe Saudi authorities whippedmajority members of the sectworldwide into line as theywere forced to moderate theirviews. Though the Ahmadiyyasect still enjoys some visibilityin Nigeria, the immediatereaction of the majority of itsmembers, in the aftermath ofthe decision to bar members ofthe sect from performing theHajj, was to change the nameof the group to Anwar- al Islam.

Though disagreementwithin the Muslim communityhad been simmering, it wasbasically limited to differencesbetween the Tijjaniya andQuadriyya sects. But theTijjaniyya and Quadriyyasucceeded in managing theircrises largely because theybelonged to the mainstreamAhlil Sunnah. There is a widelyheld belief that it was thedifferences between theTijjaniyya and Quadriyyathat facilitated the emergence

of the Izala. Since it came onstage, the perception ofmembers of the Izala group ofother Muslims, basically theAhlil Sunnah, and which in therecent past was the source ofsome blood letting, is one bigcommunity of unbelieversbecause of innovationsallegedly introduced into thepractice of Islam. Two of theallegations levelled by the Izalaagainst the other groups are theannual celebration of MauludNabiyyi, or birthday ofProphet Muhammad and,regular songs of praise, zikr, inhonour of the prophet.

Aside Maulud and zikr, theIzala are remarkable forfrowning at namingceremonies, ostentatiouswedding ceremonies anddisplay of respect for eldersthrough prostrating beforethem. These, among others,are in the views of the Izala,mere innovations since theywere not practiced in the daysof the prophet. Many Muslimsstill find these developmentsquite disturbing and thoseversed in Islamic theology aretaken aback by the charges ofintroduction of ‘innovations’into Islam. For instance,pilgrimage to the Holy Land,at least once in the life time ofa Muslim is prescribed for thosewith the means. But thiscardinal principle is notpossible, at least in moderntimes, without ‘innovations’:air travel, acquisition of BasicTravel Allowance, BTA, andvaccinations are mandatoryfor intending pilgrims.Question is: are Muslims toforego this cardinal pillar ofIslam simply because theywere not in practice in the daysof Prophet Muhammad?Curiously, in their decades ofcampaigns to end ‘innovations’in Islam, members of the Izalasect have yet to revert to theuse of camels, end open airpreachings through outsidebroadcasting vans anddismantle loud speakersmounted on their mosques onaccount of the commonknowledge that ProphetMuhammad did not have to doany of these in his time.

Disunity within theMuslim community worsenedwith the emergence of the

Maitatsine, the Shia inclinedMuslim Brothers and sundrygroups.

The Maitatsine crisis whichbegan in Kano in the north westin 1980 before spreading toBulumkutu in the outskirt ofMaiduguri in the north eastand other parts of the north wasnot the first religious upheavalin the north; difference wasthat, with Maitatsine, thecountry, for the first timewitnessed a band of religiouszealots, armed to the hilt,squaring up to theoverwhelming military mightof the state. Outside their hazyclaims to Jihad, the Maitatsinesect waged their war inpredominantly Muslimcommunities which resulted inhigh casualty figures. Notunexpectedly, Maitatsineprovided a common platform forfeuding Muslim groups whounited in their condemnationof members of the Maitatsinegroup.

Since Maitatsine, it is safe tosay that Nigeria did not witnessany armed insurrection of notein the name of religion butthere were clear cases of radical,extremist groups that emergedto challenge the status quooften with dire consequences tohuman lives and property. It isimportant to state here that

just like Izala before it andsundry groups that emergedafter it, Maitatsine was theproduct of the disdain forwestern education on onehand and growing frustrationarising from the dwindlingsocio economic fortunes ofsome people in Muslimcommunities of the north.

The early 1980s alsoheralded the emergence of theMuslim Brothers on the stage.Though denied by its leaders,the Muslim Brothers drewinspiration from the 1979Islamic revolution in Iran,which knocked off the lateShah Mohammed RezaPahlavi from his peacockthrone and replaced him withImam Ayatullah RuhullahKhomeini. The MuslimBrothers are associated withWorld Shi’a Movement, aradical Muslim sect withmillions of adherents in theMuslim world though theyare swift in dismissing it. Itsleader, Sheikh Ibrahim ElZakzaky, was one of the firstset of students who abandonedtheir studies at the AhmaduBello University, Zaria, to joinan endless gravitation to Iranto receive the blessings ofImam Khomeini. Uponreturning to Nigeria, thegroup began to espouse

revolutionary ideas and neverhid their intention to ‘purify’Islam. Most of thedemonstrations on campuses oftertiary institutions andsecondary schools across thenorth between 1980 and 1982were allegedly instigated bythe young Muslimrevolutionaries under thedirection of Sheikh El Zakzaky.

That suspicion is rooted inthe early history of Islam. Justbefore the death of ProphetMuhammad, there emerged agroup among his followers whosaw his cousin, Ali, as the rightperson to occupy the post ofCaliph as there was to be noprophet after Muhammad. Butthe early Muslim communityhad an example on how tochoose its leaders; throughoutthe mission of Muhammad,which lasted for twenty threeyears. He laid emphasis moreon competence than issue ofkinship in appointments.Indeed, on his death bed,Prophet Muhammad appearedto have named his successor asleader of the community whenhe appointed Abubakar to leadthe Muslim faithful in prayer.On the death of ProphetMuhammad, therefore,Abubakar was the naturalsuccessor to the apparentconsternation and disaffectionof those who rooted for Ali.

The mainstream AhlulSunnah believes and recognisesthe diversity and peculiaritiesof Nigeria and promotes theidea of Muslims co habiting inpeace with non Muslim groupsas was the practice in the daysof Prophet Muhammad and asthe prophet enjoined hisfollowers to do.

Prominent clerics of themainstream Ahlul Sunnahregularly remind theirfollowers of God’s clear, directand specific injunction ontolerating and peacefully cohabiting with the Ahlul Kitaabor, People of the Book, God’sname for Christians in theGlorious Qur’an as contained inChapter 5 v 82 of the MuslimHoly Book: ‘You will find (timeand again) that the most hostileof all people to the Believers(i.e., Muslims) would be theJews and those who are idol-worshippers or pagans; andnearest among them in love tothe Believers would be thosewho say, ‘We are Christians’,because amongst these aremen devoted to learning andmen who have renounced theworld and, they are notarrogant”. This injunction andseveral others have so far beendiscarded by members of theJamaat al Ahlul Sunnah lid-Da’awati wa Jihad aka BokoHaram.

Another area of divergencebetween members of the BokoHaram and the mainstreamAhlul Sunnah revolves roundthe issue of vengeance. In Hisbid to regulate societies andrestrain individuals or groupsfrom taking laws into theirhands, God allows room forvengeance provided it is doneaccording to rules He has laiddown even though Headmonishes people to forgivethose who offend them.However, in seeking revenge,especially in the case of murder,the main condition laid downis for the murderer to be soughtand punished for his crime;none is permitted to visit thesins of a brother on any othermember of his family as Islamforbids visiting the crimes of afather on his son.

What this means is that aMuslim, say in Geidam, isforbidden to kill a non-Muslimresident in the community inthe name of avenging the deathof a Muslim brother in Warri.In the opinion of prominentMuslim clerics God laid downthese and many moreinjunctions as a warningagainst man’s insatiableappetite to sow the seeds ofdiscord ‘because He could havecreated all mankind to wearthe same skin, colour, speakone language and profess acommon religion.’

Unity! This is the word thatis giving the greatest concernto the Muslim community inNigeria today and whichattainment could help resolvethe current securitychallenges and wantondestruction of human lives andproperty. In trying to tell thestory of Islam in Nigeria as onenot characterised bymilitancy, violence and

intolerance, several panIslamic associations and interfaith organisations havesprouted to project Islam in itstrue and undiluted picture- areligion of peace- by constantlypreaching peace, concord andtolerance. Two of such earlyMuslim groups were theJama’atu Nasril Islam, JNI,and the Nigeria SupremeCouncil for Islamic Affairs,NSCIA. Since it was createdfifty years ago, the JNI, whichhas the Sultan of Sokoto as itspresident general, has beenworking in collaboration withtraditional rulers to propagateIslam, preach peacefulexistence and promote interand intra faithunderstanding. But even in itsearly years and, with politicsand religion constantlyclashing, the JNI did not enjoythe support of all memberswhose interest it was set up toprotect. The death of the FirstRepublic and the coming of themilitary did not bring muchrespite as some groups, moreas a result of the carryover ofthe ill feelings of the politicsera, continued to attack the JNIfor hobnobbing withtraditional rulers.

As things stand, the issuenow transcends intra Muslimrivalry as many Nigerians donot appear to see an immediateend to the divergent viewswithin the Muslimcommunity. For instance, therole played by politicians infunding private militias andgrowing poverty especially innorthern Nigeria have beencited as some of the factorsresponsible for growingmilitant posturings in thename of religion. If Nigerianswere shocked by the 1980Maitatsine uprising and, today

feel even more threatened inprevailing peace time,northern leaders and, byextension, leaders on thenational scene learnt nothingfrom those past events.

As was the case with theMaitatsine sect, the militarywill ultimately bring its mightto bear and will eventuallysucceed in dislodging the BokoHaram, kill or arrest its entireleadership and disperse what

remains of its followership.Chillingly, many innocentlives will be lost in the cross fire.Then, as was the case 31 yearsago, it will be time forbackslapping and bear hugs.Big money will be appropriatedto organise victory paradesacross the land and, as to beexpected, there will be long,boring and empty speeches tocelebrate the end of anightmare and the return tolife on the fast lane. In theeuphoria of the victory, nobodywill see the need to redresswrongheaded social andeconomic policies that gave riseto Boko Haram. Going by thestiff neck introduction of belt-tightening measures this yearagainst the backdrop of casesof mindless treasury lootingthat go unpunished,government so far has failed todisplay enough commitmentto redressing the conditionsthat continue to attractfrustrated youth to espouseextremist and often divisiveviews.

Abdulrazaq Magaji,journalist and writer andformer history lecturer, isbased in Abuja, Nigeria andcould be reached atmagaji777@yahoo.com

(Pambazuka News)

Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III

Late Boko Haram leader, Mohammed YusufSheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 28

EMERGENCY UPDATE

NEMA urged to establishoperational office in Ilorin

Owerri market, during theemergency evacuationssensitization programme for thetraders of the market.

He also called on the traderswhose shops are constructed atstreet corners and on top ofgutters to remove them beforehis men commences work in thearea.

Bandele hinted that the

training has become necessaryconsidering the sharp increase inthe number of bomb Scars, fireoutbreaks, Boko Haram attacksand other men-induceddisasters.

He therefore urged them toseize the opportunity toendeavour to familiarizethemselves with theirworkplace’s emergency

..Enlightens Imo traders on emergency mgtVictims of flood in Bichi local government area of Kano state receiving relief materials from Engr Abubakar Jibrin of SERERA andYushau Shuaib of NEMA.

Agency (SEMA), had not leftany stone unturned in disastermanagement and appealed toNEMA to site one of itsoperational offices in the stateto enhance the discharge of itsduties within the area.

Alhaji Abdullahi made theremarks at official distributionof relief materials by NEMA toabout 300 victims of recentrainstorm disasters in Baruten,Asa, Ilorin West, Ilorin East andMoro Local GovernmentCouncils of Kwara State. Thematerials are meant to cushionthe effects of the rainstorms onthe victims.

Also speaking at the occasion,NEMA Director-General, AlhajiMohammed Sanni-Sidi, saidthere was need for the people toembrace disaster reductionstrategies such as clearing of

drainage and avoidingdumping refuse in rivers andgutters.

Some of the relief materialsdistributed to the victimsincluded bundles of roofingsheets, bags of cement, packetsand bags of roofing nails,blankets, planks and plasticbuckets.

He said the items suppliedwould complement materials tobe distributed to the victims bythe state government.

He also charged thebeneficiaries to utilise thematerials supplied to them, andprayed that they would neverexperience such a disaster intheir lives again.

Responding on behalf of thebeneficiaries, Alhaji DaudaHamzat, commended theagency and the state

government for the support,saying “widows and the agedare among those affected by thedisaster. He said the materialswould go a long way to alleviatetheir plight.”

In his remarks, Chairman,Senate Committee onEnvironment and Ecology,Senator Bukola Saraki, advisedthat to mitigate the disastrousconsequences of flood and otherenvironmental hazards, theremust be regulation againstthrowing refuse into the drainsto prevent blockage that couldlead to flooding and itsattendant destruction of livesand property.

Saraki in a statement notedthat the recent floods in someparts of the country likeNasarawa, Oyo, Ogun andLagos States, could be checked

if people shun any act thatcould hinder the free flow ofdrainage.

Saraki advised residents ofthe affected areas to exercisecaution and work with theappropriate authorities tomanage and prevent furtherdestruction of lives and property.

While expressing sympathyfor the affected people of theflooding in different parts of thecountry, he urged them tosupport government at all levelin cleaning their drainage toavoid further damage.

He also called ongovernment agencies in chargeof sanitation to continue toorganise sensitizationprogrammes for the people onthe need to keep their drainageand environment free of refusethat could block the drains.

The National EmergencyManagement Agency(NEMA) has commended

the government of Akwa IbomState over its preparedness foremergency situations.

The South-South ZonalCoordinator of NEMA, EmenikeUmesi, who gave thecommendation shortly after anevacuation drill exercise forpublic civil servants, said theDirector General NEMA,Mohammad Sani Sidi, wasparticularly impressed with thegovernor’s ability to mainstreamdisaster risk reduction into thedevelopment policies of the state.

Meanwhile, the agency hasmandated its North-East zonaloffice to reach out to distressedcalls from people irrespective ofreligious, ethnic or politicalaffiliations in their presentplaces of residence.

According to NEMA, theFederal Government and otherhumanitarian bodies werereaching out to all the distressedpeople in the communities inorder to ameliorate thesituation, and to make thespiritual obligation of the 30-day Ramadan fasting easier forthe Islamic adherents.

...scoresAkwa Ibomhigh onemergencypreparedness

evacuation plans.In her remarks, the event,

the Executive Secretary of ImoState Emergency managementAgency (SEMA) UcheEzeonyeasi reminded the tradersthat the programme has beenpackaged to prepare them for theeffective handling of disastersituations in both their homesand office.

As part of its effort towardstimely response todisasters and capacity

building, the Kwara StateGovernment has urged theNational EmergencyManagement Agency (NEMA)to establish operational office inIlorin, its state capital.

Special Assistant to KwaraState governor on Emergencyand Relief Services, Alhaji MusaAbdullahi, who made the appealwhile commending the agencyfor its prompt response toenvironmental disaster in thestate, said this was necessarydue to its strategic locations,saying it is close to the Northand its international airportand International AviationCollege.

The governor’s aide, in astatement issued by theAgency’s head of press andpublic relations Yushau A.Shuaib, said the StateEmergency Management

The South-East Zonalcoordinator of NationalEmergency management

Agency (NEMA) Dr. OnimodeBandele has called on traders atthe Ekeukwu Owerri mainmarket to be vigilant at all timeswhile carrying out their dailybusiness.

Bandele made the call atAmarachi Square in Ekeukwu,

Governor Godsill Akpabio

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 29

EMERGENCY UPDATE

Averting SwineFlu in Nigeria

YOUTHS FORYOUTHS FORYOUTHS FORYOUTHS FORYOUTHS FORPUBLIC SAFETYPUBLIC SAFETYPUBLIC SAFETYPUBLIC SAFETYPUBLIC SAFETY

By Abubakar Jimohabujimoh01@yahoo.com

A recent study announcedcontrary to the WorldHealth Organization

(WHO) earlier statistics on swineflu, that the virus, H1N1, mayhave killed 15 times the numberof people counted by the WHO,saying the H1N1 pandemic hadstricken mostly young people,many living in Africa and South-east Asia.

Swine flu is a respiratorydisease caused by influenza virusthat infect the respiratory tractof pigs, resulting in nasalsecretions, a barking cough,decreased appetite, and listlessbehavior. It was first isolatedfrom pigs in 1930 in the UnitedStates, recognized by porkproducers and veterinarians tocause infections in pigsworldwide. Those affected by theinfection were said to be in closecontact with pigs and other porkproducts.

In the analysis of the UnitedStates Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention (US-CDCP), in humans thesymptoms of the 2009 “swineflu” H1N1 virus are similar tothose of influenza and ofinfluenza-like illness in general;and these include fever, cough,sore throat, stuffy nose, bodyaches, headache, chills, fatiguediarrhea and vomiting.

Over the years, the virus hasled to the death of millions ofpeople in the world. Forinstance, the WHO has counted18, 500 swine flu deaths thathad been confirmed bylaboratory tests in the year2009.

However, the US-CDCP in itsnew findings confirmed that thevirus has probably killedbetween 105, 700 and 400,000people around the world in itsfirst year alone, and additional46,000 to 179,000 people arelikely to suffer fromcardiovascular complications ofthe virus.

Similarly, the FederalMinistry of Health hasconfirmed that the first case ofthe dreaded Swine Flu (H1N1)was recorded in Nigeria inNovember, 2009.

Following this development,the National EmergencyManagement Agency (NEMA)in collaboration with theFederal Ministry of Health andthe WHO has offered severalpreventive measures againstSwine Flu in the country.

They advise that,individuals should avoid andkeep-off from those alreadycarrying the virus because thedisease is contagious in nature.

Frequent washing of hand is

one of the effective means ofpreventing the infection as wellas curtail the spread of swine fluH1N1. Therefore, it is importantfor individuals to thoroughlywash their hands to prevent thespread of infection. Also,washing hands before and afterusing a public rest room isimportant to prevent the spreadof the infection.

Besides, personal hygienepractices are often encouraged.These include covering of one’snose and mouth with a tissuewhen coughing or sneezing andproper disposal of such in thetrash bin after using it.

Recent reports have alsoshown that the virus spread fastin swine farms, where farmersare in close contact with livepigs; and not wearing gloveswhen working with sick animals,thereby increasing thelikelihood of subsequent hand-to-eye, hand-to-nose or hand-to-mouth transmission.

In this case, farmers andveterinarians are advised to useface masks when dealing withinfected animals. In addition,the use of vaccines on swine byboth farmers and medicalpersonnel to prevent theirinfection is a major method oflimiting swine-to-humantransmission. Medicalpersonnel are encouraged to usehand gloves and other bodyprotections when treatingswine flu infected patients.

The use of standardcommercial swine flu vaccineshas been found to be effective incontrol of the infection when thevirus strains match enough tohave significant cross-protection, while customvaccines made from the specificviruses isolated can be used inthe more difficult cases.

Present vaccinationstrategies for Swine InfectedVirus control and prevention inswine farms typically includethe use of one of several bivalentSIV vaccines commerciallyavailable. Besides, CDC hasrecommended a yearly fluvaccination as the first and mostimportant step in protectingagainst the flu.

A study by CDC hasconfirmed that those at highrisk of serious flu complicationsinclude young children,pregnant women, and peopleliving with chronic healthconditions like asthma, diabetesor heart and lung disease andpeople 65 years and older.Vaccination for the health careworkers, it noted, is importantso as to curtail the risk ofspreading the flu to others.

Pictures of the recent NEMA/UN validation workshop on emergencypreparedness and response (EPR) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) capacityAssessment mission in Nigeria

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012PAGE 26

Inter-Ministerial Committeeon Lead Poisoning has agreedto visit Zamfara State as part

of its effort to review the progressso far made in ameliorating theeffects of lead poisoning in the stateas well as strategize on how to faceemerging challenges posed by theincidence.

The Committee, according apress statement issued by DeputyDirector (Press) of the Minister ofMines and Steel Development,Marshall H. Gundu, is also to takestock of the situation on ground andre-emphasize the need for allstakeholders, including the StateGovernment, the Chairmen ofLocal Government Areas, and theTraditional Rulers to key into theeffort.

“The idea is to check illegalmining and inappropriate methodsof mineral processing in the Stateas well as support the FederalGovernment and other Agenciestowards bringing a lasting solutionto the menace,” it said.

“The meeting accepted thereport of the Technical Sub-Committee on Lead Poisoning inZamfara State and will forwardsame to the Presidency withappropriate recommendations forurgent attention and speedyimplementation,” the statementadded.

Lead Poisoning:Inter-ministerialcommittee tovisit Zamfara

FG applauded on fightagainst desertificationBy Mohammed Kandi

By Mohammed Kandi

Communities in Obot AkaraLocal Government Area ofAkwa Ibom on Tuesday

witnessed a rainstorm thatwreaked havoc on homes andpublic utilities in the area.

The disaster, which pulleddown electricity poles, economictrees and roofs of homes and schoolbuildings, affected mostcommunities in Ward 2 of Nto Etonand Ikot Abia.

Narrating the ordeal of thevillagers, a community leader,Chief Aniekan Ekanem, told theNews Agency of Nigeria (NAN)that the electricity poles destroyedwere installed through communalefforts.

“We raised funds for threeyears through harvesting of palmfruits to buy the electricity polesand cables for the communities.

“The communities are madeup of subsistence farmers and ourincome base is very small,”Ekanem added.

He said that the only primaryschool in the area built 60 yearsago had been devastated by therainstorm.

“We really need assistancefrom government and public-spirited organisations to surmountthis challenge,” Ekanem said.

Ekanem also called on the StateGovernment to consider theconstruction of Nto Ideh Bridge andthe major road, linking his villagewith Nto Edino and Ukana Uwavillages. (NAN)

Rainstormwreaks havocin A/Ibomcommunities

The Federal Governmenthas been commended forits efforts to combat

desertification in most northernstates of the country.

Addressing journalists inAbuja, Executive Director, StandNigeria Initiative, anongovernmental organization

Mr. Dike James Chigbue said afteran assessment of the inter-regionalcampaign put together to fightdesertification, the federalgovernment deserved thumbs upfor its efforts.

He said, “We must commendPresident Goodluck Jonathan, MrsHadiza Ibrahim Mailafia, Ministerof Environment and otherstakeholders in the environmentsector as their fight againstdesertification has been innovativeand purposeful.”

“It will be recalled that to

combat desertification, the FederalMinistry of the Environment hasestablished a Great Green WallSahara Project whose purpose is toplant large acreages of trees andother vegetation to serve as abulkwark against the advance ofthe desert,” Chigbue stated.

“Under this programme, over6,720,000 seedlings have beendistributed to the seven frontlinestates of Adamawa, Bauchi,Jigawa, Yobe, Kebbi, Katsina,Kano, Yobe, Sokoto and BornoState with the aim that this will

create a green shelter belt,” heexplained.

Chibue, who further urged thestate governments to corporatewith the ministry to ensure thatdesert encroachment was properlyaddressed, noted that the “effortsof the Federal Ministry ofEnvironment’s effort remains themost appreciable in considerationto what other regionalgovernments have done and itshould be sustained because ifconcluded this will promotebusiness and tourism.”Floods kill 77

in India’sAssam stateAt least 77 people have

been killed and nearlytwo million affected by

heavy monsoon rains that causedfloods in India’s NortheasternAssam state.

The mighty BrahmaputraRiver and many of its tributarieshave breached their banks afterdownpours, washing awaythousands of homes mostly madeof bamboo and straw, as well asroads, bridges and power lines.

Authorities have givenshelter, food and medicines tothousands of homeless people, anddeployed mobile medical teams toprevent the outbreak of disease.

“People of Assam are facing oneof the worst floods in recent times,”Prime Minister Manmohan Singhtold reporters in Guwahati,Assam’s main city, after flyingover the areas affected by theflooding.

Floods have hit Assam a statefamous for its hilly tea-growingareas at the same time that muchof India has suffered weaker-than-average monsoon rains that arecrucial to its hundreds of millionsof farmers.

Hundreds of soldiers and rescueworkers from the federal NationalDisaster Response Force have beendeployed for rescue and reliefefforts, while military helicoptershave airlifted people and droppedfood.

“Once we complete rescue andrelief operations our focus will shiftto restoration of damaged causedby floods,” Singh said.

Rain has stopped, but manyrivers remain dangerously high.Much of the Kaziranga NationalPark, known for its one-hornedrhinos, was under water, forcingthe animals to move to higherground.

Poachers have already killedone rhino that had strayed fromthe park and took away its horn,foresters said.

Singh announced 100,000rupees ($1,800) compensation toeach of the families whosemembers died in the floods.

“Until today 77 people havedied. We are passing through achallenging time,” Nilamoni Sen.Deka, Assam’s agricultureminister and official spokesmansaid. (Reuters/NAN)

Dredging, land reclamationresponsible for flooding —NISVThe Nigerian Institution of

Surveyors has said thatincrease in human activities,

such as land reclamation anddredging, had resulted in reductionof water storing capacity, thusleading to flooding.

The President, NIS, BodeAdeaga, who stated this at the47th Annual General Meeting ofNIESVI, said such humanencroachments had aggravatedflooding within the coastal zonesof the country, with theconsequent reduction in availablefarmland.

He also said that poor drainagesystem had contributed to therecurrence of flooding in manyparts of the country.

The NIS boss said there was theneed for NEMA and otheremergency management andresponse agencies to initiate or get

engaged in the advocacy ofstrategies that would preventrecurrence of disasters.

According to him, the allegedlate response of fire service andother agencies charged with thesearch and rescue operationsresulting in avoidable losses oflives and property is attributableto unavailability of utility andthematic maps.

Adeaga said there should becomprehensive mapping of thecoastal areas of the country beforeany major development in orderto prevent avoidable negativeimpacts.

He added that there should bemodern geospatial techniques formonitoring of erosion sites todevelop early warning systemnecessary to mitigate the loss oflives and property.

He added that the National

Assembly should, as a matter ofurgency, pass the NationalGeospatial Data InfrastructureBill, which had been pendingbefore it.

Adeaga advocated a synergybetween surveyors, NEMA andother governmental agenciesinvolved in disaster managementto provide solutions to thenumerous problems encounteredin disaster management inNigeria.

“There should becomprehensive tidal studies alongcoastal regions to develop earlywarning systems for surges and forconstruction of coastal defenses.There should also be a collection andstorage of comprehensivegeospatial data necessary forregulating sand mining activitieswithin minimum environmentaldegradation,” he stressed.

A man rides a motorcycle through a flooded road after heavy rains in Ikoyi district in Nigeria'scommercial city Lagos

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 27

Was Rio Earth Summitanother jamboree?

ENVIRENVIRENVIRENVIRENVIRONMENTONMENTONMENTONMENTONMENTWWWWWAAAAATTTTTCHCHCHCHCH

By Ambrose InusaSule, mnes

globenviron@yahoo.com0703-441-4410 (sms only)Penultimate week, thousands

of government delegatesfrom over 130 countries,

activists, academics, businessexecutives and journalists,including Nigeria high-powerdelegation led by PresidentGoodluck Ebele Jonathan,gathered in Rio de Janeiro Brazilfor the United Nations Conferenceon Sustainable Development,better known as Rio+20.

While there was a widespreaddisappointment among activiststhat scores of leaders including theUK’s David Cameron, Germany’sAngela Merkel and US PresidentBarack Obama chose to stayaway, our President led over 116delegates to the conference.

Mr. President was generouslylambasted by not a few Nigerians,to having embarked on thejourney to Rio when his house wason fire. But he was quick torespond that what Nigeria standsto benefit with its participation,with him physically at theconference was worth it.

Another issue was thatNigeria had the largest numberof delegates at the conference thatwould have cost tax payersmillions of naira, when thenation’s economy is in thedoldrums. That governmentshould have endeavored towhittle down the number ofdelegates to save cost is anunderstatement.

The conference has come andgone, but Environment Watchersin their wisdom believe that theinsidious global issues of poverty,energy, clean and safe water, foodsecurity and disasterspreparedness, were notadequately addressed asexpected? But political leadersdisagree saying that theconference was timely.

To the UN Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon, Rio+20 was a“ o n c e - i n - a - g e n e r a t i o nopportunity to make real progresstowards the sustainable economyof the future”. Other descriptionsby observers range from a“milestone opportunity” to cutpoverty and protect the economy,an agenda laden with “greenwash” and a “farce”.

The summit was widely seenas a crucial opportunity for leadersto have put the global economyon a more sustainable footing, ifthe issues involved wereadequately addressed.

At the end of the conference,the agreement - titled The FutureWe Want – according to reportswas riddled with ‘deletions,’many instigated by the US, andmany by the G77/China bloc ofdeveloping nations. Russia,Japan, the EU and other partiesalso objected to key clauses.

The agreement has beencriticized in some quarters asbeing too lenient on businesses,especially major banks andcommodity corporations whichwere expected, as the world bigplayers have vowed not tocountenance anything that

would jeopardize theirdevelopment.

It has come to pass that the RioEarth Summit was not going to

(MDGs).There was also a lack of

agreement on whether the SDGsshould commit rich countries to

reforming how the UN deals withsustainable development, whichwould involve somehow,modifying the existingCommission on SustainableDevelopment.”

And there weredisagreements on the notion ofsustainable development goals(SDGs).

The idea is for governments toagree in Rio on a process to drawup seven or eight goals that wouldimprove things such as access tofood and water while protectingthe environment. These wouldcome into effect in 2015 whenmost of the existing MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs)expire.

The problem is that there isalready a process up and runningto agree further MDGs.Development agencies are deeplyconcerned that the core agenda ofimproving health and education,alleviating poverty andincreasing access to water andsanitation may suffer as a resultof having the SDGs as well.

And what of the rich? Does itmake any sense to commit toincreasing people’s wealth andtherefore consumption in poorsocieties without simultaneouslyworking out how to curb over-consumption in countries thatalready have enough to go round,given that, what we collectivelyconsume has to come from thesame single planet?

bring about “The Future WeWant,” it ended up to provide astark and distressing reminder ofthe present we have, consideringa world in which public health,human rights and sustainabledevelopment are subordinate toprivate profit, shallow nationalinterest and ‘business as usual’.

Some Western nations,especially the US from thebeginning were unwilling to giveground on anything that wouldhelp rival up-and-comingeconomic powers, in particularChina, as they were reluctant tocountenance any language thatcould put a brake on theirdevelopment.

The issue why the summit didnot achieve much was because itcame in a difficult political period,with the US presidential electiondue later this year, animpending change of Chineseleadership, and many nationsstruggling under variousfinancial issues.

There was also the reportedrow over the proposed sustainabledevelopment goals (SDGs), whichwas seek to relieve poverty andimprove health, education andjobs in developing countries, butalong environmentally andsocially sustainable lines.

Some aid agencies saw this asa watering down of the keycommitment to helping people outof poverty, contained in theMillennium Development Goals

curbing their consumption ofnatural resources, in order to leavemore for the poor.

The key issues that were thefocus at the summit were on thespecific contents of the theme inline with this year’s WorldEnvironment Day, “GreenEconomy: Does it include you”.These include green economy incontext of sustainabledevelopment, povertyeradication, decent jobs creation,clean energy, water, ocean, foodsecurity, agriculture andpreparedness for disasters.

Not a few Environmentwatchers accused Nigeria forgoing to Rio without any publicpositions agreed to by all thestakeholders. It was expected thatgovernment should have workedclosely with stakeholders todevelop national positions, withthe tradition of consultations anddeveloping clear positions forRio+20.

Nigeria was also expected tohave canvassed for a position thatwould take care of her interestwhen negotiating deals at theconference, particularly on theissue of clean and safe water,energy, green housing, povertyeradication, and green economyfor sustainable development.

But the Minister ofEnvironment Hajiya HadizaMailafya said otherwise, sayingthat government consulted withall stakeholders in the

environment sector before thesummit. She said our primaryfocus at the summit was on howto harness alternative energysources to boost power supply inthe country, saying that the effortwas in line with green economymodel for achieving sustainabledevelopment.

She listed the seven priorityareas which Nigeria negotiated atthe summit as greendevelopment, energy, cityplanning and development, foodsecurity, clean and safe water,disaster management and jobcreation.

The key areas, she said, wereselected through an articulatedframework with inputs fromvarious stakeholders.

Though, Nigeria was reportedto have made some spirited effortshaving had series of bilateral talksto facilitate broad consultationstowards a positive outcome for thenegotiations along with otherAfrican countries in the spirit ofone continent.

The issue of a set of targets onvarious aspects of sustainabledevelopment, Rio+20 decidedthat governments should agreeand adopt SDGs by 2015, such asgreen jobs, curbing over-consumption, looking after oceanlife and food security.

Observers said there was “analmightily convoluted section ofthe text with more brackets thana home-made bookcase on

Participants at the Rio Earth Summit recently in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

PAGE 30 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

When we thus look at theso-called solutionsoffered by the senate

President they tend to only furtherconfirm that the government isthe major source of the problemsof the country, rather than servingas the agency for solving them.There is clearly a need forgovernment to base its actions onsound, and studied, policies whichthe executive should be-seen toexecute in line only with theconstitution of the country, and onthe basis of its laws.

Disrespect for the constitutionas well as the rule of law, in thename of political expediency, is amilitary carry- over which thenation can well do without.Democracy cannot be built by wayof negating the constitution andthe rule of law. Only impunitycould be promoted in this manner.

ConclusionClearly the perspective of the

senate President is based on anethno-religious stereotype whichhardly appreciates themultidimensional, complex,pluralistic and intricate nature ofthe problem. Such a problemcannot be solely addressedthrough the use of force or thesubversion of the constitution,and the promotion of afundamental disregard for the ruleof law but, rather, through respectfor the latter as well as atransparent and democraticinclination to dialogue on thebasis of the national interest. Itmakes no sense to say that theleaders of the movement are 'notknown' or 'have to come out' whennot only has the government beenin touch, and dialogue with thembefore, but it has also beeninvestigating same for close to adecade. It is important toemphasise that there can be noprogress on dialogue where thereis no common sincerity ofpurpose. Dialogue cannot alsomean a ploy for the continuationof war. The essence of dialoguemust be founded on acommitment to the well-being ofthe generality of the populationwho are not only innocent but alsovictims of the violent conflict. Itmust also be based on afundamental commitment to, andpreference for, the peacefulresolution of conflicts to theperpetuation of violent anddestructive activities, where thiscould be avoided. Whatever thecontributions of other peoplemight be, including that of thenorthern elders, the ultimateresponsibility for the solution ofthis problem lies with thegovernment.

Similarly the responsibility forensuring the peaceful,unified, democratic and

integrated development, of bothNigeria and Africa, depend mostprofoundly on the governmentrather than anybody else.Responsibility comes along withburdens which cannot so easily be

disclaimed, and abandoned, infavour only of the benefits - lawfulas well as unlawful.

The senate President alsoraised the question of thefact that many people see

the absence of national values asan important cause of Nigeria'scrises and, without anyconvincing argument, dismissed it

as the simple responsibility of theNational Orientation Agency(NOA). The task of articulating,promoting and defendingNigeria's national values is morethan a simple assignment forNOA. It is the combined andcumulative responsibility of theleaders of Nigeria in terms of thevision, honour, conduct andcommitment they bring to the

achievement, and defense, ofNigeria's national goals. Howeverthese national values cannot beeffectively articulated orpromoted by way of undermining,or perverting, religious principleswhich stand for fear of Godexpressed through social morality,humanism and piety to serve theirvery opposite purposes towardssanctioning and promotingcorruption, murder, arson,robbery and plunder. Suchperversion has taken on thepattern of promoting fakereligious conflicts in order tosubvert and corrupt the veryprinciples of religious doctrines,morality and practices. Only sucha perverted point of view,occasioned by rampant public andofficial corruption, could condoneand even defend extortion,murder, arson, robbery, plunderand even cannibalism on accountof one religious affiliation oranother. Nigeria's national valuescan only be truly defined andpromoted on the basis of Nigeria'ssovereignty, genuine religiousmorality, human rights,democratic principles,constitutionalism and the rule oflaw. It is high time that the senatePresident realises that his majorresponsibility is one of ensuringgood, rather than corrupt andcorruptive, leadership in Nigeria.Nigeria's leaders should learn toown up to their failures, and makeamends, or give way to betterpeople who can help towards theachievement of our nationalobjectives.

Nigeria has suffered fromsomething far worse thanmerely bad governance. It

Nigeria’s problem: Where SenatePresident David Mark went wrong (III)By Dr. Sule Bello

Victim of bomb blast at the Shallom Church of God, Kaduna, being helped into an ambulance, recently in Kaduna. Photo:NAN

has suffered from ill-governancewhich is defined by a willful, andpremeditated, design to control,plunder and subvert it as anindependent and capable nationby its local, as well as foreign,rulers whose combined, commonand private interests is to enrichthemselves at the expense of thenation, and the well-being of itscitizens.

Ill-governance cannot lead tonational cohesion. It can onlygenerate, as well as also

sanction, various separatisttendencies which it can thushardly manage or contain.Nigeria's leaders need to stopplaying the ostrich and lookaround them in order to assesswhat their corruption andassociated maladministration isdoing to the country. They alsoneed to raise their heads and lookat what is happening to Africa, asa whole, resulting from ill-governance occasioned by ineptleadership such as that in Nigeria.

The whole question of whetheror not Nigeria will break up isonly, in itself, a reflection of thefailed status of the presentleadership. Those responsibleshould therefore own up, and faceup, to the challenges - or resignhonourably.

concluded

Dr. Sule Bello

Works with an NGO, AfricanResearch and DevelopmentAgency (ARADA) based inKano and also lectures at theDept. of History, A.B.U,Samaru, Zaria.Mohammed Yusuf, late leader of Boko Haram

PAGE 31PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Last week, the Obamaa d m i n i s t r a t i o nsubmitted a Motion for

Summary Judgment inresponse to a lawsuit filed bythe New York Times and theAmerican Civil Liberties Union(ACLU) that demandedgovernment agencies releasedocuments on its allegedprogramme of targetedkillings.

As early as June 2011, theTimes and the ACLU had filedFreedom of Information Act(FOIA) requests that thegovernment blocked in thename of national security. Inits brief, the governmentargues for the continuation ofcomplete secrecy surroundingits reported assassinationprogramme. In fact, thegovernment goes further,claiming that whether theprogramme even exists is"classified" information.

In light of last month'sTimes exposé that drew anintimate - and fawning -portrait of the inner chambersof the US president'scounterterrorism programmeand his process of drawing upthe "kill list", it is baffling that,in court, the administrationargues that the programmemay not actually exist.

But it appears that thepresident of the United Stateswill attempt the impossible: tohave his cake and eat it too.He will appear like a tough-talking cowboy to the public,and then hide behind "nationalsecurity needs" to dodgeresponsibility for his policiesthat decimate villages anddestroy thousands of lives.

In case readers arewondering, the contradictionaround US involvement doesindeed apply to the killing ofAnwar al-Awlaki in Yemen bya drone attack on September30, 2011.

In the words of the briefitself: "Whether or not theUnited States governmentconducted the particularoperations that led to thedeaths of Aulaki [sic] and theother individuals named in theFOI requests, and whether ornot the CIA has the authorityto be, or is in fact, directlyinvolved in targeted lethaloperations remains classified."

The governmentmaintains its innocence,despite the fact that, upon theannouncement of Awlaki'sdeath, Obama publicallystated:

"The death of Awlaki marksanother significant milestonein the broader effort to defeatal-Qaeda and its affiliates.Furthermore this success is atribute to our intelligence

community … We will bedeliberate, we will berelentless, we will be resolutein our commitment to destroyterrorist networks that aim tokill Americans and to build aworld in which peopleeverywhere can live in greaterpeace, prosperity andsecurity."

Yet the brief claims thatthis statement - and any othergovernment statement madethus far - does not confirm ordeny that the US was involvedin a lethal operation againstAwlaki. In fact, the only lethaloperation in which thegovernment is willing to admitinvolvement is theassassination of Osama binLaden, about which the briefstates there are no writtenlegal opinions.

Nathan Wessler, a NationalSecurity Fellow with the ACLUand actively involved in thesuit, explained to me that thegovernment has had to go toextraordinary lengths to arguethat statements made in thepast by Attorney General EricHolder, Assistant to thePresident for HomelandSecurity andCounterterrorism JohnBrennan, and even PresidentObama himself were not in factconfirmations of the existenceof a US policy of targetedkillings.

"The government is

asserting the existence of theprogramme is a secret. If it's asecret, it is - hands down - theworst-kept secret."

"They're giving thestrangest possible readings ofevery one of these statements.They're separating out eachstatement on its own andapplying what can only bedescribed as the least plausibleinterpretation to eachstatement," Wessler said.

US drone attacks in Yemenbegan in 2002 under the Bushadministration, but have beendramatically expanded andaccelerated under the Obamaadministration.

The Bureau ofInvestigative Journalism andthe New AmericanFoundation maintain tallies ofUS drone attacks on Yemen,Pakistan and Somalia, wherethe total number killed rangesfrom 2,000 to more than3,000. While the vastmajority of those killed arelabelled "militants", we nowknow how utterly meaninglessthat descriptor really is: if youare a military-aged maleliving in the targeted area,you are automaticallycategorised as a "militant".

Reports of the drone attacksand killings of "militants" aswell as elderly men, women,and children have been widelydisseminated andincreasingly discussed in

ANALYSIS

Obama’s worst-kept secret

mainstream news outlets.More to the point, on April

30, 2012, Brennan - who inthe Times article is describedas a "priest … suddenlycharged with leading a war" -gave a lengthy speech in whichhe described targeted strikesas legal, ethical, necessary,humane and wise.

However, the governmentclaims this speech only admits"a general US governmentinterest" in the legal basis fortargeting a US citizen withlethal force. Thus thegovernment refuses toofficially acknowledge theexistence of the programme inorder to avoid divulging itsrecords on it, and therebyadmit accountability.

"The only conclusion todraw is that they are tryingto avoid accountability in anyofficial channel. They arehappy to speak to press totrumpet their successes, orrally public support. But theyhave calculated a way to avoidany determination by a courtthat would try to hold themaccountable," Wessler said.

The government's legalposition summons the GlomarDoctrine, which allowsgovernment agencies toremain mum in response toFOIA requests. Abusing theGlomar doctrine appears to bea recent trend: the NationalSecurity Archive reported

that since 9/11, thegovernment has invokedGlomar three times as often asit did in the 25 precedingyears.

"Certainly there arecircumstances wheredocuments should not bediscussed. But this case isdifferent. The government isasserting the existence of theprogramme is a secret. If it's asecret, it is - hands down - theworst-kept secret," saidWessler.

The dissonance between thepolitical rhetoric of Obama's"War on Terror" and theadministration's official policyas revealed by this motion cutsto the heart of why the FOIA isessential to a functioningdemocracy. The FOIA wasenacted during the 1960s as ameans to, in the words of theACLU, "curb selectivedisclosures, half-truths andadmitted distortions". Withoutthe benefit of FOIA, the publicis unable to scrutinise thegovernment's policies, letalone hold it accountable.

"It is very clear that thegovernment is trying toconceal the whole picture,"Wessler said.

Commentators from acrossthe political spectrum - fromJohn Pilger to John McCain -have accused the Obamaadministration of cherry-picking the information itwishes to be disclosed as ameans to a political end: afterall, this is election year. Andever since Obama came intooffice, his adversaries havemaligned him as "soft on terror"- a reputation he seems bent onshaking.

Indeed, the Times articlepaints the president aspossessing a hard-nosedcharacter; one who feels thethreat of al-Qaeda "in his gut",wrestles with "moral and legalconundrums", and "pores overterrorists' biographies".

But there is another politicalend this and other similararticles achieve: they generatea veneer of transparency,suggesting that through theseselective press meetings theWhite House is volunteeringsufficient insights into its trulyradical policy of drone warfare.In reality, the White House hasslammed the shutters closed toany independent investigationinto its policies and placed anopaque shield around its doings.With such depth of secrecy, aswell as the manipulation anddistortion of information, wecannot take any officialstatement regarding the so-called "War on Terror" atanything close to face value.

Culled from Aljazeera.Charlotte Silver is a

journalist based in SanFrancisco and the WestBank.

By Charlotte Silver

Obama's administration claims whether any targeted killings programme exists is 'classified' infor-mation

“US drone attacks in Yemen began in 2002under the Bush administration, but have beendramatically expanded and accelerated under

the Obama administration.

PAGE 32 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Ex-Libyan PM, Al Baghdadi,pleads innocence

Al Mahmoudi Al Baghdadi,Libya's imprisoned formerprime minister, has pleaded

his innocence before a group ofjournalists in the capital Tripoli.

"I am not guilty, not guilty, notguilty," Mahmoudi told the pressduring a visit organised by theauthorities in an apparent bid todispel rumours that he had beentortured, or even killed, in custody.

Al Baghdadi, who served underformer Libyan leader Muammar

Al Mahmoudi Al Baghdadi, Libya's last prime minister under Gaddafi, fled to Tunisia in August lastyear

Kenyan Muslim groups ‘to protect churches’

Gaddafi, is being held in a prisoncell at a military complex in thesouth of the capital after he wasextradited from Tunisia in June.

He was both defiant anddefensive, insisting he was just alaw-abiding citizen during histenure as prime minister from2006 until 2011, not a militaryman.

When asked about the rapingand killing that took place duringthe Libyan uprising, and about

hiring mercenaries to quash therevolt, Al Baghdadi said: "I'm not amilitary man, I had no militia to dothose things you describe.

"I was a civilian, doing mycivilian duties under the laws atthat time. That's what I will showto the court.

"At the moment, there isprejudice but these allegations arefar removed from the truth.History will prove to the Libyanpeople how this kind of thing

Muslim leaders in Kenyahave agreed to form self-defence groups to protect

churches following a deadly attackon Sunday.

Fifteen people were killed in theraids on churches in Garissa, a townnear the border with Somalia.

Kenya's border region has beentense since it sent troops into Somaliato pursue al-Shabab Islamistmilitants.

Adan Wachu, head of theSupreme Council of KenyanMuslims, told the BBC the attackswere acts of terrorism.

"There are people out there whoare determined to make Kenyaanother Nigeria," Mr Wachu, who

Mali’sgovernmentvows torecoverterritory

Zenani Mandela-Dlamini often accompanied her father when hewas president

happened, if it happened."Al Baghdadi said the bloodshed

during the revolution was not alldue to Gaddafi, but due also to"foreign intervention" in Libyanaffairs.

He claimed that some of thethings he has been blamed for havejust been invented to make him lookbad.

"I have been accused of thingsthat are not true, and have beeninvented to make me look bad tothe Libyan people, and I hope to Godthat all the investigations arecompleted so the Libyan people canknow the truth."

Al Baghdadi said he trusted thefairness of the Libyan judicialsystem and that he will detail hisdefence in due course, once he hasproperly consulted a lawyer.

Asked what the suitablepunishment should be if he wasconvicted of the crimes he ischarged with, Al Baghdadi said inEnglish: "I am not guilty. I am notguilty. I am not guilty."

Al Baghdadi was arrested inTunisia in September for illegallycrossing the border as he tried toflee to Algeria, where members ofGaddafi's family had sought refuge.

Libya's interim governmenthad been clamouring for therepatriation of Al Baghdadi toanswer for crimes it says hecommitted during Gaddafi'sregime.

But officials from the formergovernment have not fared well inthe hands of the former Libyanrebels, with Gaddafi and one of hissons being executed upon capturelast year.

Mali's embattled interimgovernment hasramped up diplomatic

efforts to save the north from rebelfighters who have destroyedWorld Heritage shrines inTimbuktu and have reportedlyrigged another city with mines.

The interim government inthe capital Bamako, set up afterthe March 22 coup which led to atakeover in the north as armedgroups exploited the resultingchaos, has been scrambling forassistance to regain its territory.

"We will do everything torecover our territory," SadioLamine Sow, Mali's foreignminister, told the AFP newsagency, speaking at the end of atwo-day visit to Algeria, wherehe held talks with authorities inAlgiers.

The post-coup transitiongovernment has struggled toassert its authority in the face ofarmed al-Qaeda-allied groupsoccupying the north, and Mali'sneighbours in west Africa haveproposed a stronger unitygovernment be formed.

West African leaders will meetin Burkina Faso's capital onSaturday to discuss this optionwith senior Malian politicalfigures, as the Islamist rebelsescalate efforts to exert theircontrol in the country's north.

In Timbuktu, where AnsarDine (Defenders of Faith) haveenforced sharia law for the pastthree months, the Islamist grouphas smashed seven tombs ofancient Muslim saints as well asthe 'sacred door' to a 15th-centurymosque.

The destruction has deeplyupset many Malians andprompted outpourings ofcondemnation from abroad.

UNESCO, the UN culturalagency, called on Tuesday for anend to the "repugnant acts" ofdestruction and called for thecreation of an emergency fund forsecuring the cultural treasuresand sending a mission to assessthe damage.

Sow condemned the armedgroups now controlling the citiesin northern Mali as "armedterrorists".

"It is they who are rapingwomen, pillaging banks" andconducting a campaign ofdestruction, he said, saying theseacts were crimes againsthumanity and would not gounpunished.

Mandela’s daughter, Zenani, appointed Argentina ambassador

Mandela has been appointedambassador to Argentina,the South American

nation has said.Zenani Mandela-Dlamini is the

oldest daughter from the formerpresident's marriage to WinnieMadikizela-Mandela.

Argentina said herappointment represented theimportance South Africa attachedto their relationship.

Ms Mandela-Dlamini, 53, wasa child when her father wasimprisoned for 27 years by thewhite minority government.

She was not allowed to visit himin jail until she was 16 years old,the Associated Press news agencyreports.

A graduate of the University ofBoston, Ms Mandela-Dlamini wasonce married to a Swazi prince.

Mr Mandela became SouthAfrica's first black anddemocratically elected president in1994, stepping down after oneterm in office.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate,who turns 94 this month, retiredfrom public life eight years ago -his last public appearance was atthe World Cup in South Africa in2010.

"During the presidency ofNelson Mandela, recognised as aglobal figure for his fight againstapartheid and for human rights,Zenani Dlamini accompanied herfather to act as first lady of her

Police say gunmen used grenades and guns to carry out the churchattacks

also chairs the Inter-Religious Councilof Kenya, told the BBC Network Africaprogramme.

"It's not going to be allowed to havea sectarian division in this country -whoever wants to do that will ofcourse fail."

Mr Wachu said that at a meetingthe Inter-Religious Council of Kenyaon Tuesday it was unanimouslyagreed the church attacks were actsof "terrorists and terrorism".

"Therefore we all resolved to standtogether as one united front," he said.

"We decided as solidarity that theMuslim youth will provide a vigilanteservice to the churches not only inGarissa but in any other places thatthe Christians may deem fit."

country," Reuters news agencyquotes a statement fromArgentina's foreign ministry assaying.

According to the AFP newsagency, bilateral trade betweenSouth Africa and Argentina isworth about $1.3bn (£830m).

PAGE 33PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

New sub-atomic particle couldbe elusive ‘God particle’

After a quest spanningnearly half a century,physicists have said they

had found a new sub-atomicparticle consistent with the Higgsboson which is believed to confermass.

Rousing cheers and a standingovation broke out at the EuropeanOrganisation for NuclearResearch (CERN) yesterday afterscientists presented data in theirlong search for the mysteriousparticle.

The new find is "consistentwith (the) long-sought Higgs

"We havereached amilestonein ourunder-standingof na-ture," saidCERNDirectorGeneralRolfHeuer

boson," CERN declared in astatement.

It added further data wasneeded to identify the find.

"We have reached a milestonein our understanding of nature,"said CERN Director General RolfHeuer.

"The discovery of a particleconsistent with the Higgs bosonopens the way to more detailedstudies, requiring larger statistics,which will pin down the newparticle's properties, and is likelyto shed light on other mysteries ofour Universe."

Peter Higgs, a British physicistwho published the conceptualgroundwork for the particle backin 1964, expressed joy.

"I never expected this tohappen in my lifetime and shallbe asking my family to put somechampagne in the fridge," he said

in a statement issued by theUniversity of Edinburgh, wherehe was a professor.

Finding the Higgs wouldvalidate the Standard Model, atheory which identifies thebuilding blocks for matter and theparticles that conveyfundamental forces.

It is a hugely successful theorybut has several gaps, the biggestof which is why some particleshave mass but others do not.

EU parliament throwsout anti-piracy pactThe European Parliament

rejected by a wide majoritythe Anti-Counterfeiting

Trade Agreement (ACTA), aninternational copyright dealwhich, critics say, threatenedinternet freedom.

Only 39 lawmakers voted infavour of ACTA yesterday; 478rejected it, while 165 abstained,killing off the EU ratificationprocess. This might give anincentive to other signatories toalso walk out, forcing therenegotiation or the outrightabandonment of the agreement.

The conservative European

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreementhas yet to be ratified and has stirredcontroversy across the globe

People's Party (EPP), the largestgroup in the EU assembly,unsuccessfully tried to postponethe vote until the European Courtof Justice (ECJ) delivers a verdicton whether ACTA really poses arisk to civil liberties.

"No emergency surgery, notransplant, no long period ofrecuperation is going to saveACTA: it is time to give it its lastrites, it is time to allow its friends tomourn and for the rest of us to geton with our lives," British socialistDavid Martin, who draftedparliament's opinion on ACTA,said before the vote.

Ukraine protests overmove to boost RussianHundreds of protesters have

clashed with riot police incentral Kiev and Ukraine's

parliament speaker offered toresign amid uproar after a moveto boost the status of the Russianlanguage in the former Sovietrepublic.

Riot police yesterday fired teargas and used batons to push backprotesters, led by opposition

members of parliament, who hadmassed in front of a building wherePresident Viktor Yanukovich wasdue to hold a press briefing.

They urged Yanukovich - whohad planned a celebratorystatement to crown the successfulco-hosting of the Euro 2012 soccertournament - to veto the bill, whichwas rammed through parliamentlate on Tuesday by the majorityParty of Regions.

Yanukovich subsequentlycancelled the briefing and insteadcalled an urgent meeting withParliament Speaker VolodymyrLytvyn and leaders of majorfactions.

Lytvyn himself tendered hisresignation at the opening of theparliamentary session.

The chamber approved thelanguage bill in a second and finalreading on Tuesday minutes aftera proposal by one of the pro-Yanukovich deputies, givingopponents little time to cast theirvote and prompting scuffles bothin parliament and on the streets.

Many protesters stayed out onthe streets of central Kievovernight. When parliament metagain on Wednesday, Lytvyn said:"Colleagues, I ask you to considermy resignation and take a decisionon it."

The website of parliament saidthat Mykola Tomenko, a deputyspeaker, had also stepped down.Tomenko belongs to jailedopposition leader YuliaTymoshenko's BYuTparliamentary faction.

The bill, which will not becomelaw until first Lytvyn and thenYanukovich have signed it, wouldupgrade the status of Russian inthe former Soviet republic, wherethe official state language isUkrainian.

French policesearch Sarkozyhome andoffice

French investigators havesearched former PresidentNicolas Sarkozy's home and

office.The raids were part of a probe

into suspected illegal financingof his 2007 presidentialcampaign by the L'Orealcosmetics heiress, an official saidon Tuesday.

Potential legal troubles havethreatened Sarkozy since he lostthe presidency to SocialistFrancois Hollande in Mayelections.

Sarkozy, who lost hisimmunity from prosecution onJune 15, denies wrongdoing.

Sarkozy's lawyer, ThierryHerzog, said the raids a day afterhis client had left for Canada onholiday would show nothing andthat he had already suppliedinformation to investigatorsthat debunked suspicions ofsecret meetings withBettencourt.

"These raids ... will asexpected prove futile," Herzogsaid in a statement.

People in large parts of Ukraine, notably theeastern industrial heartland, speak mainlyRussian

PAGE 34 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Abbas, Arafat widow want body oflate Palestinian president exhumed

A dated picture of late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat flashinga victory sign from a helicopter, in this file photo taken May 13,2002.

Mahmoud Abbas, thePalestinian president,sees no reason why Yasser

Arafat's body should not be exhumedfollowing an Al Jazeera report thathe may have died of poisoning, hisspokesman said on yesterday.

Nabil Abu Rudeinah said that thePalestinian Authority would use"Arab and international scientificexpertise" to review the findings.

A nine-month investigation byAl Jazeera found that Arafat's finalbelongings - his clothes, histoothbrush, even his iconic kaffiyeh -contained elevated levels ofpolonium, a rare, highly radioactiveelement.

Scientists at the Institut deRadiophysique in Lausanne,Switzerland, who studied Arafat'spersonal items, said that his bonescould offer more conclusiveevidence that he was poisoned.

"There are no political orreligious reasons that preventresearching this issue," AbuRudeinah said, "including theexhumation of Arafat's body by areliable and trustworthy medicaland scientific authority."

Saeb Erekat, the chief

Syria opposition groups back Free Syrian armySyrian opposition groups

have concluded a two-daymeeting in Cairo,

agreeing in general terms onsupport for the Free SyrianArmy, the dissolution of theruling Baath Party and theexclusion of Assad or othersenior regime figures from aplace in the transition, butremained divided on other keyissues.

"We have agreed thatsolving the problem starts withthe departure of al-Assadregime and his government,protecting the civilians andsupporting the Free SyrianArmy," Kamal Labwani, aSyrian opposition figure, saidwhile reading the finalstatement of the two-dayconference.

The around 250participants, however,struggled to settle questionsincluding foreign militaryintervention and the futurerole of religion and failed toreach an agreement on

forming a unified body torepresent the opposition.

The conference opened onMonday in the Egyptiancapital under the auspices ofthe Arab League to forge acommon vision for transition inSyria after the ouster of al-Assad.

In the final declaration,conference participantsdescribed the mechanisms fora post-al-Assad transitionalprocess, Syrian NationalCouncil head Abdel BassatSeyda said.

He said that theparticipants agreed to supportfully the Free Syrian Army,which is mainly main made upof Syrian army deserters whohave been protecting civiliansand have gained support inrestive areas.

"Talking about any nationalunity government whileBashar al-Assad is still in poweris meaningless," Seyda said.

Earlier on Tuesday, aSyrian opposition Kurdish

group quit the meeting aftersome participants rejectedincluding in the finalstatement that the Kurdishminority in Syria, which hasbeen marginalised by the al-Assad regime, would berecognised by the opposition.

Palestinian negotiator, also calledfor an international committee tostudy Arafat's death, similar tothe one investigating theassassination of Lebanese PrimeMinister Rafik Hariri in 2005.

"[It] is a must," Erekat told AlJazeera. "And we will do it firstthrough the United NationsSecurity Council. We hopeeveryone will co-operate with us,because we seek the truth andnothing but the truth."

Speaking to Al Jazeerayesterday, Suha Arafat, wife ofthe late Palestinian leader, saidthe exhumation should take placeas soon as possible.

She has asked the PalestinianAuthority to exhume her latehusband's body from its grave inRamallah. If tests show thatArafat's bones contain high levelsof polonium, it would be moreconclusive proof that he waspoisoned, doctors say.

"I know the PalestinianAuthority has been trying todiscover what Yasser died from," SuhaArafat said in an interview. "And nowwe are helping them. We have verysubstantial, very important results."

Members of Syria's opposition and Arab and other foreign minis-ters at a two-day conference in Cairo

Israel's Border Police haslaunched an investigationafter a video emerged

showing one of its officerskicking a nine-year-oldPalestinian boy.

The footage from thehuman rights group, B'Tselem,shows Abdul Rahman Burqanbeing held on the ground by oneofficer before he is kicked byanother.

The incident took place onFriday in the West Bank city ofHebron.

A statement from theBorder Police said it "views withgravity and condemns thebehaviour of the policemen".

"It is important to note thatthis is an exceptional incidentthat does not represent theextensive activity of thecombat border police troops tofurther the security of the stateof Israel," it added.

Border Police commanderYoram Halevi has ordered theformation of a team toinvestigate the incident andreport in the coming days.

Sources in the force told theJerusalem Post there had beena large rise in the number ofincidents of Palestinian youthsthrowing stones in Hebron. Butthey said there was nojustification for the officers'conduct.

The cameraman, Raed AbuRimle, told the Israeli newspaperYedioth Ahronoth: "I heardyelling and I saw a soldier kick aboy in the stomach. After thepolicemen left him, I approachedthe kid. He was so scared that he'dpissed his pants."

Last week, a group of seniorBritish lawyers accused theIsraeli military authorities ofregularly breaching the UNConvention on the Rights of theChild (UNCRC) and the 4thGeneva Convention whendetaining Palestinian childrenin the West Bank.

Israelipolicemanfilmedkicking 9-year-old-Palestinianboy

According to delegates, thedisagreements focused onwhether to call for a foreignmilitary intervention to end 16months of bloodshed. Thearguments also touched on therole of religion in a post al-AssadSyria.

Iran threatens swift retaliation on US basesIran declared yesterday that

it can destroy nearby U.S.military bases and strike

Israel within minutes of anattack on the Islamic Republic,reflecting tensions over Iran'ssuspect nuclear program.

The veiled threat cameduring a military drill that hasincluded the firing of ballisticmissiles. The eliteRevolutionary Guards,conducting the war games inIran's central desert, said thatthe missiles were aimed at mock-ups of foreign military bases.

Israel and the U.S. havehinted at the possibility of

military strikes against Iran ifsanctions and diplomacy do notrein in Iran's nucleardevelopment program. The Westsuspects Iran may be aiming tobuild nuclear weapons. Iraninsists its program is for peacefulpurposes.

The semiofficial Fars newsagency quoted Gen. Ami AliHajizadeh of the RevolutionaryGuards as saying U.S. bases arein range of Iran's missiles andcould be hit in retaliatorystrikes. He referred to Israel as"occupied territories."

"Measures have been taken sothat we could destroy all these

bases in the early minutes of anattack," said Hajizadeh, chief ofthe Guards' air-space division.

Israeli officials refused tocomment. There was noimmediate comment fromWashington.

Hajizadeh said the Guardsalso successfully test fired ananti-ship missile that could sinkU.S. warships in the Gulf. Gen.Hajizadeh told state TV that theshore-to-sea ballistic missile,called "Persian Gulf," has a rangeof 300 kilometers (180 miles).

State TV showed video of thelaunching of a white missile thathit a huge target in Gulf waters.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 PAGE 35

What killed Arafat?It was a scene that riveted the

world for weeks: The ailing YasserArafat, first besieged by Israeli

tanks in his Ramallah compound,then shuttled to Paris, where hespent his final days undergoing abarrage of medical tests in a Frenchmilitary hospital.

Eight years after his death, itremains a mystery exactly whatkilled the longtime Palestinianleader. Tests conducted in Parisfound no obvious traces of poison inArafat's system. Rumors aboundabout what might have killed him -cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, evenallegations that he was infected withHIV.

A nine-month investigation byAl Jazeera has revealed that none ofthose rumors were true: Arafat wasin good health until he suddenly fellill on October 12, 2004.

More importantly, tests revealthat Arafat's final personalbelongings - his clothes, histoothbrush, even his iconic kaffiyeh- contained abnormal levels ofpolonium, a rare, highly radioactiveelement. Those personal effects,which were analyzed at the Institutde Radiophysique in Lausanne,Switzerland, were variously stainedwith Arafat's blood, sweat, saliva andurine. The tests carried out on thosesamples suggested that there was ahigh level of polonium inside his bodywhen he died.

"I can confirm to you that wemeasured an unexplained, elevatedamount of unsupported polonium-210 in the belongings of Mr. Arafatthat contained stains of biologicalfluids," said Dr. Francois Bochud, thedirector of the institute.

The findings have led SuhaArafat, his widow, to ask thePalestinian Authority to exhumeher late husband's body from itsgrave in Ramallah. If tests show thatArafat's bones contain high levels ofpolonium, it would be moreconclusive proof that he waspoisoned, doctors say.

"I know the PalestinianAuthority has been trying todiscover what Yasser died from,"Suha Arafat said in an interview."And now we are helping them. Wehave very substantial, veryimportant results."

The institute studied Arafat'spersonal effects, which his widowprovided to Al Jazeera, the first timethey had been examined by alaboratory. Doctors did not find anytraces of common heavy metals orconventional poisons, so they turnedtheir attention to more obscureelements, including polonium.

It is a highly radioactive elementused, among other things, to powerspacecraft. Marie Curie discoveredit in 1898, and her daughter Irenewas among the first people it killed:She died of leukemia several yearsafter an accidental poloniumexposure in her laboratory.

At least two people connectedwith Israel's nuclear program alsoreportedly died after exposure to theelement, according to the limitedliterature on the subject.

But polonium's most famousvictim was Alexander Litvinenko,the Russian spy-turned-dissidentwho died in London in 2006 after a

lingering illness. A British inquiryfound that he was poisoned withpolonium slipped into his tea at asushi restaurant.

There is little scientificconsensus about the symptoms ofpolonium poisoning, mostlybecause there are so few recordedcases. Litvinenko suffered severediarrhea, weight loss, andvomiting, all of which weresymptoms Arafat exhibited in thedays and weeks after he initiallyfell ill.

Animal studies have foundsimilar symptoms, which lingeredfor weeks - depending on the dosage- until the subject died. "Theprimary radiation target… is thegastrointestinal tract," said anAmerican study conducted in1991, "activating the 'vomitingcentre' in the brainstem."

Scientists in Lausanne foundelevated levels of the element onArafat's belongings - in some cases,they were ten times higher thanthose on control subjects, random

samples which were tested forcomparison.

The lab's results were reportedin millibecquerels (mBq), ascientific unit used to measureradioactivity.

Polonium is present in theatmosphere, but the natural levelsthat accumulate on surfaces barelyregister, and the elementdisappears quickly. Polonium-210,the isotope found on Arafat'sbelongings, has a half-life of 138days, meaning that half of thesubstance decays roughly everyfour-and-a-half months. "Even incase of a poisoning similar to theLitvinenko case, only traces of theorder of a few [millibecquerels] wereexpected to be found in [the] year2012," the institute noted in itsreport to Al Jazeera.

But Arafat's personal effects,particularly those with bodily fluidson them, registered much higherlevels of the element. Histoothbrushes had polonium levelsof 54mBq; the urine stain on his

underwear, 180mBq. (Anotherman's pair of underwear, used as acontrol, measured just 6.7mBq.)

Further tests, conducted over athree-month period from Marchuntil June, concluded that most ofthat polonium - between 60 and80 per cent, depending on thesample - was "unsupported,"meaning that it did not come fromnatural sources.

Doctors in Lausanne, andelsewhere, also ruled out a range ofother possible causes for Arafat'sdeath, based on his original medicalfile, which Ms. Arafat also providedto Al Jazeera. Their examinationruled out many of the other causesof death that have been rumoredover the last eight years.

"There was not liver cirrhosis,apparently no traces of cancer, noleukemia," said Dr. Patrice Mangin,the head of the Institute of LegalMedicine of Lausanne University."Concerning HIV, AIDS - there wasno sign, and the symptomologywas not suggesting these things."

Dr. Tawfik Shaaban, a Tunisianspecialist in HIV and one of thedoctors who examined Arafat in hisRamallah compound, confirmedthat there were no signs of thedisease.

Their conclusions, of course,were based on documentationrather than firsthandexamination. Doctors in Lausannehad hoped to study the blood andurine samples taken from Arafatwhile he was at Percy MilitaryHospital in France. But when sherequested access, the hospital toldhis widow that those samples hadbeen destroyed.

"I was not satisfied with thatanswer," Ms. Arafat said. "Usually

a very important person, likeYasser, they would keep traces -maybe they don't want to beinvolved in it?"

Several of the doctors whotreated Arafat said that they werenot allowed to discuss his case - evenwith Ms. Arafat's permission -because it was considered a"military secret." And most of hisonetime doctors in Cairo and Tunisrefused requests for interviews aswell.

With those avenues of inquiryclosed, Arafat's body itself would bethe last remaining source ofconclusive evidence. Exhuming itwould require approval from thePalestinian Authority; shippingbone samples outside of the WestBank would require permissionfrom the Israeli government.

Whatever the outcome, Ms.Arafat said she hopes further testswould "remove a lot of doubt" abouther husband's still-mysteriousdeath.

"We got into this very, verypainful conclusion, but at least thisremoves this great burden on me,on my chest," she said. "At least I'vedone something to explain to thePalestinian people, to the Arab andMuslim generation all over theworld, that it was not a naturaldeath, it was a crime."

A conclusive finding that Arafatwas poisoned with polonium wouldnot, of course, explain who killedhim. It is a difficult element toproduce, though - it requires anuclear reactor - and the signatureof the polonium in Arafat's bonescould provide some insight aboutits origin.

Source: Al-Jazeera.com

A nine-month investigation suggests that the late Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, shown in this library photo waving at a cheeringcrowd, may have been poisoned with polonium.

““I can confirm to you that wemeasured an unexplained,

elevated amount of unsupportedpolonium-210 in the belongings ofMr. Arafat that contained stains of

biological fluids,

PAGE 36 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JUY 5, 2012

Decline in quality of life of Parkinson’ssufferers starts ‘years before diagnosis’

The study is the first toexamine patterns in the quality oflife of Parkinson’s patients prior todiagnosis and is published in theJournal of Parkinson’s Disease.

People with Parkinson’sdisease suffer a decline intheir quality of life years

before they are diagnosed, it isclaimed.

Scientists have documenteddeclines in physical and mentalhealth, pain, and emotionalhealth beginning several yearsbefore the onset of the disease.

And the decline thencontinues at a rate of five to seventimes faster than the averageyearly decline caused by normalageing in people without thedisease, according to researchersfrom the Harvard School of PublicHealth.

Lead researcher Dr NataliaPalacios said: ‘We observed adecline in physical function inParkinson’s patients relative totheir healthy counterpartsbeginning three years prior todiagnosis in men and 7.5 yearsprior to diagnosis in women.

‘The decline continues at a ratethat is five to seven times fasterthan the average yearly declinecaused by normal ageing inindividuals without the disease.

‘This result provides support tothe notion that the pathologicalprocess leading to Parkinson’sdisease may start several yearsbefore a diagnosis.’

Eating 40% less food couldextend your life by 20 years

Incentive: Eating 40 per cent less food could extend a person's life by 20 years, according to scientists.

The researchers studied51,350 male health professionalsenrolled in the HealthProfessionals Follow Up Study(HPFS) and 121,701 female

registered nurses enrolled in theNurses’ Health Study (NHS).

In both studies, participantsfilled out biannual questionnairesthat documented the occurrence

of major chronic disease byanswering questions about avariety of lifestyle characteristics.

The nurses study measuredhealth-related quality of life inphysical functioning; rolelimitations due to physicalproblems; role limitations due toemotional problems; vitality;bodily pain; social functioning;mental health; and generalhealth perceptions.

By contrast, the HPFSquestionnaire only assessedphysical functioning.

Of the 454 men and 414women identified withParkinson’s, the researchersfound that a decline began aboutthree years before diagnosis formen and 7.5 years for women.

Results also showed othermeasures of quality of life -available only in women -declined in a similar pattern.

The scientists point out thattheir study is bolstered by theavailable data on both Parkinson’spatients and a healthy group usedfor comparison.

Dr Palacios said: ‘Our hope isthat, with future research,biological markers of the diseaseprocess may be recognizable inthis pre-clinical phase.’

Source: Dailymail.co.ukParkinson's sufferer Muhammad Ali. A study has revealed that a decline in quality of life starts yearsbefore the disease is diagnosed.

Eating 40 per cent less foodcould extend a person’s lifeby 20 years, according to

scientists.Researchers at the Institute of

Health Ageing at UniversityCollege London are developing atreatment they hope will combatthe ‘disease’ of getting older.

They are looking into howgenetics and lifestyle can beadapted to offset the effects ofageing and add years, possiblydecades, to a person’s life.

Age-related diseases such ascardiovascular disease, cancerand neurodegeneration can alsobe combated, it is claimed.

One line of inquiry that theteam is developing is how the lifeof a rat can be increased by up to30 per cent simply by reducingits food intake.

Lead researcher Dr Piper toldthe Independent: ‘If you reducethe diet of a rat by 40 per cent itwill live for 20 or 30 per centlonger. So we would be talking 20years of human life. This hasshown on all sorts of organisms,even labradors.’

The scientists are alsostudying fruit flies, which share60 per cent of human genes andage in a similar manner, andmice.

They have already prolongedthe healthy lifespan in both fliesand mice by using drugtreatments and a modified diet.

It is hoped that thiscombination will also work toextend human life.

Dr Piper said: ‘If we discoverthe genes involved with ageing,we should be able to delay ageingitself. This is what we’ve found.’

He added that his team hasextended the life of organisms by

mutating single genes.The researchers have also

lessen the effects of a mutationwhich can cause Alzheimer’s.

However, Dr Piper cautionedthat the field of research intoextending life is only a decade old,so remains ‘theoretical’.

It is their unique approach totreating all age-related diseases asbeing caused by the ‘disease’ ofageing itself that sets theirresearch apart, he said.

The research is beingdisplayed at the Royal SocietySummer Science Exhibition inLondon.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

“The scientistsare also studyingfruit flies, which

share 60 percent of human

genes and age ina similar manner,

and mice

PAGE 37PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

On David Mark commentson Northern leaders?

Well, let me start with thecomment of the SenatePresident because it

was carried on the newspapersthat I read today. In my view,he addressed three fronts, thefirst one is the accusationdirected against what hedescribed as Northern leadersor Northern elders , sometimesyou mix the terminology ,there could be a differencebetween Northern elders andNorthern leaders. To the factthat they have done nothingand they are doing nothingabout the security challengesin Nigeria particularly here inthe North.

My first reaction to this isthat I had always thought thatlooking at the politicalleadership structure in thecountry, Senator David Mark isnumber three citizen inNigeria. If you begin to look atthe geopolitical arrangementsof the country, it is easy to saythat Senator David Mark is thenumber two citizen in thenorthern part of Nigeria afterthe Vice President. So, here ifhe could direct the accusingfinger to Northern leaders or toNorthern elders, myimmediate assumption is thathe has excluded himself frombeing a leader in this part of thecountry and the question, ofcourse is why? If he has excludedhimself from being a leader oran elder I think he is quite rightto say that others who areregarded as elders or leadersshould be queried for some of thethings that are going on. So, Ithink this is not fair becauseseeing Senator David Mark invarious fora speaking about theNorth, speaking aboutresponsibilities of leaders orleadership in the country, if hehas excluded himself frombeing a leader in this part of thecountry and part of those whoshould be working togetherwith other leaders to findsolution to problems facing thispart of the country and byimplication the country as awhole, then fine. But he cannoteat his cake and have it, hecannot be a leader and then leadand says it is others that shouldbear responsibilities for some ofthe failures he is accusingnorthern elders or leaders for. Ido not remember a singlemeeting that Senator Mark hasconvened in his position ofresponsibility as Senate Leaderor northern leader or northernelders inviting other colleagueshe considered to be peers andleaders like himself to come anddiscuss the problems that arechallenging the country.

I do not remember one singleoccasion that he took initiative

as number two northern citizensin terms of political appointmentto do this, so there must besomething sinister about this. Ifyou look at the details of hissubmission it is only NorthernMuslims that should takeresponsibility for the crises thatis going on, so in other words heis passing the buck to those heconsiders to be Muslims in theNorth and this indeed is verydangerous. So to my mind I thinkthat Senator Mark, given hishistory as a fine retired militaryofficer and given his exposure invarious position ofresponsibilities, at one time agovernor of Niger state and soon various positions ofresponsibilities up to the time hefound himself in the Senate, Ithought that he should be a littlemore self-respect in some of thethings he says, because he wasalmost drawing us to theconclusion we have. If I mayrecalled we have had enough,people will not take thisanymore, who are these peoplewho will not take this anymoreand from where would they nottake this anymore.

Poverty not an excuse forviolence?

The second aspect of hiscomment is that poverty is notexcuse for violence or for the kindof violence that we see. Nothingis an excuse for violence; if youwant to translate this, andliterally nothing should be anexcuse for violence for there isalways an excuse for violence.And for him to make theassertion that poverty cannot bea precursor to instability andunrest, I think he must bereading different history booksfrom the ones I have read. Heonly needed to switch on to histelevision everyday to pickCNN, Aljazeera or to pickwhatever television stationsthat aired events around theworld. There is hardly any daythat you will not findstreets protest in their thousandsin various capitalist around theworld; and what are the reasonsfor their protest? Most of thereasons as we all know is that arepeople are squeezed, they arefeeling poor, poorer. They areunhappy with policies thatmade life more difficult for them.So, all the protests you seearound Europe today have to dowith poverty first. For him to saythat poverty is not a precursor of unrest, particularly in acountry like Nigeria where

employment figures are not lessthan 50 percent on our youths,for every five graduates thatcome out of university, only onewill get the job in three yearsand they are there in theirthousands. Of courseunemployment and so no canlead to all sorts of antisocialbehavior not talking about BokoHaram in this case.

American government hadsuggested that the governmentshould deal with povertyparticularly in the north andthey have been saying this formonths. Here, it is only Markthat doesn’t believe thatgovernment is supposed to heedthe advice. He must be told thathe was wrong to assert thatpoverty was not a precursor ofanger and anti-social behavior.

Appeal to westerncountries to come to the aidof Nigeria and deal with BokoHaram

The other assertion he hasmade which again needs to bechallenged is saying that theyare appealing to westerncountries to come to the aid ofNigeria to deal with the BokoHaram security challenges.What does that mean? The firstmeaning is that Nigeria as anation has failed to deal withsecurity matters that areentirely his responsibility andlegitimacy of this governmentrest on the fact that it secure

the territorial integrity and thepeace of this country. If he isadmitting that the presentgovernment has failed in thatresponsibility, he should comeout openly to say so. With regardto the issue of Boko Haram,because we have seen recentlythey have been trying to listBoko Haram as a terroristorganization, even though if youask them where is Boko Haramand who is boko haram? Theywill not be able to tell you. Thedanger is that they want toprofile everybody that looks likea Muslim as a potential BokoHaram and they have deniedpeaceful, innocent citizens,peaceful Muslims in the north,perhaps privileges that shouldbe obtain in terms of diplomacy,traveling outside, to get visasand so on. People are beingprofiled just by their names ortheir appearances, this isdangerous. In fact the mostdangerous thing that thegovernment may embark upon,because by the time they succeedin bringing somebody fromoutside with target people theywill identify in the name of eitherdirect Boko haram members orin the name of being associate orin the name of sympathizers’ orin the name of supporters, thenthey are already putting thiscountry perhaps on the lasttrack.

So, particularly with the

Inviting US to crush Boko Haram is dangerousProfessor Ango Abdullahi is the spokesman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF).The elder-statesman in this interview with newsmen takes a blow-by-blowresponse to issues raised by Senate President David Mark, at the recentlyconcluded Senate Retreat in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom state; cautions that inviting theUnited States of America to help resolve the nation’s security challenges could becounter-productive. Our Correspondent, Ahmed Kaigama was there. Excerpts:

INTERVIEW

known facts today that thewestern government and,indeed particularly the UnitedStates of America, is wagingwar which is being interpretedaround the world as war againstIslam or war against Muslims.The President himself will sayno they are not fighting againstIslam; they are not fightingagainst Islamic civilization andso on, but it is difficult to beliefbecause if you look at theiroutings now around the world,Afghanistan is a Muslimcountry, recently they invadedLibya and killed the President;they have invaded Iraq andkilled the President they aretrying to invade Syria and soon and so forth. So, to haveAmericans here with theirdrones shooting us in the nameof our being Muslims andtherefore Boko Haram, I havejust watched a programme inthe American military trainingwhere there is clear statementthat as far as Americans areconcerned, there is nothing likemoderate Islam. There is justIslam and them, so go and readbooks, since the collapse ofcommunism, the westernworld, the western capitalistsystem fights nothing exceptIslam and this is a major matterwhich every responsible personwishing this country wellshould try to tread verycarefully on. But Mark hasforgotten that northern clerics,elders have made presentationsas to what should be done.

Who is dying in this crisis, ifyou go down to the statisticsmore Muslim have died in thiscrisis in the last one or two yearsthan anyone else, morestrangulation of economic andsocial life has happened in thispart of the country thananywhere else. So I can’t seeanybody who should be moreconcerned about this than us,but the difference is this, ifDavid Mark will come and helpus identify this since heassumed that in every leader’shouse Boko Haram people aresleeping, they are eating foodtogether and so on. Of course thepresident himself said he hasBoko Haram in his cabinet, hehas Haram in the Army, he hasBoko Haram in the Police, in theSSS, he said so himself, eventhough up till now, he has notexposed those people and he hastaken the appropriate steps thathe ought to have taken, so thisis by way of David mark.

Professor Ango Abdullahi

PAGE 39PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

The Edo Government onTuesday warned theelectorate in the state to

desist from selling their voters’cards, stressing that the actionwas criminal and an electoraloffence.

Gov Adams Oshiomhole gavethe warning in a statementsigned by his Chief PressSecretary, Mr Peter Okhiria, inBenin.

The statement said that “inspite of repeated calls on peopleof the state not to sell their voters’cards, some desperate politiciansin the state had intensified

efforts to mop up such cards.’’ The governor said those

engaged in such act were doingso by inducing the people withcash and other gifts .

The statement said that insome cases, the alleged buyersused “the name of Gov. AdamsOshiomhole, as their sponsorwith the sole aim of deceivingthe people’’.

It said the development was“frustrating the One Man, OneVote principle of the Governor”.

The government advisedthe public, especially registeredvoters in the state, to ignore the

lure of politicians involved inthe criminal act of vote buyingand stressed that voting was acivic responsibility.

Meanwhile, the Edo office ofIndependent National ElectoralCommission (INEC) has alertedthe public of an alleged designby fraudsters using the name ofthe Resident ElectoralCommissioner, MrKassim Gaidam, to extortmoney from candidates andpoliticians.

In a statement signed by the Head of Public affairs of INEC,Mrs Priscillia Imoudu-Sule in

Oshiomhole warns votersagainst selling cards

because of incessant terroristattacks.

Following the declaration, a12-hour curfew was imposed on Suleja and its environs.

The motion, moved by AlhajiJibrin Bawa, the memberrepresenting SulejaConstituency, called on thesenators representing Niger inthe National Assembly, topersuade the FederalGovernment and the National

Assembly to lift the emergencyorder.

He recalled that PresidentGoodluck Jonathan on Dec. 31,2011, declared the state ofemergency on Suleja inaccordance with section 305;subsection (2) of the 1999constitution.

Bawasaid that the 6 p.m to 6a.m curfew imposed on Sulejametropolis and its environs hadlapsed because of the declaration

Niger state Assembly urges FG to lift curfew on Sulejain accordance with theprovisions of the constitution.

The legislator thereforeurged the government to lift thecurfew saying that peace andnormalcy had been restored inthe area.

The House unanimouslypassed the motion and urged theFederal Government towithdraw the military from thearea to enable the people enjoytheir constitutional liberty.

Benin, INEC said some personswere attempting to extort moneyfrom candidates.

It said that “some fraudulentpersons are sending textmessages to gubernatorialcandidates and politicians in thestate ‘’ to extort money fromunsuspecting politicians in thestate.

“The commissioner herebyurges the public to take note andignore such dubious textmessages as it is meant todefraud unsuspecting membersof the public, especiallypoliticians’’, it said.

The Niger House ofAssembly, passed amotion urging the Federal

Government to lift the state ofemergency it imposed on Sulejaand its environs because of bombattacks in the area.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) recalls that PresidentGoodluck Jonathan on Dec. 312011, declared a state ofemergency in some parts of theNorth, including Suleja,

Abuja. “The public hearing organised

by the House of Representativeson fuel subsidy provided Nigeriansthe opportunity to express theirfeelings and to make meaningfulcontributions during the probe.

“I call on the EFCC and anyother security agencies, chargedwith the responsibility of

handling the report to do athorough job and prosecute allthose indicted by the report inaccordance with the law.

“The PDP is in full support ofthe position of PresidentGoodluck Jonathan for a drasticaction to be taken againstfraudusters and any persondiscovered to be involved,’’ the

Don’t spare anyone indicted in fuel subsidy probe, PDP tells EFCC

The PDP has called on theEFCC and other securityagencies not to spare anyone

that may be indicted in theongoing House of Representativesfuel subsidy probe.

The National Chairman of thePDP, Alhaji BamangaTakur, made the call in astatement issued on Tuesday in

The Edo state PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP)has called on governor

Adams Oshiomhole to acceptresponsibility for political deaths,including that of the twojournalists in his convoys, in thestate.

The PDP also called onOshiomhole to tender a publicapology to it and withdraw allallegations leveled against it,including the death of hisPrincipal Private Secretary,Comrade Olaitan Oyerinde; theattack on him by students of UsenInstitute of Technology andalleged plans to rig election.

The party said it was stilllooking forward to the policereport on the killing of Oyerinde,saying “on it, as much as thepublicised ones, stands thecredibility or otherwise ofGovernor Oshiomhole and hisACN.”

In a statement, entitled:“Police report on Oshiomhole’sconvoy accident out: Edo Pdpabsolved!” issued by the StatePublicity Secretary, Mr.Matthew Uroghide, the PDP saidthat it was happy that the policeinvestigation had revealed that“the owner of the truck thatrammed into the governor’sconvoy along the Auchi-Warrake Road, Salisu Danjumaand the driver, John Michael,[and the conductor of the truck,Agho Awen] contrary toallegation by the stategovernment, are members of theAction Congress of Nigeria (ACN)in the state.”

According to the PDP, “Fromthe police report, it is now clearthat Governor Oshiomhole, EdoState Government, thegovernor’s agents and the ACNdid the PDP grave wrong in thewicked accusations which theydeceived the whole world tobelieve.

“It is also clear that thegovernor’s action of drivinghimself with Hon. Philip Shuaibuby his side on an inter-town roadwas reckless and irresponsibleendangerment. The actionresulted in the accident that cutshort the lives of budding youngjournalists in his convoy.”

The PDP stated that “AtAfuze, on the day of the accident,Governor Oshiomhole wasdisappointed with the scantycrowd that came to attend theplanned decamping and sped offthe venue in annoyance. Thatstate of mind, coupled with hisdetermination to make Auchiand then Benin for the threeseparate events that werescheduled for that day, made thegovernor to drive at a breakneckspeed.

“Governor Oshiomhole hadprobably not driven a car on aninter-town road in a long whileand forced his details andmembers of his entourage tohurry to catch up with him. Withthe governor’s convoy scatteredas it was, it rounded a bend andthen rammed into an oncomingtruck.”

Acceptresponsibility forpolitical deaths inEdo, PDP tellsOshiomhole

Action Congress of Nigeria governorship candidate in Edo state, Governor Adams oshiomhole, addressing party supporters during his re-election campaign, yesterday at Otuo, Owan East Local Government Area of the state.

statement said. It noted that the fuel subsidy

probe report had exposedmonumental fraud andcorruption in the oil sector.

The party stressed the needfor the National Assembly to beencouraged to carry out suchinvestigations to assist in the fightagainst corruption.

PAGE 40 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

NAN recalls that PresidentGoodluck Jonathan had earlieradvised Nigerians to brace up forbirth control to check populationexplosion.

The President said this inAbuja at the swearing in of thenewly appointed Chairman andCommissioners of the NationalPopulation Commission (NPC).

Nwodo expressed concernthat with the level of thepopulation growth in the

country, there must becommiserate provisions for thepopulace to avoid food crisis andcheck insecurity.

He said that most countriesin the world with highpopulation had tried to overcomethe problem through legislationon population control.

Nwodo urged thegovernment to embark onaggressive public enlightenmentand education programmes to

The Progressive ActionCongress (PAC)yesterday commended

President Goodluck Jonathan forurging Nigerians to brace up fora legislation on populationcontrol.

The National Chairman ofPAC, Chief Charles Nwodo, madethe commendation in aninterview with the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inAbuja.

Peace: CANchairmancalls forprayers in Ilaje

The Chairman, ChristianAssociation of Nigeria(CAN), Ilaje Local

Government, Rev. SamuelBamison, has urged Christiansin Ilaje and its environs to prayfor peace and tranquility.

Speaking to the NewsAgency of Nigeria (NAN) inIlaje on Tuesday, Bamison alsocalled on CAN members in thezone to be steadfast in theircalling.

Criticising the reluctance ofmembers in attending religiousfunctions, the Chairman saidthere was need for unity amongmembers.

“Some churches in Ilaje andon the seaside are not ready toassociate with CAN; it took ustime to convince them to openup to join the CAN body,”

“To encourage the newmembers who have chosen toassociate with CAN, I decided tosplit the churches under CANinto eight zones to enhance ourworking together,” he said.

Bamison listed the zones asIgbokoda, Ilumeje, Ilaje Central,Ilaje South, Ilaje East, Ilaje West,Ilaje South West and Ilaje NorthWest.

Describing CAN as a leadinglight and a trailblazer amongthe Christian communityof Ilaje, the clergyman saidthat CAN would continue topreach the gospel to all andsundry.

PAC commends Jonathan on birth controlenable the people see the importof the president’s call forpopulation control.

The Chairman advised thatthe legislation, whenoperational “should also considerpunishment for those who bringchildren to this world withoutmaking life better for them.’’

“Rewards should also be givento those who will adhere strictlyto the legislation when in place.’’

He expressed optimism that

Justice Charles Achibong ofa Federal High Courtsitting in Ikoyi, Lagos,

yesterday, ordered that threechieftains of the PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP) inOgun state be remanded inprison custody for six monthsfor flouting the order of thecourt.

The chieftains include ChiefIreti Oniyide, Amb. TundeOladunjoye (now media aide toAgriculture Minister, AkinAdesina) and Hon. FaisiuBakenne.

Justice Archibong, in aruling held that the three,being agents of the PDP, shouldbe remanded in prison for theircontinued violation of theorder of the court contained ina May 2 judgment of the court.

The judge, who noted thatthe PDP was a party in thesubstantive suit on which theMay judgment was given, washowever not specific on whichprison the three should beremanded.

The ruling was on acommittal proceedings

Contempt: Court sentences three Ogun PDP leaders to prisoninitiated against the said PDPchieftains, the state'sIndependent ElectoralCommission (OGSIEC) and itsofficials, by Chief AdebayoDayo and Alhaji Semiu Sodipofor themselves and on behalf ofthe Ogun State ExecutiveCommittee of the party.

The applicants accusedthose cited for contempt ofcontinually subverting theorder of court by dealing withthe party through other bodiesaside the Adebayo Dayo -ledExecutive Committee, whichthe court had declared thevalid management body of theparty in the May 2 judgment.

They accused the OGSIEC'sofficials of circumventing thecourt order contained in theMay 2 judgment by acceptinglists of candidates for the July21 council election from othersources other than the Dayo ledEXCO.

The judge howeverrefrained from making anyorder against officials ofOGSIEC on the ground that theagency and its officials cited forcontempt were not parties inthe substantive suit.

The lucky OGSIEC's officials

include Alhaja RisikatOgunfemi, Alhaji KoredeLawal, Alhaji BisiyuAdekanmi, Mutiu Agboke,Oyediran Aina, KolawoleOdesanya and AdetokunboWilliams (described as themoving minds of OGSIEC).

The judge noted that thecourt should not be seen asobstructing the electoralprocess in the state in view ofthe fact that the forthcomingcouncil election in the stateformed the kernel of the disputebetween parties.

Justice Archibong warnedthat should OGSIEC proceed toaccept list of candidates fromsources other than the validstate Executive Committeeheaded by Adebayo Dayo, theelectoral body will be openingitself and the outcome of theelection for challenge at theappropriate quarters.

In the May 2 judgment, thecourt also ordered the PDP, itsNational Chairman, BamangaTukur and National Secretary,Olagunsoye Oyinlola not todeal with the party in OgunState except through theAdebayo Dayo-led ExecutiveCommittee.

the legislation would receivehigh level of compliance as itwould go a long way in checkingpopulation growth.

Nwodo urged thegovernment to work incollaboration with civil societiesin bringing the message onpopulation control to thegrassroots.

He said that this would ensurethe realisation of populationcontrol in the country.

Inter Security Agencies in Edostate will today adopt briefscontaining strategy that would

assist the National Independentelectoral Commission (INEC) toprosecute violent free governorshipelection in the state scheduled for July14 2012.

The agencies include the FederalRoad Safety Commission, NigeriaImmigration Service, NIS, NigeriaArmy, Nigeria Custom Service,Nigeria Security and Civil DefenceCorpse and the Police.

Assistant Inspector General ofPolice, AIG, Zone 5, Mr. HashimuSalihu Argungu who dropped the hintwhile briefing the press yesterday inBenin City assured that adequate

security operatives are already in thestate alongside undisclosed number ofmobile Policemen.

"Inter Security Agencies here inEdo state, we're going to put headstogether and work together. So, it'snot the Nigerian Police, already wehave even received some securitymobile policemen who are going toaugment our strength. It's just for theelection', he said.

Mr. Argungu assured that Policewill not hesitate to arrest andprosecute anyone, includingpoliticians, who make omnibusutterances that could breach publicpeace, adding that the ban on sirenduring the election is still in force; justas he denied arresting anyone inconnection to voters'cardsracketeering.

Security agencies to adoptbriefs for Edo guber electionFrom Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

L-R: Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Victor Ogene, Chairman of the committee, Hon. Zakari Mohammed,and a member, Hon. Lanre Odubote, during a press briefing on the invitation of the Chairman of Zenon Oil Company, Mr Femi Otedola beforethe Ethics and Privileges Committee, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

From Francis Iwuchukwu, LagosIt equally restrained the

PDP leaders from taking anystep to prevent the officers thatemerged from the congresses ofthe Soremi faction fromconcluding their four-yearterm as allowed by theconstitution.

PAGE 38 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Inter Security Agencies in Edostate will today adopt briefscontaining strategy that would

assist the National Independentelectoral Commission (INEC) toprosecute violent free governorshipelection in the state scheduled for July14 2012.

The agencies include the FederalRoad Safety Commission, NigeriaImmigration Service, NIS, NigeriaArmy, Nigeria Custom Service,Nigeria Security and Civil DefenceCorpse and the Police.

Assistant Inspector General ofPolice, AIG, Zone 5, Mr. HashimuSalihu Argungu who dropped the hintwhile briefing the press yesterday inBenin City assured that adequatesecurity operatives are already in thestate alongside undisclosed numberof mobile Policemen.

"Inter Security Agencies here inEdo state, we're going to put headstogether and work together. So, it'snot the Nigerian Police, already wehave even received some securitymobile policemen who are going toaugment our strength. It's just for theelection', he said.

Mr. Argungu assured that Policewill not hesitate to arrest and prosecuteanyone, including politicians, whomake omnibus utterances that couldbreach public peace, adding that theban on siren during the election is stillin force; just as he denied arrestinganyone in connection to voters'cardsracketeering.

Senator Albishirwas a stickler forrule of law - Atiku

A faction of the AllProgressives GrandAlliance (APGA) led by

Sadiq Massala has insisted thatdespite the claim by theembattled party Chairman,Victor Umeh and theSecretary, Sani Shinkafi, thatthey have the support of the 36State chairmen of the partyand FCT, their suspension stillstands.

Addressing journalistsyesterday in Abuja, the leaderof the faction, Sadiq Massala,

said their suspension was due totheir inability to give accounton how they have been runningthe party, as well as their singlehandedness in handling theparty affairs.

He also described as baseless,the report that the APGANational Assembly caucus hasequally endorsed Umeh, sayingtheir visit to the embattledchairman was part of their factfinding mission, to enable themhear from both parties beforeconvening a peace talk in Awka,Anambra state.

He regretted that Umeh had

seized the opportunity tomisinform the public intobelieving that the visit was anendorsement of his leadership,alleging that the communiquéwhich Umeh issued tojournalists yesterday wassigned by both suspended andformer State chairmen of theparty.

Speaking further, Massalla,who until the crisis, was theAPGA National Vice ChairmanNorth, also hinted that part ofthe suggestions which the APGANASS caucus made to Umehyesterday was the urgent need

to restructure the party so as toallow more entrants that arecapable of winning elections.

Also speaking, the secretaryof the faction and formerEnvironment Commissioner inPeter Obi's first term, IfediOkwenna, said that Umeh hasrefused to address the 13 pointallegations leveled against him,adding that the internalauditor's report published byUmeh has no balance-sheet.

He regretted that Umeh hasbeen using a diversionary tacticsjust as he called on relevantauthorities to investigate him.

Umeh's suspension stillstands, says APGA faction

From Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

Former Vice-President AtikuAbubakar yesterdaydescribed the late Senator

Usman Albishir as a stickler to therule of law.

Atiku expressed sadness at thedemise of Senator Usman Albishir atthe time the country needed hiswisdom and experience to strengthenits democratic system.

This was contained in astatement issued from his mediaoffice yesterday in Abuja. The formerVice President particularly paidtribute to Albishir's tenacity andrespect for the rule of law during hisstruggle over Yobe state governorshippetition in 2007.

Atiku recalled that the lateSenator Albishir peacefully exploredlegal avenues to get justice ratherthan urging his supporters to takethe law into their own hands insistingthat such civilised approach to politicswas worthy of emulation by thenation's politicians.

Atiku praised his love forhumanity through hisphilanthropic activities whichbrought succor and smiles to manyless privileged members of the societynoting that these shining virtues willlive after the deceased.

He prayed Almighty Allah togrant his family the strength andfortitude to bear the loss.

Security agenciesto adopt briefs forEdo guberelection

By Joy Baba

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyostate has unveiled a newofficial logo through which

the state would be identified.The logo includes the shield

which represents the corporateamour for law enforcement andprotection of the state.

Ajimobi, while unveiling thelogo at the Executive CouncilChambers of the Governor’s Office,shortly after the weekly State

Oyo gets new official logoExecutive Council meeting, said itwas a reflection of the state’s culturalheritage.

The logo also includes the CocoaHouse and the University of Ibadanwhich the governor said symbolisea state of many landmarks ofintellectualism and development.

The logo also includes a talkingdrum and beaded gourd which,according to the governor,celebrates the deep traditional root

and rich cultural heritage of thestate.

According to Ajimobi, thegalaxy of stars on the logo symbolisesthe 33 local governments in the stateand the green fields while the lastsymbol stands for the arable landmass of the state.

The governor said the logoepitomised the restoration,transformation and repositioningagenda of his administration that

would take the state to greaterheights.

He also said the logo wouldrepresent the new identity for thestate through which the uniquenessof the state would be appreciated.

Ajimobi said that this was thefirst time that the state would havea logo of its own, pointing out thatthis had really confirmed it as “a pacesetter state with a pace settinggovernment.’’

Enugu state Governor, Mr Sullivan Chime (left), signing an Act banning the use of commercial motorcycles in Enugu metropolis into law,yesterday in Enugu. With him are clerk, Enugu state House of Assembly, Mr Christopher Chukwura (middle), and the Speaker of the House,Hon. Eugene Odoh (right). Photo: NAN

The House ofR e p r e s e n t a t i v e syesterday rejected moves to

immortalize its leadership as it shotdown a motion seeking to renameits offices and halls after its leaders.

The lawmakers defeated amotion by Uche Ekwenife whopointed out that the leadership ofthe House since it the advent ofdemocracy in the countrydeserved not to be forgotten.

Reps reject immortalization of its leadershipShe said the best means of

ensuring that they are notforgotten was to rename meetingand hearing rooms after themtaking cognizance of the stanza inthe National Anthem that thelabours of the heroes past shallnever be in vain.

She said from a mere threeoffice building complex at theinception of the currentdemocratic dispensation in 1999,the National Assembly has grownexponentially with more officecomplexes that have sprung up in

the last couple of years."Since then, additional offices,

hearing and committee roomshave led to a surfeit for offices forHonourable members, as well ashearing and committee rooms forthe transaction of the business ofthe House both at plenary andcommittees

On the need for renaming thehalls, she said the offices arenumbered in Arabic numerals1.01, 2.01, 3.01 and 4.01 andabove, while hearing andcommittee rooms are numbered i

Arabic numerals of 101, 201,301, 41 and above.

"But one is concerned thatthese identical numbering systeminherently confuses members,staff and guests as an office withthe number of 3.01 could beconfused with a Comittee orhearing room bearing number301".

Ekwenife said Nigeria shouldnot deviate from the norms asobtained in other democraciesaround the world citing the UnitedStates as an instance.

By Lawrence Olaoye

PAGE 41PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Ajani Ibrahim

Sunshine Stars’ forward, Ajani Ibrahim haspromised to shake off his goal drought thisterm against visiting Caf Champions League

Group A opponents, Esperance of Tunisia onSunday at Ijebu-Ode.

The petite attacking winger who ended thedomestic league last season as hot shot runners-up is yet to register his name on the scorer’s chartthis season in all competitions.

Ajani said that the tie against title holders isanother rare chance for him to revive his fadinggoalscoring prowess.

“I’m under intense pressure; I get calls dailyfrom concerned fans enquiring why I haven’t beenscoring goals.

“I’m worried as they are too. I know I’m tryingmy best but why I have not scored continues tobaffle me.

“I’m yet to score in the league as well as in thecontinent. I strongly believe the scoreless timeswill be history on Sunday against Esperance.

“I’m taking extra measure, extra preparationsand training to ensure the jinx is broken once andfor all,” said Ajani.

The former Enyimba attacking midfielder saidthe North African side will taste defeat on Sunday.

“We’re preparing very hard for victory againstthe Tunisian giants. Esperance are big side andtough, we’ll be playing them for the first time.

“Good enough all our players in the nationalteams are available for the encounter. We don’thave any injury worry at the moment, ourconfidence is high going into the clash and I’msure we’ll record a win.

“I won’t say it’s an advantage starting the groupticket campaign at home, this is a continentalmatch, the only advantage anybody can enjoy isto prepare adequately.

“And that is what we’re doing in Ijebu-Ode atthe moment,” he said.

The nation’s only remaining club in an Africanclub competition are pitched in Group A togetherwith North African sides, Esperance, Etoile deSahel and AS Chlef of Algeria.

The top two teams in each group will progressto the semifinals of Africa’s elite club competition.

Joseph Ikpo Yobo

Late SamuelOjebode

The Nigeria Football Federation hasexpressed deep grief yesterday on thedeath of former National Team captain,

Samuel Ojebode.Ojebode died in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital,

after a protracted illness. Speaking in Abuja,NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari said theNigeria football family was greatly saddenedby Ojebode’s death and prayed that AlmightyGod will grant the good family he has leftbehind the fortitude to bear the big loss.

“We received with great sadness news of thedeath of the former National Team Captain,Samuel Ojebode. It is big loss, but we arecomforted by the fact that he lived a good lifeand served his country well,” Maigari stated.

Ojebode was deputy skipper of the GreenEagles at the 1976 African Cup of Nations finalsin Ethiopia but wore the Captain’s armband inNigeria’s first three matches in the forcedabsense of Christian Chukwu. He was also amember of the IICC Shooting Stars FC that wonNigeria’s first continental honour the AfricanCup Winners Cup later the same year.

In the National Team, Samuel Ojebode playedalongside the likes of goalkeeper Joe Erico,defenders Sanni Mohammed, Muda Lawal, BabaOtu Mohammed, Felix Owolabi, Segun Odegbami,Thompson Usiyen, Aloysius Atuegbu, GodwinOdiye, Kunle Awesu, Kelechi Emeteole, IdowunOtubusin and Patrick Ekeji, who is now DirectorGeneral of the National Sports Commission.

NFF mourns Ojebode

Alhaji Aminu Maigari

The Nigeria Football Federation hascharged the technical crew of theU-20 National Team, Flying Eagles,

to shun acts of pursuance of personalinterests and face squarely the job ofraising a formidable squad that will doNigeria proud.

NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigarisaid this yesterday at a meeting with thecrew of the team, led by Head Coach JohnObuh. Maigari made no secret of theunhappiness of the Federation and thegenerality of Nigerians over the team’spoor outing at the Cape TownInternational Challenge at the end of May.

“We are really disturbed. The NFF isnot encouraged by your performance inSouth Africa and you have to work hard

and be committed to a much betteroutput in the qualifying series for the2013 African Youth Championship,which start this month.

“Cases of dogged pursuit of personalinterests and abuse have severally comeout of your camp, and we are not happyabout this. Here at the NFF, our job, ourcommitment and our task is always toraise teams that will make over 160million Nigerians happy with goodperformance on the field of play. You arethe champions of Africa and yet, youwent to South Africa and lost all threegroup stage matches. This isdisheartening.

“The fact that we give all the NationalTeams free hand does not mean that wedon’t know what we are doing. You mustconsider it a privilege to be involved witha project that can give joy to thegenerality of Nigerians,” said Maigari.

The NFF President’s meeting with theFlying Eagles’ crew came against thebackdrop of the team’s upcoming 2013African Youth Championship qualifying

fixture against Tanzania, which first legcomes up in Dar es Salaam on July 28.

Maigari added: “The Flying Eagles is ateam known over the decades for givingjoy to Nigerians through good results.Way back in 1983, the team became thefirst from Nigeria to participate in a FIFAtournament. We cannot afford tobackslide so terribly.”

Responding at the meeting, Coach Obuhthanked the NFF President for hiscandour and pledged that the technicalcrew will raise a team that will do Nigeriaproud not only in the qualifying series,but at the African Youth Championshipslated for Algeria between 16th – 30thMarch, next year.

In a related development, NFF’sDirector of Competitions, Dr. MohammedSanusi said on Wednesday that no playerwould be released from the U-20 NationalTeam’s camp to his club for any match orcompetition until the team successfullyprosecutes the 2013 African YouthChampionship qualifying fixture againstTanzania.

NFF reads riot act toFlying Eagles’ crew

Ibrahim vowsto tag theEsperance net

Yobo ready forArsenal friendly if…Fit again Super Eagles skipper, Joseph Ikpo Yobo, says it would be a

delight for him to be part of the team that will play the prestigeinternational friendly against London Gunners; Arsenal FC, already

scheduled for August 5 in Abuja.Yobo, who is in London at the moment on holidays with his family as well

as trying to sort out the transfer jig-saw between his club; Everton andTurkish top side Fernabahce, however said it would be dependent on whetherhis team would be in pre-season at that time or if the Super Eagles technicalcrew thinks it good for top players to feature in the friendly.

Yobo, who was touted at a point to be on the radar of Arsenal boss, ArseneWenger declared thus: “it would really be nice to play against Arsenal butwe have to wait and see how things will turn out”.

Yobo again said he is disturbed by the rumblings over his move toFernavahce on a permanent basis from Everton, saying he has resignedhimself to the will of God.

“No matter how bad the situation seems, I know it would eventually besorted out the right way”.Meanwhile, Super Eagles boss, StephenOkechukwu Keshi, who departed Tuesday night for South Africa along side,NFF Technical Committee Chairman, Barrister Christopher Green, saidwhile he is not afraid of any team in the draws he is hoping for a favourabledraws on Wednesday.”

No team is too small or too big in Africa and world football, but we mustavoid some big names but if at the end of the day we are drawn against anyof the powerhouses we will have no option but to ensure that we qualify. Wewant a good draw for the team in the interest of the nation”, he said.

Stories by Albert Akota

PAGE 42 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

The Confederation ofAfrican Football (CAF)will proceed with the

draw for the final round ofqualifiers for the Africa Cup ofNations (Afcon) 2013 in SouthAfrica today.

Before the continentalshowpiece, thirty nationsincluding the Ivoirian selectionwill be called to battle over twolegs in the hope of beingamongst those fortunateenough to reach the gathering.

The runner-up of the 28thedition in Gabon andEquatorial Guinea, Côted’Ivoire, was of course exemptfrom the previous rounds(preliminary and first), butmust still make it through thefinal qualifying round.

This question remainsunresolved. If might beimpossible for captain DidierDrogba and teammates to crosspaths with the big boys,following the draw’s chosenregulations, but the factremains that the Elephantscould still face a seriouscontender.

In opting for the allotment ofthe thirty teams into twogroups of different strengths,Côte d’Ivoire would defacto avoid the top teams,members of the first groupwhich they are also in.

Thus Algeria, Angola,Burkina Faso, Cameroon,Gabon, Ghana, Guinea,Equatorial-Guinea, Mali,Morocco, Nigeria, Sudan,Tunisia and Zambia do not poseany threat to the ambitions ofthe Ivoirians to participate inthe Afcon 2013.

But on the other hand, it isnot impossible that Senegaland to a lesser degree, theDemocratic Republic of Congo(DRC), both members of thesecond group, could face Côted’Ivoire.

The Senegalese team is the The Elephants Of Ivory Coast TrainingJoel Obi

Mario Balotelli

Super Eagles midfielderJoel Obi has returned totraining after several

weeks on the sidelines due toinjury, his Italian club InterMilan announced.

Obi, who missed the SuperEagles qualifiers in June due tothe muscle injury, trained onhis own under the guidance ofInter Milan’s head of medical,Professor Franco Combi, and heis expected to be fully later thismonth.

The Inter youngster got hisbreakthrough three seasons agounder Coach Jose Mourinho,who threw him into the fray.

The midfielder played 27games with 11 starts lastseason.

He is now looking forward toplay a bigger role in Inter in thecoming season.

Manchester City and Italystar Mario Balotelli toldItalian press yesterday

that he will take a paternity testafter his former fiancee claimedthat she was pregnant with hischild.

Raffaella Fico, a 24-year-oldtelevision celebrity andunderwear model, toldWednesday’s edition of theweekly Chi that she wasexpecting Balotelli’s baby.

“Once I have proof of mypaternity, I will assume fullresponsibility,” said the 21-year-old Balotelli in a statement.

“I learnt from third parties afew days ago that Raffaella wasexpecting. That is why I decidedto contact her and it was onlythen that she told me it was true.

“I am very disappointed I don’tthink it’s normal to not be toldanything until the fourth monthof a pregnancy.”

The couple’s 18-monthrelationship frequently madeheadlines in the Italian mediaprior to their split in April.

more serious opponent on papergiven the quality of its players,although the DRC itself is farfrom easy prey.

The other potential opponentsfor Sabri Lamouchi’s men arethe Central African Republic(CAR), who defeated six-timeAfrican champion Egypt, Niger,

Botswana, Uganda, Togo, CapeVerde, Ethiopia, Liberia,Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone, Libya,Malawi and Mozambique. According to expectations, theElephants should be able tohandle these thirteen otherteams.

After the draw on Thursday 5

July in Johannesburg, the firstleg of fixtures is expected totake place this comingSeptember, with the return lega month later. After the doubleconfrontation, the 15 winnerswill join South Africa, the hostnation and thus automaticqualifier.

Balotelli take paternitytest after baby claim

Maurice Cooreman

Warri Wolves’ coach, MauriceCooreman has been hospitalised andwill now miss the Matchday 33

Nigeria Premier League (NPL) game withDolphins in Port Harcourt.

The veteran gaffer took ill on Tuesdayevening and has now been diagnosed withtyphoid and malaria.

“I was preparing for the trip to PortHarcourt (for the game against Dolphins)when I suddenly started sweating profusely. Iwas rushed to the hospital and the doctors saidI have typhoid and malaria,” Cooreman said.

The 69-year-old described the condition asserious, explaining that he would not be inPort Harcourt for the big game against thereigning NPL champions.

“I have never been this ill before. I hope Irecover in time but there is no way I will be inPort Harcourt for the Dolphins’ match. I amstill in hospital and I am very weak and illright now,” he explained.

The Belgian however insisted that the teamwould not miss him with his assistant EdemaFuludu set to take the reins.

“I won’t be missed because everyone knowswhat to do. The boys have trained well andmy assistants are capable. They are allmotivated,” he said.

Cooremanhospitalized

Obiresumestraining

AFCON 2013:Who will battlethe Elephants?

PAGE 43PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Everton have signed former Rangers forward Steven Naismith. Steven Naismith joins formerRangers team-mate Nikica Jelavic at Goodison Park. Naismith, 25, is one a number of players tohave been made available on a free transfer after he objected to his contract from the liquidated

Rangers to the newco company.Several clubs were reported to be interested, but Everton always looked the most likely destination

and he has now signed a four-year deal at Goodison Park.“We are delighted that Steven has agreed to join us,” Everton boss David Moyes told the club’s

official website. “He will be an excellent addition to the players we already have and we look forwardto him being fit and ready to play at the start of the season.

Naismith added: “‘It is a great honour to be joining a club of Everton’s wonderful history and to havethe chance to play with such a talented group of players in the world’s best league - the BarclaysPremier League - in front of such a passionate.

Mario Balotelli

Asamoah Gyan will finallyquit Sunderland for theUnited Arab Emirates in a

£7million switch.The Ghana striker, 26, is

expected to seal a £20m, three-year deal with Al-Ain in the next48 hours. Gyan joined the UAEchamps 10 months ago in a loanthat netted the Black Cats £6m.

They will recoup the rest of aclub-record £13m outlay whenthe £130,000-a-week deal goesthrough.Asamoah Gyan

Oscar Cardozo

Juventus have confirmedthat Brazilian defenderLucio will undergo a medical

with the club on Wednesday aheadof completing his move to the SerieA champions.

Lucio won the ChampionsLeague with Inter Milan Lucio, 34,had been linked with Fenerbahceand Malaga after it wasannounced this week he hadparted company with Inter Milanby mutual consent.

But Juventus are closing in onhis signature, releasing astatement that read: “Today is theday for Lucio to undergo a medical.

“The Brazilian defender hasarrived in Turin this morning toundergo the appropriate medicalexaminations at the Sessant Clinicof Fornaca.”

It is reported that Lucio, who joinedInter from Bayern Munich in thesummer of 2009, will sign a two-year contract with the Old Lady.

Napoli are looking to pushahead with their move forChelsea midfielder Raul

Meireles after seeking talks withthe player’s agent.

Meireles, who has three yearsleft on his existing deal at StamfordBridge, has been identified as a keysummer transfer target for Napoliboss Walter Mazzarri.

Mazzarri’s summer budget hasbeen boosted by the sale of EzequielLavezzi, who has joined free-spending French side PSG for£20.8m.

However, Italian newspaperTuttosport claims the Neopolitanclub is unwilling to offer more than£5.6m for Meireles - less than halfthe amount Chelseapaid Liverpool for his services lastAugust.

The season is over. Clubs arecounting their blessing as well aslosses and would like to makeamends and even beef up theirsquads where noticeable lapsesexist. And the transfer market isagog barely 24 hours after majorEuropean leagues dropped thecurtain.And so to keep abreast with latestrumours, we begin daily doses ofmovements within the marketboth for players and coaches like.

Transfer

Lucio signsfor Juventus

Napoli push forChelsea star

AL-Aintable £7mfor Asamoah

Andrea Pirlo believes Mario Balotelli would be an ideal summersigning for Juventus, claiming the Manchester City strikerwould cause no disruption to the dressing room.

Mario Balotelli and Andrea Pirlo impressed during the EuropeanChampionship. Pirlo and Balotelli were influential in Italy’s recentEuro 2012 campaign, as the pair steered the Azzurri to within onevictory of their first continental title in 44 years.

After numerous heated encounters with City boss Roberto Mancinilast season, Balotelli’s future at the club has been brought intoquestion. However, following their largely successful time togetherwith the national team, Pirlo insists he would gladly welcomeBalotelli should he move to Juventus.

Meanwhile, Pirlo also revealed he hopes to continue playing forItaly through to the 2014 World Cup, on the condition that CoachCesare Prandelli remains at the helm.

Pirlo tells Balotelli tojoin Juventus

NaismithjoinsEverton

Everton have been given thegreen light to bid for OscarCardozo after Benfica

slapped a £16m price tag on theParaguay international.

Portuguese newspaper A Bolareports that Cardozo’s agent PedroAldave and club president LuisFilipe Vieira met to discuss the

forward’s future, with Vieirasubsequently agreeing to allowCardozo to move for a fee of £16m.

The forward, who moved tothe Estadio da Luz fromArgentinean club Newell’s OldBoys in 2007, is on the radar ofa host of European sides afterscoring 57 league goals over thecourse of the last three seasons.

Everton boss David Moyes isexpected to pursue anotherforward after seeing Croatianforward Mario Mandzukic opt tojoin Bayern Munich.

However, he will have to act fastto secure Cardozo’s signature,with Fenerbahce, Galatasaray,PSG and an unnamed PremierLeague side also tracking theParaguayan.

Tottenham up for OscarAndre Villas-Boas wants to

launch his Spurs reign by signingBrazilian boy wonder Oscar.

But they are reluctant to meetthe £20million asking price for theattacking midfielder, who is seenas a replacement for Luka Modric.

Oscar, 20, is one of the game’s

most exciting young talentshaving scored a hat-trick in lastyear’s FIFA Under-20 World Cupfinal against Portugal.

He almost signed for QPR inJanuary but his application for aUK work permit was rejected.

Now Spurs are looking to hijackthe deal and are confident Oscarcapped six times at senior level forBrazil will get the green light tomove to the Premier League.

But Spurs must agree a fee withhis Brazilian club Internacional,who have rejected one bid and areholding out for £20m.

Oscar cost them just £4.85mfrom Brazilian rivals Sao Paolo lastyear but Internacional are readyto dig their heels.

The player first came to Villas-Boas’ attention when he was stillin charge of Chelsea last season.

AVB will be part of a four-mantransfer-committee when he isconfirmed as Harry Redknapp’ssuccessor.

The £30m-rated Modric is setto leave White Hart Lane for RealMadrid.

Everton bid £16m for Benfica star

Hugo Lloris

Tottenham must cough up £16million by July 15 if they wantto land France captain Hugo Lloris. The North London clubannounced Andre Villas-Boas as their boss has been linked

with the Lyon keeper who will be allowed to leave this summer.But Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas insists any team wanting

25-year-old Lloris must splash the cash before his deadline.Lloris was previously a target for Arsenal and Aulas said: “I

have deep respect for Hugo the man and the player.“Hugo said he would like to leave if he had an opportunity to

play in one of the five biggest European clubs.Aulas could replace Lloris with his Lyon understudy Remy

Vercoutre, 32.He added: “We must first look at what we have at home before

looking elsewhere. This is certainly the president’s vision.“In the case of replacement of Hugo, Remy must express the

values that I mentioned and skills.

Lloris is yours for £16m,Lyon tell Tottenham

Manchester United andChelsea are set to be in atug of war for Belgium

star Axel Witsel this summer,after Benfica revealed that theyare ready to cash-in on histalents.

The young player, who signedfor Benfica from Standard Liegelast summer, showcased his skillsduring an impressive debutseason in Portugal and is nowreportedly being pursued by awhole host of top European clubs.

Benfica are reportedly readyto sanction the sale of Witselwithin the next few months,however, the Portuguese side aredemanding £20m for theBelgium international morethan three times the £6.3m theypaid Standard for his services lastJuly.

Chelsea is apparentlyparticularly keen to incorporatethe young central midfielder,who sparked controversy in2009 following a recklesschallenge that resulted inAnderlecht defender MarcilWasilewski breaking a leg.

New Chelsea boss Roberto DiMatteo is on the hunt for somefresh new talent, but is havingto face-off against Unitedmanager Sir Alex Ferguson, whois reported to be a long-termadmirer of the combativemidfielder, according to Dutchnewspaper De Telegraaf.

However, the two PremierLeague giants will have to fightoff competition from Spanishchampions Real Madrid, withBernabeu boss Jose Mourinhokeen to strengthen his midfieldbefore the start of next season.

Chelsea,Unitedbattle forWitsel

PAGE 44 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

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(BOARD SECRETARY)

CHANGE OF NAMEI, FORMERLY KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MISSTIJJANI MUINAT, NOW WISH TO BE KNOWN ANDADDRESSED AS MRS. ABDULRASHEED MUINAT.ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS REMAIN VALID. NYSCAND GENERAL PUBLIC SHOULD PLEASE TAKE NOTE.

CHANGE OF NAMEI, FORMERLY KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MISS.SAKINAT IBRAHIM, NOW WISH TO BE KNOWN ANDADDRESSED AS MRS. SAKINAT IBRAHIMABDULKADIR. ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS REMAINVALID. NYSC AND GENERAL PUBLIC SHOULD PLEASETAKE NOTE.

Victor Moses

Victor Moses still wanted Chelsea have steppedup a bid to land Victor Moses as they are nowwilling to add a player to the cash they want to

splash on the Wigan man.Wigan are demanding £12 million for Victor Moses,

while Chelsea are said to value him at £6 million, but‘The Blues’, who just released Cote d’Ivoireinternational Solomon Kalou, could now add thetalented playmaker Josh McEachran to the cash tohelp smooth out the deal, Metro of London has reported.

The Nigeria international winger and his agenthave not hidden the intention of Moses to leave theDW Stadium.

The 21-year-old star, who played all 38 EnglishPremier League matches last season, has so far turneddown an offer by Wigan to double his weekly wage of10,000 pounds a week.

He still has a year left on his contract but will stillcommand a transfer at the end of the deal as he is stillvery much below 24 years.

His agent Tony Finnigan said he would do his bestto see Victor Moses at Stamford Bridge.

Chelseaadd playerto Mosesswoop

Shooting Stars recorded a big home win yesterdaywhen they defeated Akwa United 2-0 in a NigeriaPremier League tie.

The home win has thus catapulted ‘The OluyoleWarriors’ to fifth place provisionally on 48 points, sameas Akwa United, who are below in the standings as theyhave scored fewer goals than their closest rivals.

It was on a day that the famous Ibadan club lost oneof their all-time greats Sam Ojebode, who died after abattle with lung cancer.

Ojebode led Shooting Stars to become the firstNigerian club to win a major international competitionwhen in 1976 they clinched the Africa Cup winnersCup.

A minute’s silence was observed in memory of the

fallen star before the start of the second half. Fit-again Moses Ogaga gave hosts 3SC the lead after

he was set up by the lively winger Tony Edjomarigwein the 25th minute.

Experienced defender Mutiu Adegoke conjuredanother magical free kick goal three minutes from theinterval to double the advantage of the home team.

Akwa put up a big fight to reduce the tally, but theywere contained by a defence marshalled by stand-inskipper Sola Adeboye, Samuel Olabisi and younggoalkeeper Ema Daniel.

The combination of Ismaila Gata and Ogagathreatened Akwa right from the second minute whenGata’s shot crashed against the post with goalkeeperJohn Dosu well beaten.

3SC dazzle Akwa United

Andre Ayew

Andre Ayew hasreturned to trainingfor Olympique

Marseille Ghana andMarseille attacker AndreAyew has returned toaction after recoveringfrom a shoulder operationthat kept him out of actionfor three months.

The 22-year-old trained

fully with the first team ofhis French club onTuesday the second day oftheir pre-season trainingafter missing Monday’sopening session.

His return to full fitnessis a massive boost for bothclub and country with theleague starting nextmonth in France while

Ghana has important2013 Nations Cupqualifiers in October.

The injury kept him outof key World Cup qualifiersagainst Zambia andLesotho but with the long-standing shoulder problemout of the way Ayew cannow concentrate onplaying for the Black Stars.

His missing of Monday’straining session sparkedconcerns but it hasemerged that he want inLyon to perform tests onthe injury to see whetherhe has fully recovered.

Ayew, 22, went underthe knife in April with aview to being fit for thestart of the new season.

The Ghanainternational has beenplaying through the painsince picking up theproblem at the AfricanNations Cup in January.

But it was decided theoperation must go aheadbefore the end of last seasonto ensure that he is fit forthe new term.

Ayew’s return from injury massive boost for Ghana

Zambia coach HerveRenard has admittedthat there are some

names he would like toavoid in the 2013 AFCONqualifying draw today.

Renard said in Lusaka onthe eve of the draw inJohannesburg that theywere also some big teamsthat were also hoping toavoid Zambia.

“There is some bignames to avoid, you knowthem, but some teams arenot so comfortable to playagainst us so it is the sameagainst everybody,”Renard said prior toleaving for Lilongwe withZambia, where hisexperimental side will faceMalawi in a friendly onFriday.

Champions in 1968 and1974 and northernneighbours DR Congo gointo Thursday night’sdraw as one of the 15unseeded that Zambiamight be drawn against.

Renard added that theAfrican champions neededto show humilitywhatever outcome thedraw produce.

“We have to be carefulsometimes,” theFrenchman warned.

“We can draw one teamand think it will be veryeasy but it won’t be this isbecause in football youhave to be very humbleand to be ready because itis 180 minutes to getqualification for AfricanCup.

“We have to be in SouthAfrica in 2013 it’s anobligation and it is veryimportant to continue onour dynamic run.”

Zambia wants to avoid‘some big names’

Zambia coach HerveRenard

Authorities in Senegalsay they arewrapping up plans to

present a bid to host the2019 Africa Cup ofNations, 20 years after theshowpiece was held in theWest African nation andwon by Ivory Coast.

The sports ministry saysit is envisaging to co-hostthe tournament with closeneighbours Gambia,which has never hostedthe finals of the Africa Cupof Nations.

Senegal is yet to officiallysubmit an application,however, sports minister ElHadj Malick Gackou toldreporters that he would soonforward their papers to CAF.

“Senegal is planning tohost the 2019 Africa Cupof Nations and one of thecities of the country wewill be developing for theevent is Zinguinchor. Itwould be among the citiesto host a group during thecompetition,” Gackou said.

Zinguinchor is Senegal’s

second largest city aftercapital Dakar and the chieftown of the Casamancearea, where a separatist

movement has beenfighting for independenceor autonomy of the regionsince 1982.

Senegal bids tohost AFCON 2019

Papa Cisse

PAGE 45PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

\A/ Xavi's father has claimed Iker Casillas had problems with Jose Mourinho because of

his friendship with the Barcelona midfielder and has revealed the tensions that existed in

the national team.

\B/ Manchester United have applied to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange as they

seek to raise $100 million to reduce the club's debts through sale of shares.

\C/ Juventus have confirmed that Lucio will undergo a medical with the club on

Wednesday ahead of completing his move to the Serie A champions.

\D/ England raises two places to fourth in the Fifa world rankings despite their quarter-

final exit from Euro 2012.

\E/ Former Ryder Cup pair Barry Lane and Paul Broadhurst has both qualified for the Open

Championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

\F/ Ex-drug cheat David Millar is named in Team Britain road cycling team alongside the

likes of Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins.

\G/ Ricky Burns and Kevin Mitchell will put aside their personal friendship when Burns

defends his WBO title in Glasgow.

PICTORIAL

PAGE 46 PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

We want Van Persieat all costs, saysWenger

a disappointing UEFA EURO2 0 1 2 .

Wenger, though, knows justhow important Van Persie, 28,is to the club, having netted 37goals in all competitions as theGunners eventually securedthird place. Writing in his blogfor Eurosport, Wenger said: “Wewant to keep Robin van Persie atall costs, because we depend onhim offensively. I have alwayssupported him even in thehardest times, and I hope he willend his career at Arsenal.”

Giroud scored 21 goals in 36league appearances asMontpellier claimed their firstLigue 1 title last season, and willnow aim to make an instant

Arsene Wenger maintainsArsenal must keep hold ofCaptain Robin van

Persie ”at all costs” as they lookto resolve the Dutchman’s long-term future ahead of the new

Barclays Premier Leagueseason. The Gunners may havealready moved to bring in freshfaces Olivier Giroud and LukasPodolski, but there is still workto be done to convince Van Persie

to extend his contract past nextsummer.

Italian champions Juventushave made their interest clear,while Premier League winnersManchester City are said to beready to put down a £20m offerwith more than £200,000-per-week wages for thethe Netherlands striker, who isnow away on holiday following

impact in England as theGunners look to deliver a firsttrophy since 2005. Wenger is inno doubt the 25-year-old, signedfor a reported £13m deal, willfit right in at EmiratesStadium.

We want to keep Robin vanPersie at all costs, because wedepend on him offensively.

“I have known Olivier Giroudfor some time,” the Frenchmanadded. ”The first time I saw him,I found he had somethingintelligent and dangerous. Ialways said he could score goalsand assist his partners.

“Our game is based oncooperation between theplayers in the offensive phaseand he will integrate easily. Idon’t like simple goalscorers,they must also add to thecollective. He is good in the airwhich is rare. He is quitecomplete and has a great roomfor improvement.”

The Gunners are now likelyto move to offload some of theirfringe players - especially inattack, where Moroccoi n t e r n a t i o n a l M a r o u a n eChamakh, Mexicoforward Carlos Vela andDenmark striker NicklasBendtner could all depart.

Costa Rica forward JoelCampbell looks set for anotherloan spell, this time at Spanishside Real Betis. The 20-year-oldwho joined the Gunners fromhometown club DeportivoSaprissa in 2011, but spent lastseason in Ligue 1 with Lorient -said on Fox TV: “It is a greatopportunity for me to grow. I amgoing to the world’s best league,and I want to play. I want toshow what I am capable of.”

Robin Van Perise

“We want tokeep Robin vanPersie at allcosts, becausewe depend onhim offensively

Dimitar Berbatov

“I don’tthink ItreatedDimitarunfairly

Manchester Unitedmanager Sir AlexF e r g u s o n

insists Dimitar Berbatov hasnot been unfairly treated at theclub, praising the “fantastictalent” of the striker whom heexpects to be involved in theirpre-season tour.

The Bulgaria internationalhas been linked with a moveaway from Old Trafford forseveral months, having fallendown the pecking order lastseason. There weremurmurings of discontent fromthe 31-year-old himself, whoscored nine times in just 21appearances in the previouscampaign despite being theleague’s joint top scorer theyear before.

But Ferguson has defendedhis handling of Berbatov. “Idon’t think I treated Dimitarunfairly, but he can feeldisappointed that he didn’t getmore football,” he told MUTV.“He’s a fantastic footballer. Itwasn’t a great season for himlast season, partly because Isettled more with WayneRooney and DannyWelbeck...and Chicharito(Javier Hernandez).

“He’s a fantastic talent,” theboss added. “Nothing hashappened with Dimitar andhe’ll join the tour to SouthAfrica and China.”

I don’t think I treatedDimitar unfairly.

Berbatov not treatedunfairly, says Ferguson

United’s pre-season tourbegins with two games in SouthAfrica against AmaZulu FCand Ajax Cape Town beforethey move on to China to faceShanghai Shenhua, Norwaywhere they will playValerenga, Sweden to take onBarcelona and finishing inGermany against Hannover9 6 .

The traveling party has yet tobe confirmed - as have shirtnumbers for the majority of theUnited squad. Only three havebeen confirmed so far with wingerAntonio Valencia requesting theiconic seven shirt - worn by clubgreats such as George Best, BryanRobson, Eric Cantona, DavidBeckham and Cristiano Ronaldo- after it became availablefollowing Michael Owen’sdeparture when his contractexpired this summer.

New signings Nick Powelland Shinji Kagawa will wear 25and 26 respectively.

There could be some newadditions to that squad list,however, as Ferguson isworking on bringing in at leasta couple more players beforethe start of the season. When

asked if he is hoping to makefurther signings Fergusonadded: “Yes, there’s apossibility. We’re working onone or two things, but there’s

nothing really to tell you to behonest.

“We always try to get ourwork done at the end of theseason we spent a good deal of

time sorting the deal withShinji and we’d agreed a dealwith Nick Powell before theplay-offs which was a goodmove by us because the boy hadan outstanding final atWembley.

“When you don’t get dealsdone immediately and you’renegotiating with a club over along period, then you can’texpect to just snap your fingersand get it done

PAGE 47PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

Alex Ferguson

Daniel Sturridge

Ricky Burns Kevin Mitchell

gaming and Twitter.“We’ve known each

other growing up in thefight game. Once we stepin the ring it’s time to getthe business head on,” saidScotland’s Burns.

Mitchell added: “We geton well but our jobs are onthe line.”

The 27-year-old

Englishman went off the railsfor a spell after losing for thefirst time in his professionalcareer, to Michael Katsidis ina world title bid at Upton Parktwo years ago.

But 14 months later, inJuly last year, he put thefirst blemish on JohnMurray’s record and is inno mood to waste this latest

opportunity to become aworld champion.

“I took the fight, got beatand I basically went on thedrink for eight months andblew all my money,”admitted Mitchell.

“This is my last titlechance. I’m going to beatmyself into shape toprepare for it properly.

Chelsea striker, Daniel Sturridge, is being treatedfor viral meningitis. The 22-year-old hasbeen selected in Stuart Pearce’s Great Britain

Olympic squad, but was taken ill over the weekendand had tests at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington,London.

Sturridge said: “I am starting to feel a lot better andI am optimistic about being able to make the Olympics.

“I am fortunate to have received many wishes ofsupport and I want to thank everybody who has sentmessages.”

He added: “The Chelsea medical team have beenclosely monitoring everything and they and thedoctors and nurses at St Mary’s Hospital have beenoutstanding throughout.”

Team GB are due to play their first game at theOlympics on 26 July.

People can recover from viral meningitis - a lesssevere strain of meningitis - within a fortnight.

Chelsea boss Roberto Di Matteo said: “Daniel hasviral meningitis. I have spoken to him and he feelsbetter now. Hopefully he gets well ASAP.

If Sturridge fails to recover in time for the Olympics,Pearce can chose a replacement from one of fourstandby players who will be named on 25 July.

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale, 22, has alreadypulled out of the squad because of a back injury.

They face Senegal in their opening match, beforeplaying United Arab Emirates on 29 July andUruguay on 1 August.

Sturridge was left out of England’s Euro 2012 squaddespite impressing in the friendly defeat by theNetherlands when Pearce was in temporary charge.

He scored 13 goals in 43 games for Chelsea last season.

Sturridge suffering from viral meningitis

Ricky Burns andKevin Mitchell willput their personal

friendship to the side whenBurns defends his WBOworld title in Glasgow on22 September.

Essex lightweightMitchell and Burns oncesparred together and keepin touch using online

Ricky, Mitchell battle for WBO bout

David Millar

David Millar has been named in Team BritainOlympic road cycling team for London 2012. The35-year-old Scot served a two-year ban in 2004

after he admitted taking performance-enhancing drugagent EPO.

Cavendish has already made it clear that he considersthe Olympic road race his priority, at the expense of theTour de France if necessary.

Wiggins faces the tougher schedule: a few stages intothe Tour he remains the favourite to win it, but he mustride the road race in support of Cavendish within a weekof its conclusion and then go for time-trial gold a fewdays later.

Millar is eligible to take part after the British OlympicAssociation (BOA) rescinded its lifetime ban for athletesconvicted of doping.

Mark Cavendish, Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome andIan Stannard complete Britain’s five-man team forLondon.

Britain have not won a medal in men’s road cyclingat the Olympics since Atlanta 1996 - with bronzes forMax Sciandri in the road race and Chris Boardman inthe time trial and have never won Olympic road racegold.

Millar, the Malta-born Scot was stripped of his 2003World Elite Time Trial title following the discovery oftwo syringes containing traces of the blood-boosting drugin his home in Biarritz, France.

Unitedin £64mUSsharesaleManchester United has applied for

flotation on the New York stockexchange as the club’s owners try to

raise almost £64million.The Premier League giant, owned by the US

Glazer family, last night filed documents withthe Securities and Exchange Commission,intending to sell shares to reduce the club’sdebt.

The club was almost listed on the Singaporestock exchange last September for£600million. The move was delayed becauseof volatility in the markets.

Manchester United has a global following of659 million people and raked in £246.7millionthrough sponsorship, merchandise and mobilenetworks over the last three years.

But in recent years the club has been weigheddown with heavy debts.

The prospectus said: “We intend to use all ofour net proceeds from this offering to reduceour indebtedness.”

Millar joins TeamBritain roadcycling

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Published by Peoples Media Limited, 35, Ajose Adeogun Street, 1st Floor Peace Park Plaza,Utako, Abuja. Lagos Office: No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos,Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 803 606 3308. e-mail: contact@peoplesdaily-online.com;pmlnewsdesk@gmail.com ISSN: 2141– 6141

THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012

QQQQQUOUOUOUOUOTTTTTABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QABLE QUOUOUOUOUOTETETETETEPlease, this thing that we are doing, keep itto yourself, otherwise you will make things

difficult for us... You will make it difficultbecause somebody just called me now and

said that we said we are going to address it...— Farouk Lawan to Otedola— Farouk Lawan to Otedola— Farouk Lawan to Otedola— Farouk Lawan to Otedola— Farouk Lawan to Otedola

Federer,Djokovicmeet in semis

Nigeria, of late, has had tocontend with corruption,violence, executive,

legislative and even judiciallawlessness. But none of thesecompares to the current siege weare put under in the form ofterrorism, spearheaded byJama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awatiWal-Jihad (People Committed tothe Propagation of the Prophet’sTeachings and Jihad).

The sect is locally known asBoko Haram, Hausa for “westerneducation/civilization issacrilege”. While Boko Haramcontinues to kill and causewanton destruction, the federalgovernment of Nigeria, headedby Mr. Goodluck Jonathan,appears to be totally clueless,helpless, lacking in imagination.

Boko Haram, according toWikipedia, became active around2002, in Borno state and itsideology is basically religiousfundamentalism. The founder isbelieved to be late MohammedYusuf, extra judicially killed bythe Nigerian police in theircustody in July, 2009. Hisreplacement is Abubakar Shekauwhose leadership has beennothing short of bloody. The manseems to enjoy bloodletting. Thedeath of Yusuf has seen a seriousescalation in the Boko Haraminsurgency in the north of thecountry and placed a dampeneron the sincerity of the Nigerianauthorities about bringing to anend the insurgency. Every seniorfigure in the sect arrested haseither mysteriously died incustody or disappeared afterarrest.

What is Boko Haram’s goal?.A terrorist, as defined by theConcise Oxford Dictionary, is “aperson who uses violence andintimidation in the pursuit ofpolitical gains”. And terrorismrefers to the “use of violence andthreats to intimidate or coerceespecially for political purposes.”We can safely infer that terroristsare politically motivated, but usereligion as a vehicle to drive theiragenda.

Terrorists who claim Islam astheir religion have alwayspredicated their misguidedactions on few verses in theQur’an but mostly use the hadithsto justify their evil agenda. Oneis Sura 61:10-12 which says a‘’jihad is the best method ofearning (blessing), both spiritualand temporal. If victory is won,there is enormous booty of acountry, which cannot be

to force their code of conduct andprinciple on everybody withintheir sphere of influence.

Fundamentalists can befound in every religion, althoughin varying degrees. InChristendom, you have varioussects. Some very extreme. Forexample, the National LiberationFront of Tripura is an explicitlyChristian terrorist group,forcibly converting people, andso were the Christian ScienceMovement, the Latter Day Saints(Mormon), etc. Others might nothave been violent but they brokeaway from the mainstream andpropagated strange ideologies.

Islamic fundamentalists are adifferent ball game; they seek topropagate their brand of Islamforcibly. They do not acceptneither do they respectmainstream Muslims. Check outthe Taliban in Afghanistan; theyseek to impose their puritanicalway of life on all else. In Sura 2:256,the Qur’an states: “Let there be nocompulsion in religion”, but thefundamentalists completelyignore Allah’s command.

At Hebrews 12:14, the Bibleteaches: “Follow peace with allmen and holiness, without whichno man shall see God”. Also atJohn 18:10-11, during the arrestof Jesus by armed men, we seeHim rebuking Peter, one of hisdisciples, for using his sword toslice off a man’s ear. Jesus toldhim that “he who lives by thesword shall die by the sword.” Itis therefore amazing when I hearor read that very senior churchfigures in Nigeria, have called outtheir followers to retaliate and killMuslims because of thecriminality of Boko Haram. I ask:Which Muslims? Is it the poor“mai suya or mai shai” on thestreet or the cowardly butdangerous, faceless terrorist thathides and blows children andwomen up? If you succeed inkilling your peaceful Muslimneighbours, will that end thereign of terror represented byBoko Haram?

Make no mistake, I am asangry as the next man about thesenseless wasting of lives and

Six-time winner RogerFederer will playdefending champion

Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals at Wimbledon after bothmen breezed through their last-eight encounters yesterday.

Federer beat Russia'sMikhail Youzhny 6-1 6-2 6-2in an hour and 32 minutes onCentre Court.

Djokovic beat FlorianMayer 6-4 6-1 6-4 in an hourand 44 minutes on Court One.

The 27th seed, playing inhis first Grand Slam quarter-final, posed Tsonga problems ina tense encounter on Court One,but the flamboyant fifth seedeventually prevailed and willplay either Andy Murray orDavid Ferrer in the last four.

It is the sixth time in the lasteight Grand Slamtournaments that third seedFederer and top seed Djokovichave met in the final four.

Djokovic has won four ofthose encounters, althoughthey have never met on thegrass of Wimbledon before.

Djokovic, a five-time majorwinner, said: "I am lookingforward to it. It's always apleasure playing him. He is agreat champion.

Federer, 30, earned arecord 33rd Grand Slam semi-final berth and moved closer toa record-equalling seventhWimbledon title with a one-sided win.

Federer showed no sign ofthe back ailment thatprompted him to seektreatment during the first setof his fourth-round matchagainst Xavier Malisse.

The 16-time major winnertook the second set in exactlythe same time and sealedvictory on his fourth matchpoint with a deft angled volley.

Djokovic did not need to beat his brilliant best to dispatch31st seed Mayer, who labouredto stay in the encounter butnever looked like troubling hisopponent.

www.peoplesdaily-online.com

. . . putting the people first

equalled to any other source ofincome. If there is defeat or death,there is everlasting paradise…’’Sura 47 has Allah commandingMuslims to smite the neck ofanyone who does not accept theteachings of Islam.

What those people will not,however, tell you is the contextin which the sura is written. Iknow of several verses in theBible, which Christian crusaders,between 1095 and 1291,misapplied to wreak havoc in theMiddle Ages otherwise known asDark Ages. There is also the issueof 72 virgins. There is nowherein the Qu’ran or hadiths where72 is mentioned. Several Islamicscholars including the AmericanLezzley Hazleton have disprovedthis. The word translated asvirgin is houri or ‘dark-eyedbeauty’ and was mentioned 4times in the Qu’ran and it couldhave as well been a sign of purity.Also studies show most of thesecommandments were written inthe hadiths at a time when Islamneeded to spread and the entireArabia was inhabited by pagans.Therefore, Muslims wereencouraged to fight to protectthemselves and to spread theirreligion. Of course, cowards andbigots misapply these Suras tobomb innocent women, childrenand defenseless men in churchesand marketplaces in even timesof relative peace.

Fundamentalists basicallylatch onto a set of religious quotes,often out of context, in an attempt

destruction of properties, but Iunderstand that the enemies arenot my Muslim neighbours. If Imust fight, I understand from 2Cor. 10:14 that ‘’the weapons ofour warfare are not carnal butspiritual”.

Note that fundamentalistsassume they are doing God afavour. At John 16:2b Jesus toldhis disciples ‘’a time shall comewhen whosoever kills you willbelieve he is doing God a service.”No God will ever ask people to killfor him. Those so-called men ofGod calling for war are notspeaking for Jesus; they are ontheir own.

I was a victim in one of Kano’sreligious conflagrations 21 yearsago. While I do not supportreligious violence, I make bold tosay that what we currently faceis not mere religious skirmishing;we are at war with terrorists andterrorists the world over arebrutal. Their end game is politicaldomination. You may ask whytarget churches? The answer issimple: to provoke Christians totake it out on Muslims, therebycausing mayhem. Terrorists fearneither God nor respect religion.Their aim is strictly political andeconomic domination.

Rather than engage in pettyfights as Muslims and Christians,it is pertinent we call on thefederal government, with asecurity budget of N1trn in itskitty, to ensure our lives aretruly secured. I recall thatduring the OBJ years, someChristian leaders alleged that ‘Alquaeda’ was in Nigeria,specifically around Bauchi andPlateau states, training would beterrorists. But the governmentturned a deaf ear. We also recallthat before the recent bombingsin Zaria and Kaduna, securitywas abruptly withdrawn fromthe affected churches, hoursbefore the attacks, despite protestsby the church leaders. What isthe government hiding from us?

My advice to fellow Muslims,especially from the North, is forus to foster better understandingwith our Christian brothers. Letus stand united and show thosecowards that we will not let thempush us into a senseless religiouswar. And to my Christiancompatriots, be sober, bevigilant, for our adversary, thedevil, moves around like aroaring lion, seeking whom todevour. (1 Peter 5:8)

Ayobami Oyalowo is ontwitter @Ayourb

Late Boko Haram leader,Mohammed Yusuf

Roger Federer

Why do you have to killin God’s name?

Ayobami Oyalowo

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